The 2008 television series, The Clone Wars is set in the fictional Star Wars galaxy, during the same time period as the previous 2003 Star Wars: Clone Wars series. Star Wars creator George Lucas says “there will be at least 100 episodes produced of the series, regardless of whether the ratings are good or bad. Reading that got me thinking; The Clone Wars definitely has some fine merits but is Lucas ever going to be able to truly step away from The Star Wars franchise and to a lesser degree, Indiana Jones and give us a completely new project?
Star Wars: The Clone Wars is the first series directly from Lucasfilm Animation to chronicle the adventures of Anakin Skywalker, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Yoda, Ahsoka Tano and other well known Star Wars characters as they struggle against the dark side. Unfortunately, after watching the four episodes on A Galaxy Divided, I’m thinking George Lucas may want to put his dreams of 100 episodes to bed.
Star Wars: The Clone Wars – A Galaxy Divided picks up where the Clone Wars movie left off, which is also kind of where Star Wars: Attack of the Clones left off. The galaxy is in the midst of a war. The Jedi is taking a leadership role in leading the Republic’s army against the droid forces of the Separatists, led by Count Dooku and General Grievous. The purpose of these animated adventures is to give us an exciting look inside the Clone wars but it such a disappointment; I could have done without it.
The episodes included on this DVD are: “Ambush,” “Rising Malevolent,” “Shadow of Malevolence,” and “Destroy Malevolence.” The first episode contributes little to the overall story. It contains a passionate speech by Yoda that makes the Clone soldiers realize they are indeed an important part of the mission. The other episodes deal with a Separatist starship named Malevolence, which houses a secret weapon. In the first episode, Jedi Master Plo Kloon finds the weapon and survive, with the aid of Anakin Skywalker and his padawan. The second episode has Anakin and his padawan, Ahsoka Tano leading an attack on the Malevolence as it’s preparing to take over a medical building. Finally, it’s an all out battle between the Separatist ship and the Jedi forces, with General Grievous proving he still has a trick or two up his sleeve.
I know this series is directed at kids but that doesn’t mean the stories have to border on utter nonsense. The writing for this series is simply terrible. I surprised a self-professed perfectionist like George Lucas would allow scripts like these to be produced (Lucas himself, is one of the writers). First and foremost, is the decision to give Anakin Skywalker is own padawan, Ahsoka Tano. That decision simply doesn’t make sense if the series is supposed to be viewed as a bridge between the two prequels. After all, Anakin is still thought of as irresponsible in Revenge of the Sith.
I’m a huge fan of the Star Wars films but The sub-par storytelling in the Clone series seems to be an indication that George Lucas is prepared to milk the Star Wars legacy for all its worth. Perhaps he’ll strike gold again but if Star Wars: The Clone Wars – A Galaxy Divided is any indication, the adventures of Anakin Skywalker and friends, might have run its course.
While the colors are vibrant and animation is top notch, the DVD presentation is 1.85:1 Non-Anamorphic Widescreen. Further, the show has been cropped from its original 2.35:1 aspect ratio. I understand the show is broadcast cropped, but the DVD should be the right time to release the episodes in their original format. I didn’t notice any technical problems with the transfer though and feel the series would be visually stunning in an unmodified format.
As expected, the English Dolby 5.1 track is up the standards one would expect of a Star Wars title. Sound design is handled well with trademark effects coming across clear and crisp. Surrounds are used as intended and showcase the top-notch efforts. Dolby 5.1 tracks in French, Spanish and Portuguese are included as are English subtitles for the hearing impaired.
There are no special features.
