Full Series Baron Valen Rudor and Elite TIE-Fighter Pilots

Hello Forum,

Rebels has a character with an interesting concept: Baron Valen Rudor, an elite fighter pilot of the Empire. The name and the red stripes on his flight suit are clearly a reference to the old EU Baron Fel and the 181st, which in turn was a reference to the Red Baron.
Rudor has come to Lothal to test the newest TIEs.

The idea itself is charming and has some potential, because I really would like to see an Imperial Red Baron in the series. In season 2 he could battle the newly introduced Phoenix Squadron, outmaneuvering and killing many of them before tragically going down.
(This could work a bit like "Angriest Angel" from Space: Above and Beyond).

The problem is that Rudor is a joke so far, a comic relief but not a credible fighter ace. Stormtroopers look like Rambo compared to him. Richthofen deserves better than that if Rudor is meant to be an Imperial Red Baron.

So what do you think? Would you like to see such a story?

 

I really would like to see the Empire being more competent. When the Ghost Crew beat them or get away it needs to be by the skin of their teeth.

 

He's the Chiggy von Richfhofen of Star Wars Rebels?

I like the idea, but who's going to be his nemesis? It should be a main character, so Hera is the logical choice. Pilot vs. Pilot and all that.

But TIE vs. Ghost? It doesn't quite feel right. I'd buy into it wholeheartedly if Hera start flying A-wings, though.

 

Well played and nice reference! Here is a picture of T.C. McQueen for you and the OP. S:AAB references are all good in my book.



Does this mean that we will get an opening monologue from one of the characters about facing the moment and the defining moment of "Who am I?" (Side note, that has to be one of best monologues from a character.)

I am hoping that the new members of Phoenix Squadron take on a little bit of that role, in addition to Hera, much like the OP mentioned. I'm really hoping that the we get to see some good Imperial pilots capable of effectively being "Heroes of the Empire" but I don't see an Imperial ace really show up off the bat though. It would take a while to establish the rebel squadron being a credible threat that needs to be dealt with by a heavy hitter, an ace. And if the ace does show up, I really hope that they give him a unique fighter that sets him apart from the other rank and file pilots.

I don't know if we can really say one way or the other until the season starts the quality of pilots they will be making the characters. I'm hoping that Commander Sato isn't just the squadron commander, but is also the best pilot of the squadron.

I also have my doubts as to how effective they could convey the rivalry to the viewer. I'm actually not even sure I would ever want the pilot to be mentioned or seen directly on screen, but a distinctly recognizable TIE for the pilot to be used. That way he/she could be more menacing and ominous, much the same way Chiggy Von Richtofen was presented in S:AAB.

Edited to add: Regarding S:AAB, maybe we can get Ronald D. Moore to take a look at it and see if he could reboot it like he did with BSG. One can only hope.

 

One shot from The Ghost's cannons would destroy a Tie, and a Tie's dinky guns cannot penetrate the shields let alone the armor of The Ghost. Would be like the Tie Fighter shooting golf balls at a King Tiger tank. The Red Baron so far is depicted like the rest of the Imperials. Maybe they'll introduce some A-Wing ace but I can't imagine this character fairing any better, unless they devout an entire episode of them dog fighting like Marvel did in that GI JOE issue with Wild Weasel vs Ace, they were both evenly matched.

 

Hmmm... was Han Solo (in the EU) still an Imperial pilot at this point or had he already quit?

 

I think he had already quite.

 

Generally speaking TIE pilots are actually much better than they look but without shields they don't get away with making a single mistake like Rebel pilots can - even Wedge (who in old canon was the best pilot in the Galaxy in his prime) probably wouldn't have made it out of both Death Stars with no shields at all. So in theory a veteran TIE pilot must be very, very good indeed. Sadly they are basically flying stormtroopers in terms of on-screen effectiveness though, using the 'swarm in numbers' tactic instead of being one-on-one a match for any halfway competent Rebel.

