Full Series Rebels 2.01-2.02 - The Siege of Lothal - Discussion Thread (Spoilers)

I'll admit after season 1 I considered rebels a mixed bag, however this episode definitely holds up with the best of TCW. Loved Kanan's reluctance to join a rebellion and his tension with Hera.
Plus it seems my confusion on who lead the ghost crew has been cleared up as throughout the episode it was clear that Hera is in charge now that the whole "cell" business has been established. So I'm glad that's finally been cleared up.

 

Yeah Hera is kind of in charge now isn't she.. Now the Specter numbers are going to slightly bother me

 

Exactly, at least Luke had some skill with a blade during ESB against Vader, Ezra was just getting tossed around casually.

 

Quick observations after first viewing:
I was sad Tua died so quickly, I thought there was a potential for character development for her but I guess this is what happen when you betray the empire.
Kanan's reluctance to join this organization was well done, but I thought Hera was a little too harsh with him.
Vader was definitively the best part of the episode, I especially liked seeing him with Kallus, I don't know why but there is something with these two working together that work for me and I hope we see more of it this season.
The "fight" with Vader against Ezra and Kanan. He was definitively toying with them, favorite moments was smacking Ezra like if he was nothing and lifting the AT-DP with only one hand. Sabine surviving that shot was not unbelievable, at least she is not using that helmet after that so it's okay.
Ezra failing to use the mindtrick on that stormtrooper, finally something he doesn't succeed on the first try!
Tarkintown with its inhabitants taken prisoner but not killed. I suppose it was another way to make the population turn against the Ghost crew.
Nice to see Lando again, I wonder where is he and what is he doing .
Vader in his Tie addvanced doing lots, lots of spinning I loved it.
"the apprentice lives" and Ahsoka reaction was good and I think she is lying about the identity of the pilot. Notice that Ezra refers to Vader be "what" which is a nice detail. Ahsoka has not a lot of scenes in this episode and the spotlight is still on the crew, let's hope that stay this way, this is their story.
It's interesting that Vader decide to tell the emperor about Ahsoka instead of hiding it from him and Ahsoka don't tell the others who he is, another nice contrast.
and of course let's not forget the mention of Obi-wan, no we really would not have an episode without Vader mentioning him once at least.

This episode was definitively the best of the series so far. I am really looking forward to this season.

 

The whole mind trick scene was hilarious. Especially Kanan's comment to Ezra. I lol'd at that one.

 

Really the only place where Ezra seems to progress "rapidly" is in certain aspects of the Force. For instance, he could sense Vader's presence before Kanan could. But that's about it at this point.

 

Great opening episode. It certainly built on the success of last season and kept the momentum going after the season finale. I loved everything about Vader in the episode as well. The way he nonchalantly brushed aside Kanan and Ezra and his domination of Phoenix squad. JEJ's voice sounds slightly different but it was still excellent. Can't wait for the next episode!

 

Ummm why can't I buy this on amazon video yet???

 

So, now my proper review. Just a heads up: spoilers ahead.

The Good:

1) A well written and plausible plot! Everything worked very well together and made sense. There were surprises and twists. Our protagonists were shown as vulnerable and mortal and you couldn't tell how they would end up. Even the dialogue was pretty well written aside from Hera who is cliché mom character. Maketh Tua's death was shocking and it helped a lot to drive the tension up. Our heroes had to work hard to survive and try to reach their goal. They weren't just lucky this time.

2) Darth Vader. He was very well portrayed. I still dislike that design, but his movements, his voice and the extent of his power were almost perfect. James Earl Jones really excels in his role. Welcome back, Mr Jones, we missed you! I also liked a lot that Vader was shown as a clever bastard who can manipulate and outwit our heroes, instead of just a brute. If you meet him, you best prepare!

3) Kallus was more frightening than in season 1. He seems to have a lot of fun serving under Vader, that's for sure!

4) Kanan had a lot of great character moments. He appeared like a living, breathing being with sorrows, doubts and inner conflict, but we also got to see his humour and his adventurous nature. I liked that he didn't want to rescue Tua at first and that he is afraid to be drawn into a war again. It remembered me of what happened to Krell and Barriss in TCW. The war didn't just kill Jedi, it also destroyed many of them. I can understand that Kanan is afraid of that.

5) The animation was also pretty good. When Vader lifted that imperial battle machine, you could almost feel the weight it had.

The bad (in this case more "the nitpick stuff"):

1) I didn't like Palpatine's voice, it was way too over the top. I couldn't take him seriously, especially because Vader's voice was so serious and dignified in comparison.

2) Sabine is hit twice and survives without a scratch. So now she's invulnerable against blasters = not good

3) It seems contrived that Vader would attack alone instead of taking some ships with him. The Star Destroyers came too late.

4) Sato and Ahsoka remained rather bland, especially Ahsoka should have been more in the foreground.

5) You don't have to use the imperial march in every Vader scene, we get it already. Quality over quantity

So, I hope that they will keep the quality up. Rebels let me down before and I am afraid it might happen again, though I am hopeful because this time the showrunners had more preparation time for the scripts.

 

Absolutely loved the episode - as Darth Pevra mentioned, it was well written and flowed logic-wise. Lots of emotional moments, too. I'd actually read the spoilers months ago, but it didn't diminish my enjoyment of the episode at all.

