Photo Credit: [Star Wars: The Clone Wars] Lucasfilm
Star Wars: The Clone Wars has plenty of great moments throughout the show’s run. Today, we’re breaking down our top 10 moments.
Star Wars: The Clone Wars was already on Netflix by the time I found myself diving into the universe. The show instantly grabbed me with the animation style and the stories it was telling. One of the things I enjoyed the most was how they’d let story arcs play out over multiple episodes. This allowed for more of the story to be fleshed out instead of forced into roughly 20 minutes.
Throughout the six seasons of the show, there were of course some ups and downs. However, the high moments really soared and added to the expansive Star Wars lore. Things we saw in this series had an impact on the universe in ways that no other show or movie at the time could. The show struggled a bit towards the end as it was canceled and some loose ends remained.
The Clone Wars will be back with 12 new episodes though, so I’m hoping that we’ll get to fill in some of the blanks. We know that Ahsoka will return, which undoubtedly will be interesting to see. Until the show releases, we’ll have to keep thinking about the six season of the show we do have so far.
Narrowing the list down to just 10 moments was a bit difficult. There are just so many to choose from. But without further ado, here are our top 10 moments from the series.
Photo credit: Lucasfilm/The Clone Wars
10. The Nightsisters (season 3, episode 12)
The Nightsisters have appeared in both Star Wars Canon and the Legends stories. In The Clone Wars, we see them in relation to Asajj Ventress and her storyline. Asajj Ventress, like Darth Maul, was from Dathomir and in “Nightsisters” we see her be betrayed by Count Dooku and taken in by her former order.
This episode in particular gives us a good look at the history of Asajj Ventress without needing to dive too deep into it. We see the Nightsisters, and Clan Mother Talzin, take her in once Dooku has left her to perish. She’s picked a fight with Anakin and Obi-Wan at this point, but that doesn’t do her in either.
Asajj Ventress made such an impression in The Clone Wars that she was one of the main characters in Dark Disciple by Christie Golden. If you want to know more about the character outside of her appearance in this episode of The Clone Wars (and the other episodes that she’s in), I highly recommend checking out the book.
Ventress is an interesting character and the Nightsisters are crucial to her story, which is why the moment they take her back in nabbed a spot on the list.
Photo credit: Lucasfilm
9. Rex goes against General Pong Krell (season 4, episode 9)
General Pong Krell isn’t one of the most well-known characters in the galaxy, but he plays an important role in Rex’s story. General Krell appears in a few episodes of The Clone Wars during the Umbara story arc. He’s ordered troops to go against each other and Rex figures it out.
When Rex and other soldiers decided to go against General Krell’s orders, they knew he wouldn’t be happy. However, they had a plan to arrest him and he wound up killing more clones as he slipped away. Once he was captured, Dogma ended up executing him for betraying them.
General Krell was playing mind games with Rex before his execution and it worked on Rex just long enough for him to hesitate. The Battle of Umbara showed that Rex wasn’t just another clone who took orders without thinking things through.
This is a trait that made him valuable throughout the years. He became one of the staple characters in the series and fans love him. Even though he looks like a clone, he never feels like he’s just another one of them.
In a way, this moment is a triumph for Rex. If he had gone along with General Krell’s orders, we wouldn’t have many more great moments with him after this because he likely would have died in the battle.
Plus, he and the 501st Legion were able to keep General Krell from turning on them even more and joining Dooku. In the end, getting rid of him was the right move, even if Rex didn’t do it himself.
Photo credit: Lucasfilm/The Clone Wars
8. Fives death (season 6, episode 4)
Fives was a member of the 501st Legion along with Rex. General Krell had ordered him to death during the Battle of Umbara, but Fives was spared once Krell was arrested and then executed. This is another one of those moments that shows us that the clones were actual people and they all didn’t necessarily think and act the same exact way.
The Biochip Conspiracy is the final story arc that we saw Fives in. Fellow trooper Tup killed Jedi Master Tiplar and something was clearly off with him. It’s discovered that there are chips implanted in the clones and that is what is causing the odd behavior. Fives figured it out, but not in time to save the Jedi.
Because of the work that Fives does during his final story arc, Rex, Wolffe and Gregor are able to have their chips removed. It’s a tough storyline in many regards. Fives knew what was going on, but he couldn’t find anyone who would believe him at first.
