Clone Wars Weekly: Holiday Catch-Up

From "Duel of the Droids"

 ENLARGE IMAGE

Both Lucasfilm and Cartoon Network announced there will be no new episodes of Star Wars: Clone Wars until Friday, January 2nd. That doesn’t mean there aren’t going to be repeats.

Actually, viewers are going to have just about two solid weeks of repeated episodes, which means this is the perfect time to catch up on the episodes you might have missed, or for true Jedis to catch the ones they really like again...and again...and maybe even again. And for those who’ve avoided the series altogether until now – it’s time to tune in and see what the fuss is all about.

In fact, there are some episodes I personally wouldn’t mind seeing a second time through. But first things first, here’s the schedule (although always keep in mind it could be subject to change):

MONDAY, Dec. 22
10:00 a.m. "Ambush" and "Bombad Jedi"
5:00 p.m. "Cloak of Darkness"

TUESDAY, Dec. 23
9:30 a.m. "Shadow of Malevolence"
2:00 p.m. "Destroy Malevolence" and "Rookies"

THURSDAY, Dec. 25
4:30 p.m. "Rookies"

FRIDAY, Dec. 26
8:00 a.m. "Ambush"
6:00 p.m. "Downfall of a Droid" & "Duel of the Droids"
9:00 p.m. "Cloak of Darkness"

SATURDAY, Dec. 27
9:30 a.m. "Cloak of Darkness"

SUNDAY, Dec. 28
9:00 a.m. "Cloak of Darkness"

MONDAY, Dec. 29
10:00 a.m. "Rising Malevolence" and "Shadow of Malevolence"
5:00 p.m. "Bombad Jedi"

TUESDAY, Dec. 30
9:30 a.m. "Lair of Grievous"
2:00 p.m. "Cloak of Darkness" and "Destroy Malevolence"

WEDNESDAY, Dec. 31
9:00 a.m. "Ambush" and "Cloak of Darkness"
3:00 p.m. "Rookies"

from "Destroy Malevolence"

 ENLARGE IMAGE

Personally, it probably would have been nice to put the Malevolence trilogy together as well as, for lack of a better name, Nute Gunray trio (“Bombad Jedi,” “Cloak of Darkness” and “Lair of Grievous”). I’m not complaining because my favorite of the ten episodes aired so far, “Rookies,” is getting next maximum exposure with three repeats (the only episode that gets more is Paul Dini’s “Cloak of Darkness,” another favorite).

That said, here’s my top three episodes, so far.

• Rookies – A solid examination of what it truly means to be a clone trooper from how they develop their own individual identities to their incredible sense of self-sacrifice. I’m also still impressed by Dee Bradley Baker’s tour-de-force performance as all of the clones. He managed to make each one unique even though their biology worked against them.

• Lair of Grievous – Now this is the General Grievous that first started slaughtering everyone in sight in Genndy Tartakovsky’s miniseries. At his core, he’s a trophy hunting killing machine, not the cyborg equivalent of Dishonest John that was presented during the Malevolence trilogy. I also enjoyed the introduction of Kit Fisto, and hope to see a lot more of that Jedi in the very near future.

• Ambush – Yoda vs. Asajj Ventress, with the Jedi Master proving who’s the boss from the very get go. Yeah, the little guy sometimes says the most annoying homilies, but he can also slice you into itty bitty pieces if properly provoked. His caring for his clone troopers also show why he’s a true Master.

As for the rest of the ten? Well, the only true bit of swamp gas is “Bombad Jedi,” which leads me to believe there truly is nothing you can do with Jar Jar Binks.

If there is also one irony in my choices, it’s that they feature none of the episodes focussing on Ahsoka or Anakin. Personally, I’m truly starting to like the scrappy little padawan. On the other hand, like Anakin, she’s proving she’s also capable of some truly knucklehead moves I find truly annoying. I’d also wish they gave Padme a bit more to do as her solo runs have also left me feeling apathetic.

Still, three excellent episodes and only one stinker in a mix of ten are better than many other series can brag about. I also get the feeling the series will get more intricate and complex as it progresses, and that suits me fine.

Related:

Clone Wars Weekly 16: GrievancesWith Grievous

Clone Wars Weekly 15: Focusing on the Women

Clone Wars Weekly 14: Paul Dini - The Newest Jedi Talks