Star Wars: Clone Wars (2003 - 2005) (TV Mini Series Review)

  The time has come to put a book mark on my little "Star Wars" month, and continue with further reviews at another time. For now, I want to close out the month by looking back at one of the best early expansions of “Star Wars” into television ... the animated mini-series titled “Star Wars: Clone Wars”. 

This animated production is often labeled as the last of the vintage "Star Wars" TV material, and the debate is still open on whether it can still be regarded as cannon. This series first aired back in 2003, and concluded in 2005, just before the premier of “Revenge of the Sith”. Unlike all the other animated “Star Wars” TV programs, this show was done in the style of a classic adventure serial like “Flash Gordon”, in which you're given three to five minuet long snip-pets of a larger story. In other words, it's best not to view this as a TV show, but rather a two-hour animated movie that was broken-up into fragments, and later on home video was split into a two-part volume set. It's also been edited together as one continues two-hour long feature on a number of sights, which is personally how I prefer to watch this one.

  As you’d expect from the title, the narrative is set between the events of “Star Wars 2: Attack of the Clones” and “Star Wars 3 Revenge of the Sith”, and at the time, the series helped fill the gaps between both films, which was very effective for its time. I actually viewed the whole series for my first time, just before I saw the premier of “Revenge of the Sith”, so the timing couldn’t have been better. 

As a side note, I’d encourage any new viewers to watch it in one big marathon, and treat it like an animated movie. Ever sense it’s release, this show has received critical acclaim, even more than any theatrical movie that aired alongside it. The fans loved it, critics loved it, and even IGN placed it at the #21 spot on their list of the 100 greatest animated TV shows of all time, which is no small accomplishment. So, considering that I’m a rather big “Star Wars” fan, I naturally have a lot of fondness for this series, and still view it as cannon, despite it’s vintage label. With that said, I also wouldn't call this one of my absolute favorite entries in the saga, and for me, it'll always be stuck in the shadow of the 2008 CGI TV series “Star Wars: The Clone Wars”. Regardless, the 2003 animated "Star Wars: Clone Wars" is still a solid piece of work, and shouldn’t be overlooked.

  Following after the events of "Attack of the Clones", war wages across the galaxy, and the Jedi are finding themselves tested for who they really are. One specific Jedi apprentice Anakin Skywalker finds that, while he faces new enemies and challenges in this conflict, he must also face himself ... and who he'll be when the war ends. For the most part, this series is less about story, and more about experience. 

In fact, the first volume of this special is almost like a silent movie, in which all the emotion and character is conveyed through the visual performance, action, and atmosphere instead of dialogue. In the first act, Anakin leads a fight in space, while Obi-Wan leads a ground assault on a planet below, and lots of battles ensue along the way. At the end of their respected missions, both Obi-Wan and Anakin have their own personal enemies to face. There are some little detours throughout this first half, like Padme and Yoda rescuing two Jedi that were trapped on a snow planet, and Mace Windu being a one-man army against a number of battle droids. In Volume 2, Anakin goes on another quest to rescue the males of an alien village, who have all been up-ducted by a group of mad scientists. As Anakin goes on his mission, General Grivious launches his massive attack on the capital, and capturing the chancellor, which segues us into the opening of “Revenge of the Sith”. 

  All the established “Star Wars” prequel characters are present in this show, but the cast is entirely new, with the exception of Anthony Daniels who continues to do the voice work for C-3PO. Interestingly enough, the voice cast has become very recognizable, and I’ve come to regard many of them as Iconic cast-members in the “Star Wars” franchise. 

This especially applies to James Arnold Taylor, who is fantastic in the role of Obi-Wan Kenobi, and Tom Kane, who’s very respectable in the role of Yoda. Other characters have their highlights, R2-D2 is still cute, and Jedi master Mace Windu gets some terrific action scenes. The real surprise is that this shows portrayal of Padme Amidala is fantastic. I've generally been indifferent to the character, but I really grew to like her in this series. Voice actress Grey DeLisle is terrific in the role, and she’d continue to shine in the 2008 CGI series “The Clone Wars”. Anakin Skywalker has a strong story-arc in the series, but I have to admit, I just never got on board with the voice actor, Mat Lucas … no relation to George Lucas. While the talent delivers a serviceable performance, and has shined in other Lucus Arts projects, I’m just so mentally conditioned to voice actor Matt Lanter in the role, to the point where a different voice just comes off as distracting to me.

