Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008 TV series)

The Clone Wars is set during the Star Wars prequel trilogy era, taking place over a span of three years in between the films Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith. The protagonists comprise returning characters from the films, including Anakin Skywalker, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Padmé Amidala, Yoda, and Mace Windu, as well as new characters created specifically for the series, such as Anakin's Padawan Ahsoka Tano and clone Captain Rex of the 501st Legion.

The series is centered on the eponymous conflict between the Galactic Republic and the Confederacy of Independent Systems, a separatist movement organized by the Sith Lord Count Dooku. The Jedi Knights of the Republic lead their legions of clone troopers against the Separatist droid armies headed by the cyborg commander General Grievous. Unbeknownst to the galaxy, the mysterious Darth Sidious controls and manipulates both sides of the war as part of his master plan to eliminate the Jedi and create a new governing state under his rule. To that end, the series depicts the gradual deterioration of the Republic into the beginnings of the Empire that Palpatine would make official in Revenge of the Sith. Other antagonists include Dooku's apprentice and assassin Asajj Ventress, infamous bounty hunter Cad Bane, and rogue Sith Lord Darth Maul.

The series was initially conceived as an anthology, with episodes sharing few narrative connections, but later seasons would feature longer story arcs that span several episodes.

Season one focuses on various battles fought between the Republic and the Separatists. The Jedi compete with Count Dooku, and General Grievous in an effort to convince different planetary systems to join their cause. There are also several episodes that do not focus on the conflict with the Separatists, but rather other aspects of the Clone Wars.

Season two focuses on the involvement of bounty hunter characters in the Clone Wars. Darth Sidious hires Cad Bane to steal a holocron from the Jedi Temple that jeopardizes the future of the galaxy's Force-sensitive children; a Separatist droid manufacturing facility on Geonosis creates new weapons that threaten to turn the tide of the war; Grievous increases his attacks on the Republic fleet and overwhelms the Jedi; the Mandalorian terrorist faction Death Watch takes advantage of their planet's neutrality to target the pacifistic Duchess Satine Kryze; Ahsoka's lightsaber gets stolen; and the assassin Aurra Sing mentors the young Boba Fett in seeking revenge against Mace Windu for the death of Boba's father.

Season three focuses on the development of certain characters as the war rages on. Anakin learns about the nature of the Force and his role as the Chosen One in an ancient Force realm; Ahsoka begins to grow into her own and is faced with several challenges that test her independence as a Padawan; and Asajj Ventress is betrayed by Dooku and left for dead, causing her to return to her Nightsister coven and attempt to exact revenge on Dooku through the use of her own pawn, the Nightbrother Savage Opress. Other episodes explore the democratic role of the Republic Senate in the Clone Wars, and how different planets are affected by the galaxy-wide conflict.

Season four focuses on the escalation of the Clone Wars through battles of growing intensity on different fronts. Captain Rex and the 501st Legion are forced to go against their orders and act independently to oppose the rogue Jedi general Pong Krell; Obi-Wan fakes his death and goes undercover as a bounty hunter to thwart a Separatist plot to kidnap Chancellor Palpatine; Ventress abandons her past and becomes a bounty hunter following the Separatists' massacre of the Nightsisters; and Savage finds his long-lost brother, Darth Maul, who seeks revenge against Obi-Wan for his defeat over a decade prior.

Season five features five main story arcs. In the first one, the Republic helps a group of rebels from Onderon, led by siblings Steela and Saw Gerrera, liberate their planet from Separatist occupation. The second arc focuses on a group of Jedi younglings who, after completing their path to becoming Padawans, have to prove themselves by rescuing Ahsoka from pirates. The third arc revolves around a team of droids who, while undertaking a mission to intercept an encrypted Separatist message, encounter an amnesiac former clone commando and must help him recover his memories to escape the planet they have been stranded on. The fourth arc deals with the return of Darth Maul, who joins forces with Death Watch and other criminal syndicates to take over Mandalore and exact revenge on Obi-Wan. The final arc features Ahsoka being framed for bombing the Jedi Temple and later convicted of being a cold-blooded murderer. She struggles to prove her innocence, leading to her questioning who she can trust and hiding out from the Republic. Though Anakin captures the real culprit who framed Ahsoka, her faith in the Jedi Council is shaken, so she elects to abandon the Jedi Order, leaving Anakin devastated.

