Season 1, Episode 12 - The Gungan General

The Gungan General, while a lot of fun, doesn't quite maintain the momentum established by it's lead-in Dooku Captured. The best moments are hidden behind some slapdash story choices and bland writing. The episode's take on Jar Jar Binks, though, is more in-depth than was the previous Jar Jar episode Bombad Jedi.

The episode begins with a head scratcher. Although we plainly saw Obi-Wan and Anakin outsmart the pirates and pointedly not sip from drugged drinks at the end of the previous episode, this episode begins with them captured themselves, having been drugged. Huh? (Apparently, the explanation can be found in the online comic, but it's not much more dramatically satisfying that way.)

Then, the Jedi are put into a cell and tied to Count Dooku. Which, of course, is the smartest thing for wily pirates to do. Take three powerful Jedi and tie them together. They'll never escape that way.

For the most part, I'm fine with this sort of expedient plotting if the results are worthwhile. The best reason to tie heroes and villains together is to get to some entertaining, hopefully comic, dynamic. Odd couples in peril are a grand tradition (see: Midnight Run.) Here, though, it's a better idea than its execution. Dooku and the Jedi seem less like mortal enemies and more like classmates from different social circles thrust together to study for a final exam. Their banter consists of harmless "I agree" or "I don't want to hear your voice." It's an opportunity that isn't truly taken advantage of.

Also, the reason that the Jedi keep trying to escape isn't artfully established. At one point, Obi-Wan even says: "We have to get out of here or we'll look like fools." Not such a compelling reason for an escape, if all the Jedi have to do is wait for the Republic to show up in the meantime. High stakes are key in any compact narrative, and this one's stakes appear to be pride, at least for the Jedi.

Jar Jar, though, has better material to work with. He accompanies Senator Kharrus and their clone escorts to deliver the ransom for the release of Count Dooku to the pirates. Unfortunately, Turk Falso, Captain Ohnaka's second in command, decides to go after the ransom himself. He has the envoy shot down.

Senator Kharrus is killed, which leaves Jar Jar as the ranking officer. Jar Jar, in this episode, proves less of a hopeless, child-like buffoon than he did in Bombad Jedi. He shows his own sort of instinct and wisdom; and his words about Senator Kharrus's death are the closest thing the episode comes to real sentiment.

As with Dooku Captured, the action in this episode flies forward, with our heroes getting into and out of trouble again and again. This time, though, plot feels more slapdash. Why, for example, didn't they spread out the Jar Jar Binks storyline over two episodes if this was intended to be a two-parter? Why wasn't Turk Falso introduced last week? It feels like a bit too much is crammed into The Gungan General, and it shows.

What was good? Well, the pace, for all is chaos, cooks and that is always good in Star Wars. As I said, I prefer this version of Jar Jar Binks to the sillier one. I also liked how, knowing how things wind up in Episode III, Anakin and Obi-Wan's response to dealing with Dooku showed contrast.

Finally, Obi-Wan's decision to consistenly avoid a quarrel with the pirates, even when he's out of danger from them, was an excellent character note. It shows that part of being "The Negotiator" is having a sense of honor, not just a way with words. Obi-Wan comes off as rather cold in the Clone Wars series, at times. Here, we see a bit more of what makes him heroic.

While the Clone Wars took a step forward with it's presentation of Jar Jar; the trio of Obi-Wan, Anakin and Dooku just didn't live up to its potential. An fairly entertaining episode, if far from perfect. The Gungan General seemed to lose decent ideas to rushed execution.

Rating (out of five): ** /12

Season 1, Episode 11 - Dooku Captured

Dooku Captured turns out to be the beginning of yet another story-arc. There's little that goes on in Dooku Captured that breaks the mold. It does, though, have some of the best traits of any good Star Wars story: it starts in the middle of the action, it flies forward, and it features tons of characters and complications. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

For an episode called Dooku Captured, Count Dooku doesn't wind up in that particular predicament until about half-way through. Much of the first part of the episode is dedicated to Anakin and Obi-Wan implementing a plan to capture him. As with the Duel of the Droids two-parter, this episode suffers a bit from its well-trod territory. We know the fate of all the main characters, including and especially Dooku, so there's not very much suspense.

There doesn't seem to be much going on here but the desire to crank out an entertaining adventure. On that level, the mission is accomplished. Anakin and Obi-Wan make, in this series, an entertaining duo, and watching them get into and out of trouble very much speaks to the serial roots of Star Wars. They go from prison cell, to chase scene, to crashing on a planet, to buried in rubble, to running away from a monster, to...need I go on? In just under 30 minutes, we watch our heroes get into an out of countless scrapes. Moreover, it's simple and entertaining team stories like these that make what eventually happens to Anakin and Obi-Wan all the more tragic.

There is, though, more than just another story about Anakin and Obi-Wan to recommend this episode. The Weequay pirates, led by new character Pirate Chief Hondo Ohnaka, are an entertaining bunch. It's good to know that the Lucasverse is still big enough to throw a much needed wild-card into the mix now and then.

The pirates will likely send some fans into eye-rolling apoplexy. How could, one might ask, a character as powerful as Dooku wind up captured by a band of guys with guns.

I was happy to see that choice made. It's fun to play around with unbeatable force powers in a video game, but in terms of storytelling, the Jedi and Sith have always seemed more like samurai than superheroes. As much as I loved playing The Force Unleashed and seeing the awesome Mace Windu episodes of the original Clone Wars series, those mediums were simply wish fulfillment. They didn't have to carry the weight of drama. If even Sith can be outnumbered, if blasters pose an actual threat to Sith and Jedi alike, then we're in a far more dangerous universe, and it's all the better for it.

The dialogue in this episode, also, stood out to me as being very much on-tone for Star Wars. In fact, this was an episode where the characters and their dialogue took the lead over the action, and that was a refreshing success.

It's hard to say just how this story-line will close out (the preview for the next episode shows a fair amount of Jar Jar) but the set-up hits all the right notes. Maybe not the sort of episode that thrusts the series into hyperspace, Dooku Captured is nothing more than an enjoyable romp.

Rating (out of five): ***1/2