Having walked through a Barnes & Noble many times the past few years, there is no shortage of source material for any imaginable Star Wars show. Why in the world they don’t pull from all that potential is beyond me.
A second season where he was anything like he was in that awesome original teaser for the show would be perfect. That teaser was nothing like the show they ended up making.
- Reva kills the guy from The Path in the previous episode, but thinks a little kid, who was thrust into this situation by Reva herself, can provide brilliant insight into the workings of The Path and the Jedi.
Valid points all, whether I agree or not, but I think this may be off. I suspect she wants Leia because she’s a direct connection to Obi Wan. She might be tangentially interested in The Path, but I doubt it’s a focus for her other than it possibly being another way to get to Obi Wan.
They’ve hinted that she’s so driven to find him that it’s a distraction to their larger work. With only two episodes left, we should get some history on why she hates him so much.
Sure, but the only link Leia has with Obi-Wan is the one Reva herself created. However, in the episode she throws the symbol of the Rebellion, which she ripped out of the wall on the table as if it should mean something to a ten year old. Additionally she starts to question Leia about the Path, and Obi-Wan as if a ten year old would have any clue about the locations she was in, and the people she briefly met while being hauled around the galaxy involuntarily.
The whole scene makes very little sense. It would be much more logical for Reva to present herself as a friendly face, and a representative of the Empire put in charge of bringing Leia to the safety of her parents, in hopes of getting at least some information. All Leia knows is, that she was taken by some pirates, and then apparently rescued by a former Jedi, who themselves are wanted criminals. There’s no subtlety in Reva’s character. She’s just a one note villain, who’s inept at interrogating a little kid, fails to recognize her innate Force ability (which is her job), and wants to torture her for information, she likely doesn’t have. Presenting a friendly face would make the Reva character more interesting, and competent, being able to do more than just yell and scowl. These Inquisitors are supposed to be the best, the brightest and most powerful agents of the Empire. So far, the only intelligent one was seemingly killed off in the second episode.
Good points, all. Yes, the symbol onto the table seemed off. For sure, Reva acting like a friendly rescuer would have been the better course. In fact, it seemed like she was going to do just that at the end of #3 but it had been completely abandoned immediately at the start of the next episode.
MalaStrana#2 said:
Hayden doesn’t really have much to do in this show for now.
I’m surprised they cast him for this. He’s so made-up that it could be anybody in those bacta scenes. Maybe he’ll be more visible in one of the two episodes left. there might be a sort of “look what you did to me” reveal to Obi Wan and he takes his helmet off.
- Reva kills the guy from The Path in the previous episode, but thinks a little kid, who was thrust into this situation by Reva herself, can provide brilliant insight into the workings of The Path and the Jedi.
Valid points all, whether I agree or not, but I think this may be off. I suspect she wants Leia because she’s a direct connection to Obi Wan. She might be tangentially interested in The Path, but I doubt it’s a focus for her other than it possibly being another way to get to Obi Wan.
They’ve hinted that she’s so driven to find him that it’s a distraction to their larger work. With only two episodes left, we should get some history on why she hates him so much.
Sirius said:
Wade certainly will become a meme, that’s for sure.
Could cosplay be far behind? 😉 If people are cosplaying the ice cream maker guy, they’ll probably cosplay Wade also.
I agree, by the way, on thinking his death was to show how it affected the others. No complaints from me on how it was all handled.
Tiny nit-pick; The tracking device has been done. Come up with another way.
Done to death, I agree, but I liked the twist of the tracking device being Leia’s droid. That’s actually pretty cruel. It seems like Lola has been her constant companion for years.
I agree. I assumed it was somehow on the ship. To put it where she’ll take it to her home in the one device she trusts completely, very cruel.
Tiny nit-pick; The tracking device has been done. Come up with another way.
I think this is their way to tie into the OT a little; maybe that’s why Leia is so certain that “they let us go” in ANH; she’s seen it happen before.
Aaaand now its not a nit-pick. 😉
Hadn’t even considered that. Well spotted, sir.
I didn’t like it nearly as much as #3, which sure looks to be the high point in the series for me and what I hoped for with this show. I didn’t think it was as bad as some did and no doubt will as they log in and post. That said, I see and largely agree with some of the criticisms. They just don’t bother me as much. I do agree that the little nods to the OT are unnecessary. To me, this felt like a smaller episode. Maybe because it was one of the shortest, just 38 minutes.