Season six consists of four story arcs: clone trooper Fives investigating the premature activation of Order 66 in a fellow trooper's mind, and discovering the truth about the inhibitor chips implanted in each clone's brain, only to be killed by Palpatine before he can expose it; Padmé trying to help her old flame Rush Clovis expose the corruption in the Intergalactic Banking Clan, which causes tensions in her and Anakin's relationship when he learns about her secret mission and intervenes; Jar Jar Binks and Mace Windu rescuing the captured Queen of Bardotta from a cult headed by the Nightsisters' former leader, Mother Talzin; and Yoda embarking on a journey to learn more about the nature of the Force after he is visited by the spirit of the late Qui-Gon Jinn.

Season seven consists of three story arcs. The first one is focused on Captain Rex's character, as he, Anakin, and a team of clones with genetic mutations rescue ARC Trooper Echo, previously believed to have been killed in action, and defeat the Separatists on Anaxes with his help. The second one focuses on Ahsoka, who befriends sisters Trace and Rafa Martez and helps them settle a debt with the Pyke Syndicate, while trying to conceal her Force powers because of the sisters' hatred of Jedi. The final arc, which is set concurrently with Revenge of the Sith,[13] depicts the Siege of Mandalore, a battle that had been referenced in previous Star Wars media. Ahsoka reluctantly returns to the Republic to lead an assault alongside Rex and Mandalorian warrior Bo-Katan Kryze against Maul's forces on Mandalore. Once Ahsoka confronts Maul, he shares a haunting vision about her previous master Anakin, and how Darth Sidious' plan is about to come into full effect with Anakin in the center of it. After Maul is captured, Ahsoka is eager to speak to Anakin about what Maul told her, but while in a Venator-class Star Destroyer, Sidious executes Order 66, causing Ahsoka to be attacked by her own clone troopers. She manages to restore Rex's free will, and releases Maul to cause a distraction, but he ends up disabling the ship they are on. All three ultimately escape. The final scene of the series shows Anakin, now Darth Vader, finding Ahsoka's lightsaber among the ship's wreckage some time later, and leaving with it in silence.

• Matt Lanter as Anakin Skywalker, Lom Pyke, Additional voices
• James Arnold Taylor as Obi-Wan Kenobi, Plo Koon, Osi Sobeck, Additional voices
• Ashley Eckstein as Ahsoka Tano, Additional voices
• Dee Bradley Baker as Captain Rex, all Clone Troopers, Saesee Tiin, Onaconda Farr, Bossk, Admiral Trench, Additional voices
• Matthew Wood as General Grievous, Battle Droids, Wat Tambor, Poggle the Lesser, Additional voices
• Tom Kane as Narrator, Yoda, Admiral Wullf Yularen, Additional voices
• Catherine Taber as Padmé Amidala, Additional voices
• Terrence C. Carson as Mace Windu, Additional voices
• Corey Burton as Count Dooku / Darth Tyranus, Cad Bane, Ziro the Hutt, Additional voices
• Nika Futterman as Asajj Ventress, Additional voices
• Phil LaMarr as Bail Organa, Kit Fisto, Orn Free Taa, Additional voices
• Stephen Stanton as Mas Amedda, Tarkin, Additional voices
• Katee Sackhoff as Bo-Katan Kryze
• Sam Witwer as Darth Maul, The Son, Additional voices

• Ian Abercrombie (seasons 1–6) / Tim Curry[20] (seasons 5–6) / Ian McDiarmid (season 7) as Chancellor Palpatine / Darth Sidious
• Greg Baldwin as Gwarm, Tera Sinube, Additional voices
• Ahmed Best (seasons 1–6) / Phil LaMarr (Credited as B.J. Hughes) (Season 1) as Jar Jar Binks
• Clancy Brown as Savage Opress, Additional voices
• Jim Cummings as Hondo Ohnaka, Additional voices
• Olivia d'Abo as Luminara Unduli
• Anthony Daniels as C-3PO
• Ben Diskin as WAC-47, AZI-3, Additional voices
• Robin Atkin Downes as Rush Clovis, Cham Syndulla, Additional voices
• Gideon Emery as Lott Dod, Mee Deechi, Additional voices
• Jon Favreau as Pre Vizsla
• Dave Filoni as Embo, Additional voices
• Brian George as Ki-Adi-Mundi, King Katuunko, Additional voices
• Barbara Goodson as Mother Talzin
• Anna Graves as Duchess Satine Kryze, Sugi, Meena Tills, Additional voices
• Jennifer Hale as Aayla Secura, Riyo Chuchi
• Julian Holloway as Almec, Admiral Killian
• Tom Kenny as Nute Gunray, Lt. Tan Divo, Greedo, Additional voices
• Jaime King as Aurra Sing, Additional Voices
• Daniel Logan as Boba Fett, Clone Cadets
• James C. Mathis III as Gregar Typho
• Jameelah McMillan as Halle Burtoni, Queen Neeyutnee
• Angelique Perrin as Adi Gallia, Additional voices
• Kevin Michael Richardson as Jabba the Hutt, Additional voices
• Meredith Salenger as Barriss Offee, Additional voices
• Jason Spisak as Lux Bonteri, Additional voices
• Tasia Valenza as Shaak Ti
• Gwendoline Yeo as Nala Se, Additional voices

