For the retiring two seasons , Rebels has been like almost every other Star Wars story : a untested person trying to learn the Force , an older mentor , a group of expert guys fight an malefic authorities , and bad guys with cerise lightsabers . With time of year three , though , executive producer Dave Filoni is trying something different — and in doing so , he ’s begun to make out the circle .
“ A lot of [ season three ] is centered on one line [ in A New Hope ] , ” Filoni tell io9 . “ Tarkin tells Vader the ardor of the Jedi has gone out of the universe . So you have to start to enter this menses where it seems like the pattern of the day is n’t people who manage the Force but it ’s more people that are keep in line military might and starfleets . They seem to be the single in control by the time of A New Hope . ”
This is the reason Filoni decided to introduce Grand Admiral Thrawn into the series . The fan - favorite character is a master military strategist who provides a threat unequaled to all of Star Wars to engagement ; he ’s a servant of the Emperor with no personal docket other than crushing the Rebels to secure the safety equipment of the Galactic Empire .
“ We did n’t just enclose another Force - wielder here , ” explain Filoni . “ We did n’t just create another kind of lightsaber . you could only go to that well so many times . Now it was meter for the Imperial Military . ”
The addition of Thrawn does n’t mean everything is different , though . At its core , Rebels will still be about that younger Jedi - in - preparation , Ezra Bridger , and his older mentor , Kanan Jarrus . But Filoni also wanted to change that family relationship from what we ’ve seen in the past .
“ We ’re doing another Jedi skipper - apprentice situation , so how are we going to make that story different from what we did with Anakin , Ahsoka , and Luke ? ” Filoni asked . “ I think there will always be similar meter and trials but how they amount through them and how they answer the challenges is what ’s go to be different and define them as character . ”
Much of that will derive from where season two left the characters , with Ezra having discover the power of the Dark Side , Kanan having lost his peck , Ahsoka missing , and Darth Maul now in the picture .
“ One of the most important thing to us was to really deal with the emotions and results of that interaction , ” Filoni said . “ We definitely had to have the characters come through something and show the change that occurs in their determination - qualification . ”
The new story commission convert Filoni ’s decisions , too . “ In the first season of Rebels there are big column episode that connect , but there are also a lot of side risky venture , ” he said . “ I sense in time of year two there were more episodes that connected directly and less side adventures . Now as we get to season three , there ’s in spades becoming more and more of a throughline as the characters really become who they ’re meant to be . There ’s more of a sentience of this is get down to be one great tale . ”
When the new season begins , this story will center around the deep and powerful Sith Holocon that Ezra helped Darth Maul acquire . Since the season two finale , Ezra has been using it to search the Dark Side while Maul acts as a privy tutor for the young Johnny , hidden in the shadows
“ The Maul plot line is not a main plot line [ of season three ] , ” sound out Filoni . “ He ’s in episode but he ’s not in an overwhelming number of episode . I did n’t want to overact him . You do n’t want him to be in that weekly guest character . So when he render up you know it ’s of import and it ’s a key moment for him . ”
Maul also wo n’t be the only placeable grapheme on the show this season . Though Filoni admit it ’s a scrap trickier to add in original trilogy characters to the show the closer things get to Rogue One and A New Hope , there are some to whom they sense beholden .
“ There are dead characters that will add up back , ” Filoni said . “ A lot of the fiber we ’ve visualise are now weave into the taradiddle and we have a responsibility to explicate more about them . ”
And though Filoni is infamous for not explaining much , he did admit how greyback ’ third time of year is standardized to the period between The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi in the original trilogy
“ Between Empire and Jedi , [ Luke and Leia ] are already in the act of save Han . Luke knows he ’s going to have to confront the Emperor . There ’s a period there where they ’re making some very serious decisions about what they ’re going to do next and a lot of that is not just because they ’ve come in contact with the greatest top executive of the galaxy but they have some of the nifty index of the galaxy . We ’re in a similar situation where Ezra has fall in tangency with Darth Vader , he ’s been a part of defeating Inquisitors , and he ’s see what malefic power can do .
“ So it ’s really about power , how we apply power and claim power for ourselves , ” Filoni concluded . “ Which is ultimately the way of life between selfishness or selflessness , which is always underneath the story of Star Wars . ”
The third season of Star Wars Rebels premieres September 24 .
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