Star Wars: The Clone Wars

For being the first animated Star Wars movie as well as the only one not released through Fox, The Clone Wars received a theatrical premiere at the dead end of summer 2008 which didn't help its box office numbers. Meant to bridge the gap between Episode II and III of the prequel trilogy, this was first covered in an excellent 2D micro-series on Cartoon Network directed by Genndy Tartakovsky of Samurai Jack fame, but three years after that trilogy ended a new Clone Wars series was made also by Cartoon Network, this time entirely animated in 3D. The drawback to this is that the micro-series was not considered canon which really sucked if you had come to adore the unstoppable Captain Fordo, although this didn't become totally non-canon until Disney took over the entire franchise. The 3D series ran for 7 seasons first on Cartoon Network, briefly on Netflix, and then concluding on Disney+. The 98-minute-long movie was obliviously intended to be a prolonged pilot episode, but some corporate bigwig thought they could sell more Happy Meals if it was shown in cinemas months before the ongoing TV series. Directed by future Star Wars pioneer David Filoni, The Clone Wars movie was intended to act as a self-contained arc that would be the opening for the weekly network cartoon, so the production quality was not up to theatrical standards which was noticed by most viewers. If this had been released a decade later, then the movie would have gotten enough exposure on the various Disney networks, but because they had to get greedy with it, the license holders had the biggest Star Wars theatrical bomb instead, or at least until the sequel trilogy came out.

Set sometime after Attack Of The Clones, the titular Clone Wars are fully underway with Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker leading the Republic army against the Separatist forces throughout the Outer Rim of the galaxy. Anakin is surprisingly presented with his own student, Ahsoka Tano, an enthusiastic teenager ready to prove herself as a Jedi in training as the two of them have to rescue Jabba the Hutt's kidnapped son. This is all a scheme by Count Dooku and his apprentice Asajj Ventress to have the Hutt clans support the Separatists instead of the Republic. The film goes from one action scene to another leaving little room for character development, so the film is simply one big toy commercial and not in the somewhat entertaining way it was done in the 80s with Transformers and He-Man.

The Clone Wars is a sad excuse for a Star Wars movie. Where some fans had problems with the Solo motion picture, at least it was a solid effort at a full-length feature. This animated outlet should have remained on television as it was first intended. One of the only positive aspects is the debut of Asoka who fortunately became a much more likeable character throughout the TV series, plus Christopher Lee returns to voice Dooku making it his last Star Wars appearance. It also has some of the most cliche dialogue you'll ever hear. It is entirely possible to skip this film and just go straight into The Clone Wars series unless you are an obsessed Star Wars completionist.