#clone wars era maul hits different

[samspenandsword]

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Summary: Kinktober Day 12 — Hate/Angry Sex with Maul Pairing: Maul/Reader; fem!reader with no mentions of her appearance. Rating: Explicit, 18+ (Younglings, foundlings, and cadets BEGONE!) Warnings: Explicit sexual content, smut; hate/angry sex, unprotected PIV (PRACTICE SAFE SEX), rough sex, cockwarming, inappropriate use of the Force, breathplay, pain kink, biting kink, mild blood kink, Mandalorian!reader, spy!reader, toxic relationship, I have never written angry/hate sex before so do with that knowledge what you will, language. Word Count: 2.2k

Sam's Pen and Sword Kinktober 2023 Taglist Form

Maker, you hated him. A shabuir of the absolute worst kind, he was unforgiving, murderous, singular-minded, self-serving, obsessive, angry, scary. He was a murderer, and you could not wait to help drag him to the pits where he fucking belonged. 

He’d stolen your sovereignty. Alienated your people. Butchered your honor and Creed. Assassinated your noble, albeit misguided, but still well-meaning duchess. Plunged your world into the worst kind of occupation and war. 

This hadn’t been what you’d wanted. You’d joined the Death Watch to restore the ancient ways to your people. To try and get the duchess to see that the two ways — pacifist and warrior — could coincide. The people who wanted to swear the Creed and wear the armor could, and help fight for and protect those who wished to live in peace. Pre Vizsla had seemed to share that vision. At first. But as time stretched, you began to see him for what he was. 

A madman. 

But you were in too deep to back out, lest you lose your people and your Creed.

So you decided to observe. To watch. To bide your time. Your people would realize the truth.

But then the unthinkable happened. Maul had murdered Vizsla and taken the Darksaber. And your people, so blinded by their need to reinstate the ancient ways, followed it. Despite it falling into the hands of someone who never swore the Creed and wore no beskar. 

The death of Satine Kryze had been the final straw for you, watching with stunned fury as she fell dead at the murderer’s feet. You hadn’t agreed with the woman and her way of rule, but all she had wanted was to do right by your people.

You had never wished for her death.

When an opportunity arose to infiltrate Maul’s regime from the inside, you took it. Everything you learned was relayed back to Bo-Katan, and you became a spy against the most dangerous being you’d ever met.

You hated Maul. You hated everything he stood for — power, control, domination. You were angry at how he continued to let your people suffer and lorded over your planet like he had a right to it. You were incensed at how your people had so lost their way that they willingly followed him. 

He sensed your anger.

“A fire burns in you,” he’d said. It was the first time he’d spoken to you directly. His golden gaze had fire in them as well.

“A fire burns in all who would call themselves Mandalorian,” you’d said.

“You don’t like me,” he’d observed.

Your heart pounded, but you’d prepared for this. Forcer-users had an infuriating habit of invading the thoughts of those surrounding them. Sith and Jedi alike. 

“I don’t have to agree with you, or even like you, to serve you, my Lord.”

He hummed. 

“And what is it that you don’t agree with?”

His eyes pierced into you, his posture as languid and lean as a cat. It was a dangerous posture, and you knew Maul was a capable warrior. He had to be to do the things he’d done. But you got the impression he was genuinely curious.

“Killing the duchess made her a martyr to the ones who would support her, including the Jedi. Not to mention it alienated Bo-Katan and her followers, splitting our numbers more than they already were. Mandalorians have always been stronger together.”

He studied you, the gleam in his lava eyes unreadable. “Why not join Kryze, if you disagree with my killing the duchess?”

You’d prepared for this too. And you spat your answer with a very real anger.

“Because she would’ve killed her sister had you not done it first. And I would never follow a hut’uun who would kill her own, Mandalore-born blood. I would follow you before I ever followed her.”

Maul’s eyes shone with something, again, you could not quite identify. His hands, clasped behind his back, remained there as he turned slightly to face you more fully.

“I think we’ll work well together.”

His voice was a purr. And you hated how it made your thighs clench. And you hated how your eyes watched him as he walked away, unfairly graceful and fucking hot.

It made your blood boil from more than anger.

You suddenly found yourself as one of Maul’s advisors, an ear to his monologues of grandeur and power, long and poetic. He spoke of the dark side of the Force, and his old master, his desire for revenge and how your people would help him achieve it.

You listened. You responded when necessary. Your blood still boiled in his presence.

He smirked every time he sensed it. Because he knew what it meant.

He sensed the clenching of your core, and the heat in your veins. He saw the tension in your posture as he circled you like prey, and took amusement in seeing how far he could push before you bit back. He relished the way you tried not to shiver as he leaned to whisper witty commentary in your ear the rare times you removed your helmet. He delighted in sensing the conflicted fire in you, and pushing you until you snapped.

And you did, snarling at his antics and games until he pinned you and took you roughly against the floor of the throne room. 

Your beskar covered the bites and bruises he left. It guarded you when his gaze grew heated and knowing. But despite that, it bore his colors, and your skin tingled at the mere thought of his touch. 

Maker, you hated him, and yet you couldn’t shake him.

He’d clawed into your armor and sat in your kar’ta beskar like it was his throne. 

You were impaled upon him, him lounging on his stolen throne like a smug, satisfied loth cat. The smirk on his face infuriated you, and made you disgustingly wet. You dug your nails into the muscles of his back, hot and rippling under your touch.

Your hips were pinned to his, an unseen pressure quite literally keeping you from moving and it was all you could do to not beg, twitch, or even react. It would only give him the satisfaction of knowing he had an effect on you.

Not that he already didn’t know, but still.

Another invisible, firm, searing pressure pressed to your clit, devastatingly precise. You choked on your gasp, nails digging painfully into Maul’s back.

His smirk widened. 

“I can feel your need.”

His voice was a purr that wreaked havoc on you, and he suddenly, powerfully, yanked you even tighter to his front. You couldn’t swallow your moan this time, and he nibbled on your jaw.

You brought your hand to his scalp, fingers curling around his horns in a way you’d discovered made him lose a bit of that irritating smugness.

But instead he leaned into the rough touch, and it made your heart skip, your cheeks flush, your breath hitch.

He nipped the plush of your lips. 

And invisible hands raised you up, sliding your slick and squeezing walls to the very tip of his cock, and slammed you back down.

With each slam of his cock into you, you choked around moans and screams. His length was impressive, if artificial, and everything about him felt so hot and real. You could practically feel him in your throat, heavy and bulging and thick. 

Or perhaps that was the force pressing against your windpipe, constricting your air just enough to make your head spin.

“Sublime,” came Maul’s voice, velvet in your roaring ears. 

You felt his hands seize you, bruisingly, slamming you down onto him even harder than before.

You could feel the heat, the tightening inside you, having been plateaued for what felt like hours upon him. And now as you fucked yourself upon him, clawed and fought and snarled on top of him, you felt yourself cresting. 

“You’re close,” came his voice. Arrogant and smug.

You squeezed your cunt around him and yanked at his horns. His teeth bared and a guttural growl escaped him. 

“So are you,” you growled back.

You found yourself beneath him in a blink, back pulsing with the pain of slamming into the throne and his cock punching into you. 

You had bruises on the backs of your thighs from the metal of his legs and hips unforgivingly slamming into you, and you hated how good they looked on your skin. Your shoulders had scars of his teeth, skin permanently bearing his mark. You hated how you shivered when he traced them teasingly. Your pussy squeezed and throbbed with pleasure and pain, the feeling lasting well into the days following each tryst. You hated how it made your gait change and widen, and how it became your new norm. You hated the open-chested tunics he wore, showing the intricate, beautiful ink of his heritage. You hated how good your nails left scratches in him. You hated his grin when you yanked his horns, hated how he pushed you to give as good as you got. 

And you hated how he fucked you — painfully, roughly, carnally, exquisitely, completely, ferally. 

Exactly how you liked it.

And he did it in a way no other had. 

The heat of your hate and your anger and your orgasm came to a boil, and as another invisible force once again enclosed around your windpipe, something erupted inside you.

Screaming loud enough to be heard through the palace as you came painfully hard, Maul continued to slam into your convulsing, clenching walls, forcing you open as he claimed your heat and slick and chased his own end. 

He seized it, and bit down on your shoulder as he came. 

He never softened inside you, not really, and him retreating from your abused cunt was always something that made you hiss. Sometimes it made your core tighten with discomfort. Other times, like now, it prolonged the fluttering in your cunt.

You gulped in air, chest heaving, thighs trembling, and your shoulder throbbing and pebbling with blood. It didn’t bother you, and you knew Maul liked the sight. And indeed, his molten eyes were fixed upon your shoulder, looking quite proud of your new mark. 

You quietly huffed with begrudging amusement, closing your eyes and leaning back to catch your breath.

“You look a vision upon my throne,” he said. You popped an eye open, still trying to will strength back into your legs and normalize your breathing.

“Hmm,” you said, “especially when I can’t quite walk right?”

Maul smirked. After all, you’d said it, not him. 

You pushed yourself up, tremors fading as you forced your muscles to engage again. You leaned down to where your beskar had been discarded and began to pull your armor back on.

“I had thought you Mandalorians were always fighting for the throne,” Maul suddenly continued. 

You frowned mildly over at him, confused at the sudden direction of this conversation. He usually dismissed you after your escapades. 

“Part of being a good Mandalorian is thinking of the people as a whole. Knowing what would be best for us. We’d never have survived as long as we have if we were constantly fighting each other for the Darksaber. And we’ve almost lost ourselves to that before.”

Maul draped himself over the throne as you continued to methodically and habitually armor yourself. As you did, you grew more and more comfortable. 

“So you wouldn’t want to rule, despite how good you look on the throne?”

You tossed him a little smile, amused despite yourself. 

“I’ll leave the desire for power to you. You embody it so well.”

He smirked. You returned to your armor. 

“You would really never want to be Mand’alor?”

This made you pause again, and you sent him a searching look. “And challenge you for the Darksaber? Not a chance.”

He smirked again, eyes never leaving your form as you continued to redon your beskar and weapons. 

“I thought you Mandalorians loved a good fight.”

You barked a laugh. “A fight, yes. But I’m not stupid enough to try and beat you in a lightsaber duel. So no, I will not be challenging you for the rule of Mandalore.”

The flattery, which usually amused Maul more than anything, did not garner his usual response of a smirk and tilt of his head. Instead, as you picked up your helmet and looked back at him, you found him looking at you, his face and eyes unreadable. 

Again.

“I wasn’t offering a challenge.”

There was something there. A hidden meaning to his words. A meaning that scared you.

You straightened. “Will there be anything else, my Lord?”

He looked disappointed, but not surprised. He was patient. He would wring a response from you one day. “No.”

You sealed your helmet over your head, strode from the hall, and allowed your expression to contort.

Gritting your teeth and jaw and marching through the palace, your hand drifted to your blaster, twitchy and eager. Target practice would help you relax. It always did.

But as you found yourself in the training halls, your mood and anger darkened.

You hated him. You hated him! You hated how you were attracted to him. You hated that you liked him. 

And you hated that he knew it.

You knew that one day, Maul’s own darkness and evil deeds would lead to his downfall. And when it happened, your kar’ta beskar would once again be yours.

The day could not come soon enough.

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[thats-it-im-fallingdown]

I’ve finally reached season 7 of the clone wars. it’s been an awesome ride! here are my thoughts as a first time watcher of all things prequel-era. after this, I’ll watch revenge of the sith (yes, for the first time. yes i live under a rock. no there is no room for anyone else. find your own.) and Star Wars rebels, and I’ll have finally watched all of the main Star Wars stuff!

Ahsoka’s walkabout arc

-i love the martez sisters. i have an older sister myself, and while our dynamic is pretty different, they didn’t do too bad at capturing the feel of sister duos.

-español subtitles, my beloved. it is so good to have you back in my arms after being without you for season 6. I missed you more than you will ever know. you may not be a perfect translation of the audio, but i love you flaws and all

-I’m definitely skewed from coming to this straight after crystal crisis on Utapau, but the animation is really improved. Rafa’s hair actually moves and people’s lips move more naturally.

-I’m glad that ahsoka left that tube top behind. i hated how impractical her clothes looked in the early seasons

-I’ve reblogged a post about this a bit ago, but i wanted to say this myself. the way the jedi have taken the reputation hit for the senate is interesting to see from the perspective of your average citizen of coruscant. To trace, the war is just life getting harder for her and her sister. she wants to escape to the stars— but that’s where the fighting is happening. and the burden of blame shouldn’t fall so heavily upon the jedi. the Jedi order and it’s principles are themselves victims of the war.

-seeing Bo katan make an appearance was surprising, but ig she had to come back in eventually

-ahsoka’s plan in the final episode was so satisfying to watch. usually saying one thing to an enemy and another to a friend dialogue is super obvious, but it was done well here imo

-how could maul almost see her through the hologram? usually you only see other people, not their surroundings on the other end

-it’s really unlikely, but perhaps leaving her bike with them means the martez sisters will make another appearance. star wars loves cameos, i think it’s reasonable for me to hold out hope

The bad batch story reels

-I’m fond of the design of Anaxes. crunchy, crunchy glass. and a sky so pretty it was hard to focus on the dogfighting

-the way the bad batch pointedly makes fun of “regs” is interesting to me. it isn’t super mean spirited, but it’s biting and frequent enough to make me wonder how clones are perceived by civilians, and how they see themselves. from the clone bar on coruscant, we know there’s some, though admittedly little (because wartime) interaction with civilians who aren’t inhabiting the planets they fight on. you know philosophers in the gffa would be having a field day with the ethics of cloning soldiers. see, there’s some things in this universe you have to write off because of context— like the padawans technically being child soldiers. we can write that off because it’s a show that includes children in its target audience, and kids deserve to see themselves going on adventures. but this isn’t the case with clones. pong krell, for one. the famous “we’re clones sir, we’re meant to be expendable” among other lines, make it clear the essential humanity (lack of a better word) of the clones is in question by the inhabitants of the in-universe. in a roundabout way, I’m suggesting it’s possible the bad batch’s jabs at “regs” come from a place insecurity about their own individuality as much as it does a reaction to being shunned for not fitting in with their brothers. since they’re mutated, different, they have biological proximity to naturally born people. they’re similar to their progenitor, jango fett, but very distinct in personality and appearance, like how I’m similar and distinct from my parents.

