A Long Time Ago, During the Clone Wars: "Gone with a Trace," "Deal No Deal," "Dangerous Debt" & "Together Again"

 Star Wars The Clone Wars

The final season of "The Clone Wars" premiered on Disney+ on February 21, 2020. It finally gave closure to this classic series. I didn't watch it when it initially aired because I figured I would wait until I got to it here. I mean, it couldn't take that long, right? I'm extremely excited to experience these episodes for the first time, so let's get into it.

"Gone with a Trace," Season Seven, Episode 5

"If there is no path before you, create your own."

Narrator: "Betrayal! Jedi Padawan Ahsoka Tano was wrongly accused of treason by the Jedi Council and hunted by the Grand Army of the Republic. Believing his apprentice was innocent, Anakin Skywalker discovered the true villain was Ahsoka's close friend, Barriss Offee. Unable to reconcile her relationship with the Jedi Order, Ahsoka decided to walk away from the only life she'd ever known..."

Ahsoka Tano is still trying to find her way after turning her back on the Jedi Order after their betrayal. A speeder accident lands her in the orbit of sisters, Trace and Rafa Martez. Ahsoka and Trace connect right away, but she and Rafa butt heads. Rafa seems to want to only take care of her sister, but her criminal enterprises seem to be putting the sisters in more danger.

New friends?

One of the things that annoyed me the most about the Netflix season of "The Clone Wars" was that we didn't check in with Ahsoka after she walked away from the Order in season five. It's crazy to me that they would just leave that and instead they would find time to do a two-parter featuring Jar Jar Binks and Mace Windu being a dick. I know I bring that up a lot, but I will never stop because I hate it and I can't believe that they would make those episodes in the first place. It's ridiculous that they would think anyone would want to hear that story.

It's so nice having Ahsoka back, front and center on "The Clone Wars" which is exactly where she belongs. From the start, she brings an energy to the show that was sorely missed in season six. The speeder accident that opens the episode is amazing. It's thrilling and keeps you on the edge of your seat. I love a sequence like this. You know that Ahsoka is fine. But you are still concerned for her and there are a lot of fun moments. The small moments with Ahsoka are some of my favorite things in this episode. The nuances in Ashley Eckstein's vocal performance. The facial expressions. The moment where Ahsoka is standing on the loading dock and she sees a clone transport rising while the music swells, it makes you feel things and that is one of the things I love about "Star Wars" in general and "The Clone Wars."

I have to give it up for the animators. We are all familiar with the classic Dave Filoni "Star Wars" animation. And that is there for sure, but it feels more refined. It's a step up from when the series originally ended and it should be. Things look smoother. The character models are even better than they were when the show was originally airing. It's really impressive. The visuals of "The Clone Wars" were always spectacular and something you could count on even when the episode itself was kind of lackluster. It was great to see that was still the case and that it was even better.

One of the things I enjoyed the most about this episode was Ahsoka getting an idea of what regular citizens thought of Coruscant and the war. The Jedi are so far removed from that at this point that they are completely out of touch and it is interesting for Ahsoka to be confronted with that. The Martez sisters seem to have no respect for the Jedi. They have their reasons which we find out later on in this arc, but they seem to be echoing what other people on the lower level think. The idea that the Jedi are keeping the Clone Wars going gives real life parallels to the real world and the misinformation that people will consume and believe.

The main story here is nothing we haven't seen before. Rafa agrees to make dangerous droids for someone and they go out of control and Rafa and Ahsoka have to stop them. It's definitely entertaining and fun. And Ahsoka is trying to conceal her Jedi powers from the Martez sisters at every turn. I just expect a little bit more at this point.

Grade: B+

"Deal No Deal," Season Seven, Episode 6

"Mistakes are valuable lessons often learned too late."

Narrator: "Crossroads! After leaving the Jedi Order, Ahsoka Tano finds herself far away from the life she once knew. Here in the underworld of Coruscant, she meets Trace Martez, an aspiring pilot, and her older sister Rafa, a streetwise gambler with lofty aspirations. In their short time together, Ahsoka realizes not everyone sees the Jedi as heroes, a lesson she only recently learned herself."