• Pernilla August as Shmi Skywalker
• Bob Bergen as Lama Su
• Artt Butler as Captain Ackbar
• Flo Di Re as Jocasta Nu
• Dave Fennoy as Pong Krell
• Mark Hamill as Darth Bane
• Andrew Kishino as Saw Gerrera
• Liam Neeson as Qui-Gon Jinn
• Simon Pegg as Dengar
• Kath Soucie as Mon Mothma
• George Takei as Lok Durd
• David Tennant as Huyang

On August 31, 2008, a sneak peek of The Clone Wars was shown on Cartoon Network. The series premiered on October 3, 2008, at 9 p.m. on Cartoon Network. The Clone Wars on Cartoon Network is shown in a 16:9 (1.77:1) aspect ratio, cropped from its original aspect ratio (OAR) of 2.35:1 (as seen in the UK Sky Premiere screenings). The show began airing on their Adult Swim block on March 14, 2009, making the series the first Cartoon Network series to simultaneously air on both Cartoon Network and Adult Swim. The series also aired from January 15 to March 26, 2009, on TNT, making it the first form of animation to air on that channel in over a decade.[38]

The show entered an off-network syndication in 2012, and in the fall of that year Trifecta Entertainment & Media put it into barter syndication. On weekends, it aired on many affiliates on the Independent Stations as well as an affiliates of Fox MyNetworkTV and The CW (the latter network's CW Plus service also carries the program as part of its national schedule). The show has been taken off the air in off-network syndication since fall 2013 due to low costs and was not renewed for Season 2 in the 2013-2014 TV Season due to Disney's completed acquisitions of Lucasfilm Ltd In December 2012.

On March 11, 2013, it was announced that The Clone Wars would be "winding down" to focus on the Star Wars sequel trilogy and a new series, Star Wars Rebels. On February 13, 2014, Netflix announced that starting on March 7, 2014, they would begin the US distribution of the entire TV series, including some previously unreleased director's cuts, and the previously unaired new season dubbed "The Lost Missions".[6][39] The latter also became available for purchase on digital video stores, such as iTunes, in mid-2014.[40] The Netflix distribution of the series, along with the Blu-rays, included versions of some episodes with previously censored material. One of the most well-known edits was the removal of the character Ventress kissing a clone after she had stabbed him with her lightsaber.[41]

The show was removed from Netflix on April 7, 2019. For the revival and final season,[8] the remaining episodes of the series are exclusively available on Disney+.[9][42] The first episode for Season 7 was released on February 21, 2020, with the final episode being released on May 4 of the same year.[43]

Warner Bros. Home Entertainment distributed the videodisc releases of the first five seasons, while Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment handled the videodisc release of the sixth season as Star Wars: The Clone Wars – The Lost Missions.

Apart from the season-by-season videodisc sets, there were also three special DVD releases consisting of four episodes from a particular season that reflected a certain story arc or theme:

• A Galaxy Divided, an early DVD release of the series which included the four season 1 episodes ("Ambush", "Shadow of Malevolence", "Destroy Malevolence", "Downfall of a Droid")
• Clone Commandos, another DVD compilation that includes episode five "Rookies" as well as episodes 19 through 21 ("Storm over Ryloth", "Innocents of Ryloth" and "Liberty on Ryloth").
• Senate Murders, DVD from Season 2 episode Senate Murders
• Heroes on Both Sides, DVD from Season 3 episode Heroes on Both Sides
• Pursuit of Peace, DVD from Season 3 episode Pursuit of Peace
• Darth Maul Returns, a feature-length "director's cut" edited together from Season 4 episodes "Massacre", "Bounty", "Brothers" and "Revenge" and was initially available exclusively at Target.[54]

The theatrical film that served as the premiere for the series was panned by critics.[71] The series began with generally positive reviews at first and over time the series achieved critical acclaim for its writing, emotional depth, lore expansion and voice acting. On July 11, 2008, television critics were shown a completed episode of the series. The Hollywood Reporter called the footage "likely the most photo-realistic animated TV series ever produced."[72]

