Star Wars: The Clone Wars (TV series)

Star Wars: The Clone Wars is a 2008 animated television series set in the Star Wars galaxy. Set to debut in Fall of 2008, it will be an expansion and continuation of the similarly-named 2003 television series Star Wars: Clone Wars, as well as the many other stories that have been told in the Clone Wars multimedia project.

Like the original series, it is set between the events of Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones and Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith. It will deal with the various conflicts between the Galactic Republic (led by Supreme Chancellor Palpatine) and the Confederacy of Independent Systems (led by Count Dooku and General Grievous). The series&mdash;which reportedly has a tone similar to A New Hope &mdash;is being produced in high-definition, and will have a 22-minute runtime like that of the previous animated series Star Wars: Droids and Star Wars: Ewoks.

Episodes
Although the series was created in a serial/anthology format, each episode is also designed to be stand-alone, with an opening narration and moral to each story. As of February 2008, over 30 episodes have been produced. Each season will consist of 22 episodes, and TNT has signed a multi-seasonal agreement. The episodes are being produced in widescreen. The first season is completed, the second is in production, and the third is being developed. Lucas expects the series to run for four or five years, but will produce 100 episodes regardless of ratings.

The series will debut with a feature film of the same name. It is scheduled for release on August 15, 2008. The film will be a self-contained story, and will focus primarily on Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker. The TV series will then look at the war from a larger point of view, and focus on other characters and events. The first season, which picks up where the film leaves off, consists of 22 episodes.

Cast and characters

 * Anthony Daniels as C-3PO
 * Ashley Drane as Ahsoka Tano
 * Seth Green
 * Tom Kane as Yoda
 * Matthew Wood as General Grievous and the battle droids

Samuel L. Jackson has expressed interest in reprising his role as Mace Windu for the series, and has apparently been in talks with Lucasfilm on the subject. Hayden Christensen also expressed interest in reprising his role as Anakin Skywalker, but was not asked to return. The role of Obi-Wan Kenobi is yet to be announced, although James Arnold Taylor, the voice of Obi-Wan in the original Clone Wars series, hinted on his audio blog that he will be reprising the role.

Crew
Directors:
 * Dave Bullock
 * Rob Coleman
 * Dave Filoni&mdash;supervising
 * Steward Lee
 * Brian O'Connell
 * George Samilski
 * Atsushi Takeuchi

Writers:
 * Kevin Campbell&mdash;writer
 * Paul Dini&mdash;writer
 * Henry Gilroy&mdash;writer/story editor
 * George Krstic&mdash;writer
 * George Lucas&mdash;characters and universe/creator and creative guide, story
 * Scott Murphy&mdash;writer (2007)
 * Kevin Rubio&mdash;writer
 * Randy Stradley&mdash;co-wrote one episode

Producers:
 * George Lucas&mdash;executive producer
 * Sarah Wall&mdash;associate producer
 * Catherine Winder&mdash;executive producer

Film editor:
 * Jason Tucker

Production management:
 * Trisha Brunner&mdash;post-production supervisor (2008)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
 * Justin Ridge&mdash;assistant director

Art (Storyboard/Previsualization) department:
 * Vincent Toscano&mdash;previsualization supervisor
 * Steward Lee&mdash;storyboard artist
 * Justin Ridge&mdash;storyboard artist
 * Le Tang&mdash;storyboard/previs artist
 * Jackie Huang&mdash;storyboard/previs artist
 * Jahkeeli Garnett&mdash;storyboard/previs artist
 * Ben Price&mdash;storyboard/previs artist
 * Sergio Paez&mdash;storyboard/previs artist
 * Bosco Ng&mdash;storyboard/previs artist
 * Daniel Zizmor&mdash;storyboard/previs artist
 * Justin Mettam&mdash;storyboard/previs artist
 * Danny Keller&mdash;storyboard/previs artist
 * Roland Yepez&mdash;storyboard/previs artist
 * Sylvain Doreau&mdash;storyboard/previs artist
 * Regina Cachuela&mdash;technical assistant
 * Ira Owens&mdash;storyboard/previs artist
 * Kelsey Mann&mdash;storyboard/previs artist

Sound department:
 * David Acord&mdash;sound designer (2008)
 * Sean England&mdash;foley recordist (2008)

Visual effects:
 * Jon Childress Farmer&mdash;modeler (2008)
 * Ryan Heuett&mdash;lead layout artist
 * Shawn Lovette&mdash;layout artist
 * Greg Maguire&mdash;research & development supervisor (2007)
 * Gregory Rizzi&mdash;pre-visualization artist
 * Daniel Zizmor&mdash;pre-visualization/effects artist

Animation department:
 * Christian Kubsch&mdash;Head of Lucasfilm Animation's Singapore location
 * Rob Coleman&mdash;Animation director/character animation supervisor
 * Mark Gelfuso&mdash;layout artist
 * Kilian Plunkett
 * 300 other digital artists

Editorial department: Other crew:
 * Jules Beesley&mdash;assistant editor
 * Laura Sevier&mdash;rights and clearances

Development
George Lucas first wanted to make a Clone Wars animated series in 2002, and Star Wars: Clone Wars was released in 2003 to 2005. He announced his idea for Star Wars: The Clone Wars at April 2005's Star Wars Celebration III: "You know we are working on a 3-D continuation of the pilot series that was on the Cartoon Network, we probably won't start that project for another year". He credited the success of the original Clone Wars series, Star Wars: Clone Wars for the project's genesis. At Comic-Con 2005, Steve Sansweet confirmed that preproduction had begun on the series. He described the look of the new series as "a melding of Asian anime with unique 3-D animation styling." Lucasfilm Animation Vice President and General Manager Gail Currey had a positive reaction to the early episodic treatments for the series. Many digital artists and other production and creative talent were hired from California and Singapore to work on the series. It will be realized as a 3-D computer animation project created by the new Lucasfilm Animation division in their Singapore and California locations. Neither Genndy Tartakovsky (director of the original Clone Wars series) or Nelvana Ltd. (producer of all pre-Clone Wars animation) are involved with the production, but character designer Kilian Plunkett referred to the character designs from the original Clone Wars series when designing the characters for the new series.

By February 15, 2006, Lucas Animation was working on animation tests and initial scripts, with Lucas playing a large part in the entire process. Catherine Winder later revealed at Celebration IV that Lucas is mostly focused on the story, and that Lucas and Winder both work on the scripts with the writers. In terms of story and cinematography, the series is not being directed as an animated series, but more along the lines of a live action series. At Comic-Con 2006, Sansweet promised that footage would be shown at Celebration IV, and revealed that the series will be set late during the Clone Wars after Anakin Skywalker has achieved the rank of Jedi Knight. The first group of scripts had been completed, and initial episodes were being worked on.

While at Imagina 2007, Rob Coleman revealed that George Lucas was heavily involved in every step of the production, from script to final completion. In terms of effects, there was no rotoscoping involved in any of the images from the series. However, ILM did use motion capture. Script, character design and art direction was being done at ILM, with the animation and rendering is done in Singapore. The final assembly of each episode is done at Skywalker Ranch. As of August 31, Lucas' involvement had resulted in rewrites of most of the scripts, as Lucas insisted on more character development and that the show should not be based in one location, but as many as possible so as to make the story as interesting as possible to the viewer. At George Lucas' March 3 appearance at the 2007 William S. Paley Television Festival, he discussed the series' episodic structure, and that the series wouldn't it focus on the Skywalker story. Specifics mentioned were that there are "episodes with nothing but Clone Troopers" and an "episode just about Kit Fisto". At the time, there was no television network set for the series. In a September 2007 interview, Lucas said that "we're on [episode number] 40 right now. We'll probably end up with 50 to 60 episodes before we start to put it on the air. We'd like to put it on next fall, in about a year from now, but we'll see what happens." The series will utilize unused ideas from Lucas' previous Star Wars projects.

Music
According to musician Eric Rigler, he has been brought in to record Bulgarian-like music for the series. This includes a musical theme for each planet. However, no official statement has been made on Rigler's involvement with the music. So far, the only official word on the music for the series comes from Steve Sansweet: "Of course we used John Williams music in The Clone Wars, the cartoons on Cartoon Network. I don't know if any specific decision on that has been made.

Continuity
Continuity with the other Expanded Universe works is being taken very seriously by the series' creators, with Dave Filoni being well-versed in the Expanded Universe. However, Lucas has the right to make slight adjustments for the sake of the story. Additionally, he is consulted directly when dealing with the major characters. According to a November 2006 internet post by Randy Stradley, editor and author of Dark Horse Comics, he has met with Lucas Animation to discuss integrating the show with the Clone Wars comics.

At his Celebration IV presentations, Filoni showed a series of slides showing several character sculpture designs for the series&mdash;stating that they will share some of the stylization of the original Clone Wars series, but will also have some of the realistic look of the films. However, some elements of the series will differ slightly from what has been previously established in continuity. Several changes have been made from the original Clone Wars series; Obi-Wan doesn't wear as much of his clone general armor, General Grievous will have a cough apparently prior to the Battle of Coruscant, and the Jedi fighting styles will be more like the films, and not like some of the exaggerated Jedi abilities portrayed in the original series. Additionally, a duel involving Anakin Skywalker and Count Dooku may retcon the meaning of the two characters' verbal interactions in Revenge of the Sith.

Lucasfilm confirmed with TV Guide that The Clone Wars will not supercede the original Clone Wars series in continuity, but will instead expand upon what the original series established.

Release
Although the series was first announced in April of 2005, Lucasfilm revealed little information about it until Toy Fair 2007, during which fans were given their first look at the series' 3D animated Yoda. In a regular update to StarWars.com a few weeks before 2007's Celebration IV, fans were informed that executive producer Catherine Winder and supervising director Dave Filoni would be giving a presentation on the series at Celebration IV. It was held on Sunday May 27, 2007 in the Celebration Theater (Room 408AB). Winder and Filoni explained the origins of the series and the production process during the previous two years. The two also screened the series' first trailer to the attendees, which was later posted on StarWars.com. Prior to the release of the trailer, the site had posted a banner promising a "surprise" to be posted on the site on May 27th. Copies of the first official poster for the show were given away to all who attended the presentations. The two also held similar presentations at Celebration Europe in July 2007. StarWars.com created a new division of the site dedicated to The Clone Wars, which is regularly updated with relevant content, including news articles, behind the scenes videos, and blog entries by Pete Vilmur. Winder and Filoni again held a presentation at WonderCon 2008.

Television
Following the completion of the first twenty-two episodes, Lucas shopped the series to various networks. However, he had difficulty securing a network due to the fact that it has a unique tone from most animated series. Fox Broadcasting passed on it, and Cartoon Network was initially unsure. Several networks eventually got into a bidding war over the show. Cartoon Network and TNT eventually won the broadcast rights, with Warner Brothers distributing the feature film debut. Warner had tracked the series' development, and decided on a theatrical launch after viewing some footage. It was announced on February 12, 2008 that the feature film will be released in theaters on August 15, 2008, with the TV debut in the fall. This announcement was accompanied by an update of the Hyperspace online fan club kit, and an offering of Captain Rex and Ahsoka Tano T-shirts to Hyperspace members. Cartoon Network will air episodes on Friday nights. In Canada, episodes will air on CTV.

Marketing
According to series co-director Rob Coleman, some licensees had a very positive reaction upon first seeing footage from the series. Sue Rostoni first stated that a publishing program based on the series was possible, but as of June 2007, had not yet been discussed. In February 2008, she updated this statement by noting that an announcement of tie-in books or comics would first appear on StarWars.com&mdash;seemingly implying that books are in the works. Hasbro will release a toy line based on the series, which will continue throughout the run of the series. A leaked Hasbro redemption certificate bearing the series' logo may imply the release of a preview action figure from the series.

Beginning July 4, 2008, Lucasfilm sponsored a Star Wars: The Clone Wars exhibit at Space Center Houston.

Home video
Warner Brothers also has the home video rights, and has already planned a DVD release of the film and TV series.

Reception
Cartoon Network screened an episode for critics as part of the 2008 TCA tour. The episode received generally positive reactions.

Characters

 * Padmé Amidala
 * Jar Jar Binks
 * C-3PO
 * Commander Cody
 * Dooku
 * Durge
 * Echo
 * Boba Fett
 * Kit Fisto
 * Grievous
 * Nute Gunray
 * Hevy
 * Obi-Wan Kenobi
 * Plo Koon
 * Palpatine
 * R2-D2
 * R4-P17
 * Rex
 * Rotta
 * Anakin Skywalker
 * Wat Tambor
 * Turk
 * Ahsoka Tano
 * Shaak Ti
 * Jabba Desilijic Tiure
 * Asajj Ventress
 * Mace Windu
 * Yoda

Creatures

 * Can-cell

Droid models

 * 3PO-series protocol droid
 * B1 battle droid
 * Droid marine
 * B2 super battle droid
 * Droideka
 * DSD1 dwarf spider droid
 * Heavy Missile Platform
 * IG-100 MagnaGuard
 * Octuptarra combat tri-droid
 * OG-9 homing spider droid
 * OOM command battle droid
 * R2-series astromech droid
 * R4-series astromech droid
 * RA-7 protocol droid

Events

 * Clone Wars
 * Battle of Tatooine
 * Battle of Teth
 * Battle of Christophsis

Locations

 * Coruscant
 * Republic Executive Building
 * Chancellor's office
 * Senate Building
 * Christophsis
 * Tatooine
 * Jabba's Palace
 * Teth
 * B'omarr Monastery

Organizations and titles

 * Confederacy of Independent Systems
 * Separatist Council
 * Galactic Republic
 * Grand Army of the Republic
 * Advanced Recon Commando
 * Clone jet trooper
 * Clone trooper
 * Clone trooper pilot
 * Supreme Chancellor
 * Jedi Order
 * Grand Master
 * Jedi Knight
 * Jedi Master
 * Jedi Apprentice
 * Order of the Sith Lords
 * Dark Lord of the Sith

Sentient species

 * Human
 * Gungan
 * Hutt
 * Ithorian
 * Jawa
 * Kaleesh
 * Kel Dor
 * Nautolan
 * Neimoidian
 * Nikto
 * Rattataki
 * Skakoan
 * Togruta
 * Twi'lek
 * Yoda's species

Vehicles and vessels

 * Acclamator I-class assault ship
 * All Terrain Tactical Enforcer
 * Anakin's customized Jedi starfighter
 * Armored Assault Tank
 * Bantha-II cargo skiff
 * BARC speeder
 * C-9979 landing craft
 * Consular-class space cruiser
 * Delta-7 Aethersprite-class light interceptor
 * Eta-2 Actis-class light interceptor
 * Flitknot speeder
 * Jabba's Sail Barge
 * Low Altitude Assault Transport/carrier
 * Low Altitude Assault Transport/infantry
 * Porax-38 starfighter
 * Republic Y-wing starfighter
 * Single Trooper Aerial Platform
 * Theta-class T-2c shuttle
 * Twilight
 * TX-130 Saber-class fighter tank
 * V-19 Torrent starfighter
 * Variable Geometry Self-Propelled Battle Droid, Mark I
 * Venator-class Star Destroyer

Weapons and technology

 * Blaster
 * DC-15A blaster rifle
 * DC-15S blaster
 * E-5 blaster rifle
 * Cyborg
 * Electrostaff
 * Hologram
 * Lightsaber
 * Phase I clone trooper armor
 * Phase II clone trooper armor
 * Shield

Miscellanea

 * Force Choke
 * Force Jump
 * Force lightning
 * Force Pull