While it felt smaller in story, I did feel a bit of stress at times and that was unexpected and welcomed. It needs more of that and not from battles and action. This time it was from all the scenes with Indira Varma. I think she is outstanding in the series and feels like she (her character and her talent) would work well in a film.
As for effects that did stand out as TV-level; The ship coming in to land on that ocean platform looked very CGI. Again, not enough to bother me, but it was noticeable compared to some other shots in this episode and others. Overall I think most of the shots of ships as they are in space or approaching\leaving planets has been top notch. I’m also very glad most of them have been free of the weirdly unnecessary 360 spin that Lucas and now Disney love to have every ship make as they land somewhere. Lucas was huge on twirling and spinning of things. Disney has carried that over a bit so I’m always pleasantly surprised when they don’t do it, e.g., quarry saber duel or ships landing in the direction they were traveling.
Tiny nit-pick; The tracking device has been done. Come up with another way.
Saying that Star Wars is too centered on Tatooine is like asking why books about World War 1 and World War 2 keep talking about Germany.
Is it? It plays a big role in ANH and TPM, but it’s very arguable whether the movies were actually centered around Tatooine - at least TPM - cause Naboo and the space/Death Star settings mogged Tatooine in both of them. None of the other movies were centered around it. In fact, the best prequel (ROTS) and the best original (ESB) had the least to do with it, so maybe it’s time to take a hint.
The difference being that discussions of WWI and WWII have to include Germany. Star Wars films after 1977 do not. They do only because Lucas had writer’s block trying to pen any sort of story after the only film he had written or planned in the 1970s. He’s the one who has tied us, unfortunately, to The Solar System Far far Away.
I’m of two minds on Movie vs TV as well.
I like the less rushed format of TV. Most of episode 3 was exactly what I was hoping for with this series (Ben with a day job and Ben & little Leia). However, all that I enjoyed so much this week, the lengthy walk through the mining colony and the safe house, would have been lost or severely trimmed for time in a two-hour film. You just couldn’t burn a quarter of a film on that character depth and deeper pace. I’m fine with the lesser production value because for me, story comes first.
In defense of a film, we would have bigger better production values but how much better? Enough to sacrifice depth and story? Maybe not and as I just mentioned above, not for me. After the mess that was Solo, I think we’re years away from a theatrical event in the franchise. That may not be a bad thing.
Get it out of your systems. We’re about to lose a page or two of bullshit.
********** EDIT
I deleted a bunch and I was heavy-handed about it. Sorry, but I don’t have time to proofread every page of fighting and name-calling. As someone said earlier - and I probably deleted it as part of all this - it’s a damn TV show. Watch or don’t watch. If you do and you have legitimate criticisms, bring them.
Reel it in, folks.
Watching it for a third time right now. Paused for this thought: the part early on when the two of them are walking along the trail is my favorite thing to come out of Star Wars TV since Mando. Ewan damn nails it and so does little Leia. Just as I was on the first viewing, I’m moved by how stressed he is over their situation. Leia obviously doesn’t understand because she’s too little. The best part of the passage is when he snaps at her : ”people are not all good, Leia!”.
Outstanding work on both their parts. His stress-driven short temper and her innocence. Perfect.
Well, as usual I’m apart from the board on this. I thought that was a fantastic episode. Much better than the two before. Ben and Leia walking along in the mining area at the start was perfect. That little girl is a perfect little kid Leia and Ewan really is the best he’s been yet, here or prequels (what little I know about them). Obi Wan just works much better as an older, weathered hermit. I’m assuming it’s because that’s who he was for me when I first met him. For me, all of that first half of the episode worked really well. As a friend of mine pointed out, this is a lone wolf and cub story now and the sparse production value suits this character-driven style really well. No complaints here.
As has been the case since 1980, I just don’t find Vader interesting. In 77 he was a second or third tier military member and suddenly in 1980 he was this omnipotent super human who everyone fears and answers to. He’s that here also but he’s been that way for so long, I just roll with it.
James Earl Jones sells it and he sounds every bit as deep and strong as the 77 version. It worked really well. Also, his choice not to over explain (Vader, in-universe) works perfectly for their scenes together. Adding to the depth is their sword fight being the slower and heavier non-spinning, non-behind the back silliness of the Prequels.
