Star Wars: The Clone Wars
, on Cartoon Network (seasons 1-5) / Netflix (season 6) / Disney+ (season 7)Caution: spoilers!
In 2003, there was an animated microseries called Star Wars: Clone Wars. In 2008, there was a CGI movie called Star Wars: The Clone Wars, which serves as a lead-in to this new, full-length CGI series, which will apparently supercede the previous microseries. (But the 3-D character designs in this series are more or less based on the 2-D designs from the previous series, which I like.) Like the microseries, this series covers the events between episodes 2 and 3 of the live-action movie series. I.e., the battles between the Republic, led by Chancellor Palpatine (Ian Abercrombie); and the Separatists, led by Count Dooku (Corey Burton).
Each episode begins with an aphorism (that I forget as soon as I've read it, so I have no idea if they actually relate to the plot of the episode). That's followed by a newsreel-style narration (by Tom Kane) of things it's important to know before watching the current episode. (Though it contains lots of information no news service could possibly be aware of, and much that would be classified even if they were.)
Season One
The show may focus on different characters from week to week. I should mention that all Jedi Knights are generals in the war. Heroes (from the Republic) include Anakin Skywalker (Matt Lanter) and his new padawan, Ahsoka Tano (Ashley Eckstein), who was introduced in the Clone Wars movie. And Obi-Wan Kenobi (James Arnold Taylor), and lots of clone troopers, including Captain Rex and Commander Cody (all clones are voiced by Dee Bradley Baker). We also see a lot of Admiral Wullf Yularen (Tom Kane), who commands the cruiser Resolute, which is General Skywalker's base of operations. Other recurring heroes include Senator Padmé Amidala (Catherine Taber), R2-D2 and C-3PO (Anthony Daniels), Yoda (Tom Kane), Mace Windu (Terrence C. Carson), and Representative Jar Jar Binks (Ahmed Best) even makes a few appearances. Villains include Dooku, as well as his apprentice, Asajj Ventress (Nika Futterman), and General Grievous (Matthew Wood), both of whom were first introduced in the Clone Wars microseries. There are also plenty of battle droids, which tend to be pretty inept, mostly serving as comic relief. (That gets a bit annoying at times.) And various other kinds of droids, which are not so inept.
So, it's nice to be able to have a variety of different stories. I don't want to list every episode's plot, but there are some episodes I'd like to mention just because of characters who appear in them. There's a two-part story involving Jedi Master Plo Koon (James Arnold Taylor) against General Grievous's new ship, the Malevolence (seriously, with names like that, how can the Separatists not know they're the bad guys?) and its ion cannon. And an episode where Jedi Master Luminara Unduli (Olivia d'Abo) is escorting Nute Gunray to Coruscant to stand trial. But Gunray escapes and is later tracked by Jedi Master Kit Fisto (Phil LaMarr) and his former padawan. In one episode, Dooku is captured by pirates led by Hondo Ohnaka (Jim Cummings). In another two-parter, Jedi Master Aayla Secura (Jennifer Hale) and Ahsoka must protect defenseless aliens whose world is invaded by Separatists, while Anakin is seriously injured. In another two-parter, a scientist named Dr. Nuvo Vindi has recreated a virus with which he plans to infect all of Naboo and later the galaxy. In a three-part story, Republic forces try to take back Ryloth, which has been occupied by the Separatists. The heroes get some help in the third episode from a Twi'lek general and freedom fighter named Cham Syndulla, whom I remembered upon my rewatch because I had more recently seen the character guest-starring on Star Wars Rebels. In the season finale, a group of bounty hunters led by Cad Bane (Corey Burton) take a number of senators, include Padme, hostage to force Chancellor Palpatine to grant a pardon and release from prison to Ziro the Hutt.
Season Two: Rise of the Bounty Hunters
Wikipedia says this season had a subtitle, as it says above, but I have no recollection of that. Not sure whether that's because of my poor memory (and it being many years since I originally saw the season on TV), or if that subtitle was added later. Probably my poor memory, though. Anyway, it begins with a three-parter in which Cad Bane steals a Jedi holocron, to sell to the Separatists. There's also an episode with Jedi Master Ki-Adi-Mundi, involving an attack on a droid factory. In the next episode, Ahsoka teams up with Master Unduli's padawan, Barriss Offee (Meredith Salenger), to destroy the factory. And an episode where Anakin teams up with Jedi Master Adi Gallia to try to rescue another Jedi Master that had been kidnapped by Grievous. There's a 3-parter involving the pacifist Duchess Satine Kryze of Mandalore, who must deal with a Mandalorian terrorist organization called Death Watch, which has ties to the Separatists. (Plus she's a former romantic interest of Obi-Wan.) And there's an episode in which Anakin, Obi-Wan, and Ahsoka assist four bounty hunters in protecting farmers from Hondo Ohnaka's pirates (in a plot based on "Seven Samurai"). There's a 2-parter involving a gigantic creature called a Zillo beast. And a 3-parter in which young Boba Fett (Daniel Logan, who also played him in Attack of the Clones) works with a group of bounty hunters led by Aurra Sing, also including Bossk (Dee Bradley Baker) and some other guy named Castas. They all wanted to kill Master Windu; the bounty hunters because the Separatists would pay for his death, and Boba as revenge for killing his father, Jango Fett (in "Attack of the Clones"). They fail to kill Windu, but take some hostages, and are later tracked down by Ahsoka and Plo Koon. The bounty hunters hide out with Hondo's pirates, who don't get involved in the matter. And of course lots of other stuff happens throughout the season. I hope I'm not forgetting anything terribly important.
