#for me for comics it was kanan last padawan comics

[bberry005]

i'm finally reading the kanan comics and the fact that kanan is constantly asking depa billaba questions and then years later ezra is constantly asking kanan questions is so funny to me. i know kanan was like "this is what i get for never shutting up as a padawan isn't it?"

[bikananjarrus]

never forget what t*b*b took from you (kanan’s comics canon order 66 scene)

[kaaragen]

Rise of the Red Blade thoughts

One of the things I’ve long been asking for is for canon to do something to address the Inquisitors. We partially got that with Kenobi, but Reva is more of a special case. But with Inquisitor: Rise of the Red Blade we do finally have something that does, so it behooves me to add my thoughts. We do get a lot of interesting bits from this book - including, at last!, some canon Seventh Sister backstory!

(Minor spoilers ahead - though if you’ve read the Darth Vader comics you know how this story ends)

First of all, on a story level, it’s entertaining and I think does a good character dive on why Jedi fell and became Inquisitors. Ishkat Akaris is the POV character and she provides an interesting angle on struggles with the Jedi Order. She’s neurodivergent, and while not specified I’m picking up ADHD. She struggles and never quite gets the support she needs. But she is an unreliable narrator, and there is a particular Roshomon incident from when she was young that we return to again and again, getting some different perspectives. Though the narrative (in true Roshomon fashion) never says which was the ‘true’ version so you’re just left with the various ‘certain points of view’. But as a look at someone’s personal journey to the Dark Side, where at of the steps seem plausible and fair from their perspective, it works really well.

But what the book is great for is showing, better than other canon material I’ve come across, what the war does to the Jedi. Communications are poor. Information is sketchy. And young, inexperienced and over promoted Jedi are being sent out as commanders into highly stressful situations. And it really shows how the sheer stress of the war, and how this starts corrupting the more inexperienced Jedi, as the pressure to achieve results in impossible circumstances starts leading them toward ‘quicker and easier’ answers, with even the brighter and more devoted Jedi starting to fray by the wars end.

It maybe doesn’t deep dive as much as I would like; and the timeline is a bit wonky in places (according to this the Jedi had the clone army before they went into the arena on Geonosis which ??), but as far as canon goes I think it’s one of the best explorations on offer.

There’s some other tidbits as well:

Confirmation that if you don’t connect with the Force regularly you will lose sensitivity to it and have to ‘relearn’ as per Kenobi.

We get a bit more in how the Inquisitorious works. Basically a perverse form of the Jedi Order. There are candidate Inquisitors, and when you ‘prove’ yourself worthy you get a Name (eg X Sister). Which was hinted at in Kenobi (the use of ‘Reva’ over Third Sister to emphasise her outsider status)

That said, numbering system still doesn’t make sense to me. I think the implication is supposed to be the number is the order in which a candidate ‘proved’ themselves, but I find it hard to believe that Trilla was the first one to do so. Particularly not as it says Fifth Brother joined willingly and Tenth Brother was already half-way there at the start of the war.

The Agricorps are back baby!

And some canon Seventh Sister backstory! To which:

She’s a little older than Ishkat, whose about 19/20 when the Clone War kicks off. So my rough guess would be that she’s about 25ish when Order 66 happens. So Seventh is definitely a Jedi Knight - which does tie with her line of dialogue to Ezra mocking Kanan for not achieving the rank.

She was Aayla Secura’s Padawan (asterisk on this one - the exact line is ‘trained by’ which is a little vaguer, but Padawan reads to me as the intent.) This would constitute a lore revision that Mirialans are only Padawan’s to Mirialans.

Something absolutely horrific happened to her to make her an Inquisitor. Which you might think ‘of course it did’; but Ishkat meets Second Sister and hangs out with Ninth Sister and specifically mentions sensing something appalling happening to Seventh. So yeah, we’re talking orders of magnitude bad in comparison.

(For those wondering who read A New Dawn Breaks: none of this will affect Sorfelia; I already had something terrible planned 😈)

So overall, I’d say it’s worth a read. And if you’ve read the comics there’s some fun Easter eggs here and there as well!

[tarisilmarwen]

Rebels Rewatch: "The Protector of Concord Dawn"

In which Kanan is the best and Sabine eventually learns to follow his example on things.

I honestly don't think I've watched this one often enough to remember it that well so this'll be an adventure for me.

Having been driven off Garel the Phoenix Cell fleet is once again just kind of ambling through realspace in the middle of nowhere.

Rex casually recanonizing the "Mandalorians trained the clone troopers" thing from Legends.

Oof, you know this conversation had to hurt Sabine in some private places.

Lol, Hera's "Sounds familiar." She talking about Sabine there? Probably.

Sato's line here about warriors only understanding strength is interesting, considering it was suggested/implied that he's a former Separatist. Who knows if he ever had to tangle with Mandalorians during the Clone Wars, but he clearly recognizes that they tend to be a stubborn and belligerent people.

Side note, I love how bouncy Hera's lekku are.

"There was a time when it [diplomacy] always won the day." *CRIES ABOUT THE GOLDEN AGE OF THE REPUBLIC FOREVER*

You uh... you look like you're missing a little... a lot of... something there, Concord Dawn.

This is a unique music cue, frenetic and tense even before there's any actual danger.

Hera's slight hesitation when she talks about those who would stand against the Empire, hngl, she's so hopeful for the best-case scenario, she has so much faith in people's inner goodness and desire for freedom and autonomy.

Too bad Fenn Rau already made a self-preservation deal with the Empire.

This battle is really nicely staged and shot.

Was that a very fragmented excerpt of the "Shenanigans" theme?

*listens harder*

Sounds a bit like!

Sabine groaning in aggravation when Hera tells her to "just follow orders" oooh boy that's a sour spot for her.