On Rotten Tomatoes, the first season has an approval rating of 69% based on 16 critic reviews, with an average rating of 5.70/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "With an agreeably entertaining first season, Star Wars: The Clone Wars opens a fun, kid-friendly chapter of the franchise's sprawling mythology."[73] On Metacritic, the first season has a weighted average score of 64 out of 100 based on 9 critic reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[74]

Slate gave the season a positive review and stated, "The new series aspires to the level of a virtual-reality game. That's both the source of its great visual charm and the key to its emptiness, which is too dull to get worked up about."[75]

Maureen Ryan of the Chicago Tribune praised the season's "fine" complexity, but criticized its "byzantine" plot and lack of character depth, calling the result an "irritation or boredom".[76]

In 2009, IGN named The Clone Wars the 89th best animated series,[77][78] specifically praising the episodes "Rookies", "Cloak of Darkness", and "Lair of Grievous" as having some of the best storylines in the Star Wars Expanded Universe.[79]

On Rotten Tomatoes, the third season has an approval rating of 100% based on 5 critic reviews, with an average rating of 8/10.[80]

On Rotten Tomatoes, the fifth season has an approval rating of 100% based on 5 critic reviews, with an average rating of 7.90/10.[81]

On Rotten Tomatoes, the sixth season has an approval rating of 100% based on 12 critic reviews, with an average rating of 8.90/10. The site's critics consensus reads, "Sophisticated storytelling and quality animation make the sixth season of Star Wars: The Clone Wars a fitting end to the series."[82]

On Rotten Tomatoes, the seventh season has an approval rating of 100% based on 36 critic reviews, with an average rating of 7.75/10. The site's critics consensus reads, "Thanks to its beautifully animated action-sequences and its impressively layered storytelling, The Clone Wars' final chapter affirms its place as one of Star Wars' greatest entries."[83]

Star Wars: The Clone Wars became the most-watched series premiere in Cartoon Network history. The series averaged 4 million total viewers in its debut, according to Nielsen Media Research. Cartoon Network said the Star Wars spin-off ranked as the number one channel among all major animated networks in the time slot among total viewers (the largest in the demographic for any premiere telecast of an original Cartoon series).[84] On July 23, 2010, at the San Diego Comic-Con, Craig Glenday, editor of the Guinness World Records, presented Star Wars: The Clone Wars supervising director Dave Filoni, CG supervisor Joel Aron, and lead designer Kilian Plunkett a certificate proclaiming the cartoon series "the highest rated sci-fi animation currently on television".[85] Tech Times said that, "while the Star Wars prequel films fail to make audiences care about characters like Anakin Skywalker, The Clone Wars succeeds."[86] During May 2020, following the release of the seventh season on Disney+, The Clone Wars became the most streamed digital original show in the United States.[87][88]

At the time of cancellation in March 2013, 65 more episodes were in development.[97] Thirteen of these episodes were finished to become part of Season 6: The Lost Missions,[98] but there were still additional arcs that were never released. In September 2014, StarWars.com released details of three story arcs from the unfinished episodes.[7] In 2020, an additional twelve of the unfinished episodes were finished and released on Disney+ as part of the show's seventh and final season.

A four-episode arc continued the story of Maul following the events from the season 5 episode "The Lawless", detailing his escape from Sidious; Maul regains control of the criminal Shadow Collective, and battles Dooku, Grievous, and Sidious.[99] The arc was adapted into a four-part limited comic book series, Darth Maul: Son of Dathomir, which debuted in May 2014.[7]

An eight-episode arc with Nightsister Asajj Ventress and Jedi Quinlan Vos was adapted into Dark Disciple, a novel by Christie Golden released on July 7, 2015.[7] The story follows Vos partnering up with Ventress, hoping to execute Count Dooku.[100]

Two arcs consisting each of four episodes were released on the official Star Wars website for free in the form of complete animatics, albeit with unfinished animation as those episodes only went through the earliest stages of production. Both were fully voiced by the cast.

In September 2014, four unfinished episodes were released on the official Star Wars website. The arc took place on Utapau with Obi-Wan and Anakin investigating an arms deal involving the Separatists and a Kyber crystal. The arc also dealt with Anakin's feelings after the departure of Ahsoka.[7][101] It was also included in the season 6 Blu-ray.

The unfinished animatics for The Bad Batch, a four-episode arc, were screened at the Star Wars Celebration convention in Anaheim, California, on April 17, 2015.[102] Scripted by Brent Friedman, it is a four-part story arc focusing on a ragtag unit of clone commandos of the same name. The arc was subsequently released on StarWars.com for free shortly after on April 29, 2015. The completed episodes were aired as the first part of the seventh season.[103]