#Cloned: The Recreator Chronicles

[adamwatchesmovies]

Cloned: The Recreator Chronicles (2012)

With a title like Cloned: The Recreator Chronicles, you know you’re in for an ordeal when you sit down to watch this one. This movie walks into the room like it’s got the next big idea; like it radiates so much creativity you should feel lucky to bask in its glow. It needs a serious reality check. There’s nothing original or interesting in this film's entire running time.

Craig (Alexander Nifong), his girlfriend Tracy (Stella Maeve) and his best friend Derek (J. Mallory McCree) are camping when they discover a cabin they think is abandonned. Before long, they meet duplicates of themselves. With these clones claiming they’re smarter, stronger, and better in every way, should the originals be worried?

What’s worse than a lousy performer in a key role? A lousy performer in dual roles. J. Mallory McCree, Alexander Nifong and Stella Maeve all come off quite badly in this film. In their defense, I think it had more to do with writer/director Gregory Orr than anything else. This script had to be a first draft. It’s the only way to excuse how bad the science is. We learn the clones were created when the genetic material of our heroes got mixed with some chemicals in the sewers beneath the cabin after it was struck by lightning. The clones are literally made from shit and shower water. Orr probably doesn’t want us to think about it too much because the mystery of where the duplicates came from is completely irrelevant. What matters is that Craig 1 is worried Craig 2 will steal Tracy away, which would be a bad thing because the clones are the anti-matter universe version of these characters. Craig 1 lacks confidence. Craig 2 takes charge. Derek is dopey. Derek 2 is so smart it’s “scary”. Tracy is a bit of a harpy, which makes her doppelganger the ideal girlfriend. If Craig 1 and Craig 2 could just swap girlfriends, everyone would be happy! or they would if Craig 2 wasn't evil.

You can feel this picture struggle and fail to make things happen until it gives up any attempt at elegance. By the end, people move from here to there without logic - anything to keep the plot moving. The “will he, won’t he?” couple-swapping question can only sustain so much running time. To compensate, much of the running time is dedicated to the original Craig and Tracy as they explore the ruined nuclear science lab. What do nuclear weapons have to do with creating full-grown adults with memories and roots in their hair? Shut up, that’s what.

The only time Cloned: The Recreator Chronicles becomes interesting is when its intelligence drops down to absolute zero. At one point, Derek attempts to hitchhike home. The first car he sees has a set of twins in it. He understandably freaks out and doesn’t go with them. The implication is that there are evil clones all over this area… but we soon learn that isn’t the case. It just means that Derek has the worst luck in the world. He could’ve been headed towards home and safety but he bumped into two unnerving-looking twins so now he’s going back towards danger. There’s a confrontation between Tracy and her duplicate that leads to a twist so obvious anyone with half a brain could figure it out.

A post-credit slide warns us that a sequel is planned. “To Be Continued”. Don’t make me laugh. Unless the director’s got blackmail photos handy, another one of these is not happening. I don’t even know what the plot would be. The story’s over on all counts!

You’ve seen scarier things staring at the mirror than in every second of Cloned: The Recreator Chronicles combined. The plot is obvious, the characters flat and the performances lousy. I’d call the special effects disappointing too but the split screens are well done - a shocker considering how unconvincing the lightning is. I watched it as part of a double bill with Us - another horror film about evil twins - but you don’t need to see the concept done well to appreciate Jordan Peele’s 2019 effort. I can’t think of any reason why anyone should see Cloned: The Recreator Chronicles. (October 15, 2021)

[movie-titlecards]

Cloned: The Recreator Chronicles (2012)

My rating: 3/10

[voidartisan]

Welcome to the blog.

Make yourself at home

(Fic masterlist and spoiler tag policy below the cut)

🔹She/her, arospec ace

🔹I go by AJ, or Void, if that feels more natural to you

🔹Psychology student with a fine arts minor

🔹Member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

🔹Usually screaming about Star Wars (mostly the prequels, or, let’s be honest, anything with Obi-Wan Kenobi in it for more than .05 seconds)

🔹Also a fan of lots of other media, including but not limited to: Tolkien's Legendarium, The Queen's Thief series, Howl's Moving Castle, Pride and Prejudice, Parks and Recreation, Pirates of the Caribbean, The Princess Bride, Wooden Overcoats, Avatar: The Last Airbender, The Lunar Chronicles, and some of my beloved childhood fandoms

🔹Occasional artist (read: doodler), slightly more frequent writer

🔹I have one sideblog, @arafinweanappreciation, for Tolkien content

🔹I really REALLY like answering asks so don't be afraid to inbox me random questions if you ever want to

🔹I try to be diligent about organizational tagging for characters and fandoms so things will be easy to find, as well as spoilers for blocking purposes

🔹On that note, I usually only tag spoilers for ongoing content (i.e. I’ve never tagged spoilers for rebels or tcw), and stop tagging spoilers 4-6 weeks after a finale drops. If you’re currently watching a Star Wars show that finished its most recent season more than a month ago, scroll at your own risk

🔹 #void doodles - my art tag

🔹#talking into the void - mostly me rambling about irl stuff. feel free to block it if you're here for fandom stuff tbh. doesn't hurt my feelings

🔹 #aj writes - my fanfic and related posting

Currently reading: Guards! Guards! by Terry Pratchett

Fic Masterlist

Obi-Wan and Ahsoka:

against the dying of the light: Sometimes your master's master has more influence on your training than you think. And sometimes they send you a physical reminder.

i saw waves lifting the sea: queer grandmaster-grandpadawan bonding. that's it. that's the fic.

softly in the gloom they heard the birds: you know that meme where the two characters are both trying take a bullet for the other??? yeah.

it's cold on the floor: very short one-shot that i wrote entirely for the joke at the end. potentially the only thing i've written that doesn't contain any angst

Obi-Wan and Anakin:

i owe it to my brothers: an anthology of obi-wan and anakin snippets, currently very short

Disaster Lineage:

fallen sentries: A post-Lawless Arc story focusing on Obi-Wan's particular method of grieving, and how Ahsoka and Anakin have to figure out how to deal with it.

resemblances: Ahsoka looks back on her masters and her training during her time in the Rebellion

come by it honestly: a snippet of Obi-Wan and Ahsoka dealing with Anakin's nonsense, even (especially) when he's not around.

you cried when you cut your hair: exploring lineage dynamics through padawan braids

The Bad Batch:

the final standing domino: Omega gets curious about some old holos Echo is looking at. Angst ensues.

the sincerest form of flattery: omega is growing up a little too fast for hunter's taste, and not fast enough for hers (fluffier than it sounds)

Post-S2 finale drabble: written in the wait between S2 and S3, critically acclaimed (critics being hunter stans in the notes)

Post-S3 finale double drabble: written in the throes of tbb update withdrawals and the wake of [SPOILERS REDACTED]

Cody and Obi-Wan:

ori'vode: Cody is (unintentionally) emotionally assaulted by a preteen [i had to make this summary humorous because i DID cry while writing it. multiple times]

scars: Obi-Wan and Cody snippet from the early Clone Wars, feat. Cody acting his (physical) age for approx. 2 min.

