What Was The Point?

No clue. Great show in it's own bubble but in the macro sense of things, it's pointless. I was very disappointed with the series. After how TCW and Rebels added things to the grand scheme of things, I figured this show would do the same but it didn't. They didn't even tie the show to Episode 9 at the very least. This show is very underwhelming especially as they promoted it as the next big series after Rebels. Seem like Dave Filoni did maybe the first few episodes then quit the project. I gave this show a honest chance during it's original run, it had potential but it missed the mark.

--- Double Post Merged, Mar 11, 2020, Original Post Date: Mar 11, 2020 ---

It got little better after the 4th Episode. 4th Episode is really good and actually showed the potential it could have. There were couple great episodes through out both seasons but they did nothing to build upon of it. I honestly wouldn't even recommend people this show like I would with TCW, Rebels or The Mandolorian.

 

I actually enjoyed the series quite a bit. Not as much as TCW or Rebels, but it had a fun, quirky charm all of its own. I liked that they made an effort to make it distinct from its predecessor shows.

That said, I too get the impression it was originally intended to last longer. It really felt like it was building up to something more, but then it just left off with a rather abrupt feeling. It was a pretty entertaining show in itself, but I likewise couldn't help but be disappointed at how it didn't really tie much into the overall story. Admittedly, I can see why Disney decided to end the show when they did, but I still think it deserved a third season at least.

 

Unfortunately, it turned out to be a mediocre, unsuccessful show in the end. For whatever reason, Disney/LFL wanted an animated series running in between Rebels and the release of new content on Disney+. Perhaps they wanted a sequel era show running at the same time as the trilogy? I honestly think that it just existed to be a filler series essentially.

The show was certainly limited by poor marketing and an awkward release schedule. The first trailer was awful and lots of the promotional material only showed the especially kid-oriented parts. Yet Disney decided to air the show super late at night during the week when those kids are more likely to be asleep. The show was already doomed even if it was the best thing ever. I bet if it had done well, it would’ve been renewed for at least one more season.

There were plenty of problems with the show itself too. I understand that it’s a kid show, but it really alienated older viewers through its over-reliance on slapstick and usually unfunny jokes. The second season mostly meandered along with no real sense of direction and it didn’t capitalize on the hype from the end of the first season nearly enough. It doesn’t help that the show is misleadingly titled “Resistance” when we mostly follow around a platform of randos, with the only ties to the actual Resistance being occasional appearances from Poe, Leia, and even Ello Asty. Perhaps if the series has been allowed to continue, we would have gotten more big picture connections.

I feel especially bad for the actors. They all seemed so passionate about a show that few people watched, or even knew about, and fewer people were big fans of. The characters were mostly fine. I hope we see them appear in something else or get tied into some stories in between TLJ and TROS.

It’s really a shame how this show turned out. Lucasfilm just didn’t treat it like a big release unlike most of the other big Star Wars content in recent years. Despite its flaws, I still think it had a good first season, barring a few of the “slice of life” episodes. The spy and espionage angle kept me intrigued throughout and it had an exciting conclusion. I even think that it’s better than the first season of The Clone Wars and just short of Rebels Season One. Resistance Season Two was a big disappointment in my eyes though. Aside from a handful of episodes that were actually great (basically any of the ones with Norath Kev), it just felt like a waste of time for the majority of it’s run. The conclusion to the show felt rushed and it did seem like the writers were hoping to be renewed, but then they didn’t, so they had to hastily wrap things up. I hope Lucasfilm and Disney learns from this show’s failures and betters their strategies in the future.

 

The initial concept made a lot of sense to me. I got the impression that Resistance was supposed to be to the ST what The Clone Wars was to the PT and Rebels was to the OT. Especially after the end of Rebels, doing Resistance for their third major animated show seemed like a great idea. But at the same time, as Hero With No Fear pointed out, Disney+ was already coming up soon, which included one more season of TCW along with The Mandalorian. When they announced that Resistance was going to end after Season 2, I thought that maybe they were doing that to clear up production room for all the other Star Wars projects coming down the pipeline. But then... surely Disney would've anticipated this? Or were they initially planning to keep Resistance going for a bit longer even after Disney+ arrived?

And of course, TCW and Rebels had the advantage of being made after their respective film trilogies. Whereas with Resistance, as Pomojema said, they were going in blind. But by the time of Resistance's third season, TROS would be done and so then they could've freely focused on joining the TV show narrative with the movies. It seems strange to instead suddenly end the show before that could happen. It's too bad, because I really think Season 3 (and beyond?) had the potential to improve on the show in every way.

At some point, maybe several years down the road, I hope they go back and make a third season to Resistance anyway and give it a more proper ending. I know it seems pretty unlikely, but I think there's still some story potential there, and it would give Resistance a more cohesive spot in the overall narrative.

 

My basic thoughts on Resistance is that it was intended to be like Rebels but for ST, and failed miserably at that IMO, which is probably largely down to the subject material i.e. the Resistance vs The first order. It all just feels a bit forced and cheap to me, but generally I tend to get a bit cynical when discussing the ST, it doesn't excite me much.

 

It felt like a test run.
How people reacted to certain styles of animation and story telling.

 

I enjoyed a handful of episodes of Resistance, and it had some engaging ideas and concepts (and characters), but also a lot of 'filler episodes' for such a short-lived series. Was the plan for it to last for 4/5 seasons - and it just didn't work out so they limited it to 2 seasons instead?

Also there were a few good and enjoyable moments in almost every episode, but just not quite enough to make these episodes worthwhile - or to watch again (this is only my opinion, and respect & love to those who liked the show).


I do hope we some some of the characters, ships and droids again in other Star Wars stories.

 

Agreed there. It was pretty cool how a few of the ships from Resistance showed up again in Rise of Skywalker's final battle. Despite my complaints about Resistance feeling disconnected from other Star Wars stories, that was one nice touch to help tie things together a bit better.