Star Wars The Clone Wars: The Best Episodes

On the 2nd last day of 2020, I began embarked on the journey that is watching the animated Clone Wars series. I had seen a few episodes on TV when I was younger, but my infrequent viewing left me lost on the factions and longer storylines. 8 months later on the 21st of August 2021, I finished. I'm someone who seeks to complete something fully and leave no stone unturned - there was an animated film, 131 official episodes, shorts and unreleased/ unfinished productions, and a book. This was all in official chronological order as well.

My log at the time was just scattered thoughts on the highlights of each episode. Scroll through this article for what I believe the best 88 episodes are, separated by story arc (with photos) and featuring my brief commentary. Perhaps if I ever rewatch this with family in the future, I'll select the best 66 episodes... 🥲  

Full spoiler warning!

Jump to sections below:

Season 1 (mostly)

Standalone

S3E1 Clone Cadets 
4/1/21: Seriously beautiful, love the nicknames, Spielberg film music
S1E1 Ambush
5/1/21: Yoda is awesome as a fighter and leader, nice OT music
S1E5 Rookies
11/1/21: Hevy emotions, fond childhood memories, nice action

Nute Gunray

S1E9 Cloak of Darkness
22/1/21: Pretty good, high-stakes prisoner, great action/ visuals
S1E10 Lair of Grievous
23/1/21: Solid lair story, dark Jedi Nadhar, dual-wielding madness

Standalone

S1E15 Trespass
3/2/21: One of the best eps, complex politics, moral questions

Ryloth  

S1E19 Storm over Ryloth
4/2/21: Good ep, Anakin teaching Ahsoka failure, funny droids
S1E20 Innocents of Ryloth 
4/2/21: Kenobi is a force beast, emotional Twi'lek story, Boil/ Waxer
S1E21 Liberty on Ryloth
5/2/21: Mace absolute beast Windu, freedom fighters, Wat Tambor

Season 2

Holocrons 

S2E1 Holocron Heist
5/2/21: Felucia evacuation, Cad Bane/ changeling, Yoda sense
S2E2 Cargo of Doom
5/2/21: Walkers on space cruisers, brutal Bane, magnetic Clones
S2E3 Children of the Force
7/2/21: Jedi interrogation, Sidious Mustafar, Jedi kid abductions

Geonosis

S2E5 Landing at Point Rain
10/2/21: Amazing war ep, camerawork, clone losses, funny Mundi

Grevious

S2E10 The Deserter
15/2/21: Emotional, moral, Rex & Cut, family, ignore the Grevious stuff

Standalone

S2E11 Lightsaber Lost
16/2/21: Ahsoka learns slow, master Sinube, creepy Palps, Blade Runner ref

S2 Mandalore

S2E13 Voyage of Temptation
18/2/21: Kenobi's past, pacifism v self-defence, assassin probes
S2E14 Duchess of Mandalore
19/2/21: Senate politics so good, Palps, corruption, cover-ups

Boba Fett

S2E22 Lethal Trackdown
25/2/21: Boba learning honour, Plo in the Coruscant underworld, Hondo

Season 3 (mostly)

S3 Mandalore

S3E5 Corruption
26/2/21: Female-power w Padme/ Satine, good tension re trust

Forces of Destiny Shorts

Teach You, I Will
22/7/21 Ani trains Ahsoka dual blades, Yoda teaches "yourself"
Unexpected Company
22/7/21 Ani-Padme alone time ruined, starfight, AHSOKA KNOWS

Mina Bonteri

S3E10 Heroes on Both Side
17/3/21: Gorgeous animation, great characterisation, harsh reality
S3E11 Pursuit of Peace
18/3/21: Great senator story, powerful conclusion, war & people

Nightsisters

S3E12 Nightsisters
24/3/21: Absolutely awesome lightsaber action, Ventress backstory
S3E13 Monster
29/3/21: Mother Talzin, dark trials, scary, absolutely savage Opress
314 Witches of the Mist
1/4/21: Jedi hunt, dark side training + lightsabers, Toydaria, MAUL

