Following The Freemakers: The Maker Of Zoh

Since the Ghost crew took last Saturday off, you know what that means… it’s back to the Freemakers! And the episode we’re digging into today just so happens to be one of my favorites (even though they’re all my favorites), The Maker Of Zoh! Grab a hot cup of motor oil kaffe and read on!
NOTE: Contains spoilers from The Clone Wars “Siege Of Mandalore” arc, Rebels episode Twilight Of The Apprentice, The Yoda Chronicles, The New Yoda Chronicles, and Freemakers episodes Crossing Paths, The Test, The Kyber Saber Crystal Chase, and The Maker Of Zoh

Things have been pretty tough for the Freemaker fam these last couple days. A certain dark side-wielding Imperial is to blame. But perhaps things might not’ve been so difficult had they known R0-GR’s transmission pack had a tracking device the whole time. Roger knew about it but never considered it might have been the source of Naare’s constant one-step-aheading. Unfortunately this discovery is too late to make much of a difference — the last crystal’s on Hoth and Naare already knows this. So it’s either the Freemakers go to Hoth and she kills them or they don’t go and she finds the crystal and the Emperor kills everyone. But there is a third option, and it’s on Zoh. Rowan recalls what Maz Kanata told him about this person they could go to when things got desperate, and I’d say this whole situation qualifies. The uninhabited trash planet doesn’t sound promising, but hey, it’s not Hoth! That’s already a win! Oh, we’re off to see the Maker, the wonderful Maker of Zoh! *shot*
At first glance, Zoh isn’t terribly spectacular, but as they land the StarScavenger, the Freemakers come upon a fascinating array of massive, eclectic, but incredible scrap sculptures towering above them. The rest of the crew’s not sure what to make of it, but Rowan’s got a good feeling about this… which doesn’t last long when suddenly droids rise from the mechanical refuse. Lots of droids, from super battle droids to astromechs to pit droids and all the others I can’t rightly name. And they don’t like the Freemakers’ presence here. Zander sends Roger out to speak to them, but the instant their skeptical leader eyes the battle droid’s dismembered transmission pack, everydroid and their brother pulls out their weapons on the humans. Surely they would’ve made quick work of the family… had a voice not commanded them to cease their fighting… a voice I felt I recognized from somewhere but wasn’t sure where. With a wave of his hand, the mysterious figure disassembles the boulder of scrap metal that nearly was used on Rowan. The being must be Force-sensitive, but I still couldn’t place who this was. But then his left hand… it glows blue with the pure power of four kyber crystals. I squee-gasped with surprise: IT’S JEK-14. JEK is the one these droids address as The Maker. Oh my gosh you guys this made me so insanely happy I could hardly breathe! Considering how close-to-canon The Freemaker Adventures is, I wasn’t sure if the events of previous Lego SW specials were canon in this near-canon-ness. OK I’m not sure that made sense. What I mean is, one of the things that stands out most about TFA compared to previous Lego SW is that they strive to keep it as true to Star Wars as it gets, with the exception of some fun Lego stuff here and there. The older ones weren’t bad or any less fun by any means, they just mostly kept it light and played around with a lot of jokes that don’t quite quite fit the canon. Because of this, I wasn’t sure if they would consider both The Yoda Chronicles and The Freemaker Adventures in the same boat. I mean, I always kinda did, as I consider most Lego SW stories canon and take it all as seriously as the rest of SW. But whatever the case, they brought JEK-14 back and in the most amazing way. Anyway, JEK apologizes to the Freemakers for his overprotective shootystabbycrushy friends. Bossdroid N-3RO argues he has a right to overreact, looking at the lightsaber wound on one of the super battles, but JEK gets mouse droid Fixer right on it. The old clone gives the young scavengers full reign to take whatever scrap they need, but it’s not scrap they need, it’s help. And seeing how The Maker is a Forcewielder, Rowan believes he can help him with his Jedi training. But that’s exactly what JEK doesn’t want to do. “But the fate of the galaxy is at state!” “That’s what they all say… ‘One last battle to end all battles’, but there’s always another.” OK this just got so deep and so real I can’t even.