AWOL: an angsty one-shot written in honor of cody's first awol-iversary

Clan Kryze:

aay'han: Korkie snippets, mostly relating to Satine, her legacy, and their relationship

Satine Week 2024: What is says on the tin, a collection of Satine-centric one-shots inspired by the Satine Week prompts.

Modern AU:

and we don't notice any time pass: the main body of the modern au. constructed almost entirely of song lyrics, nostalgia, and and found family tropes. the clone wars but make it napoleon dynamite. sort of

Other/Multi:

ahsoka tano gets her man: the fluff filler episode of clone wars i always wanted but never got, feat. obitine, korkie and ahsoka friendship, and obi-wan and ahsoka bonding.

to catch a tooka: it is a truth universally acknowledged that all stray cats must be in want of a teenage girl to adopt them

sabacc face: trapped in an escape pod? nothing to do? consider card games and accidentally digging up old family drama/trauma

it's every breath that comes before: short qui-gon death fic. his pov for the theed generator fight in tpm. i made myself sad

Obi-Wan and Luke minific: look. Obi-Wan and the twins---

[heisokay]

Alexander Nifong on CLONED: The Recreator Chronicles (2012)

[tsubasaclones]

attempt to recreate a picture from my dream last night (which had nothing to do with trc this was just in there for some reason ???)

[fanfrick-and-beyond]

I want to follow more blogs. If you post and/or like to talk about anything on this list I’d love to give you another follower. Just like this post and I’ll check it out.

• Lord of the Rings

• Anything MCU

•Venom

•Star Wars (including Clone Wars)

•The Chronicles of Narnia

•Inception

•Parks and Recreation

•The Office

•Arrested Development

•Stranger Things

•Merlin

•Sherlock

•Bandersnatch

[blackspine]

SO i just made a new blog and need people to follow!! could you reblog this if you post any of the:

Shows/Movies: 

Star Wars (movies, clone wars, kotor.. anything!)

Marvel (again, anything) 

DC (wonder woman, batfam and stuff) 

ATLA 

LOTR, The Hobbit 

Stranger Things 

Friends 

Parks and Rec 

Star Trek (movies) 

HP Universe

Many other sci-fi/fantasy movies and shows

Games: 

Dragon Age 

Portal

Wayhaven Chronicles 

Fallen Hero: Rebirth

Children of the Gods

Hogwarts Mystery

Other stuff, such as shitposts, ANIMALS, art.. just funny or nice posts in general

...so i can follow you! you can see how much of a multi-mess this blog’s gonna be so it doesn’t really have to be limited to the stuff above, i’m open to following those with other interests dfgjsh

[eznii]

im putting this here because im bored but anyway if anyone wants to see all the media ive ever consumed then go ahead >>

bolded and underlined  interests are media i am in love with

just bolded interests are media i actually like

italicized interests are media that i dislike or don’t care about

and all the rest are media im indifferent about/dont remember well :)

GAMES:

ace attorney

alicia online

all the homestuck games

among us (lol)

ark:survival evolved

assassins creed (first 3 games)

creativerse

danganronpa

disco elysium

doki doki literature club

dont starve together

dragon age

fez

friday night funkin

hades

horse isle 2

howrse

jackbox games

minecraft

moonbase alpha

persona 4 and 5

portal 1 and 2

robot unicorn attack

scribblenauts

shelter 1 and 2

slime rancher

star stable online

stardew valley

subnautica

terraria (kinda)

the sims

the stanley parable

the witcher (1 so far)

undertale/deltarune

wobbledogs

BOOKS:

all for the game series

beast quest series

brothers lionheart

curious incident of the dog in the night time

carry on/wayward son/any way the wind blows series (rainbow rowell)

cinderella is dead

gentleman’s guide to vice and virtue

good omens

grishaverse

hitchhikers guide to the galaxy series

locked tomb series

lycanthropy and other chronic illnesses

narnia series

omniscient readers viewpoint

percy jackson series  (minus the kane chronicles and the trials of apollo)

rainbow magic fairy series

sherlock holmes (assorted stories)

song of achilles

warrior cats (minus the latest two series)

wings of fire

witcher series

MOVIES:

https://letterboxd.com/eznii/films/ (my letterboxd account for literally every movie i remember watching, the ones with 5 stars are the ones i like the most)

SHOWS:

a series of unfortunate events

arrow

austin & ally

bbc ghosts

bbc sherlock

body of proof

bones

brooklyn 99 (acab)

bunk'd

castle

derry girls

dirk gently

doctor who

dog with a blog

elementary

euphoria

first kill

galavant

ghost whisperer

good luck charlie

good omens

h2o: just add water

hannah montana

hannibal

hbo betty

heartstopper

i am not okay with this

jessie

kickin' it

killing eve

kommissar rex

lab rats

letterkenny

leverage

leverage redemption

liv and maddie

lucifer

macgyver

mako mermaids

medium

merlin

my babysitter's a vampire

my cat from hell (lmaoo)

one day at a time

our flag means death

parks and recreation

prehistoric planet

powerless

pushing daisies

riverdale (only s1 tho)

schitts creek

sonny with a chance

squid game

stranger things

supernatural

taxi brooklyn

thats so raven

the addams family

the blacklist

the curious creations of christine mcconell

the flash

the good place

the mentalist

the suite life of zack and cody

the suite life on deck

the witcher

tuca and bertie

umbrella academy

what we do in the shadows

wizards of waverly place

zeke and luther

ANIMATED SHOWS:

6teen

adventure time

american dragon: jake long

arcane

avatar (the last airbender and legend of korra)

camp camp

carmen sandiego

centaurworld

clone high

danny phantom

daria

dreamworks dragons

family guy

fantastic four

futurama

gen:lock

gravity falls

harley quinn

hilda

infinity train

invader zim

johhny bravo

kick buttowski

kid vs kat

kim possible

kipo and the age of wonderbeasts

lolirock

love death and robots

miraculous ladybug

monkie kid

moomin

motorcity

my little pony (gen 4)

over the garden wall

owl house

phineas and ferb

randy cunningham: 9th grade ninja

rapunzels tangled adventures (not caught up yet)

rick and morty

rise of the teenage mutant ninja turtles

rwby

samurai jack

she-ra and the princesses of power

sonic boom

south park

star vs the forces of evil

steven universe

supa strikas

teen titans

the dragon prince

the midnight gospel

total drama island

voltron: legendary defender

wander over yonder

ANIME:

aggretsuko

ajin

another

ao no exorcist

assassination classroom

banana fish

beastars

boku no hero academia

brand new animal

castlevania

cowboy bebop

danganronpa

darling in the franxx

deadman wonderland

death note

death parade

demon slayer

devilman crybaby

dr stone

fairy tail

flip flappers

fruits basket

full metal alchemist (brotherhood)

ghibli movies

ghost stories (english dub)

girls' last tour

great pretender

haibane renmei

haikyuu

hunter x hunter

interviews with monster girls

inuyasha

inuyashiki

jojos bizzare adventure

keep your hands off eizouken!

