Flight of the Falcon (episode)

The unknown kidnapper transports R2-D2 along with the malfunctioning droids to the derelict droid foundries situated on Geonosis. R2 succeeds in sending his location data to C-3PO and Chewbacca while they are aboard the Millennium Falcon in outer space. Chewie and 3PO are accompanied by the Sullustan rebel pilot Nien Nunb. Acting upon R2's coordinates, the rebels pilot the Falcon into hyperspace. 3PO expresses his hope that they can avoid traveling to Hoth and recounts his recollections of the Battle of Hoth as well as his experiences within Cloud City to Numb.

Darth Vader had deployed probe droids across the galaxy with the intention of locating the Rebel Alliance. One such probe droid lands on Hoth while Luke Skywalker and a tauntaun seek refuge beneath a massive sign. Concurrently, within Echo Base, Han Solo and Leia Organa engage in a dispute regarding Han's intention to depart from the Rebellion in order to settle his financial obligations with Jabba the Hutt. Subsequently, 3PO and R2-D2 inform Han that Luke has yet to return from his tauntaun patrol. Han then departs on a tauntaun in search of Luke.

Meanwhile, within the wampa cave, the Force spirit of Obi-Wan Kenobi advises Luke to journey to Dagobah in order to seek out Jedi Master Yoda. Kenobi also instructs Luke to utilize the Force to summon his lightsaber and escape from the cave. Luke manages to evade the wampa and encounters Han amidst the frozen wilderness. Subsequently, the two rebels come across an Imperial probe droid and attempt to deceive it into believing that they are merely visitors. However, the Empire remains unconvinced and initiates an attack on Echo Base.

During the battle, Luke and the other rebel pilots maneuver snowspeeders and employ tow cables to immobilize several AT-AT walkers, including the one commanded by General Maximilian Veers'. However, Luke's speeder is soon shot down. Back at Echo Base, C3PO, Han, Leia, and Chewbacca prepare for take-off aboard the Millennium Falcon, but the ship's engines malfunction; prompting Han to complain about "stupid claw hands." Elsewhere, Luke utilizes a grappling hook to affix a bomb beneath an AT-AT walker, resulting in its explosion and transformation into a LEGO house. Shortly thereafter, Luke and R2 flee the battlefield aboard a T-65B X-wing starfighter.

Returning to Echo Base, the Falcon successfully escapes just as Vader and a contingent of Cold weather assault stormtroopers breach the base. Vader criticizes the snowtroopers for their poor marksmanship and instructs them to hurl snowballs at his feet once they have been ignited. Meanwhile, the Falcon is pursued by numerous TIE fighters and Star Destroyers in space. On Dagobah, Luke and R2 encounter Yoda and complain about Yoda's "grubby mud hut." Yoda expresses his dismay at Luke's impatience with Master Kenobi and pledges to instill proper manners in him. In space, the Falcon manages to evade their Imperial pursuers, but 3PO remains pessimistic about their prospects for survival, and they are able to escape once the crew have realized that they have ended up in the mouth of a space slug.

Vader enlists the services of bounty hunters to track down the Millennium Falcon, promising them a substantial reward. He suggests that Bossk's could use the reward to buy shoes for his bare feet. One of them, Boba Fett, succeeds in tracking the Falcon and engages in a heated argument with Vader after mistaking him for Dengar.

Back on Dagobah, after constructing a couch for Yoda and R2, Luke foresees that his comrades will be caught in a trap set by Vader and prepares to depart. The spirit of Obi-Wan, still upside down from confronting Luke in a the wampa cave, expresses his concern to Yoda that Luke represents their last hope. However, Yoda counters by stating that there exists another, and they both speculate as to who it might be.

Upon arriving at Cloud City, Han is greeted by Lando Calrissian, who displays a mixture of happiness and anger upon seeing him. He escorts them to the dining room, where Vader is rejecting every suggestion from the menu offered by a maître d'. Enraged that the unexpected arrival of Lando's guests has disrupted his plans, Vader deflects a bolt from Han's blaster, resulting in 3PO's decapitation. Vader reveals his scheme to freeze Luke in carbonite for delivery to the Emperor, yet when Han playfully inquires if they can test it on someone first, Vader identifies a perfect candidate and has him frozen in carbonite for delivery to Jabba. Luke arrives just in time to confront Vader while his friends engage the stormtroopers in combat.

The duel between Luke and Vader leads them onto the extension catwalk, where Luke is disarmed. Vader expresses his intrigue upon learning from Luke that he killed his father, but before he can reveal his true identity, he is interrupted for the second time by the maître d'. With his timing ruined once again, Vader retaliates by Force pushing the man back into the core tunnel, alone with his chance at properly revealing his identity to Luke. Initially, Luke dismisses it, but Vader's serious demeanor suggests otherwise, and, refusing to join him, Luke leaps to his apparent suicide, but is saved by a weather vane and an on-ride camera to go with it. He calls to Leia for help and they escape together. 3PO expresses his joy at being reunited with R2, but his gloomy disposition returns upon hearing from Luke and Leia that the Alliance is in disarray.

Ultimately, it is revealed that Lando Calrissian is the "mysterious captor," using extra money from recycled droids to rebuild Cloud City's mining facility with an unknown business partner. However, R2 had willingly gone along in order to help Lando tinker with the old droids. Their elation at reuniting with R2 is short-lived when General Veers appears, revealing himself as Calrissian's dealer. General Veers intends to utilize the recycled droids' components to reconstruct the Separatist Droid Army with the goal of restoring the Empire. He conducts an experiment by placing a GNK-series power droid onto the conveyor belt, where it undergoes modification with the head, arms and firearm of a B1.