REBELS REWATCH: Season 1, Episode 6: Breaking Ranks

Finally, an Ezra focused episode. Ezra has infiltrated the Imperial Academy on Lothal. It’s a junior academy. It’s chocolate, it’s peppermint; it’s very refreshing. No, wait, that’s a Junior Mint; this is a very important Imperial facility staffed by three officers and like 10 stormtroopers. Why is the kid there? He needs to get a decoder so the Rebels can stop a kyber shipment. That’s simple enough, and he pulls that off fairly easily. In the meantime, though, he befriends two other cadets: Jai Kell and Zare Leonis.



Zare is only there because he is looking for his sister Dhara who disappeared while a student there. Jai seems to have some latent Force abilities, this is noticed by the staff and the Grand Inquisitor is notified to come check him out for what I assume is Project Harvester. Ezra and Zare warn Jai and hatch a plan to break out of the place by hi-jacking an Imperial walker. Zare, however, elects to remain at the academy in order to continue his search for his sister (the implication is that she was taken as part of Project Harvester). Ezra and Jai manage to escape with the help of Zeb and Sabine who have apparently been hanging out in back of the academy behind the dumpsters for the several weeks that Ezra has been there.



Zare makes it look like he was trying to stop Ezra and Jai. He is congratulated by his superiors and even gets to meet the Grand Inquisitor who tells everybody that he knows one of the kids that escaped, the “padawan” as he calls him. While all this is happening, Kanan and Hera, the two people that this show should be about, engage Imperial ships in a wicked cool space battle and destroy the kyber crystal in what is obviously the best part of this episode.



Here’s a few more tidbits from this episode: 1) Apparently the Empire trains its soldiers by teaching them that unrestrained individuality and backstabbing your team-mates is the key to victory in combat and a strong military. This makes perfect sense. 2) When Ezra rejoins the Ghost crew he makes a comment to Kanan about “smelly Lasats”. He doesn’t just say Zeb is smelly, he says “Lasats”. So, if you were looking for another reason to hate Ezra, add racist to the list. Don’t get me wrong, I’m sure Zeb reeks; but Ezra can’t be much better. He probably doesn’t shower but drowns himself in Axe body spray thinking it will impress Sabine. Punk.



Rewatch? I don’t know, it’s up to you. I mean, it’s always up to you. I don’t have any real authority. Several people from this episode will appear in future episodes. Also there is a four book junior novel series called Servants of the Empire that ties in to this episode. I’ve never read any of them, but Jason Fry is a pretty good writer. I guess rewatch (or watch) it.

All four season of Rebels are currently streaming on the Disney+ service.

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