Ah, the "Paperclip" episode. And probably one of the weaker ones of the series.
Picking up where we left of, both Din and Bo-Katan have bathed in the living waters. But as they're returning to Bo-Katan's castle, they're attacked by a squadron of TIE Interceptors. Din has to bail out of Bo-Katan's ship so he can engage them with the Hotrod N1. But after they fend them off, a bomber squadron razes the castle.
And now for something completely different. The rest of the episode follows Gideon's scientist Dr Pershing, who has since accepted a pardon through a New Republic "Amnesty Programme" and has become a celebrity on Coruscant. At a housing project set up for the numerous ex-Imperial personnel on the programme, he re-unites with Elia Kane, the former comms officer from Gideon's cruiser (whom I thought was killed during the season two finale, but then noticed on the re-watch she only got hit in the shoulder). Frustrated in his soulless 9 to 5 and learning that his field of research is illegal, Pershing joins Kane on a plan to salvage some lab equipment from a de-commissioned Star Destroyer.
You can probably see why this episode is considered weak; all told, it has little to do with the main series. Din and Bo-Katan's skirmish with some suspiciously organised Imperials takes place entirely before the opening titles, and they don't appear again until the very end of the episode. It seems rather meandering.
Having said that, it's interesting to see what life is like on Coruscant now that the New Republic is in power. All told, it's not great. You've got a sheltered high society who are completely indifferent to the regime change, obstructive bureaucracy, and work cultures that seem to value busy work. On top of that, there's unsettling treatments for Amnesty personnel who are deemed "failures" that are apparently based on Imperial technology that people on the Outer Rim believe to be horror stories or propaganda. Other than that last part, it seems to perfectly encapsulate the illusions of western democracy.
Anyway, after that lengthy diversion, we see Din lead Bo-Katan to his covert. After proving that he's visited the living waters, he's welcomed back to the covert with open arms. When the Armourer learns that Bo-Katan had also bathed in the living waters and hadn't removed her helmet since, she's also invited to join the covert.
Well, I suppose we could get some hooks from this episode for the rest of the series.
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