I think it's only thanks to their bonding in "Out of Darkness" that Sabine chooses to trust Hera.

AND THE CURSED WORDS, "I'LL BE RIGHT BEHIND YOU."

FANDOM DID NOT FORGET THAT THOSE WERE THE LAST WORDS KANAN SAID BEFORE HIS HEROIC SACRIFICE IN "CALL TO ACTION", WRITERS.

:((((((((

My gosh the way shards and pieces still seem to be floating around the A-wing like they're pulled by gravity towards it.

Wonder if the Chimaera looked similar when it exited hyperspace, wherever that was.

The worry in Kanan's eyes and his pinched brows, ugh.

The kids waiting anxiously for news about mom. :(

Sabine immediately blaming herself, and I can't help but think about the parallels to "Call To Action", how Ezra must have blamed himself for leaving Kanan behind, for not fighting alongside him.

Sabine sounds so vulnerable here, ouch.

Kanan backstory! If I remember, the issue of the Kanan: The Last Padawan comic that covered the event he's referencing here came out right about when this episode was airing, in a bit of fortuitous narrative timing.

Sabine be very angry. That Mandalorian call for revenge be beating strong inside her.

Kanan decides to protect the others by barring them all from coming, only risking himself.

Except, grudgingly, Chopper, who is none-too-happy about this lol.

Takes his frustrations out on Ezra, of course.

"You must be pretty distracted not to have noticed I stowed away." Well, you know, Hera is in the ICU, that's probably pretty distracting.

I actually really love that Kanan is going full Jedi here, offering the protectors, and Fenn Rau specifically, another chance to do the right thing. There's something to be said about his and Hera's shared faith in the true inner goodness of people.

"This Jedi philosophy stuff doesn't work for everyone." "That's why we're at war." CHEEKY BASTARD KANAN.

He's right though, if everyone were just more forgiving and self sacrificing and compassionate like the Jedi there would be far less problems in the galaxy, "You said the biggest problem in this galaxy is that nobody helps each other." CATCH ME SOBBING ABOUT THE PURE GOODNESS OF THE JEDI ORDER AND THEIR MODUS OPERANDI OF SELFLESS COMPASSION AND HOW THEY DIDN'T DESERVE ANY OF IT.

"You always bring enough explosives." Lolol Kanan knows his surrogate foster daughter.

Subtle animation appreciation moment: Kanan leaning in and peering through Sabine's helmet antenna display.

Sabine gives every impression that she intends to take revenge for Fenn hurting Hera so it's a little bit weird when she suddenly backs off from her rage and anger to reinforce a "no killing" moral.

The only reason she doesn't follow through is Kanan's Jedi influence, so I'm going to picture him as a little shoulder angel next to her ear, whispering to her the right thing to do and I'm going to assume that's the deliberate intention of the writers.

Side note: Kanan gives a lot of encouraging/calming/reassuring touches to Sabine's shoulder in this scene. It's adorable.

Oh wow, Kanan legit pushed Sabine's blasters down as they were sneaking here.

This location feels very weird to see in light of "Imperial Supercommandos", I swear they reuse shot and camera angles for some of the scenes.

Kanan saying he trusts Sabine, aww.

Rau is remarkably considerate of Kanan's intrusion. I really like this scene. Gives the impression of two worthy foes sizing each other up. Feels very much like some kind of callback to classic samurai films.

Rau puts his blaster away when he learns Kanan's a Jedi, a subtle hint to his true loyalties. Rau wants to believe in the miracles the Jedi are capable of but years of subjugation have made him cynical and bitter.

This tapping percussion bit in the score is often used to signify stealth or infiltration.

LOL Sabine blowing her cover by banging her head on a fighter, lololol.

I remember fandom went kind of nuts when Sabine declared she was "House Vizsla". I was never really into the Mandalorian lore side of things so I was like, "Cool. That's nice."

(Basically it means her family was Death Watch and caused way too many Problems On Purpose in the Clone Wars.)

"I believe they have the strength to defeat you and the resources to back it up." UNEXPECTED THRAWN PARALLELS HELLO??!?!!!??

No but seriously, Fenn Rau allied with the Empire for much the same motivations that Thrawn did, to preserve his own people and further their interests. He owes no true loyalty to the Empire but his strategic mind has determined that acquiescing to them is the best option to protect his own.

Wow I did not expect that in this rewatch.

Lol Kanan's whole expression of, "Goddammit Sabine."

Subtle animation appreciation moment: The way Sabine's bangs bounce as her head moves.

Kanan desperately appealing to Sabine's better instincts, the ones Hera instilled in her, and Sabine seeming serious all the way to the end until she holds herself back and shows mercy.

Aaaaaaaaaaah I have so many feelings!

Also LOL at Kanan being so frustrated with Mandalorians and how they fight at any provocation.

Sabine's "You need to trust me." sounds like she's already mentally backed down from her "RAWR MUST TAKE REVENGE" plot and is more calmly assessing the situation and figuring out how to accomplish the goal and adhere to Kanan's (and by proxy Hera's) wishes.

More Old West Hollywood shots here.

I don't think the visual similarity between this moment post-explosion and Sabine's fight with Gar Saxon in "Imperial Supercommandos" is a coincidence.

"You love making this hard for me." Lol aww.

...Where was Fenn intending to go? No really, this is gonna bug me. Was he going to search for the ship Kanan and Sabine clearly came in? Was he going to contact the Empire?

Oooh there's a leimotif in here that I'm sure I've heard, I can't determine what it's meant to symbolize or be associated with (maybe Kanan?) but it's a good one.

Obligatory pretty cloud shot.

Looks Rau straight in the face as he stabs his lightsaber through the Fang controls lolol, what a badass.

Kanan is exceptionally competent here. It's really sexy.

