TV REVIEW: THE CLONE WARS "The Zillo Beast Strikes Back"

Friday's episode of The Clone Wars continued the story of the Zillo beast, and this two-parter is one of my favorite story arcs of the series. Both last week's "The Zillo Beast" and this week's "The Zillo Beast Strikes Back" are a loving homage to Japanese giant monster movies. At the end of last week's episode we saw the beast captured and ready to be sent to Coruscant, a decision made with the typical lack of judgement of characters in a giant monster story. Whether it's King Kong, Gwangi, or Mothra, it's never a good idea to bring a giant monster to town.



Like any most great monsters, the Zillo beast is as much a victim of man as it is a destructive force. We see some very intense scenes in this episode of the Beast locked up and subjected to cruel experiments and, finally, gassed to death at Palpatine's orders. The episode nicely captures the fundamental theme kaiju stories in which man suffers for being grossly out of harmony with the natural world. These two episodes make me wish the people who made this episode were in charge of the new Godzilla movie because they really get the genre.


These episodes mark a turning point for Palpatine's characterization on the show and the makers are far less coy about his true nature, even to the point where he shares an evil grin with the camera. He comes off as a real bastard in "The Zillo Beast Strikes Back." A running joke in the episode is that the Beast seems to be on to him when no one else is and the monster pursues him through a big chunk of the city. He could have done the galaxy a big favor if not for the Jedi.

Speaking of Palps, he has a great scene in this episode. Padme and the Jedi get wind of his plans to kill the Zillo Beast and, in a foreshadowing of Revenge of the Sith, they try to get Anakin to talk him out of it. Anakin and Padme go into the meeting on the same side, but at some point Palpatine pulls him to his point of view. It's a great scene because there are lots of things going under the surface and it really showcases Anakin's uncomfortable, shifting loyalties.



While the Zillo Beast's design is a little odd-looking in static poses, he was quite impressive moving and spinning through the sky lanes and buildings of Coruscant. That extra arm gives him the ability to move on another axis, which is visually interesting. It was really cool seeing this kind of kaiju urban destruction in a Star Wars setting.


Ultimately, the Beast is a confused and terrified creature which has been taken out of its element and meets its end at the hands of man (and aliens) like many great movie monsters before it. This great Zillo beast story arc gives me hope that The Clone Wars will continue to be adventurous in exploring different genres and ways to tell stories set in the Star Wars universe. After all, Star Wars itself is mix of many disparate styles and influences, and The Clone Wars offers a low risk venue for storytelling experimentation.

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TV REVIEW: THE CLONE WARS "THE ZILLO BEAST"

The Clone Wars episode from last Friday combined two of my favorite things: Star Wars and Japanese kaiju movies. Kaiju movies are a genre featuring giant monsters, usually let loose in urban areas where they fight and destroy buildings, with Godzilla and Gamera being the most famous of the bunch. The Clone Wars supervising director Dave Filoni is reportedly a huge Godzilla fan and "The Zillo Beast" is a loving homage to Godzilla and other kaiju movies.



"The Zillo Beast" takes us to the planet Malastare, and features the Dugs who were first introduced with Sebulba in The Phantom Menace. The Dugs were one of the coolest and most alien races introduced in the prequels and I'm happy to see them reintroduced in The Clone Wars. They have some very memorable scenes where they ride mounts and fight droids using electrostaffs.


It turns out that Malastare and its fuel supplies are crucial the the Republic war efforts and the Republic is fairly desperate to sign a treaty with the Dugs, which will give them access to the needed fuel. I really like that The Clone Wars has dug pretty deep into Star Wars and given us a situation that is complex and believable with parallels to our own geopolitical situation.


To thwart the massive Confederation force that has invaded the planet, the Republic unveils a new weapon, an Electro-Proton bomb, designed to take out the droids with little or no effect on organics. Mace Windu and Anakin look on skeptically as the bomb is deployed and takes out the droids but also creates a huge sinkhole on the planets surface and ultimately releases the Zillo beast, which is huge, combines features of a reptile and a segmented worm, and is imperious to almost all weapons (including lightsabers). The beast has a sort of awkward, spindly design and even sports a third arm from its back.