Let’s talk a brief history of JEK-14 for a minute or two. JEK-14 began life as a full-grown clone trooper, enhanced by kyber crystals and intended as a Separatist weapon by Darth Sidious. His first words were “I am ready to fight… for the Sith”, and without question he used his own brand of Force lightning on Jedi masters Mace Windu and Yoda. However, when commanded to actually kill Yoda, he couldn’t do it. Both the Jedi and the Separatists wanted JEK on their sides, but JEK refused, and the Force-sensitive clone fled for Hoth, where he found solace in using the Force to build works of art. However, the Separatists found him and cloned his Forcewielding self until he was barely alive. Miraculously, JEK-14 fought back and destroyed the dark side clones. Ultimately he chose to leave on a peaceful note, but intent on never again getting involved with the war. He went from there to Endor, where he helped build things for the ewok community. When the Jedi needed help, they sought him out, and it was only the kindness and innocence of Yoda’s padawans that convinced him to do so. In fact, had he not had such good relations with the younglings, far worse things might’ve happened. Some years later at the end of the Clone Wars, Yoda’s padawans convinced him to come back and help them get back the holocrons from the Jedi Temple. I don’t know for sure what he was doing in the time in between, but as I noticed watching this episode, the decorative clasp on his outfit has the Mandalorian beast-skull icon on it. Hehe I was actually right when I surmised he might’ve gone there! He clearly spent some time one what he assumed was a peaceful world, probably to be highly disappointed when the Siege of Mandalore occurred right before the war’s end. It was thanks to him that the Jedi made it safely offworld, and with the holocrons that Obi-Wan intended to use to train Luke someday. JEK spent the next 20 years in peace on Naboo before Yoda summoned him to Tatooine, where he would briefly join the fight against the Empire. He helped the Alliance for some time, before finally leaving them likely after they established their base on Hoth. And now, he’s made a home on Zoh, where he has all the building material he could ever want, all the friends he could ever need, and no one on his doorstep asking him to fight their battles. Until now. It’s only when Rowan explains how the Sith used him that JEK puts his pride and hurt behind him. Because once upon a time, the clone was used the same way. He’s not a Jedi, but he decides he will teach Rowan everything he knows about the Force. The Freemakers’ll be hanging out here for a while looks like. But N-3… bro’s not a fan…
Meanwhile, Graballa’s fleet was waiting outside Hoth. And waiting… and waiting… and waiting some more. Naare knows they’ll come. Graballa, however, is bored out of his mind. Both get slightly more than they bargained for though when their bosses come on the holo. Naare and Graballa are two very different varieties of scum and villainy, but the one thing they both have in common is that, for all their scum and villainy, they’re still pretty low on the food chain. Jabba doesn’t approve of his cousin’s latest harebrained scheme and Sidious is (as per usual) quickly running out of patience waiting for that Kyber Saber. Unsurprisingly, both Hutt and Imperial Agent are unsuccessful in convincing their higher-ups of their plans. We’re reminded in this scene that there are greater evils at work here and it’s terrifying. I do find it interesting that Naare approaches the Emperor this time not irritated or angry, but honestly kind of… afraid. Many times before, she’s addressed him with a prideful confidence we often see in second-rate darksiders, but it’s almost as though something happened recently to shake that foundation a little. Perhaps Sidious did something to remind her of her place, and what consequences await her if she fails. Maybe I’m reading into this too much, but if you’ve been reading these TFA posts for any length of time, you know I do a lot of that. But can you blame me? They are telling great stories here and I’m super curious about the things left unstated! But yah she feels ya, Graballa.
Watching JEK-14 training Rowan is basically one of the most beautiful things I’ve seen in my life. Like seriously. JEK has always been amazing with kids, and seeing him teaching his understanding of the Force to Rowan his just… wow. It’s something real special. I love his angle on the Force: the dark side destroys, but the light side creates. It’s a really great unique angle that feels appropriately Lego but also perfectly Star Wars. A very tangible point of view that perhaps no other Jedi master could offer… one that could only be explained by a Force-sensitive clone trooper who desired only to create. And perhaps someday Rowan will take these lessons and impart them on another young Forcewielder. FEELS FEELS FEEEEELS. Buuuuut again… N-3 is not a fan. The bossdroid’s convinced that The Maker might join the Freemakers and leave them if something’s not done. And if he leaves, they’ll be back to being useless, purposeless scrap. That does bring up a good question: do they truly see JEK as their friend and simply don’t want him to leave, or are they concerned mostly about being purposeless? Or are they concerned that, without The Maker, they will be have no one to protect them from any scavenger looking for a few spare parts? Or maybe it has something to do with him being “The Maker”, in that to the droids, he’s kind of a deity. IDK Maybe I missed something but any way you spin it it’s an interesting thought. N-3 is a very very desperate droid… and also very very convincing.
Elsewhere, Zander and Kordi hadn’t had much luck salvaging. Not a useful piece of junk in sight, it seems. Roger was trying to help, but after nearly crushing them with a toppled junk sculpture, the sibs give him the slip. It’s then when N-3RO makes his move, inviting his fellow “unappreciated” droid brother for a nice long oil bath. N-3 suggests that, perhaps, the battle droid should remain on Zoh, in paradise, away from ungrateful, uncaring masters who’d eventually scrap him. R0-GR won’t allow himself to believe the Freemakers would ever do such a thing, but considering recent events, there’s perhaps a niggling of doubt. Oh poor sweet Rogerrrr… 😦 Whatever the case, N-3RO’s got other plans for Roger’s masters… plans like leading Zander and Kordi into a trap.
