Have you seen the greatest Star Wars animated trailer ever? Courtney recaps everything we have to look forward to.
“To defeat your enemy, you have to understand them.” -Ahsoka Tano
This quote kicks off the amazing mid-season trailer of Star Wars Rebels, and points to where season two is heading. If you haven’t seen this trailer yet, go watch it. Right now. Go.
This trailer is–by far–the best animated Star Wars trailer ever released. The music alone is captivating and builds to epic crescendo by the end of the trailer. And instead of just a tease, there is plenty of the insight into the upcoming Star Wars Rebels episodes. Let’s recap:
Cham Syndulla, Princess Leia, Darth Vader, Rex, Yoda, Jedi Temple guards, three Inquisitors, and space whales.
Wow.
The Inquisitors will be working with Darth Vader himself, posing issues for not only Kanan and Ezra, but the entire fledgling Rebel Alliance. The rebels will be getting help from Cham Syndulla and a fleet of Twi’lek ships. If you don’t know who Cham Syndulla is, he was an important cog in The Clone Wars series, an integral character in Lords of the Sith–plus he’s Hera’s father. I’m thinking we’ll get some interesting Hera-centric episodes dealing with her relationship with her father. Are they on good terms? How does Hera feel about fighting alongside her father?
Princess Leia brings her determination and sass to season two, and makes a quick connection with Ezra. She correlates how they both choose to fight, not because they have to, but because they can make a difference. I think this is going to be vitally important as the season progresses; further along in the trailer we see Ezra being tempted by the dark side. If Ezra and Leia form a good, trusting companionship, perhaps she can help Ezra see the danger in the dark side of the Force. At this time in the Star Wars canon, Leia and Ezra should be close in age (exact age, to be precise, being born on the same day). So if he won’t, or refuses to, listen to older Jedi, perhaps Leia may be the one to reach him (if he goes down the dark path).
Master Yoda makes his first (corporeal) appearance in Star Wars Rebels as well. Ezra is questioning if he is wrong to fight and protect his friends, so already we see a young Padawan with questions. Yoda makes an important distinction about fighting. He says “How Jedi choose to win, the question is.” This will become an important point as the season goes on; the trailer clearly shows Ezra battling some pull from the dark side. Whether he is being manipulated or if he has real dark-side tendencies, only time will tell. Thus far in the series we haven’t seen much anger (just a bit), and almost no hate from Ezra. It’s obvious in the trailer, and even recent past episodes, that Ezra’s Force abilities are growing at a quick pace. Yoda points out this growth in power comes with a sense of danger. So what could turn him down the dark path? Or, perhaps, who could influence him? The trailer gives a glimpse of a shadowy figure speaking with Ezra, Ezra kneeling to this figure, and then being told to call him “Old Master.” This person strikes a very similar resemblance to a certain Dathomirian Zabrak Sith Lord…is Darth Maul coming back? Yes!
Perhaps to most thrilling part of the trailer is Darth Vader/Anakin speaking via a Force vision to Ahsoka. She knows who he is, and now Vader knows she is helping the rebels. Ashoka is visibly haunted, and even a bit afraid, of a confrontation with Vader. In one part of the trailer we see her teaching Ezra about Anakin, who was awed by Anakin’s abilities. This may raise some questions in Ezra’s mind, and perhaps sends him on a quest to find knowledge about the Force, which in turn may lead him to temptation or manipulation by the dark side.
The trailer shows so much action that it’s worth watching a few times just to catch all of the great scenes. Season two promises to be a thrill ride which much more intrigue and deeper themes. The final frame of the trailer is almost heartbreaking. Ahsoka and Darth Vader are shown in a fierce lightsaber battle, their faces lit by the white and red of their blades. Will this be the end for Ahsoka Tano? Rebels co-creator and executive producer Dave Filoni stated in an article from March 2015 for StarWars.com that Vader would consider his relationship with Ahsoka as a failed one, and that he would be angry with her for leaving. Vader would place the blame on Ahsoka, not himself, thus the ultimate showdown between the two–former master and padawan–may be a fight to the death.
Season two of Star Wars Rebels returns Wednesday, January 20 at 9:00 pm ET. Don’t miss it!
Courtney Martin is a graduate of Indiana University and works in publishing. She’s an avid Star Wars fan and wrote the recipe blog Courtney Cooks Star Wars on suvudu.com. When not enveloped a science fiction or fantasy novel, she is watching television with her husband and son, doing crossword puzzles, or playing with her Shih Tzu, Burt.