End this Clone War Has: An Amazing journey it was.

I just streamed the final 13 Episodes of The Clone Wars on Netflix.   The final episodes after the show was canceled right after the new upcoming Star Wars movies were announced and shortly before the Rebels TV show was announced to basically take its place.   I couldn’t be happier as a long time Star Wars fan of the movies, books, comics and animated TV series with how these final episodes turned out.

A possible minority opinion? 

 I am  excited about the fact that there are going to be at least 5 new Star Wars films thanks to Disney's purchase of Lucasfilm…..(A thought that seemed unthinkable just a few years ago)   What Star Wars fan wouldn’t be excited about 5 more films?   But after watching the last 13 episodes of The Clone Wars in marathon fashion,   I’m not sure that any of these 5 films on their own is going to be able to give me as much satisfaction as this 286 minutes worth of TV programming.    That is not to say that I won’t be excited when all 5 films come out (I’ll probably be frothing at the mouth in anticipation).    It is just I’ve come to realize lately that no film can have the same power and  impact as really good TV show .   Take the Walking Dead for example:  What individual 2 hour zombie movie can ever again compete with the character development and storyline that this landmark TV show has built.   I’ll never be able to care about or feel as invested in any character in a zombie movie as I do about the characters I’ve followed for years on a TV show version.  Will any of the Star Wars films be as fulfilling as this animated gem?


If you like Star Wars and haven't seen Clone Wars------WHAT IT NOW
 Some Star Wars fans didn’t even give Clone Wars a chance because it is animated and on a Children’s TV channel, but those fans have really missed out on something special.   I watched this show from the beginning and have loved the depths and additions it has made to the Star Wars Universe.    The show was visually stunning and cinematic from the beginning and only got better as it went along.   I would recommend this to anyone that calls themselves a Star Wars fan.

The Final 13:    Spoiler Alert ---don’t read this unless you want to know major plot points

The final 13 episodes effectively answered many questions left by the Prequel trilogy and even though they weren’t intended to be the last episodes ending,  the series on a great high note.  

The first story arc involved a story that explored the secrets behind the infamous order 66.  One of the Clone Troopers named Fives ---wants answers  as to why one of his fellow Clones turned on a Jedi.   He gets to the truth and uncovers the secrets of Order 66 and tries to warn the Jedi, but to no avail.   We learn that the Clones were implanted with an organic chip while they were just infants and every Clone has this chip.   Another revelation is that the Kaminoans have been knowingly involved with Darth Sidious from the beginning.   It is painful to watch as Fives tries to reveal the truth only to not be believed.   

The Second story arc involves politics and the Banking Clans.   A less exciting arc –but an important one as it involved dark side behavior from Anakin when he becomes jealous of an individual that Padme is working with that she once dated long ago.  It also involves more Palpatine political maneuvering.  

The next short arc Follows  Mace Windu in action.  The story line despite having the hated Jar Jar was actually pretty good.  It involved a Temple of Doom type cult that ended with Mace Windu battle a Dathomir witch.   

The next arc  follows the Jedi uncovering the truth about Sifo-Dyas (the Jedi in Attack of the Clones that ordered the Clone troopers in the first place).   This was a major mystery from the films that is finally answered with a cool lightsaber battle between Dooku, Anakin and Obi Wan.  Also this episode introduces to me some more cool characters that deal in spice called the Pikes.

Yoda kicks ass----and needs his own movie

And finally we get three episodes starring Yoda.   Three great episodes that like much of the series I would have gone to the theaters to see.   Yoda seeks the secret of how Qui-Gon Jinn  is able to communicate with him despite having passed on.  Yoda travels to Dagobah and we learn another unanswered question about why he went there after Revenge of the Sith (a question that many have wondered for years)    We get to see Yoda enter the infamous cave that he sent Luke into in Empire.   We then get to see Yoda travel to the planet the Midi- Chlorians come from and learn new secrets of the Forve and then visit the Sith home world and face a long dead Sith Lord.   So many answers to lingering questions were revealed it was very satisfying.  It was also very bizarre and creepy.    I would have paid movie prices to see just the Yoda arc alone,  but getting to watch all 13 episodes in a row was beyond satisfying to me.   I guess I  myself had  taken for granted that I was able to watch Star Wars on a weekly basis for 5 plus years.   Waiting a year after the shows cancellation and getting to see 13 episodes in a row makes me grateful for the experience.  The Clone Wars is a part of the Star Wars Universe that I will forever treasure.   I can only hope that Rebels  and the new films will be ¾ as good as this amazing show.