Like Godzilla, the Zillo beast is awakened by the use of a "doomsday" weapon and unleashed upon the land. The Dugs are dead set on destroying the creature but Windu insists on capturing this monster, the last of its kind, and taking it to a remote world where it is allowed to run free. We get some great scenes that showcase how out of sync the Jedi are with the more worldly and military forces. Their role as preservers of life is not always comfortable when they are also generals with military and diplomatic responsibilities. We see some nice foreshadowing of conflict between Windu and Palpatine as the Chancellor will not allow the Jedi to ruin the chances of having the treaty signed which will allow access to Malastare's resources.

The Zillo beast eventually escapes from its pit and is knocked out by the Jedi using some vehicles that are clearly inspired by the ubiquitous Maser tanks featured in the Godzilla movies. As they are preparing to beast to be taken off world, Windu receives a message from Palpatine that the creature will be taken to Coruscant for study, setting up next week's no-doubt kaiju-tastic second part. Palpatine has taken an interest in the monster and its nearly impenetrable armor. Obviously, he has never seen King Kong or any other monster movie to know that creatures and big urban areas do not mix well.

"The Zillo Beast" is a really fun and surprising episode that plays to what is the absolute strength of The Clone Wars: the ability to present a wide variety of stories that span wildly different tones and genres all set in the Star Wars universe. Never in a million years did I think I would see a Star Wars kaiju story, so I was sold just on the premise. Again, the opening scenario for the episode-putting a pair of Jedi in the middle of a war for resources-feels very contemporary and real and hints at things going on in the background of the Star Wars stories that we don't really ever think about. After all, those Star Destroyers don't fuel themselves. This enriches the "used universe" concept of Star Wars that has been present since the very first film in 1977.

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TV REVIEW: STAR WARS: THE CLONE WARS: THE BOUNTY HUNTERS

Bounty hunters have been a part of Star Wars since A New Hope was released in 1977, with Greedo attempting to bring in Han Solo at the Mos Eisley Cantina. In 1980, The Empire Strikes Back introduced us to Boba Fett and his compatriots who were hired to track down the Millennium Falcon. Bounty hunters are part of the big Western influence on Star Wars but for people my age, when we think of bounty hunters chances are you think of Star Wars before anything else.




This season of The Clone Wars was billed as "Rise of the Bounty Hunters" but apart from the Cad Bane episodes at the beginning of the season, we haven't really that much bounty hunter action. "The Bounty Hunters" is a bit of a surprise, as there is not any bounty hunting going on in the episodes, and these bounty hunters are the most sympathetic we have seen in the the Star Wars galaxy.

Obi-Wan, Anakin and Ahsoka are investigating a clone medical facility that has disappeared over Felucia while they are attacked by vulture droids launched from a very dispenser pod. They crash land on the planet and encounter a group of farmers who have hired some bounty hunters to defend their settlement from a group of pirates who are lead by the Weequay Captain Hondo Ohnaka. The Jedi reluctantly join the bounty hunters to fight off the pirates and defend the villagers.The whole episode is a Star Wars version of The Seven Samurai, which was directed by the legendary Japanese filmmaker Akira Kurasawa, to whom the episode is dedicated. Kurasawa's movies have been a huge influence on the whole Star Wars series. It's safe to say that Star Wars is 1/4 American Western,, 1/4 Kurasawa Samurai movie, 1/4 Flash Gordon, and a mix of World War II movies and other miscellaneous stuff for the rest. There are whole sequences and plot lines taken directly from Kurasawa's movies (The Hidden Fortress was a huge source of inspiration for both A New Hope and The Phantom Menace). What with director's influence on Star Wars, I've always wanted to see The Seven Samurai given the Star Wars treatment, and with its relative freedom to explore different narratives and tones, The Clone Wars provides a perfect venue.


