Compromise is a virtue to be cultivated, not a weakness to be despised.
Jedi Master Mace Windu and his clone troopers are trying to take back Lessu, capital of Ryloth, from the Separatists and capture Emir Wat Tambor. In order to do that, Mace attempts to ally with the Twi'lek Resistance led by Cham Syndulla. However, General Syndulla doesn't trust that the Republic forces won't overstay their welcome or Rylothian Senator Orn Free Taa, who he sees as corrupt. He changes his mind after Commander Ponds reports to Mace that the Separatists have bombed inhabited Twi-lek villages on Ryloth. Ultimately, Ryloth is liberated by the Republic and Tambor is captured.
Tropes:
- The Cameo:
- Anakin appears during the briefing early on and with Ahsoka in their starfighters to shoot down the Hyena bombers.
- Admiral Yularen also appears during the briefing and tells Palpatine that there are no available reinforcements.
- Curb-Stomp Battle: Mace demolishes the waves of Separatist droids sent against him at the gateway to Lessu and only stops to have Cham finish them off when Cham arrives in order to capture Tambor before the Separatist leader can escape.
- Dramatic Irony: When Mace tells Cham Syndulla that Republic clone troopers will stay for a while to keep the peace, Cham has this to say:Cham: Another armed occupation is not a free Ryloth. How long before I am fighting you, Master Jedi?
- Elaborate Underground Base: The Twi'lek Resistance fighters have a nice underground hideout, with the entrance in a crashed Separatist landing craft.
- A Father to His Men: Cham greets his men and the Twi'lek refugees that he's protecting by name with a fatherly smile as he walks through the compound, and they all trust him with good reason.
- Foreshadowing: "Another armed occupation is not a free Ryloth. How long until I am fighting you, Master Jedi?" As we'll see in Rebels, Cham will indeed immediately turn rebel against the Empire.
- Godzilla Threshold: Cham finally agrees to help Mace and speak with Senator Taa, his hated political rival, when he hears that the Separatists are bombing inhabited villages.
- Greed: Tambor's insistence on not leaving Ryloth before he's stolen as many of the Twi'leks' treasures as he can gets him caught.
- Grievous Harm with a Body: The first commando droid to enter the Lessu control room throws a B1-battle droid at Razor and Stak.
- Gunship Rescue: Anakin and Ahsoka manage to catch up to and shoot down the the Hyena-class bombers right before the things release their payload on Lessu and, while it was known they were shooting down bombers, they were nowhere near the capital and their arrival was a bit of a surprise.
- Human Shield: Just like in the previous episode, the Separatists are using Twi'leks this way. Tambor has the inhabitants of Lessu driven outside of the walls to place them in the line of fire of any attacking forces.
- Hypocritical Humor: When a pack of B1s discovers the severed head of a pre-Clone Wars Battle Droid.Battle Droid: Hey look! It's RB-551! No wonder he got blasted, he was one of those older models, controlled by a central computer. Not us, we're independent thinkers!All the other B1s in the patrol: Roger Roger.
- If I Can't Have You…: Tambor's tactical droid orders the Hyena bombers to attack Lessu so the Republic won't be able to enjoy their victory.
- Kick the Dog: Tambor has villages of unarmed Twi'leks bombed on Count Dooku's orders, intended to show the galaxy "the cost of a Republic victory".
- Know When to Fold 'Em: Tambor immediately surrenders when Mace and Cham catch up to him and have him at weapons-point, though he felt surrender was unnecessary when he thought they were all going to die for the "glory" of the Separatists in the bombing of Lessu. It's rather ironic that he surrenders because TA-175 knew when to fold 'em sooner and leaves him behind.
- Laser-Guided Karma: Tambor's insistence on waiting for his last treasure shipments is what allows Mace to sneak into his base and reactivate the plasma bridge, getting him captured.
- Properly Paranoid: Cham is concerned that the Republic's occupation of Ryloth will turn out poorly for the Twi'leks and, as Rebels presented, he is correct, just not for the reasons he anticipated. When the Republic falls and is replaced by the Empire, the Empire takes joy in subjugating, enslaving, and selling the Twi'leks.
- Rebel Leader: Cham Syndulla is leading the Twi'lek Resistance against the occupation of Ryloth.
- The Rival: Cham Syndulla and Orn Free Taa were political rivals before the Clone Wars, and there's no love lost between them as a result.
- Sacred Hospitality: While Cham acknowledges his group has little food, he also states it is traditional to share with and provide for guests, so he treats Windu, Razor, and Stak to a meal.
- Salt the Earth: Count Dooku orders everything that isn't being stolen and can be destroyed on Ryloth demolished while the Separatists evacuate their own forces.
- Screw the War, We're Partying: Cham tells Windu that he hopes the festival-like atmosphere in his base at night doesn't bother the Jedi, but that having such an opportunity to take their minds off the war tearing their world apart is good for his men.
- Shatterpoint Tap: Mace presses his palm against the windshield of an disabled AT-TE and uses the Force to shatter it by tapping its weak point to rescue the injured clone trooper who was operating it.
- Shout-Out: One of the treasures being loaded onto Tambor's shuttle is the Ark of the Covenant.
- The Starscream: Tambor's tactical droid, TA-175, calls him a "fool" for not evacuating when ordered, and leaves without him.
