Ryan and John continue to catch up on Celebration announcements by breaking down the Andor teaser as well as discussing the Mandalorian season three and Ahsoka reveals and footage from the Mando+ panel.
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Brandon Wainerdi from the fantastic Talking Bay 94 podcast joins us to break down The Book of Boba Fett Chapter 6: “From the Desert Comes a Stranger.” We discuss the many surprising character appearances, the conflict between attachment and creed, the deep fake of it all, and of course our predictions for next week’s finale.
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We spend the first 15 minutes of the show discussing the nebulous connections between Blink 182 (a band we love) and Star Wars before discussing Dave Filoni’s (not) new role at LFL, the status of Rangers of the New Republic, and the fourth episode of The Bad Batch.
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Happy Mando Day, Happy Disney+ Day! This episode features our fresh, raw, SPOILER-FILLED reactions to The Mandalorian Chapter 1 as well as some quick impressions of Disney+. 
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The official Star Wars site announced the upcoming Resistance animated series this week and all signs are pointing to the show being colorful, fun, and something significantly different from The Clone Wars and Rebels. This mini-episode features John’s reactions to the announcement and hopes for the show.
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In this latest episode of the Blockade Runner Podcast, John and Dan bid farewell to Star Wars Rebels as the show’s four season run comes to a close. We look specifically at Rebels’s final three weeks (in a detailed, SPOILER FILLED discussion) and weigh in on some of the more controversial choices made by Dave Filoni and the rest of the creatives at Lucasfilm.
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Kevin and John tackle the big announcements on Rogue One, Star Wars Rebels Season 3, and Episode VIII coming out of Star Wars Celebration Europe.
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Intro and outro music for The Blockade Runner is “Hedonism” by Ash.
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Kevin, Dan, and John devote this entire episode to discussing the Star Wars Rebels season two finale, “Twilight of the Apprentice.” We share our favorite elements as well as some criticisms of this very special episode of Rebels, and we definitely delve deep into the major events from the show, so please don’t listen until you’ve watched at least once (though as we get into in the show, an episode this big probably requires at least two viewings).
Intro and outro music for The Blockade Runner is “Hedonism” by Ash.
“The Protector of Concord Dawn” featured a number of compelling visual designs and shots including the half-destroyed planet of Concord Dawn and that system’s Mandolorian fighters and pilots. For me however, the above screenshot (sourced from starwars.com) is my favorite single image from the episode. The emphasis on the core themes of Rebels in “The Protectors of Concord Dawn” results in an episode with more emotional depth than I expected from a story focusing on hyperspace lanes, Mandalorian armor, and gunslinger showdowns.
Every aspect of this chosen shot communicates the importance of the familial bonds between its three characters. The vignetting effect of the central light above Sabine and Hera envelopes them (and to a lesser extent Kanan), obscuring the background and placing the viewer’s focus squarely on the characters and their connection to one another. It’s simple and straightforward, but it’s also a crucial and well-executed visual representation of the most important aspect of “The Protector of Concord Dawn.” Season 2 of Rebels has been very much about expanding the show’s lore by visiting new planets, introducing new characters, and providing backstory for existing ones, but my favorite moments thus far are those that center on the meaningful connections that make up the family at the heart of its story. In my mind Rebels is its best when it remains centered on the bonds between the members of the Ghost crew, so this episode worked most for me in these final moments when its storytelling circled back to the family at the show’s core.
“Legacy” is one of the most memorable and moving episodes of Rebels yet, and its final moments are among my favorite in the show’s entire run. As stories that are in some ways produced for kids, both Clone Wars and Rebels are unafraid to explore weighty, emotional material, a trend that continues in “Legacy,” an episode the show has been building toward from the start. It provides closure for Ezra’s search for this parents and further explores the meaning of family, a theme that has always been a focus for Rebels, while also proving brave enough to supply answers that are neither easy nor safe.
As a mid-season finale, this episode needs to feel more important than an average one; it needs to be a small conclusion, wrapping up at least some plot threads and perhaps sowing the seeds for future ones. “Legacy” does all of this, but I was also struck by how much of the show’s DNA was present in its final scene. Thematically, it addresses fathers and sons, teachers and students, hope and loss, light and dark, but it also acts as a concise summary of the show’s visual mission with its beautiful, McQuarrie-inspired landscapes and carefully composed shots.
I usually try to write about just one image from any given episode of Rebels, but the final scene in “Legacy” is an extended moment that works best when considered as a whole. Ezra’s vision of Lothal and his parents is composed of multiple shots, first of Ezra alone before his joined by his father first, then his mother. As day turns to night, Ezra is for a moment again alone before being joined by Kanan. The two shots I’ve chosen as the primary images for this post feature first Ezra and his father looking out over the familiar Lothal landscape and Ezra and Kanan sharing a similar moment as the moons set (a clear, but subtle nod to “Binary Sunset”). These shots, and those that make up the scene that links them, are a poignant and lyrical way of saying goodbye to the family Ezra has lost while acknowledging the one he’s now joined. They also immediately call to mind the Ralph McQuarrie art that is so influential to the design of Rebels. It’s a touching ending to this episode and the first half of season two as well as an example of the incredible art, design, and composition of the show.
I’m including a gallery of a few more individual shots I grabbed while prepping this post here too. Each of them is wonderful and would’ve been memorable enough to act as the primary image for the post, but viewed together I think they communicate most of the scene’s narrative and demonstrate how the Rebels team is staying true to George Lucas’s visual storytelling philosophy.
The Blockade Runner 