Rebels Recon: Homecoming (and Lords of the Sith)

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Rebels headed to Ryloth in ‘Homecoming.’ Andi talks to Dave Filoni, Pablo Hidalgo, Freddie Prinze Jr. and Cat Taber.


Also, some interesting insight on how the Story Group has changed things behind the scenes from Pablo:

Five things to watch for in the Rebels S2 premiere

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With the premiere of season two of Rebels coming up (sure, it officially happened last week at New York Comic Con, but for most of us it’s next week) it’s time to get psyched for all the goodies we know are coming in season two: The return of some old faces, and the raising of the stakes of this little rebellion against the Empire. We know that Darth Vader, Captain Rex, and Hondo Ohnaka (#TeamHondo) will be showing up this season, and the premiere will focus on the return of the clone troopers, now a bit older. Here’s five things to look for in this two part episode (some spoilers ahead):

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Video: How Clone Wars and Rebels changed Star Wars

Pablo Hidalgo at Salt Lake Comic Con

Of the many great Star Wars panels at Salt Lake Comic Con a few weeks ago, one of the highlights was the “Clone Wars & Rebels: How Animation Changed Star Wars” panel. Moderated by Bryan Young, the panelists included Lucasfilm creative executive Pablo Hidalgo, veteran voice actor Dee Bradley Baker, and artist Scott Harben.


Bryan Young moderated another panel that would interest EU fans. He had authors R. A. Salvatore and Mike Stackpole discuss “Why We Killed Chewbacca” bringing in how the decision was made and the fallout from that event.

Two episodes of Rebels S2 to premiere at NYCC

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Rebels fan? Attending New York Comic Con? Then you’ll be happy to hear that Lucasfilm will be screening two episodes of the show there on Thursday, October 8. The Rebels panel, at 1:30 p.m. on the Empire Stage, will feature “special guests.” The special preview screening is in the same room at 5:30 p.m.

Both episodes feature Captain Rex, Captain Gregor and Commander Wolffe from The Clone Wars. Here’s the chatter:

As the second season of Star Wars Rebels opens, the crew of the Ghost is now considered a very real threat to the Empire and has caught the attention of Darth Vader himself. Undeterred, the rebels seek out old friends and add powerful allies to their cause, forming the beginnings of a more formidable alliance against the Empire. To stop them, Vader will dispatch new agents to hunt down their growing coalition, determined to snuff them out before they can ignite a galaxy to rebellion.

Still no word on a Disney XD premiere date, though.

New blurb for Dark Disciple teases a Asajj Ventress and Quinlan Vos romance

dark-disciple-coverJedi Bibliothek spotted an extended blurb for Christie Golden’s Dark Disciple at Random House. The Asajj Ventress and Quinlan Vos story is based on unproduced scripts from The Clone Wars

The only way to bring down the dark side’s most dangerous warrior may be for Jedi and Sith to join forces.

In the war for control of the galaxy between the armies of the dark side and the Republic, former Jedi Master turned ruthless Sith Lord Count Dooku has grown ever more brutal in his tactics. Despite the powers of the Jedi and the military prowess of their clone army, the sheer number of fatalities is taking a terrible toll. And when Dooku orders the massacre of a flotilla of helpless refugees, the Jedi Council feels it has no choice but to take drastic action: targeting the man responsible for so many war atrocities, Count Dooku himself.

But the ever-elusive Dooku is dangerous prey for even the most skilled hunter. So the Council makes the bold decision to bring both sides of the Force’s power to bear—pairing brash Jedi Knight Quinlan Vos with infamous one-time Sith acolyte Asajj Ventress. Though Jedi distrust for the cunning killer who once served at Dooku’s side still runs deep, Ventress’s hatred for her former master runs deeper. She’s more than willing to lend her copious talents as a bounty hunter—and assassin—to Vos’s quest.

Together, Ventress and Vos are the best hope for eliminating Dooku—as long as the emerging feelings between them don’t compromise their mission. But Ventress is determined to have her retribution and at last let go of her dark Sith past. Balancing the complicated emotions she feels for Vos with the fury of her warrior’s spirit, she resolves to claim victory on all fronts—a vow that will be mercilessly tested by her deadly enemy . . . and her own doubt.

Well, that’s an unexpected turn for this book. (…Or is it?) Hopefully Golden’s take romance here is less winceworthy here than what we saw in Fate of the Jedi

Dark Disciple will be out in eBook and hardcover on July 7.

Dave Filoni on the Rebels finale, returning characters and delayed gratification

rebels-ahsokaDave Filoni talks further about the Rebels finale, the return of Ahsoka and what’s up next with IGN. There’s an interesting bit on how there was a lot of interest in exploring hercontinuing story in other media, where Filoni argues in favor of, basically, delayed gratification:

I always feel strongly that while we can have everything at our fingertips right now, something that made Star Wars so powerful to me growing up was we would go through a long period of time where we wondered what happened to Han Solo. He was stuck in carbonite. Now, everything’s instant. But I think we built a deep love and connection to our characters because, for lack of a better term, we dreamed about what they were going through. We wondered and we anticipated, so when the payoffs came, I think it was a lot better, a lot stronger, so I thought making people wait to find out what happened to Ahsoka just built up her mystique a little bit more, a little bit better until we nailed her down.

He also addresses the challenge of Vader, including the (inevitable?) Ahsoka confrontation, the Inquisitor, the larger Rebel Alliance and more.

UPDATE: The third part of Filoni’s StarWars.com interview is up as well.

While we’re talking Rebels, there’s also a rumor making the rounds about a familiar voice actor returning to play an established (though not unexpected) character.