Star Wars Rebels

[Daimar]

I think the inquisitor is a force user. He pushed away Ezra while he fought with Kanan and later controled his blade/saber in the air, with the force when he threw it at the heroes.

Edited October 25, 2014 by Daimar

[phanstasm]

Yes, the Inquisitor is definitely a Force user. In tons of pre-released clips and ads we saw him use a "Force push" to knock down Kanan. And as Daimar pointed out above, we see him doing even more Force stuff as the series goes on.

What the Inquisitor is not is a "Sith." Pablo Hidalgo of the Lucasfilm Story Group: "So the Inquisitor is not a Sith. To be a Sith is more than just the look. He does tap into the Dark Side, [...] he doesn't get angry. His intensity is based on the purpose, the assignment."

http://www.starwars....e-s-jedi-hunter

Edited October 25, 2014 by phanstasm

[Ultron]

What makes a sith a sith though? I thought use of the force + lightsaber + training from an actual Sith would be enough. Plus I thought they were called "sith inquisitors"

[samurai-turtle]

Well I just seen "Spark of a Rebellion" on ABC. It does seem better that the "Clone Wars" movie. But, I think it is partly due to the fact that their is a bunch of new characters for the show.

[Venkefedo]

What makes a sith a sith though? I thought use of the force + lightsaber + training from an actual Sith would be enough. Plus I thought they were called "sith inquisitors"

Only the Sith can officially call someone else a Sith, and right now it's possible the Rule of Two is still being observed by Vader & Palpatine. They can have dark-side agents, like Asajj or Savage Opress, but despite whatever training they may give the agents they're not considered Sith Lords, and therefore not Sith. When they're called "Sith Apprentices" or "Sith Inquisitors", it's just a faction ID, like "Imperial stormtrooper". They're agents of the Sith, tools... and potential Sith Lord apprentices should one of the two Sith Lords fall. But that's about it.

[Artanis I]

Poor Lumi.

But what's with not understanding "do, or do not, there is no 'try'"? Pretty obvious to me. Anyone with jedi training should understand it too!

[phanstasm]

Only the Sith can officially call someone else a Sith, and right now it's possible the Rule of Two is still being observed by Vader & Palpatine. They can have dark-side agents, like Asajj or Savage Opress, but despite whatever training they may give the agents they're not considered Sith Lords, and therefore not Sith. When they're called "Sith Apprentices" or "Sith Inquisitors", it's just a faction ID, like "Imperial stormtrooper". They're agents of the Sith, tools... and potential Sith Lord apprentices should one of the two Sith Lords fall. But that's about it.

Also, just to build off of what Venkefedo said: ...

In a new video released yesterday, Pablo Hidalgo of the Lucasfilm Story Group explains the Inquisitor's non Sith status more: "He [the Inquisitor] is a Dark Side user but not all Dark Side users are Sith. In the same way, just because Ezra exhibits his Force abilities would you immediately brand him as a Jedi? [...] the Darksiders who are in charge of the galaxy, the Emperor and Vader, are spreading some of that power [knowledge] out, but they're not giving out the full abilities they have to this lower class of underling."

Source (clip starts at 3:00, ends at 3:44): http://www.starwars....the-old-masters

So Sith, like doctor, is an honorary title. A requirement is probably that it’s given by a Sith, like Venkefedo said. And like a doctorate, there are different ways you can get the title:

* earned title = attain sort level of knowledge or undergo some trail (ex: Sith Master, like Palpatine)

* honorary title= title given because of someone’s value, not necessarily because they have a level of knowledge or underwent some trial (ex: Sith Apprentice, like Darth Maul and Count Dooku)

Edited October 28, 2014 by phanstasm

[Ultron]

Wow, I didn't know it was so complicated So can only a sith make someone a sith? How will that work in Episode 7? Can you still become a sith if there are none left?

[Venkefedo]

Wow, I didn't know it was so complicated So can only a sith make someone a sith? How will that work in Episode 7? Can you still become a sith if there are none left?