So Rowan’s lessons were going quite well, thanks to JEK, he was able to construct a perfect speederbike out of spare parts. Which, true to his nature, Ro immediately hopped on and rode off. With a smile, JEK-14 follows on his own construction. Again AHHH I LOVE THIS. If Luke doesn’t become his official master then JEK totally should! It’s a good thing Rowan and JEK went for a ride, though, because they soon found Kordi and Zander chained up with a half a TIE hovering above their heads. N-3R0 insists that these trespassers have corrupted The Maker’s mind and that he’s doing the right thing by destroying them. Rowan expertly puts together a crate to shield them and attaches it to the speeders to get them to safety. Now if he and his master can stop the revolt without destroying the droids or getting killed themselves, it’llve been a good day! The two hold their own really well for a while, but when Rowan gets captured and JEK in turn lets his guard down, the droids get the better of them all. Roger returns from his oil bath to find his masters surrounded at all ends as N-3 has decided to “deactivate” them all, including JEK, who he now considers “beyond saving” O.O The bossdroid promises Roger complete freedom once the humans are out of the way. However, the old clanker’s come to a different conclusion. N-3 tried to convince him that the Freemakers’ frustration with him would ultimately end in a garbage disposal, but Roger has no doubts where he stands with his masters, because they’re not just masters, they’re family. In families, people make mistakes, they get mad at each other, but temporary frustration doesn’t turn their bond into scrap; they forgive each other, they love each other, they fight for each other. He might be a droid, but first and foremost he’s a Freemaker. And he takes that transmission pack with the family insignia on it and puts it back on. Now those droids are gonna have a whole ‘nother problem to deal with. OK I’m sorry I botched that moment but it’s truly amazing how strongly Roger cares for his family. In the past, he’s had a tendency to come off a little… I hate to say “jerky”, so let’s just say… “highly opinionated” with the Freemakers’ decisions and ideas. Oh wait “self-centered” that was the word I was looking for! Yeah he sometimes comes off like he cares more about himself than the others, but in his heart he truly considers them family, and he loves them even if they sometimes get on his nerves and force him into dangerous adventures… and vice versa 🙂 But oh yeah now here comes Graballa’s ship! Nuts I wish I knew its name so I wouldn’t have to keep calling it just “Graballa’s ship”. In the midst of the chaos, the Freemakers are able to make their escape. JEK remains behind to protect the droids, even after all they’ve done. But that’s not the last noble thing he’ll be doing today. Just as the Freemakers got out of the frying pan, they walked into the fryer as Naare pulled her red-blade out on them. Rowan was ready to take her on, whatever it took, but JEK-14 stood between them, urging Rowan and his family to go on. Oh man I’m getting all teary-eyed writing this. As Naare addressed him as the “failed experiment”, my respect for her dropped a few points. It’s an amazing duel though, as she fights with her lightsaber, while JEK fights with nothing but the pure Force running through his blood. He creates obstacles to throw in her way, but she just as easily tears these structures apart. Had this been a fair fight, I believe JEK was the stronger of the two, even without formal training. But it was not so… using every inch of darkness in her soul, Naare began to form a mountain of refuse around the clone. Rowan watched in horror as The Maker of Zoh was slowly buried in the scrap. Before going down, JEK called out to his apprentice “Trust in the Force. Be a builder, Rowan!” and I started bawling here, crying out “HE DONE PULLED AN ‘AHSOKA’!!” Because of JEK-14’s sacrifice, the StarScavenger was able to get offworld and away from their enemies’ grasp. Over the transmission pack, Rowan makes very clear to Naare that he will be getting that final fragment. JEK not only taught Rowan a new understanding of the Force, but I believe he’s also heavily inspired bravery in his apprentice, and in the rest of the Freemakers as well, in their most desperate hour.
On Zoh, a recently reconstructed N-3RO (post being blasted by Graballa’s fleet) wakes up to a world without The Maker… and also a restraining bolt because bro was well overdue for one of those. BL-OX now knows they never should’ve listened to him, as now, their master is no more. I started getting weepy again as I recalled all of the amazing things JEK had done and the incredible man he was. And then…
An arm shot out of the scrap.
The spark of the Force still electric in his veins, a blaze of pure Force shoots from his hand.
JEK LIVES.

So I basically drowned in feels the rest of the day. Happy feels that JEK is alive. Sad feels that Rowan believes he lost his friend. Nostalgia feels from seeing JEK again. Really all the feels. I so so much love this episode and, again, this series. It felt awesome writing about them again. And I certainly will soon! Whenever the Rebs go on hiatus I’ll bring some more Freemaker follow-ups until I hit the season finale! As long as I live and breathe I’m never gonna wanna stop talking about Star Wars 😀

Keep The Peace,
– Twilight

Following The Freemakers: The Kyber Saber Crystal Chase

FREEEEEEEMAKERRRRRRRR TIIIIIIIIIIIME *blows air horn*
Was I out of ideas for an opener? Yes, yes I was. Here at Padawanline we’re an honest bunch. And by “we’re” and “bunch”, I mean “I’m” and “person”, but it sounded better using the royal “we”. Yep this ought to be an interesting blog today! Let’s get started digging into the fast-paced excitement of The Kyber Saber Crystal Chase!
