It's ok. Made a pretty bad first impression, but it got better. Ezra is annoying, the Jedi guy is boring and the not-Chewie is generally awful, but the Inquisitor is cool and the sociopathic astromech is the best comic relief in ages.

I've watched every episode. Didn't care for it but wanted to give it a good chance. I'm sure being a fan of the EU affected my taste a little. But I doubt it ruined me from enjoying it. What did ruin it for me was plenty.

Forcing TCW characters into the show

Really? I didn't see many Clone Wars characters. There was Ahsoka... And that was basically it.

I've watched every episode. Didn't care for it but wanted to give it a good chance. I'm sure being a fan of the EU affected my taste a little. But I doubt it ruined me from enjoying it. What did ruin it for me was plenty.

Forcing TCW characters into the show

Really? I didn't see many Clone Wars characters. There was Ahsoka... And that was basically it.

Well, too late. I already found out.

I start by saying "I love this thing!" If your response is that I don't or shouldn't love it... That's only going to annoy or frustrate me.

And what if other people aren't coming to the thread for the same reasons you are?

What if someone isn't coming to this thread to share love for it, but haven't seen it, and genuinely want to know whether it's actually worth their time? It's okay to have some OP created mandate that only one perspective is allowed to be discussed?

I'll never get people going like omg we need the darkness!!!! I mean yeah I'd love to see an adult oriented movie or show that has a ton of depth and nuance to it that is really able to go into some of the dark and mature parts of this universe but that's never been what star wars was about. It's kid movies that now want to sell a ton of kids toys. It's always been very light hearted black and white stuff geared towards younger people. I mean heck in the original trilogy Ben should have been cut in half by Vader but instead he vanishes lmao!

I guess the point is if you don't like the clone wars or rebels then that's cool but if you don't like it because it seems kiddy and you're over 13 then you might need to step back realize you aren't the target market...

I found the "Fall of the Jedi" fan edit to make those movies better.

Wow, best fan edit I've seen. I would have preferred John Williams score (nothing against the soundtrack), but really well done.

I watched the siege two part episode to give it a second chance and I hated it as much the second time around it makes all the same mistakes and I won't give it a third chance.

Because there's a phrase "don't rain on my parade", and yet no similar phrase about the praiseworthiness of the opposite.

Don't shine on my brooding?

I love how it starts off and I'm like oh this is kind stuff, then it gets really real, real fast. For real.

Personally I would love an "Imperials" show, or even settle with Game of Thrones with lightsabers, but those ideas aren't very kid friendly... One can hope!

I love GoT and always fly imperial, but I don't want those things at all. To me, it goes against what Star Wars is about. To me, Star Wars is a fun story of hope and triumph over an unequivocally evil villain. There is black and white and no gray in between. Sure there is nuance, but in the OT it was always clear who is good and who is bad.

I agree to a certain extent. The OT has a very shallow representation of morality and I absolutely don’t find any fault in that and appreciate the OT for all the reasons you described. However, 3 movies will only get a franchise so far and I don’t think Star Wars would be as prevalent as it is today without its EU/Legends which while over the place in quality and about as nuanced as bringing a Death Star to a negotiation table had some really great stories come out of it. Most of the interesting stories had at least some level of nuance to them. There is only so many times the plucky heroes can defeat the big, most powerful bad guy in the universe (until the next Bigger, More Powerful Bad Guy TM) in the same universe in the exact same way before it starts to get stale. The EU had been creaking under that weight for years before Disney came to the right decision of wiping the slate clean.

I don’t expect an animated children’s show to scratch that itch and I don’t expect any of upcoming new movies to either since they should stick to the source material/familiar as much as possible. But after the initial flood of new media I hope they explore other stories within the universe. For reference I count Thrawn, KOTOR, Darth Malgus, TIE Fighter video game, Jacen’s arc in the NJO, Dark Nest and maaaaaaybe the first half of Legacy series as decent examples of room within the Star Wars universe to tell stories of different shades besides black and white or at least different POVs. I do agree that Rebels isn’t the show to explore that though.