Mortis 

S3E15 Overlords
1/4/21: Balance & the Force, weird + cool weather, QUI GON, Shmi
S3E16 Altar of Mortis
2/4/21: Dark side visuals + vibes + ending, scary Ahsoka, high-stakes
S3E17 Ghosts of Mortis
2/4/21: Dark side well, musical motifs, Anakin's future, the Father

Citadel

S3E18 The Citadel
2/4/21: Stealth rescue, carbonite, dying clones, Tarkin + Piell
S3E20 Citadel Rescue
5/4/21: Camerawork, anoobas and epic action, honour Piell, chancellor

Trandoshan Smugglers

S3E21 Padawan Lost
30/4/21: Aggressive Ahsoka, Kalifa sacrifice, cruel hunt game, Dar

Season 4

Umbara 

S4E7 Darkness on Umbara
5/6/21: Awesome, harsh General Krell, Hardcase, CT-7657 "Not clones! Men!"
S4E8 The General
8/6/21: Jesse, Fives, Seargeant Appo, casualties, worm crabs, great episode
S4E9 Plan of Dissent
9/6/21: Dogma, disobeyment, loyalty, awesome space battles, court martial
S4E10 Carnage of Krell
9/6/21: Heartbreak, Waxer, genuinely terrifying Krell, honour/ morality

Kadavo

S4E12 Slaves of the Republic
12/4/21: OT callbacks, Anakin seduction, slavery, hurt + danger
S4E13 Escape from Kadavo
14/4/21: Queen slave, Kenobi pain, Anakin brutal, epic air warfare

Standalone

S4E14 A Friend In Need
16/6/21: Beautiful visuals, Bonteri, awesome Ahsoka, Death Watch

The Box 

S4E15 Deception
17/6/21: Great animation, dark Ani, undercover, Cad/ Boba/ Bossk
S4E16 Friends and Enemies
17/6/21: Hunters & hunted, Palps, sick storyline, swamps and lowlifes
S4E17 The Box
18/6/21: Serenno, dangerous escape room challenges, tension
S4E18 Crisis on Naboo
18/6/21: So much tension, great kidnap plan, PALPATINE grooming

Return of Darth Maul

S4E20 Bounty
22/6/21: Bossk/ Boba, beak mouths, subterranean train, ninjas
S4E21 Brothers
22/6/21: Red logo, suspense, Morley, junk, spider, crazy, revenge
S4E22 Revenge
22/6/21: Raydonia flames, Yoda force, Ventress/ Kenobi v Savage/ Maul

Season 5

Onderon

S5E4 The Soft War
28/6/21: General, Dono :-( , same team, execution, purpose > emotion
S5E5 Tipping Points
3/7/21: Long terrain action, Ani loophole, tragic sacrifice -> freedom

Void 

S5E10 Secret Weapons
9/7/21: Doc, WAC-D, Colonel Gascon, droid treatment, gravity off
S5E11 A Sunny Day in the Void
9/7/21: Blue, ice comet, visual, funny + scary, training/ programming/ instinct
S5E12 Missing in Action
9/7/21: Amnesia commando Gregor, Borkus diner, Rhydonium
S5E13 Point of No Return
9/7/21: Creepy start, BZ :(, D-squad, tension, rainbow boom, Ani-R2

Season 5 Mandalore 

S5E1 Revival
10/7/21: Master-apprentice, limbs chop, Adi, Obi-Wan dual wield, Hondo
S5E14 Eminence
12/7/21: Death watch, crime family, Mustafar/ Tatooine, villains, brutal
S5E15 Shades of Reason
12/7/21: Ships, destruction, revolution, crowds, Maul v Visla
S5E16 The Lawless
12/7/21: OMG, Satine :-( family, Maul/ Savage v Palps dual-wielding, animation

