When Star Wars: The Clone Wars first premiered in 2008, there was a lot of skepticism from Star Wars fans. The early episodes were a little rough, as was the critically panned theatrical release that started the television series. But as the show went on, it more than earned its place within the Star Wars Saga. It became an essential part of it, telling stories that helped to bridge the gap between not only Star Wars: Episode II Attack of the Clones and Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith, but even between the prequel trilogy and the original trilogy.
I was a late viewer to the show, only starting it in 2013, but I quickly became a fan. The first five seasons were a lot of fun—and I say this as someone who does not like the prequel films—and I eagerly awaited the release of The Lost Missions on Netflix. When I watched them, and when I reviewed them, I said what I'll say again now: The Lost Missions are, to date, the best Star Wars stories since Star Wars: Episode VI Return of the Jedi.
The seasons had four arcs, two of which were fantastic. The Order 66 arc shed light on what was essentially a throwaway line in Episode III, bringing new depth to the Jedi massacre and capping off the story of the clone troopers—who were undoubtedly one of the best parts of the series—with a new layer of tragedy that completely changes our understanding of their role in the millennium-long revenge of the Sith. The final arc, which put Yoda into a starring role, finally answered the question of how Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda retained their identities as spirits after death, and featured the return of Liam Neeson as the voice of Qui-Gon Jinn. We even got to see the first on-screen appearance of Darth Bane, the ancient Sith Lord who created the Rule of Two, who was voiced by none other than Mark Hamill. There's something compelling about Mark Hamill playing both the Sith Lord who sparked a legacy of terror and the Jedi Knight who ended it.
There were two other arcs in the season. One featured the return of Rush Clovis, first featured in season two's "Senate Spy," and dealt with the growing power of the Republic and Chancellor Palpatine over the galaxy. In this case, it served to allow Palpatine to take over the Republic's financial system. Political episodes have never been the strongest episodes of the show, but this arc represented the best of the political episodes. The other arc saw Mace Windu and Jar Jar Binks team up in a sort of buddy cop adventure on the planet Bardotta. I was extremely wary of this arc, but I have to tell you: I actually liked Jar Jar in these two episodes. Putting him up against a straight man in the form of Mace Windu was incredibly helpful to Jar Jar's character.
Watching these episodes on Blu-ray was a real treat. By the time of The Lost Missions, the animation of the show had become extremely refined, and watching it on a big HD television screen really brought the show to life. It was actually the first time I had ever watched the show on anything other than a computer screen, and it looked gorgeous on the TV screen.
There are two great special features on the Blu-ray set. The first is a documentary where the crew reflects on their time on the show, looking back fondly on some of their favorite memories of creating the show and producing it for six seasons. It was clear that the crew enjoyed their time on the show and were sad to see it end, but many of them were able to take their talents and take what they learned to work on Star Wars Rebels. As one crew member said in the documentary, Rebels could never have happened without all that they learned on The Clone Wars. The other feature was the "Crystal Crisis on Utapau" story reel arc first released on StarWars.com in September. Those four story reels won't be fully animated, but it was nice to see them included on the set.
The one thing I wish the set had was more special features. It felt light for the release of the final season, but hopefully a potential future full series boxset has more special features.
If you haven't seen The Lost Missions, or even if you have, I highly recommend this Blu-ray. Considering the high quality of Blu-rays and the great animation on this final season, I can definitely say that you have never seen The Clone Wars quite like this.
Star Wars: The Clone Wars: The Lost Missions is available on Blu-ray starting November 11th, and can also be watched on Netflix and digital download.
About the Author
Brandon Rhea is the founder of Star Wars Fanpedia, a contributor on Wookieepedia, and the owner/operator and creative lead of The Star Wars RP. Professionally, he is Senior Community Manager at Wikia, the host of Fanpedia. Follow him on Twitter @brandonprhea.