“Star Wars: The Clone Wars” is an animated Star Wars television series that originally aired on Cartoon Network in October of 2008 and is perhaps the most expansive and diverse source of Star Wars content out there. There is an unfortunate perception out there that animated media is simply for children and that misrepresentation grossly diminishes the sophisticated storytelling the series has to offer. “The Clone Wars” never cowers away from mature themes like death, torture, and slavery, as well as philosophical elements associated with identity, morality, and finding one’s place in a galaxy at war.
The Final Season of “Star Wars: The Clone Wars” is now streaming on Disney+. This series is one of my favorite animated television series and does a fantastic job at expanding on the lure and stories of the prequel films in the Star Wars Saga. Unfortunately, the series did not exactly begin with the most clear of direction, as the feature length film was actually just 4 mediocre planned episodes sewn hastily together. If you are interested in binge-watching the show during quarantine, some guidance might be needed to traverse the filler episodes.
I have constructed a list of all of the essential episodes of the series and in the proper order in which to watch them. Not every episode that I omitted from the list is bad, just not as important to the show’s themes and overarching story as the ones that did make the list. But if you are interested in absorbing the series in its entirety, by all means watch them all! Just know that there will be some Jar Jar-heavy episodes, heavy politics episodes, and droid-centered episodes. Each have something to offer, but might not appeal to everyone.
Season 3 Episode 1 – “Clone Cadets”
Season 1 Episode 5 – “Rookies”
Season 1 Episodes 19-21 – “Storm Over Ryloth” ; “Innocents of Ryloth” ; “Liberty on Ryloth”
Season 2 Episodes 5-8 – “Landing at Point Rain” ; “Weapons Factory” ; “Legacy of Terror” ; “Brain Invaders”
Season 2 Episodes 12-14 – “The Mandalore Plot” ; “Voyage of Temptation” ; “Duchess of Mandalore”
Season 3 Episode 2 – “ARC Troopers”
Season 3 Episode 10 – “Heroes on Both Sides”
Season 3 Episodes 12-14 – “Nightsisters” ; “Monster” ; “Witches of the Mist”
Season 3 Episodes 15-17 – “Overlords” ; “Altar of Mortis” ; “Ghosts of Mortis”
Season 3 Episodes 18-20 – “The Citadel” ; “Counter Attack” ; “Citadel Rescue”
Season 4 Episodes 7-10 – “Darkness on Umbara” ; “The General” ; “Plan of Dissent” ; “Carnage of Krell”
Season 4 Episodes 19-22 – “Massacre” ; “Bounty” ; “Brothers” ; “Revenge”
Season 5 Episodes 2-5 – “A War on Two Fronts” ; “Front Runners” ; “The Soft War” ; “Tipping Points”
Season 5 Episodes 1, 14-16 – “Revival” ; “Eminence” ; “Shades of Reason” ; “The Lawless”
Season 5 Episodes 17-20 – “Sabotage” ; “The Jedi Who Knew Too Much” ; “To Catch a Jedi” ; “The Wrong Jedi”
Season 6 Episodes 1-4 – “The Unknown” ; “Conspiracy” ; “Fugitive” ; “Orders”
Season 6 Episodes 10-13 – “The Lost One” ; “Voices” ; “Destiny” ; “Sacrifice”
The show gives a spotlight to many phenomenal characters that the films do not, such as Asajj Ventress, Ahsoka Tano, Captain Rex and all of the Clones. Don’t worry though, Anakin and Obi-Wan are right there the whole time and even Count Dooku becomes mildly important! The final season is currently streaming on Disney+, however episodes are still being released on a weekly basis every Friday. I hope you enjoy the show as much as I do!
Shut Up Zach! 