I am so glad I got caught up in time to watch this within the first week after it aired. Ever since Saturday I saw headlines talking about the shocking end to “Legacy of Mandalore,” and I was avoiding spoilers like the plague until I had a chance to see it. I’m so glad I did! What an ending!

The Episode

“Legacy of Mandalore” is the next episode in the saga of Sabine. Sabine, along with Kanan and Ezra, as well as Chopper and Fenn Rau, head to the planet Krownest to find the rest of Clan Wren. After a not so welcoming introduction to Sabine’s brother, Tristan, they are taken before the leader of the clan, Ursa Wren, Sabine’s mother. After initially trying to arrest her, Ursa is stopped when Sabine produces the Darksaber. She agrees to give them entrance if the Jedi surrender their lightsabers.

After a lengthy discussion – during which it is revealed that Sabine’s father is still alive, but as a captive in everything but name – Ursa leaves the room to take a call from Gar Saxon, Imperial Governor of Mandalore. Unbeknownst to everyone else, she tells him about the events that have transpired and promises to hand the Jedi over to him, as long as Sabine is unharmed.

When Saxon arrives later, after Ursa gives him the Darksaber, he reveals that he’s double crossed her and his men are going to execute everyone there for conspiring against the Empire. Just then Fenn Rau bursts in, having been sneaking around this entire time, and gives Kanan and Ezra back their lightsabers, which stole earlier. As the entire group in busy fighting, Saxon attempts to kill Ursa himself, but Sabine jumps in with Ezra’s lightsaber. The two begin sparring and end up outside in the snow.

After a tense battle Sabine finally gets the upper hand, but refuses to stoop to killing Saxon. Foolishly she turns her back on him, but as he is about to kill her a shot rings out and we see that Ursa has killed him before he could kill Sabine.

When everything has settled down, Sabine reveals to Kanan and Ezra that she will not be returning with them. Her mission now is going to be rescuing her father, and hopefully convincing Mandalore to join the fight against the Empire.

As they watch the Phantom II disappear, Fenn Rau insinuates that Sabine would be a great leader for Mandalore, but she brushes the idea aside. She tells him that she does not want to take on that role, but she will help them find someone who will.

Review

This episode was amazing. For once I was genuinely fearful that they were going to kill off a main character! Saxon came so close to killing Sabine more than once, and each time I was sure this was it! The choreography and pacing of that fight scene was so intense!

But the real kicker of the episode was the revelation that Sabine was leaving the Rebels. I did not see that coming, and I don’t know how to feel about it. If this was the kind of show that allowed for side stories, tangents, and episodes completely unrelated to the main characters, I would not care.

Star Wars: The Clone Wars was that kind of a show. Most of the storylines revolved around Obi-Wan and/or Anakin, but they would have plenty of stories that followed someone totally new and different, often times someone that we’d never even met before, and it totally worked.

But Rebels is not Clone Wars, and I highly doubt that they are planning to make it so. So does this mean that we are done with Sabine for good? I mean, I’m sure she’ll make return appearances (At least I hope so!), but I am going to be really upset if she does not rejoin the rest of the Rebels full time. I really hope that she’ll be back, because the show will not be the same without her.

Final Thoughts

All in all, this was another stellar episode. Rebels has had so many great episodes lately and this one is no exception. As we get closer and closer to the events of the original trilogy I can only imagine it’s going to ramp up from here, and I can’t wait!