Lucasfilm and Disney XD's animated TV series Star Wars Rebels - set between the events of the prequel and the "original" Star Wars movie trilogy - will get its second season underway in just under a month (at the time of writing this), following the airing of a one-hour season 2 "kickoff event" this past June. That season two premiere/special, titled "The Siege of Lothal", feature - among other things - Rebels heroes Ezra Bridger (Taylor Gray) and Kanan Jarrus (Freddie Prince Jr.) in a lightsaber duel with Darth Vader (once again voiced by James Earl Jones).
Vader is expected to have a presence on Rebels throughout season 2, now that he's become personally involved with the Galactic Empire's ongoing effort to quell the growing Lothal rebellion. Meanwhile, the Rebels season 2 trailer also teased the appearance of other fan-favorite characters - to be exact, thee Clones (all voiced by Dee Bradley Baker) that were featured on the show's animated predecessor, Star Wars: Clone Wars.
Lucasfilm/Disney XD has now unveiled a fresh Star Wars Rebels season 2 featurette that includes interviews with Rebels co-creator/Showrunner Dave Filoni and Baker - who also provided the voices of characters like Admiral Kassius Konstantine and Ezra's father, Ephraim Bridger, on Rebels season 1 - discussing the clones' qualities (like, their debatable superiority to stormtroopers as soldiers) and their return for Rebels season 2. The three clones coming back are, in turn, Captain Rex (who served as the second-in-command to Anakin Skywalker on Clone Wars), as well as former Clone Commanders Wolffe and Gregor. Once again, all three have very distinct personality quirks even at their older age (recall that Clones age faster than regular humans in the Star Wars universe), as illustrated by these clips of them on Rebels season 2.
The inclusion of Rex and the other Clones on Rebels season 2 - much like the revelation in the Rebels season 1 finale that Hera's (Vanessa Marshall) informant "Fulcrum" is actually the Clone Wars veteran and onetime Anakin Skywalker padawan, Ahsoka Tano (Ashley Eckstein) - further weaves together the storylines of the two animated Star Wars TV shows produced thus far. Moreover, the emphasis on inter-connected storytelling between Star Wars cartoon series and live-action movies alike further expands and fleshes out the side characters/mythology of the latter - something we noted, in our breakdown of why Rebels and Clone Wars are "essential" for fans who want to enjoy the full Star Wars "experience".
Rebels season 2's narrative through-line will, no doubt, remain focused on the continuing adventures of the spaceship Ghost (and Ezra's development of his Force abilities) as the rebellion against the Empire grows. Nevertheless, the inclusion of characters like Ahsoka and Rex should allow the series to become an even more meaningful addition to the Star Wars world - while also working as a good standalone series in its own right, thanks to its charming core group of characters (and these new additions alike).
NEXT: Star Wars Animated Series Episode Guide
Star Wars Rebels season 2 premieres on Disney XD on October 14th, 2015 at 9:30 p.m. ET/PT.
Source: Disney XD/Lucasfilm