Star Wars Rebels Review: “Through Imperial Eyes” + Rebels Recon. What Did You Think?
After arguably two of the best episodes of the series, Star Wars: Rebels follows up with yet another great episode. This episode is Kallus-centered and we get indications of where his story is going. Is Kallus outed as Fulcrum? Does Kallus get executed on the spot if he is, in fact, outed? Read more to find out!
SPOILERS BELOW!!!!!!!!!!!!
What worked for me:
I’ve always loved the character Kallus, which essentially stems from the fact that I used to rock the same exact Wolverine sideburns he does. That being said, it was the episode “The Honorable Ones” where his character really shined and revealed that he was more than a cold hearted Imperial. Kallus continues his help as Fulcrum, with his clever ways that continue to make the character likable in this episode…I just pray he makes it past this season. Something tells me he’s not. *tear*
- Thrawn
Thrawn has been holding back most of this season playing the long chess game of taking out the Rebels and we are starting to see his plan finally come to life. It was also nice to see him in action handling threats with ease. Thrawn now knows who Kallus is and I am scared to DEATH for Kallus. Something tells me that major consequences are going to happen at the end of this season regarding Thrawn and the Rebel cell he is chasing.
- AP-5 having as much screen time as Chopper
My love for this droid is known around here and it was nice to see that he’s not becoming the scantiest crew member of the Ghost. Usually Chopper is the one who gets to be the focus of these rescue missions, but AP-5 has stepped up as well in that regard. I know I keep saying it, but I just find that the writers get the perfect balance of humor with his character that is often times overused with Chopper.
What didn’t work for me:
- Heroes as Stormtroopers…I’ve never…seen that….before.
I’ve gotten a lot of flack for complaining about this in the past, but it’s something that I’ve seen so many times on Rebels that it’s gotten old. Was there any other way for the heroes to get saved without them dressing as Stormtroopers? Probably not. It’s essentially a nitpick on a truly great episode.
Quick Hitters:
- It was nice seeing Colonel Yularen back being voiced by Tom Kane. Bringing back all those Clone Wars feels.
- I had no idea what that oval black ball was in A New Hope when Tarkin was sitting at table with his crew. I guess I know it’s a holoprojector of some kind now. Am I the only one who didn’t know/missed this one?
This was a very entertaining and suspenseful episode that I wasn’t expecting. I was worried sick for Kallus for most of the episode, followed by relief that quickly vanished when Thrawn revealed he knows that Fulcrum is Kallus. I pray that Kallus escapes with his life, but I’m not counting on it.
As always, I look forward to reading all of your thoughts on the episode. 🙂
Paul
Follow me on Twitter @Hermann22
Also the latest episode of Rebels Recon has been released. Tell us what you thought about the episode in the comments section and check out StarWars.com’s new video Rebels Recon #3.17: Inside “Through Imperial Eyes”.
Thrawn: Lieutenant, this planet is missing
Lieutenant: Which one?
Thrawn: This one. In the Kamino system.
Lieutenant: Sir, there is no Kamino system in the imperial archives. It must not exist.
Thrawn: Wait, I have a Deja Vu.
Jokes aside – great episode.
Something something Archive Memory.
It was silly from Kallus to replace the rebel base only in the holoprojector, he should have modified a lot more of them instead to keep it a secret. Similarly, Thrawn should have remembered/saved the previous version, then it would be game over. I was expecting this to be revealed by the end of the episode and was disappointed.
That being said, I don’t know much about the planets, and Ezra could have lied to him about the location 🙂 But I guess he didn’t…
I had the feeling that Thrawn realised that the map was modified, but decided to keep that for himself in order to exploit that advantage he had.
I thought that just because he didn’t announce that based on the changes doesn’t mean he didn’t notice the missing planet. It would be a welcome surprise if the show just had Thrawn show up at the Rebel base planet and thank Fulcrum and/or Ezra for giving him the exact location of the base. That might be too clever for this show, though.
Don’t underestimate Rebels. I did so back during first season, and, by the end of season 1, I really loved it.
I think i liked it better back then. It still had potential and the group operated more in the shadows… especially with regard to the jedi.
Why the creators simply can’t give the Empire the victory it deserves, yes they uncovered the Fulcrums identity, but Thrawn knew that or suspected for several episodes, but the Rebels tampered with his planet map, what brings us again to the start of the hunt. In a book or a movie Thrawn would have a back-up copy of the Map somewhere in case it was stolen-damaged, but in the Rebels he has only 1 copy that is so stupid :(. Thrawn is really underated in the Rebels compared to the books, I hope his own book will be better than this
Seriously, he’s a brilliant tactician in name only on Rebels. Idk how many times he’s going to let his enemies get away because of “strategy”. There better be some huge payoff which I am sincerely doubting there will be.
Judging by the previews, he’s about to bring the Imperial fleet in to beat up the Rebels purdy good.
I think Thrawn would have memorized the map aswell. And,I had the feeling he realised that the map was modified by the way he looked at it.
Besides he is down to about 10 planets instead of 98. He can name them in his sleep by now.
I always thought he should be able to go back and check, or simply from memory, determine which planet is missing (being deleted). In a sense, Ezra is handing him an exact location of the Rebel base, by removing only one planet, not like random 5, from the chart.
edit: I see srph25 had a similar idea below, haha
Who said he only has 1 copy?
You’re right, the other copy is on Scarif!
The Lego Death Star set also implemented that black ball 😉
Also, notice the McQuarrie painting in Thrawn’s office.
