#p: ezra sabine

[rebel-ahsoka]

STAR WARS REBELS 4.04, In the Name of the Rebellion: Part 2

[meiloorunsmoothie]

i think. it's time. to rewatch. all four seasons of rebels.

[xxtayleyxx]

Some rebels stuff I pulled from Twitter from SDCC today!

[david-talks-sw]

So that whole interaction between Ahsoka and Huyang, where they talk about Sabine's choice to help the enemy find Thrawn (in hopes that she can then find Ezra) is clearly meant to be subtext for what happened with Anakin.

I mean change the pronoun from "she/her" to "he/him", tweak some of the names and...

... it's just blatant.

The parallels were already clear in the previous episode, as pointed out in this post here, and it still holds true:

Sabine's struggle with attachment mirrors Anakin's.

We know Filoni's whole stance on why Anakin fell to the Dark Side: he'll usually acknowledge that Anakin was ruled by his attachments, got possessive of Padmé, but then adds:

"HOWEVER is loving that way really that bad?"

"HOWEVER he never stood a chance because Qui-Gon wasn't there to teach him properly and be the father Anakin needed."

I've already gone into why both these statements don't track with Lucas' intended narrative here and here... but I wanna touch on this notion that "Anakin wasn't trained enough to make a better choice."

He was.

You know how we know? Because we saw him overcome his attachments before.

We saw him explain the theory of the non-attachment rule, before.

In fact, wee saw him pass down a lot of the Jedi lessons, in The Clone Wars, including being disciplined, following orders and not acting impulsively.

The issue is that - while Anakin knows the theory, even has a few minor successes applying it - he never builds the self-discipline needed to master it because... deep down... he doesn't want to.

This is partially because you got Palpatine telling him he doesn't need to, molding him into an arrogant, power-craving person... but the fact remains that Anakin made the choice himself.

Which Filoni acknowledges, sure... but not quite. The difference between his thesis and George Lucas' is that the latter picks a stance and defends it.

"He started out as a very loving and compassionate person. And as he progressed, it was his inability to control his temper, his inability to let go of things, and his quest for power that were his undoing." - George Lucas, E! Behind the Scenes - ROTS, 2005

Anakin fell because he was greedy, just like any one of us can be.

Cool. Filoni, on the other hand, doesn't seem to land anywhere.

He dances around the issue (as can be seen by the debate between Ahsoka and Huyang, with no clear winner) and merely questions whether it's as simple as that.

Clearly he wants to justify Anakin's actions to some degree... but y'know, the narrative considers those actions so reprehensible that Anakin gets friggin' burned alive for it.

"I felt it was important that we actually see that happen so that we could see the consequences of these bad things that he did. […] He forces his friends to turn against him. Which is heartbreaking." - George Lucas, “The Chosen One” Featurette, 2005

Because Anakin's actions are not meant to be justified.

It's easy to see why Filoni likes Anakin. One of the earliest tasks he had when writing The Clone Wars was humanizing a character whose sole functional purpose was to carry out a narrative about how:

"Without self-discipline, greed [can] force a character off the path to freedom." - Micael Hearn, The Cinema of George Lucas, 2005

And Anakin is a very sympathetic character.

His flaws are flaws that we all carry.

Q: Is it fair to assess Anakin is kind of cursed by his own goodness/good qualities? "I wouldn't say that’s true. He’s cursed by the same flaws, and issues that he has to overcome, that all humans are cursed with. There's a lot going on there. [...] The whole point is—and the reason I started the story where I did—is that Anakin is a normal, good kid. And how does somebody who is normal and good turn bad? What are the qualities, what is it that we all have within us that will turn us bad?" - George Lucas, Star Wars Insider #52, 2000

But narratively, Anakin is selfish.

He doesn't want to save Padmé's life, he wants to save himself from the pain of losing Padmé.

And while you're supposed to sympathize with him, you're not meant to agree with him. He's Darth Vader, the space nazi. He messes up and consequentially "leaves the Force in darkness" for 20 years, instead of ushering it towards the light in the chancellor's office, when he has the chance.

So to shift the blame and say that...

HOWEVER, Anakin didn't have the proper support system or training to make a better choice.

... when the whole point of the narrative is about taking personal responsibility and being selfless instead of selfish... well, it is missing that point.

He did know better. He just didn't want to choose better, so he convinced himself he wasn't able to.

[merememberjust]

Ezra: Is this your plan B? Sabine: Technically, this is plan P. Ezra: Plan P? Is there a plan M? Sabine: Yes, but I marry Shin in plan M. Shin: I like plan M.

[jedimandalorian]

According to the latest Star Wars Chronology, the years 9 ABY to 19 ABY are called the “Peace of the New Republic.”

It is likely that the Ahsoka series and its sequels and crossovers all take place in this time period, which means

1. Lucasfilm will have to retcon this chronology because Thrawn starts another galactic war.

or

2. Thrawn finds out that the Emperor he once served is dead and the Empire has fallen, so he goes home to the Chiss Ascendancy in the Unknown Regions.

and/or

3. The Nightmothers were just using Thrawn to get to Dathomir, just as Thrawn was using them to get back home to the main SW galaxy. Now that the witches have achieved their goal, they will betray Thrawn and/or he will betray them.

and/or

4. There will be an effort by the heroes of The Mandalorian, the Ahsoka show, and other members of the Ghost Crew to stop a war. There will be an armed conflict with little or no help from the New Republic, and the brave unsung heroes save the galaxy from a bigger war that could have happened but didn’t.

Likely character deaths or transformations: Thrawn. Ahsoka.

Possible romance arcs completed: DinBo, Sabezra.

Cultures reborn/transformed: Nightsisters, Mandalorians, Jedi.

New Master and Apprentice pairings: Sabine and Grogu, Ezra and Jacen.

These are the “Jedi Mandalorians.” (Yes, I have been thinking about this for a very long time. Look at my username.)

Mando by birth: Sabine Wren, who restores her Clan.

Mando by adoption: Grogu.

Mando by marriage: Ezra Bridger. 😏

What do you think? What are the other possibilities?

Am I crazy? Here’s my Ahsoka Season 1 Bingo card:

Tolkien references (too many to list here)

Jacen is Force sensitive.

Sabine misses Ezra. 😢

Thrawn does the unexpected.

Kanan reference (more than expected). 😢

Chopper is a menace (not as much as he could have been).

Hera misses Kanan (his photo is on her dashboard). 😢

“Snips” 🙌

Anakin flashback. 🙌

Rex lives. (They didn’t kill him off yet and we did get a cameo so that’s a win.)

Quotable Huyang (Don’t get me started.)

Ezra is still a dork (and we love him for it). 😂

Ezra is a badass. 🙌

Sabezra tease. (Just go look at the rest of my Tumblr.) 😍

Mutual pining idiots. (See above.) 😍

Clan Wren. (We got a mention. R. I. P. 😢)

Sabine painting. (We saw the mural, the loth cat doodles and the graffiti in Ezra’s tower and on Ahsoka’s ship.)

No Fenn Rau. (I still want to see him in live action, maybe in Mando s4.)

Clone Wars Flashback. (More than one!)

No Rebels flashback. (We did get many callbacks though. I’d love to see any of them cameo in Andor s2.)

Loth rat. (Not the animal, but Ezra being his usual chaotic streetwise self, such as impersonating a stormtrooper and stealing his helmet and armor.)

Loth cat. (Sabine’s adorable pet. ��)

Loth wolf. (They are on the end credits star map and the Lothal Rebels mural. Howlers are also wolf-like.)

Run. (Our heroes did a lot of that.)

*******

So am I good, or what?

The Prophet of the Church of Ezrabine has spoken.

[illuminatedquill]

Ghost Stories #02

Feat. Garazeb Orrelios + Sabine Wren + Ezra Bridger

Story Context: Zeb catches Sabine doing something embarrassing regarding Ezra. Desperate to keep her secret, Sabine endeavors to secure Zeb's silence at any cost.

Ghost Stories #01

The door to Sabine's room opened with its customary hiss, allowing for Zeb to step inside. In normal circumstances, the first thing he would do is admire all the new artwork covering the walls of her room; Sabine was a top tier artist, and she constantly refreshed and updated the interior with painted visuals of their most recent escapades. It was a fun hobby that allowed distance from the constant grind of waging warfare against the implacable Empire. Everyone on the Ghost crew had something personal to distract themselves from the war - Hera, for example, had her constant maintenance and upkeep of the Ghost.

Kanan, he knew, practiced the Jedi art of meditation and centering oneself within the Force. Ezra had recently taken up cooking as a hobby, to surprisingly delicious results. Even Chopper had a side hustle: scamming low ranking Imperial officers of their ill-gotten credits with threats of blackmail to help pay for supplies (Hera didn't know about this and would strongly disapprove if she did).

Squinting around in Sabine's bedroom, Zeb quickly noted that the atmosphere was different this time around.

For one, he couldn't see a blasted thing. It was pitch dark. The only light source came from a small desk pressed against one of the walls; a bright, glaring lamp that shined down onto the surface to show a wicked looking knife, a whetstone to sharpen said knife, and, on the chair in front of it, a casually dressed Sabine. Her casual wear consisted of simple, comfy athletic shorts and a slightly too large shirt with a loth-cat design printed on the front - a recent addition to her wardrobe from their last visit to Lothal.