-man, i don’t get why people rag on mace windu so much. he’s a generally good dude and a cool character. he’s firmly lawful good, which can be boring when it’s played wrong. windu is not played wrong. his character works, and i like the episodes where he’s gotten more screen time, and this is one of them.

-no disrespect if you like them, but i am. not sold on the bad batch. maybe things are different in the bad batch show, but here, they don’t feel like complete characters. like, this is a fine foundation for a four (five after echo joins) man band, but you’ve got to put those guys back in the oven they aren’t done yet. as I’ve rambled about above, I’m not averse to the concept of mutated clones because there’s some really neat potential to explore how clones and non-clones view one another and each other. the 100% success rate thing is pretty corny even for Star Wars, but i also don’t think tbb undermines the regular clones individualities, provided there’s some follow up on that how-does-clone-prejudice-work thing. what i am averse to is changing their facial features (mainly tech, but also crosshair) to be more typically white, like thinner noses, in an attempt to make them more visually distinct. the other aspects of their designs, physical and character-wise, make them plenty distinct. let them look like Morrison dammit! this is why I’m probably not going to watch tbb show. it was hard enough to sit through a four episode arc with them, i don’t think i can make it through a whole season.

-oo, foreshadowing anakin’s fall to the dark side when he kills trench. i love a good tragedy

-obi wan definitely knows padme and anakin are boning, right? who doesn’t know that they’re a couple at this point, honestly. and the ones who don’t should be able to figure it out pretty quick when padme’s pregnant and the father is ~unknown~ cmon.

Siege of Mandalore arc

-man hang on a minute. i need a minute alright

-i see potential for a short that follows what bo-katan and ahsoka have gotten up to in between oba dias and the siege. they’ve clearly gotten to know each other a little, and while it makes sense that we don’t waste any time on their relationship, it could be cool to see how their partnership developed. would also have the benefit of filling out how Bo-katan has progressed as a character.

-maul is so obsessed with obi wan and kenobi just.. doesn’t care all that much about his arch nemesis. yeah I killed him once, it didn’t stick. have fun fighting him ahsoka!

-you really don’t notice how much a character has grown on you until you realize you care about them deeply even when they have plot armor huh? yeah, ahsoka and rex have entrenched themselves in my heart.

-now, I only know revenge of the sith from cultural osmosis, but that’s enough to not only understand what’s going on off screen at the same time, but to effectively be in darth maul’s place. everything is falling to pieces and nobody but you can see it yet. the jedi, the republic, the separatists, all of it

-this arc got allll the crunchy visual effects. breaking glass, embers, smoke, the works. wish they didn’t make maul’s lightsaber bizarrely skinny

-I especially loved maul and ahsoka together in this. they parallel each other in a way that I hasn’t noticed before, how they’re both apprentices who failed (from a certain pov) in a way that saved themselves

-maul’s dialogue and voice acting is mwah mwah. he’s gentlemanly without being aristocratic, or becoming a cliche mob boss kind of character

-katee sackoff is truly perfect as bo katan, and I’m not just saying that because I had a crush on Starbuck in battlestar galactica. i cant imagine a better (voice) actress for the role

-hello, ursa wren. how have you been holding up among the hordes of aggressively blond blue eyed whites? there surely must be better ways to add Viking influence that aren’t making the mandalorians look like Swedish racists

-ahsoka technically isn’t a jedi, but in this arc it’s really obvious that she had the skill to be a jedi knight. she would’ve become one if she hadn’t left the order. her skill at adapting under high pressure and at combat (she’s a match for maul himself!) don’t let you forget that she is well past being at padawan level

-i’m sure i violated so many viewing guides by watching this before revenge of the sith but it worked out fine, so •_•

-the painted helmets….

-hey, hey. don’t cry. Fives saved rex and ahsoka, okay? think about that. his death wasn’t a complete waste in the end at least

-I’m looking forward to seeing what rex gets up to after this. i know he shows up in rebels, ahsoka too, which will also be interesting to watch

[winglssdemon]

Star Wars Fic Recs

Here’s a list of a few of my favorite fics! All of them will be in prequel trilogy, before prequel trilogy, or clone wars era. All of them are Obi-Wan centric.

Everything is Going to Plan (And Other Lies) by beamirang (WIP) Rating: Explicit Obi-Wan/Jango Fett Author Summary: Jedi. Slave. General. King. Obi-Wan has had - and rejected - a number of titles over the years. For some reason, people keep putting him in charge of shit. Word Count: 14,288

Jate’kara by pallorsomnium (WIP) Rating: Teen Obi-Wan/Jango Fett Author Summary:  It’s just his kriffing luck that the one time he decides to take a break planetside, everything goes to bantha shit. Jango happens to be on Naboo when the Trade Federation decides to invade. From there, his quiet life as a bounty hunter goes sideways. A TPM AU. Word Count: 20,418

Bloody Escape by Sulis57 (One-Shot) Rating: Mature Obi-Wan/Asajj Ventress Author Summary:  Obi-Wan Kenobi and Asajj Ventress barely escape with their lives after a dangerous encounter with Darth Maul and Savage Opress. Trapped together in a small shuttle, these one-time enemies must put their differences aside in order to find their way back to civilization. Things get complicated when Ventress realizes Kenobi has been gravely wounded. Will he survive the long journey or will his blood be on her hands? Word Count: 3,889

A Lesson in Attachment by someawkardprose (Completed One-Shot) Rating: General Audiences Pairing: Obi-Wan/Cody Author Summary:  Obi-Wan has never been enough. It's okay. The Force loves him anyway. Word Count: 7847 An Ace!Obi Fic with besotted Cody and that trope where Anakin hides his marriage but there’s no real reason to. Plus Clone Rights!

The More I Live The More I See this Life is Not About Me by K_R_Closson (WIP) Rating: Teen Gen Author Summary:After touching a mysterious artifact, Cody's general is suddenly a child with the memories to match. Cody has to coax a suspicious adolescent back to base without alerting the nearby Separatists of their presence. Reversing his general's age an easier fix than Cody thought it would be, but he didn't factor in the possibility that Obi-Wan might not want to give up his self in order to become General Kenobi again. It'd be easier to think if he didn't have an insidious voice in his head, whispering to him to distrust the Jedi.  Word Count: 18,895 General Kenobi is turned into his younger Melida/Daan time period self. The clones are horrified. (Author has stated that the fic is finished and there will be timely updates.)

The Interviews Series by Bloody Devil (3 Completed Fics in the series, but there might be more? I sure hope so) Rating: Teen Referenced Obi-Wan/Quinlan Vos Author Summary:  1st in Series:  An interview with Master Jedi Qui Gon Jinn and his Padawan Obi-wan Kenobi to give insight into the Jedi Order and it's workings, turns into a group interview when a bunch of Padawan Kenobi's friends crash the interview. 2nd in Series: After the 'unedited' version of the follow up interview was posted to the Holoweb, a lot of sentients came to the same conclusion. The Clones were good with Kids and Trustworthy.This leads to complications for the Coruscant Guard. 3rd in Series: Another follow up interview, this one with someone Obi-wan doesn't like, snowballs in a way no one predicts.Obi-wan is just very tired. Word Count: 35,805 Technically Crack!Fics but the series holds a lot more, brings up clone rights, and has some very heart-wrenching moments.

The Past Remains by otherhawk (Completed)  Rating: Teen Gen Author Summary:  The war drags on leaving trauma and destruction in its wake. After a bereaved Master is accused of harming his padawan, Obi-Wan is sent to talk to her, dredging up memories of his own past. Word Count: 15,692 Contains Anakin and Cody along with Obi-Wan. This fic REALLY hits the feels. It’s a fantastic emotional hurt/comfort fic.

Hold Onto Me by LuvEwan (One-Shot) Rating: General Audiences Obi-Wan & Qui-Gon  Author Summary:  Qui-Gon Jinn and Obi-Wan crash land on a random planet (oh no!). They must rely on each other to survive (oh yes!). Word Count: 3,149 Just...straight up hurt/comfort. I do wish there was more to this fic but it does stand alone very well. I’m just a sucker for good old fashioned hurt/comfort and worried partners.

Balance by beamirang (WIP) Rating: Mature Mostly Gen Author Summary: “I’m not going to kill Palpatine because I hate him,” Obi-Wan says serenely. “I’m going to kill him so Anakin can’t.” In a bid to pull Anakin back to the Light, Obi-Wan hurls himself into the Dark. They both land somewhere in the middle and the whole Galaxy shakes with the impact. Word Count: 17,847

Patrilineal by markwatnae (One-Shot) Rating: General Audiences Obi-Wan/Cody Author Summary:  General Jinn is dispatched to join the 212th Attack Battalion and Cody watches General Kenobi interact with his former master, the man who skirted death at the hands of a Sith. He cannot seem to find a suitable definition for their relationship. Word Count: 2,467

Misunderstandings are Born of Miscommunication by Fic_Request_Blog (One-Shot) Rating: Teen Gen Author Summary:  Or The one where Kenobi is blind and no one remembers to tell the clones. Word Count: 2,210 Blind!Obi is freaking life and this is such an enjoyable one-shot

It Was Another Time and I Another Man by Pell_Binterhol (WIP) Rating: Teen Gen Author Summary:  Master Jinn and Padawan Kenobi find themselves thrown decades into the future and into the midst of a civil war. Ahsoka is delighted for an opportunity to know her unflappable grand-master when he was her age, but as their differences mount, she comes to learn just how much the order has changed. Word Count: 27,707

Matter of Time, Matter of Opportunity by markwatnae (One-Shot) Rating: Teen  Obi-Wan/Qui-Gon Jinn Author Summary: Obi-Wan wakes up in the Halls of Healing after a terrible mission with a broken jaw. He does not realize until later how his experience had also fractured his spirit. Word Count: 8,172 Note: While this the 3rd in the Alpenglow series, this one can stand on it’s own.

[xstarkillerx]

,He’s fighting in Shii-Cho! The first lightsaber form all padawans learn and the foundation for all other lightsaber forms. While some decide to master Shii-Cho and use it as their primary fighting style (Kit Fisto is one example, I think?), it’s more common for jedi who have graduated to other forms to fall back on the Shii-Cho style after all other forms of combat have failed because it’s primarily a defensive style.

So like, it’s actually really fun to see him falling back on his foundations because, yes it shows that he’s shaking off years of rust, but Obi-Wan is also a character whose growth has consistently been shown through his evolving combat style.

Chronologically, the first style we see him use is Ataru under the mentorship of Qui-Gon jinn. However, not only did he witness this lightsaber form fail his master in the fight against Maul, but it’s also a style that did not suit the incoming war. Ataru is elegant, aggressive, very physically demanding, and most useful in lightsaber-lightsaber combat as it’s main ideology is end the battle as quickly as possible. It’s not nearly as effective at blocking blaster fire from multiple different directions.

When we see him in the clone wars era, Obi-Wan graduated to Soresu, a style that fits his sentiments at the time, as both a jedi and war general. It’s known as the most effective non-lethal saber form and came into existence in direct response to the growing prominence of blasters in combat. It prioritises defense and endurance, suited to Obi-Wan’s preference for negotiation rather than combat.   It became his primary style and it’s where we get his iconic ready-stance. It’ also important to note that Vader dedicated a lot of time to cracking Soresu because it was obi-wan’s style.

Now, while it’s inevitable that elements of his Ataru training would sneak their way into his combat during the clone wars era, it’s generally agreed upon that Obi-Wan does not use Ataru for decades after his master’s death. With how deeply that death affected him, and the way it changed the trajectory of his life, it’s not very surprising. In fact, we only ever see him start to use Ataru again against 2 people: Darth Vader and Maul, and I know this is already really long but bare with me.

in the Kenobi show, the final battle begins with him taking his soresu stance. Obi-Wan immediately puts forward a front to Vader, who has become stunted in his hatred and anger, that the same has happened to him. He’s trying to say “I’m fighting with Soresu, I am as you remember me,”  luring Anakin into a false sense of predictability, even going so far as to quote himself from the battle of Mustafar with “I will do what I must.” However the first time Obi-Wan hits the ground in this fight he immediately switches to Ataru, taking the offensive, swinging fast, swinging hard and catching Vader off guard who of course didn’t expect this. Put a pin in this. and bare in mind that a few episodes before this is where we see him re-tracing the fiundations of shii-cho.

In the rebels episode twin sons, Obi-wan is about to fight maul for the last time and we see an evolution of this. Sam Witwer (voice of maul and SW super fan) breaks this down better than I ever could in this video But bottom line is, Obi-Wan sets up an expectation with his opponent, then subverts it by revealing the evolution in his ideology, which is successful because Sith can’t grasp the concept of growth. They don’t change, they can only accumulate power, whereas Obi-Wan is always growing, always pondering his mistakes, and trying to be better.

All of this to say, while we watch obi wan fight with more styles than any other jedi in the canon, the final style we see him use chronologically is Shii-Cho! As Alec Guinness! The form one falls back on when all other forms of combat fail.

