Star Wars: The Clone Wars — A New Hope For the prequels and the fans
Ahsoka Tano lands on Mandalore ready to fight. (via. Disney & Lucasfilm)
October 27, 2023 Joel Edison | Editor
The prequel trilogy of Star Wars movies is a rich era brimming with potential. While the movies had a vision, they failed to execute or capitalize on the imaginative prequel timeline. The underdevelopment of the Clones and Jedi, between the Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith are the most glaring mistakes to me. While the mainstream movies fail to capture the tragedy of Order 66, The Clone Wars series fleshes out Anakin's turn to the Dark Side through Ahsoka’s perspective and breathes life into the Clones’ character.
In the words of Darth Maul to Ahsoka in season 7, episode 10, "Every choice you’ve made… has led you to this moment.” Every choice The Clone Wars series made in its 100+ episodes led to the moment when the galaxy will be remade. Order 66 is arguably the most pivotal and turbulent event in the Star Wars timeline, and is a compelling stage for some of the greatest Star Wars stories. The Jedi Order is purged and decimated, the orchestrated evil purpose of the Clones is fulfilled, Anakin falls to the Dark Side, and in the ashes of the Galactic Republic a new tyrannical Empire rises. While Revenge of the Sith presents a sweeping, encapsulating vision of the ravaging change, The Clone Wars approaches this traumatic event at a ground level. Through the lens of Ahsoka, Maul, and Rex, the series accomplishes a more comprehensive and sophisticated retelling of Order 66 which compliments the vital elements of its predecessor movie.
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The last 4-episodes of its 7th season, depicting The Siege of Mandalore and Order 66, are a manifestation of the brilliance of the show in its explosive, yet tragic, climax. This superlative apex of The Clone Wars stands with Andor as the pinnacle of all Star Wars projects.
The Clone Wars’ nuanced, multifaceted, and meticulous storytelling is its strength. It isn’t preoccupied with its plot and is allowed to delve into the perspectives of its characters as they cascade ever nearer to Order 66. By utilizing two characters seemingly negligible to the plot of Revenge of the Sith, it conveys a confrontation which layers newfound dread, tragedy, and complexity into Anakin’s turn to the Dark Side. Maul’s normally cold and brooding character is a perfect harbinger of the horrors that are yet to come. He declares that the Republic will fall and the time of the Jedi has passed. The delivery of the message is just as fervently foreboding as the news. Maul knows Palpatine, who left him for dead on Naboo and murdered his brother, was behind the Clone Wars, playing both sides. The brewing reality of his former master’s plan, which is so close to fruition, torments his voice and invokes an ominous restlessness as his eyes dart frantically around the room. As the sky is torn apart by explosions and the cries of war, Maul leaves Ahsoka with a choice: join him and kill Anakin, thus depriving Lord Sidous of his prized pupil, or die. It’s heartbreaking that Ahsoka stays so noble and steadfast in her loyalty to Anakin.
Ahsoka confronts Maul in the Mandalorian throne room as the air is rent asunder by explosions. (via. Disney and Lucasfilm)
Ahsoka’s perspective as Anakin’s apprentice expands and enhances the tragedy of his turn to the Dark Side in Revenge of the Sith. She rebukes Maul’s vision of Anakin’s fall, expressing her belief in him with the poignant line, “I know Anakin.” Ahsoka is a living witness of Anakin’s radical attachment to the people he loves, it was Anakin who stopped at nothing to save Ahsoka from execution for murder she didn’t commit. Instead of assuming Anakin will be manipulated, she sees the good masked within the one who will become Vader. Knowing that Ahsoka could have warned the Jedi Council of Maul’s insinuations and thwarted Sidious, yet still chose to believe in Anakin, magnifies the tragedy of Order 66 tenfold.
The Clone Wars’ iteration of the betrayal is more grounded in reality because it provides a concrete and canonical rationale for why the Clones obeyed Order 66 without question. Its season 6 storyline “The Fives Conspiracy” reveals that Darth Sidious orchestrated the Clones with organic “Inhibitor Chips.” These devices force the Clones to follow directives such as Order 66 by overriding their humanity and free will. The series presents a new angle of the Clones: they were victims of the order, instead of only mindless, callous tools for evil. The actions of the Clones during Order 66 do not define their character.
