Star Wars: Clone Wars Vol. 2 (2005) Review

 

Star Wars: Clone Wars Vol. 2 (2005)

Clone Wars Volume 2 follows newly knighted Anakin, who must pass his final test as the Jedi try to hold off an impending invasion on Coruscant. 

After the success of the two seasons, Volume 2 got the opportunity for a longer episode format, allowing it to flesh out more expansive episodes in a shorter amount of time. Due to this, we get a much lighter tone that slows down the pace a bit and allows the episodes more freedom with dialogue, something that was significantly absent before. With that lighter tone, I actually found there to be a fun amount of humor, though I’ll admit, I do love the darker, more fast paced episodes of the previous season (which were astoundingly dark for a kids show). Where Volume 1 did a fantastic job of closing out where we left off on Attack of the Clones, Volume 2 was all about setting these characters up for Revenge of the Sith, literally ending right where we pick up at the start of Episode 3. 

We take a deeper dive into Anakin and just what makes him tic, with his arc once again flirting with the dark side as he murders a scientist WITH HIS ROBOT HAND (a question I’ve wanted answered for so long—can you still utilize the force after losing a limb?). It’s an often glossed over side of Anakin and so I’m glad this series makes an effort to demonstrate his darker tendencies. This season also gives us insight into just how Palpatine was taken, how Grievous becomes a weak, coughing loser (S/O to Chad, Mace Windu), and Anakin’s transition from a padawan to a full-fledged Jedi Knight. 

The animation, once again, is killer and it’s fast, Samurai Jack style goes a helluva long way in making these badass characters MORE badass, especially Grievous and Windu. 

We get another solid voice cast featuring Tom Kane, Nick Jameson, John DiMaggio, Mat Lucas, Terrance C. Carson, and James Arnold Taylor. I was surprised at just how well the vocal cast sounded like their live action counterparts, with Carson and Lucas standing out as Windu and Anakin respectively. 

Clone Wars Volume 2, directed by Genndy Tartakovsky, is a lighter, significantly funnier season that tonally, more accurately matches up with what we would come to see in (the beginning of) Revenge of the Sith, with this acting as a perfect filler for the movies to fill in the blanks and provide fun action along the way.

8.6/10