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Post by Douay-Rheims-Challoner on Sept 23, 2014 12:16:31 GMT -5
So, here's our pre-emptive thread for Star Wars Rebels discussion. In a bit of synchronicity that is astonishingly rare for live action television, this American program will air on US and UK (and Irish) TVs on DisneyXD on the same day - that is, October 3rd, with a double-length episode (so forty minutes-ish) that will serve as the series pilot.
The short premise for this series is this: It's set between Episode III and Episode IV, when the Rebellion is still a new idea. It follows a crew of original characters on a Millennium Falcon-esque ship (including a Jedi) and has much of the creative team of Star Wars: The Clone Wars, a CGI cartoon that I and many others actually rather enjoyed. (Also that guy who did Gargoyles, he has some fans too.) It is said to be a more serialized show than its predecessor, with the first season making up 'Act One' of this interstellar adventure.
Anyway, Disney have released four shorts to whet kid's appetites, airing regularly on TV and available on YouTube. These are not scenes from the show, but essentially little prequels that give us a sense of what the characters are like.
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Post by Superb Owl 🦉 on Sept 24, 2014 11:57:17 GMT -5
One of the characters is a Jedi? I'm kind of embarrassed of how nerd-irritated I am by that.
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Post by Douay-Rheims-Challoner on Sept 24, 2014 12:37:13 GMT -5
Superb Owl 🦉 Well that's Star Wars beyond the movies for you: There's only two Sith (except for a half-dozen others who don't count, like the Inquisitor, the main antagonist on this show) the Jedi all died in Order 66 (except for a few hundred that didn't, like Kainan, who is an Obi-wan to the Aladdin-esque hero of this show.) Of the shorts I liked the first one the best; there's something clean and classic about a TIE Fighter dogfight that the slapstick stormtrooper outwitting of the other pieces don't come close to (and the bickering married couple vibe complete with a fairly irritable droid companion is a nice dynamic.) This said, I fear Sabine may be particularly trying too hard with her role as the Rebellion's graffiti artist / obligatory Mandalorian for Boba Fett fans.
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Post by Superb Owl 🦉 on Sept 24, 2014 12:45:57 GMT -5
Superb Owl 🦉 Well that's Star Wars beyond the movies for you: There's only two Sith (except for a half-dozen others who don't count, like the Inquisitor, the main antagonist on this show) the Jedi all died in Order 66 (except for a few hundred that didn't, like Kainan, who is an Obi-wan to the Aladdin-esque hero of this show.) Of the shorts I liked the first one the best; there's something clean and classic about a TIE Fighter dogfight that the slapstick stormtrooper outwitting of the other pieces don't come close to (and the bickering married couple vibe complete with a fairly irritable droid companion is a nice dynamic.) This said, I fear Sabine may be particularly trying too hard with her role as the Rebellion's graffiti artist / obligatory Mandalorian for Boba Fett fans. I mean, I grew up reading EU novels, so I'm mostly fine with the idea that there are other Jedi-in-hiding besides Yoda. The idea that one was openly part of the early Rebellion just bothers me in my nerdiest of places.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 24, 2014 18:11:47 GMT -5
Why can the characters in the first short speak astromech dumb dumb I hate it
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Post by NerdInTheBasement on Sept 24, 2014 19:37:53 GMT -5
I really like the Zeb short best. That guys the only one in the cast so far whose really distinctive to me.
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Post by Douay-Rheims-Challoner on Oct 3, 2014 13:00:59 GMT -5
So I just watched the pilot episode, Spark of Rebellion.
My only criticisms are that the show working titles into Portentous Lines - Obi-Wan's holographic speech is a bit on the nose, as is Imperial agent Kallus talking about well the Spark of Rebellion that he must snuff our. (Also his name is actually Kallus, not until someone spoke it did the double meaning become clear for me.)
But past that this is pretty much exactly what I wanted from this program. Fun, snappy characters, fast paced action adventure with multiple cool set pieces, a bickering bunch of do-gooders stumbling from plan to plan out in the Outer Rim; and an surprisingly effective use of Williams' classic score - while obviously a homage in an episode densely packed with repurposed classic images (look Sabine took off her helmet like she is Luke) - but it was particularly effective at making just a single lightsaber ignite feel like a magical moment. We've been so inundated with lightsabers - like on the previous Star Wars cartoon and through decades of movies, novels, video games, comics, etc. - the series has to really work to make that moment feel earned, and if not quite the magic of the original film, it at least makes it feel special.
