2.03 – Children of the Force – Clone Wars Review

Posted by Samuel Walters

“The first step to correcting a mistake is patience.”

It’s an incredibly rich tapestry upon which the Clone Wars series is being woven. If nothing else, “Children of the Jedi” demonstrates the incredible wealth of character, setting, thematic and even technical resources that this series has available to create its stories. The good news is the fact that the Clone Wars almost always makes economical use of its assets. With that in mind, this installment is, truly, a classic – featuring a capable, resourceful villain, relentless heroes, and a quest that is worthy of being told.

Picking up where the previous episode left off, “Children of the Force” chronicles the efforts of the Jedi to thwart Cade Bane’s attempts to use the Jedi Holocron to abduct Force-sensitive children for use in nefarious experiments orchestrated by Darth Sidious. If the “reveal” that Bane is, actually, alive. Is not-so-unexpected, the episode itself more than compensates for the predictable turn of events. In fact, the Jedi hunt for Bane will not only lead to notable planets such as Rhodia, Naboo and Mustafar, but they’ll embroil our heroes in a plot that is deeply disturbing in its implications.

Darth Sidious was to brainwash infants to become his servants.

It’s a dark turn of events for the series. But, more importantly, the Clone Wars dies a fantastic job of playing off viewer expectations for the characters involved in this plot. Whether it is the “séance” used by Yoda and Mace Windu to locate potential victims, the visits to Naboo or Mustafar, or Anakin’s meeting with Palpatine, almost everything feels as though it was a missing, critical element from the Prequel Trilogy of Star Wars films. More than just about any episode of the Clone Wars series thus far, this installment feels like it was always meant to be part of George Lucas’ tale.

And while this episode is, for the most part, void of any real depth to its tale – beyond the strong and apt allusions to the film saga – it is, nonetheless, a very entertaining and thrilling tale. A story about abducting and brainwashing infants, about torturing a bounty hunter, about looking for revenge and rescue, is certainly worthy of the telling. Even if the episode seems a bit cavalier with its various plot elements, it still represents a mature and honest portrayal of characters doing everything they can to keep children from the evil clutches of the Dark Side.

Overall Grade: B+

On the whole, “Children of the Force” is a very good episode – a classic – which makes exceptional use of the Star Wars mythos to tell a tale that is compelling and dramatic.

Topics: Fantasy, Sci-Fi, TV Reviews
Filed under: Clone Wars