Recap: STAR WARS REBELS Grinds Some Mandalorian Axes
Episode 307 “Imperial Super Commandos”
Written by Christopher Yost
Directed by Steward Lee
[photos: Lucasfilm]
This week picks up a thread from the second season, and gives us a little more play in the Mandalorian sandbox, taking us back to The Clone Wars and setting up a story that’s going to circle back toward the end of the season, likely.
Very basic episode this week. The Rebel Alliance has lost contact with the way station they established at the old Mandalorian outpost Concord Dawn (last seen in “The Protector of Concord Dawn” last season). Sent to investigate, Sabine (Tiya Sircar) and Rebellion “guest” Fenn Rau (Kevin McKidd) discover the outpost completely destroyed.
Turns out, the outpost is still occupied by flying stormtroopers. No, wait. Not stormtroopers. Mandalorians in service to the Empire!
Dun-dun-dunn!
Gar Saxon (Ray Stevenson) leads a group of Mandalorian mercenaries who have thrown in their lot with Imperial forces, and he’s out for blood where it concerns Rau — whom Saxon considers a traitor, same as how he sees Sabine. She’s not having any, though, not putting up with Saxon’s guff. Even when Saxon brings up Sabine’s mother, it doesn’t sway her to join him.
Rau, for his part, isn’t that enamored with Sabine, either. Turning her back on Mandalore has scored her no points. Rau fails to understand her allegiance to the Rebellion. They’re not Mandalorians, and it seems to be a lost cause. Rau has only thrown in with the rebels at the moment because it serves his best interests.
Even when Ezra (Taylor Gray) and Chopper get captured, Rau is ready to cut bait. But Sabine won’t abandon her friend, which leaves them stranded and surrounded when Rau steals the Phantom II. But he takes a moment to realize that she’s willing to die for her cause, that’s when he understands that the Rebellion is her family now. So he turns the ship around for a rescue.
Some good moments this time around. The jetpack chase through the canyon was well-crafted, even though real flight dynamics would probably have meant some of those blaster shots would never have come close to their targets…
And the mention of Sabine’s mother has me wondering if we’re setting up for a reveal of some sort near the middle of sweeps month. It is November, after all…
Overall, a serviceable episode, but not one that introduces any ground-shaking status-changing elements into the Star Wars canon. It really felt more like filler, setting pieces in place for a bigger payoff later.
Star Wars Rebels airs Saturday nights at 8:30/7:30c on Disney XD.
