March 4 2011

view: (720p)



"Anything that can go wrong will."

Episode Guide: Counter Attack

Episode Air No: 63
Production No: 315

Director: Brian Kalin O'Connell
Writer: Matt Michnovetz

Synopsis: With freed prisoners in their possession and the brutal warden attempting desperately to thwart them - Obi-Wan & Anakin search for a way out of the Citadel and back to Coruscant.

view: (SD HDTV)

[align=center]STILLS • CONCEPT ART • TRIVIA[/align]
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[align=left]Secrets Revealed

• Seen several times throughout the Citadel are mouse droids, the same little boxy droids seen as messengers aboard the Death Star and Star Destroyers in the original trilogy, and on Mustafar in Episode III.

• Anakin's hopping on a STAP is an echo from way back in 2008, The Clone Wars animated story.

• The entire sequence where Obi-Wan and Even Piell try to sneak around the landing platform when they emerge from the ventilation duct was originally shot on top of the citadel tower. It was later moved with minimal pickups to the landing area behind the tower, on the ground.

• Obi-Wan's line to Osi Sobeck, "I must say, you're not at all what I pictured. Someone with such a soft voice," is particularly ironic given that actor James Arnold Taylor voices both characters.

• The monitoring devices along the walls of the Citadel seen in these three episodes are designed after similar devices seen aboard the Death Star in Episode IV.

• The non-existent Separatist outpost that OOM-10 mentions as part of his bluff is Point Tarron.

• To differentiate Lola Sayu's hellish conditions from the lava planet Mustafar, its molten rivers are colored a bright yellow, to suggest sulfur. Given what sulfurous deposits smell like, it's understandable Tarkin and Anakin hold their noses.[/align]
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[align=center]CITADEL RESCUE PREVIEW VIDEO

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Between the chop, the blaster bolt to the head, and the Echo-plosion, this was a pretty brutal episode. Next week, the likley goners are the remaining random clones, Fives, and maybe Rex.

For the most part, I've been blinsided by quality of this arch. The writting and directing couldn't be any better for the story being told.

What a great episode (again). I wasn't expecting Echo's death, specially because he's among my favourite characters from the series.

And next week, Saesee Tiin.

I hope there is an awesome space battle during this "rescue". It would be perfect for General Tinn to show of his starfighter skills.

720p OAR (Original Aspect Ratio) upgraded.

This middle episode like the middle of the Mortis Trilogy before it could be considered as filler and even unnecessary.

Minor annoyances include:

• Stereotypic villain exposition by Sobeck

• Tarkin's hand over mouth while conversing with Anakin during the sulfur sewer sequence. (Although the dialog itself was awesome.)

• Clone Wars Droids re-painted different colors every episode got old last season - with the obvious exception of R2 and this Battle Droid Blue troops.

• The series is also becoming way too Ahsoka-centric to the point where the case could be made she is becoming the star of the show, with movie characters as special guest stars.

Interesting from the trivia is the use of the color yellow in lieu of red. The Citadel's lava planet is yellow to differentiate it from Mustafar's red and previously Savage's yellow tattoos versus Maul.

Which is a shame, since I had hope that they would explore more the background Jedi from the movies (Season 1 was great in this regard). Anakin, Obi-Wan and Ahsoka episodes are getting old.

Totally agree

Tarkin, you lazy bum, quit complaining at last and do something cool! Give some brilliant tactical suggestion for instance! So far you look like a last minute, inconsequential write-in.

But overall fun episode.

The episode was greatly improved after a OAR-fueled second viewing.

[align=center]CITADEL RESCUE PREVIEW II[/align]
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March 11 2011



Episode Guide: Citadel Rescue

"Without honor - victory is hollow."

Episode Air No: 64
Production No:

Director: Steward Lee
Writer: Matt Michnovetz

Synopsis: After their ship and the only way off-planet is destroyed, Anakin and Obi-Wan must lead the escaped prisoners across Lola Sayu's perilous landscape as Plo Koon leads a Republic strike force through the Separatist defenses.[/align]
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[align=center]EPISODE GUIDE PREVIEW[/align]

I always saw Tarkin as more of a politician than any kind of warrior.

I really like the idea of seeing some of these guys before they became space Nazis. Wish they would explorer it in more depth, though. Like, why do most of them seem to have a beef against the Jedi?