Spoiler
This was pretty much what I expected, though there were one or two surprises. I don't know who those alien raiders are, but they seemed willing to risk death in large numbers to blow those shipments; not to mention hurling themselves at a stormtrooper/shoretrooper line. Crazed fanatics with big sticks and thermal detonators seem to be about what Imperial troops can handle.
The part inside the refinery, with the Imperials cheering and welcoming their two heroes was oddly painful. A remainder that for all their faults, Imperials are people too.
Very tense moment with the terminal, the big moment being when Din Djarrin finally breaks the helmet rule with no workaround; with Mayfeld sufficiently moved that he promised not to mention it to anyone. Followed up with an Inglorious Basterds moment with an officer who screamed political/commissar/loyalty officer just by the way he kept glancing at Din and Mayfeld. We find out why Mayfeld left the Empire, and the officer drops a major First Order-related hint.
Once again, Imperial troops proved inept. It can be explained in the first few seconds by confusion, but after that it's the usual.
Minor Points
- NR prison facilities make use of droid guards. Either the NR has manpower issues or droids make better prison guards. It does make sense, considering they would have no prejudices or personality issues of the sort that would lead to cruelty or corruption.
- Interesting to see shoretrooper armour in use here. Quite likely this particular faction is having supply problems and using whatever gear it can lay its hands on. Mixing them in with stormtroopers seems to back that up.
- I wasn't sold on the WW2-style AA guns; but then again, they might have been improvised out of available gear; see point above.
- An Imperial division is apparently about five to ten thousand people. A stormtrooper legion is 12,800 troopers, but Mayfeld seems a little too competent to have been a stormtrooper. The (non-stormtrooper) Imperial army may have used a different structure.
- Regarding armour. We hear shoretroopers screaming as they fall off the building after being shot; like that one stormtrooper in ANH. It hints that downed troopers may be still alive at least in some cases; suggesting that stormtrooper (and other) armour is intended not to stop blaster bolts completely, but merely reduce damage.
The part inside the refinery, with the Imperials cheering and welcoming their two heroes was oddly painful. A remainder that for all their faults, Imperials are people too.
Very tense moment with the terminal, the big moment being when Din Djarrin finally breaks the helmet rule with no workaround; with Mayfeld sufficiently moved that he promised not to mention it to anyone. Followed up with an Inglorious Basterds moment with an officer who screamed political/commissar/loyalty officer just by the way he kept glancing at Din and Mayfeld. We find out why Mayfeld left the Empire, and the officer drops a major First Order-related hint.
Once again, Imperial troops proved inept. It can be explained in the first few seconds by confusion, but after that it's the usual.
Minor Points
- NR prison facilities make use of droid guards. Either the NR has manpower issues or droids make better prison guards. It does make sense, considering they would have no prejudices or personality issues of the sort that would lead to cruelty or corruption.
- Interesting to see shoretrooper armour in use here. Quite likely this particular faction is having supply problems and using whatever gear it can lay its hands on. Mixing them in with stormtroopers seems to back that up.
- I wasn't sold on the WW2-style AA guns; but then again, they might have been improvised out of available gear; see point above.
- An Imperial division is apparently about five to ten thousand people. A stormtrooper legion is 12,800 troopers, but Mayfeld seems a little too competent to have been a stormtrooper. The (non-stormtrooper) Imperial army may have used a different structure.
- Regarding armour. We hear shoretroopers screaming as they fall off the building after being shot; like that one stormtrooper in ANH. It hints that downed troopers may be still alive at least in some cases; suggesting that stormtrooper (and other) armour is intended not to stop blaster bolts completely, but merely reduce damage.