Rebel Resolve (Star Wars Rebels - S01E12) - Animated Series

In Star Wars Rebels’ penultimate episode, Ezra disobeys orders in hopes of tracking down Kanan. SPOILERS.

In my review for “Call to Action” I mistakenly identified it as the penultimate episode of season one of Rebels when in fact that honor goes to this week’s episode, “Rebel Resolve.” The episode began with Ezra, Sabine, Zeb, and Chopper attempting to use an Imperial AT-DP to track down Kanan’s location following his capture but they were unable to find any information. This sequence was a lot of fun, particularly Zeb’s last minute rescue of Chopper. Back aboard the Ghost, Hera contacted the mysterious Fulcrum who told her to cease all attempts to recue Kanan because it was too risky. Hera told the rest of the crew that, as hard as it is, their mission is bigger than one soldier and they had to honor Kanan’s sacrifice. I also think it’s important to point out that Hera confirmed Kanan doesn’t know anything about a larger rebellion. It was good to see Hera making the tough choice despite her obvious feelings for Kanan. Unsurprisingly, Hera’s decision didn’t sit well with the rest of the crew, practically Ezra. Chopper distracted Hera, while Ezra, Sabine, and Zeb disobeyed orders and stole the Phantom to search for Kanan. Meanwhile, Tarkin and the Inquisitor began their interrogation of Kanan. These interrogation scenes were some of the episodes stronger moments and we also got a better sense of the Inquisitor’s power.

Desperate to find Kanan, Ezra went to Vizago for help. After Vizago said he didn’t know anything, Ezra told him that he and Kanan are Jedi. Ezra proved it to Vizago and agreed to owe him a favor no questions asked. I know Ezra is desperate to find Kanan, but this is such a bad idea his part. Vizago will sell them out in a heartbeat. Vizago told Ezra that following the destruction of the communication tower the Empire has been using courier droids to pass along and one of them might lead them to Kanan’s location. After making the tough choice to stop searching for Kanan earlier in the episode, Hera scolded Ezra for being reckless…and then immediately went along with his plan. I know these episodes are only twenty-two minutes, but Hera gave in far too quickly.

The crew of the Ghost set their plan into action by capturing an Imperial courier droid and sending a disguised Chopper in its place. Chopper downloaded the intel from the Imperial cruiser and sent a signal to Hera. Chopper’s rescue was one of the show’s best, but admittedly brief, space battles yet and the captured imperial droid even pitched in to help. Let’s talk about Chopper. All season long I have complained that he does nothing but put the rest of the crew in danger and has almost killed them on several occasions, is unhelpful, and comes off more annoying than funny. Finally, after waiting all season we finally got to see Chopper show some empathy. Seeing Chopper silently wait in Kanan’s room after they failed to find his location earlier in the episode was a nice moment. While Chopper was undercover, the captured Imperial droid actually helped the crew of the Ghost and even saved Zeb. When Zeb mentioned that maybe the Imperial droid should join the crew, Chopper pushed him out of the ship. And with that Chopper went back to being the character that has annoyed me all season. At this point I wish it was Chopper who had been pushed out of the ship. Based on the information gathered by Chopper, the crew of the Ghost learned that Kanan is aboard Tarkin’s Star Destroyer but it is set to depart for Mustafar. Hera said that Kanan told her that Mustafar is, “where Jedi go to die.” The idea that the Empire, almost certainly Darth Vader in particular, has transformed Mustafar into the place where Jedi go to die is an intriguing one. I’m also very excited about the prospect of finally leaving Lothal. While “Rebel Resolve” had its moments, it was mostly just set up for the finale. 

What Worked

• “Mustafar is where Jedi go to die”
• Kanan’s interrogation
• Hera making the tough choice…

What Didn’t Work

• … and then immediately going along with Ezra’s plan
• Despite finally showing some empathy, Chopper goes back to being annoying  
• Pretty much just set up for the finale

External Links:

• StarWars.com Episode Guide
• Wookieepedia Episode Summary