So, to see hints of that in the Kenobi show, to watch him go through the motions, practice the foundations before he fully matures into a jedi who knows how and when to use all that he’s absorbed, it’s just so good. And it’s cool to know that the progression really does come full circle

I CANNOT BELIEVE HE STOPS TO DO A DRAMATIC LIGHTSABER TWIRL IN ALL OF THIS

[charlottec21]

2,4,9,12,17,18 and 19 for the SW ask :)

2. pairing

Fav -Have a lot but currently romantically it is Han/Leia- I love their chemistry that they have together and the hight difference, they can speak their mind to each other and they care about each other. I have some of the sweetest moments together in the OT, just like when they are hugging or reassuring each other. I also like how their character arc are not completely connect to one another all the time, I never felt that Han became a better man to please Leia and Leia arc was just as much about her commitment to the rebellion than her love for Han. Overall the compliment each other, make a great team and have great soft moments together 

Least - relyo 4. character 

Fav- Too many ( Finn, Leia, Poe, Han, Obi, Yoda, Mando Luke Poe and just so many) but at the top of my head, I have to go with Ahsoka Tano but she is really just one of many. I love watching her grow into a badass, develop her own mind and style, she had great character reactions with almost everyone bring out interesting ideas. It was a great idea to add her into clone wars as an audience surrogate and further create her into a complete 3 dimensional  character. I have so many favs. 

Least - I guess i would say more of a wasted character section, but I would have to go with Hux here. This is more of a wasted potential character but at the start he was really interesting, a character with a sad background but an absolute fascist and unrepentant murder, he could have been a great character and foil for a lot of the heroes but then they made him into a no respect butt of the jokes character who i could not take seriously which was a shame as he is acted well, and he could have been a tarkin like character if tarkin lived passed ANH. On a similar strain Kylo, it goes on my ‘I don’t like this direction’ type of dislike

9. ship 

Fav- I kind of love any of the ships that look old and busted but are loved by their owners, and feel insulted whenever someone insults their ships. They are falling apart up but they are beautiful.

Least - The  Supremacy, it feel silly how big it is and this was after they lost star killer base and they tried to make it out it was more danergous and advance than that, when all it did was follow them it what felt like a really slow car cash

12. moment/scene

Fav- A lot from every era of star wars but again picking out a random one. It would be when the Mando goes to rescue Baby Yoda. The build up to the decision, the increasing unease of something bad happen, to the Mando, slowly taking out the stormtroopers until shit hits the wall and he has to fight everyone to the calvary arrives. I just love it and by the end you feel that he deserved that victory

Least - I was not a big fan of the whole Leia Poppins scene, not that Jedi did the same thing to save their lives but Leia was seemed out for too long and was far way from the ship. If they had to take her out of the film for a bit they could have done it is a less silly looking way or not put her in a coma at all

17. hero

Fave- Another top the head one, but Chirrut. I love him, everything, in the time where the rebellion was a mess and Empire was everywhere, he just had so much hope and faith

Least- Can’t really find one as they are mostly decent by default I would say Cody as he does not get as much development as the over main clones and he does shoot obi-wan but I can really blame him for that either

18. villain

Fav- Hard to say, currently Maul, he has had some interesting stories. From just an attack dog apprentice for Palps, when he returned he was shown to be smart and anger which made him into such a wildcard character. His relationship with his brother, is interesting and sad, as well as his moments of insanity in relation to obi-wan. His death scene gives sympathy for a villain without completely redeeming him or him even seeking it out. 

Least- Tobias Beckett, it not that he is a bad character, he is a long john silver character but I just think he had the same problems as Solo overall had, i liked it but it felt too small for star wars movie. Maybe it solo was done like the series he would have worked better

19. outfit

Fav - I love the mandalorian armor it just as a nice look, and I like how each one has their own uniqueness to them, like sabine painting hers, or Djarin design. Side note I also love how all the clones had paint jobs on their own armor

Least- I did not like Klyo outfit in TLJ, it kind of felt of a downgrade from the rather cool outfit he worn in TFA, also Holdo dress felt a bit out of place, it felt more prequel design than the current designs 

[aion-rsa]

How Star Wars: The Clone Wars Introduced a New Sound for the Saga

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Few scores in Hollywood history are as iconic as the ones composed by the legendary John Williams for the Star Wars saga. In fact, Williams’ compositions are as fundamental to the galaxy far, far away as George Lucas’ imagination and the writing of Joseph Campbell. Without his music, Star Wars would have never been a hit back in 1977.

So it isn’t an exaggeration to say that film and television composer Kevin Kiner had some very big shoes to fill when he was tapped to create the score for The Clone Wars, an animated film that marked the start of a new era for the franchise in 2008, just three years after the release of the final prequel film. Not only was this film a pilot for an even more beloved animated series that in turn paved the way for the era of Star Wars TV we’re enjoying today, but it was the first not scored by Williams himself.

Fortunately, Kiner was up to the task. With his percussion-heavy rendition of the main Star Wars theme, Kiner ushered us into the world of The Clone Wars, and the Star Wars animated universe as a whole. Today, the composer’s work is as synonymous with Star Wars animation as Williams with the big-screen Skywalker Saga.

His most recent scores for the final season of The Clone Wars and the first season of The Bad Batch are among his best, in no small part due to the way he’s been able to evolve the sounds of Star Wars beyond the orchestral. Kiner’s final compositions for The Clone Wars involved heavy use of analog synthesizers to create the moody sounds of the show’s somber farewell. The very electronic Clone Wars themes for Maul and Darth Vader, which he composed with his sons Sean and Dean (who’ve also joined him for The Bad Batch), are two of the best pieces of Star Wars music ever written.

Last May, I sat down with Kiner to talk about completing his work on The Clone Wars, the new sounds of The Bad Batch, and what it was like meeting Williams for the first time. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Den of Geek: Following up John Williams’ Star Wars scores is a tall order but your work in the animated universe has become iconic in its own right. What was the process of creating the music for The Clone Wars like?

Kevin Kiner: At first, I was all directed by George Lucas and Dave Filoni, and I had already been studying John Williams’ scores for 27 years, probably since 1980 or ’81. Initially there were two directives: one was from George Lucas. He wanted a lot of world music in the beginning of The Clone Wars, and so I had to incorporate a lot of that. The other side of it was to make sure that it sounded like Star Wars. So the first thing I wrote was “Ahsoka’s Theme,” and another one was the thing I call “A Galaxy Divided,” which is the bridge right after the Star Wars theme plays. And that “A Galaxy Divided” was my composition, but I feel there’s elements of John Williams in it, at least his scope and his cinematic kind of classical feel.

So at first I was very conscious to make sure that it had a lot of the John Williams DNA in it, even if it wasn’t his melodies, his orchestration techniques, his use of chords, his use of harmony and counterpoint, etc. As the years have gone on, it’s evolved away from that. It’s evolved, for Rebels, back to John Williams, where we really rebooted and went to A New Hope for a while, at least in the beginning of Rebels, then it started evolving away from it again.

By the end of The Clone Wars, it had evolved to a full-on electronic ending with Darth Vader, which was kind of a very, very different thing. So my process has changed over the years I hope for the better in that you just don’t want to get stuck in a rut, really.

What were your interactions with George Lucas like in the early days?

I mean I could write maybe not a book but a pretty long short story about my experiences with George Lucas and how they influenced me, and one of the great things about him is he loves to throw things up against the wall and see if they stick. Loves to experiment. Hates to do the same thing over and over again. Really hates to — maybe to his detriment, I don’t know — but I mean he’d just say like, “Oh, I’ve already done that.”

And I understand that as a composer. If I do this lick from G to A minor, and if I do it over the course of 35 years or whatever I’ve been doing this, it’s like, “Maybe I shouldn’t do that anymore.” And then I go and I watch a Marvel movie, a big A-list feature, and there he’s going G to A minor, I’m like, “Well, sheesh, I wouldn’t have done that. That’s boring as hell.”

But it’s not. The thing is it’s not really boring as hell. You have to learn when something is working. Maybe you freshen it up a little and find a new way to do it and challenge yourself, but my point is, about George, is he really loves to keep pushing the envelope, and he did with me musically very early on. And a lot of the stuff didn’t work and a lot of the stuff did work.

The world music really worked. I mean the Bulgarian vocals early on in The Clone Wars was really, really fun. So that’s one of the great things I learned from George, and being pushed like that by your boss is a great thing.

But as you said, the score evolved, especially in the series finale. Is there a specific reason you chose a more electronic sound for Maul and Darth Vader? It doesn’t sound anything like William’s themes for the character but it’s so fitting at the same time.

First of all, I have, in the last five, six, seven years, been co-composing with my two sons [Sean and Dean], and maybe first it was more my oldest son, but for sure the last four years both of them have been onboard. And they really help to keep me fresh because they listen to completely different music than I did.

They’re way into authentic analog synths as well as some of the virtual synths. I think sometimes there’s a tendency for people to get this analog snobbery, and I definitely have a little bit of that, because I had those real synths and I’ve had to go back and buy them again. I threw away my Prophet-5 [synthesizer] or gave it away for $200 or something. I had to buy another one because now it’s kind of back. So I love those synths and I love those sounds, but there’s also new stuff that’s coming out in the virtual world that we use. But I’d say a lot of the sonic magic comes through my sons, you know? They’re way deep into it and it’s really been a cool process.

And now we get to hear more of that evolution in The Bad Batch. What it’s been like composing the score for the new show?

I imagine there was a difference between Clone Wars and Rebels, then there was a difference between Rebels and season 7 of Clone Wars. There’s going to be a difference between that and Bad Batch, but I don’t think anybody or especially the casual listener would go, “Whoa, this is completely different. I’ve never heard anything like that before,” right? Again, so it’s an evolution. It still has a comfort zone that is Star Wars, that is Clone Wars. It’s the animated sound that I’ve come up with over all these years, but it’s still moving forward in different ways.

cnx.cmd.push(function() { cnx({ playerId: "106e33c0-3911-473c-b599-b1426db57530", }).render("0270c398a82f44f49c23c16122516796"); });

I play this instrument. I mean just in a few cues, but it’s called a GuitarViol and you bow it like a cello or viola, but it has frets. And sometimes I pluck it, and then other times I bow it. I mean I’m not great at this instrument, but I try to use that as a strength so that it doesn’t sound like a really, really perfected kind of cello sound or something. I hire a cello a player if I want to do that.

So this is like a funky, earthy, Chinese violin kind of [sound], but you can’t really place what it is, and I use it a little bit, very soloistically along with a vocal in Bad Batch. I mean that’s not to say the whole score is like that; it’s only one cue, but that’s an example of how I’m trying to push things for Bad Batch.

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You mention staying true to Williams’ original scores for these shows. Have you ever met him?

I’ve only met John Williams twice, and we never talked about Star Wars ever.

What did you talk about then?

“How was dinner?”

I mean that guy is so famous and people come up to him every 10 seconds, and saying, “Oh my god, you changed my life. I love you. I love your music.” I did absolutely tell him that he was a big reason that I got into film composing, and that I consider him the greatest ever, which I do. But man, he’s heard that a lot, and so yeah, the chicken was a little rubbery, I think, so let’s talk about something we care about right now.

You’ve obviously spent a lot more time with Dave Filoni. What’s your collaboration with him like?

You know, Dave Filoni is such a wealth of knowledge and a wealth of creative inspiration. We have these things called spotting sessions. We get together and we’ve been doing this for a long time before the pandemic, because he’s usually in the Bay Area and I’m in LA, so we had to do it over the phone and through video conferencing.

We’d get together and talk about, “Well, there should be music here. I like the way this works. This needs to have a crescendo.” All these different things as we watch the picture, but I would say a majority of the spotting sessions with Dave Filoni are him giving us backstories into the characters and into the lore.

When fans think about animated Star Wars characters, they undoubtedly think about the themes that accompany them, the same way people connect “The Imperial March” to Darth Vader. Do you have a favorite character to compose for?

There are two of them, and for different reasons. My overall favorite, because I’ve written for this character so much, is Ahsoka, and I’m very proud of “Ahsoka’s Theme.” But when I first answered that question a few days ago, my first gut thing was Darth Vader. And I thought about this and that was the fan in me. The reason is I went to [Star Wars] in 1977 when I went to UCLA, it’s the biggest thing I ever saw. It’s a very big part of the reason I’m a film composer, television composer now, is because of John Williams and his scores. And when I first wrote a scene with Darth Vader in it, it was like “Whoa, this is so cool.”

You’ve scored so much Star Wars at this point. What keeps you coming back to do it again?

It’s Star Wars, man. It’s sort of like asking a famous baseball player, “You’ve been to so many World Series. Is there something unusual about this World Series?” You’re like, “No man, it’s the World Series, dude. It’s amazing.” So if I needed something more than that to get excited, I don’t know what it would be.

Star Wars: The Bad Batch season 2 will air in 2022. In the meantime, you can find all of Kevin Kiner’s excellent music here.

The post How Star Wars: The Clone Wars Introduced a New Sound for the Saga appeared first on Den of Geek.

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[sonofasaint]

Things I would like to see in the Kenobi film.......

EWAN MCGREGOR: ⦁ Now I do put this on the list because I am kinda worried that Disney is going to pull "We are taking the character in a new direction" stunt. ⦁ Because of all the prequal hate I am kinda worried about recasting of the role. ⦁ Possible choosing to make the film focus on Obi Wan as a Padawan so that the role can be recast and Disney can go on pretending that the prequels never happened. ⦁ Because at the moment I feel that Disney are actively trying to avoid all prequel era content.

SET THE FILM BETWEEN EPISODE THREE AND FOUR

⦁ We've already seen Obi Wan during The Clone Wars and we've seen him very late in to his Padawan years. ⦁ By setting this film between Episode 3 and 4 we have great potential to explore a different part of Kenobi's life. ⦁ The aftermath of Order 66 and perhaps Obi Wan coming to terms with what his life is now. ⦁ Maybe even seeing the Galaxy with the uprising of the Empire.

