Star Wars Rebels: “An Inside Man”
Broadcast on December 3, 2016
Written by Nicole Dubuc
Directed by Steward Lee
Ezra and Kanan are on Lothal waiting to be picked up by Ryder Azadi. Ezra is stunned at the number of ships and troopers that are now on his homeworld. Suddenly a speeder approaches; it’s piloted by Ryder and is being pursued by two stormtrooper speeder bikes, which are firing upon it. The Jedi leap onto the speeder and dramatically help their ally escape several threats in the downtown area. Cue title card and first commercial break.
After escaping the troopers in a very cool way, the heroes make for the rebels’ hidden base. There, Ezra tells the others that an attack is being planned on the Imperial factories. This sounds like a good idea, given that Section 82 has become very secretive and the best workers have been moved there. Ezra, Kanan, and Chopper go undercover with another rebel who has a history with Ezra. All seems to be going well until it’s revealed that Grand Admiral Thrawn is there to investigate acts of sabotage at the factories, accompanied by Agent Kallus and Governor Arihnda Pryce.
After this, the Rebels have to get in to Section 82 to get the information on the secret constructions, while avoiding capture. There’s some solid action, with some fun moments, but the action, especially the exit from the factory is terrific. The episode ends with one character under greater watch, while the weapons under construction spell certain doom for the Rebellion. This episode is setting up the pieces for a future confrontation.
Fun lines: “…But this is worse than bad,” “Just have to get them up to 190,” “Chopper, get their attention,” “Wait, is this Section B17?”, and “Now I have to make this look convincing.”
The good: Fulcrum, the inside man for the Rebels, is revealed late in the episode and it’s a good surprise, it’s good to see Ezra and Kanan growing as a team, the factory hangers for the Imperials were neat to see, the return of Ryder is good (I love me some Clancy Brown!), and there’s a good tease of trouble on the horizon in two different ways.
The bad: Thrawn is getting a little repetitive with his placing his hand to his chin as he considers something. I’d like to see him become a little more emotional or see him under the gun from the Emperor to perform more. I’ve read every novel he’s in, so I know he’s capable of more, but I’ve got to see him go beyond his monotone responses. Can’t he be more surprised by the Rebels? I like looking at Pryce, because of whom she resembles; however, outside of her looks, she’s the typical reactionary Imperial politician. She, too, is becoming very one-note. That said, this is a show intended for children, and I realize I shouldn’t be looking for anything too deep in the characters.
The final line: Threats are revealed for future confrontations. Fun, but more is obviously to come. Overall grade: B+
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