The episode feels strangely like last season's "Jedi Crash" and "Defenders of the Peace" story arc, which found Anakin, Ahsoka and Aayla Secura defending a village against a Separatist attack, although narratively much tighter without the thematic complication of the pacifist villagers. The villager's in "The Bounty Hunters" are not pacifists, just kind of beat down and victimized. The episode also brings back Hondo Ohnaka and his band of pirates from last season's episode "Dooku Captured," who has apparently still managed to elude Count Dooku's revenge. Hondo has a lot of old-school pirate swagger but is not really effective as a villain, particularly with his rapid and lame retreat at the end of the episode.



The bounty hunters felt a little off as well, and not at all what we have been lead to expect from the hardened, cutthroat Star Wars bounty hunters we have been shown up until now. That being said, some of the character design on these mercenaries is pretty cool. They are lead by a female Zabrak named Sugi. There is also cool new character named Embo, who wears an armored shield on his head like a hat. These bounty hunters have a pretty cool battle against the pirates at the end of the episode, and the action is quite good.

The setting is the planet Felucia, which appeared briefly in Revenge of the Sith and was featured prominently in The Force Unleashed. The Felucians seen in this episode, are nothing like the wild and strange creatures seen in that game. I suppose the story called for cuter less ferocious aliens. Personally, I would love to see some TFU characters or references in the series. Although, the big jungle rancors were a nice nod.

Overall, "The Bounty Hunters" is a decent episode with an interesting pedigree. Unfortunately, as we get towards the end of the season, the "decent" episodes are starting to outnumber the good and great ones. Lets hope the new month delivers the promised slam bam conclusion to season two of The Clone Wars.

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TV REVIEW: THE CLONE WARS "CAT AND MOUSE"

The second season of Clone Wars continued Friday night in good form with the new episode "Cat and Mouse" which pits Anakin and Obi-Wan against a cunning new enemy, Admiral Trench. One of the great things about the series is that there is a kind of anthology vibe to the show as it jumps around in character focus, style and even time.




"Cat and Mouse" feels a lot like a tense submarine thriller, along the lines of The Hunt for Red October or Crimson Tide, with Anakin, Admiral Yularen, and their clones in the dark and claustrophobic confines of a small stealth ship attempting to outmaneuver their better-armed opponent. While it doesn't have the awe factor of some of the better episodes this season, "Cat and Mouse" is a strong piece of Star Wars storytelling.

Continuity is a difficult thing to nail down in The Clone Wars, as episodes are not necessarily aired in their chronological order, although there is apparently some sort of timeline present. "Cat and Mouse" seems to represent the earliest events in the series and take place prior to the events in The Clone Wars theatrical movie with served as a pilot to the series and introduced us to Ahsoka and the Battle for Christophsis. Last season's episode "Traitor" was set immediately before the movie, and "Cat and Mouse" is set even before "Traitor."

This episode introduces us to a great new villain, Separatist Admiral Trench, a member of an arachnid species that I believe has not been seen in Star Wars before and who sounds like a cross between Darth Vader and John Rys-Davies. Like any villain who is worth his salt, Trench is smart and competent and the episode is built around his search for Anakin and the stealth ship. Since Anakin is also (tactically) smart and competent, it makes for an interesting story to see these two worthy adversaries take each other on. Trench is also built up nicely by the normally cool Yularen's fearful reaction to him based on a previous encounter. Sadly, it is almost entirely certain that Trench is killed off at the end of the episode. But since the series does jump around a lot in time, perhaps we can see an episode based around his first encounter with Yularen.



Speaking of Yularen, it was nice to see him off the bridge for once and that he was given something to do other than standing around and being uptight. Pairing him up with Anakin for a mission was a nice touch.

Overall, "Cat and Mouse" as a solid-if not spectacular-entry to The Clone Wars as season two races toward its conclusion next month. You can check the episode out online at starwars.com.

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TV REVIEW: THE CLONE WARS "SENATE MURDERS"

The Clone Wars returned from its hiatus with the new episode "Senate Murders," which centers around a critical vote in the senate to increase the production on clone troopers and escalate the war against the Separatists. Standing against the increase is Senator Amadala and her posse, including Mon Mothma, Bail Organa and Rodian Senator Onaconda Farr, who was introduced last year as an old friend and mentor to Padme.




