Guest Post -James M's review of Star Wars The Clone Wars animated series

Salutations Star Wars fans, today we will be taking a look at the most popular animated TV show of all time, the Star Wars The Clone Wars TV Show. With the seventh and final season finally upon us after 6-7 years of waiting following the last known air-date of the series, I thought it would be stupendous to review The Clone Wars and give my thoughts on the whole thing.

So, whats the set up of The Clone Wars?
Well, it takes place during the prequel trilogy between the events of 2002's Attack of the Clones and 2005's Revenge of the Sith, and follows characters such as Anakin, Obi-Wan, the Clones and the rest of the Jedi Order as they take part in the Clone War between the Galactic Republic and the Separatist Alliance led by Count Dooku all while the Sith Lord Darth Sidious masterminds the whole conflict behind the scenes, preparing for the inevitable Order 66, which will see the end of the Jedi and the beginning of a new era for the galaxy at large.



This however, is NOT the first Star Wars TV show to portray the Clone Wars conflict between Star Wars Episode II and Episode III. Back in 2003, well after Attack of the Clones was released, the world received Star Wars Clone Wars, directed by Genny Tartakosky and produced by Lucasfilm, which also gave us a look at the conflict between the Republic and the Separatists while expanding upon the Star Wars universe and introduced new characters such as fallen Jedi Assaj Ventress, who'd later go on to be an important character in Star Wars canon.
While Clone Wars ended in 2005 with its last episode leading into the events of Episode III, it set the stage for what we would get a few years later with the kinda not-so well-received The Clone Wars movie which was followed up by the mega popular The Clone Wars TV show we are talking about.



Before we go further with talking about the show, lets talk about the movie that served as the pilot for it. Star Wars The Clone Wars the movie is technically the tenth Star Wars movie in the franchise over all, well seventh if you leave out the Holiday Special and the Ewok movies. When I first learned about this movie, I was fascinated. Some time after its release, I asked mum if I could. Admittedly, my mother was... hesitant. But after some persuasion, my mom got me the movie one day while we were at a video store and we watched it the next day, it was actually quite good.
So, whats the story of the film? Its simple, Anakin and new character Jedi Padawan Ahsoka Tano have to rescue Jabba the Hutt's son Ratta the Hutt from the clutches of Count Dooku. The movie has some stupendous action scenes, incredible animation and good voice acting, the best Star Wars movie the franchise has to offer, right up there with the prequels themselves.

Now, lets talk about the TV show itself. The Clone Wars' first season kicked off in 2008, just weeks after the movie hit theaters, and had its season finale in 2009. The show was well received, earning some positive reviews. Like I said before, TCW revolved around the conflict between the Republic and the Separatists, but there were times where the Jedi dealt with other threats such as Bounty Hunters and other rogues such as Darth Maul's brother Savage Oppress and, major spoilers, Darth Maul himself.

"WHAT?" I hear you say, "I thought Darth Maul was vanquished at the end of The Phantom Menace, how the heck is he in the show, whats going on?" Let me explain, yes Maul was defeated at the end of Episode I but he actually survived getting cut in half thanks to his hatred of Obi Wan and spent ten years in hiding on the junkyard planet of Lotho Minor before being tracked down and recovered by his brother, who took him back to Dathomir where the witch Talzin gave Maul new legs. What did Maul do once he got his new legs? Simple, he sought revenge against Obi-Wan for trying to destroy him, leading to the fallen Sith and his brother to take over Mandalore, attracting the attention of Darth Sidious, who beat Maul in battle and destroyed Savage.

The Clone Wars lasted 5-6 seasons and a good half a decade before it was taken off the air following the 2012 Disney buyout of Lucasfilm and Star Wars in 2013-2014, leaving some story lines unfinished much to the disappointment of many fans... until now.
Yes, after a 6-7 year hiatus, the show is returning for one last season which fans have waited for and demanded for years since the end of the series. We're getting the Siege Of Mandalore, more Ahsoka adventures and Order 66 as well as a bit of the aftermath.

My thoughts on the series?
Its fun and entertaining, has its charm and moments and enjoyable as long as you can handle the gritty and super mega violent parts of it. However, the final season of the series will not be airing on TV like all shows traditionally do, it will be on Disney Plus just like The Mandalorian.

Well, thats it for my review of The Clone Wars, sorry I didn't have a lot to say its just that there's so many episodes and some things I can't cover them all in one review otherwise we would be here all day without any rest or sleep.
So, uh, see you next time folks. Yes, I will review the final episodes of the show when the drop.
Bye!

-James M.