I haven’t heard much about this episode, The Trials of the Dark Saber, but I am crazy excited for it. I have a feeling that this is going to be the first of a much larger story arc. Rebels has a tendency to play their stories close to the vest. They don’t want people speculating too much about what’s going to happen. Which makes sense because overspeculation can ruin the joy of watching the actual episode.

I mean, I did call most every scene in Rogue One. It was still awesome, but still.

What I noticed first about The Trial of the Dark Saber is that the preview didn’t air at the end of the last episode. The first of the three clips below aired earlier this week. So why the secrecy? To figure out why Disney holds back on dealing out information, let’s look at each clip and figure out what they mean.

Fenn Rau, Kanan, and the Dark Saber

In this clip, Kanan shows Fenn Rau the Dark Saber. Rau immediately recognizes the blade and jumps into its backstory. The blade was constructed by the first, (notice how I said “FIRST!!!”) Mandalorian Jedi, Tal Vizsla. You recognize the name Vizsla, as it is the House associated with Death Watch and Sabine. When Tal died, probably of old age because who could possibly kill a Mandalorian Jedi, the blade was kept in the Jedi temple.

Eventually, House Vizsla stole the blade and all Mandalores from then on out wielded it. Rau continues saying that with the Dark Saber, Sabine could reunite and lead House Vizsla. If Sabine becomes the new Mandalore, where does the story go from there?

Sabine and Ezra Duel

In this clip, we see just how opposed to wielding the Dark Saber Sabine is. She is pissed at Fenn Rau…that is until he gives her Mandalorian Ban Braces (sp). These braces have grappling hoods, paralyzing darts, and repulsors, all created to combat the Jedi. What’s sweet about this is not only are we seeing the arming of the reluctant hero, which is an epic trope, but it seems like Sabine is being equipped with the gear of the Mandalore. You might as well put a crown on her head.

As far as moments in the episode, this is somewhere in the middle of Sabine’s training. She and Ezra spar with wooden sticks, showing us that she unready to use the saber. They’ve clearly spared a few times, which may give us some insight into why she is so upset.

In Sabine and Kanan’s final exchange, Kanan points out that the Jedi won the Mandalorian and Jedi war and that she’s still not focusing. Kanan can sense something is bother her. She’s reluctant.

I feel like we are about to hear some of Sabine’s backstory. Why did she leave her home planet and why has she been a bounty hunter? Did her past drive her to join the rebellion? I don’t think we will get full on answers to these questions, but I think they will be hinted at.

Kanan and Sabine Duel

This scene is clearly towards the end of the episode. Notice, Sabine already has the new tech Fenn Rau gave her and she and Kanan are finally sparing with live blades. This wouldn’t happen unless Kanan felt like she was ready. Kanan is clearly taking her through the steps of one of the Jedi’s forms, probably the most basic on which focused on defense.

I think shortly after this clip we are going to have some major backstory reveals. Things that may have been hinted at earlier in the episode will be fully disclosed here. From a storyteller perspective, it just makes sense to do so.

So what are we going to learn about Sabine’s past? That is the real question.

Speculation

I think this whole episode will focus around Sabine’s training. The clips we’ve seen have a run time of nearly four minutes. If the episode is its usual 22 minute run time, I don’t know if there is enough time to go beyond her training. All this leads me to believe that this is the first of a much larger story arc, one that may spread well into the next season.

So why is this important?

What role have the Mandalorians played in the new canon? So far, we have only seen a handful of the race and almost always in the role of bounty hunter. So what happened to them? Could it be that Sabine raised her army of Mandos and they fought together with the Rebels? If so, how does their story end? Maybe the Death Star blew more planets than just Alderaan and Scariff.

Either way, I guarantee there is more to this story than we will probably get in Rebels. What are you excited for in this week’s episode The Trial of the Dark Saber