Sure... if the Sith are wiped out, someone can come along and claim they're Sith and now you've got a whole different batch of Sith (ideally, for them, with loads of history & teachings to draw from, so they'll be more authentic than a Force-strong guy pitching a fit and declaring himself Sith outta nowhere). Kanan isn't a Jedi--he was only a Padawan when Order 66 happened--yet that's not stopping him from teaching Ezra to become a Jedi. In the journey of teaching another, he hopes to rediscover what it means to be one himself, and maybe he'll actually complete his training in the process, even without a Yoda or Obi-Wan or Depa to teach him.

Bottom line, tho, is the Inquisitor, like Asajj Ventress and Savage Opress before him, is not Sith. We may not know his name, but we can be sure it's not "Darth Quisitus" thanks to Filoni's remarks on his status.

[Mr Man]

So Sith, like doctor, is an honorary title. A requirement is probably that it’s given by a Sith, like Venkefedo said. And like a doctorate, there are different ways you can get the title:

* earned title = attain sort level of knowledge or undergo some trail (ex: Sith Master, like Palpatine)

* honorary title= title given because of someone’s value, not necessarily because they have a level of knowledge or underwent some trial (ex: Sith Apprentice, like Darth Maul and Count Dooku)

I'm fairly certain that Maul and Savage are Sith, Maul declared themselves to be the True Sith in TCW. It's not like Sidious and Dooku have a more 'legitimate' claim, isn't the whole point of the Sith that 'the strongest survive'.

[Venkefedo]

Maul most likely was Sith (since the Plagueis book is now part of "Legends"), but had been assumed dead & discarded--an exception to the Rule of Two. However, as he was only the Apprentice, and not taught everything Sidious had to teach, one could argue that Savage wasn't a true Sith Lord apprentice when Maul made those claims... in any case, it didn't seem like Savage received much in the way of new training, and is dead now so it's kinda moot. But Ventress & the Inquisitor still aren't Sith, anymore than Mother Talzin was.

[Mr Man]

Maul most likely was Sith (since the Plagueis book is now part of "Legends"), but had been assumed dead & discarded--an exception to the Rule of Two. However, as he was only the Apprentice, and not taught everything Sidious had to teach, one could argue that Savage wasn't a true Sith Lord apprentice when Maul made those claims... in any case, it didn't seem like Savage received much in the way of new training, and is dead now so it's kinda moot. But Ventress & the Inquisitor still aren't Sith, anymore than Mother Talzin was.

Who determines that though? Mother Talzin is an immensely powerful Darkside user who can raise the dead, beat Mace Windu and has Sith lightning. What makes her not a Sith?

[Venkefedo]

Because she's not. She never claims to be Sith, Sidious & the rest don't consider her Sith. She doesn't follow the Sith traditions or teachings. Just because someone can use the Force doesn't make them a Jedi, so it goes that just because someone uses the dark side--lightning or not--doesn't make them a Sith. Filoni was pretty clear on that.

[Artanis I]

Yeah, the Jedi & Sith are both orders of "knights". Strict clubs, if you will. Just because you can do some of what they can do doesn't mean you're a club member. Just because you can use the force doesn't make you a jedi or sith. It makes you a force user. It just so happens that most force users are identified by the jedi order, so many of them become jedi knights.

"Hey, you're really good at playing darts, wanna try out for our dart club?"

Likewise using the dark side of the force doesn't make you a sith. There's more to it than that. Saying you're a sith doesn't make you one. Merely announcing myself as a king is not going to give my descendants a royal bloodline. I have to be able to legitimise and/or defend the claim. Darth Maul got his everything handed to him by Sidious' little fingernail as soon as Maul had announced himself as a sith, thus debunking that one.

[Venkefedo]

Great explanation! Better than my floundering around.

The rest of the galaxy may not know or care about the differences between Jedi & Sith--most probably have never even heard the term "Sith", and those who've witnessed any magical feats of Vader or the Inquisitor are probably too terrified to dare refer to them "Jedi" out loud, either, but just because the normal people of the galaxy don't know the differences between Jedi, Sith, and other Force-users doesn't mean those differences don't exist. That goes for the fans, too!

