Recap / Star Wars Rebels S1E05 "Out of Darkness"

Sabine and Hera take drastic measures to keep George Lucas from altering the classic trilogy again.

Sabine: I want to believe we're doing good, making a difference. But sometimes it seems like the harder we fight, the harder things get out there. I feel like we can't take down the Empire on our own. That's why I need to know this isn't all for nothing. I need to know that I am not walking into another nightmare here.
Hera: What you need is faith; faith that there is a long-term plan that's bigger than you or me, bigger than Lothal, bigger than the entire Outer Rim. Have faith in that, and in us.

While out on what is supposed to be a fairly routine supply run, Hera and Sabine find themselves stranded on an old, abandoned Clone Wars-era Republic military base. Unfortunately, they are not alone, and they soon find out why the base was abandoned.

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Tropes:

• Action Prologue: The Phantom being chased by TIE fighters.
• Asteroid Thicket: The abandoned base is in the midst of one. It's not a get-pulverized-if-you're-not-paying-attention level of chaos like we've seen before, but it's still a much denser asteroid field than would be in real life.
• Back-to-Back Badasses: Hera and Sabine fighting the fyrnocks.
• Berserk Button: Sabine really doesn't like things being kept from her, especially if she's ordered not to ask questions. To her the faith that Hera talks about doesn't seem different from the Blind Obedience demanded by the Empire.
• Continuity Nod:
  • Considering they are in an old Clone Wars-era Republic military base, it's no surprise a lot of old Clone Wars equipment shows up, like an ARC-170 and a LAAT gunship. The base also has rhydonium barrels, which first appeared in the D-Squad arc of The Clone Wars, most famously used by the Separatists in an attempt to destroy a Republic fleet with a hijacked cruiser filled with thousands of the barrels.
  • According to the Databank entry for Fort Anaxes, it is indeed the same Republic base from The Clone Wars' Bad Batch arc (with concept art showing they even recycled the model for that base) and the asteroid field is what's left of the planet Anaxes. During that arc, the Separatists attempted to blow up Anaxes with an underground bomb, but were thwarted. After the war, it seems that someone went down there, reactivated the bomb and blew up the planet anyway.
• Dark and Troubled Past: Sabine used to be a student at the Imperial Academy on Mandalore. Then something happened that caused her to rebel against the Empire, and also caused her to develop trust issues.
• Death Glare: Ezra and Zeb give one to Chopper at the end, since his trolling is to blame for the fuel leak going unnoticed.
• Defector from Decadence: Turns out Sabine really is an ex-Imperial cadet, and wasn't just sounding like the part in "Droids in Distress".
• Enemy Mine: A lighthearted example; Ezra and Zeb decide Chopper's antics are a bigger problem to deal with than their own.
  Zeb: [chasing Chopper down a corridor] CHOPPER! I'm gonna dismantle that rust-bucket!
  Ezra: [bringing up the rear] Save a few bolts for me!
• Foreshadowing: Hera realizes that one of Fulcrum's crates is special because of a distinctive symbol on one of them, a symbol that some may find rather familiar...
• Girl's Night Out Episode: A downplayed example. Hera and Sabine do get stuck at Fort Anaxes, but their conversation doesn't focus on their gender.
• Glowing Eyes of Doom: The fyrnocks have glowing yellow eyes.
• Gunship Rescue: The Ghost shows up just before Hera and Sabine get overwhelmed.
• Machine Empathy: After a close shave against some rocks in the Phantom, Hera can immediately tell the steering is slightly off even though the onboard computer registers no damage.
• Mathematician's Answer: As lampshaded by Sabine, Hera consistently manages to answer her questions about Fulcrum without actually answering them.
• My Significance Sense Is Tingling: Subverted.
  Kanan: Hera and Sabine are in danger.
  Ezra: Wow, how could you tell? Could you sense it?
  Kanan: No, I could hear you two yelling outside the door.
• Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Chopper purging the vents while Ezra's still in them leads to him leaping on Chopper, who runs over Zeb's foot and causes him to miss the fuel leak on the diagnostic. Zeb and Ezra both know exactly who caused that, and end the episode giving Chopper a dual Death Glare.
• Oh, Crap!: Ezra gives a "Karabast" when he's pinned by a fyrnock.
• Shoot the Fuel Tank: Hera and Sabine set up a minefield of rhydonium tanks as part of their defences to hold off the fyrnocks, shooting them to kill off groups of the creatures.
• Shout-Out: Hera and Sabine have to survive an eclipse on a planet lurking with nocturnal predators that fear light.
• Super-Persistent Predator: The fyrnocks. Four waves of explosions, getting shot at, then electrocuted isn't enough to dissuade them from attempting to eat everyone they see.
• Team Mom: Hera's in full force.
• Total Eclipse of the Plot: The planetoid where the base is located is surrounded by asteroids that occasionally block out the sun. Sabine points out the approach of a particularly large asteroid, which would obscure the sun long enough for them to be dispatched by the frynocks. She and Hera then work out a plan to combat them while the asteroid is above them.
• Weakened by the Light: The fyrnocks are harmed by direct sunlight. Subverted when Kanan turns the Ghost's floodlights on them; though it scares them off at first, they soon realize the light isn't harmful and ignore it.
• What the Hell, Hero?: Hera and Sabine call Zeb, Ezra, and Chopper out on not finishing the diagnostic, resulting in them being stranded without fuel. Zeb and Ezra give a silent one to Chopper afterwards, since it was his trolling that distracted the other two.
• Whole-Plot Reference: The photosensitive creatures, stranded protagonists, and impending eclipse all call to mind Pitch Black.
• Zerg Rush: The fyrnocks exhaust four waves of explosives and just keep coming.

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