Star Wars Rebels: Homecoming

February 18, 2016 6:36 AM - Season 2, Episode 14

In need of a ship large enough to possess hangar bays, the rebels head to the Twi'lek home planet of Ryloth and enlist the aid of General Cham Syndulla. A veteran of the Clone Wars' Battle of Ryloth, Cham fought with the Jedi against the Separatist droid armies, and additionally, he's Hera's father. Generations clash in the space above Ryloth.

Trivia!

• The Imperial light carrier ship design is based on artwork by Doug Chiang and Troy Vigil created for the first edition of The Essential Guide to Vehicles and Vessels (1996), where it was described as the Rebel ship, Flurry, from the Star Wars novel The Truce at Bakura (1994). The triangular shape of the ship had more of an Imperial aesthetic, hence its role as an Imperial ship in "Homecoming."
• The emergence of Hera's Twi'lek accent came as a result of fans asking why she didn't have the same accent as Twi'leks from the Clone Wars episodes.
• The original script referenced "The Ballad of Cham Syndulla," a song composed by Gobi Glie and written for an online web comic that accompanied the first season of The Clone Wars.
• Cham's shoulder armor, Gobie's gauntlets, vambraces and holster and Numa's arm armor and belt are all salvaged pieces of Ghost Company clone trooper kit.
• On Numa's upper left arm, the word "BOIL" is written in aurebesh as well as a particular crest in reference to one of the clone troopers that rescued her in The Clone Wars. She also has a faded Tooka illustration on her tunic.
• Robin Atkin Downes, the actor who portrays Cham, returned to it after playing Cham in The Clone Wars. Meanwhile, the voice of Numa was provided by Catherine Taber, who played Padme Amidala in The Clone Wars.

posted by Atreides (2 comments total)

That was a fine episode, IMHO, though maybe Cham's plot was a little too easy to foresee, and his turnabout a little too pat. Again I wish the showrunners could afford more time to explore more fully the ramifications of their character developments. What sort of words must have been had between Hera and Cham before she ends up handcuffed to her pilot's seat, I can only imagine. Nonetheless I found this episode the most satisfying of the ones since the break. Of course, I also feel we're just setting the table for Malachor and Sith holocrons and the Old Maul Master and – gasp! – Ahsoka throwing down with Vader.

This show is so full of beautiful little touches that always strike me, out of the blue black even. A couple episodes ago, it was Kana & Ezra quietly placing their hands on Zeb. In this episode, it was a quick glance from Ezra, followed by a shot of Hera's knees, where her hands were fidgeting lightly. And how her accent re-emerged – if only briefly! – while arguing with her father. These are little touches they don't have to include, not in an animated show, but somehow they affect me more because they make the effort to. After the episode I tracked down the music from the Lasat episode again, and as I listened to it again I thought "Damn but this show can really step it up when it wants to."
posted by The Nutmeg of Consolation at 12:23 PM on February 18, 2016 [3 favorites]

Was this episode also called 'Saga of the Syndullas', or have I crossed over from a parallel Earth?

I loved Hera's Twi'lek accent!

Robin Atkin Downes, the actor who portrays Cham,

Byron lives?

I noticed last night, while trying to look up who Cham was, that his chest plate is (and was in Clone Wars) basically the one Bib Fortuna's action figure came with (the original ROTJ one).

And then I spent too long wondering why no Twi'lek wears their head tentacles like ol' Bib.
And pondering Cham's pointy teeth.
posted by Mezentian at 5:40 AM on February 19, 2016