Ahsoka is still with the Martez sisters. She's working on her speeder as Trace is working on her ship, the Silver Angel. When a pilot Rafa employed for one of her schemes falls through, she manipulates Trace into flying for her instead even though her pilot skills aren't totally up to snuff. The sisters and Ahsoka are supposed to deliver a shipment of spice from Kessel to the Pykes. Despite Ahsoka's concerns, they go through with it, but after an argument Trace makes a decision that could endanger all of their lives.

Where's Kyle because there is tension.

When i was checking out iMDb to find the quote to open these posts, I noticed the rating from people was really low. This was not a huge surprise. It's so annoying that there is this subset of "Star Wars" fans that will always complain when there are episodes like these that feature women, particularly women of color. They will dress it up as how they don't seem necessary, or aren't bringing anything to the season, which are critiques that definitely don't apply here. There is definitely this undercurrent of misogyny and I don't think it is indicative of all or even most "Star Wars" fans. I just think that the ones that hate it the most are the ones who will run online to make their displeasure heard.

The Martez sisters are important characters. I love that this final season isn't afraid to introduce new characters. They definitely didn't have to do that. There is certainly plenty of people that they could focus on, but the writers gave us the Martez sisters. There aren't a ton of prominent Latinx characters in the "Star Wars" universe. Representation is so important everywhere, including animation. I'd love to see live action representations of these characters as well. I love that these women are complicated. They love each other. They are doing their best to support one another. It's complicated and not black and white. Rafa is manipulating Trace emotionally, but Trace is allowing that to happen. One thing that sort of bothered me was using the sisters in this drug smuggling sub plot. Do we need more characters of color in a plot like this? I don't think so.

I think one of the most polarizing moments of this episode is Trace dumping the spice when Ahsoka and Rafa are arguing about it. It's easy to just see that moment and immediately think Trace is an idiot. And overall it is a boneheaded move. But from Trace's perspective, she's not being talked to. She's hearing these two women argue. They are talking about her losing her ship, something that she has worked so hard for and it is one of the only things in the galaxy that is just hers. She panics and this is what she does. We all make bad decisions in the heat of the moment and Ahsoka and Rafa I think are a little too hard on her.

Overall, this episode is good. There are moments I really like. I enjoyed Trace's horrible piloting and her unearned confidence even when Ahsoka and Rafa are shading her to her face. The moment of Anakin and Ahsoka sensing each other through the Force. The arrival on Kessel is really beautiful. In general though, it feels like there is maybe ten minutes of actionable story in this 25 minute episode. 

Grade: B

"Dangerous Debt," Season Seven, Episode 7

"Who you are does not define who you were."

Narrator: "Prisoners of the Pykes! Ahsoka Tano has teamed up with the Martez sisters, who live in the underworld of the city-planet, Coruscant. Struggling to make ends meet, Rafa Martez scored a job running a spice shipment from the planet Kessel. Tempers flared when Ahsoka realized the spice was being sold to the Pykes, a powerful crime syndicate. As Ahsoka and Rafa argue, Trace Martez dumped the spice, hoping to end the dispute. With no shipment to deliver, the three attempted to deceive the Pykes and failed. We now find them imprisoned deep within a fortress on the planet Oba Diah..."

Ahsoka and the Martez sisters are in their cell on Oba Diah when they finally disclose to Ahsoka why they hate the Jedi. While Ahsoka tries to reconcile this, Rafa is taken to be tortured. Trace and Ahsoka are able to escape with Rafa which leads them to be chased through the streets of Oba Diah by the Pykes. At the same time, a secret contingent is watching the women closely.

Push.

The most impactful part of this episode, maybe the most impactful part of this entire four episode arc is the story the Martez sisters tell Ahsoka in their Pyke jail cell about the reason they have no love for the Jedi. She talks about the pursuit of Ziro the Hutt through Coruscant and how the crash that allowed him to escape was the reason that their parents died. They sacrificed themselves to save the girls. When the Jedi spoke to the girls after, she simply said she made a choice and the Force would be with them. 

This entire thing is kind of crazy. First, I love that this is a callback to the "Clone Wars" movie which was the first introduction of the Clone Wars. It's a full circle moment which I am always a sucker for particularly in the final season of a show. I think that sometimes we don't think of the collateral damage that happens in moments like this. I love that the show is putting it front and center and Ahsoka, still grappling with her identity is the perfect character to receive this. Imagine how many times she's talked to grieving people and maybe said the same thing as the Jedi who talked to the Martez sisters after their parents's death. It just feels cruel and heartless. It's an extremely impactful moment.

