Star Wars Rebels has been pretty light on Thrawn content since Steps into Shadow ran. This one remedies that, and also makes his presence known to the Rebels. It also gives a little bit of world building, as well, which is thankfully already documented in almost excruciating detail on Wookiepedia. Sometimes, I’m glad there are people willing to obsessively document every minor thing. Makes figuring out the spelling for Star Wars stuff easier, at least.
Anyway, things kick off with Cham and company being chased by some troopers on speeders and a transport. They literally run out of road, too; they’re riding creatures that probably can’t take a ravine-sized drop. The Ghost swoops in for the save, taking out the transport and gaining a speeder with the deal.
Cham tells them that things have gotten worse, recently; all of a sudden, his opponent has gotten super competent. They’ve gone from winning many of their scrapes to losing ground. They’ve even lost the ancestral home of the Syndullas, along with everything inside. Hera’s a bit upset about this; their Kalikori, an artistic heirloom passed down in Twi’lek families, was lost with the house. Hera decides that she’s not just going to let them keep it. While she tries to keep the others from helping her they’re more than willing. That armor was apparently a perfect fit for Ezra, as well.
They’re mostly able to get through with a distraction from the rest of the crew and Cham’s fighters. Chopper somehow got inserted with a paint job to help him pass. He’s still hung up on the Y-wing that Hera pulled him from; possible plot thread for later? Who knows, though since it still sits in front of the house, it’s worth mentioning.
Aside from Ezra marveling at the size of the place, they have little trouble getting in. They have even less finding the Kalikori. Getting out on the other hand has them practically run right into Grand Admiral Thrawn.
Their planned escape route winds up being a no go; it had been converted to an operations room. Their only option is to go back through the front door. Too bad that runs them right back into Thrawn. And unlike commander Slavin, he realized who practically from the get go. He personally confiscates the Kalikori, gets the drop on Ezra, and has them imprisoned.
It’s nice to see Thrawn’s appreciation for art made the jump. Slavin’s suggestion that they destroy the Kalikori practically gets him throttled, as a matter of fact. You can literally see the murder in Thrawn’s eyes for a second; it’s great.
Since they press their advantage, Cham’s willing to sacrifice himself for a prisoner exchange. But they still had an ace in the hole; Chopper. When he breaks into the room Hera and Ezra are held in, Hera has him raid the armory. And with his now trademark murderous glee, the little droid rigs the mansion to explode.
They use the explosions to disrupt the exchange and get away clean, though without the Kalikori. Thrawn hands Slavin out to dry. It was all about gauging his future opponents, after all. I have no idea where, exactly, they’ll go with him, but by the end of the season, it’ll be brutal.
Star Wars Rebels is wrapping up some Clone Wars stuff next week. It ought to be pretty good, judging from the preview.
Final Thoughts:
- Spell check hates the word “Kalikori”. Go figure.
- I just imagine the scout trooper waking up in a broom closet and wondering why he’s naked.
- The creatures Cham and his fighters were riding came from a TV movie from 1985. That’s some good digging, guys.
“Thrawn makes his presence known/felt on the latest Star Wars Rebels.”
4/5
“Great”
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