For those fans whose primary blorbo is Kanan I mean.

Fenn Rau begrudgingly accepting his defeat in acknowledgement of Kanan's raw skill. <3

It's not exactly what Hera wanted but it's close enough. Rau submits to a clearly superior foe and chooses to hedge his bets by ordering his men to grant them safe passage, out of a chagrined respect.

Love the callback to the joke in "A Princess On Lothal" lol

SABINE ACKNOWLEDGING KANAN'S POSITIVE JEDI INFLUENCE ON HER AND IMPLICITLY CALLING KANAN AND HERA HER PARENTS WITH HER COMMENT ABOUT BEING "RAISED RIGHT", WEEPING, SOBBING, GNASHING TEETH.

Awwwwwwwwww!

I... don't remember being super into this episode when it first aired. Mandalorians infighting with Mandalorians was never a drama I was into and I thought Sabine was frankly a little... boring?... as a character? In the early days for me at least. I was never much invested in her focal episodes in Season Two. She only really started getting interesting for me in Season Three.

But I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed rewatching this episode and seeing Sabine struggle against the competing family instincts and influences inside her.

That being said, it's Kanan who really shines in this episode, demonstrating perfect Jedi training and compassion, determined to find a peaceful solution to the conflict that honors both his values and Hera's wishes. He tempers Sabine's instinctual rage and anger and drive for revenge with calm serenity and mercy and it's this example that would influence several of her decisions in Season Three.

This episode is honestly a really quality one for the Kanan-Sabine bonding and relationship exploration. Maybe I didn't give its due at the time, but I'm finding myself really liking it now.

We're about to hit the Golden Streak, I am SO looking forward to covering the next several episodes. <3

[roguerebels]

Star Wars Rebels Comic Collection!

If you, like me, are missing the Ghost crewyou should definitely pick up this Star Wars Rebels comic collection! #StarWarsRebels #StarWarsComics

When Star Wars Rebels was released in 2014, the merch was strong! We had 3 3/4 action figures, a John Jackson Miller novel, and Kanan: The Last Padawan comics! Amidst some cool t-shirts, LEGO, party paperware, and all the merch that new Star Wars things warranted back then! Ah… we were royalty… There was also an international Star Wars Rebels magazine that had its own comic strips inside. The…

[mtab2260]

Fuck everything, I’m doing all of them at once ‘cause I’m board as fuckkkkkk

1) Stealth Strike or Breaking Ranks. I can’t decide. Maybe Stealth Strike.

2) The Mysteries of Chopper Base. I don’t like spiders. I still don’t like spiders. But seeing Kanan and Ezra fucking launch Sabine completely over that cliff and yet some how she managed to not die will never not be hilariously scabby.

3) I fucking love it and I am so excited and absolutely terrified. I am holding onto that one bit Dave Filoni said in the last Rebel’s Recon with all my life. It was something like “yes, I definitely will continue the Ghost Crew’s story. But not for some time. I want to do it, but I want to take time and do it right.” It’s been five years and Dave is a bloody wizard with this crap, I trust him.

4) Zare Leonis.

5) I wouldn’t change any plot honestly.

6) Kanan and Hera no doubt. Then… Hondo and Mulch.

7) Kanan, I feel. I mean, I’m not saying the lad is totally pushed under the rug, hell no. But I just find him so interesting as a character and his backstory (Last Padawan Comic/ A New Dawn (not TBB shit) is just incredible. And I feel like a lot of people don’t truly understand what Kanan did in Jedi Knight and how big that is. He accomplished what no other Jedi had done before (cough cough Anakin cough). He had strong attachment to the crew and would do anything for them, but he was able to let it all go when it mattered.

8) I would have put an episode in season two devolving into a Kanan and Hera only mission. Just them working together like they used to back before all the kids came along. You see how well they work together and know each other. But of course there’s tons of tension and it only makes us more confused if they are actually together or not.

9) Kanan. Cowboy Jedi for the win.

10) Jedi Knight was the first piece of Star Wars that made me cry.

11) “That’s not regulation.” “I kinda like it,”

12) Season two’s hair color, but season three’s hair cut and armour. But then also Epilogue season four armour slaps and deserves a mention.

13) Chopper. It’s not even fair, mate.

14) In Shroud of Darkness in season two as Kanan and Ezra are coming back. I just remember them chillaxing in the lounge and Hera has her feet up in that wooden chair that is so out of place. I think Zeb and Sabine were there too. They just all look so cozy and chill and I imagine they have similar comfortable silences like that a lot.

15) I’m gonna go with Kanan and holo-Hera’s talk on Mandalore where Chopper says “get a room already”.

16) Former Admiral/ Former Commander/ Commander Bron Titus.

17) I love the fact that they totally introduced a canon way to time travel in Star Wars and yet it was so subtle half the fandom didn’t even realize it.

18) I think Ezra and Thrawn are stuck together in an alliance, learning from each other, scrapping by, and planet hopping and trying to find their way back but they’re so fucking lost.

19) This is so bloody random, but little Celeb and the other Initiates were getting a lecture (from space Jesus himself) about the Jedi Temple’s message system and dude spoke his intrusive thoughts and ended up saving himself (and like a bunch of other Jedi or something) when everything went to shit. I love his inquisitive nature because I am the exact bloody same.

20) Either when she out flew Darth Vader (because she is the best pilot in the galaxy, suck my dick Anakin, Han, and Rey). Or when her and her father get into a heated argument on the Ghost in season two and she code switches back into her accent. It’s such a cool little detail that really adds so much to her character.

21) In Stealth Strike when Chopper goes full rouge, turns off the gravity and then back on with no care where Ezra is. Then also he purposely runs over Ezra’s hand in legit attempted murder. And the episode of course is topped off with some glorious war crimes by yours truly.