There were many highlights for me, but the banter between the rebels; Tua's emotional breakdown, escort and failed rescue; the scenes with Kallus and Vader talking, and Vader stomping over everyone in the lightsaber duel and the dogfight were pure gold.

The voice-acting was fantastic, though I particularly enjoyed Oyelowo's performance conveying sly malice veneered with feigned concern and politeness. The evil version of James Bond, or a meaner, more ruthless Jahan Cross; suave, smooth, efficient and smug. Okay, perhaps that wasn't the best analogy as Kallus is a bit of a flirt but hasn't dropped his clothes yet, but never-mind. And the high frequency of evil smirking... loved it.

As sad as Tua's fate was, it was good to see the Empire carry out something competently and also successfully. The Imperials were a bunch of wallies in Season 1, so seeing their plots go in the direction they wanted for once was a very welcome, and needed development.

I'm just sad that Season 2 doesn't air for months. Talk about treating people mean and keeping them keen.

 

Yeah it was surprisingly fun seeing Vader and Kallus working together. They seem to do so well, at least thus far. I'd kind of like to see Kallus as the "cockroach" type of character. The one who constantly manages to survive/weasel his way out of trouble while other people are dropping all around him.

 

Kallus doesn't seem very afraid of Vader i think they seem almost as equals like with Tarkin in ANH. I had a feeling this would be the case from Vader's appearance in the S1 finale

However it's sort of inconsistent with some Imperial higher ups fearing Vader and some not like the tractor beam Admiral..

 

Oh I don't think that they're equals. Kallus was definitely taking orders. I just think that he respects Vader and Vader sees him as a useful/competent subordinate.

 

Anyone think the mustachioed Imperial officer was a young Ozzel?

 

Oh Tractor Beam Admiral was scared all right...fortunately for him, he had a minion to take the kill shot, and he knew it.

 

Ha... did you notice the scene when Vader walks into the control room, Kallus is all "nice job" and Vader response is "Get out"?

I would think Vader views all Imperials as incompetent fools. His formative years were spent fighting in the Clone Wars with clones of Jango Fett, basically a Mandolarian super solider. In comparison regular conscripts would be a joke (for the most part).

Great episode...

The rebel fleet is three corvettes and some A-Wings? There's lots of room for the show to grow.

The Ezra/Kanan vs. Vader fight was great and symbolized how outmatched the Rebels are... Vader threw the fight in order to crush the rebels...brilliant.

I'm looking forward to Season 2... I'm really hoping the show goes into the fall of the Jedi/Order 66 and Ahsoka's take on what happened and what being "a Jedi" means in a post-Jedi Order world.

Also, I wish they would address the speciesism and/or the class conflict of Inner/Outer Rim aspect of Imperial Rule.

White Lightsaber watch....

 

Was so good. I love Ahsoka, she is awesome! I cannot wait to see her more in this series, and in whatever else she will inevitably appear in.

 

So with this episode alone Darth Vader has gone from nabbing the title of Best Villain in Cinema to gunning for Best Villain on Television.

 

Darth Vader showed these rebel noobs what its all about

 

I really liked this episode, it was a lot of fun. I found it interesting how Ahsoka and Sato were background characters, I expected them to have a bigger role. I also expected Vader to choke just about every other character, i'm surprised no one was choked, and a little disappointed.

 

Still not up to buy digital... wtf??????????????

 

Andi from Rebels recon said it will be up soon, be patient.

 

Just watched the ep.

It's interesting that Vader doesn't seem to be in full choke em and stack em mode yet, as regards underlings failing in their objectives. Maybe that will only come later on when the Rebel Alliance turns into a serious threat and starts frustrating him and angering him significantly. Hmm... I guess, when he started choking people in the OT, it was after he knew his son lived, and he had become consumed with finding him. In that frame of mind his tolerance for failures might conceivably have nosedived.

It's interesting that Kanan is so reluctant to get involved. I wonder if the whole business of Order 66 and the purge figures into that. Especially considering how young he would have been at the time, right in the middle of those super-impressionable years. It's likely that it has engendered in him a lifelong distrust of soldiers in general.

Ahsoka... well. Perhaps not everyone would agree, but to me it seemed pretty blatant that she was BSing Kanan and Ezra about not knowing who the Sith was. He sure sensed who she was, and this would inevitably have been mutual. There's really no other reason for her to have been knocked cold. Kanan wasn't knocked out, despite probing Vader right along with Ahsoka. Because while the Sith was immensely powerful, his identity or Force-signature didn't mean anything to Kanan. To Ahsoka though... it certainly meant something, and the shock of that KO'd her. Ergo, she knows. And for her own reasons, whatever they may be, she doesn't feel like sharing that info.

 

Yeah, Ahsoka isn't a very good liar. She knows. She may not truly believe it yet, hence the confused looks, or know what to do with this info yet, lying to Kanan and Ezra. But she knows.

And since it is most likely that she is not in contact with Obi-wan or Yoda, seems she contacts one of the only other people in the galaxy who would know what it means that Anakin Sykwalker is Darth Vader- Captain Rex.

How the situation plays out from here with Ahsoka and Vader, especially since Vader had no qualms about outing his knowledge of her survival to the Emperor, will be fascinating. It also maybe hints at what happened during Order 66 since Vader thought she was dead (and according to LotS he thought Rex dead too possibly) so she probably was targeted and faked her death.