Rebels: 1x05-06
Sep. 13th, 2021 10:35 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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tori_reviewsStar Wars Rebels: 1x05 – Breaking Ranks
These episodes feel a bit too short. Not a lot too short necessarily, as if there’s a whole other episode they could have gotten out of the material; but a little too short and…either lacking a small element or just unbalanced. Now, the way the balance is off is skewed towards character more often than it was in TCW, which is a skew I’m in favor of; but something usually feels a little rushed, often the conclusion.
This is also sort of continuing what I’m starting to complain about. There are characters other than Ezra we could be focusing on. This is actually a pretty good Ezra episode, my complaints about the slightly rushed conclusion notwithstanding, but they keep having Ezra episodes and I want to know more about the others.
At least this one is correctly an Ezra episode. This should be his story, it makes sense that he’s the one doing this and it makes sense that with him doing this he’s the one in focus. Last episode was more annoying, since it shouldn’t have been an Ezra episode.
I have a strong suspicion we’re going to be seeing these other guys again, and as a setup this was decent. I can’t quite remember their names and the kind-of-memory I have will probably be gone before they show up again, but I think I can hold on to some memory of having met them here. Especially now that I’ve writing it down.
I’m not sure what to make of the space action plot. It kind of feels like it’s part of something more but it’s nebulous so far. It also kind of seems like just something to do where we pretend we get a Kanan and Hera focused plot when it’s really just a couple scenes.
But I cannot deny that it’s a relief after TCW to be thinking about ‘this might be setup for a future plotline.’ While technically TCW did some of that, it didn’t so much feel like an ongoing, evolving arc, as action figures that got picked up and put down and maybe they’d remember the point of them the next time they were picked up. This feels more like building blocks; I don’t exactly know if what they’re building is going to work for me, or even stand when completed, but it’s a structure I prefer.
Unlike TCW, this feels like it takes place in a post-Avatar world of animated shows. It’s not as good as Avatar (although the first few episodes of that aren’t the best either, so this has time before I fully judge it), but it seems like the same type of storytelling. And that’s a type of storytelling I like, so I’m going with it easier than I did TCW.
Oh, I’ll grant that TCW was more ambitions, it looked a lot better (even when I would complain about it), it had…one good character arc in Ahsoka, and the stories had a lot more scope. But the last was kind of the problem; it had scope, but with a depth approaching zero. It reflected the wide scope of the series, so it looks deep, but if you consider what is actually there, there wasn’t much. There were all kind of places you can add your own depth (see how much I realized late in the show I do ship Obi-wan/Satine, but don’t really like they’re canon interactions), but it isn’t inherently there.
That…turned into a bit of a Clone Wars rant. And it’s not like I’m sure I’m going to love Rebels yet (I’m at cautiously like, if it can give a bit more scope), it’s just that I wish we could have had this style of story with TCW. Have the ambition and pretty animation and ability to tell any kind of story, but do it with actual characters that are allowed to grow and adapt to the story.
Star Wars Rebels: 1x06 – Out of Darkness
Well, this one was kind everything I was afraid the series was going to be. I didn’t hate it, it was fine at what it was, but it’s a version of the show I hope they outgrow before long. It has shown enough promise that I still think it’s fairly likely it will outgrow this, but this one isn’t encouraging.
Like I said a couple episodes, they would clearly be intending to have episodes that explore other characters and dynamics on the show by showing small adventures so that we get comfortable with this level of conflict. Then they can do more with the wider arc of the story. And this episode definitely falls into that category. Although I’m not sure if it’s supposed to be an establishing episode for Sabine or Hera or both. We still barely know anything about either of them, but we do get a slightly better handle on what they can do and bring to the team.
However, it’s still very in a kids show mold. Everyone but Hera and Kanan are just idiot children. Sometimes useful, especially with an adult to keep them from being complete idiots, but even that isn’t always successful. But the comic relief trio just annoyed the crap out of me, and Sabine is… Like I said, we still don’t know much about her, and this episode does hint towards a deeper past, but she’s acting like a winey teenager.
Not that Hera’s doing a great job dealing with her. This is the kind of thing that got kind of annoying in the sequel trilogy too, just vague assurances of hope and progress. You’re asking for faith without really giving people something to pin their faith on. When you ask for trust, especially blind trust, but don’t seem to extend trust, it’s flimsy and cloying. And trusting someone with your life in a crisis that threatens you both and displaying trust in them everyday are not the same thing.
Also, I’m not sure about the animation of Hera. It works in action scenes because movements being big and heightened make sense. But in talking scenes she seems to bop around a lot and over-project her physicality.
So for the last few episodes I’ve pretty much settled on thinking of this show as taking place <5 BBY. The Empire seems very well established and entrenched, and this doesn’t feel like a quickly sprung Rebellion. This feels like there have been years of Imperial rule and the Rebellion has taken a while to get up and running; and still largely isn’t a fully fledged rebellion yet, more a loose network of small bands who pester at the edges of the Empire but it’s not exactly a war yet.
But I’m not sure where to put this episode in support of that timeline assumption. I really need to know more about what Kanan and Hera were getting up to before they even sort of established themselves as an Imperial annoyance. If they’d been doing that for ~15 years, on their own and then together, they’ve gotten pretty lucky to have lasted this long.
As usual, I just want more of the adult characters, all the dumb children can go away. And while I wasn’t joking about how I’m developing something of a habit of going for the long term pining ships; for now I would like to know whether these two fit the category.
