Who fell? Who rose? Who returned? Read on, intrepid Rebels fans!
Wow, what an episode.
“Fire Across The Galaxy” is action-packed, graphically stunning, and rife with emotion. This episode finds our team of rebels attempting to rescue Kanan from Moff Tarkin’s Star Destroyer. Sabine starts the episode off with a bang, literally. Her skills are on full display in the first action sequence. While Ezra and Zeb are stealing an Imperial transport, Sabine creates distractions for the Stormtroopers guarding the transport and TIEs. We see Sabine’s awesome gymnastic ability whilst avoiding the troopers’ gunfire (and trademark terrible aim), as well as her sneaky explosives placement. This scene was a chance for Sabine’s character to shine; we get to see her full-on sass and Mandolorian abilities. Hopefully in season two we’ll get more classic snarky lines from Sabine like “Bye bye, Bucketheads!” Such a great line.
Ezra and Zeb are successful in capturing the transport and meet up with the rest of the crew to continue the rescue of Kanan. Part of the plan requires a TIE fighter, and fortunately the one the group stole in an earlier episode wasn’t destroyed. It was supposed to be destroyed…but Ezra, Sabine, and Zeb kept it a secret from Hera. This scene was full of comedy; from Ezra’s coy confession they kept the TIE to Zeb’s hand gestures and Sabine’s smirk. When the crew goes to get the TIE, we see why they were so hesitant to confess to Hera they still had it. Sabine had used the vehicle to do some of her best artistry – the TIE is bright orange and yellow. With little time to rescue Kanan, the plan continues with the TIE masterpiece.
The use of the TIE fighter is a perfect example of the serial storytelling technique Rebels employs so masterfully. Set up at the beginning of the series with a seemingly “throwaway” episode, events escalated and built upon each other, and there was a through-line that economically utilized all the plot points thus far. While we didn’t see the TIE on screen again, the characters never mysteriously forgot it; we DID see Sabine and Ezra going off to work on a clandestine project, and that intrigue paid off in this episode. It all made for an incredibly tight storyline with continuity that fans have been clamoring for since the early days of The Clone Wars.
The crew takes the transport and TIE to Tarkin’s Star Destroyer in orbit around Mustafar. Sabine rigs the TIE with a massive amount of EMP charges, and they send it in to dock with the Star Destroyer. Once docked (and admired by some stormtroopers), Sabine triggers the charges, setting off a huge pulse through the ship. Sabine is evidently an electronics genius: she disables the entire Star Destroyer with just one EMP!
Ezra’s powers have clearly grown; he is able to feel that Kanan is still alive. There are clear connections to Return of the Jedi here; whereas Luke endangers the mission through his connection to Vader, Ezra’s ability to feel Kanan in the Force is essential to his mission’s success.
As the ship’s power goes out, we see the Inquisitor continuing to torture Kanan. He’s needling him with accusations of Kanan’s cowardice as Order 66 played out. The Inquisitor plays with Kanan’s emotions, and we can see the pain in Kanan’s eyes during the interrogation. My heart just ached for Kanan during this scene. It’s fascinating that Kanan and the Inquisitor seem to be in agreement, however. They both think that running was an ignoble choice. Perhaps Kanan still needs to learn to forgive young Caleb Dume’s survival instincts, and needs to understand his old master’s wisdom.
Just as the power on the Star Destroyer fully fails, the Inquisitor notes to Kanan that his friends have come for him. But the Inquisitor calls this predictable; he knew they would come. This foreshadows a trap, and a showdown between good and evil. Tarkin had the foresight to send continuous “all clear” signals to the other Star Destroyers in orbit at regular intervals in order to alert them if a rescue attempt was made. Just as the rebels arrive on Tarkin’s ship, additional stormtroopers flood in from the other ships as signal interval cut. As the group evades the troopers, they become trapped and cut off from Kanan’s cell. Ezra is able to use the duct work within the ship to find Kanan while the rest of the group distracts the stormtroopers.
Oddly enough there are no guards posted at Kanan’s cell door when Ezra find him, and the Inquisitor has fled. This should have automatically tipped off Ezra and/or Kanan that something was amiss. As they work their way back to the transport, the Inquisitor meets them on the bridge straight out of a McQuarrie painting in the Star Destroyer’s engine room. He expected the rescue, and he’s ready for a fight. However, Kanan is ready to duel, even though he’s been tortured and is clearly exhausted. Maybe he’s able to recover quickly through the Force? We’ve seen such effects with Yoda. Kanan uses Ezra’s lightsaber to charge at the Inquisitor, and the epic fight begins. Visually, this scene isstunning, and everything screams with references to The Phantom Menace. We get to see the full extent of the Inquisitor’s skills and use of his double bladed lightsaber. Ezra enters the fight using Kanan’s lightsaber (an interesting juxtaposition of weapons that mimics the trust between the two Jedi), creating a situation eerily similar to Qui-Gonn Jinn and Obi-Wan Kenobi’s fight against Maul.
For a split second I thought we were going to lose either Kanan or Ezra.
