“Station Theta Black” is one of Star Wars Resistance’s best episodes yet, hinting at how strong the show can be when it isn’t tied down to the setting of the Colossus.
Warning: Spoilers will follow for Star Wars Resistance season 1, episode 11 “Station Theta Black.”
Most of Star Wars Resistance‘s first season has taken place on the Colossus, an aircraft refueling station on the ocean planet Castilon located in the Outer Rim. Kazuda Xiono was placed there by Poe Dameron to spy on the rising First Order and deliver intelligence back to the Resistance.
It was an effective premise and the show has done a nice job exploring the colorful characters and nuances that make the Colossus tick.
The problem is that the show’s real intrigue lies not in the Colossus, but in the rise of the First Order and the Resistance’s attempts to combat it. No matter how badly the First Order wants the Colossus, it is only a small piece in a larger puzzle.
As such, there’s only so much the Colossus has to offer in terms of providing more insight into how the First Order became such a force to be reckoned with by the beginning of The Force Awakens.
With the exception of the brief first scene between Yeager, Bucket, and Tam, the entire episode “Station Theta Black” takes place away from the Colossus. It is a refreshing change of pace and the entire episode taps into Resistance’s enormous potential as a prequel series to The Force Awakens.
Kaz finally gets to speak with General Leia Organa. It is a gratifying moment to see him handing over to her the First Order’s proposal to Captain Doza, as is hearing her compliment the work he’s been doing for the Resistance.
Seeing Kaz and Poe work together to first gather surveillance about the First Order – and then scrambling to escape with their lives from Captain Phasma and her troops – easily serves as some of the most thrilling scenes in Resistance so far.
The dark, shadowy hallways of the First Order station felt like something out of a horror movie, making Kaz and Poe’s investigations and then flight for their lives all the more suspenseful. They walk away with meaningful information about the First Order and how they’ve been producing mass amounts of blasters. While this is obvious information to the audience, for the characters it is an important revelation that pushes the conflict forward between the Resistance and First Order.
Leia speaking at the end of the episode about how this intelligence is crucial, yet not enough to convince the New Republic to take action against the First Order is also an enticing moment. It hints at an upcoming episode in the series where Leia – possibly with the help of Kaz – will try to appeal to the New Republic for help, using much of the intelligence that’s been gained from Kaz’s spying.
From a character development perspective, it was also refreshing to see Kaz get a chance to show his smarts as he saves Poe’s life aboard Station Theta Black. He also avoids being engulfed by the exploding station as he takes his X-Wing beneath an asteroid.
More from Star Wars Resistance
- Ahsoka: Is Senator Hamato Xiono working for the First Order?
- Ahsoka surprises with a Star Wars Resistance character
- The Bad Batch deserves better than the Star Wars: Resistance treatment
- Not all Star Wars should be like Andor
- Looking back at 10 years of Star Wars: The animated series
All of these satisfying developments were made possible because of the show taking a step away from the Colossus, tapping into the larger conflict brewing throughout the whole galaxy. In order to meet this potential in the future, the show needs to eventually depart entirely from the Colossus or at least start spending less time there.
Without a doubt there is still a lot of promising story still to be told on the Colossus. The First Order will take on a much more active role on the Colossus if Captain Doza accepts their proposal. Torra Doza is one the verge of figuring out that Kaz is a Resistance spy, a revelation which could completely change his existence there, especially if Torra’s father agrees to work with the First Order.
There are still a lot of fun characters like Tam, Neeku, and Hype Fazon there and it will be fascinating to see how they react when they inevitably learn like Torra is about to that Kaz has been a Resistance spy all along. Synara is also still on the Colossus, one of the pirates working with the First Order, yet growing closer with individuals like Tam.
The show may not be far enough along to essentially reinvent itself and move Kaz and the story away from the Colossus entirely, but it could make for a game-changing twist in the season 1 finale or during season 2. As the series inches ever closer to the beginning of The Force Awakens in the timeline, it seems like the show will ultimately need to take this direction, giving audiences more episodes like “Station Theta Black.”
Would you like to see Star Wars Resistance eventually move beyond the setting of the Colossus? Let us know in the comments below!