The Yoda Arc

Literally amazing.

SPOILERS AT YOUR OWN RISK

New Info on Star Wars Rebels

Most of you probably know already the info that was released about Star Wars Rebels in the New York Comic Con. However, I still would like to analyze and say my own opinion on the matter. 

For starters, we got to see the first look on one of the main villains of Rebels, and that will be the Inquisitor, a dark Jedi tasked by Darth Vader to hunt down the remaining Jedi Knights. 

He striked to me at first as looking too much like the Son from the Mortis Trilogy, but I later got over it to realize that the two would be very different characters. 

It's also important to note a couple of things: Pablo Hidalgo is known to have said at some point that there would be Inquisitor(s) not just an Inquisitor. Perhaps this guy will be the main focus of the show, but then it brings into question the grand-scheme of things-when will these guys be killed off? And by whom, if so few Jedi are left? It's certainly interesting to see what approach they will take, to see, if the Inquisitors are killed before A New Hope or after. 

Dave Filoni goes on to talk more about it on the video, about how it's going to be Empire-centric with it's villains. It's important to note that many Clone Wars veterans, including Joel Aron and Killian Plunkett, will be involved in the making of the show. New, as well as old vehicles and ships will make appearances in the show. Rebels will take place 14 years after Revenge of the Sith and 5 years before A New Hope.

Another interesting bit we got to know was that George Lucas's ideas for the time period would be incorporated into the show, but he would no longer be directly involved. Dave Filoni has taken the helm as the storyteller, which is a great thing, because he has now been assigned the rank of ''Master'' after 8 years of working with George in Clone Wars, and George can now go happily into retirement with Mellody and their daughter, Everest. 

One of George's ideas for the time period, would be that the Stormtroopers would be made up of ''brainwashed'' civilians, mainly because the clones were too individualistic for the Empire. Due to accelerated aging, the Jango Fett clones are no longer serving as soldiers, and are instead training the Stormtroopers, or are retired and abandoned by a galaxy that never really cared for them. All of these implications put into question the execution of Order 66, which will be further explained in the upcoming bonus content, to be released in 2014. 

Another interesting concept is the fact that much of the show will take place in Lothal, a planet that wasn't involved in the Clone Wars and is instead now being occupied by the Empire. With the promise of economic prosperity, the Empire soon becomes a military and crushing force on the planet, recruiting Stormtroopers and building TIE fighters. It's fairly possible that this show could go on to be a critique of Imperialism and Industrialization, and may touch on environmentalism, something that wasn't really explored in the Clone Wars. 

The Jedi did come to be mentioned by Hidalgo, saying that with the Inquisitors goals, ''The fact that there is one in the series...the Empire has reason to believe there are Jedi somewhere.'' Hidalgo recognized that ''There is a presence for the Jedi in the show but we are being very cognizant of the fact  that Order 66 signifies something.'' They also want to keep in mind the importance of Luke Skywalker being the only Jedi a few years after this show is set. 

That does bring to question one thing...Ahsoka. Will Ahsoka still be a Jedi, or not in this show, or will she appear? That remains to be answered, along as to which famous film characters will make an appearance. 

So far this is probably the best thing to have come out of the Disney acquisition. 

Top Star Wars Characters 20-11

These are the secondary most important characters of the Star Wars saga.

here:http://thestarwarsdefender.blogspot.com/2013/02/the-top-100-greatest-star-wars.html 

here: http://thestarwarsdefender.blogspot.com/2013/02/top-100-star-wars-characters-90-81.html

here: http://thestarwarsdefender.blogspot.com/2013/03/top-100-star-wars-characters-80-71.html

here: http://thestarwarsdefender.blogspot.com/2013/03/top-star-wars-characters-70-61.html

here: http://thestarwarsdefender.blogspot.com/2013/05/top-100-star-wars-characters-60-51.html

here: http://thestarwarsdefender.blogspot.com/2013/06/top-100-star-wars-characters-50-41.html

here: http://thestarwarsdefender.blogspot.com/2013/07/top-100-star-wars-characters-40-31.html#more

and here: http://thestarwarsdefender.blogspot.com/2013/07/top-100-star-wars-characters-30-21.html#more 

The future of Star Wars: Are we headed for doom?