Another faction of competing senators stand in favor of the escalation, including new characters Deechi and the Kaminoan Senator Halle Burtoni. When Senator Farr is poisoned, Padme and Organa team up to investigate his murder an they discover a plot at the heart of the Galactic Senate.

Overall, "Senate Murders" is one of the weaker episodes this season, and not just because it is a Padme-focused, politics oriented story (although the movies handled this kind of political intrigue in a much more satisfying way). For me a lot of the new characters fall flat and feel off in this episode. Deechi is a one note, "evil" character and does little before his demise. While I was happy that a plausible explanation was given for there being a senator from Kamino, Halle Burtoni was jarringly different from the placid, ethereal, Kaminoans we saw in Attack of the Clones. Her aging vamp personality didn't feel quite right for the character. The other new character, Detective Divo was annoyingly caricaturish and it was hard to take him seriously with his round little body and Karl Rove-like face. It turns out he is the one in charge of those goofy Bobby Droids we've been seeing.

"Senate Murders" was a lackluster episode marred by some over-the-top characters. I did like that it was a different kind of a episode, a Star Wars who-done-it and when the killer was finally revealed, that person had a good reason for doing what they did. This is another example of the show's evolving moral complexity. I just wished that this point would have been packaged in a better episode.

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TV REVIEW: CLONE WARS, THE DUTCHESS OF MANDALORE

The three part Mandalore story arc concluded with Friday's episode, "The Dutchess of Mandalore," which is set entirely on Coruscant and is sort of a distorted reflection of The Phantom Menace. In TPM, Amadala and her Jedi guardians travel to the capital world to petition the Senate for Republic action on the part of her world and is stymied by political bureaucracy and the machinations of Palpatine. In "The Dutchess of Mandalore," Satine makes the trip to prevent Republic interference on her world, as it would exacerbate the terrorist threat on her world...and is stymied by bureaucracy and the machinations of Palpatine. This idea that even with good intentions, going into a situation with guns blazing can make things worse is a fairly sophisticated and timely theme and a nice break from the usually absolutist Star Wars point of view.

The previous episode was so good and wrapped things up so well that "Dutchess of Mandalore" almost seems like a bit of an afterthought. The Obi-Wan/Satine story was well-capped in the last episode and this one is largely concerned with political machinations in the Senate and an attempt by the Mandalorian Death Watch to assassinate Satine. I would have like for the three episodes to have been treated more like a movie, where the resolution of the doomed romance between the Jedi and Satine was moved to this last episode. It would have made the whole thing more satisfying, and spread some of the "quality" around between the three.

We now return to Sith Span...

I for one am actually a fan of the political angle and intrigue that was present in the Prequels but in this episode, the plot is somewhat hare-brained and dependent on characters making stupid choices. The Clone Wars is often a smartly-written show but can play dumb when it wants to. I can just imagine an exhausted writer collapsing with, "Well it is a kid's show...so it doesn't have to be smart." Wrong, slacker! Lots of adults watch the show and it has proven that it can be smart, so you do have to attempt to reach that bar.

I didn't buy the whole subplot of Satine having to go on the run because someone was shot next to her. She could have easily turned herself in made a case for herself. Are the police on Coruscant that incompetent that they are unable to tell from where a shot was fired? There is a lot of very lazy writing in this episode. I was rather hoping that Satine would be killed off, as it would have great consequences for Mandalore and Obi-Wan, as well and perhaps bring us closer to where things are in the movies. I have a feeling we will be seeing more of Mandalore, if only to put pieces in place for where they need to be in the EU.

Sadly, Coruscant's finest.

Palpatine has a bigger role here than usual and the show doesn't seem to know how to treat him. I have a feeling that the writers under the "Don't let on that Palpatine and Siddious are the same person" embargo, so they are probably required to be coy with him. In this episode his plotting is so transparent as to be laughable. Anyone paying attention can see how he is manipulating things. Palpy is an evil genius and deserves better.

