STAR WARS Rebels new animated series!

[Mara Jade's Father]

Bryancd and Solo4114 I think we are on the same page on principle. I just don't like the term "Kid's Show". It's not simple and dumbed down (for lack of a better word) like Power Rangers which I also occasionally enjoy. If you look at Rebels core story and content it doesn't come across as a kids show.

If you took the script and remade the episodes into a live action series and aired it on SyFy, no one would call it a kid's show. I feel that because it is animated and on DisneyXD that it gets labeled as such. Let's also remember that the episodes debut on the east coast at 9:00pm on a school night. My kids, and most I know are in bed by then.

Maybe fans like to put it in the kid's show category so they can defend the show easily. Anyone who knocks it can be rebuffed with the remark, "take it easy, it's just a kid's show." However I don't think the show needs defending because it is perfect to the tone of the OT. I think people that have issues with the lack of violence are people who like the Star Wars comics, books, and games of the EU that were darker and older teen and adult oriented. I would argue it is those items which are a mismatch for the OT.

 

[jcoffman99]

Disney XDs targeted age range is 6-14

 

[Bryancd]

I'm not referring to it as a kids show to try and justify dumbing down the content, I'm just using it as a statement of demographic reality as it airs on a channel aimed at 14 and under. That doesn't mean the content can't have an edge to it or depict strong emotions it violence or appeal to adult SW fans, it's just a fact of the shows marketing and channel selection. What I take exception to is when adults criticize the show for not being adult enough.

 

[Riceball]

@Bryancd and @Solo4114 I think we are on the same page on principle. I just don't like the term "Kid's Show". It's not simple and dumbed down (for lack of a better word) like Power Rangers which I also occasionally enjoy. If you look at Rebels core story and content it doesn't come across as a kids show.

If you took the script and remade the episodes into a live action series and aired it on SyFy, no one would call it a kid's show. I feel that because it is animated and on DisneyXD that it gets labeled as such. Let's also remember that the episodes debut on the east coast at 9:00pm on a school night. My kids, and most I know are in bed by then.

In this country pretty much anything that's animated is almost automatically considered to be fore kids no matter how mature the content actually is. It's really annoying and I hope that that view changes but I don't see it happening anytime soon, unfortunately.

Anyhow, I don't think that there's anything inherently wrong with calling Rebels a kid's show since that's what it's marketed as and what the primary audience is (technically) supposed to be. However, it does happen to be one of those kid's shows that's written so that it appeals to adults as much as kids, the kids enjoy the visuals and humor while the adults enjoy it for the story. Whether or not the studio execs realize that shows like The Clone Wars, Rebels, and the Avatar series have as much a teen and adult audience as kids is debatable but the creators certainly do and probably accounts for the overall maturity of the writing in shows like these. Unfortunately for us, the studio doesn't see us as their target audience and if the show doesn't seem to be doing well with kids, regardless of how well it does with its older fans, it will get canceled.

 

[Solo4114]

@Bryancd and @Solo4114 I think we are on the same page on principle. I just don't like the term "Kid's Show". It's not simple and dumbed down (for lack of a better word) like Power Rangers which I also occasionally enjoy. If you look at Rebels core story and content it doesn't come across as a kids show.

If you took the script and remade the episodes into a live action series and aired it on SyFy, no one would call it a kid's show. I feel that because it is animated and on DisneyXD that it gets labeled as such. Let's also remember that the episodes debut on the east coast at 9:00pm on a school night. My kids, and most I know are in bed by then.

Maybe fans like to put it in the kid's show category so they can defend the show easily. Anyone who knocks it can be rebuffed with the remark, "take it easy, it's just a kid's show." However I don't think the show needs defending because it is perfect to the tone of the OT. I think people that have issues with the lack of violence are people who like the Star Wars comics, books, and games of the EU that were darker and older teen and adult oriented. I would argue it is those items which are a mismatch for the OT.

Honestly, I don't think there's anything wrong with it being a "kids show." Provided it's a good kids show, which this one is. I don't cut it any slack, narratively speaking, but then, I don't really need to. The stories have been solid and entertaining. But, I mean, it is a kids show, so the standards I apply to it are different from what I expect out of, say, The Americans or Mad Men or even Grimm. And that's ok, because what the show is doing, it is so far doing exceptionally well.

 

[Bryancd]

In this country pretty much anything that's animated is almost automatically considered to be fore kids no matter how mature the content actually is. It's really annoying and I hope that that view changes but I don't see it happening anytime soon, unfortunately.

Anyhow, I don't think that there's anything inherently wrong with calling Rebels a kid's show since that's what it's marketed as and what the primary audience is (technically) supposed to be. However, it does happen to be one of those kid's shows that's written so that it appeals to adults as much as kids, the kids enjoy the visuals and humor while the adults enjoy it for the story. Whether or not the studio execs realize that shows like The Clone Wars, Rebels, and the Avatar series have as much a teen and adult audience as kids is debatable but the creators certainly do and probably accounts for the overall maturity of the writing in shows like these. Unfortunately for us, the studio doesn't see us as their target audience and if the show doesn't seem to be doing well with kids, regardless of how well it does with its older fans, it will get canceled.

