Rewatching the Clone Wars

[spitfire]

I think this was an excellent episode. Obi got his butt kicked more than once, Death Watch wasn't a bunch of incompetent idiots (For example taking his lightsaber. In every other cartoon the villains would think: "Now that the good guy is knocked out he's not going to trouble us again. I have a great idea let's place a RPG and a machine gun next to him.") and were capable to kick butt, darksaber is just awesome, some guy committed a suicide, and obi was forced to escape at the end - what's there not to like.

Some things that bothered me were the pickering between obi and satine and the scene where obi was about to get crushed by some kind of machines. If you can't kill the guy why make this scene at all, it doesn't create tension if you know he's going to escape.

And the way i understood this episode mandalorians aren't pacifists just some crazy duchess and her followers are trying to force them.

[def]

Wow, the summer went by quickly. Season 3 has already begun!

Episode 13: Voyage of Temptation

A royal welcome! Sent to investigate allegations that Mandalore was joining Count Dooku's Separatists, Obi-Wan Kenobi was reunited with an old friend, the Duchess Satine of Kalevala. While Satine claimed Mandalore's intentions were to remain neutral during the war, an attack on the capital city led Obi-Wan to the discovery of a terrorist organization known as Death Watch.

Now the Duchess travels to the Senate, so she can plead her case against her involvement in the war, as the Jedi prepare a defense against her opponents...

Continuing from last week's fan favorite (?) Mandalorian separatist plot, Obi Wan is assigned to guard his old flame, the Duchess Satine. Satine insists that the Mandalorian empire must be neutral in the galactic war. Like season one's Lurman-peacekeeping episode, it's kind of silly to argue when you've already been dragged into it. So, they spat, Obi Wan calls her stubborn, but is it really just their old feelings coming to the surface?

Their Royal shuttle leaves for Coruscant under Republic protection, but sinister stowaways are on board, Separatist spider-assassin droids. At first, they seem like a poor choice, as they get taken out rather quickly, but then each has a pile of baby spider robots... which are useless too. But this leads to the meat of the plot: the stowaway was brought in by a senator. Obi Wan exposes the turncoat, and saves the Duchess, after some generic fight scenes.

Though the story seems like it's smart, it's really, really poorly thought out. Here's what we learn: 1) Mandalorian shipping bays have no lights. Really poor design there, Mandalorians. 2) Undercover senators will expose themselves at the drop of a hat, despite the many many years it took to establish respect and credibility in the government. 3) The Jedi have no concept of 'lock down'. Despite knowing there are stowaways and turncoats, the Jedi will not increase security, and anyone can just barge into the cockpit and kill everyone. No security necessary. 4) Who calls their liberation group 'Death Watch'? Mandalorians, apparently. It's not as bad as "The Brotherhood of Evil Mutants," but it's pretty poor. 5) Assassin Droids should be called 'Assassin' Droids, because they have never successfully killed anything they were supposed to. Despite all this stupidity, the show does a last minute save, having Anakin defuse the tension at the climax. It was a very smart solution, and perfectly in character. So, not a bad episode, merely mediocre, with nothing special except the final moments. Rating: 5/10 Notice it has 0% in the 'Favorite Episode' poll.

I suppose the highlight of the episode is Assassin Probe. This spider-like machine is fast moving, and has the same sort of heavy metal styling of the Assassin Droids (as compared to the shininess of the protocol droids). Add to that droids in the droid, and it's pretty cool.

Assassin Probe

This shuttle appeared briefly in the last episode, but very, very briefly. Most of this episode takes part on board here. It's a great design, though it only makes sense as a ship that docks in space, not as one that arrives on the planet.

Coronet

This is the bad guy. He was a senator, but he threw it all away. He's lame.

Tal Merrik

Briefly, we get to see a little more of Mandalorian costume and design. I quite like these guards.

Lego appearing: None!

Lego wishlist: Assassin Probe, Coronet

Next: Coruscant, and more robot bobbies!

[prateek]

I want a Mando guard! The helmets look really nice. The Coronet might be a bit too big to make for minifigs, so the only way to get one is a mini or a UCS, wich is highly unlikely. I'm sure we'll get an Assassin Probe in the couple of years.

[The Legonater]

I want a Mando guard! The helmets look really nice. The Coronet might be a bit too big to make for minifigs, so the only way to get one is a mini or a UCS, wich is highly unlikely. I'm sure we'll get an Assassin Probe in the couple of years.

Well if it appears in the Mando episode in season 3, we might see a midi Coronet.

[prateek]

I think midi scaled ships are reserved for the most iconic ships in the SW Universe (i.e. MF and ISD)

[The Legonater]

I think midi scaled ships are reserved for the most iconic ships in the SW Universe (i.e. MF and ISD)

Well, it's hard to say. We only have seen two.

[Oky]

I'd actually love to see a Coronet set, just to see how TLG makes it stand up right.

But yeah, this episode was quite mediocre, although it did have it's moments. Aside from that Anakin-moment, I also liked how Obi found out who the traitor was, and how the probe used a clone's corpse as bait, which was a pretty dark and clever thing to do for a droid.

Again, sorry that we're so behind. I'll get working on the next review soon.

Edited September 19, 2010 by Oky Wan Kenobi

[Swash Buckler]

If I'm not mistaken, the medic droid was also shown at the end of Revenge of the Sith, at the birth of the twins. I could be wrong, though. I'm much more familiar with the OT.

As far as future CW LEGO sets, the only one I could see being made is a minifig scale Munificient frigate, similar to the Venator, Star Destroyer and soon to be released Tantive IV. None of the other capital ships are well enough known to warrant their own set, and the other vessels mentioned just don't get enough airtime to make them attractive as sets (as cool as some of them would be).

The Separatist Landing Ship is a bit different. It's seen plenty of screen time, both on the CW show and in the PT, so it's well recognized. Unfornutaely, it wouldn't scale well into minifig scale, and is probably too bland to generate much interest as an UCS scale set. I would think it would sell well as a MINI scale set, especially considering LEGO has started producing more of them in recent years.

Actually it don't appear in the birth scene- but "rebirth- scene" I mean Vader transformation scene.. as one of the droids repairing him- i really would like to see Padmé's ship- it's ridiculous that Padmé haven't appeared since 1999 and now we even have Onaconda Farr as fig but not padmé

I'd actually love to see a Coronet set, just to see how TLG makes it stand up right.

But yeah, this episode was quite mediocre, although it did have it's moments. Aside from that Anakin-moment, I also liked how Obi found out who the traitor was, and how the probe used a clone's corpse as bait, which was a pretty dark and clever thing to do for a droid.

Again, sorry that we're so behind. I'll get working on the next review soon.

I really liked that "Voyage of temptation" episode- so i had to vote it because no one gave a vote for it before- landing at point rain was the best of the season i agree (is there some reason why ep5:s seems to be best of the season? Lego will make mando bp next year- i hope they will add Pre Viszla with darksaber but preliminary didn't have him... also Satine should appear as figure for some set... well after they remade Padmé.. also Bail Organa and Admiral Yularen are needed as well...

As someone who isn't at all a fan of the EU, I have to say I really enjoyed the Mandalore episodes and I think their new depiction makes a lot of sense. For a planet and race of people who've been completely focused on war for so long, I think it makes sense that their leaders and politicians would eventually try to reverse this image, and thus the planet would gradually turn towards peace rather than war. Although obviously there was still a (rather large) segment of the population that believed otherwise, and that's why we have Death Watch. I felt this made the mandaloreans far more interesting and less two dimensional than how they've been represented in the past.

I can understand why many fans of the EU are upset that their books and stories have essentially been completely overwritten.. But I don't know why that comes as such a surprise. Lucas has always said he doesn't consider any of these canon and so their basically side stories or "what if" scenarios. Filoni is at least trying to leave room for many of the EU elements to still be possible alongside TCW, and I think even that is something the EU fans should be very grateful for.

More on topic with the actual episode.. Again, I really did like it a lot. I do agree that the Satine character was a little over the top at times, she really introduced a whole new level of character depth to Obi-wan, and I'd have to highlight the moment when he admits that he would have left the order if she asked him to. Plus it's always fun having a character that can match wits with him, some of the exchanges between them were rather amusing.

I SO AGREE- i never really were fan of mandos before- they were boring killers with war centrered view of the universe- now there is believable conflict between pacifists and those warmongering Death Watch members (they are far worse than supercommandos ever were)

they should connect this with boba fett storyline and deltas and make supercommandos rise again against death watch... plus mandos were never big part of actual star wars which is war of jedi and rebels against the sith and their empire.. only mando who was part of classic saga was Boba Fett (if stormies are considered to be just some sort of imperials... they may be clones with mandoblood) and Boba is still same badass bounty hunter he is not pacifist...

but he really should escape prison with Bossk... ending of the Lethal Trackdown was lame....

[commanderneyo]

I really liked that "Voyage of temptation" episode- so i had to vote it because no one gave a vote for it before- landing at point rain was the best of the season i agree (is there some reason why ep5:s seems to be best of the season? Lego will make mando bp next year- i hope they will add Pre Viszla with darksaber but preliminary didn't have him... also Satine should appear as figure for some set... well after they remade Padmé.. also Bail Organa and Admiral Yularen are needed as well...

Yes Pre viszla would be a awesome figure but i can make my own as i have a lightsaber with a black wand used in harry potter in it so i just need a mandalorian to use it.

Anyway I expect we will see padme as in the january sets we seem to be getting loads of new figures and re-designs(jar-jar and new assasin droid head piece) and satine and organa will probably appear but its likely we won,t see yularen unless they make the stealth ship

[XimenaPaulina]

Ouch! My eyes hurt reading the last two posts, whatever happened to proper punctuation and capitalization?

Anyway, I agree that Voyage of Temptation is pretty lame, with majority of the episode taking place inside a ship without much interesting lego-potential elements, maybe the assassin probe droids and the Mando guard? But even those two I can live without.

[The Legonater]

I SO AGREE- i never really were fan of mandos before- they were boring killers with war centrered view of the universe- now there is believable conflict between pacifists and those warmongering Death Watch members (they are far worse than supercommandos ever were)

*Ignores bad grammer*

I dissagree. Mando's have never been 'boring killers centered on war.' They are so much more than that. I don't see why there's been so many people here posting that.

[Oky]

Episode 14: Duchess of Mandalore

A diplomatic mission! As dissent threatens to tear apart the peaceful Mandalore system, Duchess Satine struggles to protect her people against the escalating violence.

Betrayed by two of her trusted allies, Satine now travels to Coruscant. There, she hopes to convince the Senate that a destructive splinter group, Death Watch, does not represent the entire Mandalorian government...

Can't get enough politics? Well, this third installment in the Mandalore Trilogie is another politics-based episode. However, there is some action, too, to shake things up a bit. Death Watch is preparing for an invasion, and the Republic wants to send their troops to Mandalore for defense, but since this might cause the Mandalorians to join Death Watch, Satine tries to convince the Senate not to do it. Palpy makes it hard by showing evidence that has been messed with and confirms the Senate's worries, and so Satine sets out to find proof that the evidence is wrong. Death Watch sends an assassin to kill her, but he is a bit sloppy at what he does (trying to snipe someone while running? Tsk tsk). Satine gets the proof she was looking for, but gets blamed for one of the Assassin's murders and is chased by Coruscant Police, so she enlists the help of Obi Wan. After another failed assassination attempt, Obi has a fight with the assassin, who ends up getting defeated (apparently it takes two Mandos to knock Obi out) and flies away. The two get the evidence to the Senate who decides to stay out of Mandalore.

This was one of the better politics-based episodes. The whole "We're gonna help you by invading your home, whether you like it or not" thing was very reminiscent of the recent Iraq War, giving the episode an interesting theme. The action and the Coruscant scenery were nice too, but nothing special. Dooku says at the end that they will conquer Mandalore some other way, so even though this is the last part of the trilogie, this story arc isn't over and there are still open questions, like what's up with that huge army of Jango Fetts Death Watch soldiers who didn't do anything except run around? Kind of an unsatisfying end. Still, not a bad episode. I'd give it a 7/10.

The only really interesting ship in this episode is this Mandalorian Death Watch Shuttle. It's similar to the regular Mandalorian Shuttle, but it's pointier, sleeker, and overall cooler. Pre Vizsla owns one called the Gauntlet, so that would be a neat way to get him.

On Coruscant, Satine gets chased by Police droids, including a new, rather annoying Police probe, as well as Clone Riot Troopers. These are clones with batons and Plexiglas shields who look pretty cool in my opinion. I wouldn't mind seeing these in a set together with the robot bobbies, like a Coruscant Guard Battle Pack.

We also see a Mandalorian Guard, a scout with the same kind of armor as the guards who escorted Pre Vizsla during his first appearance in "The Mandalore Plot".

Lego Ships appearing: AAT, Separatist Shuttle, Cad Bane's Speeder (sort of).

Lego Wishlist: The Gauntlet, Clone Riot Troopers, Mandalorian guard.

Next: Inspector Spongebob is on the case!

[commanderneyo]

...

Good description but I feel you missed one thing the kind of hover taxi the mandalorian officer used which is called a mandalorian automated transport http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Mandalorian_automated_transport

Edited September 28, 2010 by Zorro
Don't quote such large posts please! Thanks.

[Oky]

I didn't miss it, I left it out because we already saw it in the first Mando episode, and it's just a platform with railings, not really Lego set material. I think I could MOC one with only ten pieces.

Oh, and please don't quote an entire review.

[commanderneyo]

I didn't miss it, I left it out because we already saw it in the first Mando episode, and it's just a platform with railings, not really Lego set material. I think I could MOC one with only ten pieces.

Oh, and please don't quote an entire review.

Sorry about quoting the entire review there are still one or two things about eurobricks I am trying to master including not doing the entire review.

Edited September 28, 2010 by commanderneyo

[prateek]

I like those Riot Troopers. I'd like those shields.

[Masked Builder]

I like those Riot Troopers. I'd like those shields.

Yeah they are awesome!

[commanderneyo]

Yeah they are awesome!

I made a custom riot trooper before but at the moment lego don't have a big enough shield for it so I had to give it a smaller shield

[Corvus]

It was a good episode, but I would have liked it better if the assassin had actually been competent. Running and sniping? Getting within ten feet to snipe someone? Not a very smart move.

[Oky]

I wouldn't say he was incompetent. He assassinated Satine's informant successfully and got close to killing her a few times too, and I would never expect one assassin to be a match for a jedi such as Obi. Coruscant is a very crowded place, so I assume sniping from a distance is hard to do, which is probably why he ran to keep her in sight.

[Darth Jar Jar]

If TLG did release the riot trooper they could use the shield for a mandalorian officer as well

[Swiss Army Droid]

I like those Riot Troopers. I'd like those shields.

Me too! I would also like a police probe droid. As for the police droids, I'd rather pretend that they don't exist.

Edited September 30, 2010 by Swiss Army Droid

[Oky]

If TLG did release the riot trooper they could use the shield for a mandalorian officer as well

Don't you mean guard?

Me too! I would also like a police probe droid. As for the police droids, I'd rather pretend that they don't exist.

Really? What's wrong about the police droids, and what's so great about the probe?

[Darth Jar Jar]

Don't you mean guard?

Oops

I would really like too see someone to make a custom riot and manalorian guard

[commanderneyo]

Oops

I would really like too see someone to make a custom riot and manalorian guard

I may be mistaken but I thought higher up on this page i stated I had made a custom riot trooper