REVIEW: Star Wars Rebels: The Series Finale (Spoilers)
The biggest difference right off the bat I can say about Rebels' finale as compared the Clone Wars, was that the show was ended on its creators' terms. The Clone Wars was cancelled, thus, suffered an ending that left us incomplete, wanting more. This ending, fulfilled the story Dave Filoni and his team wanted to tell, while also teasing new stories and possibilities at the same time. This series may not have been perfect, but to me, the ending is truly something the whole series was building towards, and it was perfect in its own way.
This review will cover all three episodes, "A Fool's Hope," "Family Reunion," and "Farewell," which work together as a full 90-minute story. Also, I know all my reviews talk about the story and spoilers, but, in all seriousness, watch the finale first, because I will discuss all the major moments.
The episode starts out with Hera recruiting almost all the allies the Ghost crew has gained over the years, including Rex, Kallus, (who sadly haven't been in the season much) Hondo and Melch, Ketsu, Gregor, and Wolfe. It is cool how the series brought all of them together again. While I still think a lot of the episodes surrounding most of them were filler, I guess it makes up for it that they are all hear now for the final fight. Also, Rex is wearing a particular set of clothes that will come back later.
Back on Lothal, the rest of the crew begin to plan their next step in retaking the capitol. Sabine and Ezra have a nice moment together were Ezra says he can always count on her. This will come back later. I like to take a moment to acknowledge how well I think their relationship has been developed. When the series started, Ezra was infatuated with her, and she really didn't see him as more than a kid. Fast forward four in-universe years, and there relationship has evolved to the point of mutual trust and respect. I expected the two of them would "get together" like Kanan and Hera, but, in a way, I'm glad they didn't.
I feel their relationship is almost a deeper bond than simply that of a relationship. Their relationship is like a guide, a path walking together, or at the very least, a deep level of understanding. I know that seems like I am describing a romantic relationship, but if you watch it, I think you might understand what I am talking about.
After telling Ezra they should hide and not attack, but choosing to ignore them, Ryder decides to betray the group and reveal their location to Pryce, in exchange for his life. At first I thought this was going to be my big negative for this finale, as I thought this would be a major betrayal of character. However, spoiler alert...in a spoiler review, it doesn't turn out that way.
When word gets out, Pryce and Rukh lead an all-out assault on the Rebel camp. I know the show hasn't excelled at action in the same way as the Clone Wars, given its budget and channel its on, but man, this battle was fantastic. This was an awesome battle. Everyone had a moment to shine, with my favorite part of the initial battle being a tie between Zeb going ham with a machine gun, and the duel between Ezra and Rukh. Eventually, the Rebels are captured with some losses, including ones seen onscreen!
While the initial battle is taking place, Hondo leads the Ghost in a plan to get through the blockade. While I generally like Hondo, the last few episodes he has been in, have made him out to be pretty annoying. However, I'll admit, in this finale, I found him to be his usual, weirdly-charming self. Hell, his plan, for how risky it was, worked out in the end.
Eventually, it is revealed that Ezra and Ryder were tricking Pryce into leaving the capitol. I had a feeling that "betrayal" was too far-fetched. Eventually, Ezra leads the Lothwolves into attacking the Imperials. Boy, was it a sight. I loved the fight. While they obviously couldn't show blood or gore, they did surprise me by showing stormtroopers geeting bit and stomped by the wolves. Plus, the music that was played when they attacked...MASTERPIECE!
Eventually, Rukh is defeated and thrown off a cliff, while Pryce is eventually captured after Hera leads the reinforcements on the Ghost.
That is where you can say part 1 ends. Next, Ezra has a moment with a hologram of his parents were he says he will do anything to finish what they started, as well as saying he will do anything to protect his new family. I want to take a moment to talk about Ezra, the main character, the main focus of the story and the show. It's no secret that I have not always been a fan of his character. There were times I thought he was annoying, a jerk, or both. There were also times I thought he was written well with good emotional moments. Basically, he was a teenager. However, while I don't think everything with his character was handled well overall in the series, I think the events of the finale, which I will discuss later, helped put his journey into perspective. In the end, the finale finally gave me a definitive opinion of his character. I like him. I don't love him like Obi-Wan or Ahsoka, but I don't dislike him or think he is average anymore.
Eventually, in a series of cool, albeit, cheesy series of events, the group manages to enter and take control of the main Imperial dome in the capitol city. They plan to lure all Imperials in the city to go into the dome, launch the dome, and destroy it. Yeah, really dark when you think about it. However, it turns out Rukh survived his fight and warns Thrawn of the danger. It is here where he see Ezra and Thrawn connect.
I guess you can call Thrawn the main villain of the series, or at least, the best original villain they have had. His actions and speeches solidify that. Plus, he is more cruel like he was in his Legends incarnation. He tells Ezra to surrender fully and turn himself in, otherwise, he will bombard the city. He briefly does this to show he means business, and while obviously they didn't show any death, it was still an effective moment for me.
What's even worse for the rebels is that Rukh has disabled the shield generator protecting the dome and the city. Eventually, Ezra makes the ultimate decision to surrender and confront Thrawn alone, while the rest of the group works on restoring the shield. It was a powerful moment, made even more powerful by Chopper allowing Ezra the ability to escape, as well as the silent looks Sabine and Ezra give each other. Again, more on their connection coming soon.
From there, the story is broken into two main stories, the shield generator attack and Ezra's story. With Ezra, it begins with him meeting with Thrawn face to face, where their interactions are great. From there, he is taken to a hologram of the Emperor, with him looking "presentable" to try and fool Ezra. Once again, Ian McDiarmid, great in the role. He tries to tempt Ezra by recreating the Lothal Jedi Temple and showing a portal, from the world between worlds, showing his parents alive when he was a kid.
