REVIEW: Star Wars Rebels "The Wynkathu Job"
This ugnaught is a character named Melch. His look pretty much sums up my feelings towards this episode. I had a feeling about it last week and it met my expectations. For the first time since season one's "Fighter Flight," I hated an episode of Star Wars Rebels. To me, this episode is garbage and highlights many problems that continue to plague this show.
This episode is the dictionary definition of filler, first and foremost. Other than the Rebels getting proton bombs, there is absolutely nothing from this episode that contributes to the main storylines of the show. Hondo and his new partner Azmorigan come to the Rebels to work together to get proton bombs and treasure from an abandoned Imperial cargo ship stuck on a wind storm on a distant planet. First off, why would Hondo even work with Azmorigan because he tried to kill him last season. Second off, are these damn bombs even worth it? Third, yes, this whole episode just revolves around them on this cargo ship.
I know the argument is that not every episode needs to be serious and can be light-hearted. However, this, even for a kids' show, is taking it too far. This is supposed to be the dark times after all. You know, a small group of rebels trying to fight a massive, oppressive Empire, not Jim Cummings and a obese pig trying to get rich.
I'm not really going to go through the plot as much as I normally do because in all honesty, there really isn't that much to say about it. It's as basic and predictable as you can get. Instead, I'll spend this time to talk about stuff that really made me mad, which is a lot. First off, other than the actual idea and low stakes of this episode, the big thing that made me mad was Hondo and Azmorigan themselves. I never liked Azmorigan so him in a central focus...ugh. As far as Hondo, I feel like to me he is what Captain Jack Sparrow is to many people from Pirates of the Caribbean. In fact, the more I think about it, the two characters are kind of similar personality wise. Anyway, going back to the Clone Wars, I enjoyed Hondo for his quips and personality. However, just like Jack Sparrow, the more and more you see him, the charm wears off and it becomes stale and kind of annoying. I'm not saying I totally hate the character now but I think he needs less and less time in the spotlight now for the time being.
Actually, you know what, you know who pissed me off more in this episode? It was Ezra. It's funny, after last week where I defended Ezra from Mart, you know what the writers decide to do? They make him act like a spoiled brat just like Mart. Ezra literally spends the entire episode pissed off because the rest of the crew doesn't trust Hondo and that Zeb got command of the mission. For the first part, CAN YOU BLAME THEM?! These two people have swindled them, double-crossed them, and for Azmorigan, tried to make Hera a slave. Secondly, Ezra, who the hell cares? You and Zeb are friends, right? Why should it matter if he gets command of a mission that really isn't that super important? Man, Ezra is really starting to piss me off at this point. Ahsoka may have been a little rough around the edges in the beginning, but she eventually matured. I feel like Ezra is hardly ever going to mature at this point. All he does is complain, is really worried only about himself at some points, and feels he needs to be placed in a higher place of authority. Yes, he is essentially acting like Episode 2 and 3 Anakin. WHY WOULD YOU REMIND US OF THAT CHARACTER?!
Also, remember AP-5, the former Imperial droid who befriends Chopper and joins the Rebellion? Well, he joins the mission and he is an idiot. He fails to mention the fact that there are dangerous Imperial sentry droids are board, which may have a really cool dark trooper design by the way. He also fails to mention until it is too late that if one is destroyed, the rest will become active. Anyway, through, I guess a decent action sequence, the crew manage to get most of the bombs plus a crate a supposed treasure on board. It turns out, it was just Melch hiding because he thought Hondo would leave him on board, which he was right about. So, in total, the two pirates didn't get jack shit and the rebels got bombs that might serve them some use, wonderful.
So, yeah, this episode was bad. If you are planning to marathon this season, this episode can be skipped entirely. This episode highlights the apparent lack of stakes so far from the rebellion, the continuing high-kiddy attitude despite the time period the show takes place in, and characters either acting like idiots or acting like assholes. I still like this show, but I'm not going to let my bias distract me from the flaws that the show has. It has potential, which I hope it will deliver on, but when I see episodes like this get approval, it makes me shake my faith in the show a little.