He frowned pensively at the loth-cat shirt. Isn't that . . . no, it couldn't be, he thought.

Sabine, her back towards Zeb, picked up the knife and whetstone. With practiced, precise movements, she began to sharpen the knife.

Shink. Shink. Shink.

Zeb's ears pricked up slightly each time the knife was sharpened. It was a somewhat sinister sound, enhanced even more by Sabine's shadowed profile against the lamp light.

I have a bad feeling about this, he thought.

"Zeb. Appreciate you coming here tonight," said Sabine casually.

The big Lasat swallowed nervously. "You, uh, called me here. Wanted to talk about something."

Shink. Shink. Shink. The knife's edge continued to be sharpened, Sabine's hands moving delicately.

"That's right," she replied. "You remember what occurred yesterday?"

Zeb scratched idly at the side of his head. "We picked up some supplies from Capital City, checked on Ryder and his crew, and then just relaxed outside of Ezra's comm tower for a bit before receiving new instructions from Rebel command."

Shink. The knife stopped moving briefly, just hovering over the whetstone. "Anything else happen, Zeb?"

"Is this - is this about your drawing? Of Ezra? Cuddling with those loth cats?"

Sabine finally turned around to look at him. In the light, her knife glinted with a wicked gleam.

"I need you to do me a favor, Zeb."

The Lasat kept his eyes on the knife in her hand. "I'm listening."

Smiling wolfishly, Sabine said, "I need you to hand over that drawing. I know you were going to show it off to him."

"I, uh, wasn't planning on it." That was a bald-faced lie. He'd ripped it out of Sabine's sketchbook when she had left it discarded and had been about to spill it all to Ezra before being interrupted by Sabine's summons.

She cocked her head at him. Her smile dropped. "You're lying to me, Zeb. I can always tell. You've got a lousy sabacc face, and you know it."

Zeb was still watching the knife. "What are you going to do with that knife, Sabine?"

She twirled it expertly between her fingers. "It's all nice and sharp now, Zeb. Guess I have to put it somewhere, right?"

He was breaking into a cold sweat now. "Where are you, uh, going to put it?"

Sabine shrugged. "I haven't decided yet. Depends on your answer."

He backed up against the wall, feeling somewhat desperate. "Look, Sabine. What's the big deal? You draw Ezra all the time! Not just him, too. You've drawn me, Hera, Kanan, even Chopper. I don't see what's so special about this one drawing."

The knife twirled and twirled. Light reflected from the steel surface, right into his face, causing discomfort.

"You know what's special about this particular drawing, Zeb. And I want it back. Ezra can't know."

"What," Zeb shot back, "that you like him now?"

Sabine froze. He was treading on the thin ice now and knew it, but pressed his advantage while she was taken off guard.

"He's not going to understand that from your super special drawing of him, Sabine. Your secret's safe. I promise."

Actually, it was fairly obvious from the drawing. Sabine's prior sketches of Ezra were always just that: sketches. No extra effort put into them, and usually gave the impression that she was just studying his anatomy, using his facial expressions as practice to keep her art sharp.

But, oh, it wasn't like that anymore.

Her newest drawings of Ezra were, indeed, something truly special. She had been paying extra attention to him as of late. Even someone oblivious like Ezra would immediately sense the immense labor of love and affection that went into the art, clear as day.

While she was thinking, the Lasat carefully began to sidle towards the doorway.

Frowning, staring at the floor, Sabine asked, "You really think Ezra won't be able to tell?"

"Yeah, of course," Zeb lied. "He's denser than durasteel, that boy."

Sabine snorted. "You're probably right."

He almost cried out in relief. "Good to hear - "

The knife embedded itself into the wall, right next to his ear. He froze, knees shaking like jelly.

Sabine's eyes glinted evilly in the dark. "I'm still going to need that drawing back, Zeb. Before you leave."

He quickly reached into his pocket and offered it to her. She snatched it from his hand.

"Are we done here?" Zeb squeaked.

She grinned malevolently at him. "We are. Thanks, Zeb."

Pausing at the door, he mustered his remaining courage and said, "Sabine, at some point Ezra is going to find out. You can't keep it a secret forever."

After a long moment, he heard her quiet reply. "I know. It's just . . . it's not the right time. I'll tell him on my own terms."

Zeb turned around. The look on her face was a little sad.

"You know," he said, thinking out loud, "Ezra might know already."

Sabine's eyes went wide with shock and apprehension. "What? How?"

"Because every time you look at him, your face looks like this." And he gave Sabine the most dopey, idiotic, love-sick smile as a hideous impression of her.

Uttering a curse, Sabine leapt up from her seat. Zeb scampered out the door, almost colliding with Ezra.

Grinning at him as he ran past, Zeb teased, "Ah, mate. You've got quite the handful of work ahead of you."