kill la kill

komi-san cant communicate

little witch academia

madoka magica

mirai nikki

miss kobayashi's dragon maid

mob psycho 100

neon genesis evangelion

no.6

no game no life (smh)

noragami

one punch man

ouran high school host club

parasyte

pop team epic

promare

puparia

re: zero

revolutionary girl utena

revue starlight

saint young men

school live

sk8 the infinity

so im a spider, so what?

soul eater

spy x family

steins; gate

sword art online (smh)

that time i got reincarnated as a slime

the disastrous life of saiki k

the promised neverland

toilet-bound hanako-kun

tokyo ghoul

toradora

violet evergarden

way of the househusband

wolf's rain

wonder egg priority

zombie land saga

PODCASTS:

alice isnt dead

archive 81

ars paradoxica

death by dying

dreamboy

girl in space

imbalance (taz)

kaleidotrope

king falls am

love and luck

marvel's wolverine

mbmbam

scp archives

stellar firma

the adventure zone

the bright sessions

the magnus archives

the orbiting human circus

the penumbra podcast

the strange case of starship iris

the two princes

time bombs

welcome to night vale

wolf 359

wooden overcoats

zero hours

COMICS:

17776

amaranth

avas demon

castle swimmer

fangs

heartstopper

homestuck

lore olympus

lovebot

muted

scoob and shag

YOUTUBE:

aphmau’s mc diaries

all the life series (3rd life, last life, double life)

brian david gilbert (+ his polygon series)

ena

freemans mind

gayle

half-life vr but the ai is self-aware

half-life: alyx but the gnome is alive

hermitcraft

monster factory

penny snapcube dubs

red vs blue (rooster teeth)

scp confinement

the gay and wondrous life of caleb gallo

the most popular girls in school

the walten files

MUSICALS:

a very potter musical

beetlejuice

dear evan hansen

firebringer

hamilton

heathers

the guy who didnt like musicals

MUSIC:

100 gecs

glass animals

idk how but they found me

lemon demon

lil nas x

marina

mother mother

my chemical romance

panic! at the disco

the hoosiers

they might be giants

twenty one pilots

weathers

UNRELATED INTERESTS:

astrology

dinosaurs

greek mythology

horses

[khjeron]

#alien #chronicles #love and #beauty at the #Welcome #Habitat They hold each other's tentacles tightly. But polymers, not love, are the centre of life. A technican clone is walking quickly down the corridor. S/He searches for the room, the Fragrance seller from Bhopal is supposed to be in. S/He turns off the security alarm. Their communication device rings. "Everything will be alright." S/He walks up the stairs, opens the front door and goes inside. There in a community sort of room, a group of technicians is hanging out there. S/He looks across from the room to a door and s/he sees a note card that says FRAGRANCE SELLER FROM BHOPAL. S/He opens the door. S/He looks inside. There's a life form in an exoskeleton. The life form looks back at them. "Fragrance seller from Bhopal?" "Yes?" S/He walks into the room. "Are you the new doctor? "No, I'm not." "Were you looking for me?" "Not until now." "Do you know anything about pharmaceuticals?" "Medicinal or ... recreational?" "There's two prescriptions on the med charts." "Do you want to talk about your transition?" "Not now. I am going to start my beauty sleep. "Your beauty sleep? Why is that?" "Shape shifting has already taken years off my appearance. #paper #sculpture #visitors #dwellers #interstellarcene (hier: Phoenix Athens) https://www.instagram.com/p/CLBeUS4lCCd/?igshid=u0lnese7ibvj

[nadziejastar]

Thoughts on Project Xehanort?

Well, I have mixed feelings about this new game, but I will say that I am interested in it. Most likely, I’ll play it. I’m very interested in Xehanort’s character. 

First reservation is about the platform. I actually think that smaller KH games can be better in many ways. Days had so much character development because it didn’t have to follow the console KH formula. It could do something different and offer a “slice of life” feel that wouldn’t be possible in a regular KH game. The characters benefited tremendously from this. Especially Axel. It’s why he’s my favorite.

In many ways, KH3 was a victim of its enormous budget and its need to appeal to everyone, even the most casual of KH fans who don’t care about the intricacies of the story and characters. So, a smaller release like Project Xehanort may have more creative freedom. It might be just the game Xehanort needs to flesh out his character. But like with Union X, tying so much essential backstory to a mobile game can be a problem in the future. And then there’s the focus on micro transactions, which sets mobile games apart from PSP or DS games.

Presently there are 4 main untold stories to consider: “the period of the King’s absence”, “the period of Riku’s absence”, “Roxas’s time in Organization XIII” and “Xehanort’s past”. In this case, the story of “the period of the King’s absence” is set in the realm of darkness. I am examining a way to tell these 4 stories so I might be able to find a way to tell them soon.

At the same time, I have to look at this game for what it is. Xehanort’s past was one of the blank periods Nomura wanted to cover. No doubt, this was going to be covered in BBSV2.

—In KH BbS, Master Xehanort’s goal behind opening Kingdom Hearts was to “create a new world.” But in this game, he says it is to “reset the world.” Why the difference?

What was revealed in this game was another piece of the truth: his goal was “this world is no longer any good, and we have to recreate it from scratch.”

—We are interested in why Xehanort would come to such a conclusion.

At first, I did want to use a next game to dig down into how Xehanort went from that simple boy playing the chess-like game to an admirer of the darkness. But, if I do that, then the Dark Seeker Chronicle wouldn’t have ended with KH3 after all (laughs.) Some ideas had solidified to a degree, but it’s shelved for now.

After that was canceled, Nomura didn’t think he’d get the chance to cover Xehanort’s past at all, because the Dark Seeker Saga was supposed to be over. IMO, we’re lucky to even get this game. And it shows just how badly Nomura wanted to show Xehanort’s past.

So, I am interested in this game and unless it’s just absolutely terrible, I will play it. But at the same time, since it’s coming out in 2020 instead of 2011, I don’t think it’s going to be the same backstory we were originally supposed to get for Xehnaort. Like KH3 itself, ten years ago, this game would have been a lot different.