  Just like our hero’s, the show features many famous “Star Wars” villains, including the evil Emperor Palpatine, also known as Darth Sidious, who has a terrific design in this show. Count Dooku obviously makes a number of appearances throughout the series, and we get our first taste of Cory Burton in the role, who's a respectful follow-up to Christopher Lee from the movies. However, the big one who completely steals the show is the sinister cybernetic General Grievous, who actually makes his very first appearance in this series, even before the movie “Star Wars 3: Revenge of the Sith”. Personally, I think this is the best portrayal of General Grievous by a mile. He’s menacing, he’s powerful, he has a terrific design, and there’s never a moment in which he comes off as either silly or cowardly … unlike his other portrayals. While I certainly have fondness for Mathew Wood's hammy performance in both the movie and the CGI TV series, there's just no beating John DiMaggio in the micro-series. He just adds this really chilling and intimidating voice, and the character himself has never felt more threatening. 

  This show is also credible for introducing one of the most popular villains from the expanded “Clone Wars” universe … the dark Jedi assassin called Asajj Ventress. Her design is unique, the voice is awesome, and it's just cool to see her introduction here. This character became so popular that she was featured as the main villain in the theatrical animated “Star Wars: The Clone Wars” movie, and become a recurring character in the following CGI series. This show also featured a new bounty hunter called Durge. Unlike Ventress, this character is exclusive to the series (at least as far as other shows and movies are concerned). Despite not appearing in the CGI series, I consider Durge a memorable foe from this era. He adorns heavy armor, resembles a knight joisting, and has some hidden “Akira” inspired capabilities. He certainly looks cool, is an exciting presence, and has some thrilling battles with Obi-Wan Kenobi.

  The animation in this special is something that I have mixed feelings about. It was spearheaded by Genndy Tartakovsky, the same talent who worked on “Samurai Jack”, among other Cartoon Network offerings, and for me, I was never won over by his art-design. That’s just a personal taste, because the animation overall is still quite impressive, and looks great all these years later. 

For the time, this was kind of a groundbreaking mix of CGI and traditional hand-drawn animation. The details are great, the sound designs are fantastic, and I really love all the quiet moments. More than anything, the best aspect of this show is its atmosphere, and how it can make you feel like you’re in the moment. Again, this special is all about experience, with just enough threads of character and story giving it substances. Usually, when reviewing TV shows, I like to rank my personal Top 10 favorite episodes … but sense this can be viewed as a two-hour special, I’ll change things up by counting down my personal Top 10 favorite Moments instead.

 

 #10 “General Grievous first Arrives” 

First impressions are very important for a good villain … and General Grievous’s first scene in this show hits things out of the park on a high note. The tension in this scene is brilliant, with great build-up, and effective sound mixing. With several Jedi beaten, dead or in hiding, the General makes good on his threat as an unstoppable force, and one that provokes fear in his enemies.  

 

#9 “Obi-Wan vs Durge” 

While Obi-Wan is heavily present though the show, he really doesn’t have too many action scenes … with one big exception. His battle with the mighty Hunter Durge is certainly a highlight, and one of Kenobi’s most unique duels in the franchise.

 

#8 “A Silent Fairwell” 

While Anakin’s relation with Padme played a huge part in the movies, it’s noticeably scaled down in this series … but they certainly make the most of what little they got. I love this one scene before Anakin flies off to war, he exchanges this farewell glance to Padme through a window, and I find myself honestly feeling more for these characters through little emotional moments like this then I did in the live-action movies.

 

#7 “The Siege of Coruscant” 

Setting the stage for “Revenge of the Sith”, it was very exciting to see the invasion of the capital in this show. While the movie exclusively focused on the battle in space, this series gives us the privilege of seeing the invasion on ground level, and it gives our Jedi heroes a chance to show-off their distinct abilities. What’s the one thing cooler then Yoda with a lightsaber … Yoda ridding on a horse into a battle field with a lightsaber. 

 

#6 “Anakin becomes a Jedi Knight” 

One noteworthy peace of continuity that was excluded from both the movies and the follow-up CGI series was seeing Anakin’s transition from Padawan to Jedi Knight. In this series, we get the privilege of seeing him undergo his own Knighting ceremony, and it’s a very satisfying moment for the character.

 

#5 “Padme and Yoda’s rescue mission” 

One of the many detours of Volume 1 revolves around Yoda and Padme going-off on a little excursion to rescue a pair of Jedi, who were ambushed at one of their temples. While both Padme and Yoda are established characters, it’s not a pairing you’d typically see, and the two share a genuinely nice bond with one another. It’s just a nice little side-quest for two characters who don’t usually get paired together, and as a side-note ... I love Padme's winter coat.