Is Star Wars heading for a nasty place???

Folks, as Mace Windu once said, our worst fears have been realized. The Clone Wars as a television show, has been cancelled.

It was a ride I never thought I would see, way back in 2008 when this all started. And after 5 great years in which the show kept getting better and better, it's sad this all bogged down to this. After the emotional ending of Season 5, I had been so moved that for some  reason, I wasn't shocked when I saw the news that The Clone Wars was ending. For some reason, I kind off saw that coming.

Ultimately, the only logical explanation as to why this happened, bogs down to the fact that Papa George is no longer running the company he once made. The Disney executives figured out that they didn't want a distraction to be in place when Episode VII gets released, so they decided to cancel the show. Not only that, but also Detours is getting moved into a future release, proving that the whole ''Disney hates the prequels'' is pure nonesense.

At the same time, all of this gives reason for pessimism, despite how optimistic the crew of the CW might sound, on the future of the franchise. Even though we are going to get a couple of more arcs (like the Anakin, Clovis, and Padme one) released in some way, shape or form, it does bring to question: Will the arcs be able to conclude the fates of Ahsoka, Rex, Darth Maul, Ventress and Bo-Katan? Even though the show managed to break through the 100 episode goal, I feel as if it could have accomplished so much more. All of things brings down to the fact, that as I mentioned earlier, the future of Star Wars is uncertain and not looking very good under the wing of a corporate animal.

I really hope that at the same time I am writing this piece, that George Lucas is simultaneously in Skywalker Ranch sitting with Lawrence Kasdan, Michael Arndt, Simon Kilberg and JJ Abrams, telling them that they can't go ahead and screw up the next trilogy of Star Wars. I hope he is telling them that they need to keep the prophecy of the Chosen One and NOT include a Sith as a villain, that in his view, peace has existed in the galaxy since the Battle of Endor, and so on. Or else folks, if this next installment does not adhere to the vision of the man himself, and is instead thumb nosed by Disney executives just like how the Clone Wars was, I might as well file my divorce of the Star Wars fandom. At least, the things that Disney ends up releasing.

It breaks my heart that what has become an integral part of the greatest film franchise of all time, is now not ending the way it should have. At an end note, I do wish to clarify that I am looking forward to the next arcs that will be in some form released, which will hopefully wrap up The Clone Wars somewhat nicely.

On the other hand, I also wish to take this time to thank George, Dave Filoni, Joel Aron, Killian Plunkett, Ashley Eckstein, Matt Lanter, James Arnold Taylor, Catherine Taber, Sam Witwer, the late Ian Abercrombie, Stephen Stanton, Jon Fravreau, Jaime King, and everyone else involved in all of these seasons, bringing us great episodes of Star Wars goodness. 

May the Force be With You.

Star Wars Vacation

Well folks, I hate to break it to all of my loyal readers and fellow Star Wars fans who enjoy the six films as much as I do, or probably even more. But the truth is, I am in the state of a much-needed Star Wars vacation.

Star Wars to me used to be an entertainment franchise that I really enjoyed being a fan off. I still enjoy it. The problem now is that the spin and unexpected turn of events that have taken place in the last few months have been so life changing that quite frankly, I need some time to separate myself from all the paranoia and rumors and uncertain fate that the current franchise of Star Wars is in.

I'm fairly certain that The Clone Wars will return in the fall of 2013. I really see few evidence to the contrary. But at the same time, with a bunch of different projects coming along the way, the future of Star Wars is beyond uncertain. Now with Ahsoka gone from the Jedi, it's just too much for me to handle.

Way down deep inside me, something died the moment I saw Ahsoka walk away from the Jedi Temple. I'm not sure what it was. I do know however, that it's kind of sad Ahsoka's Jedi training was never complete. She could more or less handle a fight with General Grievous, but that was about it. It's depressing to think that at this point Ahsoka might loose her abilities to use the force, much like how Lorian Nod lost them in Legacy of the Jedi. At the same time, their are some parallels that I see within my own life and that of Ahsoka's. When I saw the Clone Wars movie, and we all were introduced to Ahsoka, I was just about to enter the 8th Grade. I was far more innocent back then, similar to how Ahsoka was. Now that I am in my senior year, and about to graduate from High School, the time has come for me to move on and begin my life at a university, perhaps in the United States, far from my home country. In that sense, Ahsoka is moving away from home also, with the difference that she will likely not come back, unlike myself.

