– Spoiler Review –
“Vision of Hope” finally brings Gall Trayvis into the light, giving the crew of the Ghost more trouble then they ever imagined, while Ezra struggles with the concept of hope and Hera shows why she’s rightfully the leader. It’s another solid episode in Star Wars Rebels‘ first season, combining heady thoughts and ideals with fun, adventure, and humor.
Visions brought on by the Force have always been a tricky business for Jedi (Luke loses a hand and a pal while Anakin brings about the events he has foreseen), so I was on Kanan’s side and not completely able to match Ezra’s optimism about his vision. What the vision showed from the future (of the episode) was a ‘greatest hits’ compilation of exactly what Ezra wished to happen when meeting Gall Trayvis and it was great to see how those scenes played out in context later in the episode. Part of me wonders if Hera not telling Ezra what Tseebo said to her regarding his parents has affected or clouded his judgment and is the reason he saw what he saw or that’s just the Force working in its vague way.
But that’s about the only thing you can chalk up in the bad decision category for Hera, especially in this episode. Much like “Idiot’s Array,” “Vision” has plenty of moments showing why Hera is an extremely capable leader and pivotal member of the team and I’m happy there’s been more of a focus on her role in the team in the latter half of the season. She sniffs out Gall’s betrayal before anyone, and in fact it was her reaction to him in the sewer tunnels that first really clued me in on it. While the uncharged/not loaded gun trick isn’t anything new, it was a really cool and gutsy way for Hera to test him. And the best part is she totally takes him out, like a boss (Vanessa Marshall is the best free publicity/marketing this show gets…period)!
Now I’d really like to know how many worlds and how many cells the Trayvis Trap (that’s what I’m calling it now) had taken down prior to this. It’s an interesting and unexpected strategy for the Empire to take, but seemingly very effective. Gall “getting tired” in the sewers and then Hera’s reaction to it finally clued me in on something being very fishy, as I can honestly say I didn’t see his betrayal coming from his little appearances in earlier episodes. While it was disappointing for the team (and for me) that such a possibly powerful alley turned out to be a lie, it helped teach them about who and what to trust going forward.
It’s been awhile, but it was great to see the team interact with Agent Kallus again. His presence always elevates the danger of an episode, which is nice considering there was some slight Imperial incompetence of late on the show. There’s a hint the Trayvis Trap is Kallus’ idea, but there’s no clear answer presented here who came up with it; either way, it’s a smart plan on Kallus’ part to focus on capturing the whole team instead just the Jedi component, and it nearly works here.
The theme of hope, in spite of everything, was a strong underlying current for the episode. From Ezra’s hope his vision proves true, Zeb wondering what would’ve made the Bridger’s stand up against the Empire, to Hera’s final conversation with the deflated Ezra, there’s some great points made here about how important hope can truly be to a cause’s mission. And as we all know too well, it’s another 4-5 years before ‘a new hope’ arrives, so for the time being our band of rebels have to hold onto whatever hope they can.
Here are a few other things:
- I know Gall says no one else knows about his Trayvis Trap duplicitousness (outside of his Imperial handlers, I assume), but Fulcrum was the one who told Hera and the team about Trayvis’ hidden messages…could Fulcrum be in on it too? While I’m going to guess no, it’s something to consider.
- I’m surprised the team hasn’t gone to Zare Leonis (last seen in “Breaking Ranks”) before, but it was certainly nice to see Ezra and him interact again. More can be found on Zare in the Servants of the Empire novel series, including a giant plot surrounding the fate of his sister and (probably) following his transfer to Arkanis.
- Chopper is a homicidal maniac…and I love it. Also, the back and forth between him and Kanan here was pretty entertaining.
- I got to say, anyone else pick up on a bit of vibe between Kallus and Maketh Tua?
- “That’s not the ride we’re looking for.” I see what they did there.