 

#4 “Anakin rescues the Villagers” 

Near the end of the war, Anakin goes on one final solo mission to rescue the male villagers of an alien village, who are all being experimented on by evil doctors. One of my biggest hang-ups with “Attack of the Clones” was a lack of heroic moments to cheer for Anakin, and this was certainly one of his biggest applause worthy moments. 

 

#3 “The Jedi’s Final Stand against Grievous” 

During the siege of Coruscant, General Grievous in-acts his mission to kidnap the Chancellor. It’s a suspenseful cat and mouse sequence, as three Jedi make a desperate last stand against their stronger opponent. It really highlights what an unstoppable threat the General is, and closes on an emotional highlight.  

 

#2 “Anakin Skywalker vs Asajj Ventress” 

For her first assignment, Ventress is tasked to assassinate Anakin Skywalker, which leads to an incredible light-saber duel. No joke, this is one of the best duels in all of “Star Wars” history. The way this battle is paced, staged, and scored is nothing short of brilliant. My favorite moment of all is this one shot of the two standing still, with sabers drawn, while a storm roles overhead, and these little drops of rain hit their blades, with steam coming off of them ... it is so cool. Now, there is a small gap in continuity, as she apparently dies at the end of the battle, and yet, she continued to appear in further in-universe events. I’m whiling to glance over this, as she became an excellent character in the CGI series.

 

Before I reveal my number one favorite, here are some quick Honorable Mentions …

Qui-Gon appears to little Anakin in a Dream

Ventress in the Monster Pit

Mace Windu protects farm land

Underwater battle

Anakin and Padme meet in the shadows of Croissant

 

#1 “Anakin’s Cave Vision” 

Here it is, my favorite scene of the whole special is when Anakin journeys into a cave, and has a chilling vision of his possible future, but with cave drawings representing the characters. This scene is just dripping with dark, chilling atmosphere, and the visuals are very fitting to represent what the character is internally going through. While there have been a number of force related vision sequences in “Star Wars” both before and after … this one if my personal favorite by far.

  Overall, “Star Wars: Clone Wars” is a welcome entry in the franchise, and one that I'd brand with a stamp of recommendation. Even though I feel that neither the story or characters reached the same heights as the 2008 CGI TV show "The Clone Wars", this mini-series still has something special to offer on its own merits. The action was exciting, the atmosphere is brilliant, the creators clearly had a lot of respect for its source material, and there’s enough to make the experience worthwhile. If you’re a long time “Star Wars” fan, check it out, and you’ll probably enjoy it. I still wouldn’t label the show as one of my personal favorite offerings in the series, but it was still a welcome addition to the pre-contemporary "Star Wars" era, and despite some small details, I feel this series still fits within the continuity of the franchise overall.

 

Thanks for reading my review of the animated 2003 Mini-Series “Star Wars: Clone Wars” ... and continue to enjoy both the movies and TV shows you love.  

Boba Fett (A small character with a big legacy)

      

         Just about every character from the Original Star Wars trilogy is a house hold name, seriously, who doesn't know about Darth Vader, Yoda, Chewbacca, Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Princess Leia, R2-D2 and C-3PO. However, there’s one other character that seems to have just as huge of a fan base as any of the classic characters and he didn’t even do anything. I’m off cores talking about the mysteries masked bounty hunter named Boba Fett. I’ve never been so surprised by a character that had so little to do in a series to become the subject of video games, board games, T-shirts, action figures, comic books, novels, Fan made video’s, costumes, fan websites and all kinds of merchandise.

 
   IGN even labeled him as the 8^th greatest character out of the 100 best to come from the Star Wars universe and others have called him one of the greatest movie bad asses along with “Mad Max” and “Dirty Harry”. But if you thought that was crazy wait till you hear this, in 2008, Boba Fett was selected by Empire magazine as the 79th greatest movie character of all time, that’s insane. Well, I’d be lying if I didn’t think he was awesome too, and one of my favorite characters from the series. But even I can't explain why he’s so awesome. Parodies such as “Fan Boys” and “Star Wars Robot Chicken” have even made some funny jokes on why he's so popular when he had little to no part in the series. So what is it about this character that makes him so fascinating and memorable, well let’s look at the characters legacy through the Star Wars series to try and find out why he’s become such a cult figure. 

                                                       Boba Fett in “Star Wars 4 A new Hope”

Well, unlike most characters, Boba Fett was not featured in “Star Wars 4 A new Hope”, at least not when the movie was released in 1977. The 1997 special addition added an additional Jabba the Hutt scene ware Boba Fett was briefly seen in the back ground. Not mush else to say, but it's cool that he's now featured in the original classic, if only for a little bit. 

