Star Wars Rebels season 4 is set to be the most dramatic run of the animated series yet. As the show’s final season, it’ll draw the characters’ ongoing plotlines to a close and move all the pieces on the board to where they stand at the beginning of A New Hope. With so much heavy lifting to do, it’s no surprise then that this last run will reduce the importance of individual storylines and ramp up the serialized storytelling instead.
At least, that’s what showrunner Dave Filoni has now revealed. While chatting with Nerdist to promote the new season, he had this to say:
“I’ve been able to build a lot better connections and motivations across all the episodes as we go. It is very unlike other seasons, because while the episodes are self contained, they are very next to each other in progression. They affect each other more; it’s more serialized than you’re used to.”
Hearing that the episodes will have a stronger sense of progression makes a lot of sense, considering the vast number of storylines that we know will be dealt with in season 4. The two-part premiere, for instance, will see Sabine Wren stepping up to take on a leadership role with her people and also explore the fate of the Darksaber, which is currently in her possession. In subsequent arcs, Ezra Bridger and Kanan will continue exploring their connection to the Force, while Hera Syndulla rises up to become a prominent member of the fledgling Rebel Alliance.
Not to mention fan-favourite Ahsoka Tano will also return, revealing what happened to her after her battle with Darth Vader back in season 2. Meanwhile, Grand Admiral Thrawn will pursue the crew of The Ghost with more intensity than ever before – even hiring the merciless assassin Rukh to hunt them down.
Star Wars Rebels season 4 begins its run today, October 16th, and you can catch “Heroes of Mandalore: Part One” at various times on both Disney XD and its associated app.