[Artanis I]

*tumbleweed*

Been thinking about this show, I'm not into it that much yet, not as interested as I was TCW. But it's not bad.

Considering the differences, this show has all the same main characters every episode. TCW had Ahsoka & Anakin one week, Obi-Wan & Dooku the next, Clones the next, R2, Mace, Grievous, Yoda, Ventress, Maul etc etc it seemed such a bigger and more interesting place. Rebels has EVERY episode: Mum, Dad, Uncle Not-Wookiee, Punk Chick, Not-Yet-Mature Brat, and a pet Bender's-Naughtier-Little-Cousin. Plus the two bad guys now and then. (I couldn't think of a tongue in cheek name for them!)

But then I considered the Lego side of things. At least there's only so many minifigs! Not only are there not 50 million jedi to collect, but there also aren't 50 million varieties of clone to "army build", in addition to droids & other characters. The only minifig to hunt multiples of is the stormtrooper. Hello battle pack...

Creators of Rebels, my wallet thanks you.

[Robianco]

I think as it's only 5 episodes in I'm happy to just concentrate on the 'team' for now... we've already had glimpses of the expansion of characters with Bail Organa... and we know Tarkin will appear so it keeps it's links to the film world in spots... as well as the fantastically misfiring E-11 Blaster pistol (I'm sure they make the beam shoot off in odd directions as a joke now).

I'm kind of glad we have a close knit group who are still making their way and doing what they can to strike out against the Empire... and I'm glad the development of Ezra isn't too quick (although judging by some of his mind control feats he's a quicker learner than Luke was). There are characters such as some of the trainees at the Imperial Academy that have been (mildly) introduced now so it'll be interesting to see if they show up with some kind of grudge against Ezra in the future once they graduate... and whether Zare becomes a dark side force user...

At least we see some of the friendships formed that sadly lacked during the whole PT.

[Venkefedo]

One reason TCW could hop around a bit is it was using a lot of established characters; Yoda, Dooku, Obi-Wan, Grievous, Anakin, and many Jedi were known, so hopping around wasn't too jarring--it was giving more insight into those barely-sketched-in characters, and taking some risks with those we didn't know, like the Rookies. Ahsoka was tied to Anakin & Obi-Wan initially, so her development was there--in later seasons especially she got more 'solo' stories, and it worked out nicely.

I think Rebels will, ultimately, expand; it could be fun if Season 2 threw us a curve and we're suddenly following a different rebel cell for much of it, building up new cells every season with Bail and others slowly trying to gather them together into an alliance. But ultimately I think the Specters are the main focus, and will remain so while the world slowly gets built up around them; once they encounter other rebel groups, or even Bail more often, maybe we'll see some branching episodes focusing on different characters. From what I've seen so far there isn't really an overarching storyline, but they could be building to one; Marvel's Agents of SHIELD kinda did the same in its first season. A Hydra moment mid-season, like finding out Sabine or Zeb were actually Imperial spies, would be insane.

[DarthTwoShedsJackson]

Some further thoughts that weren't in the blog review:

I [also] don't think enough time was provided towards developing the Empire. This is a new show in a part of the timeline that I think most of the casual fanbase is unfamiliar with. If I were a casual fan, I don't know that I would be able to understand where this episode even took place in the timeline! We see the Empire, but other than that, nothing familiar from any of the movies shows up.

The pilot starts with a Star Destroyer arriving at Lothal. It then continues with a Lothal citizen complaining about how times have gotten worse since imperials arrived in their ships. This may be waaaay to subtle for modern audiences, but it sufficed for me. Subtle, but spot on. Early days of the Empire.

Edited November 12, 2014 by DarthTwoShedsJackson

[Faefrost]

*tumbleweed*

Been thinking about this show, I'm not into it that much yet, not as interested as I was TCW. But it's not bad.