I mean, Look at Lea and Isa. I am 99.9% sure that their original backstory was that they were test subjects in the experiments on the darkness of the heart. They were so obviously set up for that role. Around 2010/2011 BBSV2 gets cancelled. The leftover plot threads get repurposed to fit a new story arc. Suddenly Lea and Isa are no longer former test subjects. Oh, no. They were just friends with a girl who was a human test subject. In other words, their backstory was repurposed to fit the change in direction. If KH3 came out in 2014/2015, there’s not a doubt in my mind that Lea and Isa would have still been test subjects (I wish they were getting the Xehanort Project treatment, too).

And that is no doubt going to be the same situation with Xehanort’s backstory. I’m sure there will be many elements that are going to be the same, and that is the main reason I’m excited for this game. It’s a rare opportunity to get some cancelled scraps from the ill-fated Xehanort Saga and KH0.5. I’m very excited to see Xehanort and Eraqus’s past together, if that gets shown in detail. But is it going to be the exact same backstory as it was originally conceived before the story got butchered? No. It’s too late for that, unfortunately.

This game is going most likely to be half-Xehanort Saga and half-New Arc. IMO, we should have already learned more about those black things from Scala ad Caelum before the end of KH3. These are the Dark Seekers. These dudes are the true nature of “Replicas,” including Xion. The Xehanort Saga was obviously NOT READY TO BE FINISHED when KH3 released, since we never even leaned what the fuck those guys were.

“Pitiful Heartless, mindlessly collecting hearts. And yet they know not the true power of what they hold. The rage of the Keyblade releases those hearts. They gather in darkness, masterless and free…until they weave together to form Kingdom Hearts. And when that time comes at last, we can truly exist.”

He almost sounded as though he were reciting an incantation.

From what I can gather of the original story, Xehanort—or the entity possessing him, No Heart–needed 13 empty vessels so that each one of those black replica clone guys could have a body as a host. Those beings wanted to truly, finally exist, and that’s why they wanted KH to be completed so badly. Xehanort himself was just a pawn to them and was not entirely human by the time the story began. Saix was also NOT HUMAN. He was Isa’s empty vessel inhabited with one of those horned replica guys. That’s why he was so fucking creepy and it sounded like he was reciting an incantation when he said the above quote. They were going somewhere with all of this.

Portals from the corridors rippled and opened atop the chairs of the Round Room, like candles lighting in negative, and a few members of the Organization appeared in their black cloaks. Numbers 1 through 7 took their seats—Xemnas, Xigbar, Xaldin, Vexen, Lexaeus, Zexion, and Saïx.

“Why are we allowing a novice to attend?” Vexen complained.

The aforementioned “novice”—Saïx, the lowest ranked of those present—didn’t even glance up from the dais.

The whole goal of Organization XIII was to bring those black horned dudes into the Realm of Light. That’s why the organization felt like a satanic cult with the black robes and “candles”. They all gathered around the Nobody symbol in a circle. The Demon Tide was a harbinger of something bad happening. Honestly, I just want that story to be finished. KH morphed into something unrecognizable over the long wait for KH3. It’ll never really be the same as it used to.

[rahnesinclair]

Stella Maeve Filmography Rec List:

Under the cut find all of Stella’s filmography listed out/my opinions and recommendations. Favorites are italicized. (SPOILERS under the cut!)(also feel free to message with questions!):

Liminality (2005)- A movie short, it’s nowhere online that I could find unfortunately. Transamerica (2005)- Stella has no lines and she’s in one scene kissing the main character boy for 2 seconds. The movie itself is unfortunate I’m told, so skip it. Law & Order: Criminal Intent (2005)- She’s in two episodes in the same year as a small part. She’s not in the show long enough to make the effort. Skip. Law & Order (2005)- same as above, though now that I’m remembering one of the three early Law & Order episodes was impossible to find, so she might have a bigger part in the missing episode. Hit me up if you know. Euthanasia (2006)- Another short nowhere on the internet. Remember the Daze (2007)- Absolutely watch this, please. It’s adorable and Stella is CUTE AS HECK. It was supposed to be a modernized Dazed and Confused and never really took off, but it’s a fun watch and for young actress Stella content it’s A+. The Bronx Is Burning (2007)- Stella plays one of the first victims of Son of Sam. Less than a minute of content, pass it up. Harold (2008)- Do. Not. Watch. This. It’s a terrible movie. Also her hair isn’t good. Brooklyn's Finest (2009)- She plays a daughter of a cop, less than 30 seconds of screentime. Skip it. (fun fact, Mayakovsky is in this) Gossip Girl (2008-2009)- Stella is cute in the first episode, less so in the second she’s in. Watch the first, skip the second. Asylum Seekers (2009)- Ok ok ok, this movie is weird as FUCK. I wouldn’t recommend it as a movie, never, BUT. Stella is adorable in it, she’s got these braids and this dumb outfit that’s to die for. If you can find it (which will be hard), I’d say give it a shot if you’re craving Stella Maeve content. CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (2009)- I’d recommend this episode. I’ll admit to being gay and appreciating the shower scene. She’s also cute in it and I want to wrap her character in a hug and take care of her. Accused at 17 (2009)- If you like Lifetime Movies I’d give this one a go. As an avid fan of Lifetime Movies, I’d say this is a midrange example. See Kate Run (2009)- I could not find this anywhere at all online, which leads me to believe it might have been an unaired pilot. The Runaways (2010)- WATCH THE RUNAWAYS. Please WATCH THE RUNAWAYS. Stella is SO GREAT as Sandy West. She’s not in it nearly enough but besides Dakota and Kristen, Stella gets the most screen time of the rest of the girls. My Super Psycho Sweet 16 : Part 2 (2010) - Sure, watch this if you like bad made for MTV movies about serial killers. She has pink streaks in her hair which matters to me. Bones (2010) - Yes, watch this episode. Her style is great and she’s in the episode enough for it to feel worth the effort. House (2010-2011)- Stella plays an underaged girl that Chase sleeps with at a wedding. Uncomfortable all around. I’d pass. Funny or Die Presents... (2011)- Not in it long enough, pass. Lovelives (2011)- Could not find. Perhaps another unaired pilot? Grey's Anatomy (2012)- Absolutely watch this episode. Stella is wonderful in it, she breaks my heart. Cloned: The Recreator Chronicles (2012)- Very weird, but fun! Watch it for pretty and quirky Stella. Starlet (2012)- There is actual porn in this movie. I’m not joking. (it is not Stella). It’s also not a very good movie. Pass. Golden Boy (2013)- I’m sorry, Stella, this is the most boring show I’ve ever watched in my entire life. Maybe watch the pilot to get some Stella character angst, but that’s all. All Together Now (2013)- This is kind of like a more boring version of Remember The Daze. If you have time to kill and want to see Stella running around having fun and looking cute, go for it. Don’t expect a masterpiece. Company Town (2013)- Nowhere online, it’s an unaired pilot created by Sera Gamble. I want it. SERA @ ME. Rizzoli & Isles (2014)- Stella SINGS. Watch it just for that. I love her voice. Buttwhistle (2014)- Please. I beg of you. Do not watch this. The Park Bench (2014)- Skip it UNLESS you get the movie free on Amazon Prime. She’s very cute and giggly and adorable, but it’s one scene. Dark Summer (2015)- Run of the mill horror movie. Watch if you like horror or like me had someone to squirm with, skip if you don’t. Chicago P.D. (2014-2015)- If you can, watch all of Stella as Nadia Decotis. I would strangle anyone who tried to hurt Nadia with my bare hands. Ending is shitty but she had to leave to do The Magicians. Flipped (2015)- Stella is the only actor shown on screen for 90% of the movie. She gives a wonderful performance. The feeling is claustrophobic and uncomfortable, I’d recommend watching with someone if you can! But do watch it! Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (2006-2016)- Stella is in one episode as a minor character in 2006 and then plays Nadia in two others.The two episodes in 2016 are the end of Nadia’s character arc so if you’ve managed to watch it, watch those. I’d also recommend the 2006 episode, however she’s only in it for about one minute. Long Nights Short Mornings (2016)- Skip it unless you want to watch Stella in a steamy sex scene up against a wall.... which lets be real is a handful of you. For those of you interested, the movie is cut up into segments, her segment is “Lily”. Take the 10 (2017)- Not nearly enough Stella. I wouldn’t watch it again, but you should watch once. God Friended Me (2019)- Watch for cute cook Stella. The Magicians (2015-)- WATCH THE MAGICIANS.

