A War Left Unfinished….Until Now: Star Wars The Clone Wars Final Season Review

Good as New, Maybe a Little Better

Star Wars is now a massive part of the media. Quotes, characters, and even scenes being replicated in over forms of media. Alongside that, the fans are as strong and as passionate as ever. So when a show as good as Star Wars The Clone Wars was canceled, the fanbase leaped up and demanded a final season. With the power of a few fans, ok maybe a few million, Disney has given us the final days of the Clone Wars. and let’s just say here, it’s quite breathtaking. So come to attention and let’s go back to the galaxy far far away.

The Cavalry Has Arrived: The Bad Batch Arc Review

The Clone Wars has done an amazing job showing the individuality of the clones, who all share the same physical attributes. And the Bad Batch arc has really driven the idea of individuality home with the story they present here. And in turn, reconnects you to the characters that mattered before the initial cancellation of the show.

The leading man in this arc is Captain Rex and how he’s done is so amazing. We never really see the toll this war is taking on the clones and we see a personal battle with Rex fighting to save his brothers here. 

The addition of “The Bad Batch” of clones is an amazing addition and does add to Captain Rex’s character. But they don’t really take center stage as much as I want if they’re naming this whole arc after them. But they all have so much individuality and add a lot to the clone mythos and action sequences that they’re a very welcomed addition.

Overall the story arc is a great re-introduction to the war we all loved as a kid with the characters we expect, the stories we come to love, and the action that brings us back to a galaxy far far away.

We Live and Learn: The Martez Arc

A fan favorite in The Clone Wars was Ashoka Tano. We’ve seen where she ends up in the Disney animation Rebels, but we never got a conclusion to her story in terms of the Clone Wars and what she thought of the dreaded Order 66 and the fall of her master, Anakin Skywalker. And here it’s good to see her back in action, but without the Jedi, politics getting in the way.

So we start off with Ashoka riding her speeder bike and crashing on a mechanics shop in the underground of the city; the owners of this shop are Trace and Rafa Martez. This arc sounds amazing on paper, but the execution was a little lackluster. 

The arc does a great job showing that the Jedi aren’t the peacekeeping monks they should have been and innocents are getting hurt with them playing politics. With Ashoka being a former Jedi, this gave so much to Ashoka’s character and pushed her further into venturing away from the current Jedi ideals in favor of protecting the innocent and just doing what she thought was right.

The Martez sisters did their job, but they weren’t written that well. To be blunt, Rafa’s a scumbag and Trace’s an idiot. I can forgive Rafa more due to her being the way she is because she lives in a crime-ridden district and only wants the best for her sister, but she comes off as a bit too unlikable at the start. It’s kinda hard to change first impressions. And Trace, she’s too naive and childlike and it’s kind of hard to imagine she’s been living down in this district for as long as she has.

Overall, this arc pushes the personal journey of Ashoka leaps forward, but I wish the supporting characters were done a little better. Also, I didn’t get too much into the actual story that ties all this together: it’s a little lackluster. Following the heels of The Bad Batch, it’s pretty low, but overall, it feels like an average Clone Wars episode.

Every Choice You’ve Made Has Lead to This Moment: The Siege Of Mandalore Arc

With the audience introduced to the two main players in its final arc, Ashoka Tano and Captain Rex, it’s time for the final moments. The Siege of Mandalore is the reason fans wanted the final season, we want to know how Ashoka escaped Order 66, we want to know what Maul’s final plan was, it all comes down to this.

  The opening episode had me so excited I could hardly contain myself. The opening battle shows the battle prowess of Anakin Skywalker and Rex and then goes straight into bringing Anakin and Ahsoka back together in the most heartfelt and character accurate way possible. Soon after, the siege begins.

This final arc is only 2 episodes in but it’s probably one of the best Clone Wars arcs in history and, in my opinion, is more Star Wars than the sequel trilogy. Among many breathtaking moments, the characters and voice actors behind them are done so well. Especially Maul and Ahsoka.

For those of you who forgot Star Wars: The Phantom Menace, Maul was a deadly combatant but we never really saw what he was like outside of a fight. With the Clone Wars, we see so much and in this arc, we see what he’s become. He’s smarter and wiser but he’s still the killing machine he was when we first saw him. Also, his voice actor has to be given all the praise with his performance. Maul’s both frighteningly calm and frighteningly passionate, basically he’s just terrifying. The voice actor truly is a master and we get to see him do his magic.

I really wish I can say more, but there’s literally too much to praise for one article. With the movie level qualities of animation, the beautiful cinematography and lighting, the captivating characters, the dialogue that either brings joy or excitement and the action sequences that almost give you a heart attack over excitement, this arc are too good to be real, but thankfully it is and it’s only halfway through.