Darkstar Rising

Darkstar Rising is the fifteenth episode of the first season of Ben 10: Alien Force, and the fifteenth episode overall.
==Synopsis==
Ben and co. must uncover the truth of a mysterious new villain, Darkstar.
==Plot==
When the team is about to attack a group of Forever Knights in a warehouse, they discover that it was holographic bait, set by Magister Prior Gilhil to lure them into getting arrested for impersonating Plumbers. Ben transforms into Goop and traps Gilhil. Gilhil then drops his gun, rendering him powerless. They then decide to talk things out.
In their conversation, Ben and Gwen mention that they are the grandchildren of the Plumber Max Tennyson, but the Magister points out that Kevin doesn't have any Plumber ancestry, much to Kevin's annoyance. He then blurts out that his biological father was one. Upon hearing this, Ben and Gwen are surprised, as they were not aware of this. Magister Prior Gilhil insists on leaving them be, as Gwen points out that they've never impersonated Plumbers, and with Ben wearing the Omnitrix as the Galvan requested that he not be interfered with in minor matters. However, he demands Kevin's badge, as he stole it from Magister Labrid. As a result, Kevin gives the Magister his badge, which disappoints him. He warns them that if they are involved in Plumber business, he will send them all, including Ben, into the Null Void, regardless of what Azmuth says.
The next day, the team is at Mr. Smoothy. Ben is enjoying a smoothie while Kevin is still gloomy about last night's incident. Ben tells him that it doesn't matter, which enrages Kevin, who grabs Ben by his collar. Gwen tries to calm Kevin down. Kevin confesses that the reason he joined the team is because he wants to become a Plumber like his father one day and why he likes to know about alien tech so much. His mother used to tell him stories about his father when he was little and despite this, he doesn't even remember meeting his father. After this, Kevin leaves Mr. Smoothy and goes to his garage in his car. Meanwhile, a masked figure breaks into a DNAlien hideout and fights the Highbreed Lord. He then absorbs some of the Highbreed's power so the Highbreed will listen to what he says. The masked figure sets up a deal with the Highbreed, in which they set up a plan to get Ben's team arrested and thrown into the Null Void.
At night, Gwen visits Kevin's garage, having brought a soda, hoping to make sure he is still doing fine given the present circumstances. She also gives him a present: a small red bag filled with ball bearings all made of different elements, explaining that in the heat of battle, he'll have a whole arsenal of materials to absorb. Unfortunately, Kevin explains that tiny marbles won't be much help in combat because he needs at least a handful of whatever he's sampling to cover his entire body. He questions why Gwen believes he's still a part of their team and she says she knows he's changed. However, Kevin says that it doesn't matter anymore since as far as Magister Gilhil is concerned, he's still just a criminal out on parole who could wind up back in the Null Void at any time. They are about to kiss, when all of a sudden, the Highbreed from earlier busts through the wall and tries to kill them. The Highbreed proves to be too strong; he knocks Kevin out while he is trying to prevent Gwen from getting killed. Humungousaur arrives and throws the Highbreed out of the garage. Then, Magister Gilhil comes and puts them under arrest for impersonating Plumbers again, but they soon get attacked by the same masked figure who tries to absorb all their powers and captures them, while Gwen manages to escape.
The masked figure takes all of them (except Gwen) to his hideout where Ben reveals that he knows he is Michael Morningstar. He now calls himself Darkstar since, as a result of his previous defeat, his powers have been greatly amplified. With them, his burning hunger has increased, including him now possessing a zombified appearance as part of his hunger withdrawals, and proceeds to absorb energy from his prisoners to satisfy himself. Gwen arrives with an army of DNAliens who beat up Darkstar along with Ben, Kevin, Gwen, and the Magister. After Ben defeats him, they realize the Highbreed Lord and the DNAliens have escaped. Magister Gilhil apologizes to the group for his earlier presumptions and tells the group that the three of them are all Earth needs protecting it. To that end, he makes them honorary Plumbers, returning Kevin's badge, handing one to Gwen, and simply telling Ben that he doesn't need one while he already has the Omnitrix. He then teleports to the Null Void with Darkstar in custody. Kevin then heads home to tell his mother that he is now a Plumber.
