Star Wars: Resistance – The Voxx Vortex 500 Review
Did you miss those ace racing heavy episodes from the first season of Resistance? If so, then you probably will love “The Voxx Vortex 5000,” episode of Season Two, which inexplicably pulled the racing aspect of the aces out for one more go around in the show’s final season. Also, surprisingly, the result was entertaining, if not much in the way of advancing the two big storylines of the season; the fate of the Colossus and Tam Ryvora.
The last line is not entirely true, as it’s the present fate of the platform that leads Hype Fazon to convince Captain Doza to make a visit to an old friend’s Hutt-run casino to try and increase the dwindling credits reserve of the ship. Owned by Vranki the Blue, Vranki represents our second Hutt of the sequel era (see Marvel’s Poe Dameron for a wrinkled Grakkus the Hutt), in a time when the Hutt crime syndicate’s control of the Outer Rim area has fractured and mostly disappeared with the rise of the likes of Kanjiklub and the Guavian Death Gang. Vranki even attempts to argue that he’s a different type of Hutt, a lie that’s very soon revealed after Hype, who used to race for the giant slug, loses a race for much needed currency against a secret droid pilot.
In fact, in rapid succession, the aces are knocked off one by one, driven by anger and overconfidence to try and win one over Vranki, who gloatingly takes “possession” (indentured servitude? Slavery? This is never made clear by the episode) of each ace following their respective loss courtesy of the Hutt cheating in one manner or another. Initially, the aces believe they discover an advantage after Neeku uncovers similarities between a racing gambling game and the actual race course, but it ultimately proves a storytelling device to offer hope as the stakes grow higher and higher. Ultimately, the aces only win when Kaz determines the only way to beat a cheater is to cheat himself. It’s a nice nod to Kaz being the situational combat pilot he has always been, and the Colossus crew walk away with replenished supply of credits.
“The Voxx Vortex 5000,” is not a complicated episode, and the almost comedic element of one bad turn of event after another makes the episode feel like it should have been animated in the LEGO style. That is not a bad thing, per se. The LEGO situated Star Wars stories and shows, such as The Freemaker Adventures, are extremely enjoyable shows that weave an obvious love and passion for the franchise into their stories. Thus, “The Voxx Vortex 5000,” is not a bad story, so much as it just felt a little out of place for Resistance with its escalating stakes built not on drama, but comedy. We know the aces are not going to end up the enslaved in-house racers of a Hutt in a failing casino, because it’s simply too far removed from every story stake driven into the show’s run; be it the first season or the current. It’s an episode that entertains, but hopefully, not an episode that will be repeated in its nature going forward.
For more on Star Wars Resistance‘s “The Voxx Vortex 500-“, check out StarWars.com!
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