Rebels Rewatch: S1:E1 & E2: Spark of Rebellion

Rebels Rewatch: Season 1: Episodes 1 & 2: Spark of Rebellion

The Force and the stories of the Jedi are my favorite thing about Star Wars; but they are not the only things I love about Star Wars. So, like a lot of people, when I first heard about Star Wars: Rebels I was really hoping it was going to be a boots on the ground (or ships in the space) series about how the rebellion against the Empire came to be, with the focus squarely on regular people (You know? Regular people?). Even after learning of Kanan's role, I still hoped that particular aspect wouldn't be center stage. Well, the first 30 seconds of Spark of Rebellion should have immediately disabused anyone watching of that notion. I mean, the very first scene is Darth Vader talking to the Grand Inquisitor about the Emperor's concern regarding the "children of the Force"; and then what do they immediately cut to? Ezra. There you go. That first minute or so is your skeleton key to the entire series. This is not to say that Rebels in general or "Spark of Rebellion" in particular is bad as a result of this. It's just that, you know how expectations can be.

In this episode we are introduced to Ezra and the crew of the Ghost. Hera, Kanan, Chopper, Sabine, and Zeb don't seem to be part of anything much bigger at first. The just seem like a group of people trying to do what good they can while sticking it to the Empire in their neck of the woods. You know, think galactically; act locally. That little scamp Ezra comes along and, in the space of about 45 minutes goes from being a nuisance to part of the family. Now, a lot of people don't care for Ezra. They think he's annoying and point to him as a prime example of the earliest Disneyfication of Star Wars. Those people are right, of course; but is Ezra any more cringe inducing than Ahsoka when she was introduced? At this point I'm going to say, "no." It's not like he gives Kanan a silly nickname like Special K or something. As it stands, "Spark of Rebellion" is a perfectly serviceable introduction to the series. Kids should enjoy the action and the wish fulfillment factor of seeing another kid take part in it. Liberal use of McQuarrie concepts and John Williams's music hits some pretty strong nostalgia for the older folks. I think I prefer the way character designs are done in Rebels as opposed to The Clone Wars; but the actual animation doesn't seem to be on the same level. The voice cast is pretty good, especially with vets like Vanessa Marshall and Steven Blum on board. Freddie Prinze Jr., not primarily a voice actor, does more than just phone it in here; and James Arnold Taylor's cameo as Obi-Wan is much appreciated. Like I said, this show starts off being something different than what I wanted it too, but when Kanan says, "Kid, I'm about to let everyone in on the secret,"; then gets up and starts strutting his Jedi stuff: well, I felt feelings, even re-watching it 5 years later.

*In addition to the Ghost crew, these episodes give us the first appearances of Vizago (I really love his proto-IG-88 droids) and Agent Kallus (he's with ISB, so why doesn't he wear a white tunic?).

*Zeb is kind of a psychopath: he pushes Ezra out of the way causing him to get captured, leaves him behind, and then his first instinct is to lie about the whole thing.

*Rewatch worth it? Yeah. It's the pilot, you kinda have to.

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