KEEP IT ON TATOOINE ⦁ Keep it on Tatooine, the point of Obi Wan going to Tatooine and staying on the plant is because he has entered exile. After Order 66 all Jedi were enemy's of the Empire. Obi Wan is trying to keep a low profile and on top of that his mission was to protect Luke. ⦁ However if there is a need to go off plant, make it for a solid reason. Or have Obi Wan being dragged off plant kicking and screaming.

FLASHBACKS ⦁ A few flashbacks I would love to see is Obi Wan's realationship with Qui-Gon Jinn. Mainly when Qui-Gon took Obi Wan as his Padawan. Because for anyone who knows the expanded universe Qui-Gon didn't want to take Kenobi on as his Padawan because Jinn felt that Kenobi was to angry. That is something I would love to see. ⦁ Going back and seeing the events of the Clone Wars I believe is necessary. Now with these Clone Wars Flash backs instead of seeing Obi Wan take on thousands of droids. I would prefer to see the famous The Negotiator in action. To see him preventing and stopping battles simply with his words. Also seeing Obi Wan as a General, working with Commander Cody and the 212th Attack Battalion. (SIDE NOTE: When I say I don't wanna see Kenobi fight rather talk things out. I don't actually wanna see Kenobi be a pussy. Which leads me on to another side note. Show the strength of Kenobi. Going back and watching the prequel is really eye opening when you realise how many times Kenobi is taken out of a fight. The first and second Dooku fight, him getting caught on Geonosis. Please show how well of a fighter Kenobi is.) ⦁ Anakin is so tied to the character of Obi Wan, to have no mention of Anakin in this film would be such a great disservice to both Skywalker and Kenobi. Plus this film has such a great opportunity to show the friendship between both Jedi. I know in Revenge of the Sith that we kinda see this friendship in the opening but beside that I don't think there was much. Plus I would kinda like to see a young Anakin with Obi Wan training. ⦁ I know that this idea is one people will most likely have issues with but I would love to see The Duchess Satine ruler of Mandalore. I know heaps of people would prefer to see other love interests to Obi Wan such as Siri Tachi. However I do have a bias towards the TV show Star Wars The Clone Wars.

OBI WAN STRUGGLING ⦁ Don't give us perfect Jedi Obi Wan. Show me a man, not the Jedi. ⦁ After everything that happened to Kenobi, I would expect to see some emotion of sorts. Wither that be angry or sadness. ⦁ Just show Kenobi in a bad spot of his life, in the privacy of his home, have him break down. ⦁ The man carries alot of weight of what happened, it wouldn't surprise me if Kenobi blamed himself for everything that happened. As he says in Revenge of the Sith. "I have failed you Anakin". That line carries weight behind it and that's what I wanna see in this film, Kenobi coming to terms on how he failed Anakin. ⦁ On top of that, Kenobi is a war veteran, so I would like to see the effects the war had on Kenobi.

DARTH MAUL ⦁ For those who don't know Darth Maul survives his encounter with Kenobi on Naboo. ⦁ So it be kinda cool to see Darth Maul again. Plus the story is already written all the writers would have to do is just pick and chose moments from The Clone Wars and make it live action. Just not that Spider Maul stuff, jump ahead to the good shit.

AHSOKA ⦁ Ahsoka doesn't need to be in the film but if she is make it a small part. ⦁ If she isn't in the film a reference to her character would be pretty sweet.

BUNCH OF OTHER NERD SHIT I WOULD LIKE TO SEE ⦁ Relationship between Owen and Kenobi. ⦁ Obi Wan talking to Qui-Gon Jinn all force ghost style. ⦁ Smart humour, Obi Wan being a sassy asshole. ⦁ The exiled Jedi visiting the grave of Shmi Skywalker to apologise for his failure to save her son from the dark side. ⦁ The Jedi council, it would be so cool to see the back door politics of the council. Seeing the hard hitting and possible universe changing decisions they made during the clone wars. Maybe seeing the council before Obi Wan was asked to join their ranks. A great scene that can possible go down is Kenobi fighting to train Anakin.

Besides that I don't really know. I of course don't expect to see any of these ideas in the new film, but right now it's kinda nice to dream.  

[britesparc]

My Unpopular Star Wars Opinion: Or, Why The Phantom Menace is Better Than The Force Awakens

Was it, though? 

Were the Star Wars prequels – The Phantom Menace, Attack of the Clones, and Revenge of the Sith, whose vary names have become entertainment-industry watchwords for disappointment – really, truly better than the current Disney-owned era of Star Wars, which so far has produced two widely-praised billion-dollar-grossing movies, and is about to unleash a third, about which expectation is as high as a city in the clouds? Can I really think that, for reals?

Well, yes and no.

Let’s get the obvious things out of the way: there were some very poor decisions made during the Prequel Era. Let’s not pick over the corpse of George Lucas’ story choices – the whys and wherefores of virgin births, whiny antagonists, and Jar Jar Binks – and focus instead on the filmmaking technique employed. The dialogue is wooden. The camerawork is rigid. The performances are flat. The pacing is all over the place: in Phantom, the much-vaunted podrace goes on for at least two laps too long; indeed, the whole Tatooine section of the film shoots the legs out from under the momentum. Prior to that it had been a breakneck chase from overwhelming odds, our heroes escaping Naboo by the skin of their teeth; as soon as they break down on Tatooine, they’re sheltering from sandstorms and going gambling. And, of course, there’s the whole “taxation of outlying star systems is in dispute” nonsense: doesn’t quite grab you as quickly as “it is a period of civil war”, does it?

But there’s still something about them that feels Star Wars-y. There’s still a sense, even though I know Lucas was making it all up as he went along, that this fits into the universe correctly (I mean, he was making everything up as he went along, which is why Leia kisses Luke in Empire). There’s a cyclical nature to how the prequels marry with the original trilogy that’s about more than a visit to Tatooine or the presence of a Mandalorian bounty hunter. The first films in both trilogies are, in essence, about innocence: a simple quest by simple people to prevent an immediate danger (removing the blockade of Naboo versus destroying the Death Star); the second films complicate things by splitting up our heroes on separate quests before uniting them for a finale that feels, at best, like a pyrrhic victory; before resolving their respective trilogies in an all-bets-are-off finale beset with divided loyalties and a dangerous Sith Lord. Revenge of the Sith and Return of the Jedi – even their titles are darkly mirrored – both deal explicitly with Vader and his relationship to the Force; he wrestles with his emotions and his commitment to his Order, the love of his wife compelling him to commit dark acts before finally the love of his son pulls him back into the light. The Force Awakens, whilst it does mirror aspects of Star Wars, feels more like a greatest hits package; we have another callow youth from a desert planet on a hero’s journey, another aged mentor, another cocky pilot, another tragic death, and another large object exploding in space, but it feels more consciously designed. A box-ticking exercise, rather than a thematic resonance. Or maybe it’s just because the iconography is so similar.

The First Order is basically the Empire, and the Resistance is basically the Rebellion. There are TIE Fighters and X-Wings. There are Stormtroopers and helmeted good-guy soldiers. There are English-accented characters walking around in SS outfits being glowery and evil. Whilst I’d never attempt to suggest that Amidala’s chrome-plated ship, or the wing-walking droid craft, were as iconic as what we got forty years ago, to go back to the same well is disappointing.

My wider issue, however, is how the new era seems to disregard somewhat the mythological aspects of Star Wars. I guess I’ve only seen one film in the trilogy, but despite the palette-swap nature of its craft and locations, it does feel markedly different to the Star Wars that came before.  There’s a sense of destiny in Star Wars, a ���balance of the Force” that was hinted at in the original trilogy and made explicit in the prequels; the yoke of inevitability pulling characters in directions that they may not wish to go. The subtle, underplayed, and often-ignored theme in the prequels of once-noble institutions slowly crumbling into irrelevance and becoming the very thing they hated speaks to the wider issue of the “will of the Force”, of the Chosen One appearing to bring balance. That Chosen One is assumed to be Anakin, and we’re left to interpret for ourselves whether the balance was actually achieved; is it when he kills the Younglings? Or is it when he topples the Emperor? This thread ties the first six films together to produce something grander and more metaphorical, even if it is a case of Lucas essentially retconning to some degree his original intentions from the seventies and eighties. The Force Awakens feels a bit different, like the preoccupations of the previous films are gone; there’s a darkness to everything creeping in around the edges, complicating matters. Whether this makes for a better narrative is moot: what I’m saying is it makes it feel less of a whole with the rest of Star Wars.

This is exacerbated by the time-jump. Obviously we were always going to go 30-40 years ahead of Jedi. But so much has happened in that time. In the 20 years between Sith and Hope, the galaxy might be fundamentally different, but from a narrative view, nothing has changed: the Empire is still victorious and the Jedi still in exile, just like we left them. But in between Jedi and Force, we’ve seen Luke’s attempt at training new Jedi falter, Ben Solo fall to the Dark Side, the rise of the First Order, and the formation of the Resistance, to say nothing of the yet-unrevealed histories of Snoke and Rey. The film features flashbacks and a cliffhanger finale. It just feels odd, out of place, not at one with the cyclical nature of Star Wars. And, furthermore, it undoes so much of the happy ending of Jedi: despite the deaths of Vader and Palpatine, the Dark Side rises again, there's a new Empire, Luke goes into exile (apparently convinced that the Jedi as an institution is a bad thing) and Han and Leia split up. It's sad! It's tragic! And whilst I'm fine with all that happening in Star Wars, I think it should happen on-camera. Not in flashbacks or spin-offs, it should be part of the saga. To introduce it as backstory complicates the rhythm of the films. It feels less of a whole. It feels like a sequel, not the next episode. And from the trailers and pre-release hype of The Last Jedi, it seems like this is the new normal for Star Wars.

None of this makes the Disney films bad. In fact, going back to the popular iconography of the original trilogy makes perfect sense. Having the heroes still be a scrappy insurgency helps us root for them. Giving us a mysterious backstory to uncover is compelling. But my argument is, all these elements feel discordant with what's gone before. The prequels, for all their faults technically and narratively, helped weave a mythological tapestry for Star Wars that is being undone by the new films. I feel they're remaining too wedded to familiar imagery and story points, whilst simultaneously moving too far away from the more conceptual, mythological underpinnings of Star Wars as a fable. I kind of wish that Lucas had completed his mooted final trilogy – his own VII, VIII, and IX – before selling to Disney (especially if he took more of an executive role, as he did with Empire and Jedi, and left the writing and directing to others). Taken as individual films, maybe they wouldn't be as good as what we've got – because despite everything I've said here, I really do think Force Awakens and especially Rogue One are pretty tremendous – but at least we'd have Lucas' complex, contradictory, rhythmically compelling vision completed. Of course, then we wouldn't have Star Wars' new Holy Trinity of Rey, Finn, and Poe – perhaps the Disney era's most important additions to the overall mythos.

Look, Star Wars is complicated. George Lucas is complicated, and his legacy is complicated. I'm chuffed to bits he sold to Disney – not because DIsney is the be-all and end-all, but because they've proven their ability to marry corporate aims with creative excellence; look at Pixar and Marvel especially. The Force Awakens has issues but it's still a great, crowd-pleasing, immensely successful movie, and already we've got BB-8, porgs, and broadsword lightsabers sitting in the popular imagination in ways that, arguably, nothing in the prequels ever really managed (apart from Darth Maul and his double-ended saber, I guess). And again, the progressive casting of the new films is long overdue and utterly fantastic. I'm still really, really excited about The Last Jedi, and Abrams' Episode IX, and Johnson's new non-Skywalker trilogy. But I can't help feeling like something quintessentially Star Wars has been lost; perhaps it's an oddness, a willingness to duck when everyone is expecting a jump. Perhaps it was Lucas' own obsessions and interests that fuelled the franchise, that gave us everything from the sublime (Vader, the Death Star, lightsabers, Yoda) to the ridiculous (midichlorians, Gungans, Ewoks, Watto). Perhaps the new films are better films, but in my heart of hearts, I'm not sure I can love them quite as much. Maybe The Last Jedi will end up being the best Star Wars experience this side of Knights of the Old Republic, but it will still feel slightly separate. Further tales. An imaginary story. The expanded universe.

Maybe it's me. Maybe it's just knowing that Lucas had more stories he wanted to tell and never got the chance. Maybe it's because I've always been a lot warmer towards the prequels than most. Maybe things will shift with time – as more films come out in the new universe, with more characters, then this will start to feel like the status quo, the new normal. I hope so, because I love Star Wars – indeed, it's worth repeating, I think the new films are excellent, and are better films, better made films, than all three of the prequels. But although my head believes we're in a golden age of Star Wars not seen since the early 80s, my heart has yet to be convinced.

Anyway. I'll let you know if I still feel the same way after The Last Jedi...

[mediabasedlife]

Initial Impressions 04: Battlefront II

It feels like it's only been a few months since I laid hands on the Star Wars Battlefront Beta, as opposed to the few years it's actually been. And now here we are, just over a month out until the release of the much-anticipated sequel, getting our hands on its shiny new beta. Thanks to early access, I've had a small amount of time to try out the beta for Star Wars Battlefront II, the latest installment in the long-running Battlefront series of Star Wars games. Its predecessor debuted back in 2015, and was a mixed bag for quite some time; it only really shaped up around the release of its last few DLCs. That isn't to say the game wasn't fun, but its lack of content definitely didn't keep me hooked. Content aside, the game was enjoyable. It had tight controls that felt fluid in both first and third person, beautifully detailed visuals, and a fantastic soundtrack. Regardless of if you were participating in massive firefights planetside, or trying your hand as a pilot in heated dogfights, whether you were a simple trooper or a lightsaber toting Jedi, all of the action felt engaging and fast-paced. Whether you called it a reboot or a sequel to the older battlefront installments, it felt like a worthy continuation of the series, and it definitely improved over time. So how does its successor compare?