Boba Fett in “The Star Wars Holiday Special”

         His very first appearance was an animated segment of the 1978 TV special titled “The Star Wars Holiday Special”. This just goes to show how awesome this character really is, he can be introduced in something as un-watchable as this holiday special and he’s still a fan favorite. In this little animated segment, he’s on a mission from Darth Vader to gain Luke Skywalker’s and Han Solo’s trust but Chewbacca, R2-D2 and C-3po discover his true intentions before they take him to their base. His image is a little different than usual, he has orange colors as opposed to green, a silver helmet and a long Taser gun. He’s voiced by Don Francks and in all honesty this is the coolest the character has ever been. His voice is so firkin awesome and he just personifies so much danger and mystery whenever he speaks, especially when he addresses the characters as “Friend”. It’s also a real treat just to see him interacting with the main characters, something that never happens in the trilogy. The animation in this episode looks really stupid and there isn’t much of a plot but this 10 minuet cartoon from the holiday special is worth seeing just because of how awesome Fett is. “The Star Wars Holiday Special” still remains the worst thing to come from the Star Wars universe (and for a good reason) but at least we can thank it for giving us this awesome character.   


                                        Boba Fett in “Star Wars 5 The Empire Strikes Back”

     Boba Fett made his first official, live action appearance in “Star Wars 5 The Empire Strikes Back”. This time he’s voiced by Jason Wingreen who sounds a little menacing but not as awesome as before. Latter in the 2004 DVD special edition, he’s voiced by Temuera Morrison (who played Jango Fett in “Star Wars 2 Attack of the Clones”), I understand that he’s supposed to have his father’s voice but he just doesn’t sound all that menacing. Neither of these voice actors were credited in the film, instead all credit went to Jeremy Bulloch, who was in the costume. Bulloch based his performance on Clint Eastwood's portrayal of the Man with No Name in “A Fistful of Dollars”, as such he would be seen "cradling" his blaster and slightly cocking his head. So what does the character do in the film, well, once again he’s hired by Darth Vader to hunt down the millennium Falcon and he eventually tracks it to Cloud City. After a trap is sprong on our hero's, Boba Fett takes Han Solo as a prize for Jabba the Hut. Unfortunately, he doesn’t interact with any of the characters, with the exception of briefly interacting with Darth Vader. He doesn’t even fight anyone and that’s not including his full 2 seconds shooting at Luke Skywalker. Admittedly, he does look very cool and mysterious in the back ground, like he has his own story that was meant for another film entirely. This was also the first time seeing his rather cool ship know to fans as “Slave 1”. There’s a funny little “Star Wars Robot Chicken” joke were Boba Fett and Lando Calrissian are on a flight deck and Calrissian comments “That’s a pretty cool ship you got there Boba but I’m not too crazy about that name”. 


                                       Boba Fett featured in “Star Wars 6 Return of the Jedi”    

   
    Jeremy Bulloch continued his costumed performance in “Star Wars 6 Return of the Jedi”. His jet pack and wrist cable are finally seen in action but this time the character has even less to do. He’s only briefly seen in Jabba the Hutt’s place and latter during the battle on Jabba’s sale barge. Boba Fett engages Luke Skywalker in a very brief fight, then in an anti-climactic ending, Han Solo accidently hits his jet back casing him to crash into the side of the barge and dropping into a monster pit were he’s eaten by the sarlacc creature and that’s all we get from him. The 1997 special addition had some additional footage of Fett in Jabba’s palace, flirting with some girl, I guise just to give him a little more screen time. George Lucas has stated that had he known that this character would become so popular, he would have given him a better, more exciting death. But I think a lot of his fan base comes from that want and interest to see him do more. Jango Fett had a lot of involvement in Attack of the Clones and had a pretty exciting death but he doesn’t have as big a fan base. So in an interesting case, it’s because he doesn’t do much that he has a fan base. It’s all part of that age old saying that less is more, and the less you show of an interesting looking character, the more interested people get.


