15. Birth of a Rebel
Kanan Jarrus is not the only Rebels co-star to make an appearance in The Bad Batch. His future partner, Hera Syndulla, as well as the scrappy Astromech Chopper, pop up magnificently in “Devil’s Deal.” Even better, we get to meet her mother, the righteous warrior we will hear so much about later on.
As the Empire digs its talons into the Twi’lek homeworld, Ryloth, its citizens start to grumble. Those murmurs turn into insurrection, and while Hera’s father tries desperately to maintain the peace, other family members share different philosophies. Hera is caught in the middle, but she knows right from wrong, and not acting against villainy is impossible for her. The strength she exhibits in “Devil’s Deal” seeps into Clone Force 99’s youngest recruit, Omega. And we notice how heroism inspires further heroism.
14. The Final Shot from ‘Star Wars: The Clone Wars’
In the epilogue to The Clone Wars‘ series finale, “Victory and Death,” Darth Vader discovers the wreckage of the Star Destroyer Tribunal. Scattered around him are the 501st Clone Troopers who served and died under Ahsoka Tano’s command during the Siege of Mandalore. Their helmets painted in tribute to her visage.
The Sith Lord says nothing. He uncovers Ahsoka’s lightsaber from the moon’s surface and ignites it. He stares briefly at a Convor circling above. The birds have strong ties to the Force and held a special relationship with Ahsoka. Is it mocking him or merely reminding him of everything he lost through his Dark Side ascension. Vader turns his back, and we watch him retreat through a reflected image on a cracked Clone’s helmet. The Clone Wars are over. He won.
13. The Death of Fives
Over the course of The Clone Wars, we grow attached to several Clone Troopers. Rex is our main man, but Fives is a fave for sure. He’s the first soldier to learn that Clones are implanted with Inhibitor chips. The Kaminoans explain that they are there to aid the Clones and tamper their darker natures, but Fives believes there’s something more nefarious at work. When he attempts to deliver this information to Chancellor Palpatine, Fives attacks.
Star Wars: The Clone Wars Season 6 is peppered with several melancholic moments, but Fives’ fate must rank amongst the bleakest from the animated series. In “Orders,” he dies in Rex’s hands, using his last words to reveal a conspiracy. But the truth is too immense, and Rex can’t comprehend the reality. We’re left to wait for Rex to discover the truth, but by that time, in Season 7’s “Shattered,” the truth will matter little.
12. The Lost Commanders
So much of Star Wars is about reconciling with the pain and hurt that lives inside so many of us. In the Star Wars: Rebels episode “The Lost Commanders,” Kanan Jarrus and his crew seek support from some old-timers. When Kanan discovers that they are Clones, he returns to that hateful day when Order 66 stole his Master from him. And so do the Clones: Rex, Wolfe, and Gregor. While they may not have been the soldiers triggered into killing Kanan’s friend, they did turn on their friends when Palpatine made the call. After years of burying guilt and rage, Kanan Jarrus and the Clones begin their healing journey together.
11. The Darksaber
In “The Mandalore Plot,” from Star Wars: The Clone Wars Season 2, an animated Obi-Wan Kenobi travels to Mandalore to meet with Duchess Satine. There he learns why these warrior people have not joined the Republic against the Separatists: they’re too busy fighting their own civil war. A terrorist cell known as Death Watch wishes to throw Satine from her throne, and they’re perfectly willing to slaughter a bearded Jedi to do so.
When it comes time for Obi-Wan Kenobi to duel the Death Watch leader Pre Vizsla (voiced by The Mandalorian‘s head cheese, Jon Favreau), the would-be ruler whips out the Darksaber. As described by Vizsla, the black blade was stolen from the Jedi Temple during the Old Republic’s fall. Since then, the Darksaber’s mystique grew and will only continue to do so as it tumbles from Vizsla to Maul to Sabine Wren to Bo-Katan Kryze to Moff Gideon and Din Djarin.
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