Palpatine certainly knew what was going on and that’s why Fives wasn’t able to make it out alive. He dies in Rex’s arms and it’s a painful scene. Those two had spent so much time together that they truly did feel like brothers. This scene has a huge impact on Rex and you can tell right away. Rex is going to keep fighting and make sure he gets justice for Fives.
Photo credit: Lucasfilm/The Clone Wars
7. Yoda meets the ghost of Darth Bane (season 6, episode 13)
Yoda had plenty of his own side journeys in The Clone Wars and the episode where he meets the ghost of Darth Bane is one from “ The Lost Missions.”
The 13 season 6 episodes (including the one with Fives death) were released after the show’s cancellation by Netflix on March 7, 2014. This allowed for some closure on certain stories.
These episodes also gave us the moment where Yoda meets the ghost of Darth Bane. Yoda visits Moraband, which is the homeward of the Sith.
This is all part of a test by the Force Preistesses and Yoda realizes that Darth Bane is just an illusion. The animation is fantastic in this scene, too. It is dark and mysterious, but the way Bane’s ghost moves is wonderful to watch.
Yoda is one of those characters who will always have great moments when he’s around. This side adventure with him was surely one of them and it’s interesting to see how the dead find their way back into the story. Thankfully, Yoda is smart enough to know that Darth Bane is only trying to intimidate him and that he isn’t actually real.
Photo credit: Lucasfilm/The Clone Wars
6. Obi-Wan and Asajj Ventress vs. Darth Maul and Savage Opress (season 4, episode 22)
Obi-Wan teams up with Asajj Ventress to fight against Darth Maul and Savage Opress in the season 4 finale and it’s a big part of the episode. What makes it even more interesting, though, is the fact that Obi-Wan and Asajj Ventress normally wouldn’t be on the same side.
We’ve seen her go against him before, so the fact that this even happens is a big deal. How can Obi-Wan even be sure that he can trust Ventress? He doesn’t trust her per se, but he knows that his options are limited at this point.
For Obi-Wan, this battle is personal. Darth Maul gloats about gutting Qui-Gon Jinn, whose dying request was for Obi-Wan to train Anakin because he was the Chosen One. This ties The Clone Wars in with The Phantom Menace since that’s when Qui-Gon Jinn’s death occurred.
Plus, Obi-Wan needs to get his own lightsaber back from Darth Maul, which he does do successfully. His blue lightsaber is a contrast to the rest being red and it just adds another nice element to the fight. As Obi-Wan and Ventress flee, they both know it isn’t over and we see that play out later in the series.
Photo credit: Lucasfilm/The Clone Wars
5. Darth Sidious vs. Darth Maul and Savage Opress (season 5, episode 16)
Darth Maul was once the apprentice of Darth Sidious, but that is no longer the case as Darth Sidious informs him that he has a new apprentice. Darth Sidious is brutal in this scene and it’s a fantastic fight scene to watch.
The way it is choreographed makes it hard to take your eyes off of it. If you blink, chances are you’ll miss something great. We also have the fact that Darth Maul is using the Darksaber in this fight, which comes into play in Star Wars Rebels later.
Getting back to how brutal Darth Sidious is, he tosses Darth Maul and Savage Opress around like rag dolls. He kills Savage Opress, but elects not to kill Darth Maul since he has plans for him. Any time a Sith Lord says they have plans for someone, you can bet nothing good will come of those plans.
During the fight, we see how Darth Maul reacts to the death of Savage Opress. He’s understandably hurt and calls him “brother,” which is common on Dathomir when one is part of the Nightbrothers. Maul certainly feels betrayed by Sidious and this fight is a must-watch in the series. Sure, there have been plenty of fights throughout the series, but none were quite like this.
Photo Credit: [Star Wars: The Clone Wars] Lucasiflm
4. Satine’s death (season 5, episode 16)
This moment comes minutes before we see Darth Sidious fight against Darth Maul and Savage Opress. In fact, the death of Satine Kryze is the reason Darth Sidious showed up in the first place. Darth Maul thought it would be a great idea to use the Duchess of Mandalore to lure Obi-Wan out after his death was faked.