[archeo-starwars]

Star Wars: The Essential Guide to Warfare Author’s Cut, Part 2 – Ancient Coruscant

THE BATTALIONS OF ZHELL AND THE TAUNGS

Jason Fry: As published, Warfare offers a translation of the best-known section of  Dha Werda Verda, an epic about the ancient battle between the Zhell and the Taungs. This “modern” exploration of the Zhell and Taungs was fun, and I liked how it connected the ancient era with the Mandalorians and the Empire. But it risked feeling redundant — and with Warfare way too long already, it was a logical cut.

Erich Schoeneweiss: I think it’s important to note the circumstances that led to some of the edits we had to make. The last thing I wanted to do was cut anything Jason wrote, but he was contracted to deliver a manuscript at a specific word count and far exceeded that. If this had been a novel that wouldn’t have been as a big an issue, but the Essential Guides are illustrated full-color books. We have a tight budget and set of book specifications we work with, and page count is one of those key specs. A longer manuscript means more pages, which means the book costs more to produce. Jason made some edits on his own and submitted the manuscript knowing we would have to make some more. It was a collaborative effort in deciding on the additional cuts, and this is one of them.

Reprinted From Imperial Center Today, 2 ABY:

A LONG TIME AGO…

The Zhell and the Taungs Are Names to Conjure By, But the Truth About These Long-Lost Combatants Is Hard to Pin Down

By Eschul Shaywa

The Zhell and the Taungs have been powerful names here on Imperial Center nearly as long as civilization has existed on our planet — and that’s an awfully long time. Their names adorn ancient neighborhoods that claim some connection to long-ago battles, as well as new developments whose builders want a patina of tradition for their durasteel and clari-crystalline palaces.

But how much do you really know about these ancient warriors? Talk to scholars, and they tell you the only thing clear about the Zhell and the Taungs is just how unclear their histories are. But that isn’t to say we know nothing: Researchers on several worlds are working tirelessly to knit together scraps of legend and bits plucked from archaeological discoveries, in hopes of one day reconstructing the ancient chronicles.

The outlines of what happened some 200,000 years ago are known to every schoolchild: The 13 nations that made up the Battalions of Zhell spent centuries clashing with the forces of the Taungs. During one of their skirmishes, a volcanic eruption destroyed the city of Zhell, shattering the Battalions’ power. The assembled Taungs watched in awe as ash blotted out the sun and rained down upon them. Taking their opponents’ destruction as a sign of divine favor, the Taungs christened themselves Dha Werda Verda, the Shadow Warriors, and celebrated their victory in the epic poem of the same name.

In its entirety, Dha Werda Verda encompasses more than 700 verses divided into 11chapters and written in the language known as Notron Cant, whose subtleties continue to defy translation. But most people know only a fraction of the ninth — the 10 verses popularly known as “The Maker Comes to Unmake.” No matter what school, junior academy or crèche you belonged to, if you’re Coruscanti you either memorized the strange syllables of these 10 verses for recitation or had a schoolmate who did.

But there’s something odd about our veneration of an ancient epic, notes University of Byblos historian Mesh Burzon.

“We believe the Zhell were humans — perhaps the original human population that took to the stars when Imperial Center was known as Notron,” Burzon says. “The Taungs were not human. If the account of the destruction of Zhell is even vaguely accurate, it was a monumental disaster for humanity. So what you have is the descendents of those who survived a near-extinction reciting the poem their oppressors composed to celebrate the event.”

As Burzon explains, the Zhell nations were battered by the loss of their capital, but not broken: They recovered and drove the Taungs off Notron entirely. The Taungs emigrated to the Outer Rim and eventually settled Mandalore, named for a legendary clan leader. From this new homeworld they became the scourge of the Republic, routinely raiding its outlying worlds and sometimes penetrating the very Core.

The Mandalorian clans valued loyalty to their ferocious warrior code above all else, a quality that would eventually transform their society. A later leader, Mandalore the Ultimate, admitted humans and other species to the Mandalorian ranks. As it turned out, Mandalore the Ultimate was the final Taung to lead the clans.

“The Taungs are now extinct, but their ways have been preserved by the Mandalorians — a human culture, ironically enough,” Burzon notes.

Hu Jibwe, scholar of military history at the Salmagodro Grand Academy, notes that there is another song popularly known as “Dha Werda Verda” — the Mando’a war chant known as “Rage of the Shadow Warriors.” During the Clone Wars, some Mandalorian trainers taught this chant to their clones, and it became a hallmark of those units. It’s rarely performed today, so if you have a chance to see it, take advantage: The chant and ritual dance are mesmerizing, particularly if the dancers follow Mandalorian tradition and drum out the rhythm on the chest or back of those next to them:

The ash of the Taung beats strong within the Mandalorians’ heart. We are the rage of the Warriors of the Shadow, The first noble sons of Mandalore. Let all those who stand before us light the night sky in flame. Our vengeance burns brighter still.

