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Post by barrataria on Aug 18, 2012 13:41:59 GMT -6
So, this was going to be a pretty glowing recommendation, until I got to the episode with Jar Jar in it  Still, the first disk and a half have been enjoyable. They do a nice job depicting the planets, and there's a real "planet-per-episode" feel to some of them. The depiction of Rodia was pretty interesting, and there was a coral planet (supposedly formerly an ocean world, so coral forests and dry land) that was pretty neat too. So, if you can hold your nose at some of the prequel stuff you probably didn't like (clone soldiers, incompetent droid army, etc.) and pretend it's an "adventures of jedi knights" cartoon, I think it's not too bad. They even have fun with some of that baggage, really playing up the stupidity/incompetence of the battle droids, for instance. I really like the intro music and the way they do a voiceover (which sounds like an old radio show) instead of the opening crawl. And I will say that the folks writing it could have been put to good use in the prequels... I haven't yet found a love scene ;D Even some of you saga-haters might find it enjoyable as sci fi set in the SW universe. |
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Post by Finarvyn on Aug 18, 2012 15:34:18 GMT -6
Anyone know how many seasons of the cartoon are out there? I bought one for my son long ago and hadn't realized they had so many more until I happened to see a different one at the video store.
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Post by barrataria on Aug 18, 2012 17:21:05 GMT -6
Anyone know how many seasons of the cartoon are out there? I bought one for my son long ago and hadn't realized they had so many more until I happened to see a different one at the video store. Ditto, I just got around to watching the movie and then discovered there are four seasons in the can so far. Apparently there's an entirely different cartoon, as opposed to CGI, that ran in 2003-5. I don't know anything about that, apparently the current series is a sequel to it. |
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Post by DungeonDevil on Sept 2, 2012 22:58:40 GMT -6
I've caught eps intermittently and have enjoyed many of them -- which is very odd, as I'm not technically a SW fan (d***ed ewoks!). I look forward to the next season, IIRC starting later this month.
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Post by Fireangel on Oct 15, 2012 15:11:11 GMT -6
Apparently there's an entirely different cartoon, as opposed to CGI, that ran in 2003-5. I don't know anything about that, apparently the current series is a sequel to it. It was two seasons of flash animation; the fist was dubbed a "micro-series" since each "episode" ran just five minutes in length between two half-hour "standard shows" on Cartoon Network. The entire first season was compiled as a single hour-long "movie" that is quite enjoyable to watch. The second season had longer episodes (20 min, IIRC) and was more cohesive, but still quite enjoyable; the final episode segues directly into the beginning of Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, and explains why Grievous was coughing so much. Both seasons were put together into a single 2-disc DVD set. I highly recommend it. So, this was going to be a pretty glowing recommendation, until I got to the episode with Jar Jar in it For the record, I can't stand Jar-Jar either... that being said, I find him MUCH more likeable in the series than in the films; he is not so... childish. You also get to see what it was that Qui-Gon saw in him: he has the Feat: Luck of the Jedi... the Force is with him... but he is still a humble fellow (unlike the self-absorbed idjit from the films). |
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Post by barrataria on Jul 27, 2013 8:09:08 GMT -6
Anyone know how many seasons of the cartoon are out there? I bought one for my son long ago and hadn't realized they had so many more until I happened to see a different one at the video store. Using the Force for thread necromancy  I made it through the first two seasons, and they seem to be getting more enjoyable as I go. The Amazon reviews for season three were pretty glowing, and I have to say after 1 disk I'm impressed. I noticed writing credits for some of these to be "Katie Lucas", so I was skeptical but her episodes were very good. The first disk ends with a two episode set on Mandalore and involves government corruption and a kinda dark plot where *see spoiler text below*.... Off to pop in disk 2!
*schoolchildren are accidentally/negligently poisoned by black marketeers. |
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Post by calithena on Jan 12, 2015 9:05:29 GMT -6
I am surprised to hear that anything that came out of the prequels was any good. Should I check these cartoons out?