                                              Boba Fett featured in “Star Wars Droids” 

     In 1985 there was an animated TV series called “Star Wars Droids” which fallowed the adventures of R2-D2 and C-3PO. Boba Fett is seen as a villain in the opening credit sequence but he only makes one appearance in an episode called “A Race to the Finish”. Don Francks, who did the voice work in “The Star Wars Holiday Special” returned for this show and he has the same orange look and design from before. Basically a group of villains called the Fromms enlist in Boba Fett’s help to get revenge on a group of racers. In the end they fail and Fett turns the Fromms over to Jabba the Hutt for a reword. It’s not one of his best animated events, especially considering we see so little of him and he never interacts with anyone. But there is one note worthy moment when the Fromm leader is talking to Fett in a door way and he’s completely covered in shadow. The rest of the Fromms don’t know who their leader is talking to, then Fett steps forward into the light and the rest of the Fromm are suddenly terrified. It’s a cool little moment and the episode is worth watching for hard core Fett fans. 

                                    Boba Fett featured in “Star Wars 2 Attack of the Clones”

    

   
     When news that the Star Wars prequel trilogy was on its way, we knew that we’d be seeing the origins of Boba Fett. George Lucas first considered making him related to Darth Vader in some way but then thought that story would be pushing it too much. I’m certainly glad he dropped that idea but what we got instead wasn’t much better. In “Star Wars 2 Attack of the Clones” we see Boba Fett as a child played by Daniel Logan. We learn that he was an unaltered clone from a bounty hunter named Jango Fett, and that he looked upon Boba as his own son. This was a little disappointing to me, to think that behind his helmet, Fett has the exact same face as all the other Storm Troopers and his outfit was just passed down from his father. I always imagined there being more to this character, other than being grown in a factory and taking his fallen fathers armor. Jango Fett was actually a superior character, he had more to do with the story, he interacted with the characters and he engaged them in battle, which was really exciting. There is a little bit of tragedy to Boba’s past, but were not given much of a character, again he’s just there as a bones. There was a book titled “Boba Fett: The Fight to Survive”, which continued his story after his father died but we still don’t get anything that exciting from him.


                                           Boba Fett featured in “Star Wars The Clone Wars”

                                

     It wasn’t until the final 3 episodes of season 2 in the TV show “Star Wars The Clone Wars” that I got the Boba Fett story that I had been waiting for. These three episodes made for very solid stories full of tragedy, anger, regret and we see a few new sides of Boba that I thought were rather interesting. Daniel Logan returns to the role and the character is now on a personal mission of revenge against Mace Windu for killing his father. In the first episode titled “Death Trap”, Boba disguises his identity amongst a group of young clone cadets that are training on a republic “Jedi” cruiser. After his first attempt to kill Windu fails, he then takes out the entire ship on his own from the inside. The ship crashes on a nearby planet but Mace Windu and most of the passengers escape before it crashes. The story continues in the episodes “R2-D2 Come Home” and “Lethal Takedown”. It’s a very nicely constructed three-parter with good action and some rather surprising emotional levels. Boba is fuelled with vengeance but at the same time he’s feeling nothing but regret for what he’s doing. He really doesn’t want anyone else getting killed because of his own personal vendetta and wants nothing more than to be accepted as a friend amongst his clone brothers. His story just feels more tragic because he seems to have the potential to be a better person but he’s lost and consumed by hatred. 

        

It’s his internal conflict between anger and honor that makes it so fascinating and the music in this episode dose a damn good job enhancing the mood and the drama that the characters going through. We also get some awesome shots of Slave 1, definitely the coolest the ship has ever been. For those of you who wanted to see a really good Boba Fett story, this is what I’d recommend above anything else. After the season 2 finally of “Star Wars The Clone Wars”, Boba Fett would continue to make appearance in the show. He's briefly featured in an episode title "Deception", which is a great bounty hunter episode, which involved Obi-Wan Kenobi going under cover as a mercenary. In another episode titled “Bounty”, we see Boba Fett take command of his own small team of Bounty Hunters, there mission is to protect some valuable cargo from bandits. This is without a doubt, one of the best bounty hunter episodes of the series and features some thrilling action scenes. Boba Fett even gets his own armor and helmet, the colors for this costume are red and grey as opposed to his usual green colors and it makes for a cool first costume for him to wear. All though, the design of his helmet looks a lot more like the "Predator" then anything else, he's still awesome in this episode and he's fantastic in this animated series, easily his best portrayal so far.  

So that’s the complete legacy of Boba Fett and dose he really deserve to be a cult figure? Well, in the beginning, he did seem like an interesting intergalactic man of mystery. The only thing we really knew about him was that he had one of the greatest outfits ever seen in a Sci-Fi movie. The helmet, that tint of green, his gadgets, and the rocket jet pack were all just so cool! But that doesn’t make him a good character, just a nice bit of extra flavor to add to this awesome series and that’s all he’ll ever really be. 

         The End