– Spoiler Review –
Kazuda Xiono and Neeku disguise themselves as First Order technicians to board a First Order fueling station. Can they get what they need without having their cover blown? Join me as I review the latest episode of Star Wars Resistance: “Station to Station!”
The Colossus is in desperate need for a part, one which prevents the station from being imbued with dangerous material that would kill everyone on board. Kaz and Neeku somehow get their hands on First Order technician outfits and sneak on to a First Order refueling station known as the Titan. On board, the duo, paired with CB-23, are set to stealthily steal the part from the First Order and bring it back to their ship.
Oddly enough, all of this is explained in an exposition dump rather than showing Neeku and Kaz receiving the mission from Captain Doza or Yeager. Just as Star Wars Rebels episode “Breaking Ranks” started in media res, this episode’s central plot kicks off after it had already been on its way for a while. I think I liked this: it obscured the fact that this was another episode based on finding material for the Colossus, something I have frequently complained about before. Thankfully, while this episode could have fallen into completely familiar territory, it skillfully uses a few techniques to obscure the familiar plot structure. We’ll return to that in a moment.
I first want to comment on Kaz and Neeku in this episode. One complaint I read frequently about Rebels was Ezra’s varying power levels, where he felt super powerful in one episode and weaker in the next. I have felt similarly about Kaz before, where he feels too competent in some episodes, and utterly incompetent in others. This episode leans more to the ultra competent Kaz, whom I happen to like better. He doesn’t trip once, and, in fact, he leaps great distances with ease, stays running on falling fuel canisters, and other grand feats of athleticism. I really hope that this continues for him, as he really doesn’t deserve to get the snot beat out of him for the sake of forced humor.
I mentioned before that this episode uses a few tricks to cover the familiar plot device. The other way that this episode shakes up the formula is by starting from Tam’s point of view, and having her learn about Kaz’s tricks at the same time that we, the audience, do. The episode opens with her and Rucklin fueling TIE Fighters, complaining about how monotonous life in the First Order can be, waiting for some new missions. Lt. Galek brings them both a mission: a supply run to the Titan.
The Titan is the exact same model of fueling station as the Colossus, making Tam and Rucklin the best candidates to lead a supply run there. Unfortunately, this works slightly against the First Order: seeing the ship makes Tam nostalgic for her time with Yeager, Neeku, and Kaz, which is reflected throughout the entire episode. This season’s emotional core is easily Tam’s initial acceptance of the First Order melting away as she grows further from home and as the First Order’s search for her former friends grows more fierce. As she and Rucklin board the fueling station, she sees Kaz immediately, but she wonders at first if she is only seeing things.
As both Tam and Rucklin see the three on the fueling station, their responses couldn’t be more different. Rucklin traps Neeku and Kaz in the engineering department, hoping to rise in the ranks by turning in his former friends. Tam, however, is moved to help them, and opens a door at a crucial junction to facilitate their escape. Whatever support she had for the First Order at first, and whatever anger and hatred she felt toward Kaz in the past few episodes, is starting to waver and find it in her heart to protect them and rebel against the First Order more and more.
(A quick aside: this episode also featured General Hux in a fairly prominent role. Unfortunately, Domhnall Gleeson does not provide the voice, nor the mannerisms. This edition of Hux is a parodic, over-the-top version of the film’s character who could have been replaced by just about any First Order officer.)
I wouldn’t say that this episode has put the series back to the momentum it had before the past few episodes lost it, but it is a step back in the right direction. It’s great to see the focus back on Tam, and to give her even more of a central role now that she’s on the wrong side. The episode as a whole was solid, and more in line with the general quality we came to expect from earlier in the season. Hopefully, as the season winds down toward the mid-season finale, it ramps the excitement back up so that I can be excited about the latter half of the season.
+ Tam is back!
+ Kaz is unapologetically competent and I love it
+ Momentum is regained for the series….
– but maybe not all of it.
You can follow Chris on Twitter @ChrisWerms, and of course, you can follow the Manor on Twitter @MynockManor!
STAR WARS RESISTANCE REVIEWS:
Season Two (by Chris) – Ep. 2.1: “Into the Unknown” | Ep. 2.2: “A Quick Salvage Run” | Ep. 2.3: “Live Fire” | Ep. 2.4: “Hunt on Celsor 3” | Ep. 2.5: “The Engineer” | Ep. 2.6: “From Beneath” | Ep. 2.7: “The Relic Raiders” | Ep. 2.8: “Rendezvous Point” | Ep. 2.9: “The Voxx Vortex 5000” | Ep. 2.10: “Kaz’s Curse”
Season One (by Ryan) – Ep. 1.1/1.2: “The Recruit” | Ep. 1.3: “The Triple Dark” | Ep. 1.4 “Fuel for the Fire” | Ep. 1.5: “The High Tower” | Ep. 1.6: “The Children From Tehar” | Ep. 1.7: “Signal From Sector Six” | Ep. 1.8: “Synara’s Score” | Ep. 1.9: “The Platform Classic” | Ep. 1.10: “Secrets and Holograms” | Ep. 1.11: “Station Theta-Black” | Ep. 1.12: “Bibo” | Ep. 1.13 “Dangerous Business” | Ep. 1.14: “The Doza Dilemma” | Ep. 1.15: “The First Order Occupation” | Ep. 1.16: “The New Trooper” | Ep. 1.17: “The Core Problem” | Ep. 1.18: “The Disappeared” | Ep. 1.19: “Descent” | Ep. 1.20: “No Escape” – Part One | Ep. 1.21: “No Escape” – Part Two