These episodes feel a bit too short. Not a lot too short necessarily, as if there’s a whole other episode they could have gotten out of the material; but a little too short and…either lacking a small element or just unbalanced. Now, the way the balance is off is skewed towards character more often than it was in TCW, which is a skew I’m in favor of; but something usually feels a little rushed, often the conclusion.
This is also sort of continuing what I’m starting to complain about. There are characters other than Ezra we could be focusing on. This is actually a pretty good Ezra episode, my complaints about the slightly rushed conclusion notwithstanding, but they keep having Ezra episodes and I want to know more about the others.
At least this one is correctly an Ezra episode. This should be his story, it makes sense that he’s the one doing this and it makes sense that with him doing this he’s the one in focus. Last episode was more annoying, since it shouldn’t have been an Ezra episode.
I have a strong suspicion we’re going to be seeing these other guys again, and as a setup this was decent. I can’t quite remember their names and the kind-of-memory I have will probably be gone before they show up again, but I think I can hold on to some memory of having met them here. Especially now that I’ve writing it down.
I’m not sure what to make of the space action plot. It kind of feels like it’s part of something more but it’s nebulous so far. It also kind of seems like just something to do where we pretend we get a Kanan and Hera focused plot when it’s really just a couple scenes.
But I cannot deny that it’s a relief after TCW to be thinking about ‘this might be setup for a future plotline.’ While technically TCW did some of that, it didn’t so much feel like an ongoing, evolving arc, as action figures that got picked up and put down and maybe they’d remember the point of them the next time they were picked up. This feels more like building blocks; I don’t exactly know if what they’re building is going to work for me, or even stand when completed, but it’s a structure I prefer.
Unlike TCW, this feels like it takes place in a post-Avatar world of animated shows. It’s not as good as Avatar (although the first few episodes of that aren’t the best either, so this has time before I fully judge it), but it seems like the same type of storytelling. And that’s a type of storytelling I like, so I’m going with it easier than I did TCW.
Oh, I’ll grant that TCW was more ambitions, it looked a lot better (even when I would complain about it), it had…one good character arc in Ahsoka, and the stories had a lot more scope. But the last was kind of the problem; it had scope, but with a depth approaching zero. It reflected the wide scope of the series, so it looks deep, but if you consider what is actually there, there wasn’t much. There were all kind of places you can add your own depth (see how much I realized late in the show I do ship Obi-wan/Satine, but don’t really like they’re canon interactions), but it isn’t inherently there.
That…turned into a bit of a Clone Wars rant. And it’s not like I’m sure I’m going to love Rebels yet (I’m at cautiously like, if it can give a bit more scope), it’s just that I wish we could have had this style of story with TCW. Have the ambition and pretty animation and ability to tell any kind of story, but do it with actual characters that are allowed to grow and adapt to the story.
Star Wars Rebels: 1x06 – Out of Darkness
Well, this one was kind everything I was afraid the series was going to be. I didn’t hate it, it was fine at what it was, but it’s a version of the show I hope they outgrow before long. It has shown enough promise that I still think it’s fairly likely it will outgrow this, but this one isn’t encouraging.
Like I said a couple episodes, they would clearly be intending to have episodes that explore other characters and dynamics on the show by showing small adventures so that we get comfortable with this level of conflict. Then they can do more with the wider arc of the story. And this episode definitely falls into that category. Although I’m not sure if it’s supposed to be an establishing episode for Sabine or Hera or both. We still barely know anything about either of them, but we do get a slightly better handle on what they can do and bring to the team.
However, it’s still very in a kids show mold. Everyone but Hera and Kanan are just idiot children. Sometimes useful, especially with an adult to keep them from being complete idiots, but even that isn’t always successful. But the comic relief trio just annoyed the crap out of me, and Sabine is… Like I said, we still don’t know much about her, and this episode does hint towards a deeper past, but she’s acting like a winey teenager.
Not that Hera’s doing a great job dealing with her. This is the kind of thing that got kind of annoying in the sequel trilogy too, just vague assurances of hope and progress. You’re asking for faith without really giving people something to pin their faith on. When you ask for trust, especially blind trust, but don’t seem to extend trust, it’s flimsy and cloying. And trusting someone with your life in a crisis that threatens you both and displaying trust in them everyday are not the same thing.
Also, I’m not sure about the animation of Hera. It works in action scenes because movements being big and heightened make sense. But in talking scenes she seems to bop around a lot and over-project her physicality.
So for the last few episodes I’ve pretty much settled on thinking of this show as taking place <5 BBY. The Empire seems very well established and entrenched, and this doesn’t feel like a quickly sprung Rebellion. This feels like there have been years of Imperial rule and the Rebellion has taken a while to get up and running; and still largely isn’t a fully fledged rebellion yet, more a loose network of small bands who pester at the edges of the Empire but it’s not exactly a war yet.
But I’m not sure where to put this episode in support of that timeline assumption. I really need to know more about what Kanan and Hera were getting up to before they even sort of established themselves as an Imperial annoyance. If they’d been doing that for ~15 years, on their own and then together, they’ve gotten pretty lucky to have lasted this long.
As usual, I just want more of the adult characters, all the dumb children can go away. And while I wasn’t joking about how I’m developing something of a habit of going for the long term pining ships; for now I would like to know whether these two fit the category.