For now I guess, it's time for me to dedicate myself to other more important matters. I won't leave this site permanently, but I won't be posting as often as I used to do. Once my mind is clear, and things in the Star Wars community aren't as messy as they are, I will return. For now at least, May the Force Be With You.

The Wrong Jedi Review

After a depressing week in which I dedicated myself into completing my social service hours in order to graduate from High School, I come to see the conclusion of Season 5. I woke up this morning from a series of weird dreams and nightmares all relating to the episode I just watched, acting as a sort of a premonition to what was about to happen. In all honesty, this was an outcome I did not expect. I mean, has the world gone crazy? First we get that Episode VII is coming out in 2015, now that Ahsoka LEAVES THE JEDI ORDER??????????

This was an unexpected and rather depressing turn of events.While I knew that Ahsoka's fate was inevitably going to be determined at some point, this was the option I least thought possible, and yet it happened. I was in a very tense state the entire episode, and this all became even worse when I realized that Tarkin and most likely Palpatine, where behind the events that led to Ahsoka deciding not to come back to the Order after the trial. At least Obi-Wan was smart in not being in favor with Ahsoka being expelled so that she would face trial.

I can understand Anakin's anger in more than one way, and I guess we all saw in a deeper way why he ended up turning to the dark side. The gargantuous question that we all are thinking right now is, what the hell happens to her now? Does she turn to the dark side and become Count Dooku's apprentice? Does she become a bounty hunter with a conscience, similar to how Sugi is? Does she end up facing Darth Vader at one point after the Clone Wars? Does she help Bo-Katan reconstruct Mandalore? Does she have a romance with Lux Bonteri? Does she end up joining Luke Skywalker's New Jedi Order in Episode VII? Does she live as a hermit with the Ewoks? Which one is it, Dave Filoni?

All of this bogs down eventually to this: This character has been building up in the subconscious of everyone for the past 5 years, becoming more and more of a Jedi as time passed. And now that this bomb was dropped in front of our backyards, what was all that character development for at the end of the day? All of these things remind me of an EU book I read a while back titled Legacy of the Jedi, which was basically focused on the character Lorian Nod, whom was also expelled from the Order at about Ahsoka's age and was a friend of Dooku's. Nod eventually looses his own abilities to use the force, which brings to question, will Ahsoka loose those abilities?

I'm not sure about anything anymore my friends. The matter of the fact is that until I don't see the other part of the story, I can't say if Ahsoka's departure from the Order was a good move at the end of the day. For now, I'm basically like when I first saw Empire, bitterly disappointed. Until I don't see what is at hand next I won't know if I truly liked this ending or not. For now you're all welcome to join me, at the Home of the Blues. link

To Catch a Jedi Review

Well folks, I'm sorry to say this, but I'm pretty sure that Barriss Offee is the Jedi behind the attacks on the temple, and the disenfranchising of Ahsoka. When Eric Goldman from IGN proposed that idea, I didn't believe it at first, but all the evidence points towards that direction. We got to see more of that 1313 videogame scenario, and part of the Coruscant underworld, which is meant to be seen more in the upcoming Star Wars live action series in a few years. We also got to see how much further redeemed Asajj Ventress is at this point, and the alliance she had with Ahsoka was quite interesting. Mace Windu has been doubting on Anakin's ability from this time period, which will later turn out to be a catalyst in Anakin's fall to the dark side.

Anakin and Plo Koon managed to capture Ahsoka in the end, and the next and final episode of  Season 5 pinpoints towards the fact that we will see the trial Ahsoka will apparently be on. I wish to see how all of this is connected with the Sith Grand Plan, and see more questions answered on the next episode.