Battlefront 2 feels like a game built around the time old statement, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it". The game's controls still feel responsive in whichever view you prefer, and the overall gameplay still feels great to experience. Combat is frantic, fast-paced, but manages to still stay simple and easy to grasp for the new or casual players. In short, the game is still very fun. The graphics still look stunning, with beautifully detailed levels whos visuals look like they were pulled right out of their respective movies, accompanied by the music fans have come to love. So what's changed, you might ask. Well, on the surface, not a whole lot. The biggest change would have to be the inclusion of different Star Wars eras, as opposed to centering exclusively on the reign of the galactic empire and the struggling rebellion that made up this game's predecessor. Battlefront 2 features maps and moments from all across the star wars continuity, from the Phantom Menace's Theed palace on Naboo to the Starkiller Base seen in The Force Awakens.

While the full release will feature a myriad of planets and game modes to explore and do battle on, The beta chooses to focus on three worlds; Naboo, the skies above Fondor, and Takodana, with each world relating to a particular era of the star wars saga. Naboo, as seen in the prequel trilogy, is host to both the beta's Arcade and Galactic Assault modes. Arcade mode features a small-scale conflict, racing against the clock or simply wearing down enemy forces until one side runs out of lives. Galactic assault sees players going head to head as either clone troopers or the droid army in the battle for Theed Palace while giving players the chance to also try out the various hero characters the Beta has to offer, such as Rey or Darth Maul. Fondor, representing the Galactic Empire and the Rebellion, is host to the Starfighter Assault mode; as the name implies, this puts players in the cockpit for frantic aerial dogfights. Lastly, The Force Awakens' Takodana features the Strike mode, a class-based, hero free conflict that focuses more on team cohesion than the run-and-gun play of galactic assault. Not featured in the beta is the much anticipated Single Player mode, though arcade mode does feature solo play.

The second biggest change would have to be the inclusion of player classes. While Battlefront 1 featured a veritable arsenal of selectable firearms, battlefront 2 elects to return to a more familiar class-based system. Instead of sticking with the same trooper as everyone else, with the only difference being which gun you chose to take, players instead start the match by choosing between one of four classes; assault, heavy, officer, and specialist. Assault is the rush-down class, excelling at quick hard-hitting attacks, easily maneuvering throughout the battlefield. Heavies are self-explanatory; they dish out and take damage like no tomorrow, and come equipped with a temporary shield to boot, with the drawback of being slightly slower. Officers provide buffs for their allies and can deploy turrets. Specialists are the more defensive characters, coming equipped with a sniper rifle as well as deployable traps, generally staying back while the rest of the team pushes forwards. Mixing and matching the classes effectively is generally the way to go if you're looking to stay on top of the enemy, while the overarching class system adds a measure of welcomed unpredictability to every battle. Throwing hero characters like Boba Fett or Darth Maul into the fray pushes this one step further, but the heroes themselves aren't terribly different from how they were in the previous game.

So, in summary; The beta has a modest amount to offer players looking to experiment before buying (or ignoring) the latest battlefront release. It feels just as fun to play as its predecessor and keeps most of the elements that made said predecessor fun in the first place. Battlefront wasn't broken, just empty, and Battlefront 2 looks like it will be a far fuller experience overall, though so far the improvements feel few and far between. That said, the promise of more content and the aforementioned story campaign is enough to get me hooked and ready for the full game's release. So check out the beta if it strikes your fancy; it'll be available for public consumption this Friday and will run through the weekend.

[greencardback]

Mid-February marks every toy nerds favourite industry event – New York Toy Fair. It’s the premiere opportunity for the biggest names in plastic merchandising to show off their wares for the upcoming year.

Hasbro is no exception, and from Transformers to Overwatch, the Pawtucket toy company made a splash this year. But it was the company’s Star Wars reveals that I was waiting for.

And reveal they most certainly did.

The Good, the Great and the WTF

For such a thinly-spread line Hasbro certainly delivered a memorable Toy Fair for Star Wars collectors, that’s for sure. But while some of the Big H’s new toys blew minds in a good way, other choices have proven to be real headscratchers.

With that in mind, let’s check out the toys!

The Good

Is The Vintage Collection (TVC) actually back?

After being passed over in favour of the 6″ Black Series line, the super-articulated TVC figures looked like a relic of the past up until last year. When the line relaunched with two waves of repacked figures it felt like some kind of life support… and then Toy Fair happened.

With a host of new figures including a fantastic looking Stormtrooper and two (yes, two!) versions of Lando Calrissian, the basic line is strong – and that’s even before you get to the skiff.

An awesome-looking new Skiff is coming this year, meaning that alongside your Sail Barge you’ll have everything you need to recreate the skirmish at the Pit of Carkoon. Just to make sure of that fact, there’s even a three pack of Jabba’s goons en route to help you to fill out the display.

3.75″ Star Wars collecting has not had it so good for quite some time.

The Great

That said, the real 3.75″ centrepiece as far as I’m concerned is the TVC Jabba’s Palace Adventure playset.

Recreating a certain alcove of Jabba’s throne room (you might recognise it from Return of the Jedi), this detailed playset includes Jerba and Tauntaun trophies right next to a magnetic carbonite block, encasing everyone’s favourite Correllian smuggler.

This is exactly what collectors have been clamouring after for years, and it looks like it’s going to hit the spot. Given the design there’s even been speculation that it might be modular, in which case this particular collector would be ecstatic.

There’s more. It also comes packed with individually-carded TVC versions of Han Solo in Carbonite and Ree Yees, which makes the whole set at the price even more attractive. Personally I can’t wait to see what it looks like loaded up with POTF2 figures, but you know. You do you.

Oh, hi there twentieth anniversary of The Phantom Menace.

I’ve wanted one for a while, and now Hasbro have delivered – Episode I Obi-Wan Kenobi looks unbelievably good. This is a stone cold day one purchase.

Kenobi was revealed alongside an Black Series Archive version of Darth Maul, with both on Star Wars Celebration-exclusive Episode I card backs. As a dedicated opener (seriously, read my tirade here) I can’t quite believe I’m typing this, but… I would actually love one of these for display.

Of course it’s almost certainly moot because I’m not going to Celebration and would never pay scalper prices for a figure heading for regular release, but still. Seeing my era of Star Wars recreated like this I’m going to open the door on the possibility that I might just finally understand *a little bit* what all those carded TVC nuts (in the nicest possible way) get so excited about…

Nostalgia’s a killer, man.

There were more pics of the previously announced Black Series figures including Attack of the Clones Padme Amidala, which I can’t wait to get in hand. The Prequels in 6″ is like the frontier at this point – so many riches to discover!

The WTF

For all the many highs to get excited about above, Hasbro also delivered some reveals that went beyond perplexing.

The “Hyper Real” Darth Vader is an 8″ Dark Lord of the Sith figure that marks Hasbro’s first waltz into the higher end of the market.

Vader is built on top of an articulated skeleton and features a material costume, a stand and interchangeable hands, as well as a removable lightsaber blade. It looks OK, if you’re into that sort of thing. A few collectors have warned that the material used doesn’t have the best shelf life.

What’s confusing is why this figure even exists. Launching a new scale about five and a half years ago already caused a schism in the community, and has clearly given Hasbro difficulty with brand management. No-one wants a new scale, and I imagine even less would be willing to give it a go for the $80 asking price.

It’s just a strange, strange choice.

… Which brings us nicely on to the biggest single WTF moment from New York Toy Fair 2019: Hasbro is re-releasing vintage Star Wars figures.

Called the “Retro Collection” these are literal remakes of six of the original Kenner Star Wars line from 1978. They come on reproduction cards (with affected wear and a big red label on the front) and otherwise look exactly like the very same toys that you can buy right now on eBay.

Of course it’s not all that straightforward. Taking a leaf out of ReAction’s playbook Hasbro have made a vintage-style figure of Grand Moff Tarkin, a notable absentee from the original Kenner line. Tarkin, which will be available exclusively with a re-released Escape the Death Star board game, has split opinion – but there’s definitely collector interest in seeing Hasbro continue to make unmade characters – kind of like POTF2 did.

It’s all a bit strange.

What’s New is Old Again

I’ve gone back and forth on the vintage remakes. My initial impassioned reaction was that it’s a waste of plastic and resources (although it’s clear Hasbro are targeting a different market to hardcore toy collectors here).

However, after soaking the news in I pulled out my POTF2 Millennium Falcon and thought about having a Chewie that could fit in the pilot’s seat. Then, today, I took a 1983 Scout Trooper out to the woods for a couple of photos.

There’s a definite charm to the vintage figures, just as there is with some of the better modern 5POA figures. While I 100% prefer the improved sculpting of the figures from The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi lines, I still played with my own ’78 Darth Vader, Chewbacca and Stormtrooper as a kid.

Do I want that feeling back? I’m not sure. It’s an itch that POTF2 obliterated from 1995 onward, and I love my collection of that line.

But I’m not as opposed to the Retro Collection as I immediately was – which almost certainly means I’ll end up taking a certain skinny Wookiee home before 2019 is out.

TWITTER | INSTAGRAM

Rounding up #StarWars at #NYTF 2019: The Good, the Great, and the WTF >> Mid-February marks every toy nerds favourite industry event - New York Toy Fair. It's the premiere opportunity for the biggest names in plastic merchandising to show off their wares for the upcoming year.

[terryblount]

Latest Star Wars Battlefront 2 update brings Hero tweaks, new map for Capital Supremacy and more

DICE has released a brand new update for Star Wars Battlefront 2, and revealed its complete changelog. According to the release notes, the Giants Above Kachirho update adds the Kashyyyk – Kachirho Beach map to the Capital Supremacy mode and introduces a new appearance for Leia Organa.

Moreover, this patch features a number of Hero tweaks and balance improvements, fixes several collision and map geometry issues on all playable maps of Capital Supremacy, adds a visual icon to signify AI players, fixes an issue where AI players could go through Out Of Bounds areas or teleport closer to the objective during the Boarding phase, and brings lighting, sound effects and visual polish across the maps, cinematics and Battle Beyond elements in Capital Supremacy.

It’s also worth noting that DICE has made visual improvements to the readability of the stamina bar, updated the blurred background of text menus to allow for easier reading of Milestone texts, implemented Rich Presence data for Capital Supremacy and fixed an issue where the player would be able to equip Star Cards from different classes by quickly switching between equipping and crafting of Star Cards.

As always, Origin will download this update the next time you launch its client, and you can find its complete changelog below.

Star Wars Battlefront 2 Giants Above Kachirho Patch Release Notes

NEW CONTENT

Kashyyyk – Kachirho Beach is now available to play on Capital Supremacy.

A new appearance for Leia Organa, Princess, is now viewable in the Main Menu and will be rewarded through an upcoming Community Event.

  QUALITY OF LIFE

A permanent tile for Capital Supremacy has been added to the Main Menu.

  HERO CHANGES

Added the ability to block for Darth Maul and Yoda.

Fixed an issue where holding the Block button while out of stamina, would prevent the stamina bar from being replenished.

Yoda and Darth Vader can now jump as high as other Force heroes.

Heroes with longer-lasting abilities will now not be interrupted by opponents using Force powers. This applies to General Grievous’ Unrelenting Advance, Darth Vader’s Force Choke and Darth Maul’s Choke Hold.

Fixed an issue where a Hero’s animation during blocking would not show properly when blocking attacks from another character.

Fixed issues with the description texts for Darth Vader’s Focused Rage and Rey’s Insight abilities, that were not accurately describing the stamina reduction when using the abilities.

Fixed an issue where Darth Vader’s and Darth Maul’s Lightsabers would get stuck spinning when thrown against an enemy turret.

Fixed an issue where the button prompt to perform the final move for Obi-Wan’s Defensive Rush and Chewbacca’s Charge Slam would not show up on screen.

Fixed an issue that would prevent multiple Lightsaber Hero abilities from inflicting damage to the Officer’s turret. This applies to Luke’s Rush, Darth Maul’s Spin Attack and Yoda’s Dash Attack.

ANAKIN SKYWALKER

Reduced Anakin’s Pull Dominance base range from 20 to 18 meters.

Reduced Anakin’s Retribution range from 20 to 15 meters.

Removed the push effect from Anakin’s Passionate Strike

Fixed an issue where Anakin’s Retribution ability could be re-triggered too quickly, leading to unwanted cancelling.

Fixed an issue where Anakin’s Lightsaber would occasionally turn off during Passionate Strike.

Anakin’s deflect stamina has been reduced from 14 to 10 melee attacks.

Fixed an issue that could cause Anakin Skywalker to get stuck during the Heroic Might ability animation, due to a bad connection with the server.

Fixed an issue where Anakin would not blink when performing an emote.

Fixed an issue where Anakin’s eyelashes would stretch when performing the Grumpy Master emote.

DARTH MAUL

Fixed an issue that would show the wrong area of effect when performing Darth Maul’s Choke Hold ability.

OBI-WAN KENOBI

Community Request: Adjusted Obi-Wan’s primary attack sequence animation so that it feels faster.

Community Request: Brought back Obi-Wan’s air attack animation, but adjusted so that it feels faster.

CHEWBACCA

Fixed an issue where Chewbacca’s Charge Slam ability would deal damage to a Lightsaber enemy who blocks.

Increased CHARGE SLAM damage to troopers from 150 to 200 points.

Increased push force of CHARGE SLAM on troopers from 3m to 10m.

Increased Radius of CHARGE SLAM FROM 6m to 8m.

DARTH VADER

Increased Darth Vader’s attack stamina by 2 Lightsaber strikes, to a total of 10 strikes.

LUKE SKYWALKER

Fixed an issue that would prevent Luke’s Deflection Mastery Star Card to work as intended.

CAPTAIN PHASMA

Fixed an issue where Captain Phasma’s Staff Strikes would remain active and deal damage to a target when being interrupted.

Fixed an issue where Captain Phasma’s Staff Strikes would not deal a stagger animation when hitting an enemy.

COUNT DOOKU

Fixed an issue where Count Dooku’s Lighting Stun ability would not always deliver the knockback effect.