22) Commander Meiloorun needs a mention. But truthfully when Zeb saved and kept Kallus alive on the ice moon. On the surface (hah), it seems like the normal hero thing to do, but remember in the first episode where Zeb was willing — feeling absolutely terrible about it, but willing — to leave Ezra behind. So… Character Development!

23) When Sabine was training with the darksaber and finally let loose. That final fight when she poured her heart out and knocked Kanan to the ground. Even if Kanan let that happen to not interrupt her flow, visually, it was braw and badass as hell. Plus the voice acting in that scene, my god it’s amazing.

24) His final scene in Rebels. Ezra made connections and friends everywhere and finally all his hard work paid off. He was able to bring together such a random group of people together for a cause that they wouldn’t have been a part of without their loyalty him. He avenged his parents, Kanan, and the people of Lothal. Ezra kickstarted the rebellion, telling them, yes it was possible to fight back on a larger scale. And he did it with giant Space Whales and Force Wolves which I love because it shows exactly what type of Jedi Ezra is.

25) Totally the gun-saber. That thing is pure dead brilliant. I have the plastic toy version and I adored that thing so much in an epic laser-sword battle, I smacked it against a tree and broke it.

26) Lyste for sure. Imagine how much fun it would be to mess with him? Pure gold.

27) I with there was more depth into Sabine’s character in the beginning. We know she joined up with the crew not too long before Ezra did. I’d say less than a year definitely, six months or so probably. But in that time she has come to openly say the Ghost Crew was a family to a street rat she just met, but then she also still doesn’t fully trust Hera as we see in Out Of Darkness. I would love more of a glimpse into her adjustment and background from between after The Dutchess and before the Ghost Crew.

28) Hondo. Why is this a question?

29) The music and sound effects whenever Ezra or Kanan use the Force. I don’t know what it is, but I love the Force theme. It adds so much and produces such a magical feeling when it’s used.

30) The Call. It’s such a great episode. The most important episode in the entire series is disguised as a throw-away filler episode. Brilliant.

Star Wars Rebels Ask Game

I've never made one of these before, but I haven't seen a Rebels one floating about in a while, so hey.

What is your absolute favorite episode of the show?

Which episode did you not like at first, but grew on you after one or more rewatches?

How do you feel about the Ahsoka show being live-action Rebels season 5?

Who is your favorite one-off character on the show?

If you could change one (non-death-related) plot point in the show, what would you change?

What are your two favorite ships from the show (canon or not)?

Who is one character you feel isn't appreciate enough by the fandom?

If you could've added an episode/story arc to the show, what would it be about?

Obligatory "who's your favorite member of the crew" question.

Aside from season 4 episode 10, which episode made you cry the most?

What is one joke/moment from the show that always makes you laugh?

Which design for Sabine's hair and armor is your favorite?

Chopper vs Palpatine- who's making it out alive?

What is your favorite moment of the crew being a family?

What is your favorite Kanera moment?

Who is your favorite villain/antagonist?

What is your opinion on the World Between Worlds?

Where do you think Ezra has been all this time?

What is one of your favorite Kanan moments?

What is one of your favorite Hera moments?

What is one of your favorite Chopper moments?

What is one of your favorite Zeb moments?

What is one of your favorite Sabine moments?

What is one of your favorite Ezra moments?

Which of Ezra's two lightsabers would you rather have?

Would you rather be stuck in an elevator with AP-5 or Lieutenant Lyste?

Which plot point do you wish the show had expanded on?

Favorite recurring character?

Favorite piece of music from the show?

Most under-rated episode?

[jedimasterbailey]

Hey, I just wanted to point out something I realized the other day.

So we all know Luminara's name pretty much means 'glowing', right? Well her last name is Unduli, which sounds and looks a lot like the word Unduly. The definition for 'unduly' is "to an unwarranted degree; inordinately."

Conclusion?

George Lucas literally named a Jedi "So, this lady is on the light side. Like really in the light. Like why the heck does she have so much light?"

Thought you would enjoy.

😍 so this is the greatest thing to wake up to ever!💚 I did enjoy that thoroughly and please send me more info on my favorite Mirialans if you come across more because I’m forever thirsty for it.

And now everyone gets to (once again) endure my long winded rant on how much I love this woman…sorry not sorry 😁

I always knew Luminara’s name was next level beautiful with the meaning but this new information just kicks it up an extra notch 🥰 It is truly surprising how George named the Mirialans such precious names (“Glowing Light” and “Peace”….I mean come on does it get any better than that?!) only for them to get absolutely crucified in the canon story for no reason.

The meaning of both of Luminara’s names are just so perfect for her because she truly lives up to them. She, like Obi-Wan, are so deeply rooted in the light that it’s intoxicating. In the few times we see her, Luminara deals with the hardships thrown her way with such grace. She’s always thinking of others before herself (going as far as being more than willing to sacrifice herself to zombie bugs on Geonosis and face Ventress away from Ahsoka for everyone’s safety). The dark side could not touch Luminara if it tried. She always chooses the light because even in Imperial custody (which as we’ve seen in comics and games like Fallen Order, that’s a life of constant torture and pain), she never broke. Luminara died a hero, standing by her morals and Jedi beliefs until the very end, again much like Obi-Wan did when Vader struck him down.

Also by the way other characters look at her/act around her (namely Barriss, Ahsoka, and Anakin), it’s clear her goodness is infectious. Even Kanan remembers Luminara in a very positive light and immediately felt she’d be the better teacher for Ezra. Like why would Kanan want that for Ezra if she was anything but a kind and loving person?