NOTE: Contains spoilers from Episode III, The Empire Strikes Out, and Freemakers episodes Peril On Kashyyyk, The Test and The Kyber Saber Crystal Chase

We reunite with the Freemakers right where we left off last episode as they finish up final repairs on the StarScavenger. With a new Kyber Saber fragment in hand and their ship “purring like a nexu”, things are looking hopeful for the first time since yesterday’s frightening events (or however long it’s been… the amount of time that passes in SW confuses me sometimes). Then came a peppering of laserfire from Graballa’s fleet. And the Eclipse Fighter’s joined in too. Freemakers be like “HOW EVEN???” But before they know it, Naare Force-grabs the kyber crystal right out of Rowan’s hands. OH NOES WHYYYYYY. *Sigh* So much for hope. Time for the Freemakers to get the heck outta Tako-Dodge. They set their hyperspace for “anywhere” and fly off. Despite this, Naare doesn’t seem worried. And when a villain doesn’t fret over their prey getting away… it usually means they’ve got something else planned…
None of the Freemakers can figure exactly how she found them, especially when there’s no tracking device on their ship. Rowan feels terrible that, once again, he’s allowed pieces of the ultimate weapon to fall into their enemy’s hands. But Kordi surmises if they can keep at least one crystal out of Naare’s grasp, she won’t be able to reconstruct the Saber and the galaxy will be saved. So Rowan decides they’re heading to a certain water planet I’ve already forgotten the name of to grab the next crystal. To navigate the planet’s depths, Zander reveals his newest creation, the Z-Sub. Unfortunately for him, his siblings find his technological marvel to be adorable. I’d say I get Zan’s feelings on the matter, but it really is pretty darn cute :3 I know I wanna build that Lego set when it comes out! Kordi henceforth and forevermore dubs it the Bubbly Subbly. The Freemaker firstborn is not amused, buuuuut he ends up going with it anyway. To the deep blue sea! Ugh I gotta tell ya I am not good with new planet names… if it’s not readily accessible in the starwars.com databanks I won’t have a clue how to spell it, if I remember it at all! 😛 It is a really cool planet though. I wonder if it’s got any sentient life on it, or if it’s just a wild planet like Dagobah. It certainly does have life on it though, as it seems a massive anglerfish-like beast is using the Saber fragment as a light source. I’m guessing that the ancient Jedi probably didn’t hide it there. The fish probably found the crystal and took it for itself later on. The idea of a creature that uses found objects for their lures is seriously cool. Even though yeah it’s causing some major problems for our heroes today. The fish gives chase for a while until the Freemakers realize their now-broken light was competing with his lure. Once Rowan repairs it with the Force, the creature and the sub make a trade and go on their merry ways. Success! But then… NAARE?? AGAIN?? With the Fighter tethered to the sub, their best move is to head back underwater. The Agent’s ship was built for the stars, not the sea, which works well in the Freemaker’s favor as the Eclipse Fighter’s controls get fried. Zander made a spectacular move as he shot the sub back into the StarScavenger, but unfortunately, though the Fighter couldn’t fly, Naare still swiftly takes the new crystal for her own. Kordi insists Roger get get them into hyperspace now… while they’re still on the planet. What happens is magnificent. The force of the lightspeed jump causes the waters to rise in a massive wave. And Naare and her spacecraft are caught right in it. Truly MAGNIFICENT. But the score remains Naare: 2. Freemakers: 0. And Naare is well-aware of this. She’s usually so… well, short-tempered, to put it mildly. I’m seriously impressed with how chill she’s been today. But honestly she’s even scarier when she’s chill than when she’s full-blown enraged. Also the thing with Graballa and Dengar. It seems Vader’s not the only one to show up late for his dramatic entrance XD
Ooh finally a new paragraph! So the Freemaker’s next stop is Naboo. Beautiful, peaceful, well-populated-enough-to-help-them-lay-low Naboo! Unfortunately it’s also the Naboo that’s home to the new Palapatine Museum. OMG THIS CONCEPT. IT IS PERFECT. AND MAKES SO MUCH SENSE. Why wouldn’t the Emperor have a whole educational building dedicated to his greatness on his homeworld? Of all the places to hide a Kyber Saber crystal though…! Also Wic Cooper, “Palpatine’s biggest fan“, literally cuts in line to get the most expensive tour they’ve got. And this is a museum dedicated to Darth Sidious. Cooper you have no clue how messed-up this all is. Anyway, this calls for a master plan! That’s why R0-GR’s puttin’ on his fake ‘stache. OK actually Zander’s the one with the master plan, but it does still involve the droid. Zan’s just an ordinary deliveryman with a droid for the Clone Wars exhibit! But as soon as he runs into Durpin and Plumestriker… he’s an ordinary deliveryman with a fake mustache. Oh yes I missed Durpin and Plumestriker! It’s been too long! Now they’re museum officials, and Durpin is happy just to be doin’ nothing much of anything. Plumestriker doesn’t seem to share the opinion but he is Durpin’s