Kainan is, as I suspected and hoped, more Han Solo than Obi-Wan, a rough and tumble rebel fighter who relies far more on his blaster (and given his relationship with Hera probably not big on that whole no attachments rule.) Ezra for his parties a bit Aladdin by way of Luke, and while he could certainly come off as more obnoxious than he does, he's an adequate audience identification character for now.
Anyway Hera is my favourite character. I like no-nonsense pilots, and I like seeing a cartoon hero wth a comfortable romantic relationship with her partner.
Previews promise that R2D2 and C-3PO will appear in an upcoming episode. I think it's a little early to crossover with established characters (and I appreciated the restraint that Obi-Wan's hologram is the only one we see) but I guess this is kind of inevitable, I just wish they'd waited till season two.
And speaking of the show has already been renewed for a season two.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 3, 2014 13:09:03 GMT -5
A Greg Weisman show not in danger of being cancelled. HA, that will be the da.... HOLY CRAP, IT'S THAT DAY, IT'S THAT DAY! REJOICE WORLD, REJOICE!
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Post by Douay-Rheims-Challoner on Oct 3, 2014 14:20:22 GMT -5
@taxman Uh.... Greg Weisman won't be returning for the second season.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 3, 2014 14:26:06 GMT -5
@taxman Uh.... Greg Weisman won't be returning for the second season.
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Post by rimjobflashmob on Oct 3, 2014 18:18:45 GMT -5
I enjoyed this a hell of a lot more than I was expecting. They really nailed the feel and fun of the original trilogy, and reminded me why I loved this franchise so damn much in the first place. I find myself really enjoying the animation style, as well - the explosions in particular are very well done. I'll be interested to see what this show looks like week-to-week, as it suffers a little bit from a "gotta get the gang together" feel that might not carry over into subsequent episodes (the closest parallel I can come up with is the two-hour Firefly pilot). Anyway, it's fun and I'm excited for more.
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Post by Douay-Rheims-Challoner on Oct 3, 2014 18:39:19 GMT -5
rimjobflashmob I do get the Firefly comparisons (and Den of Geek called it Guardians of the Galaxy-esque, which is also appropriate.) it's got a real rundown crew of misfits feel to it, an approach towards sci-fi that I love (like that other F show) and in Star Wars terms particularly makes me think of the Ebon Hawk and the unlikely allies that bunked on that vessel.
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Post by rimjobflashmob on Oct 3, 2014 23:32:45 GMT -5
rimjobflashmob I do get the Firefly comparisons (and Den of Geek called to Guardians of the Galaxy-esque, which is also appropriate.) it's got a real rundown crew of misfits feel to it, an approach towards sci-fi that I love (like that other F show) and in Star Wars terms particularly makes me think of the Ebon Hawk and the unlikely allies that bunked on that vessel. I'll be the first to admit that the "rundown crew of misfits" trope is something that I'll wholly buy into devoid of context, but I feel like the SW:R crew is already as defined as the Serenity or Moya crews after the pilot hour(s). I really feel like I have a handle on each character, and although there are a few that get shortchanged (Inara, Zaan, Sabine) there's not a whole lot that I'd change as an introductory run to the series. Although I will say that Kallus has a definite Crais vibe to him and I wouldn't be surprised if we got a more compelling villain later on.
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Post by Douay-Rheims-Challoner on Oct 4, 2014 2:28:27 GMT -5
rimjobflashmob Kallus was originally going to be a Chiss, the blue-skinned red-eyed race of aliens most notable for counting Grand Admiral Thrawn among their number. Given that he's written as a bit of a calculating tactician, one can still see a bit of that in how he's portrayed. But as workable as he was and as much as I hope to see more of him, all marketing points to the Inquistor - the fellow he was talking to via hologram in the final minutes of the episode - as the main series villain. Which sounds smart, leaving the chief antagonist as a tease for after the adventure of the pilot. Also I believe this character is meant to be some kind of Jedi hunter, which means Kainan choosing to ignite his lightsaber in such a public setting could has the serious ramification of the Inquisitor's interest.