The gauntlet of Mandalore strikes without mercy. We are the rage of the Warriors of the Shadow, The first noble sons of Mandalore. Let all those who stand before us light the night sky in flame. Our vengeance burns brighter still.

But as Hu notes, “Rage” is far more recent than Dha Werda Verda. The best-preserved record of the Taung epic poem, written in Notron Cant and housed in the Baobab Archives on distant Manda, contains none of the verses of “Rage.”

“It’s my belief that ‘Rage of the Shadow Warriors’ dates from the reign of Mandalore the Ultimate, when the Taungs knew they were being eclipsed,” Hu explains. “I’ve always thought it a poignant work — a plea that the Taungs not be forgotten by the newborn culture they knew would outlive them.”

But what of the warriors on both sides whose valor is remembered in Dha Werda Verda? Of them we know almost nothing, academics say.

“Two hundred thousand years is an almost unfathomable amount of time,” says Arhul Manaxa, scholar emeritus at the University of Rudrig. “Not even the histories of the Columi date back that far. There is no agreement whatsoever about the site of Zhell, when exactly the battle took place, or if it even did. All has been buried — by kilometers of city and eons of time.”

Manaxa notes that many scholars have struggled to explain how the Taungs could have emigrated from Imperial Center to the Outer Rim after their defeat.

“We know of no species able to travel through hyperspace 200,000 years ago,” Manaxa says. “This leaves us with a few different possible explanations, none of which can be proven or disproven. Perhaps the Taungs were capable of faster-than-light travel, and invaded Imperial Center. Or perhaps the Taungs were native to Coruscant, and the Zhell were the invaders. Perhaps the dates are wrong, and the conflict in fact took place far later, when the Core was being explored by the eldest species of the galaxy. Or perhaps it never happened at all.”

Nor, says Hu, can we say anything about the Battalions of Zhell, or the Taung legions that confronted them.

“When enthusiasts stage recreations of the battle they tend to use replica great axes and swords known from the excavation of Taung burial sites on Roon,” he says. “But by the time the Taungs reached Roon these were ritual objects — species capable of traveling through hyperspace don’t still rely on edged weapons. Nor do you find such weapons still used by societies as sophisticated as the Zhell nations. It’s as if you staged a recreation of the Siege of Ramsir with the Imperial Army limited to parade sabers.”

Hu says he knows it may be unromantic to imagine the confrontation at Zhell occurring between armies that possessed aircraft and atomic weapons. But he urges us to look deeper and examine the qualities of Dha Werda Verda that have kept the poem alive for eons.

“All we have is a poem, but what a poem!” he says. “The image of the Maker appearing to unmake the world has inspired artists for as long as artists have existed. The mere names of the generals awaken something within us: What schoolchild hasn’t felt his heart race at the mention of Rexutu the Unconquerable or Olhak the Reaver, or mourned the inevitable downfall of the mighty and noble Doom of Ulmarah?”

In case the words of academics don’t stir you, let me close with a more personal story. I recently attended a performance of “Rage of the Shadow Warriors” alongside Swart Swifto, who served as a trainer for the Grand Army of the Republic and later the Imperial Center Guard.

After the final shouted dralshy’a died away, I told Swifto about the latest academic thinking about the Zhell, the Taungs and Dha Werda Verda. I was curious to see what this veteran defender of Imperial Center would think about the irony of a Taung war poem giving rise to a Mandalorian tradition, and that tradition in turn being passed on by Imperial Center’s guardians.

Swifto shook his head impatiently at me.

“I hear what you’re saying, Miss Shaywa, but none of that is important,” he said. “It doesn’t matter that the poem was composed by some Taung, or that Taung wanted to kill an ancestor of ours, or what weapon he wanted to do it with or what language he spoke. The Taungs and the Zhell were enemies, but they were also part of a brotherhood, one that includes all living beings who believe in a higher cause and are willing to fight and die for it. If you’ve been in battle, if you’ve entrusted your life to other soldiers who are just as scared and confused and noble and brave as you are, then you’re a part of that brotherhood. No matter what you look like.”

[filmabend]

Cloned – The Recreator Chronicles – Film (2012)

In Cloned – The Recreator Chronicles unternehmen drei junge Menschen aus der Stadt einen Campingausflug und wählen als Ziel eine einsame Insel vor der nordamerikanischen Küste.

Das Eiland ist allerdings nicht so unbewohnt wie erwartet, tatsächlich hat sich dort eben erst etwas äußerst Unschönes ereignet...

[downloadarmy]

CLONED: The Recreator Chronicles

CLONED: The Recreator Chronicles

When a group of teenagers stumble upon a secret lab, they become part of a deadly experiment – The Recreator – evil human clones. Craig, Tracy and Derek come face to face with exact copies of themselves that have only one purpose; to find and kill their originals. With time running out it’s up to the original group to destroy the lab and save themselves before they are replaced. Gregory Orr’s…

[bobbyshaddoe80]

Liberated Audio Reviews

Blake's 7 - Liberator Chronicles Vol. 4 Review

RELEASED MAY 2013

Recorded on: 22 February, 18 April and 3 July 2012, and 4 January 2013

Recorded at: Moat Studios

Review By Robert L. Torres

Promises by Nigel Fairs

'Saurian Minor. A dead rock in space.

Cally is alone with Travis, Blake's mortal enemy, both trapped on this desolate world - and someone has brought them here for a reason.

As they delve into the past, a long-hidden secret that links them both is uncovered.

Gradually, the truth about Scetona Clorensis will be revealed...'

This is a superb two hander/dual focused story starring Jan Chappell as Cally and featuring the return of Stephen Greif to the role of Space Commander Travis.

From the moment he was introduced alongside Jacqueline Pearce's Servalan in the Series A episode 'Seek-Locate-Destroy', I have loved the character of Travis. He was the Javert to Blake's Jean Valjean, and I was pleased as punch to hear Stephen Greif's dulcet tones give life to this character once more.

As an aside, I have always preferred Greif's portrayal of the character over that of Brian Croucher's. Nothing against Brian Croucher as a performer, as I feel he did great in 'Robots of Death' and the Kaldor City audios. However, Stephen Greif gave Travis a nuanced and layered performance, which gave his obsession with bringing Blake to justice a certain subtlety in its intensity... All of which was sorely lacking in Croucher's portrayal.

The story itself, which is very well written by Nigel Fairs, allows both actors to showcase aspects of their characters we never got to see portrayed onscreen while still remaining true to what was shown onscreen. Its interesting that this story is basically a sort of return match for Travis and Cally, and a great opportunity for Cally to get some payback following on from the events of the aforementioned 'Seek-Locate-Destroy'. Jan Chappell and Stephen Greif do exceptionally well with the material, as it was nice to see their antagonism focused and concentrated without the presence of Blake and company. It was rather nice having the tables turned between them, and for very specific reasons.

