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Recap / Star Wars Rebels S4E10 "Wolves and a Door"

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Ezra and the Ghost crew learn the Empire has plans for the Jedi Temple on Lothal.


Tropes in this episode include:

  • Arbitrary Skepticism: Lampshaded. Ezra says that the grey wolves don't talk, but Zeb doesn't buy it given the other strange, inexplicable things they can do.
  • Call-Back:
    • At the end of "Shroud of Darkness", Vader noted that Sidious would be very pleased that the Inquisitors had found the Lothal Jedi Temple. We now see just why.
    • The lothwolves fold space to take the group to the temple, similar to how they moved across the planet back in "Kindred".
    • The image that opens the temple door is of the Father, Daughter and Son, who are collectively referred to as the "Mortis gods".
  • Continuity Nod:
    • Chopper uses a recording of Thrawn from one of his transmissions in "Zero Hour" to distract two Stormtroopers.
    • As the team moves across space-time to reach the temple, lines of dialogue from previous episodes in the series are heard.
  • Contrived Coincidence: The scout troopers that get mugged for their armors are a man and a woman, allowing Ezra and Sabine to infiltrate the dig site.
  • Creepy Changing Painting: The temple door is controlled by a painting of the Father, Daughter, and Son, surrounded by lothwolves. Using the Force to manipulate it causes the painting to change and act more like a motion video than a still image. The wolves then break off and form a circular portal that allows Ezra to access the world inside. Even Hera seems creeped out by the sight.
  • The Dreaded: When the crew learns that Darth Sideous is directly involved with the Jedi Temple excavation on Lothal, Hera immediately wants to fall back on the mission. Ezra defiantly points out that they have to continue the mission because Palpatine is involved; a Complete Monster like him CANNOT get his sick hands on whatever is in the Jedi Temple by any means.
  • Funny Background Event: Chopper trying to scoot away from the wolves, and failing.
  • Goggles Do Nothing: Finally subverted after four seasons, with Hera putting her goggles down to shield against the wind.
  • The Guards Must Be Crazy: Thoroughly averted. When asked why she wasn't on patrol, Sabine invokes a code that said she had to investigate something. The stormtroopers point out that that's a military code, and they're on an archeological site, not military. And when brought before the minister in charge, she's exposed and the guards are alerted to an imposter on the dig site.
  • Horse of a Different Color: The wolves appear and offer themselves as mounts for the rebels. Zeb, clearly uncomfortable with the wolves snarling at them, asks why they can't just take speeders.
  • Mugged for Disguise: When Ezra and Sabine need to infiltrate the temple work site, a couple of Scout Troopers show up to donate their armor.
  • The Noun and the Noun: "Wolves and a Door".
  • Properly Paranoid: The archaeologist in charge of the temple dig site recognizes Sabine as an imposter and immediately orders the site locked down because he knows she has a partner.
  • Shout-Out:
    • The musical score takes inspiration from Raiders of the Lost Ark when arriving at the Jedi Temple excavation site and when the door is activated.
    • During the attempt to open the temple, the dialogue is similar to Close Encounters of the Third Kind, when the U.N. scientists meet the Mothership.
    • The painting is and animates in a style similar to The Secret of Kells a film that, point of note, also has a pack of normal wolves led by mystical white wolf that assists the protagonist in both their spiritual journey and protecting their home, is friends with a cat, and is implied to pass on after their work helping the protagonist is done.
  • Summon Magic: After the last episode, Ezra's learned how to ask the wolves for help and summon them (if they're willing to come). Ezra tells the Ghost crew he has a way to get them to the temple and summons four wolves; the animals suddenly appearing out of nowhere on the plains of Lothal. He casually approaches the head wolf, asking if the pack can take them to the temple (like he would a person). The group has a dumbfounded moment as they blankly stare at Ezra as he does this. Sabine later lampshades his connection to them, to which Ezra says he can't really explain the connection; it's just there.
  • Wham Line:
    • The crew listens in on the incoming Imperial transmission from Coruscant... and it's none other than Darth Sidious/Emperor Palpatine — the Big Bad of the entire franchise — himself on the line. Sabine and Ezra appropriately have dawning reactions of horror when they realize whose voice they're hearing. It goes without saying the Emperor's involvement now makes Thrawn yesterday's news, and quite literally too.
    • Also a meta example: in Palpatine's first appearance in the series, he was voiced by Sam Witwer, who has been voicing him in most spin-off projects since Star Wars: The Force Unleashed. For this appearance, Ian McDiarmid has taken over. For those not in the know, McDiarmid is the guy who played Palpatine in the movies.


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