Droids in Distress

"The simplest gesture of kindness can fill a galaxy with hope."

- Bail Organa

"Droids in Distress" is the first episode of the first season of the animated television series Star Wars Rebels, following the premiere movie Spark of Rebellion. The episode was released on iTunes as a free download and on WatchDisneyXD.com on October 3, 2014, and made its television debut on Disney XD on October 13, 2014. The episode was written by series executive producer Greg Weisman and directed by Steward Lee. Anthony Daniels guest-starred in the episode as C-3PO.

The episode features the crew of the Ghost intercepting a shipment of weapons intended for the Galactic Empire. Along the way, they inadvertently pick up C-3PO and R2-D2, who are on a secret mission from Senator Bail Organa to prevent the weapons from falling into Imperial hands. The rebels continue to be chased by Agent Kallus of the Imperial Security Bureau, while Garazeb Orrelios deals with grief over the near-extinction of his people. In the end, R2-D2 provides Organa&mdash;who will become one of the founders of the Alliance to Restore the Republic&mdash;with information about the rebels and their activities.

Official description
Low on food and fuel, the Ghost'' crew agrees to steal an Imperial weapons shipment for crime lord Cikatro Vizago. During the mission, they encounter a familiar droid duo -- and find that the weapons in question are more deadly than they'd realized.''

Plot summary
At Lothal's main spaceport, Ezra Bridger and the astromech droid Chopper board Star commuter shuttle ST-45, which is leaving for Garel. Low on supplies and fuel, the crew of the Ghost have accepted a job from the crime lord Cikatro Vizago to steal a cargo shipment from the Imperial minister Maketh Tua. Aboard the shuttle, they pass by fellow rebels Sabine Wren and Garazeb Orrelios, who were disguised as passengers. Shortly later, the shuttle was boarded by Maketh Tua, the Aqualish arms trader Amda Wabo, the protocol droid C-3PO, and the astromech droid R2-D2. Since Tua and Wabo could not communicate directly, they had enlisted C-3P0's services as a translator. Before the shuttle departs, they are joined by Kanan Jarrus, the fifth member of the mission.

After the shuttle entered hyperspace, Ezra and Chopper stage a fight; prompting Kanan to demand that the RX-24 droid pilot send Chopper to the back of the craft. In response, Ezra demanded that the other two droids, C-3PO and R2-D2 be transferred to the back. Despite C-3PO's protests, the droid pilot sends them to the back. With Tua bereft of a translator, Sabine then volunteers her service as a translator while posing as an Imperial Academy student. Sabine quickly learned that the Imperial weapons shipment was located in Bay Seven of Garel City Spaceport. However, she misled Tua into believing that it was in Bay Seventeen.

Upon landing on Garel, Minister Tua, C-3PO, R2-D2, and a contingent of stormtroopers departed for Bay Seventeen. Meanwhile, the Lothal rebels make their way towards Bay Seven. To enter the cargo bay, Ezra climbed through a ventilation duct which led into Bay Seven. While making his way into Bay Seven, Ezra complained to Kanan via comlink about the delay in his Jedi lessons. In response, Kanan replied that the Ghost needed fuel and food. After entering Bay Seven, Ezra opened the bay doors from inside to let Kanan, Zeb, and Sabine inside. Upon examining the cargo shipment, they discovered that the crates contained T-7 ion disruptor rifles, weapons that had been banned by the Galactic Senate. Zeb was particularly upset by the discovery and was reluctant to handle the crates.

Meanwhile, Minister Tua, C-3PO, R2-D2, and her stormtroopers discover that Bay Seventeen is empty. C-3PO quickly deduced that Sabine had confused the Aqualish word for seven with seventeen. Chopper took the opportunity to spy on the Imperials and contacted Hera Syndulla to prepare the Ghost for a takeoff. To harry the Imperials, Chopper also staged a fight with R2-D2. However, Minister Tua recognized Chopper as the troublesome astromech droid she had encountered on the shuttle and ordered her men to make their way to Bay Seven. Before the rebels could finish loading the last of the disruptor rifles onto the Ghost, they were confronted by Tua and her stormtroopers. Following a brief gun fight, the rebels managed to flee Garel on the Ghost.

The crew of the Ghost are accompanied by two stowaways, C-3PO and R2-D2, who are restrained with restraining bolts. While traveling through hyperspace, Hera informed Kanan that the Empire was planning to mass produce the T-7 ion rifles on Lothal. Despondent and unwilling to chat with the other crew, Zeb locked his cabin. Annoyed by Zeb's despondent behavior, Ezra confided in Hera who revealed that the Empire had used T-7 rifles to violently pacify the Lasat homeworld of Lasan. Zeb was one of the few Lasat who survived the genocide and was troubled by the presence of the T-7 rifles. Meanwhile, Minister Tua reported her recent encounter with the rebels on Garel to the Imperial Security Bureau Agent Kallus, who took an interest in the Lasat Zeb.

Upon landing on Lothal, the crew of the Ghost began unloading their cargo shipment to deliver to Vizago. Believing that the crew of the Ghost were criminals, thieves, and outlaws, C-3PO contacted Agent Kallus, who promised that "help was on the way." Meanwhile, at their rendezvous point, Vizago agreed to buy the rebels' stolen T-7 ion rifles and ordered his IG-RM droids to begin loading the crates onto two speeders. Before they could complete the transaction, an Imperial freighter carrying two All Terrain Defense Pod walkers arrived. Vizago and his droids quickly fled without paying for the crew of the Ghost job.

Kanan and Zeb resolve not to let the disruptors fall into Imperial hands. Meanwhile, R2-D2 began carrying out his secret plan to overload the T-7 disruptors. In order to deny the Empire the weapons, Sabine and Chopper quickly rushed to help R2-D2. Kanan managed to destroy one of the advancing AT-DP walkers with a disrupt rifle but is knocked to the ground by a laser blast from the second walker. Hera then distracted the second AT-DP walker by leading it on a chase around a nearby stone circle. Shortly later, Agent Kallus and a contingent of stormtroopers disembarked from the Imperial freighter and exchanged fire with the crew of the Ghost.

Continuity
"Droids in Distress" marked the first appearance of Senator Bail Organa, R2-D2, and C-3PO on Star Wars Rebels. Organa, who was seen in the episode using R2-D2 to find out information about the Lothal rebels, was one of the founding members of the Rebel Alliance. R2-D2 and C-3PO were introduced as members of the Rebel Alliance in Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope.

The episode was adapted by Michael Kogge into the chapter book of the same name.