The woman must glow like a candle within the Force because it’s so apparent in her facial expressions and voice that Luminara just radiates with warmth. Just look how smiley and soft everyone is around her! 👇🏻

Like Barriss’s whole face just lights up when Luminara is addressing her. It’s a “Yes Master, I will not let you down” expression. Clearly she is proud to be at her shoulder because I see nothing but love, admiration, and respect in that girl’s eyes💚💙

Look how excited Ahsoka is hearing what Luminara has to say (even though it was Barriss that was mentioning her accomplishment). Ahsoka is happy to have received a compliment from her that she’s even looking back at Anakin with glee on her face. It’s such a “did you hear what she said about me Master? She approves what I did!” face on top her gratitude for Anakin’s faith in her. Their previous solo mission together showed how much Ahsoka held Luminara in a high regard (like her adversity to Luminara fighting Ventress alone and her constantly checking to see if she’s overstepped any boundaries). It is evident between Ahsoka’s behavior around Luminara that she cares deeply about what the Jedi Master thinks of her.

And then there’s Anakin. The hero with no fear, the most powerful Jedi Knight of his generation, possibly ever, looks and speaks to Luminara with admiration in his eye. He is almost always complimenting her and obviously trusted her to watch over her Padawan in the past. Anakin also feels comfortable to joke and smile around her. You don’t really see Anakin being soft like that around other Masters besides Obi-Wan.

Even the way she addresses the Clones and other beings like the little robot in “Cloak of Darkness” is just so lovely. Luminara has the biggest heart and a soft spot a mile wide and yet people still wanna believe she’s the exact opposite.

In conclusion, Luminara is indeed a very luminous being, the exact kind Yoda was referring to when explaining the Force to Luke years later. She’s as close to an Angel as you can get in the Star Wars universe (as are many of the other women in that universe). Plus she’s Barriss’s mother and need I say more? 🥰

Also side note, I don’t trust anyone that can’t appreciate how precious her face is like just look at her! They had no right to make her so breathtaking! 💚

(Notice how two of them are expressions makes towards Barriss? You know…the Padawan she does in fact love very much?)

Luminara stans, feel free to add on as we must continue to spread the Luminara love in this fandom that’s just straight up unfair.

[nibeul]

Alright, I’ve had this sitting as a draft for a bit because I don’t. Have a lot of energy, but I’m posting this anyways and I continue to really encourage people look critically at the Bad Batch because there are a lot of issues. 

A lot of the discussion about the Bad Batch has been around the Batch themselves, but like.. there are other characters that were completely shafted. And I’ve talked about this briefly already, but I want to go more into depth with Kanan Jarrus’s appearance and why it’s so bad. 

First and foremost, we have the whitewashing. They made Caleb’s skin and hair way lighter than they should’ve been which a lot of people have thankfully recognized (thank you @screwthepurplegiraffe​ for the comparison screenshots), and Depa looks really washed out (can’t say I’m surprised by the latter though since TCW has proven that they cannot animate POC). Kanan’s model literally looks more like Padawan Obi Wan or Cal Kestis than he does Caleb Dune.

And before anyone says “it’s just the lighting”, first off, Caleb has a similar skin tone to Depa who is clearly darker, and second, I implore you to take a look at the Caleb Dume comics. Not to say that multiracial people/POC in general can’t have lighter skin, but he started off with darker skin. His base skin tone is brown. We have this:

vs this:

There’s obviously a big difference here and it’s not. A good one. That being said, whitewashing isn’t the only issue here. Like I said before, the Bad Batch is filled with lazy writing and weird at best, straight up offensive at worst, plot points (that’s completely ignoring the issues with the models, too). Brad Rau has stated that it was Filoni’s idea to bring in Kanan Jarrus for a Bad Batch cameo despite the fact that Kanan already had an existing backstory in canon. There are a couple of articles that talk about the decision, but here’s one (x) so people don’t think I’m pulling this out of nowhere. 

So why is this a problem? Things in Star Wars are retconned all the time, it can’t be that big of a deal, right?

Yeah, no. Kanan Jarrus is canonically a multi-racial character and one of the very few who received a fully fleshed out canon backstory thanks to the Last Padawan comics. The comics had been centered around him as a character, how he navigated the War as a Padawan, how he dealt with the betrayal of the clones and the loss of his Master, and how he ultimately went on to become the Kanan we see in Rebels. By putting Depa and Kanan into the Bad Batch, the writers butchered their original storylines. Not only that, but Kanan—once again let me emphasize, a canonly POC character—was used as a vehicle for Hunter’s development as a character. Kanan was basically broken down into a plot device, and mind you, this is retconning the fleshed out backstory he’d had before, so not only was the original creator’s work trampled on, but it was replaced with a one dimensional plot device for someone else’s development. 

That’s an issue. 

On that note, I started watching the show in order to critique it, but it’s honestly getting hard to continue looking at those models, not to mention the ableist connotations of the main cast’s characterizations and the overall lazy writing so :/ keep that in mind if you are someone who’s been following along with the show. 

[gospelofme]

I really think the essence of Quigon lives in Obiwan. Obiwan knows how to present himself during this unexpected incident and it may have been one Quigon trained him for.