subordinate, so whatcha gonna do, right? But while they go about their “business” (read: playing dejarik), the Freemakers go about some business of their own. With Roger on the inside, the sibs are able to get in without a hitch. But about two seconds in Zander darts off to the gift shop. I don’t blame him I have a serious thing for museum swag. And museums in general. Were I living in their galaxy I’d probably not be as fond of the Imperial merch, but in this galaxy, all I want right now is that little AT-AT XD Kordi and Rowan remind him to remain focused (and also that btdubs Palpatine wouldn’t bat an eyelash at killing them so why would you buy his merch?) but man… this museum is a treasure trove of beautiful distractions. Roger goes off to talk to some old (deactivated) friends, Zander can’t resist the allure of the vintage starships… even Kordi isn’t immune when she eyes all the pretty Queen Amidala dresses! That made me laugh so hard, because honestly I’m just like her in that way. Most of the time, I’ll dress casually and chill livin’ my average-American life, but I do love to dress up and act fancy from time to time XD Who knew financially-attuned Kordi would have such rich tastes? Also I really like the museum covers more than just Palpatine himself, but every aspect of his devious plan, which I just realized is actually kinda sad… but at risk of me talking about Clone Wars philosophy I should just move on back to the story. I never thought I’d see the day when Rowan had more focus than the rest of his family, but that day has come. OK well he was briefly distracted by a floor buffer, but still not as long as the others. Not that things go perfectly by any means though. Rowan was startled by a Palpatine animatronic and backed into a giant Palpatine statue that knocked over the other Palpatine statues and I’m literally already tired of saying “Palpatine” in this paragraph. And then one thing led to another and there was a… small explosion. Who’s bright idea was it put fully-armed blasters and N1 starfighters on display anyway?? Plumestriker won’t let Durpin ignore that. So he presses an alarm button and from behind the doors come a whole squad of storms. Wait… were those stormtroopers standing behind the door the whole time? Just waiting for something to go wrong? That must be insanely boring. But either way, it’s time for action! Whether Durpin likes it or not! Another question: though Kordi absolutely rocked the classic Queen Amidala dress, how did she do the makeup? Did they have actual samples of the makeup on display or does she actually carry some face paint around? And how’d she do it in the dark to begin with? The world may never know, but again, it’s fun seeing the secretly-fancy side of the Freemaker Bosslady. But now they’ve got stormtroopers staring them down with the dork Imps in tow. Plumestriker recognized them and had no problem ordering his men to fire… until THE EMPEROR HIMSELF SHOWED UP. I wasn’t really freaked out though, I figured it might’ve been Rowan taking advantage of the 50% off sale on the Palpatine voice changers. He orders them to let the “generous donors” go and Durpin is happily demoted to ensign. And turns out the kyber crystal was hidden away in the Queen’s headpiece. Y’know wow that must be one ancient headpiece if that was where the Jedi had hidden it all along. Wonder if Padme or Sabe ever noticed the small sharp pain whenever they put it on? And also why the ancient Jedi thought that was a good hiding place. But either way it worked out well for the Freemakers! Oh they weren’t gonna get off that easy though… look! It’s Naare! Again! And this time with Dengar! Of course this couldn’t just be easy. Also funny Kordi and Zander and I were thinking the same thing when Roger pulled out a loaded blaster on their foes. It just seems like an all-around bad idea, man! Insurance must be steeeeeep. But then again this is Palpatine we’re talking about “I AM THE INSURANCE!” XD Naare faces Rowan head-on this time, clearly looking forward to another win. But this time, Rowan fights back and Force-grabs it himself. Oooh Force fights are always fascinating to me. Who has the greater focus, who has the stronger ability? Unfortunately (also getting kinda tired of saying that), Naare gets into his head and takes it for herself. However, Rowan’s not going down without a fight, and unsheathes the red blade. OK am I the only person who really loves the imagery here? Our hero is clothed in black and fights with a red lightsaber, while our villain wears the traditional garb of a Jedi and wields a blue-blade. It’s seriously fascinating. As though an illustration that the light and dark lie in all, regardless of who we believe we are. No Sith is too far gone unless they choose to do so. Just as no Jedi is 100% pure of heart all the time. We’re human. We’re imperfect. But we always have a choice. After this episode I definitely toyed around with the wondering if Rowan might ever walk down the dark path Naare did, and if she might ever return to the light. Oh I just love talking SW philosophy! It’s so legittttt. This duel was equal parts exciting and terrifying, as we’re finally getting to see Rowan in a duel, but we’re all aware he’s not as well-trained as Naare is… and she fights dirty