Ezra doesn’t last long however, and he’s tossed off the bridge by the Inquisitor. From Kanan’s view he doesn’t know if Ezra is dead or alive, and is clearly distraught. He could has easily and justifiably allowed himself to become fueled by rage and anger to battle the Inquisitor, but instead, we see Kanan rise to pass a true Jedi trial. Kanan takes a deep breath, calms himself, and prepares for battle. His emotions are controlled, his focus on the here and now. He is, for all intents an purposes, mindful of the Living Force in this moment (albeit not focusing on the possibility of Ezra’s survival at this point), and chooses to act without fear. He does not reach out to control what he cannot. Ezra has fallen; his fate is out of Kanan’s hands. And now, Kanan fights without fear, and it is amazing.
And boy, can Kanan fight! He’s athletic, yet graceful. He’s more than a match for the Inquisitor. And, perhaps best of all, he’s smart. He brilliantly uses both his own and Ezra’s lightsabers to break apart the Inquisitor’s spinning double blade. The explosion from the destruction of the Inquisitor’s lightsaber knock him to the edge of the bridge where he’s barely hanging on; a reversal of the Kenobi/Maul duel. Kanan has a chance to kill him now, but he doesn’t take it.
As the Inquisitor is hanging, poised to fall into the ship’s reactor, he says, “You have no idea what you’ve unleashed here today. There are some things far more frightening than death.” What does this mean? Was he referring to Darth Vader, and what Vader may do to him if he fails to capture the Rebels? The Inquisitor lets go and drops to his (presumed) death. What could possibly be more frightful than death? Perhaps the wrath of the Emperor?
There’s something about this speech that seems to be a direct, dark-side reversal of Ben Kenobi’s final words to Darth Vader. Kenobi spoke from a fearless perspective; his death literally freed him to become more powerful than anything a Sith could possibly imagine. His death was a wise and noble sacrifice he had prepared for. On the other hand, the Inquisitor in this moment is enthralled by fear, and chooses obliteration and nothingness as the only hiding place from the unbearable consequences of failure. His death was a fearful retreat, a final selfish move to avoid what comes next.
Ezra finds Kanan just as the Inquisitor drops into the reactor shaft, with a crescendo of music that could only signal a final end to the character. The two Jedi have a brief but emotional reunion before the Star Destroyer starts to fail. They race to the TIE docking area in hopes of escaping, and grab the Inquisitor’s TIE fighter to escape. Hera, Zeb, and Sabine escaped in a TIE since Chopper and the transport were nowhere to be found. And of course, they choose Sabine’s masterpiece TIE. Who knew you could fit three beings into a TIE cockpit? The entire group is able escape just as the Star Destroyer explodes.
But, as Leia once said, it’s not ever yet.
The two rebels TIE fighters are pursued by countless Imperial fighters from the other Star Destroyers. Hera is still unable to reach Chopper via comlink, and the tension boils over as our heroes have no exit. Unbeknownst to them, Chopper had received a communication from Fulcrum while the group was attempting their rescue. Chopper wisely alerted Fulcrum of the situation, and called in the cavalry.
With nothing but perfect timing, Chopper arrives with the Ghost, the transport, and a handful of blockade runners to save Hera, Zeb, Sabine, Ezra, and Kanan. Then the whole group jumps to hyperspace and escapes the Imperials.
This is it–the first public battle of the Rebel Alliance, and it was eye-tearing-ly, spine shivering-ly climactic. These are the moments fans have been waiting for since the crawl in 1977. This is what happened previously that we;ve all wondered about. It was imagination made real, and it was glorious.
The group reunites on board the transport. Kanan thanks them, and directly thanks Hera for the rescue. Hera replies, “You’re welcome dear.” She also leaves her hand on Kanan’s chest after their hug. Because I’m a sap for Star Wars romances, I hope this is obvious confirmation of a longstanding Hera/Kanan relationship.
The group is met by Chopper, who plays a short message from Bail Organa. Fulcrum is aboard the Ghost, ready to meet the rebels. We finally get to find out Fulcrum’s identity.
FULCRUM IS AHSOKA TANO!
This was such an emotional revelation on many levels. Ahsoka survived Order 66 and she’s leading the Rebellion. The rebellion of Luke, Leia, Han, and Chewie. This brings us full circle from The Clone Wars. One of the most loved characters is returning, and it can only get better from here. Ahsoka is older now, and with the Kanan/Ezra dynamic, she could easily become a source of guidance for them, although the padawan count on the Ghost is now up to three.
Then, there’s the showdown that has to be coming, Ahsoka Tano vs. Darth Vader. All possibilities surrounding this meeting gets my heart racing as I expect it does many other Star Wars fans, .
We find out from Ahsoka there are other Rebel cells, and that the message of hope that Ezra sent out has spread through the galaxy. Now is the time to unit, and fight the Empire.
As Ahsoka says, it is “a new day, a new beginning.”
The end of the episode sees Grand Moff Tarkin landing on Lothal after having evacuating his downed Star Destroyer. His pride is tarnished here, and it’s obvious he will never retreat again. Agent Kallus greets him with news that the events at Mustafar have spread, and man on Lothal view the Empire as weak. They need to come up with a plan to fight this.
Tarkin replies with, “The Emperor has sent an alternative solution.” Enter the dark lord of the Sith, Darth Vader. Episode fades to black, with only Vader’s breathing heard.
Epic. Simply epic.
Bring on Season Two!
Courtney Martin is a graduate of Indiana University and works in publishing. She’s an avid Star Wars fan and wrote the recipe blog Courtney Cooks Star Wars on suvudu.com. When not enveloped a science fiction or fantasy novel, she is watching television with her husband and son, doing crossword puzzles, or playing with her Shih Tzu, Burt.