Blinking in confusion, Ezra said, "Huh?"

"Garazeb Orrelios," came Sabine's furious yell as she tore after the big Lasat. "Come back here!"

Making a beeline to the Phantom II (so he could lock himself safely within), Zeb almost missed an exchange between Ezra and Sabine:

"What's going on - wait. Is that my loth-cat shirt?" asked Ezra.

Skidding to a halt, Zeb risked a peek around the corner. I knew I recognized that shirt, he thought.

Sabine almost tripped in shock. "Uh - n-no?" she stammered in response. A flush was already spreading on her cheeks.

Ezra peered at her closely. "Pretty sure it is," he said. "Why do you have it? I've been looking for it everywhere."

Zeb broke out into a cold sweat again as he watched. Think before you speak, Sabine, he warned silently, trying to reach out telepathically. Use that brain of yours!

"It, uh, it smells nice," she blurted out. "Like you."

There was a sickening pause.

Sabine's hands clapped over her mouth in instinctive horror.

Ezra went slack-jawed in surprise. "You think I smell nice?"

Redder than a blaster bolt, Sabine sprinted back into her room. A couple seconds later, Zeb and Ezra heard the sound of muffled screaming.

Ezra stood there for a moment, silent, and then said, in a loud tone meant to come off as super casual, "You can have it! I'm glad you like it! I'll just get another one, it's fine!"

The screaming got louder.

Zeb's hands pressed against his mouth, trying desperately to hold in the laughter threatening to burst out.

Oh, Sabine. You have it bad for this goober.

*Author's Note: Hello! So, this is the continuation of a series that was previously called 'Sabezra Seed'. I re-named it because 'Ghost Stories' felt more apt (and also sounds way cooler), considering that it's a series of short fics featuring the Ghost crew.

There's no special reason for this short story. I just wanted to see Sabine and Ezra act goofy and just be teenagers. We really don't get many instances of them acting their age during Rebels, due to the war and the pressures of their circumstances forcing them to grow up quickly. Zeb, being the typical older brother of the Ghost crew, is an instigator here and almost ends up paying with his life, ha ha.

Life aboard the Ghost, when they're not flying missions of galactic importance, probably resembles a sit-com, honestly.

[laurelslegacy]

I've been all consumed by life atm, so have some Space family while you wait. Kanan- Isis P Sabine: Travyn P Hera: Katie Ezra: Kayla (@agentlothcat do they have a Tumblr to tag?) Zeb: Inoli P Photo credit to Desra!

[saltyseaturtle]

🎉Surprise Art Drop!🎉 Sabine gives Ezra his newly painted helmet! 🎨 This piece was made be the amazing @michichocoleto 👑 I absolutely love them and hope you do too! Sabine and Ezra are my absolute favorite and I honestly think there should be more pins of these two! 💙 I’ll be pinning this design in the next year! Let me know if you are all interested 😁 #starwars #starwarsrebels #starwarsrebelsremembered #sabinewren #ezrabridger #ahsokatano #ahsokaseries #swrebels #rebels #starwarsart #starwarspin #starwarspins #fantasypins #starwarsfantasypins #rebelspin #sabineandezra #ezraandsabine #ezrabine #sabezra #starwarsrebelspins #herasyndulla #kananjarrus #ahsokapin #sabinepin #ezrabridgerpin #disney #disneypins #pintrading #pins #pinstagram https://www.instagram.com/p/ClEJLMTL0pi/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[mydearlybeloathed]

Hi again!

Thank you for replying 😁 would love a second part of the Ezra Bridger fic is you feel up to it! No rush at all!

As for the ghost crew, I’d only request something platonic as I adore their found family relationship and couldn’t view them as anything else. I particularly love Kanan and Hera as parental figures as they are so sweet!

Hope you’ve had a lovely day! Xx

𝐍𝐎𝐓 𝐈𝐓!

𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐲: a simple day on the ghost goes awry as chores are assigned, and the age old law of Not It is enacted.

𝐩𝐚𝐢𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠: ghost crew x gn!reader

𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭: .8k

𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭: food,

𝐚/𝐧: i had a lot of fun with this! the part two to the ezra fic might take a min, but its in the drafts! 💙

You pressed on the stitch in your side, lips split into a smile, and whipped around the corner. Ezra’s orange jumpsuit disappeared as the door to the common slid shut behind him. The pang of your footfalls across the durasteel floor resounded off the walls.

Not waiting for the door to part entirely, the second it cracked open you slinked through and scanned the room, finding not a flash of dark hair or orange clothes in sight. Only Sabine sat slouched at the corner booth, already rolling her eyes as she propped her chin on her palm.

“Where—”

“Sorry,” she cut in, sly grin sliding onto her face. “I’m no snitch.”

