The Lost Commanders (Star Wars Rebels - S02E03) - Animated Series

Return of the Clones. SPOILERS. 

Star Wars Rebels and Captain Rex are back! When Star Wars: The Clone Wars was prematurely canceled, one of the biggest loose ends was the story of Captain Rex. Thankfully, the crew behind Rebels knew this and decided to bring the good captain back. Following Darth Vader’s attack on the rebel fleet in the summer premiere, the remnants of the fleet decided they needed to find a base… and more allies. Ahsoka suggested that a great military commander she once knew with vast knowledge of the outer rim might be able to help. Ahsoka said she had lost track of her friend but gave the Ghost crew the head of an old tactical droid to help them track him down. Ahsoka insisted that Kanan trust her friend when they find him, no matter what. Meanwhile, she would investigate the Sith Lord they encountered. It’s still very early in the season and Dave Filoni has said he doesn’t want Ahsoka to just join the Ghost crew but I do hope she is given more to do as the season goes on. It would be a waste of a great character for her to just give the Ghost crew a new mission every week.

Once Kanan, Ezra, Sabine, and Zeb reached the surface of Seelos, the last know location of Ahsoka’s friend, the tactical droid locked in on something and began repeating the number 7567. They then spotted an old AT-TE walking through the desert. Kanan quickly realized that the men operating it were clones and drew his lightsaber. Wolffe, a fan favorite clone trooper, opened fire upon seeing Kanan believing the Jedi had come for revenge. Rex told Wolffe to hold his fire and to remember it wasn’t the Jedi who betrayed them. I just want to say how great it was to see Rex again. He was one of the best and most developed characters to come out of Star Wars: The Clone Wars and the rest of his story needed to be told. Having both Ahsoka and Rex return is absolutely the right move and I can’t wait to see the rest of their stories. Ezra told Rex that Ahsoka Tano had sent them. Rex recounted, “I fought by her side from the Battle of Christophis to the Siege of Mandalore. A friend of hers is a friend of mine.” The Siege of Mandalore? There’s another untold Clone Wars story I’d rather be watching than Star Wars Rebels, no offense Rebels. It’s one of those lines of dialogue that immediately sparks the imagination, like Old Ben telling Luke about the Clone Wars. Rex agreed to provide the Ghost crew with a list of bases, but said his days of being a soldier are over. Wolffe warned Rex and Gregor about helping the Jedi and secretly contacted the Empire. Rex hasn’t changed much since we last saw him, Gregor is just crazy, but Wolffe seems to be suffering from some form of PTSD, more on that later. He’s paranoid about the Jedi and has a history of delusional calls to the Empire. When pressed by Ezra, Kanan told him why he doesn’t trust the clones. Kanan’s recount of Order 66 was a very powerful scene and his mistrust of the clones was perfectly reasonable. Kanan struggling to trust the clones was a highlight of the episode and provided plenty of great character moments. Rex then told Kanan that he removed his control chip and never betrayed the Jedi. “We all have a choice,” Rex said. The examination of what happened to the clones after Order 66 was perhaps the most interesting part of the episode. We now have confirmation that Rex, Wolffe, and Gregor removed their control chips and didn’t betray the Jedi. We also know that all the clones have been decommissioned by the Empire at this point. When you think about it, the story of clones really is one of the most tragic in the saga. They were bred to fight and die for the Republic only to be unknowingly used by Palpatine to eliminate the Jedi they spent years fighting side by side with. Then they were simply cast aside.

Gregor saw the Ghost crew’s arrival as an opportunity to go slinging for joopa. Think a Star Wars spin on fishing. Gregor also decided that Zeb would be the perfect bait for the joopa. I did enjoy that whole slinging sequence served as homage to Jaws. The design of the clones’ AT-TE was reminiscent of Quint’s boat, the Orca, and Kevin Kiner’s score throughout the scene immediately made me think of Jaws. Gregor’s crazed personality, he was blown up the last time we saw him after all, was a lot of fun too. With that being said, the slinging sequence just felt out of place in the episode. I enjoyed Kiner’s score, Gregor, and the various Jaws homages but something just felt off to me. The slinging sequence was followed by two quiet scenes that were far more effective. Hera’s conversation with Kanan about the clones and Rex’s bonding with Ezra. Then everyone discovered that Wolffe contacted the Empire. Not only that, but Wolffe had been hiding Ahsoka's messages from Rex for years. Wolffe said he only did it to protect his squad so the Empire wouldn’t kill them for helping the Jedi. Rex told him living in fear of the Empire isn’t freedom and the war is over, so Wolffe immediately apologized and said the Jedi weren’t their enemy. The whole thing felt incredibly rushed. In my opinion it was a missed opportunity to show a clone that was truly struggling with PTSD, which I think is something they were trying to do. Wolffe’s immediate apology was a really weak way to wrap up his betrayal. Rex was able to dispatch the Imperial probe droid that was brought there by Wolffe’s call but the Empire was still on its way. It wasn’t perfect, but this episode did a great job of bringing back the clones, Captain Rex in particular, and I’m very much looking forward to the conclusion of this story and Rex’s role moving forward. With the introductions of Ahsoka Tano, Darth Vader, and Captain Rex, the future of Star Wars Rebels is more promising than ever.

What Worked

• Rex is back!
• Kanan’s mistrust of the clones
• Intriguing look at Order 66 and what happened to the clones

What Didn’t Work

• Wolffe’s betrayal and immediate apology felt rushed
• Despite the fun Jaws influences, the slinging sequence felt out of place

External Links:

• StarWars.com Episode Guide
• Wookieepedia Episode Summary