Oh, LucasFilm and Disney are very much aware that there is a huge adult audience watching this show but they need kids to help move merchandise.

 

[Mara Jade's Father]

I'm not referring to it as a kids show to try and justify dumbing down the content, .

To clarify, I didn't mean you, just I feel some do. Sorry, I should have been more clear.

 

[Solo4114]

Like I was saying, one of the benefits of writing the show in a way that adults dig it, is you get the buy-in from the source of money. I've already bought two Rebels Lego sets for my Lego-obsessed nephew: the Phantom and the Speeder Bike sets. I plan on getting him more. Why? Because I really dig this show, and I want to share it with him (and eventually with my own kids, when I have them). You get the parents or uncles/aunts on board, you'll move the product. You still need the kids to dig the source material, but I think this is partially why they're writing it this way. I mean, they could write the show like, oh, the old Ninja Turtle cartoons if they wanted. They'd still move plenty of merch that way. But they've chosen to go a different route, and to me that suggests that they want the show to appeal to a broader audience than just 5-year-olds who want a fad toy that they never touch again the following year. To my way of thinking, this approach builds brand longevity. You make lifelong fans when your story is told this way, rather than "Oh, that was so cool when I was 8, but man is it cheesy now."

 

[Bryancd]

Yep, I have the tall Rebel action figures and a stuffed Chopper for my 2 year old son. He loves Chopper!

 

[Victor3]

And here I am, with a Chopper fig in my daughter's Easter basket, chomping at the bit for the Sabine & Hera figures.

 

[Mara Jade's Father]

And here I am, with a Chopper fig in my daughter's Easter basket, chomping at the bit for the Sabine & Hera figures.

The Hera figures have been showing up at Targets and the Sabine figures at Kohl's.

 

[Victor3]

The Hera figures have been showing up at Targets and the Sabine figures at Kohl's.

O RLY?

Well, that's exciting. Next time we go to civilization, I'll have to check it out. Thx!

 

[Hotsam]

Just saw the last episode this late. Wow!

Also I hope Barriss Offee gets revived for the second season. The Emperor probably turned her into a dark disciple.

 

[astroboy]

Just saw the last episode this late. Wow!

Also I hope Barriss Offee gets revived for the second season. The Emperor probably turned her into a dark disciple.

She's a complex one. The reason she did what she did was because she felt that the jedi had become a tool of the dark side...which they were.

I honestly don't know where she would stand after order 66

 

[Hotsam]

Spoiler

I wonder if Ahsoka knows that Darth Vader was formerly Anakin Skywalker. Would be a real heartbreaking moment if she does not know before the reveal.

 

[Edwardowan]

Spoiler

I wonder if Ahsoka knows that Darth Vader was formerly Anakin Skywalker. Would be a real heartbreaking moment if she does not know before the reveal.

Spoiler

my guess is she does not know. the only ones that do are Yoda, Obi Wan and the Emperor and perhaps Bail Organa... this will be her downfall... if and when she confronts Vader he may reveal it or she may sense it and lose her focus and be devastated by this reveal and lose her focus.. and the fight. it will be tragically sad.

 

[Mara Jade's Father]

1980 called, they what their spoiler back.

My guess is that Ahsoka already knows. I'm basing that on that Bail knows as well. I think this is different from Obi not telling Luke. I think in Ahsoka's case, it best that she knows who she may be dealing with. I admit the show's writers could go the other way, that is strictly my opinion.

also..

Since you mentioned Barriss, that would be an interesting story line. Especially a reunion with Ahsoka. So many things could have happened since we last saw her. Since she was guilty, she could have been in prison when Order 66 took place. She could have been an easy kill in that situation. If they decided to take her to Mustifar to interrogate her and/ or recruit her, she may have died there or join as a inquisitor. Another option could be that during the confusion of Order 66, she escaped and went into hiding. If that's the case, it also hard to tell exactly where her loyalty lies. Her action in the clone wars was her warped way to deal with the Darkside. Ironically it was this action that sent her toward the dark side. The question is, was it enough to send her all the way or did her prison time and time in hiding give her time to reevaluate her path. She may very well be in a neutral status like Ahsoka, fighting against the empire but not following the jedi ways. In short, lots of possibilities there.

 

[Jeyl]

Spoiler

this will be her downfall... if and when she confronts Vader he may reveal it or she may sense it and lose her focus and be devastated by this reveal and lose her focus.. and the fight. it will be tragically sad.

Now why would anyone ever think of such a fate for a female Star Wars character?

 

[Hotsam]

It is also possible that Ahsoka was able to put the pieces together that Anakin was indeed Darth Vader. For example she may have on some level been aware of events that would have driven Anakin to the dark side such as the death of Padme, and his close relationship with the Chancellor. Also Ahsoka witnessed the cosy relationship between Anakin and Tarkin at the Citadel episode.

 

[glunark]

The first person in star wars that we ever see use a light sabre in action does not kill with it, he lops off a couple of arms, but those guys live to tell the tail.