==Noteworthy Events==
===Major Events===
*Michael Morningstar returns more powerful than ever having had changes to his physiology and powers due to the incident in All That Glitters and takes on the nom de guerre "Darkstar".
*Ben, Gwen and Kevin are now honorary Plumbers.
*Darkstar ends up being incarcerated in the Null Void.
====Character Debut====
*Magister Prior Gilhil
===Minor Events===
*It is revealed that impersonating a Plumber is an interstellar-class felony.
*It is revealed that Kevin's biological father was a Plumber.
*Gwen and Kevin almost kiss, but the Highbreed interrupts them.
*Ben uses the Omnitrix's quick-change feature for the first time. 
==Characters==
===Main Characters===
*Ben Tennyson
*Gwen Tennyson
*Kevin Levin
===Supporting Characters===
*Magister Prior Gilhil (first appearance)
===Antagonists===
*Darkstar
*Highbreed
===Other Characters===
*Forever Knights (holograms)
*DNAliens
==Aliens Used==
*Chromastone
*Goop
*Humungousaur (x2; first time was an off-screen activation; second time was a cameo)
*Echo Echo (cameo)
*Spidermonkey (cameo)
*Jetray (cameo)
==Quotes==
==Naming and Translations==
==Cast==
==Continuity==
*Ben and Magister Gilhil mention the former's defeat of Vilgax, which occurred in Secret of the Omnitrix.
*Ben mentions that Kevin did his time in the Null Void, which happened after he was sent there back in Back With a Vengeance.
*The trio recall their encounters with the Highbreed and the DNAliens from previous episodes of the season. Ben mentions that he destroyed one of their ships, which he did in Ben 10 Returns: Part 2.
*Kevin mentions that Darkstar absorbed the energy of the girls from his school, which occurred in All That Glitters.
==Allusions==
*Ben says "We don't need no stinkin' badges!", referencing a quote from the book The Treasure of the Sierra Madre and the movie Blazing Saddles.
==Errors==
*For a short time, when Gilhil talks to Kevin, the red button on his suit disappears.
*Despite whatever material that Kevin absorbs forms a coating on him, Gihil is shown to grab Kevin's coating like it was a shirt without damaging the coating.
*There is a lip-sync error when Kevin says "Don't take my badge, man." to Gilhil.
*When Kevin drives away leaving Ben and Gwen behind, Gwen's stockings are missing.
*When Kevin absorbs the black part of his car, he is covered in green metal instead.
*When Kevin lowers the sack of ball bearings out of view, it disappears for the rest of the episode.
*Echo Echo's hologram faces away from Ben.
*When Ben falls to the ground after defeating Darkstar, his hair is shorter.
DR (79).png|Coating error
DR (175).png|Missing button
DR (212).png|Missing stockings
DR (320).png|Metal error
DR (322).png|Missing sack
DR (503).png|Hologram error
DR (535).png|Missing hair
==Trivia==
*Magister Prior Gilhil reveals that the first half of Season 1 of Alien Force took place over a couple months.
*The episode's title is listed as Dark Star Rising on Amazon Prime Video.
*Kevin was lying when he said he had never met his father.
**This would later be revealed on-screen in Vendetta, where a photo of the two of them is shown in Kevin's house.
*When Magister Gilhil said Ben, Gwen and Kevin were the only law in the quadrant, he was referring to Earth and much of the surrounding area of space, several light years in every direction. He did however mention that he's got over 300 inhabited planets under his watch, save for Earth as he now knows it's under legitimate protection.
==References==
===Crew Statements===
====T.J. Collins====
====Dwayne McDuffie====
===Cartoon Network===
es:La aparición de Darkstar
pl:Darkstar (odcinek)
pt-br:Nasce o Estrela Sombria
ro:Darkstar îşi face apariţia
Category:Ben 10: Alien Force Episodes
Category:Ben 10: Alien Force Season 1 Episodes
Category:Episodes
Category:Highbreed Wars
Category:Episodes Written by Dwayne McDuffie
Category:Episodes Directed by Dan Riba
Category:Episodes Aired Out of Production Order