– Spoiler Review –
The Aces go on a supply run and end up in a Sith Temple instead?! Join me as I review the most recent episode of Star Wars Resistance: “The Relic Raiders!”
Resistance has, finally, moved from “I enjoy having a Star Wars show to watch weekly” to “extremely my cup of tea” this week with “The Relic Raiders.” I was a little nervous at first, though, that I wouldn’t like this episode too much because it began as yet another supply run. I would say that this show’s aim is revealing war has a mundane, day-to-day cost, but it also has intense personal costs. If you’ve been following my reviews lately, you might notice I’ve started to find this repetition a little frustrating lately.
Thankfully, “The Relic Raiders” throws a wrench into the system, introducing a new type of story for the series. Captain Doza commissions the Aces, featuring Kaz, Torra Doza, and Freya Fenris, to purchase supplies from a nearby planet. Recently orphaned siblings Kel and Ella have felt extremely cooped up on the Colossus, so they ask to follow Kaz to the surface to get some time off the ship. (I would imagine most of the crew has been getting pretty restless on the Colossus, but I guess they’re not children, so they can handle it better!) Kaz reluctantly agrees to let the pair accompany the Aces to the planet, but only if they promise to behave.
Wouldn’t you know, however, the kids do not behave. As Freya, Kaz, and Torra start to pick up on some weird signs from the village – messages of warning, emptied and abandoned homes, no ships – Kel and Ella wander off on their own. They approach a temple a bit out of the way from the city, where they hear cries for help. They can’t say no to someone in need, so they rush into the temple, forcing Kaz to follow suit. The episode shifts, briefly, from a supply run to a mini-Indiana Jones style adventure. Unfortunately, Kaz’s clumsiness (and the show’s clunky slapstick comedy) triggers a plethora of traps in the temple, from collapsing walls to electro-shocks to pitfalls.
The Temple is more than impressive. Fans of both Rebels and Marvel’s Darth Maul mini-series will recognize familiar elements in the Temple, ranging from the design, coloration, and the ancient Sith language on the walls. The temple itself seems designed more to protect an artifact in the center of the temple than it is to be a place of learning or congregation, which leads me to believe that this is a new type of temple. Bringing Sith lore into the show really scratched an itch for me, one that I’ve felt ever since this show made it fairly clear it wouldn’t touch on the Force much. I could feel part of the reason I’ve kept some sort of distance from this show is its lack of the Force, so this was a very welcome episode.
Despite not touching much on the Force, the show can bring in Sith elements without overwhelming the point of the show. Never does Kaz listen to a lecture on Sith philosophy, nor do a ton of Sith warriors light laser swords to fight interlopers. Rather, we see the remnants of a Sith civilization lost to time. There are a few bits of lore, such as the idea that the Jedi build temples on top of Sith temples to purify them, but these do not distract from the plot much. I would love if more Star Wars material was able to work bits of lore like these into their shows more often. It doesn’t need to be much, nor does it need to be distracting, as a little goes a long way. But man, wouldn’t it be fun to get more, especially as we move into the endgame of the Skywalker Saga?
As Kaz finds his way to the presumed center of the Temple, he triggers a trap. Falling through a hole in the floor, Kaz finds Reka Grey, a tomb-raider who triggered one too many traps herself. Grey is biting toward Kaz, berating him for triggering so many traps (forgetting that she had to trigger *at least* one herself), to an almost exasperating end. I know I give the show grief for the slapstick humor, but hearing it within the show is a little weird to me.
Outside of the Temple, the First Order has moved toward the planet themselves. They are looking for this Sith artifact, a search ordered by Supreme Leader Kylo Ren himself. It’s fascinating to see that the First Order has begun to search so wholeheartedly for these artifacts as well. Though the First Order Raiders (a new type of stormtrooper, taking design elements from airborne troopers and mudtroopers) don’t say why they are searching for Sith artifacts, I imagine we’ll learn soon based on the idea that Sheev Palpatine might still be making plays from beyond the grave and the existence of First Order Sith troopers. This additional bit of background information might make this episode effectively required viewing for The Rise of Skywalker, and I couldn’t be happier about it.
+ Bits of lore about the Jedi and Sith re-contextualize this show into the larger mythos
+ Indiana Jones-esque feel makes this episode more fun
+ World-building galore for the First Order
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”
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