Updated text description for Count Dooku’s Dominance Star Card, to more accurately describe the damage values expected at every rarity level.

REY

Community request: Adjusted Rey’s facial expression on the Main Menu for accuracy.

HAN SOLO

Fixed an issue where Han Solo could still detonate his Detonite Charge while being immobilized.

Fixed an issue where Han Solo’s Shoulder Charge ability would deal damage to a Lightsaber enemy who blocks.

GENERAL GRIEVOUS

Fixed an issue where Rocket missiles and the ARC Trooper’s Power Blast shots would occasionally pass through Grievous’ Unrelenting Advance.

YODA

Reduced the health gained from Yoda’s Presence ability from 200 to 100 points.

BOSSK

Fixed an issue that would cause Bossk to do a double animation upon re-triggering the Predator Instincts ability.

  GAME MODE AND MAP CHANGES

CAPITAL SUPREMACY – GROUND PHASE

Lighting, sound effects and visual polish across the maps, cinematics and Battle Beyond elements in Capital Supremacy.

Fixed several collision and map geometry issues on all playable maps of Capital Supremacy.

Fixed an issue where AI players could go through Out Of Bounds areas or teleport closer to the objective during the Boarding phase.

Added a visual icon to signify AI players.

Added Faction icons next to the ticket counters.

Fixed a visual issue where the HUD animation for the Boarding phase would re-trigger every time a player looked through the weapon scope.

Fixed an issue where players from opposing factions would get spawned next to each other.

Color of capture progress around a Command Post icon now shows which team is capturing an objective.

Fixed a visual issue that would show the progress bar UI of two Command Posts at the same time.

Made the projection from the Command Posts slightly taller for easier identification during gameplay.

Improved the E-Web turret look to better match the Clone Wars era.

Fixed a visual issue with the sky dome on Geonosis – Pipeline Junction West.

Fixed an issue where the players would not get damaged from environment fire on Geonosis – Pipeline Junction West.

Replaced leaf VFX with sand VFX flying around Boarding ships, when they are ready to depart to the Capital ships.

Fixed an issue where the user would not be rewarded with points when capturing Command Post D while mounting the E-Web turret.

Fixed an issue where the player was able to destroy the Spider Droid near Command Post A on Geonosis.

CAPITAL SUPREMACY – CAPITAL SHIPS

Multiple collision fixes and visual improvements on both the Separatist Dreadnought and the Republic Attack Cruiser.

Improved issues with textures clipping in during the boarding cinematic on Capital Supremacy.

Fixed an issue where players could still interact with the objectives on Capital Ships, even when there were no tickets left for the attacking team.

Fixed an issue where the objective arrow icon could mislead players when standing close to the objective.

The correct message now shows up on the Spawn screen, when hovering over a vehicle while playing in the Capital Ships phase of Capital Supremacy.

Fixed a visual issue where the ticket bar would not extend to show the additional tickets gained from the Boarding phase.

REPUBLIC ATTACK CRUISER

Fixed an issue where the wrong map name would be shown on the Pause Menu when playing on the Republic Attack Cruiser, for players who joined the mode during the Capital Ship phase.

Fixed an issue where the trajectory of a projectile would get derailed when shooting through a window panel on the Republic Attack Cruiser.

SEPARATIST DREADNOUGHT

Visual and lighting improvements, as well as texture optimization on the Separatist Dreadnought.

Fixed an issue where not all lights of the same type would turn red when an objective gets destroyed on the Separatist Dreadnought.

HERO SHOWDOWN – GEONOSIS

Made several fixes that prevent Boba Fett from reaching areas that are unreachable by other Heroes.

GALACTIC ASSAULT

Fixed an issue where picking up and firing with a Rocket Launcher would also trigger a melee attack.

GALACTIC ASSAULT – GEONOSIS

Fixed an issue where the Phase 3 objective could still be captured if the AT-TE was standing slightly outside the Capture Zone.

EWOK HUNT

Fixed an issue where the enemies would not show on the mini-map while the Ewok’s Hunter’s Instincts ability is active.

CAMPAIGN

Fixed an issue that would cause the last of the Ion Cannon terminals to not slide down during mission “The Dauntless”.

MAP CHANGES

Fixed several collision, map geometry and lighting issues on Yavin 4, Endor, Naboo – Theed, Jakku, Hoth, Starkiller Base, Death Star II, Geonosis – Trippa Hive.

ARCADE CHANGES

Implemented several improvements and bug fixes to Arcade AI:

The Enemy AI will now move faster by prioritizing running or sprinting when in certain distances from the target.

Increased running/movement speed when strafing and running backwards.

Replaced sidestepping animations with more active systemic movement.

Updated attack sequences. AI will actively maintain preferred distance and try not to run past target.

Tweaked preferred distances from target.

Arcade AI will now fall back when taking fire.

Tweaked Arcade difficulty settings.

Tweaked Arcade AI targeting.

Decreased fire delays.

Fixed an issue where Arcade AI would occasionally run over stationary shields.

Additional Arcade AI tweaks.

Fixed an issue where moving around the Officer AI on Arcade would make their arm twitch.

Updated the AI navigation path and adjusted the Out Of Bounds areas on the Arcade version of Yavin 4.

Fixed an issue where the Arcade AI would miss Yoda by shooting at him above his head.

SQUAD SPAWN CHANGES

Fixed an issue where players who have completed the Boarding phase, would not be greyed out on the Squad Spawn screen on Capital Supremacy.

Fixed an issue that would inaccurately show players as available to spawn on when first joining the Capital Ship phase on Capital Supremacy.

Fixed an issue where an Officer deploying the Disruptor ability on an enemy would show as engaged in combat for a longer period than the effect lasts on the enemy.

VEHICLE CHANGES

Made visual improvements to the Separatist livery of Hailfire Droids.

Improved the firing crosshair on the AT-RT and Tauntaun for accuracy. The crosshair will now not be disappearing completely when firing is temporarily blocked by activating an ability.

Fixed an issue where the Health bar of the player would temporarily show to have 300 points when exiting a Speeder bike.

Fixed an issue that would cause the LIUV vehicle to have no sound after the player has spawned in it.

AT-RT

Firing on the AT-RT is now temporarily blocked only when activating the Repair ability.

AT-RT firing is now blocked for the duration of the Repair ability.

Reduced the active time of the ION Charge ability from 10 to 7 seconds and fixed an issue that would cause the weapon to overheat during that time.

Fixed an issue that would prevent land vehicles to take damage from Lightsaber Heroes.

  CHANGES TO CLASSES AND SPECIAL UNITS

Community Request: Fixed an issue where the Enforcer Reinforcements would be missing from the spawn screen when playing Custom Arcade on Geonosis.

Fixed a clipping issue when a Trooper would perform the Injured emote.

OFFICER

Fixed an issue that would show the wrong model for the Separatist Officer when switching from third to first person view.

Fixed an issue where the Officer would be awarded with a Kill Assist bonus when a buffed ally would be destroyed.

Fixed an issue where the VFX and SFX of the Officer’s Disruption ability would remain on an enemy’s weapon after the effect wears off.

Fixed several minor visual and clipping issues across Clone Trooper appearances of different legions.

Fixed an issue where quickly scrolling through the Emotes list of the Navy Officer would cause the audio clips to overlap.

HEAVY

Fixed an issue where the Heavy Trooper’s Ion Torpedo would not target Captain Phasma’s First Order Sentry Droid.

SPECIALIST

Fixed an issue where the Expert Weapons Handling Star Card would have no effect when shooting with the NT-242 Specialist weapon.

INFILTRATOR REINFORCEMENTS

Fixed an issue where you could get progress on Lando Calrissian’s Stun and Attack Milestone when using the ARC Trooper’s Shock Trap

Made visual improvements to the Commando Droid’s Vibrosword.

VFX and SFX polish for the Infiltrator Reinforcements’ abilities.

Fixed an issue where the ARC Trooper had no Battle Points price associated when playing on Strike.

Fixed an issue where the ARC Trooper’s Power Blast ability would get deactivated if the player started dashing right after deploying with the ARC Trooper.

Fixed an issue where the Stalker Star Card would not function in Arcade and functioned intermittently in Multiplayer.

Fixed an issue where the ARC Trooper could cool down his weapon while charging Power Blast.

Fixed an issue where a player playing as the ARC Trooper would get a Shock Trap target activated, even when the Shock Trap was deployed by another ARC Trooper.

Animation polish for the ARC Trooper and Commando Droid to fix various clipping issues.

The Commando Droid now deploys a small grenade that enables the smoke effect of the Smoke Screen ability.

Community Request: Fixed an issue where the Commando Droid’s Thermal Vision would occasionally get cancelled when dodging, while the VFX remain on screen.

  GENERAL CHANGES/MISC

Community Request: Made visual improvements to the readability of the stamina bar.

Community Request: Updated the blurred background of text menus to allow for easier reading of Milestone texts.

Fixed an issue where the player would be able to equip Star Cards from different classes by quickly switching between equipping and crafting of Star Cards.

Implemented Rich Presence data for Capital Supremacy.

Fixed an issue where the wrong VO would occasionally be heard by a second player when a player activates two emotes in a row.

Fixed an issue that would cause a certain key binding text string to overflow from its appropriate text window when playing the game in Japanese.

  KNOWN ISSUES

Yoda and Darth Maul’s block stops working if they hold the block button before and for the duration of the abilities Dash Attach and Spin Attack respectively. The issue is being investigated and will be resolved at a later update.

The Infiltrators’ Stalker Star Card does not grand the correct amount of health at any rarity.

Latest Star Wars Battlefront 2 update brings Hero tweaks, new map for Capital Supremacy and more published first on https://touchgen.tumblr.com/

[flapsfilmfiles]

SPOILER FREE* All 9 Star Wars Films Ranked Worst to Best

Star Wars is one of the most popular franchises in modern cinema. Thanks to George Lucas and the original trilogy, fans have gotten multiple movies, video games, and books that revolve around the three original films. With The Last Jedi now in theatres, it’s time to take a look at where it stacks up with the rest of the saga.

9. Attack of the Clones

The prequels were very poorly received by Star Wars fans and critics alike. The worst of the three prequels, and of the entire Star Wars Saga, has to be Attack of the Clones. Everything about this movie was lacking. The CGI in all three of the prequels looked horrible, but it was super distracting in Episode II. There were very little practical effects used and when they used CGI it was painfully obvious. This was also the first time a CGI Yoda was used which turned out looking worse than just using a puppet. Even Christopher Lee wasn’t able to save this movie. With as much talent as Lee has, the villain should have been the highlight of the film, but his character fell short of expectations much like the rest of the movie.

8. The Phantom Menace

Released sixteen years after Return of the Jedi, The Phantom Menace comes in at number eight on our list. Fans were disappointed with the newest film from a galaxy far far away for a number of reasons. One reason would be the completely different tone and atmosphere that the movie sets up. The story is more about politics than a grand space adventure. This movie attempts to show the origin story for Darth Vader, but Jake Lloyd’s performance as a young Anakin Skywalker left much to be desired. Unlike Attack of the Clones, The Phantom Menace did have some redeeming characteristics, or should I say characters. This movie may have been an extreme disappointment to Star Wars fans, but Lucas did introduce some awesome new characters. Mace Windu, Qui-Gon Jin, and Darth Maul are probably the best three characters introduced in the prequels. Ewan McGregor’s portrayal of the young Obi-Wan Kenobi was also well received for the most part. Adding these characters and an epic lightsaber sequence near the end surely helped the movie, but these elements were pretty much drowned out by all of the other problems this movie faced.

7. Revenge of the Sith

2005 marked the end of the Star Wars prequel trilogy. Did this movie win audiences over and regain people’s trust in George Lucas? Yes and no… but mainly no. The movie did cater to fans by showing the climax of the Anakin/Obi-Wan conflict and the rise of Darth Vader, but it still faces many problems and backlashes. While it may be the best of the prequels, the dialogue and acting were sometimes laughable. Hayden Christiansen gets a lot of criticism for his role as Anakin, and it is well deserved. In short, his acting brought down the overall quality of the film. Even though it wasn’t great, the film did still manage to tie into A New Hope smoothly and show an intense lightsaber fight between Obi-Wan and Anakin. Revenge of the Sith delivered in a lot of ways, but still fell flat of the original trilogy’s magic.

6. Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

With the record breaking opening of The Force Awakens, it was only a matter of time before Disney decided to make more Star Wars movies that didn’t have to do with the main characters of the new trilogy. The first of these “Star Wars Stories” came Rogue One which was about the rebellion’s journey to destroying the Death Star. With this being the first Star Wars spin-off, it was smart for them to focus on a story that takes place right before A New Hope. This allowed for the return of many famous Star Wars characters including, Darth Vader, Princess Leia, General Tarkin, and many others. It was fun seeing these characters on screen again, but the same can’t be said for the new characters. The new characters lacked a lot of character development. The only character to be somewhat developed was Jyn, and even that just barely scraped the surface. Rogue One is far superior to the prequel trilogy, but then again, that isn’t hard to accomplish.

5. The Last Jedi

The Last Jedi is that sequel that just can’t beat its predecessor. The Last Jedi was a fun film that gave both Luke and Leia bigger roles than they previously had in The Force Awakens. While it was cool to see these characters interact with the new generation of characters, the film had some glaring problems. One of these problems pertained to the lead villain which is a huge problem for a film as big as Star Wars. The second big problem was the unanswered questions that weren’t answered from The Force Awakens. The special effects on the other hand were top notch. The light saber battles and X-Wing battles were some of the examples of how great special effects and CGI can really be. The Last Jedi was quite the ride, but it just couldn’t top The Force Awakens or the original trilogy.

