What if I told you to picture a Star Wars cartoon that is shown in three minute segments and was created by the same people who brought us Dexter's Laboratory, The Powerpuff Girls, and Samurai Jack. You might come away thinking how can this possibly be any good, but you will be surprised to find out that it is an immensely pleasurable series to watch and adds some great material to the Star Wars universe, a universe that has just been expanded with the highly anticipated release of Star Wars: The Force Awakens.
Clone Wars was created in 2003 by Genndy Tartakovsky, and is set a few months after Star Wars Episode II. The Jedi are leading the new Grand Army of the Republic against the Separatist droid army on multiple worlds. The primary focus is on Anakin Skywalker and Obi Wan Kenobi, although a few other characters receive feature episodes of their own. Along the way, Anakin becomes a Jedi knight and experiences tests of character that foreshadow his eventual fall to the dark side.
For each episode's short length it is incredible how much Tartakovsky was able to fit into each episode. Viewers are given just enough material to be left satisfied while eagerly anticipating the next installment. One of the biggest shortcomings of the theatrical movies is how much the Clone Wars is overlooked. The first battle of the Clone Wars take place near the end of Attack of the Clones, while only a few final battles are given attention in Revenge of the Sith. There is a three year gap that leaves viewers wondering what happened in between, and how exactly the Clone Wars became the stuff of legend that Luke Skywalker asks Obi Wan about in A New Hope.
Star Wars: Clone Wars is great in that it successfully bridges the gap between Episode II and Episode III. Episode III starts with Obi Wan and Anakin leading a mission to rescue Chancellor Palpatine from the clutches of the Separatists over Coruscant. If you only watch the movies, you might be wondering how Palpatine managed to get captured. In Clone Wars, we see the entire battle of Coruscant unfold and watch the evil General Grievous fight off the Jedi and escape with Palpatine.
Speaking of Grievous, he was first introduced to the Star Wars universe about halfway through this series, and was easily one of the coolest characters of the show. Viewers see him in his debut episode fighting six Jedi at once and handily defeating them without breaking a sweat. Grievous does things with lightsabers that I had never seen before, tossing them from his hands to his feet in a deadly breakdance to gain an edge in the fight. After watching Clone Wars, I fully understand why Grievous' name is spoken in fear, if this portrayal is anything to go by.
Another new character first introduced in this series is Asajj Ventress. She is recruited by Count Dooku and Darth Sidious to kill Anakin Skywalker. She lures Anakin to Yavin IV and engages him in a ferocious duel that is shown over the course of three episodes. Anakin is finally able to defeat her after tapping into the dark side of the Force, and he angrily watches her fall into an abyss. It is clear that Ventress was little more than a pawn in Sidious' scheme to see how willing Anakin would be to use the dark side to defeat an opponent.
The series has an epic conclusion with Anakin and Obi Wan travelling to the planet Nelvaan to find General Grievous, but instead Anakin sets out on a quest to rescue of a group of Nelvaanians who have been mutated by the Separatist-aligned Techno Union. Obi Wan muses that this will be an important test of Anakin's character, and indeed Anakin has a vision of himself becoming Darth Vader in a cave. Anakin is able to free the Nelvaanians, but only after once again drawing on his anger to defeat the Techno Union scientists. Meanwhile Grievous leads a massive invasion fleet to the Republic capital of Coruscant and kidnaps Supreme Chancellor Palpatine despite the best efforts of Yoda and Mace Windu. The ending scene shows Windu contacting Obi Wan and Anakin asking them to rescue the Chancellor, thus leading directly into Revenge of the Sith.
Fans and critics alike praised Star Wars: Clone Wars. Each season won an Emmy award for Outstanding Animated Program, and the final season won an Annie award for Best Animated Television Production. Unfortunately, Clone Wars was deemed non canon in the official Star Wars universe after Disney purchased Lucasfilm in 2012. The series is now classified under the Star Wars Legends banner, along with several novelizations and video games. This is a shame since Clone Wars added so much depth to the Star Wars saga and introduced a number of great characters while performing a deeper exploration of existing ones. The series got a reboot of sorts with the 2008 film, Star Wars: The Clone Wars, and the accompanying CGI animated TV series. I will publish my review of that series sometime next month.
