REVIEW: Star Wars Resistance: "From Beneath" and "The Relic Raiders"
The two most recent episodes of Resistance, "From Beneath," and "The Relic Raiders," are essentially the same, in that they feel like filler episodes. It is kind of frustrating that in the final season, we have slower-than-normal pacing, in terms of filler. That being said, both episodes were "entertaining filler" to me, and had cool individual elements for Star Wars that I found intriguing.
The first episode, "From Beneath," sees Kaz, Torra, Flix, Orka, and CB-23 going back to Flix's homeworld to get fuel for the Colossus. To trade for the fuel, Flix's cousin wants Flix and Kaz to fix a drill that is deep in the planet. from the family's company is drilling for resources. However, this drilling has awakened a series of dragon-like creatures, and have to work together to escape them.
Obviously, the main message of the episode deals with nature vs. industry, which is certainly not a new message. However, watching the episode, it made me feel like I was watching a Japanese kaiju film, which is a good thing, as the design of the creature and sound-effects for it were really creative.
Overall, for filler, I thought it was entertaining, and did have an importance for the Colossus. As a side note, earlier in the summer, one of the show's executives said Flix and Orka were the first gay couple in Star Wars canon. While the episode never makes their romance front-and-center, they do have lines like Orka saying he loves Flix, so there's that, which is good for representation.
In the next episode, "The Relic Raiders," Kaz, Torra, and Freya look for supplies on a distant planet, while Kaz secretly brings down the children Kel and Eila to the planet, where the three of them, with CB, come across a secret Sith temple on the planet. From there, the first half of the episode involves the three of them trying to escape the temple with trapped archaeologist Mika Grey, while the second half involves everyone trying to escape from the First Order's new raider troopers, who are tasked with collecting force-related artifacts for Kylo Ren.
On the one hand, this episode felt even more inconsequential than the last episode. On the other hand, it was really cool to see a Sith temple again onscreen, as the last time we saw one was in Rebels. I do wonder if this episode will truly lead to something, because overall, the show has largely stayed away from the force.
They heavily imply that Eila is force-sensitive, as well as imply this episode Grey is force-sensitive. It makes me wonder, with Kylo Ren set to appear later in the season, will he, Eila, and these raider troopers have an impact on the story of the show later on? Perhaps the force will be touched upon somewhat, as this season is set to lead into the events of The Rise of Skywalker. Maybe Rey will make a surprise appearance during the final stretch of episodes.