and mercilessly. So I was on the edge of my seat the whole time, knowing that one move and someone could be dead. Or minus a limb. And darn it all, Naare won again as she slammed Rowan’s lightsaber out of his grip, and followed that up by Force-grabbing him and throwing him into the N1. Now she approaches Rowan with two blades in hand, dragging them along the ground, surely about to end her pawn’s life, and I’m basically sick with fear at this point. “With me, you could’ve reached your destiny”. To which Rowan awesomely replies “I’m going to reach for something else.” Anyone else just realize how amazing that line is? Naare implies his destiny could’ve been with the dark, but Rowan knows he has a choice. Also it was a pun because he was about to drop the N1 on her, but it’s still amazing all the same. And like that, the starfighter explodes and sets off a chain reaction, most certainly sending everyone packing. With the museum falling down around them, it looks like the only kyber crystal they’ve got was in the blue-blade Rowan has now claimed as his own. It’s only when they’re aboard the StarScavenger once more they find out exactly how it is she knew their every move… Roger’s pack O.O *SHOCKING TWIST*
Turns out Naare actually somehow survived the wreckage. I was relieved in some ways because she’s an awesome villain and I didn’t really want her dead yet if she was going to die at all, but I was also kinda freaked out because… well, she’s a villain. And she’s only a a centimeter away from reconstructing a handheld superweapon. Though as Graballa suggests, she gonna have to do some explainin’ to her boss regarding all this property damage… but that’s not important right now. The Imperial Agent’s quest is almost complete. Everything that happens in the next few episodes will determine the very fate of the galaxy. *OMINOUS ENDING AGAIN*
Oh wow oh wow what an episode! So great I kinda messed it up at the end. I do regret to say this’ll be the last Following The Freemakers post for a while, since we’ll soon be reuniting with the Rebels. If I could I’d write about SW all day, but I can’t. But I’ll most definitely write on the next episode when I can. So thank you for joining me and let’s get hyped for SWR Season 3!

Keep The Peace,
– Twilight

Following The Freemakers: The Test

It’s Freemaker time again! And have we got a lot to talk about today! So that’s why I’m cutting short the usual long rambly opener so we can study The Test together 🙂 Hehe yeah if Star Wars were a school subject, I’d be acing it! Well maybe not acing it acing it, considering the times I misunderstand stuff and misspell stuff but hopefully I’d at least be getting a B+…
NOTE: Contains spoilers from Episode II, Episode VII, Rebels episodes Always Two There Are and Brothers Of The Broken Horn, and Freemakers episodes A Hero Discovered, Peril On Kashyyyk, Race On Tatooine, and The Test

I remember writing a while back that, though I was really enjoying the often-humorous daily tension of who Naare really was vs. who the Freemakers thought she was, I was kinda terrified as to what would happen when the other shoe would drop. Because the instant they found out who she really was… ooooh boy… things were gonna get really real. It was a beautiful day on The Wheel and it seemed nothing was out of the ordinary. Until Naare rang the doorbell and the Freemakers wouldn’t open it. Unfortunately when one wields a lightsaber doors don’t typically stay closed for long. I’d stupidly half-expected the Darksider-next-door to walk right into a surprise party… but as she catches the family in the process of packing their bags, it’s evident she no longer has the fan club she had last episode. Because ROWAN KNOWS. And wielding her red-blade, it’s clear his family knows too. “…the Jedi are all gone. Destroyed… by people like me.” I can’t express how much that line terrified me. THERE HAVE BEEN OTHERS SHE HAS DECEIVED. AND KILLED. Naare is basically an unofficial inquisitor. I’d theorized she might’ve been trained by inquisitors but I had no idea she’d done this before. All I can say is she is one very scary lady. *Shudders* But Rowan’s not alone in this fight, because he has Kordi and Zander (and technically R0-GR too but let’s be honest he’s not all that helpful right now). They’re somehow able to board the StarScavenger just in time, but their foe literally Force-grabs the ship. Comparably it took two inquisitors just to grab the considerably-smaller Phantom back on Rebels. Good night she’s powerful. I’m guessing that was a trick the higher-up Darksiders taught her. But Rowan also knows that it’s hard to keep your concentration when someone’s firing at you and mans the guns. Which it then occurred to me “oh right their ship does have a weapons system.” They hadn’t really shot anything I don’t think since the Imperial freighter in the pilot so for some reason I’d forgotten they could at all. I’m thinking just as a whole they don’t shoot at people if they feel they really don’t have to, which says something about this beautiful family’s morals. But yeah I think they have full license to shoot at Naare right now. But if you think for a second that that’s going to stop this Sith-y sort you’re dead wrong. ‘Cause now here comes the Eclipse fighter! And she’s enjoying