On the plus side, Obi-Wan and the Mandalorian assassin have great fight scene and we actually get to see a Jedi offensively using telekinesis, which they have been a bit shy about on the show. There are also a couple of nice classic Star Wars references such as the presence of Mon Mothma in the Senate chambers and a large outdoor plaza that is straight out of Ralph McQuarries original Coruscant artwork created for Return of the Jedi.

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TV REVIEW: THE CLONE WARS, VOYAGE OF TEMPTATION

The three-part Mandalore story arc continued last Friday with the melodramatically-titled "Voyage of Temptation" which follows Dutchess Satine, her retinue, a clone squadron, and the Jedi Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker as they head toward Coruscant together so that the pacifist Satine can make her case for Mandalore's continued neutrality and against the war.







This episode arc has a lot of parallels with Attack of the Clones and Obi-Wan and Satine as a couple were faced with a lot of the same dilemmas as Anakin and Padme but made very different choices. There is even a scene as the two Jedi take the lift up to see Satine where Anakin notes Obi-Wan's anxiety that is very similar to the scene in Clones as the two are making their way to Padme's apartment. This was a very revealing episode for Obi-Wan and is full of many great character moments and some really nice dialogue which is not something for which Star Wars prequel or original trilogy) is known.



The great chemistry that we saw on display between Satine and Obi-Wan during last week's episode continues and the two get a lot of great digs in at each other, such as when Satine refers to Obi-Wan as a "collection of half-truths and hyperbole." This insult rings true to anyone who has ever pondered his "certain point of view" speech in Return of the Jedi. "Voyage of Temptation" has the extra level of having Anakin present to relish Obi-Wan's discomfort and to learn something about his former master that he had apparently never known. Obi-Wan and Anakin have a particularly poignant exchange in which Obi-Wan notes the remorse that comes with the Jedi rejection of attachment.



Meanwhile, a traitor in Satine's retinue has smuggled a few Separatist "assassin probes" aboard. These spider-like droids take over the cargo bay and manage to eliminate a lot of clones in a sequence that has plenty horror elements and some nice allusions to Alien. I particularly like the scene in which a clone picks up an empty helmet only to have a mini-droid leap out of it and attach itself to his face.

Some of the droids manage to make their way up to Satine but they are dispatched by Obi-Wan and Satine herself who packs a small ion pistol. The idea of pacifism pops up every now and then on The Clone Wars and is almost always handled clumsily. The show is called Star Wars: The Clone Wars, after all. Satine is one of the few pacifist characters who doesn't come off looking foolish in the show. Her pacifism leads to an interesting ethical Mexican standoff between her, Obi-Wan and the traitor which Anakin resolves in a moment that is at once shocking, immensely satisfying, and totally character appropriate. The fact that the Imperial March plays faintly during it is a great touch, as is Anakin's hilariously nonchalant reaction to it.

"Voyage of Temptation" is a great example of The Clone Wars in top form. In many ways the show manages to surpass the movies in quality. This episode presents well-drawn characters, good dialogue, and even a touching, textured, and mature love story all in a twenty-two minute "children's show," something that all of the movies have struggled to do.

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TV REVIEW: THE CLONE WARS, THE MANDALORE PLOT

Last week's somewhat controversial (see below) episode of The Clone Wars was "The Mandalore Plot" in which Obi-Wan was dispatched to the neutral world of Mandalore to investigate recent attacks from Mandalorian-armored warriors on the Republic. If you are only familiar with the movies this may not mean much to you but in the Star Wars Expanded Universe, the Mandolorians are the people of Jango and Boba Fett, a proud race of warriors and bounty hunters who have fought against the Jedi numerous times over the history of the galaxy.