Some choice words crossed your mind, your lips pulled into a purse frown. You were on the verge of letting one or two fly in hopes of swaying her when you caught her eyes darting to the left. She shot you a cheeky smile as your gaze drifted to where three crates were crowded in the corner, creating a little hiding spot in the middle of them.

“Come on,” you complained, making your way over to the crates. “Just a hint?”

“Nope,” she said, popping the p.

“You’re no fun.” You leered over the gap in the crates, wicked grin wide on your face, and planted two hands on a crate to launch yourself over Ezra’s hiding place. “RAH!”

Ezra jerked backed and hit his head on the metal, grunting as he held his head in his hands. He let out a huff and glared up at you. “Sabine!”

She raised her hands in mock surrender. “I didn’t say anything!”

You snickered behind your hand as he stood and jumped out from between the crates, folding his arms over his chest. “This game is stupid,” he quickly informed you.

Laughing behind your hand, you plopped down beside Sabine, leaning back. “Someone’s a sore loser.”

He rolled his eyes and trudged toward the cabinet, aggressively grabbing some waffles and going to sit across from you. You settled down, catching your breath, and felt content with relaxing the rest of the day. You'd hardly had nay breathing room with everything going on, and a free day was definitely in order.

A moment later the doors opened again, yet when you looked up, there was no one there—until you lowered your gaze. Chopper rolled in, beeping his droid language you had yet to master.

Unsure what he was saying, you turned to Sabine. “Translation?”

She listened before letting out a groan. “Someone’s gotta clean refresher. Hera’s orders.”

So much for a free day.

Instantly, the tension rose, and your eyes locked with Sabine’s. A secret message passed between you as the pair of you tapped your finger out your nose, eyes darting to Ezra. 

“Not it,” you and Sabine cried in unison.

Ezra sputtered, gaping as he made excuses left and right, when suddenly the door opened again and in walked Zeb. You smacked the table erratically. “Quick!”

In a flash Ezra was tapping his nose too, and the three of you shifted to stare at the Lasat. He paused in the doorway, glancing between all of you warily. “What…”

You all practically yelled, “Not it!”

Zeb blinked, brows drawn as he assessed the situation. “What…?”

Chopper chirped a reply, and though you couldn’t understand, the way Zeb’s face scrunched up was enough said. “I’m not cleanin’ the refresher.”

“You must respect the law of Not It,” Ezra deadpanned.

“It’s very rude to dishonor it,” you added with a firm nod. Sabine stifled a snicker behind her hand.

Zeb growled lowly, snapping, “I did it last time! I’m not doing it again!”

“And anger the gods of Not It?” You shook your head and frowned sorrowfully. “We will mourn when you’re gone.”

“I’m not doing your stupid game!”

Whilst Zeb fumed and the three of you did your best to hold back a laugh, in walked Hera, confused, with Kanan right behind her. 

Hera was on the verge of asking what they were shouting about, but she caught herself as she took in the finger tapped to each of your noses. Forcing back a grin, Hera elbowed Kanan and swiftly pressed her fingertip to her green nose, watching Zeb grow incredulous as Kanan did the same.

She shrugged. “Not it.”

“I—What? C’mon, Hera,” Zeb nearly whined, shoulders slumped forward. “Kanan?”

“Sorry,” quipped the Jedi. “I don’t make the rules.”

Turning his wide stare around the room again, Zeb grumbled a swift “karabast” and swept out of the room. You bit her lip to hold back a laugh, locking eyes with a smirking Sabine. 

“Don’t look so smug,” Hera snipped, wiping the smiles off all your faces. “You all are helping him.”

Immediately, the three of you were set off whining, still tapping your noses like idiots. Hera shook her head and went to get a glass of water. “Sorry. Captain over rules the almighty Not It.”

You slumped back into your seat and ran a hand over your face, Sabine and Ezra huffing at your sides. Moments after Hera left the room, Zeb’s voice echoed back down the hall, “Ha! Wait, I’m still doin’ it?”

Safe to say, all your evenings were ruined by the daunting task of refresher duty. You only hoped with the lot of you doing it, the job would be done fast. Or, at the very least, you’d get the least gross chore.