blasting their ship wayyyy more than she should. After a few perilous turns, Naare sends them a holo, making a deal that I guarantee she’ll alter further. Zander calls no deal and charges the Eclipse dead-on, which masterfully tears her ship apart. Is it wrong I applauded? Naare challenges them, promising she’ll come after them if they don’t just destroy her now. They had the opportunity and all the reason in the galaxy to do so, but Zander simply sends the StarScavenger into hyperspace. Like I was saying, the Freemakers have more morals than most these days. And seeing Zan step up like this is really great. It obviously stung for him to realize his crush is an absolute monster, but when the lives of his brother and sister are in question, he knows where his true loyalties lie. But even then, after all she’s done, he still doesn’t take the shot. Blasting people is just not the way he rolls, even when certain people don’t deserve that kind of mercy. ZANDER FREEMAKER YOU ARE AN AMAZING PERSON. ‘Course, Roger knew all along she wasn’t trustworthy, just by his past experience with Jedi, “the bad guys of the Clone Wars”. Zander and Kordi set him straight by explaining a) Naare’s not a Jedi and b) technically battle droids were “the bad guys”. Roger is horrified and literally deletes the last few minutes from his memory so he never heard such a thing. OK so that answers a lot of questions about battle droids and free will. I guess it turns out they were just an extremely loyal bunch who never once thought that maybe they were doing the wrong thing, even when their superiors were killing innocents and being all-around jerks. Fascinating. But of all the Freemakers, Rowan’s the one hurting the most right now. Naare had made him feel special, making him believe he would be a great Jedi and hero. Now, he doesn’t believe he’s any of those things. I about started bawling there NUUUU DON’T SAY THAT LET ME HUG YOU CHILDDDD! But before Kordi can say anything their ship’s damage throws them out of hyperspace and they find themselves crash-landing. Zander does bring up a good point do starships actually have brakes? And if they don’t, why don’t they? But I found myself taking note how very green this planet is… and also oh look there’a castle right there. Wait are we on Takodana?? Otherwise known as one of my favorite new SW planets?? Oh right they were crash-landing. Well the good news is they managed to come to a stop without utterly destroying anything! “ZANDER FREEMAKER: SUPERSTAR PILOT GUY!” Pfff the looks Kordi and Rowan shot him I died laughing. “Only in your mind, my very young apprentice.” XD Oh right usually when someone gives you the good news there’s usually some bad news that follows. The bad news is, though they didn’t utterly destroy anything, they did slightly dent a ship and its crew was none too happy. And guess who its owner was? HONDO. OHNAKA. AHHHHHHHHHHHHH #OHNAKAFEVER IS REALLLLLLLL AGAIN. So I’m figuring things’ll go OK at this point, ’cause these days the old pirate’s a decent guy, right? Welp um… you see… back in Rebels, Hondo was on his own and didn’t have a crew or a ship or anything. So being a decent guy was kind of all he could do. Now as you might notice he has a ship and a crew and that crew has I think Grumgar on it so… Captain Ohnaka is back in business. And he’s got a pirate-y reputation to keep. Gotta say it was a really genius move to make Hondo more of the bad guy again after we’ve kinda gotten used to his nice-ish self in Rebels. But either way, I love him and I love seeing him finally make his way to the Lego SW side of things. Besides, we’ve got MAZ KANATA to keep him in check. Oooh my gracious goodness I’m sorry I haven’t really had a chance to talk about Maz much these days but she is so so so so awesome. The Pirate Queen ain’t takin’ any sass from one of her “subjects”! Especially not Captain Ohnaka here. Can I just say seeing Maz and Hondo in the same room is one of the most wonderful things I’ve ever seen in my life? Seriously. Her bossladyness up against his roguish charm is a delight. As long as Hondo’s still making mischief in SWR, I’d sure like to see him run into Maz again while we’re at it. Anyway, so Maz insists Hondo work it out with the kids peacefully, and so he decides to give them a little job. But as he fills the Freemakers in, Rowan finds himself drawn to something in the castle… I admit I kinda forgot about the Kyber Saber crystals for a second and thought “Wow did she have Luke’s old ‘saber already? Wait a darn second only Rey’s allowed to find that!” by the end of the episode everything made sense though. Maz is curious what it is he was seeking. Though I wouldn’t put it past her that she might already know. I mean, she is Maz Kanata after all. She just knows things. Augh I need to watch The Force Awakens again hurry up and release already 3D Deluxe Blu-Ray!! So the job is simple: grab a few golden orbs from Takodana’s third moon and bring ’em back. Simple enough, if they can survive the trip, ’cause all they’ve got to get there is their little scavenger-scooper thing. And with three people and a droid in there, there’s not much elbow room. And for anyone who’s ever traveled in a packed vehicle (including myself), you know that the drive is half the battle.