Obi-Wan meets with the leader of the Mandalorians, the Dutchess Satine, with whom he has apparently had some sort of history. These Clone Wars episodes often have very herky-jerky beginnings and almost always leave you feeling like you've missed an episode. Although, this is a proud tradition of en medias res that goes back to 1977's Star Wars, which made you feel as though you were coming in at the middle of a story that had already started. In any case, Obi-Wan and Satine have tons of chemistry and this gives us a glimpse at the very uptight Jedi's interior life and their relationship and choices serve as a nice dramatic counterpoint to Anakin and Padme.

The Mandalorian capital and its occupants are somewhat surprising in that the city is depicted as quite big, clean, and modern (whatever that means a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away) and filled with strangely blonde and Nordic looking people, nothing like the rather swarthy Fetts that we have seen so far. There are some very subtle architectural and decorative allusions to the Mandalorian armor throughout. This is a big contrast from the way that the Mandos have been described in the EU until now, as a traditional, nomadic people who are ruled by a single Mandalore.



Shortly after a reference to a captured Mandolorian warrior's having "taken his life" we witness a Mando terrorist attack and another suicide. This season I am constantly amazed by what this "children's show" gets away with and it makes me excited to see what the live-action show will be like in a couple of years. If a kids show is going to be this dark...Anyway, Obi-Wan and Satine venture off to the moon Concordia, from where all of the problem Mandos seem to be coming. Concordia seems to more like the Mandalore that we were expecting, and itself seems to be a reference to the planet Concorde Dawn which plays a big role in Mandalorian history in the EU.

Over the course of the episode we find Separatist involvement, a Mando turncoat, some typically dry Obi-Wan humor, Jon Faveau, and a couple of good battles. Overall this was a good episode and a great return to form after the lackluster "Lightsaber Lost" episode from the previous week and it cannot be overstated how cool it is seeing Mandos in action. This is something that Star Wars fans have been wanting for a very long time. Also, it is great to have an episode that spotlights Obi-Wan, as he is a welcome departure from the youthful energies of Anakin and Ahsoka. That said, there is something discordant about the depiction of the these fancy-pants Mandalorians and the way that their culture is depicted as almost the opposite of what has been described thus far.



For the most part, this Star Wars Expanded Universe has done a pretty good job about maintaining consistency between the different media and merging all of these disparate elements into one epic story but with this new series there have been some bumps in the road. Karen Traviss, an author of several well-received Star Wars novels that focus on clones and Mandolorians, recently quit writing Star Wars largely because of the fact that The Clone Wars series and its spin off media are venturing into this territory and disregarding the hard work that she has done fleshing out this corner of the Star Wars universe. I really hope that the writers of The Clone Wars find some way to reconcile with the established continuity. If they do, the next couple of episodes from this story arc will be quite eventful.

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TV Review: THE CLONE WARS LIGHTSABER LOST

Star Wars: The Clone Wars returned Friday night after a couple of weeks off with the new episode, "Lightsaber Lost," in which Ahsoka teams up with an elderly Jedi Master to find her stolen lightsaber. While most of season two has been a vast improvement in quality over the first season, "Lightsaber Lost" is an episode which just did not work in almost any way. I would venture that this episode is probably the worst one of the entire series.



Structurally, it is similar to the detective story subplot in Attack of the Clones, which is a good place to start. It even features a lot of the same kinds of Coruscant underground locations and an appearance by librarian Jocasta Nu. It introduces Jedi Tera Senube, and that's where a lot of the problems start. Up until now, the show has done a great job with its Jedi characters but Senube is uninspired all the way through. He has two characteristics: old and British and reminds me unpleasantly of the Jetfire character from Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen.

The design elements of this episode go horribly astray in a show which has its own unique style and until now has featured some really outstanding design. In "Lightsaber Lost," there are lots of crowd scenes and the same character models are used over and over again. It seems some background characters are lifted straight from previous episodes with little or no changes. Its to the point where it seems like this episode is full of cameos. What's worse a character is introduced which clearly uses the Gha Nakt model from last season. This is a lousy idea for a couple of reasons, especially since Gha Nakt was a really unmistakable character and not just a regular Trandoshan. Mostly it just pulled me out of the story.