Kanan The Last Padawan #2 Obi-Wan Kenobi makes an appearance. Was crying from page 1 of this issue but THIS oh THIS made me cry harder

[spectrum-color]

I’ve been reading the Star Wars Rebels prequel comic Kanan: the Last Padawan (would 100% recommend; it is very good) and I clearly have been spending too much time thinking about RotE because I can’t stop thinking about how much he reminds me of Fitz. The trauma, the abandonment issues, the living under an assumed identity because there are powerful people who want him dead, the deep rooted guilt and shame, the power that he was born with that he has to avoid to escape persecution-he even looks like him (only I hope Fitz doesn’t have the terrible goatee)

[bikananjarrus]

for the ask game, top ten book recommendations?? (can be sw or non-sw since ik you’ve gotten a lot of sw asks already 🫶🏻)

thank you for this question! 💙 (meant to answer this sooner but then i really had to think about some book recs). i will split it 50/50 and do 5 sw books and 5 non-sw books!

five sw books:

light of the jedi by charles soule. life-changing, showstopping, spectacular, will never be the same etc etc. (best place to start if you want to get into the high republic books!)

lost stars by claudia gray. my first sw book i ever read back when it was published in *pauses to look up* 2015. imo it is an EXCELLENT book to begin with if you're looking to get into sw books and are overwhelmed with where to start.

a new dawn by john jackson miller. for the rebels fans out there, and especially the kanera fans, this one's for you <3

not a traditional novel, but going off the last one, the kanan: the last padawan comic run. two volumes, 12 issues total. so so SO good! a must-read (imo) for rebels fans!

revenge of the sith novelization by matthew stover. if you're a prequels fan, or an anakin fan, or an obiwan fan, this book WILL hurt you. in the best way possible lol.

(quick honorable mention for the ahsoka book, but specifically the audiobook bc it's narrated by ashley eckstein and it felt like watching a clone wars arc)

five non-sw books:

i mean who would i be if i didn't mention the percy jackson books. i recognize i am biased bc they've been part of my life for so long now, so i have the nostalgia factor. but also that's my number one guy percy jackson!

what you're looking for is in the library by michiko aoyama. this book felt like a hug, and i definitely recommend for anyone who is feeling a bit lost or unsure of what they want to do with their life, where they are in life right now. it was a really great reminder that you can keep growing and change your mind and do something different with your life no matter what age you are.

a study in drowning by ava reid. a more recent read of mine, so maybe a bit of recency bias here, but it's about an architecture student who gets tasked with redesigning her favorite author's estate. she ends up working with her academic rival, and they discover secrets about the late author's life along the way. i remember (personally) having a few minor gripes with how the end all came together, but overall it was really atmospheric with lots of seaside imagery (which i love), and the setting and certain mystery elements made it enjoyable for me!

giovanni's room by james baldwin. read this for the first time when it was assigned to me in high school, and while i don't think i appreciated it much then, i reread it later on my own and really enjoyed it, so i'm grateful for my 12th grade english teacher for introducing it to me!

hani and ishu's guide to fake dating by adiba jaigirdar. this is just a really cute ya wlw romance! i listened to the audiobook for this and there were two separate narrators for hani and ishu, and i thought they both did a fantastic job! i read it last year and still think about it from time to time, so for anyone looking for an easy romance read, it's a good one!

still up for doing more of these, so feel free to ask me my top 5/top 10 anything!

[captainrexs]

Okay but am I the only one going absolutely bonkers over Wrecker saying he couldn't make it (the effects of the chip) stop? Because that would mean that the clones are actually spectators when the entire chip thing is going down and are still completely following what they're doing but just can't stop it???? Like. I always thought they would just become mindless beings or such but no they actually know what's happening?? All those clones saw how they gunned down their jedi and felt that pain, but couldn't turn away. All those clones of the 501st who went to the temple with Vader and had to see themselves kill actual kids. That's horrifying. I just watched the new ep so maybe ppl have already talked about this and I missed it, or I am actually the only one who thought they would lose all of their thoughts and feelings under control of the chip. But like I'm devastated😨

okay, first of all, yes the entire order 66 thing is very fucked up and horrifying. however I don't think the clones were horrified by their actions as it was happening, because they thought it was the 'right' thing to do. I think the best example of how order 66 felt as it was happening is probably commander captain grey in the kanan: the last padawan comics

he ends up blowing up their ship so kanan can get away (and when asked what he's doing responds with "making it right.").

also interesting is rex in the siege of mandalore arc because he has some awareness of whats happening as it happens and tells ahsoka to find fives before he tries to kill her and after his chip is removed he apologizes for almost killing her.

so yeah they're definitely aware of everything, but don't question it, until the chip is removed or after trying to murder a kid for a while and realizing that that's wrong, apparently.

wreckers situation might be a bit different though because he knew about order 66 before it happened, rex was visibly upset for a few seconds before it really kicked in (is that a good way to word that?) and he had less information than wrecker. wreckers headache seems to getting way worse as soon as hunter starts telling rex about how order 66 happened on kaller, so my best guess would be that hearing that (maybe especially the part of how they helped the padawan, since that's treason) triggered something and wrecker tried to fight the chip but lost. his reaction wasn't surprising to me though, considering that's how clones have reacted to order 66 so far and because it seemed likely that they were going in that direction with the story, but it was still very heartbreaking nonetheless.

[carrinth]

Spoiler Alert for Bad Batch

Rant under cut. Specifically that cameo scene of that Rebels character.

Is that Commander Grey*??

Why is their armour GREEN? Why isn’t it red?? What happened.

Is that supposed to be Caleb? O_o He’s... different. Why are his lips so.... dark. Is he wearing lipstick? No judgement, just confusion. Bruh, also what’s up with his complexion. Caleb/Kanan wasn’t that much lighter than Depa. (But at least she’s noticeably dark skinned) I love his voice tho. It’s like, you expect a little boy but then a DEEP MAN VOICE comes out. XD XD XD

Depa’s death cry is now a billion times more terrible. T_T

At first, I was like. EXCITED. Then. Confused. Did they just retcon the Kanan: Last Padawan comics as non-canon? Did they not read the comics? DO THEY NOT KNOW THEIR OWN CANON???

Again. I continue to wonder why the fandom cares about keeping things canon when the actual official sources don’t bother following their own damn stories. They basically warped existing canon to suit their own desires.

Conclusion? Go ahead and make your own AUs. Do your own thing man. Foxiyo? Totally legit as far as “canon” is concerned apparently. IT. DOESN’T. MATTER.

Bad Batch, you have already succeeded in disappointing me.