Really, my favorite part of Star Wars has always been the space ship designs and I love that Rebels have given me more plastic ships to fly!

I'll never get people going like omg we need the darkness!!!! I mean yeah I'd love to see an adult oriented movie or show that has a ton of depth and nuance to it that is really able to go into some of the dark and mature parts of this universe but that's never been what star wars was about. It's kid movies that now want to sell a ton of kids toys. It's always been very light hearted black and white stuff geared towards younger people. I mean heck in the original trilogy Ben should have been cut in half by Vader but instead he vanishes lmao!

I guess the point is if you don't like the clone wars or rebels then that's cool but if you don't like it because it seems kiddy and you're over 13 then you might need to step back realize you aren't the target market...

For me (even when I was a child), it's less about the "darkness", and more a sense of genuine stakes. In order to feel that victory is earned, I need to know that their failure is possible.

Having establish that the Good Guys are capable makes their fear of Darth Vader something powerful. Seeing Vader wipe out a fleet by himself makes me fear for everyone the heroes come in contact with.

It doesn't take much, but it does take _something_.

That's not true. End of. EU is rubbish.

That's not true. End of. EU is rubbish.

EU isn't just the books with that sweeping statement your including classic games like tie fighter, x-wing alliance, the dark forces games etc.

While some books and games were bad you'll really struggle to find someone who hated the first two rogue squadron games.

There was lots after great stuff in the EU.

I've watched every episode. Didn't care for it but wanted to give it a good chance. I'm sure being a fan of the EU affected my taste a little. But I doubt it ruined me from enjoying it. What did ruin it for me was plenty.

Wookies

Poor art in general

Lack of caring in Ezra

Forcing TCW characters into the show

Imperial characters are blah and forgettable

I will say that the EU history inside my head makes me not care for the Mando.

Rambling now I guess. Zeb and Chopper are awesome. I also like Kanan and the conflict he's dealing with.

I think any statements about TCW characters being "forced" are way too early. It makes sense that Ahsoka would resist the Empire and after how her arc in TCW ended it would be unstatisfying to leave her destiny open. It also is pretty believeable that she survived the Jedi purge.

Now the clones may be weird, but only time will tell how unreasonable their inclusion will be. I would guess it has something to do with Fives last story arc, which would be pretty cool. I strongly disagree with the idea that the inclusion of TCW characters is a bad thing per se.

I'm going to cover this with a spoiler... For those who haven't read Aftermath yet. But it does tie into Rebels.

In Aftermath Wedge mentions he was recruited to the Rebel Alliance by Fulcrum, so Asoka at least lives long enough to recruit Wedge.

Was the read in general bearable? I am kind of interested, but after the leaked parts also really scared. I hate present tense writing in almost all cases.

It isn't my favorite of the "new canon" novels (Tarkin is, though I'm currently working through Dark Disciple and its challenging that title), and it's at times a wee bit disjointed... but it's also not bad. It's meant as the first in a trilogy, and a lot of the book seems dedicated to that: to setting up new characters and the rest of the arc. Which, it has me wanting to see what happens next, so there's that...

Also? Gives us Norrah Wexley, who was a Y-Wing pilot that survived flying into the Second Death Star. She'd be perfect for an eventual Y-Wing Aces pack.

But the best part of the book is Mister Bones: the homicidal, refurbished Separatists battle droid who is legitimate nightmare fuel. Rattles as he moves due to a crude armor of bones (ala Rattleshirt from ASOIAF), sings and hums to himself in discordant tone (sometimes while in the process of killing), and then randomly blurts out his "ROGER ROGER"s like a proper Battle Droid. He's ridiculous, he's over the top, and yet he's awesome. Similar to HK-47, yet distinct enough in his own right. Indeed, I think the two of them would get along pretty well.

Anyways, I love Rebels. Heck, contrary to some here my favorite parts have been the Jedi bits in the series. Doesn't hurt that Kanan is an awesome character with a great voice actor. Still, I think they've done a decent job capturing the the "feel" of the Jedi in this era, in their nearly mythical status at this point and the starkness of their future.