[captainbrookeworm]

I desperately want Leia and Ezra to have spent more time together in the rebellion. Their dynamic was so fun but I feel like there was room for these two kids who grew up too fast to be little shits to each other ;P

[rebel-ahsoka]

EZRA BRIDGER & SABINE WREN 3.07, Imperial Supercommandos

[pawsimses]

Songs that make me think of Them

Gasoline (The Weeknd) - Baylan

Never Enough (Greatest Showman) - Shin

Runaway To Mars (Talk) - Sabine & Ezra

All I Know So Far (P!nk) - Ahsoka

Try (P!nk) - Ahsoka and Sabine

The Reckoning (Within Temptation) - Baylan and Ahsoka

Supernova (Within Temptation) - Ahsoka and Anakin

Loathing (Wicked Musical) - Sabine/Shin (look it hilariously FITS them)

Yellow Light (Of Monsters and Men) - Baylan and Shin

(Also Confessions of a Broken Heart by Lindsay Lohan for Shin re: Baylan)

...and a lot more but that's all I have the spoons for now

[hurricanek8art]

I think that episode broke me. It's been 18 hours and I'm still struggling to form a coherent thought because every time I get a few brain cells to cooperate and form a few it's interrupted by SNIPS AND SKYGUY ARE TOGETHER AGAIN AAAAAAAAAH WAIT WHY THE DARTH VADER MUSIC WHAT IS HAPPENING.

What does it say about me that I'm not even fazed by the possibility that Ahsoka's dead, though? This is what, number 3? Mortis, Malachor, I'm not forgetting one, am I? Been here, done that, we're at the halfway point so there's no way it's going to stick this time either. 🤣

I'm not even worried about Sabine, either. Sure she's in cuffs and unarmed and stuck alone with the bad guys but this is Sabine. She invented a device that melts beskar at like twelve. She's found a way out of nearly every trap and outsmarted half the enemies she and the Ghost crew ever encountered. And they just put her in the exact place she needs to be to find Ezra now that the map's destroyed. Give her a little time to calm down and get her bearings, she'll figure something out. Never underestimate Sabine Wren. I think Shin learned that the hard way what with the missile to the face. :P

BUT SNIPS AND SKYGUY ARE TOGETHER AGAIN WHAT IS HAPPENING AAAAAAAH 😭😭😭😭

[tarisilmarwen]

Rebels Rewatch: "The Holocrons of Fate"

In which things get Force Weird and Maul is the actual worst.

Full disclaimer in the name of honesty, I still think Maul's "resurrection" in TCW was stupid. It will never not be stupid.

That being said, I'm glad they decided, "Well, let's actually do something interesting with him." once they had him.

Making him into a Sisyphean/Tantalus-figure--always reaching, never grasping--adds a layer of depth and tragedy to him. No matter how hard he tries, Maul will never gain what he seeks. When it's within his grasp, he will inevitably self-sabotage or have it slip away from him.

We meet him at a time in his life when he's just lost everything, again. He finds new purpose and motivation in the form of Ezra Bridger figuratively falling into his lap--here's someone to carry on his legacy, that he can mold and teach--but in his eagerness to have him, he irreparably damages any chance the boy would have had to learn from him willingly.

But like Sisyphus pushing at that rock, like Tantalus reaching for the grapes above him, he cannot stop trying.

Probably fitting that his question to the holocrons is an answer to the inevitable existential dread of his own existence.

But I'm getting waaaaaay ahead of myself, he hasn't even shown his ugly face yet.

Instead we drop in on Kanan and Ezra, on a CR90, presumably coming back from a mission they headed up. Ezra's asking after the holocron again, still not quite over his obsessive addiction to it, still hyper-focusing on it as the only good thing that could have possibly come out of the mess at Malachor.

"But if not to get the Sith holocron, why did Master Yoda send us to Malachor?" That's a good question. *stares at writers*

Kanan offers up the idea that is was for "a chance to destroy the Sith." Sure we'll go with that.

Their conversation is interrupted by them coming to their destination, a rendezvous point with another Rebel ship.

Thaaaaaaaaaat Maul has almost completely murderized. This scene is one of the ones that does a really good job subtly showing off Kanan's blindness. Ezra offers commentary for Kanan's benefit throughout, Kanan has a hand out to feel, he mentions the carbon scoring smell and inclines his ear towards the sounds coming from behind a door.

The only survivor can only gasp out about a "red blade... after you." ("you" being very specifically Ezra) and that the Ghost was in danger.

Right so I'd just like to emphasize, for the fandom's sake, Maul murdered an entire Rebel ship looking for Ezra.

Kanan and Ezra assume, naturally, that "red blade" means there's a new Inquisitor after them and rush to contact the Ghost. Whereupon they discover that it's Maul who's threatening them now.

And ooooooh Ezra's piiiiiiiiissed.

"No... I betrayed your friends, but I would have remained loyal to you." *rubs eyes* That's... There's not a significant emotional distinction there for Ezra, you know that right, Maul? Of course you don't.

Back when fandom was Absolutely Certain that Maul was going to successfully abduct Ezra in "Twilight of the Apprentice" there were theories flying around that Sabine would have to ply her Mandalorian connections in order to get information about where he might be hiding, since we knew by then her family had ties to Death Watch. Things didn't happen that way, obviously, but it was still nice to get a nod towards that connection.