 

From the movies I actually got the impression that TIEs are very effective in fighter to fighter combat. In ANH they were badly outnumbered and the rebel kills were when a TIE was on the tail of another rebel fighter; the TIEs are always double teamed by the rebels (Luke&Biggs and Luke&Wedge). Keeping that in mind they did quite well. They also did what was expected of them in RotJ.

A ship like the Ghost is naturally too much for a TIE, but there is the Phoenix Squad. What I could imagine is this:

Act 1) Phoenix Squad performs hit and run attacks on Imperial targets. It cannot be stopped.​

Act 2) An Imperial Richthofen (Valen Rudor?) takes up the mission to eliminate the threat. He destroys most of the Phoenix Squad.​

Act 3) Ahsoka climbs into the cockpit to duel with 'Richthofen' and kills him thanks to the Force granting superior flying skills.​

​

I mean Ahsoka is a capable fighter pilot, and a veteran of the largest space battles the Galaxy has seen in a thousand years (or so...).

Of course Rudor's portrayal in Rebels would have to change, so that he appears as a competent and credible enemy. But that could be done with relative ease. After all we have not seen much of his flying yet. He is a useless, arrogant buffoon on the ground, but in the air he might be brilliant. This would make some sense in terms of story telling, because it is more sensible if Rudor has actually a reason to so arrogant.

 

For some reason I imagine he was part of the "one eighty-worst" and had been transferred before it was actually good.Then a logistical error made them think he was an elite.Thats why he is so terrible.

 

lol...

He's an obvious shout out to the Baron Soontir Fel from the 181st from Legends.

 

He should have a cousin who is a Grand Admiral.

Someone pls get this.

 

Is this a reference to Soontir Fel & Wedge, or to someone from the Legacy era and their relationship to the 181st - Rulf Yage?

 

No.

 

I would like to see more of Valen Rudhor on the show, but he is definitely one big joke on the show so far. It would be interesting if he continued to not be taken seriously and then all of a sudden, he delivers a blow to the rebels which shows that he's actually quite competent (it could be a great mood whiplash moment).

 

When I saw him in the two shorts I assumed he was two separate pilots

 

I assumed he WAS in two parts given he survived crash landing a TIE and being flipped by an explosion that took out the Advanced TIE he was about to pilot as part of the Empire Day Celebrations!

I think that's called lucky... the populace call that standing NEXT to "Lucky" aka Maketh Tua!

 

Yeah, we need more of him. He's such a fun Imperial punching bag. That being said I know a number of people who like to ship him with Hera.

 

So did any of them imagine him going out for flowers and being shot down again as Hera was delivering them to the florists?

 

Ship happens.

 

Now I imagine the two of them bumping and grinding the fronts of their ships (TIE and the Ghost) together to simulate kissing.

 

I would rather not, but thats why they invented torpedoes.

 

Yeah, I also did not get that. He only wore his stripes in Empire Day, that is why I was confused.

Hm... If we go back to the Richthofen analogy: Manfred von Richthofen's cousin was Wolfram von Richthofen who was a Field Marshal in the Luftwaffe, which is the equivalent to the navy's Grand Admiral.

Didn't the 181st get the stripes only after it became an elite unit in the old EU?

 

I want some good TIE pilots.

 

I want to see some new recruits arriving at Lothal who give them something to want to aspire to rather than be afraid a certain Grand Moff is coming to take off their heads quite literally!

Introduce a new Imperial Squadron who we can actually see characterised so we have some sympathy for them making it clear just how different things are between the rebels and the empire.

Hmm maybe a spy whose uncovered and returns to the empire becoming the main nemesis for the rebel fighter corp as we see exactly how good the empire actually is!

Maybe show it from the spy's point of view where we learn they wasn't the only operative but the others either died or didn't come back preferring their undercover identity to what they had before so give us opposing views and see what's its like from their viewpoint maybe they were friends or even more than that but whilst one realised they really had nothing left to go back for the other is only beginning to realise why their former friend didn't return...