The first season of the animated Star Wars spinoff Star Wars Rebels hit Blu-ray and DVD on September 1, with a set containing all 15 episodes of the first season with a lot of extras. Here’s how the set is described:
In the first groundbreaking season of Star Wars Rebels, young hero Ezra Bridger joins the clever but motley crew of the starship Ghost in their resistance against the Empire. As the series begins, Imperial forces have occupied a remote planet, ruling with an iron fist and ruining the lives of its people. Ezra and his new rebel friends — Hera, Kanan, Sabine, Zeb and Chopper — embark on daring adventures in their fight against oppression across the galaxy, receiving help from familiar heroes such as Lando Calrissian, Ahsoka Tano, and Jedi Master Yoda. Pursued relentlessly by the Imperials and a Jedi hunter called the Inquisitor, this tenacious ragtag band of rebels will find itself in the crosshairs of none other than Darth Vader when season one closes in a shocking two-part finale.
Star Wars Rebels is created by Dave Filoni (“Star Wars: The Clone Wars”), Simon Kinberg (“X-Men: Days of Future Past,” “Sherlock Holmes”), and Carrie Beck. The Lucasfilm Animation production is also executive-produced by Filoni and Kinberg as well as Greg Weisman (“Gargoyles”).
Featuring 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, David Oyelowo (“Selma”) as Agent Kallus and Jason Isaacs (“Harry Potter”) as the Inquisitor.
Here’s our review.
The Episodes: Ever have a show you always wanted to check out, but time and scheduling didn’t allow for it? That’s what happened with me and Star Wars Rebels. I love Star Wars. I was one of those people in line at Force Friday last week. I can’t wait for December. I was one of those folks who got Phantom Menace tickets the second they went on sale. Heck, my mom was pregnant with me when she first saw Star Wars. So, I’m glad that a set like this exists so I can watch this spin-off series. Sadly, I missed the Clone Wars for similar reasons, so it’s nice to have a new show to latch on to.
It’s also nice for a younger generation to have heroes to look to in the same way that Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Princess Leia, and Chewie were heroes for my generation. The show is largely through the eyes of young Ezra Bridger, which means that younger audience can enter this world and the characters that populate it through that way. Some familiar faces and concepts from the original Star Wars movies do show up; there are also some cool twists — like the Inquisitor’s lightsaber! But most of all, it’s an easy to follow story in the world of Star Wars. And hey, Greg Weisman who made Young Justice so awesome is involved! I do admit I would have loved this show more if I was within the target demographic, but it’s still good TV. I like these characters and would love to see or read more about them in other media… I know Marvel is doing a Kanan comic book series, but what about the other characters? Where is my Star Wars Rebels monthly series?
The Extras: There are a lot of extras within, including a 22-minute recap of Season One and a look ahead at the show’s second season, which will hit Disney XD this Fall. My personal favorite extra might’ve been the Blu-ray exclusive look at Rebels at the Star Wars Celebration; seeing voice actors and producers treated like rock stars is cool! There are some “Rebels Recon” featurettes that I believe premiered online, that do offer some backstory to what’s going on in the individual episodes, though they, too, are aimed at a younger crowd. Not that there’s anything wrong with that! The Season One short episodes are also included.
Packaging and Design: The packaging and design look cool, and the menus are easy to follow. There’s a Chopper on the screen when you first load, which I thought was cute.
Is It Worth It? Chances are something like this is already available on Netflix, but especially if it’s not, I definitely recommend it – especially for the folks with kids. It’s a great continuing adventure and introduction to Star Wars that you don’t need to know a lot to dive into. And, as I mentioned, some Star Wars favorites do make appearances, which is cool. The first season made a fan out of me, so mission accomplished on that front.