Maul proceeds to be the world's worst houseguest, forcing Hera to take him on a "tour" of the ship while he comments snarkily about each room.

Like you have room to talk mister Lived In Literal Garbage For Years.

Anyway this tour seems to be mostly a ruse to look for Kanan's holocron, and Maul very creepily and uncomfortably pulls the information out of Hera's head. (Possibly along with Kanan's real name??? It was never actually elaborated on how Maul knows "Caleb Dume", but it would make the most sense he skimmed it from Hera, to throw her defenses off guard for his stronger mind probe.)

You leave mom alone you cockroach.

I know this is serious but boy I would have LOVED to hear the conversation Kanan and Ezra must have had with Sato when they got back.

"Hey we need to borrow a speeder to go out into the desert past the sensor beacon fence where all the spiders are to visit a giant weird Force Moose and retrieve a Sith Soul Jar because a creepy spike-horned Dark Side nutcase kidnapped everyone else on our crew."

I'm just picturing Sato throwing up his hands all, "Just take whatever you need."

Also amusing: the idea of Ezra trying to describe the Bendu to Kanan later.

I absolutely dig this idea of holocrons creating a Force Convergence powerful enough to grant visions. I'm always in favor of Jedi artifacts being just a little bit weird with the Force. I mean, kyber crystals sing and hum to Jedi, lightsabers are a living extension of the Force moving through them, their temples carry thousands of years of emotions and feelings sticking to the walls, why shouldn't their holocrons be able to join with Sith holocrons to make an oracle?

The Bendu says he's neutral but he's also clearly set up this little test in order to help heal the rift between Kanan and Ezra (and he gives a fond little smile when he can sense their reconciliation).

"Why take his weapon?" "He's got to learn to solve problems without it." *WEEPS IN FINALE FEELINGS REMEMBERING THAT EZRA LEFT HIS LIGHTSABER BEHIND AND RELIED ONLY ON HIS UNIQUE FORCE ABILITY TO CONNECT IN ORDER TO SAVE EVERYONE*

Lol @ Maul trying to blunt force the Jedi holocron open. My dude. My guy. You were the one to point out that Sith holocrons can only be opened by a Sith or one who thinks like them. Follows that Jedi holocrons might operate on the same principle? Maybe?

Not sure what the point is of getting to the engine room quietly given the racket y'all made literally a second ago.

This is actually a new part of the ship we haven't seen before now. It's accessed both by a grate in the floor under the main central ladder and the door at the very back of the cargo hold.

And this is a really clever idea with magnetizing the hold, remembering that Maul's legs are metal. They almost pull off their own rescue here.

Bastard.

Sans his lightsaber, Ezra reaches for his blaster holster instead. Except I think that's empty too, I looked but I didn't see it equipped.

Kanan senses his panic and distress from outside and follows in. This scene reminds me a little bit of when Vision!Kanan showed up in "Path of the Jedi". Not sure why, just kind of does.

Ezra instinctively moves to shield Kanan from the krykna, aww.

Ugh this return to that timid, self-protective pose. :( We haven't seen Ezra shield himself like that in ages and it makes him look so much smaller.

Kanan tells Ezra everything Ezra's been desperate to hear for six months:

It wasn't your fault.

I never blamed you.

Forgive yourself.

<333333333

Haven't talked about the music much but this is a nice rendition of Ezra's theme here for this heartwarming moment.

Ah noooooope I like the krykna EVEN LESS now, wtf is this it's creepy.

Ezra nervous little glances as the krykna uncurl. <3

Ezra passing Kanan's mask into his hand. <3

Bendu's "Once a secret is known, it cannot be unknown." was a lot more ominous in the trailers, ngl.

Kanan showing a remarkable amount of trust in Ezra, leaving the decision on whether to open up the Sith holocron or not up to him. Ezra looks trepidaciously at it a moment and then decides not to, passing it back to Kanan.

(And then he never touched the Dark Side again lol.)

I can't even be mad that Ezra got the first blind joke in. At least he beat Maul to the punch.

Hhggngnghhh I hate him so much this rat bastard trash man. He immediately takes advantage of Kanan's blindness to lead him to an airlock and tries to space him.

EZRA WASN'T EVEN OUT OF SIGHT LONGER THAN A MINUTE OR TWO, MAUL, CAN YOU NOT?!

You actually can survive the void of space very briefly. You have about 15 seconds before you pass out, possibly more if you exhale first.

Uggggggggghhhh this scene makes my skin crawl, Maul is literally fresh off his second attempt to murder Kanan and orders the droids to kill the rest and Ezra is standing there completely unaware of the danger he's in or what Maul's done.