After Ahsoka removes Captain Rex’s inhibitor chip, his stalwart tears during Order 66 reflects pain of the Clones' orchestrated purpose and expendable existence. As Ahsoka’s Republic cruiser crashes to the surface of a moon, the Clones, brainwashed by their inhibitor chips, are willing to die to take her with them to the fiery end. The Clones were born to follow orders, bound to follow orders, and eventually were forced to follow orders to the grave. The narrative of their tragic existence in The Clone Wars greatly enhances the unthinkable nature of Clones in Revenge of the Sith. There is a profound complexity to Order 66 to be uncovered when the Clones are treated like the humans and heroes they truly are.
Captain Rex and the 501st Clone battalion paint their helmets to resemble Ahsoka. (via. Disney and Lucasfilm)
Unlike Revenge of the Sith and Attack of the Clones, The Clone Wars illustrates the relationship and dynamics between the Clones and Jedi. By indulging in the characters such as Ahsoka and Captain Rex, the audience is able to discover that the Clones respect and share kinship with the Jedi. The Clone Wars expands on the Clones’ one-dimensionality and provides evidence that without the inhibitor chip the Clones would not have murdered the Jedi.
The Clone Wars paints a picture of the Clones' humanity and ideology in the final arc with this bittersweet and poignant scene. When welcoming Ahsoka back as a commander after she left the Jedi Order, the Clones honor Ahsoka’s return by painting their helmets to resemble Ahsoka’s Togruta face paint. As armor customization is an expression of individuality for the Clones, this is a significant sign of loyalty and veneration. Witnessing the Clones honor Ahsoka as family carries a form of twisted dramatic irony knowing they will soon be ordered and forced to murder her. Order 66 was not a betrayal of non-existent characters on other non-existent characters, it was a betrayal of friend on friend.
Because Revenge of the Sith had too many pivotal scenes to cover, Order 66 is skimmed over and only allowed less than 5 minutes of screentime. The final two episodes of the Siege of Mandalore arc - “Shattered” (S7,E11) and “Victory and Death” (S7,E12) give us the exposure Order 66 and its aftermath deserved. While all the character development, foreshadowing, and tension in the previous episodes bolster and escalate the emotion of the scene, its actual execution is breathtaking.
The Clone Wars’ depiction of Order 66 communicates the impossibility of a Jedi’s bitter fight for survival. The set piece offers adrenaline-pumping action and gut-punching stakes as Ahsoka’s Republic cruiser pluments to the surface of a moon. Ahsoka risks everything for survival - even allowing Darth Maul to escape as a diversion. The musical score elevates and charges Ahsoka’s harrowing escape with such emotion and intensity that you are enveloped into the plight of the characters. The sound track, combined with Ahsoka and Rex’s struggle for survival, never fails to invoke terror and chills. Dave Feloni should receive all the television accolades for this masterfully directed, beautiful scene (and the Ahsoka/Maul duel).
Ahsoka buries Jessi and other 501st battalion Clones who died attempting to kill her during Order 66. (via. Disney and Lucasfilm)
In conclusion, The Clone Wars’ interpretation of Order 66 employs the perspectives of its most robust and compelling characters to rectify the Prequel movies' mistakes and enrich their timeline. Ahsoka’s perspective as Anakin’s apprentice and Maul’s perspective as Palpatine’s apprentice layers complexity to Anakin’s fall to the dark side. Maul’s forewarning is dreadful and tragic because Ahsoka could have warned the Jedi Council, yet stayed loyal to Anakin. Furthermore, the explanation of the “inhibitor chip” and the illustration of the Clones’ loyalty contributes to the tragedy of the Order 66 betrayal by reframing the Clones as victims of Palpatine’s insidious plan. When Ahsoka buries the dead clones, she is not burying meaningless, heartless, expendable, CGI-characters, but some of the most beloved and lamented Star Wars heroes ever created. Watch The Clone Wars on Disney Plus and read more long-winded analyses like this on The Expedition.