As for Naare, she had no choice but to land the Eclipse back in the Freemakers’ hangar. And just as soon as she got there, Graballa and his gang show up. She absolutely don’t need their crud right now and sends that message via lightsaber-ing and Force-throwing. The Hutt’s completely fine with calling it quits at this point. But once Naare sees they both want the same thing, she sees a new opportunity. They fix her fighter and she’ll give them half the crystals. And they’ll even work together to find Rowan. Sounds like a plan! Sure it’s not a plan that will likely end well for Graballa, knowing how Naare works, but it’s still one plan more than anyone else has right now. Yeah this will most definitely a problem for our heroes. And whether you’ve seen how the season ends or not, you just know…
Yep that little scooper is not by any means a family vehicle. I’m not sure it should be even allowed for space travel with four individuals in it. Good thing that moon was right nearby ’cause then it probably would’ve gone a lot worse… and that’s saying something. So they find their sinkhole where the orbs were supposed to be, but they also found a large herd of VARACTYLS. Remember a few blogs ago when I briefly fangirled over the presence of a varactyl in the dejarik game but remembered varactyls aren’t a playable creature in any other dejarik game we’ve ever seen so I just assumed my fangirliness was making me see things? Well, first of all, I watched that episode again and found out I was right to begin with. Second of all AHAHAHHAHHAAAA LOOK AT ALL THE PURTY VARACTYLLLLLLS!!! And they’re so detailed! So much more detailed than previous Lego versions! Thank you Lego SW for giving more of these amazing feathery reptiles, thank you! Although I would be quick to run over and hug them all, the Freemakers are a little more concerned because they’d rather not get eaten. Zander decides their best move is to wait until nightfall and grab the orbs while they sleep. The plan from there is for Kordi and Zander to lower Roger into the sinkhole while Rowan keeps an eye out for trouble, a job that both Roger and Ro aren’t thrilled about. Kordi felt it was best Rowan get an easier job after all that’s happened, but I can’t help but think this whole job might’ve gone easier had they had someone other than their three-fingered droid getting the goods. Especially when Kordi decides they should grab a few extra for themselves. It doesn’t take long for him to drop the orbs and awaken the beasts. And them beasts ain’t happy whatsoever. With the scooper falling apart and Roger torn to pieces, it looks like Rowan’s all they’ve got left. With only the red-blade by his side, Rowan takes a spectacular leap of faith and of Force as he rushes in to defend his family. However, not long after he gets down there, he starts to sense what the varactyls are feeling, and it’s a feeling he can relate to. The pain of uncertainty. The fear of loss. But also the fierce love of family. These orbs are eggs, and for all their desperation to survive, and their own fear and pain, the Freemakers aren’t about to let their gain be someone else’s loss. FEEEEEEEEEEEEEEELS. Also OHMYGOSHOHMYGOSHOHMYGOSH BABY VARACTYLS!!!! THEY’RE SO TINEH AND THEY MEW LIKE KITTENS OHMYGOSH I CAN’T IT’S TOO PRECIOUS. X3 X3 X3 THANK YOU LEGO STAR WARS THANK YOU SO MUCHHHH ❤ ❤ *Falls to knees sobbing with joy* It's like they know what I'd like to see in SW before I even do. Anyway, so as the new varactyl families play together, Kordi makes clear to her little brother that he was wrong about himself — "You are special. You’re the most special kid in the whole galaxy!” and so all of the family feels going on sent me into a coma of warm fuzzies. But I didn’t stay that way for long because I still needed to know what the Freemakers’ next move was. Yeah Hondo knew they were eggs, and he wasn’t terribly thrilled he didn’t get any because they could’ve gotten him some mighty fine creds. Remind me never ever to cross Captain Ohnaka when he’s got a crew because before they knew it, our heroes were surrounded at all ends by blasters O.O That’s about when a flying cup smacked Hondo in the head. Maz has a serious problem with Hondo taking advantage of a bunch of kids and smacks him with glassware and mugs until he and his crew finally vamoose. You go, Pirate Queen! Good seeing ya Hondo. Even if this wasn’t one of your more shining moments 😛 I hope to see you again soon! Just maybe as an ally next time, mkay? Anyhow, Maz does her awesome thing and decides to help out our heroes. She literally pulls the exact part they need out of a set of drawers. She’s amazing, but you knew that. And then… out of a heavily-locked set of drawers, she hands Rowan a Kyber Saber fragment. I think it’s safe to say, yeah, she knew what he was looking for all along. With that, she sends the Freemakers on their way. But not before giving Ro a small piece of advice — to seek out the Maker of Zoh when things get desperate. The youngest Freemaker isn’t sure what that means, but I know from experience… when Maz Kanata tells you something, you better remember it 🙂
Oh yes I just love this one! Another exceptional adventure loaded with excitement and laughs and feels and basically everything! I’d keep going on about how much I love the show and this episode but I figure you’re bored with me by now so I’ll just stop talking.

Keep The Peace,
– Twilight