Considering the differences, this show has all the same main characters every episode. TCW had Ahsoka & Anakin one week, Obi-Wan & Dooku the next, Clones the next, R2, Mace, Grievous, Yoda, Ventress, Maul etc etc it seemed such a bigger and more interesting place. Rebels has EVERY episode: Mum, Dad, Uncle Not-Wookiee, Punk Chick, Not-Yet-Mature Brat, and a pet Bender's-Naughtier-Little-Cousin. Plus the two bad guys now and then. (I couldn't think of a tongue in cheek name for them!)

But then I considered the Lego side of things. At least there's only so many minifigs! Not only are there not 50 million jedi to collect, but there also aren't 50 million varieties of clone to "army build", in addition to droids & other characters. The only minifig to hunt multiples of is the stormtrooper. Hello battle pack...

Creators of Rebels, my wallet thanks you.

Well yes, but what they lack in broad selection of main characters, they make up for in shear volume of funny imperial Stormtrooper hats and helmets. (Heck I think Ezra's helmet collection on display in his tower is almost the creators poking fun at us.) Gotta catch em all!

Edited November 16, 2014 by Faefrost

[DarthTwoShedsJackson]

Considering the differences, this show has all the same main characters every episode. TCW had Ahsoka & Anakin one week, Obi-Wan & Dooku the next, Clones the next, R2, Mace, Grievous, Yoda, Ventress, Maul etc etc it seemed such a bigger and more interesting place. Rebels has EVERY episode: Mum, Dad, Uncle Not-Wookiee, Punk Chick, Not-Yet-Mature Brat, and a pet Bender's-Naughtier-Little-Cousin. Plus the two bad guys now and then. (I couldn't think of a tongue in cheek name for them!)

I am so glad that we have a motherly pilot ace, a gunslinger Jedi, a brawny muscle, a streetsmart force-sensitive brat, a punk-ish demolitions and imperial procedures expert, and a grumpy bad-humored droid in Rebels. If this were Clone Wars, we'd had a motherly Jedi, a gunslinger Jedi, a brawny Jedi, a streetsmart force-sensitive Jedi brat, a punk-ish demolitions and imperial procedures Jedi, and a grumpy bad-humored Jedi. Clone Wars was so Jedi-centric for the most part it made the Jedi even more boring than the prequels. Clone Wars was best when it dealt with non-force-using characters specifically created for the show in my eyes.

[Venkefedo]

I still think the PT Jedi were far duller than anything TCW threw at us, but it sure seemed like everyone loved the clone-centric episodes: The Deserter, the Domino Squad episodes (at least we can take solace in the fact that Echo would've been revealed as having survived the Citadel arc were the show not canceled), the Krell arc... even the very first actual episode, Ambush, was pretty clone-centric and worked nicely to give them some personality.

[DarthTwoShedsJackson]

I still think the PT Jedi were far duller than anything TCW threw at us...

Yes.

...but it sure seemed like everyone loved the clone-centric episodes: The Deserter, the Domino Squad episodes (at least we can take solace in the fact that Echo would've been revealed as having survived the Citadel arc were the show not canceled), the Krell arc... even the very first actual episode, Ambush, was pretty clone-centric and worked nicely to give them some personality.

Exactly. The writers could be more creative with the clones than they could with the prequel trilogy Jedi, a lot. No wonder these episodes were far more popular. A shortcoming of The Clone Wars inherited from the awful prequel trilogy were 'villains' such as general Grievous. He was such a silly cartoon. Generally speaking, though, I rather enjoyed huge chunks of The Clone Wars. I just like the whole setup of Rebels more. The lack of Jedi and therefore inclusion of other characters and walk-of-lives among the protagonists is quite refreshing and also more interesting in my eyes.

[tonif430]

Really loving the show with my daughter

[Artanis I]

I personally like jedi & clones, and had no problem with them being heavily focussed on. I don't dislike the Rebels cast, I was just being cheeky. But I would have liked a bit more familiarity from pre-existing characters to create a more spin-off kind of effect, as this is the first time since the original movie that we didn't have already well-known characters from the get-go. It probably didn't bother many, but it disconnected me a bit, and made it harder work to watch.