Top Five Things I Want in Rebels
By: David Gremillion
Show host for "Get Your Geek On"
Star Wars
Rebels is roughly two months away from airing on Disney XD. This is the first
show for Star Wars fans in the “Disney Era” and the reviews have been (mostly)
positive.
With the show
coming to a home near you, I thought it best to lay out what I want to see in
the show. I already know there will be explosions, space battles, and
lightsaber duels. But what I want to see goes far deeper than a saber around.
5. The “Dark
Times”. Palpatine is un-opposed; using the galaxy as his dark playground.
Obi-Wan described this period as the dark times. What is life like during this
point of Star Wars history? How does it mirror points in our own, darker,
history? For everyone whining (like a four year old) that Rebels will be for
babies because Disney is dishing out the paychecks, I want to see some
darkness. But there’s hope on the horizon just by listening to
the words of the creators themselves.
“You’re seeing
the impact of the Empire, of stormtroopers around the galaxy, abusing and
oppressing people. Thematically and politically, it goes to some dark places.”
–Simon Kinberg
“We wanted
somebody terrifying, a nightmare character for a kid…” –Simon
Kinberg about the Inquisitor.
4. The fade
of mysticism. I always found it odd how Vader can use the Force, Palpatine can
use the Force, the “Emperor’s Hands” can use the Force, yet the Force is
denounced as a hokey religion. If the Force existed in our reality and Lucas
could move objects with his mind, Spielberg could use a lightsaber really well,
and Michael Bay could make good movies, then who am I to laugh it off? So in a
civilization that has personally witnessed the Jedi and Sith for TENS OF
THOUSANDS OF YEARS, how is it possible to dismiss them so easily, and yet be
led by them?
3. Ghost.
Star Wars fans cling to their ships like a Hutt to a buffet. I GUARANTEE that
if a fifteen second teaser is released and the ONLY image we see is the
Millennium Falcon soaring toward us, fans will go ballistic. The Falcon is
iconic. It has its own technical manual, its own novel, and has a three
dimensional owner’s guide. What generated so much discussion a few months ago?
How an X-Wing fighter “looked” in a JJ Abrams video. With the fanbase falling
head over heels for various ships, I can’t wait to see how Filoni and Company
will work the Ghost into our hearts.
2. Kanan. By
far, he has to be the most conflicted and complicated character. Where was he
during Order 66? Who trained him? Does he feel shame about his heritage? Does he want revenge? There
are more questions swirling around this character than any other in the show.
His past is a mystery, his future is unknown, and how he interacts with the
crew is yet to be seen. Is this our “Captain Mal”, who is haunted by the fight
he lost? What makes him want to train Ezra after all he has been through? His
character has the potential to be explored over the course of several seasons
with twists and turns on every episode.
1. The
Empire. With Episodes IV, V, and VI focusing strictly on the rebellion, we
never got to see things from the Empire’s perspective. Give credit to the
Phineas and Ferb episode for showing us life in the Empire. True, it was with
tongue firmly implanted in the cheek, but it is something I want to see
expanded upon. Do they see themselves as the heroes? How do they justify
oppressing the populace?
True, we
will see space battles and “epic” lightsaber duels with plenty of flips and
kicks, but a good lightsaber duel does not make a memorable show. We don’t
watch “Batman: The Animated Series” solely because of the fistfights. We don’t
watch The Last Airbender solely for the bending duels. We watch them because of
the characters, the stories, and the emotional ties we have to the show.
This article is an opinion piece and represents the views of the writer, and not the entire Star Wars Underworld organization.
Follow The Star Wars Underworld on Twitter @TheSWU for more updates about this story and other breaking Star Wars news.
0 comments:
Post a Comment