What few new designs are introduced are somewhat whimsical and silly, not unlike some of the podracers from Phantom Menace, as though the designers were randomly pulling elements out of hat and combining them together. Master Senube looks like a cross between a lipstick-wearing camel and an early 1990's skateboarder. One of the alien thieves has silly sideways eyes and mitten hands. This episode even introduces robotic Bobby police officers. Ugh.



What's worse is that the theft was unmotivated and unexplored. What were these two girls going to do with a lightsaber? And how was one of them able to use it so effectively? Should we feel sympathy for them? Are they victims? This might have been a nice opportunity to explore the lives of regular Coruscant residents. In an otherwise great season, I am writing off "Lightsaber Lost," especially since next week introduces the Mandalorians to the show.

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TV REVIEW: STAR WARS THE CLONE WARS THE DESERTER

The second part of last Fridays The Clone Wars two-parter was "The Deserter" which continues the action from "Grievous Intrigue."

Obi-Wan and Rex track Grievous on Saleucami.

Having managed to elude the Jedi, General Grievous crash lands on Saleucami with only a squad of Battle Droids and no working transmitter nor a way to get off planet. He and his drioids trek across the wilderness to reach an escape pop from which they can contact their fleet. Meanwhile the Kenobi, Captain Rex, and their clonetroopers are in hot pursuit. The Republic forces split up and Rex is injured and left with a female Twilek farmer to recuperate. When her husband arrives, he is revealed to be a clone who has abandoned his station and settled with a wife and family on Saleucami.

Rex, Cut and his family.

If there is anything that has been a preoccupation with this series, it has been humanizing and exploring the subculture of the Clonetroopers. The show's producers have gone to great lenghts to distinguish the clones from one another, usually via armor customization or increasingly bizarre hairstyles. The series has briefly touched upon the nagging ethical dilemma of cloning human beings to fight wars in the first season epsiode, "The Enemy Within," which featured a turncoat clone who decided to side with the Separatists and who actually made some very good points. This episode features a deserter named Cut Lawquane,
who offers a counterpoint to the first season's clone traitor. He's another clone who has displayed a surprising amount of free will. Like the clone traitor from the first season, Cut has decided that serving the Republic is not for him, although he has found a more peaceful way to leave the war. We see Rex grow to grudgingly respect his brother's choice.

Grievous rides a reek. No, it's not a children's book. Not yet, anyway.

There is also a great sequence in which Cut's children (Clones can have children!
And with a Twilek? WTF!) stumble upon a Separatist landing ship filled with Commando Droids. Cut, Rex and his family barricade their darkened home against an onslaught of the deadly droids in a truly tense and scary sequence. These Commando Droids are great additions to the Star Wars mythos and add a real sense of fear and danger any time that they are used.

The other storyline is concerned with tracking down and capturing Grievous as he makes his way off planet. This end is a little more unsatisfying as Grievous once again escapes. "We're right back where we started," Obi-Wan laments at the general's escaping ship. I kind of felt the same way. Knowing where most of these characters end up, I am kind of wanting something remarkable to happen in the meantime. What is the most interesting thing that can be done and still get the characters into position for Revenge of the Sith? This cat-and-mouse game between Grievious and Obi-Wan is not it.

"The Deserter" is another solid entry into The Clone Wars and one that helps to add another level to our understanding of the clone psychology. It begins to answer some of our questions about these warriors, who at first seemed to be little more than preprogrammed organic droids. Hopefully, future episodes will dig even deeper into these characters. For, example how much free will do they actually have? To what extent are they "programmed" to obey orders? And, finally, I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the welcome return of an item from the very first Star Wars movie, the Dejarik table.

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TV REVIEW: STAR WARS: THE CLONE WARS GRIEVIOUS INTRIGUE

The first part of last Friday's The Clone Wars double feature was "Grievous Intrigue" and it is the second season debut of everyone's favorite asthmatic cyborg general.

