Call to Action " Call to Action " is the thirteenth episode of the first season of the animated television series " Star Wars Rebels " . It is the thirteenth episode of the series overall . The episode , directed by Steward Lee and written by executive producers Greg Weisman and Simon Kinberg , was released on WatchDisneyXD . com and the WatchDisneyXD app on February 2 , 2015 , and it premiered on Disney XD on February 9 th . The episode centers around the rebels attempting to hack an Imperial transmissions tower in order to send an inspirational message of hope to the people of Lothal . In doing so , they must contend with Imperial forces newly energized to destroy the rebels by the arrival of an important government figure : Grand Moff Wilhuff Tarkin , Governor of the Outer Rim Territories . Official description . " The " Ghost " crew , having proved effective in their strikes against the Empire , win the attention of a powerful new enemy . " Synopsis . Tarkin ' s arrival . Grand Moff Wilhuff Tarkin , the Imperial Governor of the Outer Rim , lands at the Imperial Complex on the planet Lothal . Upon arrival , he is greeted by Minister Maketh Tua , who was surprised to learn of his visit . Tarkin then proceeds to reprimand her for failing to protect Imperial industrial interests by allowing a Rebel Cell to flourish right under her nose . He then castigates Agent Kallus for allowing the Rebel cell to attack Imperial soldiers , destroy Imperial property , and disrupt Imperial trade . In response , Kallus tells Tarkin that he has exhausted every resource to capture them . Tua informs Tarkin that the rebel leader was a Jedi . The Grand Moff mocks the Grand Inquisitor ' s incompetence . He also expresses doubt that the rebel leader is a Jedi and asserts that the Jedi had all died . Tarkin then vowed to capture " this criminal " and prove that he is not a Jedi . The speeder pursuit . Meanwhile , several of the Spectres ( Kanan Jarrus , Ezra Bridger , and Sabine Wren ) had stolen a crate of supplies and were pursued by several Imperial speeder bikes led by Commandant Aresko and Taskmaster Grint . The rebels led their Imperial pursuers into the town of Jalath and split up in order to divide Commandant Aresko ' s forces . Sabine ' s pursuer crashed into a wall while Kanan managed to use his blaster to shoot down a second pursuer . After reuniting at a junction , the rebels were pursued by the three remaining speeder bikes . The leading biker ordered his men to continue the pursuit while he " cut them off . " The rebels managed to eliminate their Imperial pursuers by parking their bikes at a rubbish dump . After dispatching two of the Imperial combat driver s , Ezra managed to stun the leading biker . Having eliminated their pursuers , the rebels then returned to the " Ghost " . After watching Senator Gall Trayvis proclaim his allegiance to the Empire and denouncing them on HoloNet , Kanan devised a plan for the rebels to hijack Lothal ' s Imperial Communications Center in order to broadcast the rebels ' side of the story . Rising stakes . After interrogating Commandant Aresko and Taskmaster Grint about the Lothals , Tarkin ordered the Inquisitor to execute the two Imperial officers for their incompetence . The grisly execution shocks Agent Kallus and horrifies Minister Tua . After warning that failure would no longer be tolerated , Tarkin ordered Agent Kallus to send probe droids to hunt down the rebels . While infiltrating the compound surrounding the main communications tower , Kanan , Sabine , and Ezra spot a probe droid . Concerned about being spotted , Ezra decided to use the Force to summon a loth - cat to attack and disable the Probe . Despite damaging the droid , it still managed to transmit footage of the rebels . Discovering their location , Tarkin ordered Kallus not to reinforce Imperial presence . He wanted the rebels to believe that they still had the element of surprise on their side which would allow the Empire to take them by surprise . Ezra is pessimistic that their plan would work and feared that the rebels would suffer the same fate as his parents . In response , Kanan reminded them that their fear of losses should not stop them from being willing to sacrifice for a greater cause . He also reminded his apprentice that his master tried to teach him the same thing as Ezra and that he never understood it until he became a teacher himself . Springing the trap . Later that night , the crew of the " Ghost " managed to infiltrate the control tower and overpower the paltry stormtrooper garrison . However , they quickly discovered that Imperial forces were approaching and that they had stumbled into a trap . While Kanan stayed behind to hold back the Imperials , Ezra , Sabine , Zeb , and Chopper climbed up the tower to rendezvous with Hera Syndulla in the " Phantom " . After exchanging pleasantries with Agent Kallus , Kanan was surprised by the Grand Inquisitor , who engaged him in a lightsaber duel . Meanwhile , Ezra and the other rebels are cornered by a patrol transport but Sabine manages to destroy it by throwing an explosive . Back on the ground , the Inquisitor offered Kanan a chance to surrender himself and his comrades . He also told Kanan that someone wanted to meet him . However , Hera arrived and managed to evacuate the other rebels . Despite Hera ' s objections , Kanan ordered her and the other rebels to leave so that they would not be captured by the Imperials . Despite Ezra ' s protests , Hera reluctantly accepts Kanan ' s orders and the remaining rebels flee into the night . Hope amidst defeat . At dawn , Agent Kallus and the Inquisitor present Kanan to Tarkin , who had come to meet the " Jedi . " Kanan vowed not to divulge anything to his Imperial captors . Tarkin ' s victory was however overshadowed when he learned that the rebels were remotely controlling the communications tower . Ezra broadcasts a moving speech urging the people of Lothal to rise up against the Empire . In response , Tarkin orders his police gunships to destroy the communications tower . Aboard his gunship , Tarkin told Kanan that the Jedi may not know what it take to win a war but he did . Back on the " Ghost " , Ezra asked Hera if she thought it was worth it and if anyone else heard it . In response , she told him that she had a feeling they did . When Ezra asked if this is over , Hera assured him that their struggle was not over .