It’s official, The Clone Wars is over. Despite the fact that the actual finale of the Clone Wars happened in Star Wars Episode III – Revenge of the Sith, the latest season of The Clone Wars, its final story arc in particular, is a masterful example of what Star Wars can be when it’s in the right hands.
Throughout the entirety of the series, the audience got to know the clones as more than just a faceless army, which is how they were portrayed in Episode II and III. Many of them had honour and integrity, and behind those helmets were individuals. The Clone Wars has always done a great job in developing the clones, the final season of the show took it one step further through story arcs such as “The Bad Batch” and “The Siege of Mandalore”, the former of which showcases the brotherhood between the clones as well as getting into the headspace of Anakin Skywalker prior to the events of Episode III.
The final season of the show isn’t perfect though. While every episode is consistently terrific in its production, with its stunning visuals being a standout. The penultimate story arc, “The Martez Sisters”, is unnecessarily dragged out and ends up wasting precious time in an already shortened season. With that being said, the first episode of the arc does a great job of reintroducing Ahsoka Tano to the viewers, who was last seen leaving the Jedi Order back in season five.
Read more: The Mandalorian Casts Rosario Dawson as Ahsoka Tano
The Clone Wars kicks into full gear with its final story arc. Without getting into spoiler territory, “The Siege of Mandalore” is essentially a Star Wars film broken down into four parts. Everything from its introduction to its pacing, its character moments to its action sequences, screams film production quality. They even got the original Darth Maul himself, Ray Park, to perform the motion capture for the character’s action sequences, delivering one of the best lighsaber duels in the saga.
On top of that, “The Siege of Mandalore” also demonstrates the unique friendship between the clones and Ahsoka, going a step further in illustrating the bond between the troopers and the Jedi. For many of us, we already know how the story ends. However, we spend every single moment in The Clone Wars wishing things could go differently, which creates a sense of dread that permeates the final four episodes. “The Siege of Mandalore” is a testament of what incredible storytelling can do.
After the release of the prequel trilogy, Lucas was done with producing films set in a galaxy far, far away. For many, The Clone Wars was Lucas’ last gift to the fans. Prior to the Disney buyout, The Clone Wars alongside various other Expanded Universe content were all that fans had (there was a 10 year gap between Episode III and Episode VII). The final season of The Clone Wars celebrates the saga as Lucas sees it, like its ending, it’s bittersweet.
All in all, season seven of The Clone Wars ends the series on a sombre yet beautiful note. Over the course of seven seasons, the animated series has solidified itself as one of the biggest contributors of the Star Wars saga. With its great characters, fantastic visual effects and layered storytelling, The Clone Wars marks the end of an era in terrific fashion.
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