Season Three: Secrets Revealed
The season begins with some clone cadets, whose training on Kamino is overseen by Jedi Master Shaak Ti and a couple of bounty hunters, Bric and El-Les. The focus is on Domino Squad, who keep failing their tests, but ultimately pass. (I believe this is the first episode where I ever heard the term "bad batch" to refer to misfit clones.) In the next episode, General Grievous and Asajj Ventress lead an attack on Kamino, where they and a ton of droids fight Obi-Wan, Anakin, Shaak Ti, and a ton of clones. Then there's an episode with Jedi Master Ima-Gun Di leading clones who are under siege by droid forces on Ryloth, while Senator Bail Organa (Phil LaMarr) and Representative Binks appeal to the Toydarian king to allow them to use the system to deliver supplies to the Republic forces on Ryloth. Arguing against this is Senator Lott Dod of the Trade Federation. There are a couple of episodes set on Mandalore, in one of which Ahsoka teaches some cadets, and helps expose corruption in the government. In another episode, Ahsoka has visions of Aurra Sing assassinating Amidala, which she must stop from happening. Later, Cad Bane frees Ziro the Hutt from prison, and Obi-Wan teams up with Jedi Master Quinlan Vos, with whom he doesn't really get along, to find and recapture Ziro. But Ziro ends up being killed by his girlfriend, Sy Snootles (Nika Futterman). Then Amidala takes Ahsoka to a Separatist world to meet her old friend, Senator Mina Bonteri (Kath Soucie), and her son, Lux. Ahsoka learns that not all Separatists are evil. Meanwhile, the Republic Senate votes on whether to deregulate banks so they could get a loan to pay for more clones. An effort is made on both sides to reach out in peace, but Count Dooku, ignoring his own Senate's vote, orders Grievous to send droids to Coruscant to attack a power plant, which puts an end to any talk of peace. In another episode, Darth Sidious commands Count Dooku to eliminate his apprentice, Asajj Ventress. But Ventress survives and returns to her clan, the Nightsisters of Dathomir. Later, Dooku comes to the Nightsisters for a new apprentice, and they provide him with Savage (pronounced Sa-vajj) Opress (Clancy Brown), who will pretend to serve Dooku while truly serving the Nightsisters. After training with Dooku for a time, and killing a bunch of people, Opress joins Ventress in assaulting Dooku, but he's too strong for them, and they each barely escape. Opress returns to Dathomir, where Mother Talzin, the leader of the Nightsisters, instructs Opress to find his "brother" to continue his training. In another three-episode arc, Anakin, Obi-Wan, and Ahsoka are lured to a mysterious planet called Mortis, that is a conduit for the Force. Three powerful Force-wielders live there: the Father, and his Son (who looks to me like an Inquisitor, which I probably wouldn't have known about before watching "Star Wars: Rebels") and Daughter (who looks to me like some kind of glowy angel or something). They all believe Anakin is the Chosen one; the Father wants Anakin to replace him in his task of controlling his children, who could pose a great threat to the galaxy. Meanwhile, Obi-Wan has a vision of Qui-Gon and Ahsoka has a vision of her future self. In the end, Anakin decides to leave the planet, despite the Father's warning that his selfishness will haunt both himself and the galaxy. Before they can get away, the Son kidnaps Ahsoka and turns her to the Dark Side. She battles Anakin when he comes to rescue her. Meanwhile, the Daughter takes Obi-Wan to an altar, where he procures a blade that can kill the Son. He joins Anakin against Ahsoka, who ends up obtaining the blade and giving it to the Son, who then kills Ahsoka. When he tries to kill his Father, the Daughter gets between them and is stabbed. Her last act before dying is to bring Ahsoka back to life, and to the Light Side. In another 3-episode arc, Obi-Wan, Anakin, and Ahsoka infiltrate a Separatist prison called the Citadel, to rescue a Jedi Master named Even Piell and Captain Tarkin, who each have memorized half of information vital to the war effort. Anakin and Tarkin have similar views regarding the war, which troubles Obi-Wan. In a two episode story, Ahsoka gets captured by Trandoshans, who take her to a planet where they hunt her and other prisoners. Ahsoka teams up with some Jedi younglings in the first episode, and in the second, they team up with the newest prisoner, Chewbacca, who helps them escape.
Unfortunately, I lost access to Cartoon Network in June 2011, so I didn't see seasons 4 and 5. After that it was cancelled by Cartoon Network, but a sixth season, called "The Lost Missions" (A.V. Club) aired on Netflix, which I also don't have. A seventh (final) season was released on Disney+, which also shows the first six seasons (though they're listed under a series banner that says "the final season"). I decided to rewatch the series from the beginning before getting into the seasons I haven't seen yet.