I'll never get people going like omg we need the darkness!!!! I mean yeah I'd love to see an adult oriented movie or show that has a ton of depth and nuance to it that is really able to go into some of the dark and mature parts of this universe but that's never been what star wars was about. It's kid movies that now want to sell a ton of kids toys. It's always been very light hearted black and white stuff geared towards younger people. I mean heck in the original trilogy Ben should have been cut in half by Vader but instead he vanishes lmao!

I guess the point is if you don't like the clone wars or rebels then that's cool but if you don't like it because it seems kiddy and you're over 13 then you might need to step back realize you aren't the target market...

Err... Obi-wan's disappearance is a deliberate plot point- It's a sign he's become one with the force. You see the same thing with Yoda in Episode VI, and it's readily apparent something is wrong when Vader prods Obi-wan's robes.

As far as the darkness thing... It's been said that the key to good writing is to create likable, human characters... and then push them until they break (Although a distressingly large number of works of fiction fail that first part these days). Basically, unless characters fail, suffer, and otherwise struggle, the story is pointless because we can't identify with the characters. You don't need to wallow in the suffering by any means (I'm looking at you, D.C. comics), but if you don't make your characters work for their success, what's the point of telling the story.

It isn't my favorite of the "new canon" novels (Tarkin is, though I'm currently working through Dark Disciple and its challenging that title), and it's at times a wee bit disjointed... but it's also not bad. It's meant as the first in a trilogy, and a lot of the book seems dedicated to that: to setting up new characters and the rest of the arc. Which, it has me wanting to see what happens next, so there's that...

So far, Dark Disciple* is the first of the new canon books that I don't have to grade on the special "It's Star Wars, so I don't find it unreadable" scale. Dark Disciple gets all the way up to "not bad even if it weren't Star Wars". Tellingly, Dark Disciple was adapted from the scripts of a Clone Wars arc that had been canceled when Disney pulled the plug on that show.

Tarkin was- imoh- kinda bad. It did leave me with a lot of respect for the Tarkin character, and a better understanding of the workings of the Empire, but I thought the writing itself was silly. Note that (as I understand it) the book had been written as an EU book that was lightly rewritten for the new canon. Which is a lot of whyb I'd gotten disenchanted with the EU.

*Oops! I also forgot about A New Dawn, the very first New Canon novel. That one was also quite readable. Not great, but it left me intrigued for Rebels.

But the best part of the book is Mister Bones: the homicidal, refurbished Separatists battle droid who is legitimate nightmare fuel. Rattles as he moves due to a crude armor of bones (ala Rattleshirt from ASOIAF), sings and hums to himself in discordant tone (sometimes while in the process of killing), and then randomly blurts out his "ROGER ROGER"s like a proper Battle Droid. He's ridiculous, he's over the top, and yet he's awesome.

Quoted for truth!

Mr Bones took this all the way up to "not bad for a Star Wars book", for me.

I just started watching the first season, and while I am entertained and it is a decent show I can't say that it is a great show. Im tired of seeing generic stormtroopers portrayed as a potato on the screen, it literally makes me feel like the Empire is a joke, not a real threat. They literally stand in the open as a group and shoot at the rebels, they can't hit crap and they show no maneuvering. What would it take for a squad of stormtroopers to lay down suppressive fire while another squad maneuvers to flank the enemy?!? The stormtroopers were supposed to be an intimidating military force, not some idiot given a gun and armor.

Figure 1: Star Wars Rebels Stormtrooper

The main problem with the stormtroopers is the same one they had in the OT. They suck when facing the heroes because if the heroes die the story ends. And pretty much everyone we saw stormtroopers shooting at in Rebels season one counts as a hero for this purpose. Hopefully with the main cell becoming more involved with the rebel network we'll see some stormtrooper verus grunt battles and they'll be able to inflict some damage likt the OT stormtroopers did when facing Alliance grunts instead of the heroes. Also I'm pretty sure Lothal is the kind of place that the dregs of the Imperial army get assigned so the majority of the Stormtroopers we've seen in Rebels so are probably very far from being the elite of the Empire

I just started watching the first season, and while I am entertained and it is a decent show I can't say that it is a great show. Im tired of seeing generic stormtroopers portrayed as a potato on the screen, it literally makes me feel like the Empire is a joke, not a real threat. They literally stand in the open as a group and shoot at the rebels, they can't hit crap and they show no maneuvering. What would it take for a squad of stormtroopers to lay down suppressive fire while another squad maneuvers to flank the enemy?!? The stormtroopers were supposed to be an intimidating military force, not some idiot given a gun and armor.