I loved how this story explored the events that ultimately led to Cally's introduction to the series in the episode 'Time Squad'. And it was also rather nice to gain some backstory on Travis and I especially loved how the dual focus for their stories was tied to the character of Scetona Clorensis.

9 out of 10 Plasma Bolts

All in all, a great opening story to volume four.

Epitaph by Scott Harrison

'When the Liberator picks up a distress call from a stricken ship, Jenna and Vila teleport across. For Jenna, it's the chance for a reunion with a fellow smuggler.

But the cry for help is not what it appears, and Jenna will meet the surviving members of her family.

The reunion will take her on a deadly mission - one from which not everyone will come out alive...'

This is another fantastic story, this time focused on another one of my favorite characters from the first two seasons: Jenna Stannis, once again played by the lovely and talented Sally Knyvette.

Before getting into the story, I have to say that I thought Jenna was awesome right from the start. However, I felt that she wasn't given enough to do or much to work with over time. It was very disheartening to see this beautiful, badass ace pilot be reduced to, as Sally Knyvette herself put it, "the Liberator Housewife".

I felt it was quite unfair to her as an actress that her character got the short end of the stick in terms of character development, agency and plot relevance. Which is why its no surprise she left after Series B.

Kudos to BF for doing everything in their power to right this terrible wrong even before crafting this brilliant Jenna-centric story.

In Volume 1's 'Counterfeit', there is a point in the story where Blake describes a moment where Jenna actually posed as Supreme Commander Servalan for one of their missions. And you have no idea how much I would have loved to have seen that happen onscreen.

As an aside, credit to Nigel Fairs and Simon Robinson for the music composition work they've done on the Blake's 7 range. They manage to recreate the otherworldly retro future soundscape created on a Casio Keyboard that was very indicative of late 70s early 80s era low budget scifi on TV in the UK.

Anyway, this story sees Jenna reunited with her brother and sister-in-law, forcing her to deal with the ramifications and consequences of her decision to join Blake's fight against the Federation. Its a great story that is well supported by Michael Keating as Vila, as it allows Jenna to be the badass babe she was always meant to be. The plot provides Knyvette with some great character exploration, as well as some great introspection over whether being a stronger person equates with being a better person. As a bonus, the story even sows the seeds for Jenna to have her own Travis-like nemesis in the form of Marshall Cade.

9 out of 10 Plasma Bolts

If Knyvette had been given more material like this during her time on the show, she probably wouldn't have left.

And don't worry... The Marshall Cade plot thread will be picked up again in the full cast audio 'Mirrors'. But that's a review for another time.

Kerr by Nick Wallace

'Supreme Commander Servalan believes she has a vital insight into the Liberator crew - a clone of Avon.

He looks the same. He sounds the same. He even appears to think the same.

And he offers to spring a trap that will bring down Blake and his crew.

But can the clone be trusted?'

We close out Volume Four with yet another excellent story.

The central focus of the story is once more on Supreme Commander Servalan, played to perfection by the late Jacqueline Pearce.  It is here that we witness Servalan's latest plot to ensnare Blake and the crew of the Liberator from the perspective of the Supreme Commander herself.  The plot itself involves utilizing a clone of Avon to devise a winning strategy, which also involves an old ally from Avon's past.

The notion of utilizing clones is familiar enough to anyone that saw the Series B episode 'Weapon' (ideas and concepts that will FINALLY be followed up on in the upcoming Worlds of Blake's 7 boxset 'The Clone Masters').

Despite the fact that LC Volume 4 indicates that this story is meant to take place during the events of Series A, it doesn't really feel like a first season story.  For one thing, Servalan didn't officially meet the Liberator crew until the Series B episode 'Pressure Point'.  For another, its during Series C and D that we have the back and forth sexual tension between Avon and Servalan.  As such it wouldn't make a lot of sense for Servalan to specifically have a clone of Avon created for one of her schemes before she even met him. So, setting this story between 'Pressure Point' and 'Trial' makes a lot more sense, especially given what transpires in the story itself.

Its an excellent story that showcases Servalan's fascination with Avon fairly early on, and highlights well the similarities and flaws in both Avon and Servalan. Both are intelligent as well as ambitious. Both tend to have ulterior motives and are not above employing subterfuge, guile, deceit and manipulation of others in order to achieve their goals and agendas.

While Avon often knows he is the smartest person in the room and often finds most people annoying (usually Vila), he doesn't completely dislike people. But his problem is that he doesn't completely trust people. And it seems that even his clone, Kerr, shares that particular character flaw.

Servalan shares with Avon a profound sense of confidence that borders on arrogance. But what compounds that arrogance is Servalan's smug, self-centered sense of superiority. She treats people as little more than disposable pets, useful and able to provide amusement, but otherwise are unimportant.

In addition, her egocentric narcissism essentially has her view everything and everyone as beneath her. She believes all and sundry are meant to serve her will without question or discussion, and rudely dismisses any attempt made by those she sees as lesser to engage with her socially or intellectually.

The only one she feels could even be CLOSE to her equal is Avon. And yet, even with a clone of Avon, Servalan cannot help but treat him as little more than a dog on a leash rather than as a person.

But of course, we all know what happens when a dog is mistreated too often by its owner... Don't we?

10 out of 10 Plasma Bolts

A brilliant story that also nicely foreshadows (in a retroactive manner) certain events in Series D, and may even provide some valuable context and insight into Avon's actions and mindset during the final moments of the series finale.

Final score for Liberator Chronicles Volume 4 in its entirety is 9 out of 10 Plasma Bolts.

An outstanding step up in quality that demonstrates Big Finish's enduring policy of maximizing potential in both character and story development that had otherwise been left unfulfilled. Highly recommended.

[aion-rsa]

Star Wars The Bad Batch: What You Need to Watch Before Starting the Show

https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

The Bad Batch is the newest animated chapter in the Star Wars saga. Set immediately after Revenge of the Sith, the show explores the rise of the Empire from the perspective of a group of “genetically mutated” clones who never fit in with their own kind and fit in even less after Order 66. Unlike the rest of the Clone Army, the members of Clone Force 99 (the official designation of the group nicknamed “The Bad Batch”) are unaffected by the secret inhibitor chips implanted in their brains, which quickly puts a target on their back, especially after they refuse to execute Jedi on the battlefield.

Clone Force 99 find themselves in the middle of a sea change they don’t fully understand, as Palpatine declares himself Emperor and the Clone Army turns evil. To make matters worse, Admiral Tarkin (the future Grand Moff of A New Hope) sees the clone forces as obsolete and wants to replace them with a new Imperial army. On the run and without purpose, the Bad Batch will have to carve out a new future for themselves in a much more hostile galaxy.

