"The Box" was by far the best episode of the bounty hunter arc, and was a rather creative storyline that didn't stray to far from what we as Star Wars fans would consider normal for the the series. This was also a great episode for Cad Bane-lovers out there, including myself.
The episode started out almost exactly with what we saw in the preview. The only thing that came before the introduction to the big floating cube of doom was Eval's landing and admonishment for being late, and Bane shooting one of the other bounty hunters there for wearing his old hat. Seriously, if this guy isn't the best Star Wars rip-off of one of those Western cowboys that we see portrayed by Clint Eastwood, I have absolutely no idea what else he could be.
Once the bounty hunters were all introduced to one another like we saw in the preview and we all saw the big floating cube of doom, all of them entered into it. I forget exactly how many bounty hunter there were (I think ten or twelve), but according to Dooku and Eval, only 5 would be allowed to come out alive.
Round One of the Box was rather interesting. A hole opened up, and some toxic gas came out. The only way to avoid it was get on these raising pillars that were actually a trap-they would stop long enough for the bounty hunters to get settle, then raise some more until they reached the ceiling. Hardeen/Kenobi figured out that the only exit as the hoe where the gas had come out of, and everyone lived on to fight in Round Two.
Round Two involved a bucnh of these crazy pillars with some electric saber at the tips of them. The only way out was up, and Kenobi managed to find out the pattern that the pillars used to climb to that exit. I forget how many died in this room, but I know that at least one, and maybe two or three did.
If the first two rounds were death traps, then the third was an automatic tomb. Moralo ray shielded all the walls in the room, and the switch to turn them off was behind another ray shield. The only way to get to the switch was drink a serum that was toxic to all the bounty hunters but one. Then, to make things interesting, the walls and the floor began closing in, all ray shielded, leaving the remaining bounty hunters to stand on theses pillars and discuss who should drink the serum. Kenobi suggested one of the alien bounters with three eyes should take it. Considering there was little time, there was little argument, expecially since Kenobi had been right on all accounts in saving their skins thus far. Surprisingly, the serum worked without even any side effects, and the bounty hunter managed to hit the switch and let everyone else who was still alive pass on to the bonus round.
Considering how crazy and deadly all the other traps had been, I though this one was a bit of a let-down. All that happened was a target would be floating on the opposite wall, and you had to hit it three times. If you failed, you died in a firey pit below. No puzzle solving or alterior methods of getting out of it, it was just simple as that. One guy tried and died, then Kenobi/Hardeen saved everyone else again.
However, Eval, who had become increasingly jealous of Kenobi and worried that he might lose his place as the head of the mission to kidnap Palpatine, decided to put Kenobi and Kenobi alone on one final trap/test. He separated Kenobi from the others and had him hit five more targets. Kenobi hit four, but then his blaster "mysteriously" ran out of power, and Eval let him drop to a firey death below.
WHAT!? Kenobi can't die! Thankfully Bane of all people saved him by firing a quick rope around Kenobi's arm, telling Eval in perhaps Bane's best line of the series, "If you're gonna kill him, do it like a man." Dooku apparently agreed and had both Kenobi and Eval sent down to duke it out. Eval threw sevaral traps at Kenobi, but the Jedi master in disguise beeat them all and gave Moralo a rather serious beating.
When told to finish him by Dooku, Kenboi replied that he just wanted the moeny and to be done with the job, and left an injured Moralo Eval to stand back up. Dooku mentioned that the remaining five bounty hunters (Cad Bane, Hardeen/Kenobi, Embo, and two others) would now be working with Eval to kidnap Palpatine as a hostage to meet the demands of releasing the Separatist prisoners that had been captured over the course of the war. He also mentioned, as a bit of a cliffhangar, that Cad Bane was now the leader of the mission.
VERY good episode, and Im gonna rate it 8/10. I wasn't really disappointed with any of it, and I can certainly bet that the writers had a fun time with this one. I do hope that perhaps we finally see Wat Tambor and Poggle the Lesser released next episode, and I'm really rather dying to see the old Kenboi back, this Hardeen thing has gone on long enough. MTFBWY!
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