Figure 1: Star Wars Rebels Stormtrooper

Uh, honest question: Have you watched the movies recently?

Outside the opening scene of A New Hope, Stormtroopers have always been laughably incompetent klutzes who couldn't hit the broad side of a barn.

The main problem with the stormtroopers is the same one they had in the OT. They suck when facing the heroes because if the heroes die the story ends. And pretty much everyone we saw stormtroopers shooting at in Rebels season one counts as a hero for this purpose. Hopefully with the main cell becoming more involved with the rebel network we'll see some stormtrooper verus grunt battles and they'll be able to inflict some damage likt the OT stormtroopers did when facing Alliance grunts instead of the heroes. Also I'm pretty sure Lothal is the kind of place that the dregs of the Imperial army get assigned so the majority of the Stormtroopers we've seen in Rebels so are probably very far from being the elite of the Empire

Not that I disagree about Lothal, it is in the outer rim, but fire and maneuver? Cover? Not grouping up? Aiming? These are basic skills a soldier needs...

It just kills it for me, it can't be immersive without a real threat. The street rat has better aim with a goofy slingshot than an armed and trained soldier (though maybe you are right about the troopers in the boonies)? In order for someone to be a hero of any measure they have to do something difficult, knocking over a potato head in armor doesn't do it for me. Still, I'm enjoying the series and have barely started, so I hope the threat will become more credible as the series develops.

Uh, honest question: Have you watched the movies recently?

Outside the opening scene of A New Hope, Stormtroopers have always been laughably incompetent.

No, I recently started re-watching the PT, I need a little break before moving back into the OT. From what I remember Han Solo and Luke Skywalker were fleeing through the deathstar from stormtroopers and got their base in Hoth knocked over by snow troopers. The evacuation of Hoth seemed pretty touch and go for the alliance. I don't know, I feel like the older myths and legends had it right, a person has to actually overcome a difficult task or defeat a great enemy for them to wear the garb of hero. In truth I haven't gotten too far into Rebels, so I would be delighted to an element of real risk added.

I just started watching the first season, and while I am entertained and it is a decent show I can't say that it is a great show. Im tired of seeing generic stormtroopers portrayed as a potato on the screen, it literally makes me feel like the Empire is a joke, not a real threat. They literally stand in the open as a group and shoot at the rebels, they can't hit crap and they show no maneuvering. What would it take for a squad of stormtroopers to lay down suppressive fire while another squad maneuvers to flank the enemy?!? The stormtroopers were supposed to be an intimidating military force, not some idiot given a gun and armor.

I just started watching the first season, and while I am entertained and it is a decent show I can't say that it is a great show. Im tired of seeing generic stormtroopers portrayed as a potato on the screen, it literally makes me feel like the Empire is a joke, not a real threat. They literally stand in the open as a group and shoot at the rebels, they can't hit crap and they show no maneuvering. What would it take for a squad of stormtroopers to lay down suppressive fire while another squad maneuvers to flank the enemy?!? The stormtroopers were supposed to be an intimidating military force, not some idiot given a gun and armor.

Hahahahahahahahahahahaha

Yep, that is a pretty funny blooper. I can sympathize with that trooper because as a tall person it sucks to hit your head on things. The stormtroopers in the OT are all over the place. They storm the Tantive IV like a boss, then one smacks his head on a door, they overrun the rebels on Hoth, then get demolished at Endor by carebears. Stack exchange has a few threads about the stormtrooper elite/inept discrepancy. I guess it is just a tired movie making principle, make bad guys crappy to accentuate how OmiGoshAwesome! the good guys are.