4. The Force Awakens

Creating a new Star Wars movie when the original trilogy is so popular can be tough, as George Lucas found out in 1999. This could explain why J.J Abrams made The Force Awakens so similar to A New Hope. Even though some consider this a remake of A New Hope, it was still a solid beginning to the sequel trilogy. It succeeded at introducing new hero’s including Rey and Finn, and the villain Kylo Ren. All of these characters became immensely popular after the release which is one reason why the film did so well. The other reason the film did well was because the filmmakers catered to the original trilogy. Han, Luke, Leia, and Chewbacca all return for The Force Awakens. Mixing the old characters with the New was a nice way of keeping the movie fresh and still keeping original fans happy. Even though it doesn’t beat any of the original trilogy, it was still a mile ahead of the prequels.

3. Return of the Jedi

Even though it’s considered the weakest entry of the original trilogy, Return of the Jedi still beats out all three of the prequel movies and the two sequel films. The main complaint people have with this third film are the Ewoks since it made the tone so much lighter than Empire Strikes Back. While this film was a disappointment compared to Empire, it still had an original story with a lot of unique scenes. We finally get to see the Emperor in his full glory as well as Vader without his helmet. Luke and Leia’s family dynamic was also revealed in this film which was as fascinating as it was gross. Even though Return of Jedi was the weakest entry to the original trilogy, it was still a satisfying end to an era.

2. A New Hope

The Star Wars that started it all comes in at our number two spot. Episode IV: A New Hope, originally just titled Star Wars introduces fans to one of cinema’s most iconic trio; Han, Luke, and Leia. While none of them had an elaborate back story, they were all introduced in a smooth way that made the characters instantly likable. Star Wars had the perfect amount of action, comedy, and drama that ended up becoming an international phenomenon. George Lucas also invented what is arguably the greatest movie villain ever made. Star Wars was the beginning of an entire new universe of unique weapons, vehicles, and wardrobes that are still one of a kind. It’s also worth mentioning that this film received six Oscars and was nominated for another four in 1978. Star Wars stands as one of the best fantasy films ever made, but there is still one that beats the original.

1. The Empire Strikes Back

Hands down, The Empire Strikes Back wins the number one spot. Not very often do you get a sequel that surpasses its predecessor, but just that happened in 1980. The Empire Strikes Back has everything you could ever want in a Star Wars film. It’s got epic lightsaber fights, a romance between Han and Leia, and another legendary score composed by John Williams. Not only do the original cast return, but we also get introduced to a range of new characters as well. Yoda, Lando Calrissian, and Boba Fett all make their debuts in the Empire Strikes Back and they have become just as popular as the original cast. This sequel was a little darker than the original, but that’s one of the many reasons why this film stands out above the others in the Star Wars franchise.

So that’s my ranking of the films, but what’s yours? Sound off in the comments about what your order is and if you agree with my number one spot! Don’t forget to hit that like button and may the force be with you.

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Source: Lucasfilm and Disney

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What We've Learned From E3 2017 Thus Far

So far this year E3 has had some very surprising hits and few misses. Some already announced games were expanded upon while new properties surprised gamers worldwide and in some cases, older properties are making their way back into the gaming world as well.

If you haven’t had a chance to keep up with E3 this year and need a quick rundown, don’t worry bro, we got you!

Here’s a list of things that we’ve soaked up so far and that I’m sure you’ll find to be quite reassuring:

  1): VR is making progress this year

For those of us who haven’t seen a lot of progress in the VR world, then it’s time to take a moment and look at the announcements. We’ve seen the Fallout 4 VR, ES: Skyrim VR, and Doom VFR and we’ve got to say, it’s looking quite lovely. Please, do yourself a favor and at least watch the Fallout 4 VR trailer. Watching a deathclaw come at you whilst listening to “Mr. Sandman” is destined to get your blood pumping.

  2): Bethesda didn’t disappoint

Not only mentioning Fallout 4 VR and ES: Skyrim VR, Bethesda also introduced us to Wolfenstein 2, Evil Within 2 and ES: Legends Heroes of Skyrim. Treat yo self and watch these trailers. Wolfenstein 2 looks promising and rather gory. Evil Within 2 will continue to give us nightmares upon nightmares and ES: Legends Heroes of Skyrim is a welcome addition to the already successful and quite addictive ES: Legends digital card game.

  Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus

  3): Ubisoft nailed it this year

Introducing a lot of sequels, prequels and additions to previous properties does not mean that Ubisoft lost this year’s conference. Just wait till you read the properties we’re talking about. One that might surprise you is the announcement trailer for Beyond Good and Evil 2. Yes! You read that right. And if that’s not enough to get you excited (though it should be) there’s also the gameplay trailer for Far Cry 5, which takes place in Montana, U.S., a very different location for the franchise. We also got a glimpse at a new game called Skull & Bones, a pvp pirate game, The Crew 2, and Mario &  which we’ll see on the Switch. Last but not least, we’ve got Assassin’s Creed: Origins taking place in Ancient Egypt, a perfect exotic location and a nice change of pace for the franchise.

  Beyond Good and Evil 2

  4): It’s a good year to be a sci-fi fan

Yep. That’s right. We’ve got a new game coming called Anthem, a game developed by BioWare which shows its vast and lush locations juxtaposed with new technologies and weapons. If you’re leery on new titles, then don’t forget about Destiny 2, a game that was announced with a trailer some time ago, but had more to show this time around. We’ve also got Detroit: Become Human and Star Wars: Battlefront 2, but we’ll cover those more thoroughly in a bit.

  Anthem

  5): Sony builds on properties 

This year at E3, Sony didn’t have as many explosive announcements like last year’s Death Stranding. But, they did show us more of what they have to offer. First, they showed us more footage of the new Spider-Man game which will be a PS4 exclusive. If it’s as good as the PS2 Spider-Man 2  game, then many nostalgic fans will be flocking to stores on its release. Then, we saw more God of War. Though we saw a good amount of footage last year, this time we got even more. Those of us familiar with the franchise should be pleased, but it appears to be one that newcomers can jump right into without much play history. Sony introduced a deeper look into the post-apocalyptic biker game, Days Gone, as well Detroit: Become Human, a game from the makers of Heavy Rain. Fans of the Uncharted series have Uncharted: Lost Legacy to look forward to as well, which no longer follows Nathan Drake, but Chloe and Nadine, two characters formerly introduced in the series that will be teaming up. And are you ready for the final kicker? It looks like we will be getting a remastered Shadow of the Colossus and it is b-e-a-utiful!

  Spider-Man

  6): Microsoft’s a tech powerhouse

After the launch of the PS4 Pro, we are now getting the Xbox One X, a gaming console that we are told is going to be an extremely powerful console, able to run 4k more easily than the PS4 Pro. On top of that, the Xbox One will now be backward compatible with some original Xbox games. In terms of gaming exclusives, we got our first look at Crackdown 3 and Forza 7, both of which are titles to get overly excited about and scream in public.

  Xbox One X

  7): Nintendo always has a charming way of surprising us

If you’ve got the Switch and are concerned about the lack of launch titles except Legend of Zelda, then don’t be concerned much longer. Nintendo announced everything from Xenoblade Chronicles 2, a Kirby game, a��Pokemon RPG to Metroid Prime 4! We also saw a new title, Super Mario Odyssey which has been described as “weird” which just gets us that much more intrigued.

Super Mario Odyssey

  8): Star Wars: Battlefront 2 will be HUGE

We thought Star Wars: Battlefront 2 deserved its own mention and you should too. There’s plenty of content to look at including gameplay trailers and play throughs of the online mode, but from what we’re seeing, it’s going to be HUGE! Building off of the mechanics of the first entry, this game will be adding more eras of the SW universe, promising a variety in playability. What they’ve shown the most is a battle in the city of Theed, pitting the Separatist droid forces against the Republic army of clones and even though many fans of the franchise dislike the prequel trilogy, none can complain about the design aspect of them, which plays a large part of the game. We got to see Naboo starfighters, as well as AAT tank combat and hero integration. I mean, we’re talking Darth Maul and Rey here people! What’s not to get excited about? There wasn’t much in terms of campaign reveal, save a short clip, but we understand their reasons for keeping those things under wraps for now.

Star Wars: Battlefront 2

  9): Final Notable Mentions

Last but not least, there are other games announced and expanded on that should be researched immediately. We got to see more of Middle Earth: Shadow of War, a trailer for a new co-op prison escape game called A Way Out, State of Decay 2, Metro: Exodus which gave us an eerie look into a beautiful waste land, and more footage for Call of Duty: World War 2, which has us excited for new and innovative multiplayer modes as well as a dramatic campaign.

  There is much more to see from E3 this year, so do some digging for yourself and watch the trailers for these new ga

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Star Wars Battlefront II: Campaign First Look, Multiplayer Report

From Playstation Blog USA

The pitch for Star Wars Battlefront II is mind-boggling. Three major development studios are teaming up to create a deep and nuanced multiplayer competitive shooter set across all three Star Wars film eras. Simultaneously, they are developing a new storyline set from the Empire’s perspective that reveals the events between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens. “Ambitious” may be an understatement.

But based on what I’ve seen and played at EA Play this weekend, I think Motive, Criterion, and DICE are going to pull this thing off.

Let’s start with the campaign, which looked gorgeous running on PS4 Pro. In my 10 minute demo, I watched Imperial commander Iden Versio, leader of the elite Inferno Squad, fend off a Rebel attack with lethal grace.

In terms of pacing, action, and overall technical proficiency, this demo was a white-knuckle experience. Caught aboard a Star Destroyer amidst the Rebel attack, Iden hopped into a TIE Fighter and the gameplay seamlessly shifted to an intense outer space dogfight sequence.

After mopping up enemy fighters, the demoer piloted Iden’s TIE Fighter straight at the Rebel cruiser — right into its docking bay! — and melted half the ship’s innards in a hail of blaster fire. Then Iden hopped out to finish the fight on foot in a tense shootout set inside the twisted corridors of the ship. Important note: amidst all these perspective switches, there was nary a loading screen to be seen.

Inside the Rebel cruiser, I got a closer look at Iden’s combat repertoire. Her combat droid is already shaping up to be a deadly asset: I saw it zap Rebel troopers with electricity that could arc between multiple nearby combatants. Other combat droid abilities will be available too, depending on your play style.

Later, I spoke with Mark Thompson, the director of Battlefront II’s campaign, to learn more about how EA Motive tapped into the spirit and energy of the films. “It was this fantastic exercise of analyzing how Battlefront works, and how the Star Wars movie storytelling works, taking those two ideas together and seeing where the crossover is,” Thompson said. “It was one of the most interesting and engaging pre-productions on a project I’ve ever done.”

Campaign demo down, I was ready to go hands-on with the competitive multiplayer mode, which has seen an enormous upgrade over the 2014 game. The large-scale matches — up to 40 players — are a whirlwind of carnage and destruction, and subtly evoke elements found in developer DICE’s Battlefield series.

During my PS4 Pro play time, I played a mode called Assault on Theed, set on Naboo during the prequel era. On the Republic side, the goal was to stop an incoming Droid transport by launching ion cannon blasts, while the Droids were tasked with pushing into the palace throne room to end the match.

A few key observations from my multiplayer session:

There are four classes to choose from, each with a distinct role in the fight. Officers lurk in the background, boosting nearby teammates and dropping turrets to lay down cover fire. Heavy troopers rely on a tough shield, high hit points, and withering firepower. Specialists snipe and lay traps, while Assault troopers push the frontline and clear rooms with a deadly shotgun-like special weapon.

Abilities are currently mapped to L1, R1, and a special ability triggered by pressing L1 + R1.

Star Cards return, but work more like character modifiers, amping or altering a class’s base abilities. Rarer Star Cards will grant larger bonuses.

The current build was limited to just two weapons per class, but the final game will include further firepower, as well as the ability to install weapon add-ons.

Summoning Heroes works a bit differently; rather than grabbing a pickup item, you’ll earn Battle Points for inflicting damage on enemies and achieving objectives. Stockpile enough and you’ll be able to spend them on vehicles, elite troopers such as the B2 Super Battle Droid or Clone Jumptrooper, or at the high end Heroes like Darth Maul and Rey, all of which are blessed with unique tactical advantages. The Clone Jumptrooper is an early favorite, capable of extreme mobility and devastating rocket strikes.

All in all, certainly a promising start for Star Wars Battlefront II — it’s definitely a shooter to watch this year. Have questions? Let me know in the comments!

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The post Star Wars Battlefront II: Campaign First Look, Multiplayer Report appeared first on Ship 2 Block 20.

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Star Wars: The Clone Wars Episodes You Need to Watch Before The Mandalorian Season 3

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This Star Wars contains spoilers.

Din Djarin reluctantly found himself thrust in the middle of Mandalorian politics in season two of the hit live-action show. The bounty hunter just wanted to bring Grogu to a Jedi who could teach him to use the Force, but that journey also led him to Bo-Katan Kryze and Boba Fett, two Mandalorians who operate completely outside the strict traditions of Din’s own clan, the Children of the Watch. For the first time in his life, Din’s seeing all the different angles and factions of the society to which he belongs.

If all of the intrigue surrounding Mandalore went over your head while watching the second season, there’s a very easy way to catch up. After all, much of the Mandalorian history teased in season 2 was first detailed in The Clone Wars animated series, and watching just a short selection of episodes provides a lot of context for what’s happening in the live-action series. While The Clone Wars doesn’t explain everything about what we’ve seen in The Mandalorian so far, it does give you Bo-Katan’s backstory, a rundown of Mandalore’s many cultures and factions, a deeper dive into the race’s relationship with the Jedi, and an introduction to the Darksaber.

Stream your Star Wars favorites right here!

Here are The Clone Wars episodes and arcs you need watch to get up to speed on Mandalorian history before season 3 of the live-action series (as well as The Book of Boba Fett):

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The Mandalore Plot (Season 2, Episode 12)

Remember when Bo-Katan called Din Djarin’s clan “Children of the Watch?” What about when Din argued with a Mandalorian named Paz Vizsla in season one episode “The Sin?” Well, the significance of both the clan name and the Vizsla surnname are hinted at, if not fully explained, in the first Mandalore episode of The Clone Wars.

