Actors: Taylor Gray, Vanessa Marshall, Tiya Sircar, Jr. Freddi Prinze, Steve Blum
Studio: Walt Disney Studios
Release Date: August 30, 2016
Run Time: 484 minutes
Season: 3 out of 5 stars
Blu-ray: 3 out of 5 stars
Extras: 3 out of 5 stars
When the first season of “Star Wars Rebels” started, my daughter and I were all in. We watched religiously and enjoyed the first season. Honestly, I did enjoy the second season but I wasn’t overall blown away by it and I don’t feel that IN WHOLE it superseded the first. The best part of the season was the return of Ahsoka Tano, Darth Maul and the introduction of animated Darth Vader. For me those three things saved the season. Otherwise, I honestly don’t even remember much else from it. Hopefully season 3 kicks off with a bang and delivers a better run to keep my interest in this show.
Official Premise: As Ezra Continues his journey to become a Jedi under Kanan’s guidance, the crew of the Ghost bands together with a secret rebel cell and ex-soldiers from the Clone Wars to join a fledgeling alliance to restore peace and freedom to the galaxy. But the dark side looms large as Darth Vader dispatches new Inquisitors, setting the stage for a climactic showdown in which terrible truths will be revealed and the lives of our heroes will be changed forever.
There is no shortage of great talent in this show. The series features the voices of Freddie Prinze Jr. (“I Know What You Did Last Summer”) as Kanan, Vanessa Marshall (TV’s “Young Justice”) as Hera, Steve Blum (“The Boxtrolls”) as Zeb, Tiya Sircar (“The Internship”) as Sabine, Taylor Gray (TV’s “Bucket and Skinner’s Epic Adventures”) as Ezra, Ashley Eckstein (“Star Wars: The Clone Wars”) as Ahsoka Tano, Dee Bradley Baker (“Phineas and Ferb”) as Captain Rex and EVERY clones (that’s right EVERY CLONE), David Oyelowo (“The Butler”) as Agent Kallus and Sarah Michelle Gellar (“Buffy The Vampire Slayer”) as The Seventh Sister Inquisitor.
The 1080p transfers looks good with the animation and colors perfectly for the TV series. My main issue with the presentation is the audio tracks. I am very disappointed that Disney only is giving us DVD-quality Dolby Digital 5.1 tracks for these episodes. This really feels like a mistake and a real missed opportunity. The special features are decent and worth checking out if you enjoyed the season and looking for some fun extras. “From Apprentice to Adversary: Vader vs. Ahsoka” is an exclusive to Blu-ray extra with Executive Producer Dave Filoni reflecting on the climactic ending of the season with Ahsoka Tano and Darth Vader. “Connecting the Galaxy: Rebels Season Two” looks into easter eggs and other Star Wars connections from the show. Lastly “Rebel Recons” features 20 episode recons with behind-the-scenes footage, interviews with cast and crew, and more!