REVIEW: Star Wars Rebels "Visions and Voices"

Star Wars Rebels goes into its midseason break will an episode that is going to make fans go into a frenzy over the possibility of the future. This episode sets up a major event full throttle that I believe with happen later in the season. To get to that point, the episode was really good as we saw the return of Maul and a group we haven't seen since the Clone Wars.

Ezra, as a result of his last encounter with Maul in episode 2 of this season, begins seeing and hearing Maul and almost kills a rebel pilot as a result. In all honesty, the idea of Ezra going crazy and seeing Maul could have been expanded an fleshed upon to a full episode, though I can understand why they put that segment for the first five minutes. Kanan and Ezra go see the Bendu again and he warns of a danger and tells them that the answers they seek will be available. It is at that moment that as it turns out, Maul shows up and he is on the planet after all.

Maul reveals that due to the holocron experience that he and Ezra went through, they only have part of the knowledge that they seek, hope and a key to the destroy the Sith respectfully. Maul makes Ezra come with him to Dathomir, which is the former home of the Nightsister Clan, to perform a ritual to get the knowledge. Ezra agrees because Maul has a device that will deploy a becon which will alert the Empire to Chopper Base. Kanan has Sabine put a tractor on Ezra's wrist communicator to track them as well.

Now, let's talk about the relationship between Ezra and Maul. Sabine asks Kanan why Ezra is willing to trust Maul to which he smartly says, he doesn't. I mean, if you think about it, why would Ezra have any reason to trust him? The one time he did trust him on Malachor, he blinded Kanan and tried to kill Kanan and Ahsoka. While I do think deep down, Ezra might have a slight respect for him, he will never go along with him due to the threatsthat he has done to his friends.

Maul, on the other hand, that's a different story. Maul always wanted Ezra as his apprentice to one day challenge Sidious but he confides to Ezra later in the episode that he wants to view Ezra as a friend and a brother. He really seems broken and desperate, but you know what, I like that. I mean, think about it, this is a guy who was ripped from his family, spent years being brutally trained by Sidious, spent years in madness and had his brother and mother killed before him right before his eyes. He wants some form of hope in his life and this is the key to that.

Anyway, the two arrive to Dathomir and perform the ancient ceremony where Ezra discovers that he is alive, meaning Obi-Wan Kenobi. Yes, they officially referenced him! Maul says that the planet has two suns although while Ezra doesn't know what planet it is, I'm pretty well sure that Maul remembers it's Tatooine. However, after the ceremony is completed, spirits of the nightsisters come and try to take over the their bodies. Sadly, Kanan and Sabine arrive at that very moment and they get possessed.

From there, a very entertaining and action-packed sequence takes place with Maul and Ezra forced to fight the possessed rebels. Maul eventually escapes while Ezra stays behind to try and help them. I'll admit, Ezra seemed more like his old caring self in this episode than his moody, bratty self we've seen of him this season. Ezra eventually succeeds in freeing the two while also dispersing the spirits of the nightsisters. That was probably my only real complaint about this episode as I thought the spirits were defeated too easily.

In the end, Kanan and Ezra vow to try and figure out where Obi-wan lives before Maul finds him...which means in all reality we won't see it until much later in the season. I'm just being realistic. However, despite that, this all but confirms that we'll have an appearance of Obi-wan in the show and possibly have the final rematch between him and Maul. Man, if they do show that in the show, it is going to be an event. I cannot wait. This episode itself was really good, though I felt this episode could have easily been longer to give more depth to some of its elements. One cool thing though, Sabine in the end of the episode found and keep the ancient darksaber that once belonged to her clan that Maul had. So yeah, Sabine just got a lot more badass now.

#starwarsrebels #starwars #NickVercilla #reviews