I haven't gushed about the action in "The Clone Wars" recently so I think its about time that I remedied that. "The Clone Wars" excels at space battles and lightsaber battles, but we don't see a ton of hand to hand fighting in the series. We get quite a bit of it in this episode and its a nice reminder that the show can do that. Without her lightsabers, Ahsoka is forced to take down some Pykes with just her fists and her feet and she cleans their clocks. The choreography is phenomenal and we get to see Ahsoka be a badass in a way that we don't see a lot.

This episode is basically a protracted chase sequence. Again, not terrible. Exciting. Fun to watch. Lots of great moments. I feel like I should be annoyed with Rafa's off handed comments about leaving Ahsoka behind or whatever, but they always gave me a solid chuckle. It does kind of bother me that at the end of the episode Ahsoka and the Martez sisters are basically back where they began the episode. It sort of halts any sort of momentum the episode had which isn't great when you are going in to the final part of a four episode arc. But hey, there are Mandalorians on Oba Diah, so that is something.

Grade: B

"Together Again," Season Seven, Episode 8

"You can change who you are, but you cannot run from yourself."

Narrator: "Prisoners in peril! Former Jedi apprentice Ahsoka Tano befriended two sisters, Trace and Rafa Martez, who grew up in the underworld of Coruscant. After learning that the sisters blamed Jedi Knights for the death of their parents, Ahsoka must decide if she's willing to reveal her Jedi past and use her skills to aid in their escape. Fearing her new friends will feel betrayed by this revelation, Ahsoka is left with a difficult choice..."

Re-captured by the Pykes, the Martez sisters and Ahsoka try to come up with a plot to escape. Using some subterfuge, Ahsoka convinces the Pykes to allow the sisters to leave to retrieve the spice that Trace dumped. The Pykes know its a trick but allow it. Ahsoka is able to escape, but when she sees the shadowy figure who is behind the Pykes it may change the trajectory of her new life forever.

Girl power.

This episode seems to set up a lot of what will propel the final third of this final season. While Ahsoka is hiding from the Pykes and setting up the explosive charges, she overhears Marg Krim, the head of the Pykes, talking to his benefactor. She is shocked to find that the man behind this, the head of the Shadow Collective is Darth Maul. It's a great reveal and it feels like it is going to give the directionless Ahsoka some direction. 

The Mandalorians that are on Oba Diah make their presence known to Ahsoka. It is Bo-Katan and some members of the former Death Watch. They have their own quarrel with Darth Maul after what he did on Mandalore. They want to join forces with her to take down the former Sith Lord. This whole arc has been all about Ahsoka figuring out what she wants to do with her life now that she is no longer with the Jedi. Could she continue on with the sisters? She probably could. But these episodes show that she wouldn't be satisfied. Even though she is no longer a Jedi, the lessons instilled in her, her sense of right and wrong, is still there. She wants to make a difference and this is how she can do it in her own way. And it's great that the sisters see that and encourage her to do so.

If you hadn't read "Darth Maul: Son of Dathomir," this episode is also a great reminder of where we left off with Darth Maul. He's running the Shadow Collective, an organization made up of the worst criminal syndicates in the galaxy. It shows his ruthless, manipulative leadership style threatening the Pykes with Crimson Dawn if they can't get this situation with the spice figured out.

There are some minor quibbles to have. Did we really need the side story with the girls getting the spice? Probably not, but it was fun. Is it really believable that Trace would be such an amazing pilot after being so bad up until now? Probably not, but you know, if we can accept it with Anakin and Luke, we can accept it with Trace Martez.

Out of these four episodes, this one is probably my favorite. The pacing is good. It moves at a fast clip. There is a ton of forward momentum. The resolution with the Pykes make sense. It sets up things that will come to fruition in the last part of the season. It gives Ahsoka a new purpose that fits with her journey. It re-introduces Bo-Katan to the action. It's great all around.

Grade: A-

Next up, Anakin and Obi-Wan team up with the clone squad known as the Bad Batch.

What do you all think? Were you happy to see Ahsoka return? Are you fans of the Martez sisters? Let me know in the comments.