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Post by NerdInTheBasement on Oct 4, 2014 8:56:31 GMT -5
Yeah, this one was way better than I expected. Ezra was too bland for my taste, but the rest of the cast actually was pretty memorable, especially Zeb (whose impersonation of a Wookie was great). the animations also pretty good, though the skin on characters like Hera and Kenan needs to be fixed up pronto. Also, the Y7 rating for this one surprises me, it's not like extremely violent or what have you, but we do see several Clones die in this episode, so that rating struck me as odd.
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Post by Douay-Rheims-Challoner on Oct 4, 2014 9:36:07 GMT -5
NerdInTheBasement Well, Imperials. I don't know how many were clones (and Kallus kicking one to his death being played for laughs was the darkest best in the episode.)
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Post by Deleted on Oct 5, 2014 4:24:24 GMT -5
Saw somewhere else a comment that was complaining of "so much stolen music" when it came to using Williams original score. Fans can just be the worst sometimes. I also find the guardians of the galaxy esque comment DRC talked about earlier a bit laughable. Since most people say GOTG is star wars esque. So essentially a star wars show is being star wars esque.
I really liked the Pilot. It was fun and set up the characters involved very well. The voice acting is pretty good too. Zeb is my favorite character, and not just because he is voiced by Steve Blum! That's only like 60 percent of it! The animation is a mixed bag. I really do like at times(holy shit that grass looks sweet! And the ships too), but others.... not so much(wookies that are not cute children). Though I was surprised when I saw the Obi wan design and just how much I preferred it to the Clone Wars version. Yeah, I'm totally in!
Also, loved the typical weisman ending, where the villain gets to be all menacing.
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Post by Aussie Dave on Oct 6, 2014 6:07:58 GMT -5
Does anyone else get a Firefly-vibe with the relationship between Hera and Kaidan?
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Post by NerdInTheBasement on Oct 25, 2014 11:55:01 GMT -5
Watched the next episode to air early on the Disney XD app, and this particular episode finally introduces The Inquisitor. He's actually pretty cool, his design and voice are particularly notable, but he doesn't really command a threatening presence yet. Really wish the episode would have let him commit some real carnage to send home the idea that he's a force to be reckoned with. Decent enough episode, though I hope characters like Ezra will get better as the show progresses.
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Post by Douay-Rheims-Challoner on Oct 30, 2014 19:54:42 GMT -5
I liked the Inquisitor introduction which I just saw. Using Luminara Unduli is clever - of course it is a trap, but is a trap where we can briefly believe maybe it it is not. And it makes me reflect a bit on the tension of Rebels' view of the Force - it wants to have a very low-fi, original trilogy, nobody knows anything about this stuff feel (as opposed to the Jedi overload of the prequel era and the Clone Wars) but while our plucky would be Jedi can marvel over a simple lightsaber, the Inquisitor feels like he could have just waltzed out of a Clone Wars arc, complete with his gimmick heavy lightsaber technique, and also a guy who is clearly a bit of a Jedi lore expert. Seriously just plug this guy in as a Count Dooku apprentice or whatever and the show would have not missed a beat (and hey he does kinda look like a male version of Asajj Ventress, who like Ahsoka Tano is one of two Clone Wars characters I want to appear on this show.)
Rebels wants to recapture that magic of first hearing about the force, but for an audience already familiar with lightsaber fights (from the previous cartoon if nothing else.) Anyway the Inquisitor is a perfectly workable Star Wars villain and this was a very enjoyable episode - overall Rebels is delivering the weekly Star Wars adventure that I want from this program.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 31, 2014 2:16:58 GMT -5
The Inquisitor episode episode really helped to quell any fears I had that this wasn't going to live up to the fun of the pilot. Thankfully much better, as always, trust in the wise man that is Weisman.
Though it still does feel weird watching this and going through clone wars with my nephew at the same time. Especially the animation. Just watched the episode "The Mandalore Plot" and wow..... the design of the cities and backgrounds on Mandalore would be great for a movie, but a CGI cartoon? WOAH! And in rebels the background is a lot of nothing.
Also, that lightsaber is too gimmicky. All it made me think was of those old Skydancer/Dragonflyz toys.
