I'm sitting here trying to decide what it was about episode 3 that made it seem, hm, "flat?" to me. The best I can come up with is that the production values were not as high as in The Mandalorian. Or, maybe it is that being with this group of chronners I look and think about stuff I didn't before. When I comment about something not looking right or not stacking up in a film or TV show, my wife will often say something like "Only you would notice that." --- But, why are long hallways almost always devoid of people? Why doesn't someone wonder why a supervisor is lying dead? unconscious? in the hallway? How long must guards float in a tank before someone suspects something's wrong? How can a light saber slice through ten inches of steel but do no noticeable damage to a stormtrooper, while taking him/her completely out of the fight? How come a fire fight can go on for a fair amount of time with no damage to the glass walls until one ricochet cracks it? ---- It seems to me that if all these things have percolated to the top of my awareness it probably indicates that the story was weak. I really like "third sister" and usually like "Lia" in the story. Most of the rest are starting to wear thin already.
I had the exact same feeling watching the episode. 'Flat' indeed. A filler episode through and through. Its entire purpose was to
have Moses Ingram's character plant a tracking device on Leia's droid. Other than that, the plot hasn't moved forward one bit. Something we could all have easily forgiven if they had at least given us a compelling rescue episode, with our characters deftly avoiding tough security protocols and overwhelming forces to sneak into the base and find Leia, but no. There was never any sense of threat, everything seemed too easy, the enemies were either blind, stupid or AWOL... and what of the security probes who apparently no longer have 'probes', since they can only detect an intruder if they point their big red glowing eye at them?
I'll not flog a dead horse and list all the things wrong with it, but I'll add to that that the closer they bring Obi-Wan and Leia, like they did at the end of that episode with that touching little scene of the both of them holding hands, the less I'll be willing to accept her message to him in A New Hope as making sense.
General Kenobi. Years ago you served my father in the Clone Wars. Now he begs you to help him in his struggle against the Empire. I regret that I am unable to present my father's request to you in person, but my ship has fallen under attack, and I'm afraid my mission to bring you to Alderaan has failed. I have placed information vital to the survival of the Rebellion into the memory systems of this R2 unit. My father will know how to retrieve it. You must see this droid safely delivered to him on Alderaan. This is our most desperate hour. Help me, Obi-Wan Kenobi. You're my only hope.
All... right? How about "Obi, old chum! Long time no see, how's it hanging? Dude, the last ten years haven't been kind to you, you really ought to wear a hat under the suns."
But now that I think about it... This message already no longer makes sense. Her father "begs Obi-Wan" to help him? She "regrets she cannot present the request in person"? The show established that Bail has a direct line to Obi-Wan since he contacted him himself across space to ask him to find Leia.
"My father will know how to retrieve the R2 unit if you bring himto Alderaan"? Just beam him the files yourself since apparently people can now communicate from one planet to another. Or haven't you seen the Disney + show you were in?
Urgh. Yes, those are nitpicks, but the lack of care on the part of the writers and showrunners is irritating. It's not as if it was impossible to write a good story (I'd argue the story they went with isn't even good) and maintain consistency with the saga.
This is in a nutshell the problem with the show and Disney's Star Wars in general.
They're just not trying hard enough. They throw whatever they think will look cool at us, then rake in the money. Nostalgia and the hype that surround any new SW project are enough to bring in viewers and keep them hoping for more - and better. Here we all are I'm sure, disappointed in the show so far, yet already hoping the last two episodes will somehow be worth our while and redeem the first four... and beyond that, hoping the Andor show will give us what Kenobi didn't... and beyond that, that Taika Waititi's film will be better than Episode IX... etc.
Essentially, Star Wars has become too big to fail, no matter how many times it falls.
BT Jones said:
All Disney really need to do to make money is, essentially, give enough people enough of a reason to keep their streaming subscription for another couple of months. That's it.
Hit the nail on the head. That also explains why these projects, that could easily be condensed into tight, two-hour movies, are now stretched way too thin over six 40-minute episodes released weekly. The Mandalorian has the same problem, with too many filler episodes and a plot that doesn't progress quickly enough during the first few episodes to have all the plot points resolved in the last two episodes. But The Mandalorian has a few advantages over Kenobi: The monster-of-the-week episodes make sense with a bounty hunter protagonist and give the show a nostalgic Wanted: Dead or Alive feel, and the story is set in a time and place that minimize the risks of contradicting the established storyline, with -mostly- brand new characters.
@Dave , I think it's possible Vader arrived after the escape. I didn't watch Rebels but a friend who did told me the Inquisitors' base is located on a moon of Mustafar, the planet where Vader has his castle. So it's just a short hop away for him and he could have arrived half an hour after the Rebels had gone.
