Review: “The Clone Wars” makes triumphant return after six-year hiatus

The final season of the highly popular show is off to a good start with its premiere episode.

By Lexie Macias, Valley Life Editor

Photo Courtesy of Lucasfilm

The highly anticipated seventh and final season of “Star Wars: The Clone Wars” premiered Friday on Disney+, surpassing any and all expectations for the show with a great first episode. The introduction of new and intriguing characters, improved animation quality and a riveting new musical score all intertwined seamlessly in this exciting season premiere.

Viewers who have not seen the first six seasons of “Star Wars: The Clone Wars” may be confused if they decide to jump into this episode because of the numerous storylines, characters, battles and planets that have been introduced. But for those interested in watching the final season without having to view all six prior seasons, Disney+ has released a viewing guide of the 20 most important episodes to watch beforehand, according to Polygon.

The first episode follows clone troopers Captain Rex and Commander Cody into Separatist territory, as they lead a small squad of troops behind enemy lines to recover information from the Cyber Center, a communications tower, on the planet Anaxes. Commander Cody has enlisted the help of Clone Force 99, or the “Bad Batch,” a highly successful “experimental unit of defective clones born with desirable mutations.” Most of the original cast from the previous seasons have returned to voice their characters.

The introduction of the Bad Batch in the first few minutes draws the viewer in because each defective clone has a unique personality and physical appearance that makes them likable and intriguing. Unlike regular clone troopers, each member of the Bad Batch has a genetic mutation that gives them unique abilities that give them an upper hand in battle. Hunter, the leader of the unit, was born with heightened senses which allow him to feel the electromagnetic frequencies of the Cyber Center anywhere on the planet. Wrecker, the reckless and largest member of the group, was engineered to have enhanced strength and a more muscular body structure. Along with their special abilities, Clone Force 99 work together as such a fluid and cohesive team that droid hordes barely stand a chance against them in battle on Anaxes.

The highly improved quality of the animation of this season is especially exciting because, after a six-year-long hiatus, the technology behind animation has evolved and changed since 2014. The physical appearances of characters, lighting, landscapes and battle scenes look crisp and eye-catching due to improved animation technology.

The new musical score for the season premiere, the Bad Batch theme, is composed by Kevin Kliner and is played throughout the episode. Many elements of the piece highlight and accentuate the different attributes of the Bad Batch that showcase them as the stars of the episode. The thrilling melodies of the score reflect the unconventional dynamic and nature of Clone Force 99 compared to the regular clone troopers that have been in previous seasons. More modern, technical tones appear in the score as well, hinting at the Bad Batch’s use of high-tech methods of warfare that aren’t regularly used in battle. The adventurous theme sets the tone for the action-packed episode that will center around this new ragtag unit of clone troopers.

The first episode of the final season of “Star Wars: The Clone Wars” proves that the revival of a popular show to conclude it in a satisfying way bodes well for Disney in drawing new viewers and fans of “Star Wars” to their streaming platform.