The Jedi Who Knew Too Much Review

Sadly, Ahsoka is being set up by some Jedi in order to arrest her and not find out who killed Letta or bombed the Jedi Temple. By the looks of things, Tarkin is working for Palpatine/Sidious in order to carry out his plans of disenfranchising the Jedi Order. How the pieces of the puzzle are put, is something we don't yet know the answers to.

Anakin is of course, worried about the situation and wants to help Ahsoka. Ahsoka on the other hand, has to find out who set her up in order to clear her good name. I really hate Admiral Tarkin at this point, showing he was always the villain we see in A New Hope. One thing that called my attention was how the detention cell was very reminiscent to the first Death Star. It brings to mind how much the rise of the Empire is taking place at this point, and how the Republic is being transformed into a militaristic and shadowy tyranny.

I wonder if the Jedi won't be conducting as many battles against the Separatists as they used to. I also wonder how Order 66 factors into all of this, with Rex clearly showing she cares for Ahsoka. Fox on the other hand, probably shot someone when Order 66 got carried out. I also liked the fact about how Yoda talked about being luminous beings and how our bodies are a mere vessel. It really brings to mind Empire, and brings to mind the one of the central philosophies of Star Wars: the fact that we are spiritual beings.

We will have to wait until next week to see how Ahsoka figures out the mystery.

Sabotage Review

Besides the fact that Cin Drallig (as seen above) made a cameo appearance in the last Clone Wars episode, the starter of a four part arc went on to center on Ahsoka and Anakin trying to discover who was behind the bombing of the Jedi Temple. They have gone into the interesting subject of nano-droids, and the anti-Jedi protests. I still wonder, why would Letta purposely fill her husband with a bomb? 

The Clone Wars went into being a detective show, which is somewhat unusual for a show centered on epic battles and lightsaber duels. The beginning was a nice homage to Revenge of the Sith, and I hope that the next episodes bring in more suspense and drama, just like any good ol' cops show.

New Star Wars spinoff films announced

Well, my friends, the rumors have finally been debunked. Lawrence Kasdan, the writer of Episodes V and VI in the Star Wars saga and Simon Kilberg will be writing two spinoff films apart from the main saga films announced to be released. As Bob Iger, CEO of Disney said: "We are in development of a few standalone films," he said, "that are not part of the Star Wars saga...there are now creative entities working on developing scripts for what would be those standalone films." 

Know that this is official the question is: On which characters will the films be on? Some rumors over the Internet are saying that it will deal with Boba Fett in one film, and Han Solo in the other. Others say that one spinoff will be based on Yoda, and another on Jabba the Hutt. I have an idea: Wouldn't it be awesome if the next films would be based on say, Clone Wars characters, like Ahsoka and Cad Bane? Wouldn't that be awesome!!

Obviously, the likelihood of either of these happening is anyone's wild guess. It's ultimately the decision of George Lucas, and I sure do hope that the stories come from the man himself.

It would be interesting for a spinoff centering Ahsoka if she survives the Clone Wars, to depict what happens to her after the war and how she survives. A Cad Bane one would be probably the first Star Wars Western film, which would honestly be unbelievably cool. 

But yeah, I said myself, the next spinoffs don't have to center around those characters-but it sure would be fun if they did!!

The Clone Wars: 100 Episodes

I honestly don't think that anybody even imagined- let alone dreamed off.-the kinds of things we have seen in the 100 Episodes of the Clone Wars,way back in August of 2008, when the Clone Wars film was released. The movie received mostly negative reviews from movie critics, for mostly unfair reasons, and few people thought the show would be much of anything or that it would ever take off. Ahsoka's character was hated by a lot people, (something the actress who portrayed her, Ashley Eckstein was aware off) and the hateboy nation criticized George Lucas for supposedly, exploiting the franchise. It was a dark time for Star Wars, indeed. But I kept my faith in George. I was one of the few who thought the movie had been great, and was looking forward to when the series would air.

After seeing the past four seasons, and the first half of the second season, I can honestly say that I have seen one of the best shows on TV that I have seen in my life.Every season has gotten better and better in visuals, in storytelling, in the inclusion of new characters that are now fan favorites, etc. Dave Filoni has done a tremendous job at portraying Star Wars for a whole new generation of kids, while at the same time staying true to the vision of the man himself, George Lucas. I look forward to seeing the rest of the show, and to see how this will eventually fit in to the events of Revenge of the Sith.

