Wednesday 17 July 2019

Talkie Tuesday: Star Wars The Clone Wars

"A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away ..."


Hello everyone!

For my last movie review before I take a mini summer break, I decided to pick something near and dear to my heart, and also incredibly hilarious while I'm at it.

That, and I was so disappointed yesterday when trying to watch a movie and being unable to get into it that I really needed something else for a pick-me-up, and Star Wars usually works wonders for that kind of thing!

Of course, by this point, we've already looked at the plot of The Clone Wars, or at least its introductory movie, from pretty much every angle, so this isn't going to be a super extra detailed bit of post.

We all know what happened.

We've seen it and/or read it.

So why not go right ahead and dive into the movie then?
This was an introductory movie to a television series that ran for a few years before coming to an end, and then getting picked up again only this year I think! There's just so much story to tell in the years between Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith when The Clone Wars raged across the galaxy far, far away, and you really can't tell everything in one sitting.

I need to continue watching the actual cartoon eventually, but for the time being it's the movie for me and that's it. I'll get to the rest at some point!

Interestingly enough, there is no introductory reel to these Clone Wars, like with most of the other Star Wars movies - you know, the starry night sky and the yellow letters slowly scrolling upwards telling us about what's going on, or has been going on, prior to us tuning in at that precise moment.


Instead, we get a narrator, which I suppose is a kind of fun choice for something that was mainly kid-oriented, but we also learn another thing that I sort of missed in both book adaptations.

Apparently, the Republic is cut off from the vast majority of its clone army because of the Separatist troops, and it's one of the main reasons why they need the cooperation of the Hutts and their trade routes, to be able to supply the fighters in the Outer Rim territory.

This was new! I honestly can't remember reading anything of the sort.

Anyway, of course the plot remains the same - Jabba's son has been kidnapped and he's contacted the Jedi, who are ordered by Palpatine to go save the little Huttlet, much to their dismay since Jabba is a crime lord AND something just doesn't feel right.

That would be the evil smirks Palpatine throws around when nobody's watching, Master Windu.


As per usual, there are no other Jedi to send besides Kenobi and Skywalker, as the rest are spread too thin across the galaxy commanding the troops and trying to restore peace to wartime, during which the small people are hurt the most because there's no one there to police the other denizens, and crime has run rampart.

Meanwhile, Kenobi is his usual charming self while Anakin gets sulky over his new Padawan Ahsoka Tano, but otherwise they manage to get the planet they're on under control, and hike it out into space to go get their quarry.

Another thing specifically shown in this movie is that there are special, Commando-type clones who discover the whereabouts of the little hostage and deliver the news to Skywalker, again something I think the books don't cover much, gloss over, or I just sort of missed.

Naturally Anakin and Ahsoka get the Huttlet and then run into Ventress before they can escape using a really battered old ship that BARELY makes it into hyperspace, but at least they manage to heal Rotta from his sickness and crash-land on Tatooine while they're at it.


Also included is some eye-rolling from Master Kenobi since his former Padawan just keeps getting himself in trouble and then Obi-Wan has to clean up the mess behind him.

I was surprised that Sir Christopher Lee apparently came back to voice Count Dooku, since he didn't sound even remotely like himself, but it says so online so I'll have to take their word for it - though he seems a lot less dangerous when Anakin fights him, probably because this was geared towards children (side note, the way Rotta pulls the flap over the backpack he's in when they mention Dooku is adorably hilarious).

The Padmé side-plot is a little more detailed since we actually get to see her go into the Hutt lair to try and negotiate, but again it's only a minor sort of sequence, just enough for us to hear the familiar voice of C-3PO, really!


And then the one other thing that I think the books actually went on to fix: Anakin doesn't understand the Hutts when they speak in this cartoon, which is a mistake given that he was born and raised on Tatooine and spoke the language fluently. But anyway, the Huttlet is safely delivered to his father, Anakin and Ahsoka end up as Master and Apprentice, and the Republic can now move along the trade routes.

But not to worry, says Darth Sidious, it doesn't really matter.

The Republic is bound to fall, either way.

xx
*images not mine

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