Darth Maul’s plan does work and he ends up killing Satine by using a force choke and then impaling her with the Darksaber. It’s a horrible way for her to die and she manages to get some final words out as Obi-Wan holds her in his arms.
You could tell throughout their interactions that Obi-Wan and Satine clearly had feelings for each other, but it isn’t until her final moment that she admits her love for him.
There’s no doubt that this is personal for Obi-Wan and that plays out later when he fights Darth Maul in Star Wars Rebels, too. He’s never going to be able to forget this moment (and there’s no reason he should), so it’s a bit of a driving force with him whenever Maul is around.
It was hard to put two scenes from a single episode on this list, but both were just so strong that it made sense to include them. Although, it was hard to just pick 10 top moments to begin with.
Photo credit: Lucasfilm/The Clone Wars
3. Anakin on Mortis (season 3, episodes 15-17)
There are three episodes that encompass the Mortis story arc: “Overlords,” “Altar of Mortis” and “Ghosts of Mortis.” These three episodes really feel like one big moment for Anakin. He travels there with Ahsoka and Obi-Wan as he tries to find out if he’s the Chosen One. It’s a tough moment for Anakin, especially once he gets split up from Ahsoka and Obi-Wan.
The Father, Daughter and Son are the three who Anakin interacts with on Mortis. By the end of “Overlords,” Anakin is presented with a choice. He has to choose to save either Ahsoka or Obi-Wan. Since the Force is amplified on the planet, he is able to have them both released at the same time, which allows him to pass the first test.
The Son later asks Anakin to join the Dark Side in “Altar of Mortis.” We see Anakin lean this way more and more throughout The Clone Wars, but he’s able to resist here. We also learn that Daughter is dying in this episode before heading into “Ghosts of Mortis.”
In the final episode of the arc, Anakin sees visions of the future that show horrible things happening. We see Anakin struggle a lot during these three episodes and while he comes out of it on the right side still, you can tell just how much of an impact it has on him. Hindsight allows us to see how a series of events, including this one, would eventually lead to Anakin becoming Darth Vader.
Image Courtesy: Lucasfilm
2. Yoda faces the Dark Side version of himself (season 6, episode 12)
Yoda gets another spot on this list because he has some interesting encounters throughout The Clone Wars. Instead of interacting with the ghost of Darth Bane this time, he’s interacting with the Dark Side version of himself.
This happens in season 6, which is when we see a good amount of Yoda as he goes on a lengthy solo mission.
In “Destiny,” Yoda is confronted by his Dark Side shadow. As he continues to reject that the shadow is a part of him, he finds himself taking a pretty bad beating. It isn’t until he accepts that the Dark Side will always exist inside him (even if it remains dormant) that he’s able to defeat his shadow.
This was just one of the tests from the Preistesses. However, what I like about this battle is that it ends up being more of an internal one despite Yoda physically fighting the shadow. He wins in the end, but it was more of him accepting all of who he is instead of just the pieces he wants to accept.
These final episodes added a lot to Yoda’s story and this was one of the more powerful moments during those episodes.
Photo credit: Lucasfilm/The Clone Wars
1. Ahsoka Tano leaves the Jedi Order (season 5, episode 20)
Ahsoka Tano quickly became one of my favorite character in The Clone Wars and she’s become a fan-favorite over time in general. While she had a lot of great moments with Anakin and other characters in the series, it’s her leaving the Jedi Order that really stands out.
She was on trial for murder and you could tell that she was starting to believe her skills would be better used somewhere else.
This is a moment that has a huge impact on Anakin, even if he doesn’t always outwardly show it. With The Clone Wars returning, you can see Anakin’s reaction in the new trailer when he sees Ahsoka again.
It’s clearly been a good amount of time since she left the Order, but her reason for doing so is understandable. Not everyone will always feel like they belong in the Jedi Order and we know that ultimately Anakin ends up feeling the same way, but for a much different reason.
There are happier moments that could have made their way on the list, but it’s typically the hard and sad moments that have the most impact on characters. With the deaths that made this list, this isn’t quite as dark as those moments, but it’s one that shapes Anakin and Ahsoka’s stories going forward.
After all, I can’t be the only one wondering if Ahsoka could have kept Anakin from becoming Darth Vader had she stuck around. That’s a question we’ll never know the answer to, though, and that’s a big reason this takes the top spot.