Basically, we know as the audience it is trick by the Emperor to try and lure Ezra to him, but basically, what keeps the audience in suspense is whether or not Ezra will give into the ultimate temptation and try to save his parents, at the cost of his friends.
However, thankfully, in a powerful scene, Ezra destroys the trick, finally saying goodbye to his parents. His plan ruined again, the Emperor orders his Royal Guards kill him. Keep in mind, Ezra doesn't have his lightsaber or gun. He gave his lightsaber to Sabine and had his gun taken from him. The guards use a cool weapon to trap him in the air. Stormtroopers come in, and MISS EVERY SINGLE SHOT! Seriously, he's right there. He uses the force to defeat the troopers and guards, and makes his way to meet Thrawn on the Star Destroyer bridge.
Meanwhile, the rest of the group gives it its all in a final attack to restart the shield. Overall, the fight was good, and it eventually culminates in a fight between Zeb and Rukh, where Zeb traps him in the shield generators and is electrocuted to death while Zeb watches and laughs. To make matters worse, we don't see Rukh die, but we do hear his last screams of pain. Yeah, that was probably one of the darkest moments in the series.
For the Clone Wars fans, it is revealed both Rex and Wolfe survive the finale, but sadly, Gregor does not. Which, I'm sad to see him go, but I'm glad the show killed at least one side character. However, in a cheap move, we see Melch got shot in the chest, but somehow he survives. That moment, plus the moment when the stormtrooper misses the wide-open shot are my only two nitpicks/complaints from the finale.
The battle seems to be bleak for the Rebels when Ezra storms Thrawn's bridge. However, at the very end, Thrawn was outsmarted by Ezra. Mart, using the Ghost, follows up on Ezra's emergency backup plan and calls for reinforcments, the Purrgil...yes...THE SPACE WHALES! The episode I thought was one of the biggest filler episodes in the series, had an element that came back to fit one of themes of the show, Ezra's connection with animals. They smash through Thrawn's fleet, commanded by Captain Pellaeon (yes- that Pellaeon from Legends- though he isn't seen sadly) and eventually destroy Thrawn's ships overhead. I'll admit, it was epic.
In an awesome sequence, Ezra commands the Purrgil to grab Thrawn and his Star Destroyer, and to jump into hyperspace. This literally proves the Bendu's prediction to Thrawn correct...he will be defeating by arms around him. To make sure Thrawn is defeated for good, Ezra decides, after a heartfelt goodbye, decides to stay on the ship when it goes into hyperspace to parts unknown. Eventually, the rest of the group lifts the dome and destroys it, securing their victory and Lothal's freedom.
So, yeah, that happened. I had a feeling that Ezra wouldn't die, but I knew there had to be a reason why we didn't see him in the original trilogy. This weirdly makes sense for his character. It is the near-ultimate sacrifice to save his family. I say near-ultimate because in an interview, Filoni confirmed that both Thrawn and Ezra are still alive, even past Return of the Jedi.
From there, the show does a time jump to show what happens to the remainder of the Ghost crew throughout the original trilogy and past the Battle of Endor. We know Hera and Chopper serve in the Rebellion, but it is also confirmed that Rex continued to serve, and served as a commander in the Battle of Endor. Yes, he is officially the old bearded guy on the planet. Captain Rex, even though not intended at the time, is officially in a live-action movie!
Zeb continued to serve and eventually took Kallus to Lira-San to show him he didn't wipe out all of the Lasat species, and offered him a place to stay there. OK, it's a fitting end for the two of them, but does that mean the two of them are canon now? I'm sure Tumblr will go crazy for that idea.
Like I mentioned, Hera and Chopper served the Rebel Alliance during the war. However, what was really shocking, but amazing, is that Hera became pregnant with her and Kanan's kid, who is named Jacen Syndulla. (A nice little nod to Jacen Solo from Legends) As someone who shipped the two of them together to the extreme, this is both a sad, but heart-warming ending to their story together. Plus, I can just picture the trouble that Chopper and Spectre 7, will get into over the years.
Finally, Sabine's story was left the most open, but the most exciting. She decides to fulfill her "choice" to Ezra by staying behind on Lothal, probably by herself, to make sure the Empire never attacks there again. Again, see what I mean about their relationship. She could have easily helped the Rebellion or returned to stay with her family on Mandalore. But nope, she does what she thinks is right, which is awesome for her character.
In the end, once the war is over, she recruits Ahsoka. Yes, Ahsoka Tano officially survived the war! She and Sabine decide to venture out into the galaxy to find Ezra and "bring him home." That is where the series ends. One story concludes, while another potential set of stories opens.
Seriously, give me an animated film or TV miniseries of the two of them trying to find Ezra. Or better, make an animated show set between Episodes 6 and 7.
So yeah, despite a few nitpicks, I thought the finale was perfect for the future. Dave Filoni told his complete story, for better or for worse, of the Ghost crew and Lothal, and you have to commend him for that. He told and ended the show on his terms, with also obviously keeping some story threads open for possible adventures down the road, which I hope get explored. I thought the action, animation, music, storytelling, and emotion were great. Hell, I even teared-up at the end, and I rarely cry.
In the coming weeks, I will be doing an overall review of both season four and the series as a whole. Again, I don't think the series was perfect, even though I thought it was really good. However, will I still recommend fans to watch it? Absolutely. Has its stories and messages changed the fabric of Star Wars forever? Yes. Will it lead to new and exciting stories down the road? Hopefully. The story of the Ghost crew may be over for now, but their names and memories will be forever discussed in the minds of Star Wars fans forever.