On an ending note, besides the fact that I want to congratulate everyone who has made the show possible: From George, Dave, the amazing crew of actors, the designers, and everyone else in Lucasfilm involved in the story, I also want to share a quote said by Dave Filoni a couple of days ago:

"These characters are meant to go along with these movies … who knows if it will show up in future movies" 

A couple of things we can infer from this statement: 1. The next set of Star Wars films probably won't be directed by Dave Filoni, which, saddens me. 2. He isn't aware of the story, so almost no one knows it. 3.Ahsoka might show up in the next Star Wars film, or some other Star Wars character introduced in TCW. Keep your fingers crossed people!!!!!

The Fate of Ahsoka Tano

One of the biggest mysteries surrounding The Clone Wars, and has been the #1 question since day one is, what happens to Anakin Skywalker's apprentice, Ahsoka Tano? Dave Filoni hinted to us sometime back in July of 2011 that their were ''8 possible fates for Ahsoka, but nothing had been decided.'' But in a recent post from November, Filoni said that Ahsoka's fate had already been decided. Here are some possible options these guys could have taken:

1. Ahsoka dies. 

This one is the most obvious answer, due to the fact that she doesn't appear in Episode III and also due to the fact that we already know that most Jedi get killed in Order 66. However, despite how obvious it might look, I honestly doubt the show will end up killing her. For one, the show started with Ahsoka's story and it is more than likely that it will end with hers, and since the series will likely go to demonstrate some of the events that lead up to Revenge of the Sith, such as the ones depicted in James Luceno's novel Labyrinth of Evil, her death should be something present in the minds of the main characters. Even if it wasn't Anakin's fault that she died, it would still reflect poorly on him, and it would make the decision of the Jedi Council to promote him on being in the Council all the more complicated. You are also left wondering why she isn't even mentioned in Episode III. 

2.Ahsoka leaves the Order to be with Lux

This one is a tricky one for starters, due to the fact that so far Ahsoka's relationship with Lux as left off in the Onderon arc is more ambiguous than ever. She might leave the Jedi in order to be with him, but it is even more unlikely than the previous possibility, mainly due to the fact that Ahsoka leaving the Order would severely undermine her character. Lux might have something to do with saving Ahsoka from death though. 

3.Ahsoka survives Order 66

To be honest with you, unless the show ends up demonstrating another possibility, the only reasonable way Ahsoka can survive the Jedi Purge is the following way: Ahsoka is sent on a mission while the events of Episode III take place. Anakin doesn't mention her because well, she's just out in a mission temporarily. When Order 66 takes place, she might either get lucky and survive like Obi-Wan, or end up dead like almost everyone else. How she survives is anyone's guess, whether Lux saves her or whether Rex ends up not shooting her, or something else. It would leave future media open to address what happened to her, and it leaves open the possibility of her appearance in Episode 7. How she gets all the way to the events of Episode 7, would leave several stories to depict what happened to her.

The Clone Wars First Half of the Season Review

Moving  away from all this Episode 7 speculation, I think it's time to talk about how the First Half of Star Wars: The Clone Wars Season 5 went. We have been comprised so far of two 4 part arcs, the Onderon arc and the Young Jedi one. Onderon proved to be an exciting arc, one in which we got to see the predecessors to the Rebel Alliance. The irony in all of this, is that it was Anakin's idea to organize the Rebels and train them in order to fight back the Separatists. Some saw this as showing Anakin's continuous descent towards the dark side, but I disagree: I think that it showed a great part about how Anakin managed to setup the path to his eventual redemption. One thing that did leave me confused was the fact that Ahsoka's relationship with Lux wasn't really taken forward from what we had seen in A Friend In Need. However, Steela's death might have been done on purpose in order for Lux and Ahsoka's relationship to actually flourish.

The Young Jedi arc opened up to see the interesting aspect about hoe the Jedi built their own lightsaber.  The addition of Huyang and the pirate Hondo made everything more interesting. Seeing Hondo drunk was all the more hilarious, and seeing General Grievous shine in this arc was even better. The Grievous vs. Ahsoka was a pretty intense, yet even match when considering the fact of how her fight was with Grievous way back in Season 1. 