I mean, no doubt. It’s fun to watch. But it simultaneously enrages my inner-core so much.

Plus side, Omega is not a unbearable as the trailers show her. She was SOOOO creepy in them.

How am I going to write Different Journeys now. Ugh. Imma take my own advice and not care. Do my own thing. Grey is alive and well. Everyone is.

Except Palps.

----

*Whelp I looked up Commander Grey and the helmet patterns do match up. I guess that’s him. Just... green version?

ALSO!!! Grey would NEVER refer to Caleb as ‘the Commander’. He’s ‘the kid’.

[gffa]

Hi Lumi, thanks for not turning off anons yet, I've wanted to message you for months but I am crippling shy and couldn't bring myself to do it off-anon, haha. I just wanted to ask, do you read any of the Star Wars comics? If so, can you recommend any? I am new to the fandom after The Mandalorian and I really want more Darth Vader content, if you have any recs I'd be very grateful! I love your blog and literally every piece of content you post! Thanks Lumi!

Hi!  I’m glad that I left anon on just for this then!  I do indeed read a lot of the Star Wars comics, though, I go in fits and starts with them, like a lot of people do. 😂 My recommendations are: - Star Wars 2015 (by Jason Aaron) + Darth Vader 2015 (by Kieron Gillen) - I put these two together because the first 6 or so issues are meant to be read concurrently, they’re events crossing over into each other and showing different aspects from different points of view, and I think it really helps to enrich both stories if you’re alternating between the two for at least six issues. Beyond that, they’re both just really, really solidly good comics!  They’re set just post-ANH, where Luke is discovering more about being a Jedi, where we see Vader discovering the identity of the pilot who took out the Death Star, where Leia is dealing with the political stuff of the galaxy, etc.  They’re probably still some of the best comics that SW has put out, imo! - Darth Vader: Dark Lord of the Sith 2017 (by Charles Soule) - This is the second Darth Vader comic series (so pay attention to who the author is--the current ongoing one is by Greg Pak, which is solidly good, but hasn’t yet hit the same heights as either of these, for me) and it’s set in the aftermath of Revenge of the Sith and this is easily my favorite SW comic.  Soule really digs into the connection between Anakin and Vader, how they are very much the same person, how the first volume of Darth Vader comics is about who Vader is during the OT, the Soule one is about flaying him open to understand just how he cannot face what he’s doing or the other choices he could have made. It’s over the top drama (it’s SO DRAMATIC and I LOVE IT) in a way that really highlights just how awful Anakin has become, that he is crushing even more of himself and you can see him losing still yet more and more, eventually leading to something like the OT version we know from later. - Obi-Wan & Anakin by Charles Soule - This is only five issues, as well as I generally recommend reading it two or three times, because Soule is actually pretty solid about not always spoon-feeding you everything and how the narrative arcs and parallels are more subtle than you’d expect from Star Wars.  The art in this one is stunning, the worldbuilding has a ton of cool details, you get to see bb!Anakin considering leaving the Jedi Order and why he decides to stay, as well as some really fascinating connections to how the Jedi see the galaxy and how Anakin sees it. - Age of Republic by Jody Houser - There are eight issues of this maxi series, each one focusing on a different character, and they’re all really interesting and have some amazing character moments.  My favorites are the Obi-Wan and Anakin ones, there’s a lot you really get to see about their relationship and how supportive it actually is, but all of them have really great looks at the characters they’re focusing on. - Jedi of the Republic: Mace Windu by Matt Owens - Okay, fair warning, the art for this series is not going to be for everyone, there are some seriously wonky panels in it, but the story itself is a great look at Mace’s character.  Both for the bits of backstory about him and for about how the Jedi look at the galaxy, that Mace Windu is such a rich, wonderful character and deserved a look at him like this.  Bonus, Kit Fisto is hilarious in this comic! - Star Wars Adventures by multiple authors - Basically anything in the Adventures line is worth reading!  Most of them are fairly light stuff, not super deep, they’re meant to be cute stories, but I’ve enjoyed all of the ones I’ve read and the prequels ones usually have some moment that’s completely batshit in a way that’s totally true to Star Wars.  They’re kid-focused comics, but really, really adorable ones. - Clone Wars Battle Tales by Michael Moreci - Speaking of dramatic fun, this mini series is just an absolute scream, they’re totally ridiculous in the way that I would read a hundred issues of them.  Plus, you get some really great Jedi moments or Anakin hilarity moments and I’m always down for that, too. - Kanan: The Last Padawan by Greg Weisman - Speaking of gorgeous art!  Never will you see a woman as beautiful as Depa Billaba in this comic, my goodness.  But you also get the story of bb!Caleb going through Order 66 and the trauma of running in the galaxy as a former Padawan who had their Master gunned down in front of them and, boy, did this comic know how to make it hurt.  There’s some cool worldbuilding in there, some amazing looks at the Jedi pre-Order 66, and just a whole lot of feelings. - Shattered Empire by Greg Rucka - This is a four-issue mini-series with a) gorgeous art and b) a whole lot of connective tissue/aftermath for the galaxy post-Return of the Jedi.  Rucka’s writing is solid here and you get a good variety of different characters and the paths they’re starting down and what they’re planning to do next, and it’s just a very solid read. - Poe Dameron by Charles Soule - I really didn’t expect to love this comic as much as I did, but Soule really knocked it out of the park and created a funny, moving, interesting journey for the character.  Even if Poe’s not your usual fave, the work this comic put into being interesting and connecting various things and telling a fun, actiony story really was good. - Age of Rebellion and Age of Resistance are both solid mini-series that I would definitely recommend!  My heart beats for the prequels, so I’m more focused on those, but if you’re interested, these are great looks at individual characters, too. HONORABLE MENTIONS: - The Princess Leia comic by Mark Waid is one I haven’t reread in awhile but I remember greatly enjoying it.  I’ve enjoyed Soule’s current 2020 Star Wars ongoing comic, though, because of the pandemic, it hasn’t had a chance to get a ton of issues out yet. I enjoyed the Darth Maul mini series by Cullen Bunn and, if you wind up liking Aphra from the first Vader comic, she gets her own spin off comic that’s really solid, too!