In many ways, The Bad Batch is really a sequel to The Clone Wars, which spent much more time chronicling the lives of the soldiers than the Prequel Trilogy ever did. But that doesn’t mean you’ll have to watch all of The Clone Wars to understand what’s going on in The Bad Batch. In fact, all you need to know about Clone Force 99 is pretty much covered in the series premiere, “Aftermath.” That said, if you’re one of those fans who likes to be really thorough, here are a few other movies and TV episodes you should watch to get the full backstory of what’s going on in The Bad Batch:

Revenge of the Sith

To be completely honest, Revenge of the Sith is the only thing you’ll really need to have watched to understand what’s going on in the first episode of The Bad Batch. In fact, the first half of “Aftermath” takes place around the same time as the third act of the Prequel Trilogy closer, with the Bad Batch witnessing the atrocities of Order 66 with their own eyes.

Revenge of the Sith shows us Order 66 from the point of view of newly-anointed Sith apprentice Anakin Skywalker as well as the many Jedi who are about to get executed across the galaxy. We watch as Anakin, now known as Darth Vader, massacres his former brethren inside the Jedi Temple on Coruscant (even younglings), while masters like Aayla Secura, Ki-Adi-Mundi, and Plo Koon are slaughtered by their own clone forces.

The Bad Batch are confused as they watch the other clones turn on their Jedi general, and refuse to partake in the extermination. It’s the scene that truly sets up Clone Force 99 as the heroes of this story.

Later in the episode, fans also get to see another key moment from Revenge of the Sith from the clone perspective. This time, the Bad Batch gather with the rest of the Clone Army on Kamino to watch a hologram of Palpatine declare the formation of the first Galactic Empire. It’s almost a complete word-for-word recreation of the scene in the movie, complete with the voice of Ian McDiarmid.

If you want a better sense of the gravity of Order 66, and how Palpatine’s machinations led to the fall of the Republic and the Jedi, you’ll want to watch this movie.

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The Clone Wars Season 7 Episodes 1-4

While I’d even count “The Bad Batch” arc of The Clone Wars as optional, it is technically the first Star Wars adventure starring Clone Force 99. In this season 7 arc, Hunter, Wrecker, Tech, and Crosshair team up with Clone Commander Rex and Anakin to rescue Echo, a clone soldier who was once thought dead but has actually become an involuntary pawn in the Separatist war machine.

These episodes flesh out how the genetic mutations of each member of the Bad Batch makes them unique, and how these abilities sometimes cause friction with the “normal” clones. Hunter and his team are more individualistic, more prone to breaking the rules, which doesn’t earn them many friends within a society that expects them to follow all orders without question.

The second half of this arc also acts as an origin story for how Echo became the fifth member of the Bad Batch. It’s a pretty gruesome tale, but there’s also plenty of action if you want to see just how efficient Clone Force 99 are when it comes to blowing up droids.

The Clone Wars Season 7 Episodes 9-12

The final four-episode arc of The Clone Wars, titled “Siege of Mandalore,” is also the best of the entire series. While it doesn’t feature the Bad Batch at all, it does give us yet one other perspective on the events of Order 66. This time, we see the massacre from the point of view of the heroic Ahsoka Tano, Commander Rex, and the scheming Maul, who’s declared himself ruler of the Mandalorian home world.

The arc begins as a straightforward mission led by Ahsoka and Rex to capture Maul once and for all, but plans quickly change when Darth Sidious sets Order 66 in motion. While we all know the twist is coming, “Siege of Mandalore” still provides a shocking and exciting conclusion to Ahsoka’s story on The Clone Wars, while also showing the true cost of war.

The events of “Siege of Mandalore” happen somewhat at the same time as the first episode of The Bad Batch so watching this arc should give you a fuller picture of everything going on at the end of the war. We also know that Rex will appear on The Bad Batch, so these episodes are a good primer on who he is, too.

Other Clone Stories

When it comes to a franchise as expansive as Star Wars, I truly believe you should just watch the stuff you enjoy as opposed to sitting through every single episode or movie just to check off boxes. (For example, in my opinion, you can skip most of The Clone Wars in general and just watch these episodes.) But if you’re hellbent on being a completionist, you can also add Attack of the Clones as well as the first four episodes of The Clone Wars season 6 to your watchlist.

Attack of the Clones covers the start of the Clone Wars as well as the conspiracy behind the creation of the Clone Army. For a chunk of the movie’s runtime, we follow Obi-Wan Kenobi as he tracks a Separatist plot to assassinate Senate Padme Amidala. Once he learns the name of the bounty hunter trying to kill Padme, this leads him to Kamino, a distant planet where scientists are hard at work creating a massive army for a war to come. It’s in this movie that we learn that Jango Fett provided the genetic template for the entire Clone Army, which is why all the soldiers look just like him.

Interestingly enough, The Bad Batch indirectly addresses how that template has been stretched thin in the eyars since the opening salvo of the Clone Wars. It explains why new clones like the mysterious Omega are so different to the original template as well as why the Bad Batch developed genetic mutations.

Recurring Kaminoan characters on the animated series like Lama Su and Taun also made their first appearances in Attack of the Clones. Kaminoan scientist Nala Se recurred on The Clone Wars.

Meanwhile, The Clone Wars season 6 episodes 1-4 focus on a clone named Fives. After a clone trooper slays a Jedi on the battlefield, Fives is thrust into a conspiracy involving a plan to mind control the Clone Army with an inhibitor chip, the same one that will eventually force the clones to execute Order 66. Fives plans to uncover the truth behind the chips and reveal it to the galaxy before it’s too late. You can pretty much guess how that went…

Fennec Shand and Saw Gerrera

These next ones are also optional.

The trailers for The Bad Batch have already revealed that assassin Fennec Shand will appear on the show. This fan-favorite live-action character played by Ming-Na Wen was first introduced in The Mandalorian. Without spoiling anything, Fennec goes through her own kind of transformation on the live-action series that will likely be further explored on The Book of Boba Fett, where she’ll share top billing with Temuera Morrison’s beloved bounty hunter.

In The Bad Batch, we’ll get to see Fennec decades prior to her adventures on The Mandalorian. What was she up to years before she crossed paths with Din Djarin? We’re excited to find out!

And finally, there’s Saw Gerrera, another character we know will cameo on the show. He was first introduced in The Clone Wars season 5 episodes 2-5 and later appeared in Rogue One, played by Forest Whitaker. When we first meet Saw, he’s leading a rebellion against Separatist invaders on the planet Onderon. But, as Saw will learn on The Bad Batch, the fight for freedom just leads to another system of tyranny when the Empire comes into power. It’s a painful truth all of the heroes of the new animated series will be forced to discover.

Read more about The Bad Batch here.

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