A Long Time Ago, During the Clone Wars: "Jedi Crash," "Defenders of Peace" & "Trespass"

 Star Wars The Clone Wars

We've got a theme running through the three episodes of "The Clone Wars" that we will be covering. It's all about peace and what it means during wartime. We also learn the origins of a species of alien that we first met way back in "A New Hope."

"Jedi Crash," Season One, Episode 13

"Greed and fear of loss are the roots that lead to the tree of evil."

Narrator: "The Republic fleet is not he defensive and pushed to the brink! As war rages in the much contested Outer Rim Territories, chaos and fear mount as the Separatist army wages an epic battle against heavily outnumbered Republic ships in the far reaches of the Quell system. Anakin Skywalker and his Padawan Ahsoka race across the galaxy to aid Jedi Knight Aayla Secura who is in the midst of a fight for her life as the sinister droid army closes in..."

After a savage sky battle, Anakin and Ahsoka aid Aayla Secura in escaping. Anakin is gravely injured during the fight. They land on an uncharted grassland planet called Maridun. They come across of a village of lemur like people called Lurmen, who are pacifist but agree to help Anakin. But, the Lurmen aren't the only creatures on Maridun.

Ugh.

"Jedi Crash" is a fine episode of "The Clone Wars," but it doesn't have a lot of substance. It has a ton of action, but there isn't a lot to back that up. It's a lot of set up and some interesting ideas that are set to pay off in the next episode. 

The action is top notch though. I am pretty love with the space battle that starts the episode. We see lots of outer space battles on the show. It's rare that we see a battle in a clear, blue sky. It's beautiful and you really get to see the details of all the ships involved. There is a scene where droids are jumping out of their gunships and tearing the cockpit off and jerking a Clone trooper out of it. There is Anakin being his usual pig headed self, bound and determined to make a martyr out of himself and it finally leads him to death's door. 

When the action flips to the surface of Maridun, things slow down a little bit. We do get a really nice introspective between Ahsoka and Secura. The Twi'lek Jedi talks to Ahsoka about her attachment to Anakin and how it is agains the Jedi code. This sort of goes hand in hand with the talk that Luminara Unduli had with the young Padawan a few episodes back. Secura eludes to her own attachment issues and that is a story that I'm interested in hearing.

The episode does an ok job setting up tension in regards to the bird creatures that attack, but I feel like the kind of showed their cards with them a little too early. They are dispatched pretty quickly as well so it all feels a touch anti-climactic. The Lurmen interactions with the Jedi and their pacifism is a thread that will be pulled more with the next episode.

Grade: B

"Defenders of Peace," Season One, Episode 14

"When surrounded by war, one must eventually choose a side."

Narrator: "Republic forces in retreat! While rescuing General Aayla Secura from certain defeat, Anakin Skywalker has been seriously injured. After a narrow escape, our heroes crash-landed on the remote world of Maridun. Stranded, and with no way to contact the Republic, the Jedi receive medical aid from the peaceful Lurmen colonists. But even on this tiny planet, the war threatens to follow the Jedi..."

Lurmen chief, Tee Watt Kaa, is dedicated to the Lurmen people and their pacifism, even when the Separatists arrive with a frightening new weapon that threatens them. The Jedi do their best to honor this and still make plans to confront Neimodian Separatist General Lok Durd. When confronted with their possible extinction at Separatist hands, will the Lurmen hold true to their pacifism or take up arms agains the Separatist with the Jedi?

Secura!

Anytime there is a show or even an episode or movie that deals with protracted war, the idea of pacifism comes up. Can you truly remain neutral? Is it wrong to do so? Is it weak? It it wrong? Is it condoning evil? There are a lot of big questions and it doesn't make sense for an animated series to really do so in a thought provoking way, but it is touched on in this episode.

The way this all plays out is pretty predictable and it's difficult to see Kaa's side in this when we know how truly evil the Separatists and the Sith are. This isn't the first time that the show had dealt with pacifism and non-violence and it always comes down on the side of sticking to pacifism in times like this is not the correct option. There is a lot of flowery talk, usually from the Jedi, sometimes from Padmé, about how sticking to one's ideals is honorable, yet a choice always has to be made. I think "The Clone Wars" is a great show, but I'm not sure it is nuanced enough to have a deep conversation about that. I would like to see a story where pacifists stick to their guns and see where that all goes.

The rest of the episode is fine. We get George Takei voicing Separatist General Lok Durd. He has this really gleeful evil thing that is very enjoyable and he brought it over from his voice work on "Avatar: The Last Airbender." It has a pretty predictable wrap up, the elder sticks to his guns while a young upstart decides that maybe violence is the answer. It is what it is. 

Grade: B-

"Trespass," Season One, Episode 15

"Arrogance diminishes wisdom."

Narrator: "Republic outpost, overrun! The Jedi have lost contact with the clone security force stationed on the bleak, snow-covered planet of Orto Plutonia. Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker, accompanied by dignitaries from the nearby moon of Pantora are sent to investigate the disappearance of the clone troopers on the desolate and forbidding landscape..."

When Anakin and Obi-Wan reach Orto Plutonia, they find the security force slaughtered, their helmets on pikes just within the entrance. This doesn't seem to be the work of Separatists when they find their base and droid soldiers in the same condition. This is the work of the Talz, natives of Orto Plutonia. Anakin and Obi-Wan seemingly reach a peaceful solution with the Talz, but this is not acceptable to the chairman of Pantora. Will he be the start of another war?

Jedi winter chic.

First off, do you remember that creature at the cantina that gets its arm chopped off by Ben in "A New Hope?" Well, we finally learn what he is in this episode. He's a Talz and they are pretty bad ass.

One thing "The Clone Wars really excels at is setting a tone. I love the snow planet because it's a setting we really haven't seen up to this point. I hate snow and cold, but it looks beautiful. I loved the effect of the snow seemingly hitting the camera lens. The helmets and droid heads on pikes. Really great. You don't know what to expect and you are kind of freaking out a little bit. It throws you off balance and makes you feel uneasy and I think that really works. 

I can't say that works for the rest of the episode. I enjoyed the negotiations between Obi-Wan, Anakin and the Talz. The hug between Obi-Wan and the chief, Thi-Sen was adorable and funny. But you know that' snot the end because they still have like fifteen minutes to fill. My main issue is Chairman Cho. He is placed to be the bad guy from the jump. It's not a surprise and I'm not saying it has to be, but I would have liked to have his motives really fleshed out more. He's super one dimensional and that hurts this episode overall. The timidness of Senator Chuchi only compounds this issue. How did she become a Senator? It doesn't make sense. Like, no one can really live on this planet, so why wouldn't you want peace with the Talz? His motivation seems to be nationalism, but wouldn't that make more sense if the found the Talz suddenly on Pantora? 

I will say that final shot of the crossed spears was pretty powerful, so good for them for that.

Grade: C+

Next up, we head for Naboo for a two-parter involving an alien virus. While we are in a pandemic. Fun.

What do you all think of these episodes? Do you think there is a better way to handle pacifism in wartime? Let me know in the comments.