This episode marked a soft reboot for Mandalorian lore even before the pre-Disney Legends timeline was declared non-canon. Far from the armored warriors we were used to at the time, the Mandalorians introduced in this episode are a pacifistic, largely homogeneous society led by Duchess Satine Kryze, Bo-Katan’s sister. Not all Mandalorians are happy with this new status quo, though.

A violent rebel faction called Death Watch seeks to bring back Mandalore’s warlike past. This is the same group that would one day rescue a young Din during the Clone Wars, which explains why Din and his clan follow ancient warrior traditions as opposed to the more modern beliefs of Bo-Katan’s group.

“The Mandalore Plot” also marked the first appearance of the Darksaber, this time in the hands of Death Watch leader Pre Vizsla. He explains in the episode that the Darksaber was built by a Mandalorian Jedi named Tarre Vizsla and later stolen from the Jedi Temple. While many years and unanswered questions remain between “The Mandalore Plot” and The Mandalorian, the episode does show the roots of the Darksaber as a symbol of political power on Mandalore.

Voyage of Temptation (Season 2, Episode 13)

This is largely a bridge between the two other episodes in this arc when it comes to new Mandalore facts, but it does reveal some important elements about the political situation on the planet during the war.

An assassination attempt reveals that Death Watch is in league with both a corrupt Republic senator and the Separatists. Palpatine’s hands are everywhere, even on Mandalore. While that probably is no longer true at the time of The Mandalorian, we do know the wheels of Palpatine’s plans are still spinning between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens, including during the time period when the Disney+ series takes place. It’s possible we’ll learn more about what the Imperial remnant wants with an occupied Mandalore in season 3.

This episode also emphasizes how different Satine’s regime is compared to other eras of Mandalorian history, as she’s forced to make hard decisions in order to protect her government’s pacifist ideals. Bo-Katan, Koska Reeves, and Boba Fett are far from the first Mandalorians to fight over what being a Mando actually means.

Duchess of Mandalore (Season 2, Episode 14)

Death Watch reveals themselves in a big way in this episode. If Din is meant to be a member of a group derived from these guys, the faction has changed a lot over the generations.

In “Duchess of Mandalore,” the political situation on Mandalore gets more complicated as the prime minister worries about public perception of Death Watch. If the Republic comes in to put a stop to the brewing civil war, more Mandalorians could side with Death Watch out of the belief that they’re true countrymen are fighting against the Republic oppressors.

Although she doesn’t appear in this episode, this is the environment in which Bo-Katan formed her beliefs and opinions about how the planet Mandalore should operate and be governed. This moment in Clone Wars history really shapes the character.

Corruption (Season 3, Episode 5)

Rather notorious for its obscure “poisoned tea” storyline, “Corruption” is nevertheless an important link in the chain of understanding the recent history of Mandalore. Featuring both Satine and Padmé Amidala, the episode is a close look at the price of victory.

Despite the planet’s belligerent past, Mandalore manages to remain neutral in the Republic versus Separatist war, but it still controls a powerful sector valuable to both sides, which makes the planet a big prize for either side. This is one of the reasons the planet is ultimately doomed to fall in the war.

This episode also clearly shows how different Satine’s ideas are from those held by more traditional Mandalorians. When Bo-Katan expresses surprise that Din Djarin won’t take his helmet off in front of others, she is not only comparing him to extremists like Death Watch (who didn’t actually have the strict helmet rules) but to Satine’s efforts to bend the majority toward pacifistic homogeneity.

The Academy (Season 3, Episode 6)

Another character from The Mandalorian takes the stage: Ahsoka Tano. A continuation of “Corruption,” “The Academy” shows what life is like for children growing up in this era on Mandalore. It also sets the stage for conflict later.

The Jedi are not actually enemies of Satine’s Mandalorians during this time period. The idea of Jedi and Mandalorians as ancient enemies comes from ancient history, but was probably reinforced by the events of the fall of the Republic. As you’ll see by the end of The Clone Wars, the Jedi play a direct role in the Empire’s occupation of Mandalore.

The Jedi at this point in the Clone Wars unknowingly represent a corrupting influence of their own, spreading Republic ideology while Palpatine orchestrates from the shadows. Another political shake-up here further destabilizes Satine’s reign.

A Friend in Need (Season 4, Episode 14)

Bo-Katan takes the stage at last in her first appearance on the show. In “A Friend in Need,” we see how Death Watch has been slowly growing more powerful and more zealous while Satine and the Republic try to hold the New Mandalorian pacifist culture together.

This episode gives fans a closer look at who Death Watch were and why Bo-Katan chose to work with them to topple her sister’s government. In her attempts to reclaim Mandalore on The Mandalorian, she’s drawing on decades of the planet changing hands, a cycle of violence she helped spark in the first place. At some point, she’ll need to reckon with her past, but first she needs to get the planet back.

Another treat for fans of The Mandalorian: Bo-Katan and Ahsoka meet here, the start of a decades-long history that Din hilariously has no idea about. Bo-Katan matter-of-factly pointing Din to Ahsoka is pretty funny.

The Shadow Conspiracy Arc (Season 5, Episodes 14 – 16)

You will need some extra context before jumping into one of the most important Mandalorian stories in the Star Wars canon: a resurgent Maul and his brother Savage Opress have taken control of Death Watch, gaining a powerful army with which to execute their plan against the Jedi. During this arc, Maul takes the Darksaber from Pre Vizsla by force, declaring, “I claim this sword and my rightful place as leader” in the kind of violent transfer of power Bo-Katan later believes she needs to evoke to take the Darksaber from Din.

This action-packed arc marks a major turning point in the life of Bo-Katan and Mandalore itself, and you’ll get to see that all the way through in “Eminence,” “Shades of Reason,” and “The Lawless.”

The Siege of Mandalore Arc (Season 7, Episodes 9 – 12)

Some of the very best storytelling in The Clone Wars came at the end of the series. By the time she leads a Republic force to free Mandalore from Maul, Ahsoka has left the Jedi Order and the dark events of Revenge of the Sith are happening in the background. “The Night of a Thousand Tears” Moff Gideon witnessed also takes place around this time, although it hasn’t yet been seen on screen.

The Siege of Mandalore arc (“Old Friends Not Forgotten,” “The Phantom Apprentice,” “Shattered” and “Victory and Death”) shows how Maul encourages all-out war on the planet, Bo-Katan switches sides and asks the Jedi for help, and the Republic takes over Mandalore to stop the conflict just as it becomes the Empire.

Along with being some of the best tragedy and pulp fun Star Wars has to offer, this arc both details Order 66’s effect on Mandalore and Ahsoka. It also shows how much of it was orchestrated by Palpatine. The character who drives that home is Maul, who all along knew the Sith were eventually planning to use galactic in-fighting as part of their scheme to rise to power. It’s not surprising that the dark effects of these events are still being felt decades later on The Mandalorian.

The post Star Wars: The Clone Wars Episodes You Need to Watch Before The Mandalorian Season 3 appeared first on Den of Geek.

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Star Wars: Should Yoda Be in The High Republic?

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Jedi Master Yoda, Star Wars’ favorite puppet and the character whose performance could have made or broken The Empire Strikes Back, has a long history. In the real world, he’s a pop culture legend. In the Star Wars saga, he’s a 900-year old font of wisdom, strongly devoted to the light side of the Force but sometimes short-sighted. He’s Star Wars incarnate–but does he need to be in every Star Wars story?

Now that the Skywalker Saga has come to an end on the big screen, the next big Star Wars story will take place on the page in the form of The High Republic, a new series set 200 years before the start of the film saga we know and love. The High Republic includes books and comics that follow Jedi who are at the height of their powers during a time of peace for the Republic. The setting means that all of the characters we meet in The High Republic are going to be brand-new Jedi Knights and Masters. 

But the series won’t skip the obvious cameo, either. The High Republic will feature a “younger,” 700-year-old Yoda to tie these new books and comics to the big-screen trilogies. Concept artists Iain McCaig, Jeff R. Thomas, Grant Griffin, and others adapted Yoda, giving him a slightly less wrinkled face and slightly more colorful robes.

Take a look for yourself:

“The High Republic Yoda is a journeyman out in the galaxy,” said author Daniel José Older, whose comic The High Republic Adventures will bring Yoda to the new era in 2021. Visually, that means Yoda looks a bit younger and tougher. His Jedi robes were changed to reflect the High Republic style, including gold robes and a cloth lightsaber holster. The iconic character is going to play a “prominent” role, according to StarWars.com, but it doesn’t sound like Yoda will be on a battlefield or sitting in a Jedi Council chamber this time around.

“While he’s already a respected member of the Jedi Council at this point, we meet Yoda in IDW’s The High Republic Adventures series doing what he loves best: looking out for the young folks — in this case, a group of Padawans traveling around the galaxy to learn the ways of the Jedi with a hands-on approach,” Older said. “The Force study abroad program, basically.”

Yoda’s involvement in The High Republic does sound like it could be a lot of fun, but with the Disney era’s track record with cameos, I also have some reservations. Could Yoda’s role in The High Republic undermine this new era of Star Wars as a whole?

Star Wars’ Cameo Problems 

Two recent Star Wars stories show the pros and cons of including cameos from established characters: Star Wars Rebels and The Mandalorian. Darth Vader, Ahsoka Tano, Princess Leia, and other characters connected Rebels to other parts of the story the way Yoda could evoke the movies in The High Republic. But Vader and Ahsoka were given so much screen time that they became a distraction at times from what was initially a story about young Ezra’s self-discovery and coming-of-age. While Vader and Ahsoka’s storyline and eventual confrontation in an ancient Sith temple certainly affected Ezra in a big way, he was sort of pushed to the side during that storyline — and that’s not even mentioning the rest of the show’s original cast of characters.

The Mandalorian’s “toy box” approach results in a lot of characters who look similar to established ones but aren’t quite the same. Imagine a kid who has a Yoda figure but doesn’t know the character’s name or what he does in the movies. The toy is small, so maybe he’s a baby. But he’s wizened, so maybe he’s 50 years old. Of course, Baby Yoda a.k.a. The Child has been a wild example of this approach’s success. But it’s also different from a cameo character appearing in the flesh.

Yoda in the High Republic sounds like it could be more like the former: a well-known character appearing to take time away from new ones. The Yoda scenes will undoubtedly be spectacular and draw in fans who otherwise don’t have any connection to or interest in the pre-Prequel era or the books and comics. But it’s also possible that Yoda’s scenes will produce middling wink-and-nod references that dilute the overall story. Will Yoda be a vehicle for cutting comments about how exactly the Jedi have changed or cutesy references for the sake of the easter eggs? 

Yoda’s History 

Don’t get me wrong, I don’t hate cameos, and I definitely don’t hate Yoda. Maul’s brief cameo in Solo: A Star Wars Story? Loved it. A familiar character appeared briefly to do basically the same thing he did in the movies (ignite a lightsaber and look cool) and fill in a blank about his life. But Yoda’s role in The High Republic doesn’t sound like it will be light or brief. So I have to hope instead that it’ll be meaningful and carry significant weight. The High Republic will have to give Yoda the space to actually say something about Star Wars and the galaxy in which its set. He’s poised to be a great character with which to examine the politics of the Republic and the culture of the Jedi. With hundreds of years under his belt, Yoda has seen first-hand how the Jedi Order has changed. In the High Republic era, Jedi are focused more on effectively helping people than on following dogmatic rules. In the Prequel era, that changes. The fall of the Republic itself involves the moral degradation of the Jedi as much as it involves the Separatists’ military attacks.

Through Darth Sidious’ schemes, the Jedi slowly erode their former ethical lines, becoming enforcers instead of peacekeepers. Cloistered in their temple, they aren’t in touch with the people literally beneath their feet on the city-planet pf Coruscant, as the excellent middle arc of The Clone Wars season 7 showed. The Republic assigns them to missions that require power, and so they become less aware of the consequences of using that power. In The Clone Wars, we see how a Jedi’s attempt to catch a bounty hunter resulted in the death of civilians: deaths the Jedi knew about but took no responsibility for. 

The Prequels show how great Jedi like Yoda ultimately failed to see the bigger picture until it was too late. Will Yoda’s adventures 200 years before The Phantom Menace set the stage for his inevitable failure?

In Attack of the Clones, Yoda mourns the presence of “the shroud of the dark side” in the lives of the Jedi, but does not hesitate to turn the warrior-monks he heads into generals in the Clone Army. Could something in the High Republic explain why this didn’t bother him? Or is Darth Sidious just that…insidious? 

It isn’t all about the movies, of course. The High Republic could explore aspects of Yoda’s past from even before 232 BBY (the date in which the series is set). We know a couple other canon characters who were also alive even this early in the timeline. Professor Huyang, an ancient droid who appears in The Clone Wars voiced by Doctor Who star David Tennant, helped Yoda forge his very first lightsaber. We also know of two other Jedi Masters who taught Yoda, named K’ungfu and Chuang, who are likely too campy to appear in The High Republic, but learning more about the teachers who taught Yoda the wisdom he passes on in the movie could be interesting. 

If I had a voice in a boardroom for this project, here’s what I’d suggest: Yoda should not be just a cameo character. If he’s present in The High Republic, give him a role that illustrates how he changes in 200 years. Use the fact that the audience knows this character’s future not for dramatic irony but to actually say something new about him.

The first two parts of The High Republic, the adult novel Light of the Jedi by Charles Soule and the middle-grade novel A Test of Courage by Justina Ireland, will release on Jan. 5. The young adult novel Into the Dark by Claudia Gray will hit shelves on Feb. 2. Dates have yet to be set for the new comics series from Marvel and IDW.

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