Maul bald-face lies to him and tells him his friends are fine. Just imagining the horror of what would have happened if Kanan hadn't made it back inside, how Ezra would have emerged from the holocron vision only to learn the awful truth that Maul had killed everyone he loved, that he was alone, alone with a deranged murderer who had decided he was his apprentice...

*shudder*

As they prepare to join the holocrons, it's interesting to note that Ezra's wish is a bit Dark Side tinted--he wants the answer on how to destroy the Sith--while Maul's is Light--the vaguely described "hope". Hope for what it's not clear at first. Hope for meaning? Hope for purpose? Hope for another chance to fix what he considers the point at which things went wrong? Commentary from behind the scenes has said that Maul's motivation for revenge against Obi-Wan is primarily rooted in his fixation on his failure at Naboo. "If I can just kill this guy, the person who was there when everything went wrong, it will make it all better."

I think, given that Maul had become self-consciously legacy-minded, thinking about the future he planned to create with Ezra at his side, he turned his mind backwards to unfinished business from the past, messes he still had to clean up, in order to move forward.

And that's why he manipulates the holocron vision to show him Obi-Wan's fate.

This sequence is really pretty.

The music cue that accompanies this moment is not overly bombastic, but rather sly, mysterious, and eerie, high vocals mingling with strings to create an odd balance.

The resignation on Sabine, Hera, and Zeb's faces when the droids point their weapons. :(

Hera's elation when she hears Kanan there. :D The very worried Spacefamily books it to Ezra of course.

Maul doesn't see anything from the vision at first, "Only oblivion!" he says, because the path he's on can only lead him there and urges Ezra to "Go deeper!" It just occurred to me that he's basically doing what his old master Palpatine would try to do in Season Four--piggybacking off Ezra's connection and using him as a conduit to achieve what he wants. He pushes Ezra to look harder because he can't see anything himself.

The brighter burst of blinding light could have just been an effect of Maul and Ezra sinking deeper into the vision but also I like to think Maul manipulated the convergence to try to keep the others away because it swells up right when we hear Hera calling for Ezra.

This bit is so cool, the Force is so loud and present in the room that Kanan's blindness doesn't matter, he can physically see through it even with his ruined eyes. Hera's voice distorts and fades as if it's coming across a large distance even though Kanan only goes a couple steps away. The orchestra rouses with full strings and chorus. The negative film effect makes Kanan, Ezra, and Maul look like celestial figures of pure energy.

THE WAY THIS IS BOTH (LITERALLY) ABOUT THE TWIN SUNS OF TATOOINE AND (FIGURATIVELY) ABOUT LUKE AND LEIA, THE CHILDREN OF THE CHOSEN ONE AND THE TWO MOST KEY PLAYERS IN THE ULTIMATE DESTRUCTION OF THE SITH.

THE WAY ALL THREE OF THEM--LUKE, LEIA, AND EZRA--ARE NARRATIVE "CHOSEN ONES" WITHOUT BEING THE IN-TEXT CHOSEN ONE, HOW THE FORCE STILL PUTS THEM IN KEY PLACES IN ORDER TO BRING ABOUT THE FULFILLMENT OF THE PROPHECY.

THE PATH TO LIRA SAN WILL BE DECIDED BY THE FATE OF THE THREE.

Ezra ultimately trusts Kanan and looks away just before Maul can discern where, exactly, Obi-Wan is. The severed connection explodes outwards, throwing them all across the room, and the holocrons are shattered.

Maul's cackling and crazed body language as he stumbles out to escape make it seem like the knowledge that Obi-Wan's alive has actually driven him insane. It's quite disconcerting.

The Spacefamily surrounding Ezra worriedly. <3 You have to wonder if Kanan is fearing a repeat of Ezra's collapse back in "Gathering Forces", if perhaps for a moment he's a bit too still here.

Oh look the two Most Important People in Ezra's life and narrative journey!

The way Kanan keeps his hand on Ezra's shoulder until the very end. <333333

With a few minor nitpicks (mostly that a few of the mysteries aren't well explained or answered, see Maul's knowledge of Kanan's real name) this is a pretty solid episode, a worthy follow-up to the premiere. We continue to settle Ezra's Dark Side temptations, burying them mostly for good in this episode, though the lingering effects it had on him emotionally will continue well into his characterization, motives, and arc down the line.

Maul is an awful bastard in this and such a good villain. :) He's so much more confident and assured of himself, clear-headed and calculating. 0 for 2 on successfully kidnapping Ezra but his menace will still pervade and influence a lot of Ezra's decisions this season.

I'll talk more about the overall effects and purpose of the holocron arc when we come to its end in "Twin Suns" but for now I'll just enjoy this episode once again, it's great.

[metataxy]

... Was half expecting the hermit crabs to do a Star Wars cover of 'Everyone's a bit of a fixer upper' when Sabine found Ezra :P