- Anyone else wonder if Luke had Han and Leia shot at him to help with lightsaber blaster blocking? I can picture both of them having a blast with that, much like Sabine, Zeb, and Chopper were.
- Zeb grabbing Sabine and pulling her away from the explosive was a cool little scene. While they both were on the backburner this week, they had plenty of great little moments.
- When Kanan was trying to slow the fan down with the Force, it reminded me of some recent Star Wars games aka The Force Unleashed series
Not everything can go good for the crew of the Ghost and while this wasn’t their biggest loss, it was definitely disappointing to them, but not to us the viewers. A smart plot involving an unsuspecting betrayal, the theme of hope and how important it is in both the short and long runs, and Hera impressively leading the pack in “Vision of Hope” made for another entertaining episode in an already solid season. And now we head into the two part season finale…
+ Hera figuring things out like a boss
+ Trayvis’ betrayal
+ The weapon of hope
Ryan is Mynock Manor’s Head Butler. You can follow him on Twitter @BrushYourTeeth. You can follow the website @MynockManor.
STAR WARS REBELS REVIEWS:
Season One: Spark of Rebellion | Ep. 2: “Droids In Distress” | Ep.3: “Fighter Flight” | Ep.4: “Rise of the Old Masters” | Ep.5: “Breaking Ranks” | Ep.6: “Out of Darkness” | Ep.7: “Empire Day” | Ep.8: “Gathering Forces” | Ep.9: “Path of the Jedi” | Ep.10: “Idiot’s Array” | Ep.12: “Call to Action” | Ep.13: “Rebel Resolve” | Ep.14: “Fire Across the Galaxy”
Season Two: The Siege of Lothal | Ep. 2: “The Lost Commanders” | Ep. 3: “Relics of the Old Republic” | Ep. 4: “Always Two There Are” | Ep. 5: “Brothers of the Broken Horn” | Ep. 6: “Wings of the Master” | Ep. 7: “Blood Sisters” | Ep. 8: “Stealth Strike” | Ep. 9: “The Future of the Force” | Ep. 10: “Legacy” | Ep. 11: “A Princess on Lothal” | Ep. 12: “The Protector of Concord Dawn” | Ep. 13: “Legends of the Lasat” | Ep. 14: “The Call” | Ep. 15: “Homecoming” | Ep. 16: “The Honorable Ones” | Ep. 17: “Shroud of Darkness” | Ep. 18: “The Forgotten Droid” | Ep. 19: “The Mystery of Chopper Base” | Ep. 20: “Twilight of the Apprentice“
Season Three: Steps into Shadow | Ep. 2: “Holocrons of Fate” | Ep. 3: “The Antilles Extraction” | Ep. 4: “Hera’s Heroes” | Ep. 5: “The Last Battle” | Ep. 6: “Imperial Supercommandos” | Ep. 7: “Iron Squadron” | Ep. 8: “The Wynkahthu Job” | Ep. 9: “An Inside Man” | Ep. 10: “Visions and Voices” | Ep. 11: “Ghosts of Geonosis” | Ep. 12: “Warhead” | Ep. 13: “Trials of the Darksaber” | Ep. 14: “Legacy of Mandalore” | Ep. 15: “Through Imperial Eyes” | Ep. 16: “Secret Cargo” | Ep. 17: “Double Agent Droid” | Ep. 18: “Twin Suns” | Ep. 19: “Zero Hour“
Season Four: Ep.1/2: “Heroes of Mandalore” Part One / Part Two | Ep. 3/4: “In the Name of the Rebellion” | Ep. 5: “The Occupation” | Ep. 6: “Flight of the Defender” | Ep. 7/8: “Kindred” and “Crawler Commandeers” | Ep. 9: “Rebel Assault” | Ep. 10/11 “Jedi Night” and “Dume” | Ep. 12/13: “Wolves and a Door” & “A World Between Worlds” | Ep. 14/15: Series Finale “A Fool’s Hope” & “Family Reunion – And Farewell”
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