REVIEW: Star Wars Rebels "Relics of the Old Republic"
Now that's better. After last week's less than spectacular season premiere, this episode really brought the action and suspense. Seriously, I think only two to three mintues go by before the Empire lands on the planet and begins their attack. How did this battle between one AT-TE and three AT-TEs go? For the most part really well.
Rex gives Ezra and the crew coordinates to every unknown base in the outer rim but says he doesn't want to get part of another war. However, Agent Kallus arrives and lands his forces to destroy them. BTW, how did the Star Destroyer not see the Ghost in space just because the power was shot down? It was literally right next to them with nothing else in space. Anyway, realizing that they are outgunned and outmatched, they decide to go into a sandstorm so that both sides scanners will be down but the Jedi will give them a boost.
It makes sense when you think about it and the visuals of the AT-ATs going through the storm was cool looking. It was also cool seeing Kanan and Ezra using the force together. Kanan had a complex plan, which was really risky, the have the AT-TE be in the exact middle of the three AT-ATs, then have Ezra fire at one of them and clear a path. It worked of course, but it seemed really improbable, even for Jedi.
It was also nice to see Ezra grow in the force to locate one of the tanks to destroy it. It was also nice t see Ezra grow more attached to Rex as he would have never known about Order 66. It also creates a conflict with Kanan as it creates a situation of which mentor will Ezra prefer. However, Rex throughout the last two episodes is trying to reach out to Kanan to get him to trust him saying that he can always count on a Jedi. Um, you do remember General Krell from the Clone Wars right.
Anyway, the escape throught the storm and both the Phantom and the Ghost are repaired. The crew decides to leave while the clones decide to buy them some time in a suicide defense.
I knew that Rex and the others weren't going to die because a big marketing event for this season was the return of the clones and I knew they weren't going to die here. Still, it was really amusing to see an AT-TE, which is like a ant, go up literally in a brawl against an AT-AT. Granted, I call b.s. that the tank would survive five plus shots from an AT-AT when they were able to get destroyed by battle droids before.
However, Kanan has a change of heart and agrees with Ezra to save them. He, Ezra, and Zeb literally jump from the Phantom, onto an AT-AT, and use it to blow up the other one. It was a cool-looking sequence although I call b.s. again how Agent Kallus was able to surive that encounter. Plot armor...for now.
During the battle, Kallus's Star Destroyer was ordered by Darth Vader to leave the battlefield by Vader and pick up someone, a new Inquisitor, the Fifth Brother. Why he couldn't just travel to them, I don't know. Anyway, he looks cool and sounds unique. We'll just have to wait and see how effective he and the Seventh Sister will be.
Finally, we end the episode with a pretty heartfelt reunion between Rex and Ahsoka which is great for a Clone Wars fan like me who has seen these characters interact and grow for over seven years now. Overall, despite some nitpicks and a sometimes juvenile tone, the episode was still pretty good. It was entertaining and sets the stage for stories for the rest of the season.