That fight looked and felt like a 1977 fight. That made me very happy. As soon as little Leia ran into Reva, I thought “well, here goes the credits/cliff hanger”. Damn. I wanted more.
Which brings me to my last thought for tonight. Just like that, Reva is a deeper more realistic character. I thought she was a cardboard cutout baddie in #1 and #2 and suddenly she’s well rounded, believable, and more interesting.
I’ll probably watch this again in a few minutes. Yes, I thought it was that strong.
While we’re on the subject of the criticisms of Reva, I’m going to clarify mine here instead of a few pages back since this topic is so fast moving at the moment.
My criticism, which I stand by, is fully on the character as written, not on Ms Ingram. She can only work with the material they give her and they aren’t giving her much. Reva is just the newest baddie-chasing-the-hero.
Ingram deserves better. I’m still interested in the show, but with any luck they’ll give Reva some depth instead of her just being a knock off of Vader from The Empire Strikes Back. That’s assuming there’s any sort of second season. I don’t remember if they said this was a one & done or a potential multi-season.
For the record, if you haven’t seen The Queen’s Gambit, it’s very interesting and Ms Ingram is outstanding in it.
That’s my take as well. He’s newly on the run/in hiding. Fifteen years from now (in universe), he’ll most likely be much more settled in to his hermit existence.
Season two is Spring of 2023
https://www.starwars.com/news/swca-2022-star-wars-visions-panel
Well, as a Bad Batch fan, consider me excited. I had zero interest in the first season or the characters. A few episodes in I realized I dug it. I know there are Prequel callbacks that are over my head, but I don’t care. I like the show, I like the voice work, and I find the animation very interesting.
Digging that Omega appears to be more than just an innocent kid bystander this time around.
I really think a live action version of the Bad Batch would work.
I watched it mostly out of curiosity. I have to say, it was better than I expected. That said, I didn’t expect much at all. As Bear said above - and I mentioned the very same thing to a friend of mine a few days ago - I lowered my expectations after Fett and the second season of Mando.
Disney’s TV shows are really starting to get a brightly-lit and clean TV show look to them. I liked the opening scene of Ben working in the meat processing facility the best of the first episode. Ewan really looks good as a more aged person now. It fits.
The second episode looked and felt like it was a movie set. Fine I guess, because it is. I enjoyed the last half with Ben and Leia the best. They work well together. I was for sure concerned when I saw they were going with yet another cute kid. That’s not a strength of Lucasfilm, past or present. She works well though and I have no problem at all believing that kid would grow up to be 1977 Leia. She even favors her a bit. I thought the scene with little Luke pretending to fly a ship looked ridiculous. That could easily be a Lucas-created moment with yet another cute little kid. Again, not their strong suit.
To me, the biggest weakness is Reva by far. She’s wooden, one-dimensional, and completely predictable. I’ll watch both again this evening and see if it feels a bit more interesting.
Just started the second episode and stopped for a moment. Temuera Morrison cameo? That’s a very distinctive voice. Noticed it before they even showed his face.
I know you haven’t seen the prequels, so I’m gonna clue you in: that’s not a cameo, it’s just his character. Boba Fett is part of a legion of clone soldiers that were basically the first generation of stormtroopers, created using the DNA of a bounty hunter called Jango Fett. Jango is played by Temuera Morrison, so as a result all of his clones (including Boba retroactively) are played by Morrison as well. The beggar in that shot is part of that legion of clones, out of a job after the Empire switched to civilian conscripts.
Oh. My bad. Makes much more sense then. Thank you, sir.
Just started the second episode and stopped for a moment. Temuera Morrison cameo? That’s a very distinctive voice. Noticed it before they even showed his face.
I agree. I’ve waned on Kenobi, but Andor still looks to be strong. Again, staying out of the main franchise sure helps. It’s an awfully big universe out there.
Not sure which film, but it was Kenobi going to someone’s apartment either underwater or in a terrible rain storm. Some kid answered the door
That kid was Boba Fett. I am not joking.
Ah. That explains why, in Bad Batch, they reference Omega and Boba Fett so often. Something about the two of them being different than all the other thousands of clones, as well as Clone Force 99 being another sort of exception.
I respect your decision not to watch the series though, I’m just surprised you’d make that decision based on a lightsaber spin.
I didn’t. It’s many reasons, as I already mentioned.
I just pointed out that the behind-the-back spin silliness is a clue to what part of the fan base they may be courting.