I got to see at that point how the Season opener, Revival tied in to the destruction of Hondo's base. The return of Darth Maul and Savage Opress was what the audience was expecting from the get-go, and that episode proved to be one of the brilliants of the show.

Then came the Droids episodes which...many fans complain about. To be honest, the fans that don't want Star Wars to be a kid's show annoy the crap out of me, do to the fact that they forget that large parts of the Star Wars movies are told from the droids point of view. Seriously, will the stop complaining and enjoy the show? 

Secret Weapons proved to be a good episode, but it was really A Sunny Day in the Void, that struck me. Colonel Gascon's moment of despair and existencial questioning was one of the most philosophical of the show, without any Jedi involved in it, and the scene where the flock of birds come running and Wack ends up riding one of them was compelling, particularly when the bird did a kind of friendly gesture to Wack. What's funny of this is the fact that Wack is a droid, and it gives a theme of Animals and Robots, that I think has never been touched upon before. It was a scene that showed the innocent side of Star Wars some fans wish wouldn't exist. 

It was a very good first half, to say the least. I'm looking forward to seeing Gregor and Darth Maul return in the other half!!!

Who will make it into the next film?

That's another question we really don't know. Besides Luke, Leia and Han Solo, their really isn't any idea of who will be in the movie. Here are some possible character appearances.
1. Lando

Obviously, Lando is one of the first choices of who might land in the film. Some rumors say that Michael Arndt's story treatment calls for Lando showing up in the movies, so we'll have to wait and see.
2.Chewbacca

Chewbacca is definitely another guy who pops up in your head and how might end up in the story. The EU apparently killed him off at some point, but hey, we all know George can override it, so I'm pretty sure that their is a chance of seeing this guy back. 

3. The Droids

The Droids are supposed to be the only characters who will make it through all 9 films, according to the early story treatments of the sequel trilogy.They will almost certainly make it into the feature films.

4. Ahsoka Tano

This one is really anyone's guess if she will make it into the films. Anakin Skywalker's apprentice fate by the end of the Clone Wars is still unknown, and we have no idea if she will make it into the film. It would be nice to see her help Luke in establishing a new Jedi Order, but at the same time we have to realize that she is 15-16 years older than him, so she would obviously have to look older than the other guys, but she would still be relatively close to Han Solo's age. I'm keeping my fingers crossed, hoping she appears!!

5. Lux Bonteri

Another character from The Clone Wars TV show who's fate remains unknown. As current senator of Onderon who recently joined the Republic, and who is close to Ahsoka's age, his fate is as unknown as hers. We don't know if they end up in a relationship or something, so casting them already as possible characters to appear in Episode 7 is a bit of a stretch. But then again, they could still appear in the movies.

6. Boba Fett

Boba Fett supposedly survived the Sarlacc in some comics detailed in the EU, but well, since the EU is probably toast at this point, Boba Fett might have died in the hands of the Sarlacc after all. We might get to see his son though. And this time let's hope it's not his clone. Dingo Fett anyone?

7. Mara Jade, Ben Skywalker, The Solo children

This one is perhaps, the biggest of the mysteries. George Lucas apparently intended for Luke to never get married, so it's extremely likely that we won't get to see neither Mara Jade nor his son Ben in the movies, unless he changed his mind. The children of Han and Leia fall under a similar fate. They might show up, but their fates could be completely different from what is portrayed in the books and comics. They might even have different names. How knows?

8. Force Ghosts, anyone?

This one would perhaps be a nice treat to see. It would obviously be nice to see Anakin talk to his son Luke as a Force Ghost, and it would be perfectly possible to do this if you bring back Hayden Christensen to reprise Anakin, and maybe Liam Neeson if you want Qui-Gon back. It's harder to see that happen to Obi-Wan, due to the fact that Alec Guinness died a while back. Bringing Ewan McGregor as the force ghost might stir up controversy, so we'll have to wait and see. Yoda is pretty much the easiest you simply have to make him in CGI.