Star Wars: The Clone Wars - Episode I: Army Of The Republic

WOW I LOVE THIS EDIT

Intelligent condensed edition of the heavily padded animated series. smudger9 wisely cut the juvenile elements, as well as Jabba’s kid, choosing to focus on Domino squad. I didn’t understand what he was doing initially, but it makes sense as the edit progresses.

Video - Good cutting throughout as the narrative weaves between Jedi Obi-Wan and Anakin and Domino squad, skitters over to Greivous and the delicious Asajj Ventress. Blacks are solid throughout and there are no problems around flares, bursts, explosions, etc ... Some of the edits seemed quick but never too noticeable.

Audio - Clear 2.0 stereo. No subs, though the dialogue was clear and understandable throughout. That includes droid-speak and garbled mutterings of Admiral Trench.

Narrative - Some unavoidable problems here, I’m afraid. smudger9 has shaved chunks of time, so there is a loss of cohesion. With the necessary re-arranging, there is a “jumpy” feel to the story. Character arrivals and departures are frequently abrupt. The same could be said for the Lucas originals and live action, however. In my eye, clone 99's story was nicely done, yet the subject of a spy onboard Resolute was broached and forgotten.

Enjoyment - Despite my teasing of Trekkies, I have been just as obsessive / compulsive at times with Star Wars. And, as I have commented with TrekVerse fans, Star Wars buffs can also be guilty of jumping for any installment of the canon. Which is why most older fans bought these “kiddee” videos, and learned to leap over lame portions.

smudger9 has done all the leaping for us. Despite above-mentioned quibbles, this edit holds together well and is enjoyable from start to finish. His version is more battle action heavy, less character study. Yet it is also Clone Wars, so what do you expect? It does not quite work for me as a fledged theatrical release, but it is better than a stitched together TV series or a vintage serial (no recaps!).

Anyone who does not have a problem with the animated series in general will have a blast with this.

I like the Clone Wars cartoon... there I said it. I wish it was a little more dark, a little more adult, and a little less "stompy" on the somewhat putrid flesh of a once great franchise, but overall, it is fun. I really like the Asoka character, and also the Asajj Ventress character and a lot of the other things going for it (clone troopers, etc), even though they violate alot of the "sense" of the overarching story.

All that being said, I think that this edit really nailed the best of what Clone Wars could have been. I liked that they treated Asoka more like the youngling she is, leaving her at the temple, etc. I also like how the story of Domino company (one of my favorite arcs) complemented the rest of the narrative.

My biggest problem, however, is that the episodic nature of the story made itself known: The spider-alien general who is a major villain then disappears, the really long gap between clone segments, the abrupt appearance and disappearance of Asoka, Ventress being there with no introduction. Minor quibbles really, but they still nagged at me a bit as I watched and ultimately lessened the experience. Perhaps it was my familiarity with the source material, and I intend to show it to a friend who has never seen the show before and see if they notice.

Overall, however, I found it to be very fun and a nice change of tone for material I already enjoyed but wanted more from. Definitely a watch again.

Just loved what you've done. Do more pliz =)

PS: If you can change voices or silence the B1s and B2s and make them look more machine and less stupid. I just hate what the've done with the battledroids both in episode 3 and the clone wars.

A really well done re-imaging of the Clone Wars animated series which makes the story much tighter, better focus, and more chronologically correct. I'm curious as to how Smudger9 will deal with the rest of the Clone Wars episodes and maybe even Star Wars Rebels.

If I had any complaints, is that there are some notable too quick cuts in some transitions between certain parts(episodes of the show). Most can easily be ignored but some are actually noticeable.