REVIEW: Star Wars Rebels: "Crawling Commandeers"
So, another two-parter, another case, at least in my eye, where the first episode was better. I know Kindred and Crawler Commandeers are two separate episodes, but when you air them back-to-back, it's hard not to compare which episode is better. While not horrible, this episode felt ok, average. Which is a shame given not only the stakes of this story arc, but also the fact that this is the final season.
One good thing right off the bat I can say is that this episode gives a lot more screen-time and things to do for both Kanan and Zeb. The Rebels need to find a way to both -- send a long-range transmission back to Hera, as well as find some way to stand a chance against the fight against the Empire. Lucky for them, they spot a large mining ship operated by the Mining Guild, which works for the Empire. From there, the entire episode boils down to trying to send a transmission and fool the Empire about their plan. Yeah, this is taking a small-scale story to its near limits. I mean, I get this will be important later on, but it really didn't need to be the main focus of the episode. It should have been cut with another story, or the very least, been more interesting.
The only thing close we get to a second story is a few short scenes on Yavin 4 with Hera trying to convince Rebel Command to attack Lothal. The scenes there are good, not only for its connection to Rogue One with the Rebellion's cowardly attitude, but also for Hera herself. At this point, she's frustrated, doesn't want to take any more shit, and I appreciate that from her. It makes the moment where the attack is approved all the more special.
Sadly, the episode gets dumber with the inclusion of, ugh, this episode's villain, Seevor, who is the captain of the ship voiced by Seth Green. First off, his voice, I'm sorry Seth, got annoying for me very fast. Secondly, the majority of this episode would have never happened if they would have just knocked him out when the group enters the bridge. Instead, they simply try for a joke and this leads to a chain reaction to where the Empire is alerted, and man, I am starting to get sick of the comedy this season.
I mean, some of the comedy worked for me, and I get it is a kids show. But, I'm sorry, the two conflicting tones of darkness and comedy is not meshing well. It feels really forced, distracting, and out-of-place when it doesn't work. If you are going dark with a few moments of levity, that's fine. But don't make it where is a confusing mess of comedy and darkness that don't work well together.
This episode also shows us Vizago again, this time as a slave aboard the ship. His sequences are ok, better than the Seevor scenes, but really shouldn't have been a focus again. Like I said, from there, the bulk of the episode revolves around the group trying to confuse the Empire, Kanan and Zeb fighting a trandoshan slave warden, and the final "confrontation" between Ezra and Seevor. I didn't like how quickly Kanan got outsmarted and defeated by the warden, but it did lead to a nice sequence with Zeb getting the spotlight defeating him in a fist fight.
From there, Ezra meets Seevor again where he literally trips on Ezra's lightsaber and falls into a smelter dying instantly. Why do I get a feeling that was a refrence to the Holiday Special where the stormtrooper falls over the railing by a blaster.
In the end, the group secures the ship, frees the slaves, and get word from Hera that the attack on Lothal is coming, which sets up next week's mid-season finale. Like I said, with the exception of Seevor, there really wasn't anything about the episode I hated, but there wasn't much I thought was great. Again, it was average, which isn't something I want from the show's final season. Plus, I'm sorry, I think the mix of darkness and comedy is not a great idea and hasn't worked that much for me this season, though it has worked at times. Overall, I hope, since we're at the halfway point next week, things really start to pick up moving forward.
