11:44AM, Jan 29, 2009
The first ten episodes of Star Wars: The Clone Wars have thrilled us, but what have we learnt? Most importantly, that Star Wars still has adventures and characters with which to thrill us.
Read on for ten things we've noticed from the first ten episodes...
1. It’s different from the movies
An obvious one, but The Clone Wars writers know that a multi-season animated TV series is a different beast to a movie, or even a movie trilogy. While following a general story arc, episodes introduce plotlines that will be returned to, using TV’s luxury of expanding subplots beyond what a movie can achieve. The show is judiciously introducing key characters – Obi-Wan hasn’t headlined his own episode so far and Asajj Ventress (the best villain) has only demonstrated her lethality in one instalment.
2. It’s the same as the movies
Star Wars means epic action, heroes and villains, humour, adventure and imagination. Like the movies The Clone Wars transports you to a galaxy far, far away, and has provided some of 2009’s most dazzling moments of telly – the droid commandoes’ assault in Rookies, the attack run in Shadow of Malevolence, Artoo’s duel in Duel of the Droids, all of Cloak of Darkness. And it’s animated in the action-friendly 2.35 aspect ratio.
3. Supporting characters are having their day in the sun
The Star Wars prequels featured striking looking (and stunningly garbed) Jedi Masters, sidelined at the expense of Anakin Skywalker's story. Following on from the original Clone Wars animated series, The Clone Wars is fleshing out such fan favourites as Plo Koon (Supervising Director Dave Filoni’s character of choice), the dreadlock-like tentacled Kit Fisto, and the funereal looking Luminara Unduli.
4. The best talents are being brought into the Star Wars universe
Amongst the directors of the first ten episodes Dave Filoni worked on Avatar: The Last Airbender, director Atsushi Takeuchi is a long-time collaborator of anime God Mamoru Oshii, and Rob Coleman was visual effects artist on the Star Wars prequels, plus Men In Black and Signs.
Writers include Henry Gilroy, who previously worked on Batman: The Animated Series, the Star Wars: The Clone Wars movie and cult-toon The Tick, Stephen Melching who co-wrote classic Star Wars spoof Troops and The Clone Wars movie, plus Paul Dini.
Animation guru Dini is the producer/writer of the legendary Batman: The Animated Series, plus the writer of Justice League of America, Animaniacs, plus old SW cartoons Droids and The Ewok Adventures.
5. The Clone Wars likes its movies
The Star Wars saga aside, The Clone Wars has drawn inspiration from classic sci-fi films such as Aliens, the wirework fantasia of Hong Kong cinema (see Once Upon A Time In China), punk-samurai movies (Azumi) and anime (Macross is specifically referenced in episode 9).
6. Animation can’t fix everything
The “roger, roger” battle droids carried little threat in the Star Wars prequels, and they are largely treated as comic relief here. Scripts highlight their inherent rubbishness – in episode 10 Grievous complains he cannot fight a war with such troops - but we'd like to see less of them. Time will tell if Jar Jar Binks can be rehabilitated...
7. The Force is strong with Ahsoka Tano
She’s spunky, has a surplus of attitude and heart to match, is formidable with a lightsaber and is the perfect foil for her headstrong master, Anakin Skywalker. First lighting up the screen during the vertical battle in The Clone Wars movie, Ahsoka has continued to play a key role at the centre of the action, whether invited or not. Possibly the best animated teenage TV character since Neon Genesis: Evangelion’s Asuka Langley Soryu, and that she doesn’t appear in Episode III suggests The Clone Wars will include real tragedy.
8. Kevin Kiner has done the impossible
John Williams is the music of Star Wars, so someone else taking up his conducting wand would seem foolhardy. But, composer Kevin Kiner retains Williams’ orchestral grandeur and excitement in his incidental music, has added Techno to the Star Wars universe in episode 6, and his funk-up of the opening theme is not as sacrilegious as it sounds.
9. Episode 9, Cloak of Darkness, is the best so far
To prove Star Wars: The Clone Wars is not merely a tacked-on adjunct to the original saga, the finest episode in the opening ten barely features any characters from the movies, focussing on Ahsoka, Luminara Unduli, and Asajj Ventress. But, its Star Wars to the core: the intrigue, excitement, characters and action match its big screen counterparts.
10. More of the same to follow
The remainder of The Clone Wars season one will introduce a cool new villain and a three part story arc that promises to be Star Wars does Band of Brothers. We’ve got a goooood feeling about this…
Rob Daniel