In the first season of The Clone Wars familiar characters like Dooku, Grievous, and Ventress were heavily used but it looks like the show's creators have made the wise decision to space out their appearances to avoid weakening their characters. After all, General Grievous becomes a little less effective as a villain if he is beaten by the Jedi week after week. So, in "Grievous Intrigue" the good general makes his first appearance well into the second season and he is back with a vengeance.

Grievous is back.

The Clone Wars has gotten darker in this season and the stakes are higher and the danger is much more real than it was last year and this episode is a great example of that. Much like in the opening of the original Star Wars, Grievous subdues and boards a smaller enemy ship captained by the Jedi General Eeth Koth and his clone troopers. Grievous boards two separate ships in this episode and both times their are some nice visual allusions Darth Vader boarding Princess Leia's Blockade Runner. In the second instance, he does Vader one better and actually cuts through the air lock with four light sabers.

Commando Droids: Less talking, more killing.

While we usually see Grievous surrounded by inept battle droids, it looks like his many complaints to Dooku have paid off and his boarding party consists of Super Battle Droids, Magna Guards, and the deadly Commando Droids. These new Commando Droids were introduced last year and they are the polar opposite of the the chatty and ineffective Battle Droids; they are fast, carry blades and are very good at taking down clones. You know right away that Eeth Koth and his troops are in a lot of trouble.

Eeth Koth: The tales of his demise have been greatly exaggerated.

Koth is captured and tortured by Grevious (he is the third character to be tortured this season, by my count). The general actually sends a hostage hologram to the Jedi Council in which he roughs up the captured Jedi Master. In both this episode and in last season's "Lair of Grievous," the cyborg villain is actually getting a bit of a character makeover and his nastiness is getting more fleshed out than it was in the Revenge of the Sith and in the early episodes of the series. It is strongly implied in these two episodes that his hatred of the Jedi stems from jealousy because, despite all of the enhancements he has undergone, he cannot use the force. Although, he still sounds like Triumph, the Insult Comic Dog.

This is a great starship...for me to poop on!

A team of Jedi including Obi -Wan Kenobi, Anakin Skywalker, and Adi Gallia are dispatched to rescue their comrade, devising an elaborate plan to engage Grievous while a smaller team boards his ship to release the Jedi Master. There is a lot of back and forth in this episode and it is never clear who winning. There is a ton of action and lightsaber battles as Grievous and the Jedi wrestle for control of the situation. Ultimately, the Jedi prevail with the droid general crashing landing on the planet below with a small squadron of droids.

One of the great choices made for this episode was the use of Eeth Koth and Adi Gallia, both of whom were introduced in The Phantom Menace as Jedi Council members but were replaced with doubles in the other prequels (although recycled shots from Menace were still used). However, these look-a-likes, Agen Kolar and Stas Allie, did not really look that much like the original actors so they were given their own names and identities and were said to have replaced the original Jedi. There has never been a really satisfying in-Universe explanation for this.

It is becoming sort of a running joke on The Clone Wars that many of the different races are assigned a random foreign accent: the Nemoidans keep their weird Thai/Japanese inflection, the Twileks speak with a French accent, the lemur people from last season, speak in an Irish dialect, Kit Fisto has a Caribbean lilt to go with his organic dreds, etc. The Clone Wars is becoming Battle for the Planet of the Accents and now Eeth Koth is revealed to have a definite South Asian/Indian accent.

Adi Gallia makes her debut on The Clone Wars.

So, both because these characters have uncertain fates in Star Wars lore and because of George Lucas' penchant for disregarding previously established Expanded Universe continuity when its suits this show's production, these characters could have easily met their deaths in this episode (in fact Eeth Koth was supposed to have died at the beginning). This adds an element of suspense and heightened stakes that is sometimes lacking on The Clone Wars. Perhaps the show will finally straighten out the whole look-a-like mess.

All in all, "Grievous Intrigue" is a really strong episode of The Clone Wars, and a nice return to form after the show got a bit bogged down in the four episode Geonosis story arc and then a two week break. The show is doing a great job building up Grievous as a villain and I hope Dooku and Ventress get the same kind of treatment. "Grievous Intrigue" was followed by "The Deserter."

Patrick Garone
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