Star Wars: Clone Wars

I’m watching my copy of the first Season of Star Wars: The Clone Wars this morning.

Not the 3D animation series, the good series produced by Cartoon Network several years ago with traditional 2D animation.

And while I’ve not read nearly the amount of the Expanded Universe material that some of my contacts  have, i.e. the stuff outside the six movies, there has been one thing clear about what I have read. George Lucas should never touch the series again.

I have great respect for what Lucas did with the original trilogy and the resulting fandom it inspired. The original trilogy is a fine example of what film making can be. Lucas did well with the resources he had there, good actors, a groundbreaking script, updated use of traditional cinematic devices, and I don’t need to tell you how alone the music made the series. It is some of John Williams best work.

So when I watch something like the first Season of the Clone Wars, I realize that other than the original trilogy of movies, the Universe should stay solely out of Lucas hands. The director of this series, Genndy Tartakovsky, knew what he was doing. The animation in the series is stylized much like its Samurai Jack predecessor, makes use of established Star Wars music and film shots, all while adding its own feel to the nostalgic series.

Now, George Lucas did have some input towards that series, but ultimately it was someone else’s hands. And it is some of the best animation produced by Cartoon Network. Given the channel’s recent fare, that alone says much.

But then I look at things like the modern trilogy, and the establishment of the damned Gungan and other stupid elements into the series, that Lucas put there for the kid audience, all while forgetting the important stuff that made the first series such a success.

Lucas eliminated the humor wordplay of the droids, the emotional investment in the characters, and some of the mystery behind the Force. (Midi-chlorians?  Epic FAIL.)

Even the Expanded Universe elements, such as the Knights of the Old Republic series of games is far better produced than the Modern Trilogy.  Those games work with an entirely new cast of characters and elements, and managed to tell epic stories with only Lucas minimal involvement. And with the Star Wars KotOR Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game coming, out, I will not lie and say I’m very excited for it.

In any case, I think I’ve said all that I need to.

For a more humorous version of this, try this discontinued comic:

http://www.radioactivepanda.com/comic/30

~AnonCollie