This is the only good thing I've seen come out of Phantom Menace so far:
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Post by tkdco2 on Jan 13, 2015 3:30:26 GMT -6
But it was Episode 3 that gave birth to an internet meme: linkGotta add the NSFW tag for language. |
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Post by Deleted on Jan 13, 2015 6:28:45 GMT -6
I am surprised to hear that anything that came out of the prequels was any good. Should I check these cartoons out? Absolutely. |
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Post by Deleted on Jan 13, 2015 7:28:49 GMT -6
I am surprised to hear that anything that came out of the prequels was any good. Should I check these cartoons out? I am not at all a fan of cartoons but I caught the pilot in the cinema on the big screen and was hooked. Thus, I can heartily endorse these cartoons as entertaining and will recommend you check them out. If you have Netflix streaming you can catch the pilot and an episode or two to see if they are your cup of tea, so to speak. Let us know what you think. |
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Post by Malcadon on Jan 14, 2015 3:37:06 GMT -6
I seen the series form the start. It had a rocky start, being episodic and more or less family-friendly, but once it "grew the beard" after the introduction of Cad Bane, it becomes highly enjoyable with cohesive story arcs, mature drama, and characters who are better represented than the movies. A good part of the drama relates to the life of the Clone Troopers, and they hold no punches. It chronicles the life of Clone Troopers, from Boot Camp to becoming an ARC Trooper, and some other, more unusual life-paths for a Clone Trooper. But most of it is death in one way or another, so try not to get too attached to any of them. Anakin Skywalker is much more relatable, as he is not the same whinny brat from the movies. This is mostly do to how he is the mentor to a young Padawan learner Ahsoka Tano, as he serves as a foil for her impulsiveness, while at the same time, Anakin's roguishness and gradual push to the darkside also effects how she deals with situations.
The into also forgoes the normal scrolling texts for what sounds like a WWII-styled news real to get the viewers up to speed. This makes sense, as the original Star Wars was written as a compiled saga (the Journal of the Whills), while this is portrayed as a war-fiction with side-stories that where left out of the overall saga. The news real format really puts the viewers into the action.
If the series has a downside, it would be the weak Jar-Jar and "Droid" (at least the ones only focused on R2-D2 & C-3P0) episodes, and the replacement vice for Palpatine/Darth Sidious (after the death of Ian Abercrombie) was a poor chose (Tim Curry). Tim Curry is a great cartoon character, even in live-action, but for some reason, he was a poor fit for the role. Personally, I would have hired Mark Hamill for that part. I have seen what he is capable of, and he could have pulled it off. Also, it is best if you had seen the prequels, as it relies heavily on what was established in episodes I to III.
Beyond that, it is a great series that manages to tie-up some loose ends with the prequels.
The older mini-episodes were neat. When you put the 5-minute episodes together, you get a season with a run time of a normal cartoon episode. The animation is highly stylized just like Genndy Tartakovsky's masterpiece Samurai Jack (a brilliant series that I always recommend). I had not seen it about a decade, so my opinion is sketchy at best. I remember that it established Asajj Ventress (based on one of Darth Maul's concept art) and General Grievous. And there was also an epic lightsaber battle that managed to be canonized in episode III (in a brief scene that was ultimately cut form theatrical release). The only issue I had with it, is that unless you are watching entire season as full episodes, the 10-second (or so) intros that plays every 5-minutes starts to get monotonous really quickly.
Currently there is a new Star Wars animated series on (cable) TV (although, you don't need cable to watch anything these days). Star Wars Rebels is about a team of misfit rebels somewhere between episodes III and IV. The characters are memorable, and the staff (much of them worked on the Star Wars: Clone Wars series) draws a lot of inspiration form Ralph McQuarrie's awesome SW concept art. (It can make a great drinking game to spot all the McQuarrie references.) Even if you never seen Star Wars: Clone Wars or any of the prequels, one could still jump into the new series without having to get caught-up. Although, given the staff's love of the original movie, that is truly all you need to know to understand anything about it.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 14, 2015 4:41:09 GMT -6
It's commonly known there are unaired episodes of the Clone Wars cartoon on Netflix. What some don't know is that unfinished episodes for the remainder of the last season are also available online. The animation is of storyboard quality (adequate to visualize the action, but rather crude) but the voice acting and sound effects are exactly as for a finished episode. There are 4 full length (~25 minute) episodes. www.starwars.com/video/the-clone-wars-legacy |
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Post by Falconer on Jan 15, 2015 15:18:30 GMT -6
This show holds no interest for me, and it could never be a part of my Star Wars fandom. First of all, with regard to the canonical Rise of the Empire era, I’m in the “pretend it doesn’t exist” camp. Everything about it grates on me. Secondly, I don’t normally watch cartoons, unless it’s from my own childhood. Especially CG cartoons, which have always looked strange to me—more like a video game than what I’d expect from a TV cartoon. Though I haven’t played any 3-D video games either, now that I think about it, heh! You know what I was really looking forward to was the Star Wars live-action TV series that was originally going to come out in 2009 and was supposed to be sort of Firefly-ish, IIRC. I’m bummed it keeps getting pushed back, or whatever, by these other projects. But, whatever, let’s be honest, I probably would have hated it anyway.  |
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Post by barrataria on Jan 15, 2015 20:16:38 GMT -6
It's commonly known there are unaired episodes of the Clone Wars cartoon on Netflix. What some don't know is that unfinished episodes for the remainder of the last season are also available online. The animation is of storyboard quality (adequate to visualize the action, but rather crude) but the voice acting and sound effects are exactly as for a finished episode. There are 4 full length (~25 minute) episodes. www.starwars.com/video/the-clone-wars-legacyIt wasn't commonly known by me. Thanks! |
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