Ahsoka Framed 

S5E17 Sabotage
13/7/21: Tension, Ahsoka + Ani solving bombing, Jedi hate, droids
S5E18 The Jedi Who Knew Too Much
14/7/21: Tarkin, Ahsoka fugitive, shock troopers, sewers, trust
S5E19 To Catch a Jedi
14/7/21: Ventress, lower levels Coruscant, close combat, caught
S5E20 The Wrong Jedi
14/7/21: Emotional, beautiful, yellow lightsabre guards, Anakin :-(

Season 6 (mostly)

Order 66 Origins 

S6E1 The Unknown
15/7/21: Ringo Vinda, Tup x Tiplee, ACTION, animation, Trench/ Palps, gravity
S6E2 Conspiracy
15/7/21: AZ, Fives, Lord Tyranus, Kaminoans, tumour, depressing, dreams
S6E3 Fugitive
16/7/21: Distraction, genetic code, inhibitor chip, scientist Nala Se >:(
S6E4 Orders
16/7/21: Shaak-Ti, Palps, clone bar, jedi undercover, SAD FIVES, evil order 66

Scipio

S6E6 The Rise of Clovis
17/7/21: Coruscant, Jedi emotions, Clovis Muun, Anakin snapping, Padme
S6E7 Crisis at the Heart
17/7/21: Senate, PALPS Dooku manipulation, aerial action, tragic

The Force 

S6E10 The Lost One
20/7/21: Plo sandstorm, Sifo-Dias, Silman, Pyke, Dooku created the Clone Wars
S6E11 Voices
21/7/21: QUIGON, cinematic, wary Mundi, Anakin disobeys, Dagobah, dark
S6E12 Destiny
21/7/21: Energy, badass/evil Yoda, Whills emotions testing, Jedi together
S6E13 Sacrifice
21/7/21: Moraband Sith, Palps + Dooku vision-fight, Yoda wisdom :'-)

Dark Disciple (Novel, Chapters 1-13) 

25/7/21: Dooku is savage, dark Jedi council decisions, Vos flirts with Ventress, bounty

Story Reels 

A Death on Utapau
22/7/21: Diverse fauna, Obi&Ani investigate/ anger, Magna guards, f(l)ights
In Search of the Crystal
26/7/21: Obi hunting, banter, dark Ani plan + hallway, Endente dealer haha, kyber
Crystal Crisis
27/7/21: Beast lol, rip Endente, plain/ tunnel act, Grevious, governer

Season 7

Return of Ahsoka

S7E5 Gone with a Trace
5/8/21: Ahsoka face and animation quality, Trace & Rafa, demo droid, level 1313
S7E6 Deal No Deal
7/8/21: Ship gravity, Rafa is toxic and Trace is stupid, Kessel beauty, Pyke spice

The Bad Batch 

S7E1 The Bad Batch
8/8/21: Fort Anaxes, Wrecker lol, unpredictable plans, Skako Minor
S7E2 A Distant Echo
9/8/21: Obi knows about Padme! Tech translation, Purlockk scout, Hunter knife, wired
S7E3 On the Wings of Keeradaks
9/8/21: Wot Tambor, Decimator, Poletecs, awesome (bridge) action
S7E4 Unfinished Business
9/8/21: Crosshair bounce, Echo good, Ani threat, Mace trust, Trench (finishing where it started with S2E16)

Dark Disciple (Chapters 31-42) 

6/8/21: Vos dark agent, Ventress force love, Jedi close but wrong

The Seige of Mandalore

S7E9 Old Friends Not Forgotten
10/8/21: Movie intro, Ani badass, Obi Jedi, Ahsoka TEARS AWESOME
S7E10 The Phantom Apprentice
11/8/21: Maul visions, Ahsoka team-up & fight, Mando war, beautiful
S7E11 Shattered
11/8/21: Music, tragic, Order 66, Rex Fives heartbreak, Maul chaos
S7E12 Victory and Death
11/8/21: What a finale, Jesse :-(, Republic Cruiser buried, Ani->Vader

Tags

🎞️ Thank you for reading the article!

📺 You can keep up to date with my TV watching at my Seralizd account here 😄