Is Star Wars Rebels a Worthy Successor to the Clone Wars?

Warning: The article will contain spoilers for the Star Wars Rebels season finale.

I never cried watching Revenge of the Sith, until the last time. Although it's the best of the prequels, any moments of emotional drama are fairly ruined by the lackluster acting and directing, and I never felt enough of an emotional connection to Anakin's story or any of the Jedi Knights to really feel anything other than morose watching their tragedy play out.

Then came Star Wars: The Clone Wars.

Dave Filoni and Lucasfilm's take on the Clone Wars started as a semi-goofy children's movie with farthing Hutts, and over the course of six seasons developed into a treatise on the nature of war disguised as an animated series with Jedi. When I came back to Revenge of the Sith after watching Clone Wars, I found myself watching the deaths of old friends, instead of a random collection of alien makeup. I broke down.

After the unceremonious (but still potent) ending of the Clone Wars, we found ourselves looking to the now-Disney-owned Lucasfilm's successor, Star Wars Rebels, to fill that hole in our lives. So now that it's first season is up, did it live up to its predecessor?

Second hour of the season finale - The Librarians and the Loom of Fate

The season finale's last hour episode was a wonderfully exhausting ride. I spent the whole hour yelling at the T.V. as I watched it - "Whu-WHAAAAT?!?!" "Oh holy hell!" "Are you freakin' KIDDING ME RIGHT NOW?!" I also shouted many obscenities followed by various deities' names. I laughed, I got angry, I cried and I melted. I wanted to slap some characters, and I wanted to hug others. I wanted to be right in the middle of the fights with them. I wanted to die for them. But most of all - I came out of this with an insanely intense desire. 

I really, REALLY want to be a Librarian. Specifically, I want to BE Jacob Stone, Cassandra Cillian and Ezekiel Jones all rolled into one. I want a friend and a mom and a sister like Eve Baird and Lamia. i want an uncle, dad and brother like Jenkins and Flynn. I wish my grandparents were Charlene and Judson. And I want someone like DuLaque in my life to make sure things stay interesting.

 I wish that all those characters were real people in my life. I got so attached to each and every one of them - so much so that I got incredibly depressed when the credits rolled and I realized that there is a chance that the series may not get renewed for another season. I desperately hope that's not the case. This season overall has been a wonderfully wild ride - and it made me FEEL stuff. I haven't been touched so deeply by stories and characters in a very long time.

Personal note from a fangurl: Props and thanks to the whole team of producers, directors and writers, and to the whole cast of this wonderfully crazy, creative and imaginative show!

And now - the last of the recaps for the season... 

Season Finale - First hour: The Librarians and the City of Light recap

This episode turns out to be heavier than what I expected. The early dialogue is the usual, smart-assed, funny-filled fare, but it becomes rather serious towards the end of the episode. The kids are showings signs of growing up - and growing closer as a family. I was totally caught off-guard by the emotions that Zeke and Jake expressed, and it was awesome. The casts' dialogue delivery is beginning to feel very natural, and I'm actually starting to feel that these people really do exist in the real world, and they are very much becoming people that I would want in my life.

And now, here's the recap: