2x14 Homecoming

7.6/10. There was a fair bit of cheese in this one. Cham telling his daughter "we're stronger together" or Hera telling her father that she learned how to be a leader from him or their entire argument about whether Cham should care about the freedom of all people, not just the Twi'leks or Hera should have paid more attention toher pieces is all a little on the nose in terms of the attempted emotional content of the stories being told.

But damn if it didn't work reasonably well on me. Season 1 of Rebels felt like an attempt to fit the show within the world of the Original Trilogy, with its cameos from R2-D2 and C3PO, Lando, Grand Moff Tarkin, and Yoda. But Season 2 feels like it's more geared toward Clone Wars fans, with Ahsoka, Rex, Hondo, and others playing major roles. The fan service continues here, with Cham's first appearance since the Clone Wars Ryloth arc (and Numa's all grown up!), but I like that he's used for contrast to Hera and has consistent characterization, rather than just a "hey look, it's that guy!" method.

Because the Cham we met in Clone Wars was squarely focused on saving his own people and was mistrustful of outsiders. It makes sense that his resistance and myopia would only increase after he trusted The Republic and it turned into The Empire. That notion clashing with Hera's broader "liberty for all" philosophy makes for an interesting contrast. What's more, it's dramatized nicely, with Hera wanting to commandeer the carrier so that she can help carry out the business of the rebellion, while Cham wants to destroy it as a show of force and independence to the Ryloth people. Of course, the show finds a means for them to both get their way, but it makes for an a solid clash in their perspectives that takes real form in the episode.

There's also a lot of fun in the pure operation side of it. The doublecross with sneaking onto the carrier and then the Twi'leks attempting to incapacitate the rebels and blow it up is a nice setup. And little details like Kanan trying to impress his girlfriend's dad, or Zeb and Sabine's banter and explosive plan to stun Gobi and Numa are a lot of fun. And the final sequence, with blasting the booby-trapped bomber into the starcruisers, is pretty enjoyable as well.

I'd also be lying if I said it didn't tug on my heartstring's a bit when Cham referred to his daughter as "Captain Syndulla." A show like Rebels wasn't going to introduce Hera's estranged father if they weren't going to reconcile by the end of the episode, but still, it's a sweet resolution to their legitimate conflict (even if Hera slipping into her dad's accent didn't come off as totally natural) and a nice note to end the episode on.