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Post by Douay-Rheims-Challoner on Oct 31, 2014 10:09:28 GMT -5
@taxman Basically the big difference is Clone Wars had a bigger budget than Rebels. Clone Wars was the project of an eccentric billionaire willing to invest a sizeable amount of money into a cartoon (right from the start they planned to make at least a hundred episodes) and Rebels is something Disney okayed basically so they have their own Star Wars cartoon (i.e. not one that is on Cartoon Network) and one that ties in more with their new cycle of movies than the prequel era.
Still, what I like about the show is it's pretty confident; there's a lot of the old Clone Wars team on it and that really shows.
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Post by NerdInTheBasement on Nov 1, 2014 20:14:33 GMT -5
Guys, just a heads up, the next episode is awesome. It's the first great episode of the show, what Rookies was to The Clone Wars, this is to Rebels. Really does a great job developing Ezra, plus giving the audience a look at a new part of The Empire.
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Post by Douay-Rheims-Challoner on Apr 18, 2015 14:54:02 GMT -5
The rollouts from Star Wars Celebration continues. Force Awakens isn't the only one with a pretty great trailer, and this one promises not just a heavy use of Darth Vader (in his advanced TIE fighter!, among other looks), the show is also doubling down on its connections to the CGI Clone Wars, with two more Clone Wars characters appearing this season (one rather surprising:)
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Post by Douay-Rheims-Challoner on Oct 20, 2015 9:12:03 GMT -5
You know there was another neat Star Wars trailer recently. This one:
Also anyone else watching season two? Had thought that Gregor and Wolffe were new characters, but I clearly didn't remember the clones as well as I thought I did - Gregor had an entire arc about being an amnesiac on the Clone Wars (look I mostly followed Rex and Cody over there alright? Although obviously Cody is too dead to show up here.)
One of the tensions of Clone Wars was it presenting a morally ambiguous conflict - Jedi being set up by the Sith to fight pasties, and using armies of clones to do it with - as solid good and evil, and even in this post-Emperor post-Order 66 universe there's still characters trying to convince the clones that they were fighting for the right thing in some sense and their deaths had meaning, but, eh, what else are you going to say to get them on your team. I'm rambling.
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Post by Douay-Rheims-Challoner on Jan 11, 2016 17:19:41 GMT -5
So Princess Leia is appearing in the next episode of Rebels.
This makes sense, honestly - the show is now set around three or four years prior to A New Hope (which would put Leia in teens), the heroes already know and work with her father Bail Organa, and of the heroes of the first Star Wars film, she's the only one who was already an active Rebellion member when it began.
...also those look like KOTOR Republic ships.
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Post by Hawkguy on Jan 12, 2016 8:30:04 GMT -5
oh she's gonna be fun.
but oh man I enjoy the show but it always gets me how bland Lothal looks
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Post by Hawkguy on Jan 15, 2016 14:16:56 GMT -5
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Post by Douay-Rheims-Challoner on Jan 15, 2016 15:44:23 GMT -5
oh man the 2nd half of the season looks good I was just coming here to post that. Some notes: * Clone Wars characters returning has been a big theme of this season, and it continues here with Cham Syndulla, who was a notable character in Clone Wars' Ryloth arc (and is Hera's father.) He had little trust for Orn Free Taa, Ryloth's representative in the Senate and a key Palpatine ally, so you could say his eventual involvement in the Rebellion has been implicit from his first appearance. * Oo holocrons! Strange presumably Inquistior dojos with guys wearing white tree helmets. That Old Master's voice sounds familiar, but from where? Edit: It appears to maybe be another returning Clone Wars plot thread - Darth Maul himself, whose ultimate fate was left unresolved in that series. Either way I'd stake money on that being Sam Witwer. * Ahsoka vs. Vader. It's happening. If Cham's future role could be deduced from his brief Clone Wars appearance, Ahsoka's eventual fate in relationship to her master has been one of the burning questions of the franchise - we know that the survived the Jedi Purge, and why, but seeing her finally deal with Anakin's fallen state... that's something.
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Post by Hawkguy on Jan 15, 2016 16:00:23 GMT -5
Yea im worried about Ashoka's future honestly... They weren't gonna kill her in clone wars when she was the audience surrogate but now?
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