[space-girl-and-droids-art]

A New Dawn- Book Review

(Nobody asked for this review, but here it is. This is spoiler free but it does contain minor spoilers for Star Wars: Rebels and some key events from the prequel movies. I’m not a book expert and I don’t even know how to speak in English to begin with, so excuse my poor grammar.)

“A New Dawn” is canon novel written by John Jackson Miller that focuses on how Hera Syndulla and Kanan Jarrus met and the beginning of the rebellion against the Galactic Empire. This book is a prequel to the TV series “Star Wars: Rebels.” But it contains more adult and deep themes than the tv series itself because it focus on the lives of two adults that have been through a lot already. This book is also after the events of the “Kanan Jarrus: the last padawan” comics, but it’s not necessary to read the comics to understand what’s going on in the book.

This book starts in the mining planet Gorse, a planet where the empire is mining a material used to fabricate Star Destroyers and under the control of the cyborg Count Vidian. But what starts being an inspection ends up generating chaos around the planet. There’s not much more I can talk about the plot of the book without making heavy spoilers, but you are going to enjoy it. The plot feels like a Star Wars movie.

If you are a Star Wars rebels’ fan and you want to get to know more about Hera Syndulla and Kanan Jarrus before their arrival to Lothal, this book is a must read. Even if you are not really into rebels, if you like stories about rebellions this is going to be an enjoyable read. Being focused on different characters perspective (third person, so it’s not that confusing), you get to know a lot about the trauma that jedi carry after Order 66, their relationship with the force in a galaxy that is no longer welcoming of those who use it, and what was the perception the regular people had of the empire, and at the same time you get to understand the cruelty behind the empire, what were their motives, etc.

This novel also does wonders for Kanan Jarrus character development and after reading it, his attitude towards Ezra at the beginning of rebels makes more sense. Often we forget that Kanan had a different coping and survival mechanism than Obi-Wan Kenobi and other jedis that survived Order 66, and this book let us know how deep this trauma affects him and how it drives him as a person.

The characters of this book felt real, and that’s something I always enjoy when reading. Even when sometimes I didn’t agree with them, I could understand why they were doing what they were doing. I understood their motives. Example being the antagonist, Count Vidian. Everytime he was even mentioned I wanted to throw him out of the nearest window. But not because the character was badly written, on the contrary, he was such a well-written villain.

This being said, I thought since I am a rebel’s fan I would end up having either Kanan or Hera as my favourite character of the novel, but I was wrong. I love them, with all my heart, but the secondary characters stole the show for me. Specially Skelly, one of Kanan’s co workers at the mines. I feel the whole crew of this story represents the different parts of being a rebel in a unique way.

The story and it’s plot constantly kept me guessing what was going to happen next. It has a little mystery aspect to it that I really enjoyed and kept me hooked from beginning to end. The beginning was slow paced for me , because it introduces us to new characters, but after the characters are properly introduced and you get to know what their routine is , their whole world is flipped upside down and it gets really fast paced but not rushed. I liked it a lot.

My favourite part of the book is for sure every fight they have against the empire. The author does a good job making characters real, and even better at doing battles. I felt like I was in the ship with them. The other scenes I liked where the ones that showed how each of the characters belief system changed. You get to see why they are against the empire, except for Hera, which is expected since her father was already involved with the rebellion of Ryloth since the Clone Wars.

We do get to understand why the rebellion is important to here nevertheless.

The book made me both laugh and cry. I felt almost every emotion while reading it. Such a rollercoaster. It also made me want to watch the show again, and made the season four ten times sadder.

This novel got me hooked from page one and kept me turning pages until I finished it.

I did miss ma boi Chopper. The droid isn’t on the book, but I get it because during the story they are flying mostly in other ships and not on the Ghost.

Kanan at the beginning was such an asshole, which makes sense considering his background, but I really wanted to punch him. His character develops a lot in the book and, considering the rebel series, I have to admit that Kanan is one of the most well-developed characters in all Star Wars and I’ll die on this hill.

I wish the book focused a bit more on Hera because I really felt like out of the crew, she was the least developed while being the most important at the same time. Sadly,since the book focused more on Kanan, she was viewed from his view and clearly from a male gaze that wasn’t present in the show. This changes when Kanan’s perspective does .She was still a badass pilot and fighter and portrayed as such.

Overall, this is a great book. I would recommend this book to rebel’s fans, people who have Rogue One as their comfort movie, Rebellion story lovers, people who likes reading about sabotage, people that want to know more about the technical aspects of leading the empire, Kanera shippers, People who still cry about Order 66 and isn’t ready to see it again in the bad batch, readers eager to know a cruel villain you abstolutely won’t root for and Kanan Jarru’s simps.

If you are more interested in politics and love themed stories, this one isn’t for you. Also, if you are looking for more young adult novels, maybe this isn’t the story you should begin with. If you are looking for force users stories this also may be a little disappointing for you because Kanan doesn’t really use the force a lot until rebels. Also if bombs or bomb attacks are triggering to you in some way you should know that they are featured quite a lot. I will be reviewing more Star Wars book in the future and I have done more reviews already that you can check on my tumblr page if you want to read a different book.

It’s not a mandatory read to understand the lore of Star Wars or Star Wars: rebels, but I heavily recommend it and it’s a good stand alone book.

I hope you find this review useful and give this book a chance if you are interested.