Also also, are those two creatures behind his desk a reference to Ysalamiri ?
Yes, they are. If you look back at the initial Thrawn reveal photo, they had that sculpture in the background, and it looked like they were on his shoulders from the perspective, clearly nodding to the creatures in Legends.
I noticed the McQuarrie painting too. 😉 Loved it. Nice catch.
That episode was one of my favourite, as all the Thrawn episodes are.
I found the episode….just ok. Not exactly filler, but as the episode went on I was expecting more dramatic consequences for Fulcrum, and the whole “know who he is anyway” resolution was a bit of a let down. But then, after two great episodes, I suppose one can’t have it all.
Anyone care to take a stab at who the female Imperial is that they pass in the hall? I think it could be Sloane.
It isn’t Sloane, it is imperial captain from the Geonosis episode
You mean the Governor? Or someone else…
It’s Governor Arihnda Pryce. Admiral Rae Sloane is a black woman.
He is talking about the black lady in the hallway
Her name is Bronson.
I literally knew someone would say that. It’s not her.
Anyone else notice that Thwarn’s Star Destroyer was named Chimera? SAne as the Zhan novels. Love those little touches.
Yes.
And the code word he used to control his droids was “Rukh” the name of his Noghri bodyguard from the Zhan novels as well. Did you catch it?
Yup, caught that too.
Fulcrum’s safe as a kitten, for the nonce – Thrawn can now use him to send false intel the Rebels’ way for as long as he can ’til the piling quantity of casualties allow the Alliance to twig their source has been compromised. And then it’s curtains for Kallus… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=whIuD5q75v8
I still love this show. But seriously. Sometimes. My head hurts.
Tactical genius and apparently Karate Expert; the Legendary Grand Admiral Thrawn.
Does not realize a 15 year old boy is hiding behind a sculpture in his office when he has been alerted to a spy being present in it.
Because it’s just a kids show. Best not to over think it 😉
Sigh. It is. It is.
I didn’t like the Karate thing, are they setting him up to be able to do hand to hand combat with the Rebels? They didn’t need it and I liked him better as a mental threat rather than a physical one.
Also, that was kind of stupid, especially since he knew from the stormtrooper that List had entered his office, so wouldn’t you want to check for hiding spots when you didn’t see him. But luckily the assassin droids came out rather fast so I let it slide.
Zillo beasts painting behind Thrawn’s desk, nice nod to TCW, or are they Ysalamiri as someone else points out below.
I’m still not sold on Thrawn. Improved a great deal, but I thought maybe he would have an idea Fulcrum was Kallus way before the end. It seemed as though he only just came to that conclusion. Might have been better if he allowed so much to happen to confirm his theory and he explained actions from previous episodes. A bit like Sherlock Holmes in space.
I think it’s ysalamiri.
this is exactly the kind of stuff i’ve been expecting from thrawn all season, loved it. also, was it just me or did kallus sound a bit different in this one?
He was so emotional. I liked it.
I like that Thrawn actually showed off his intellect in this episode, so kudos!! However, if he doesn’t notice that Atollon was no longer on the map, I’ll be pissed.
Donald-droid was a dead weight in this episode.
Who? Huh?
Awesome Episode. One of my favorites so far. Loved Thrawn and Kallus in particular. Only problem i have is that since Thrawn is a huge genius, one would have thought he would have memorised the map and noticed a planet in the wrong place or made a copy to compare with. But that’s just nitpicking
I thought that too… that that missing planet would tell him exactly what base the Rebels were at since they removed it from the system. I don’t think it would have been that hard to notice since it was down to like a dozen planets or something if I’m not mistaken.
Can someone tell me please, what episode did we find out Kallus is Fulcrum? I think i may of missed an episode..
I had to google it but yeah ive missed an Ep this changes everything 🙁
This has been one of my favorites this season, Thrawn is finally starting to show the full extent of the long game….and yes, I know in my heart he knows which planet was changed! 🙂 Now it’s going to get VERY interesting. I still think the droid episode may be filler, but for the last few episodes, I’ve been on cloud 9!
“what in blazes is he doing there?”
One of the better episodes of this season and again proves my point that the show is better without the Kanan/Ezra Jedi stuff as the focus.
Overall, the writing has been better the last several episodes (with Filoni’s name on the script except for Imperial Eyes, which had Gilroy), but it’s still akin to polishing a turd. It may be shinier, but it’s still a turd.
I did like Thrawn actually being intelligent and ahead of the Rebels for the most part and it did seem like he actually had a plan in this episode. The ending came together really well in the hangar bay, and that was unexpected that Fulcrum would stay on the Star Destoryer, which I noted was called Chimera like in the books. Was that guy at the beginning supposed to be Captain Pellaeon?
The sideburns aren’t very Imperial regulation.
Always wondered why imperials needed so many pens.
I guess this episode is just another testament that there is something to like in Rebels for everyone. It was not my favorite( I’m really digging all the jedi story line stuff), but it was an essential episode in the story arc as the season builds to it’s climax. A+ for storytelling.
This season has been hit and miss for me, but this is def. one of the best episodes in the series so far. Great stuff!
I don’t they will kill Thrawn in the sequel era after all. It makes sense for them to omit him from books so that the show creators can use him like Maul in the follow up to Rebels to their hearts content. Everything is interconnected and even without Filoni in the same position they will keep returning to OT themes and character arcs from the previous series. But we have a long way to now until the next series even starts in 3-4 years.