Star Wars Resistance review: Rescue mission gone wrong

Poe and Kaz hit pause on their downtime to answer a distress signal. The two pilots find a few unpleasant surprises and a pirate with her own agenda.

Our favorite Resistance pilot, Poe Dameron, returns to touch base with Kaz and help spread his wings a bit, especially after Kaz has been away on the Colossus for the past month or so. The thing is wherever Kaz goes, some kind of problem inevitably follows. So it’s no surprise they get into a mess of trouble with Kowakian monkey-lizards and pirates along the way.

“Signal from Sector Six” is another genuinely fun episode that has a similar vibe to the rathtar sequence with Han Solo and the gang in Star Wars: The Force Awakens. This particular episode also helps set the stage for what’s to come with the pirates’ ongoing plan to attack the Colossus.

Rise and shine

Yeager and Bucket wake up Kaz early in the morning for a salvaging job. In actuality, Yeager is taking Kaz far away from the Colossus to meet up with Poe. Since having a X-wing on the platform would bring too much attention, Kaz has to air-jump into the spare X-wing Poe brought along with him.

First of all, this episode starts off with a jacket-less Kaz. Turns out, he wears a short-sleeved shirt underneath his bright green jacket. Even though it’s a minor detail, it’s always fascinating when the artists and animators introduce subtle differences to a character’s wardrobe. It’s completely unrelated to the plot, but it’s still a welcome surprise.

Other favorite moments include Kaz’s unwillingness to wake up and his struggle to make the coffee machine work. We’ve all been there. And sure, Star Wars is about this ongoing struggle between the light and dark, but these everyday inconsequential details are the things we enjoy zooming in on. While we like to ask serious questions about the plot, we also wonder about random things, like how characters wash their clothes or order takeout food. We appreciate how Star Wars Resistance continues to add these ordinary details in what is normally an extraordinary setting.

It’s also amusing to see Yeager going out of his way to do something like this for Poe and Kaz, even though he clearly doesn’t want any part of it. His mannerisms, expressions, and the tone of his voice just say it all. He sort of comes across as the unwilling parent who has to drive his kid around and wait in the parking lot before driving back home after all the fun is done. That’s Yeager in a nutshell in this episode, and we love him even more for it.

Poe and Kaz hang out

Poe and Kaz head out to space, where they briefly talk about Kaz’s mission. Soon after, Poe gets excited about an asteroid field nearby. There, he teaches Kaz a technique, the backwards tail slide. Kaz struggles to replicate the move because according to Poe, he’s overthinking it.

Again, Star Wars Resistance is giving us what the movies don’t have time to focus on. We know Poe has a great relationship with Finn and Leia, but their moments together are so brief that we don’t get to see much outside of the hotshot pilot aspect of his personality. Through Resistance, we get to see his relaxed side and the parts of his personality that need more screen time to shine.

We previously mentioned how it would be great to see Poe and Kaz hang out and get to know each other some more, especially since Kaz gives us the impression he admires Poe and feels inspired by him. This episode did not disappoint.

Kaz wants to impress Poe and to make him proud, but he still comes off as his bumbling self. What we love most is how Poe doesn’t try to change that or tell him to do better. He’s not the kind of guy who would tell someone to grow up and “act like a man.” Instead, he encourages Kaz and tells him he’s done a good job because Poe is the kind of guy who wants everyone to succeed.

Unusual lifeforms

The fun ends when they receive a distress signal. They discover a damaged ship that has been attacked by pirates. Turns out, the ship was carrying Kowakian monkey-lizards. Poe and Kaz eventually find a survivor, Synara San, hiding in a crate for her own safety. They rush to leave the ship before they get eaten by a giant version of the monkey-lizard.

We absolutely love Poe’s version of the “I hate snakes” line from Indiana Jones in Raiders of the Lost Ark. It makes us curious if a Kowakian monkey-lizard bit him as a child, and as a result, he’s hated them ever since. Whatever the case may be, we love seeing those Easter eggs pop up here and there.

The chase throughout the ship is hilarious mainly because Kaz is completely freaking out the entire time. It’s so refreshing to see a protagonist not keep their cool under stressful and downright scary situations. Kaz will naturally scream his head off because he’s not able to cope with what’s happening in the moment. In our opinion, his screaming is a more realistic representation of how the average person would react. We truly appreciate that about his character.

Enter Synara San

Poe congratulates Kaz on a good job and the two say their goodbyes for now. Kaz decides to take Synara to the Colossus, where she can get the medical treatment she needs. Upon arriving, however, they go their separate ways. Synara gets in touch with pirate leader Kragan Gorr, who we last saw in “The Triple Dark.” He’s pleased to hear she’s on the Colossus, since this will make their plans easier in the future.

Synara’s appearance and getting the pirates one step closer to the Colossus plays out in such a genius and seamless way. It only makes us more eager for the next episode to see how Kaz’s mistake is going to affect the station.

We also look forward to more interactions between Kaz and Synara. We don’t know much about her personality or background, but we’re curious to learn if she is downright rotten or if she has the potential to change her path.

For now, “Signal from Sector Six” is just as entertaining as the episodes that came before. We know he has other important tasks to handle, but we can’t wait to see Poe again, especially with Kaz by his side. They both work well together and this episode is proof of that.

Lingering thoughts

• We have a feeling Tam is going to grow more suspicious about Kaz and the fact that Yeager seems to be favoring him. It’s possible the truth could blow up in Yeager’s face if he continues to keep Tam in the shadows.
• Also, if Yeager and Kaz are supposed to be on a salvaging job and they come back empty-handed, wouldn’t that raise more suspicions?
• Where did Yeager get that transport ship? Did he borrow it from a friend? Or does he have other ships beside the Fireball and his personal racer?

What were your thoughts pertaining to this episode? What did you think of Poe’s interactions with Kaz? Was there anything in particular that stood out to you?

Star Wars Resistance airs Sundays on the Disney Channel at 10 p.m. EST and DisneyNOW.