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Clone Watch - Episode 24
16 Plays12 days ago
Daryl, Nick, & Lauren fall in love with a group of characters that, sadly, aren't really seen again after these four episodes. A group of Jedi younglings go in search of their lightsaber crystals and find adventure along the way.
00:00 Introduction
07:19 The Gathering
29:16 A Test of Strength
54:06 Bound for Rescue
1:10:52 A Necessary Bond
To follow along with your viewing, you can find the Clone Wars chronological viewing list at:
https://www.starwars.com/news/star-wars-the-clone-wars-chronological-episodeorder
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Transcript
Introduction to Casual Nerdity Podcast
00:00:10
Speaker
Casual Nerdity is a podcast celebrating and discussing the pop culture that we love. Movies, TVs, comics, books, games, you name it. Our aim is to talk about the good, what worked, and yeah, sometimes what didn't.
00:00:22
Speaker
All with an eye towards building up, not tearing down. Thanks for joining us.
00:00:29
Speaker
Welcome back to Casual Nerdity, everyone. how are you doing? i am Daryl. I'm Nick. And I'm Lauren.
Anecdote: Podcast Mix-up
00:00:38
Speaker
And, you know, Nick, we've we've got our sister podcast, the How We Roll Gaming podcast. And as I was editing our most recent episode before it went up,
00:00:50
Speaker
I didn't even catch when I was doing the intro to it. um I welcomed everybody back to casual nerdity, not back to how we roll. Wrong show, Daryl.
00:01:01
Speaker
I was like, whoa. And there was no way that I could fix it because there's a video element to that. So I couldn't rerecord the audio and put it over. So ah yeah, I was a dork.
00:01:17
Speaker
We're doomed. our work're all all of our All of our fans are going to abandon us now. Yes, all three of them. All of your fans are going to abandon you. All my fans going to stick around.
00:01:29
Speaker
That's right. That's right.
Introducing Clone Watch Series
00:01:32
Speaker
But we we are back with another episode of our Clone Watch series. And for for those of you joining us for the first time, what is the Clone Watch series that we're doing?
00:01:47
Speaker
We register a so we're runninging a star wars run several Star Wars role-playing game campaigns, and one of our players, Lauren, was not versed in a great many of the larger expanded universe of Star Wars. I'd seen the original trilogy in Rogue One.
00:02:07
Speaker
ah but And had vague recollections of the prequels. And just a a small little side note here. you know we are We are friends with Nate from the Tabletop Empire YouTube channel that's focused on the Star Wars RPG. And on his Discord, um one of the other members of the Discord was talking about how he's finally going to be get to playing get to play a Star Wars RPG as a player rather than running it.
00:02:41
Speaker
But they're going to be running it basically using somebody's D&D 5e port of it rather than the actual Star Wars RPG.
D&D vs Star Wars RPG Discussion
00:02:53
Speaker
And he's saying, yeah, most of that is because you know I tried to sell them on the actual Star Wars RPG, but all of the players are familiar with D&D, and most of them have basically seen nothing of Star Wars, not even the movies, just the memes. And I joined in and was like, I mean, it's welcome to what launched our co Clone Watch series. It sounds like I was more familiar with it than they are, though.
00:03:27
Speaker
Exactly. so like How do you not... like I can understand that the memes and the references are so affluent that it's literally impossible, especially in in America, to not hit a Star Wars reference somewhere along
Lauren's Star Wars Journey
00:03:42
Speaker
in your life. But to not even see a single one of the movies, of which there are nine main ones, and going to be f um going to be a four start four supplementary ones.
00:04:02
Speaker
Yeah, i I don't know. that that that's more That's more difficult than a task, like because they run everywhere. But, so Lauren decided, well, let's dive into this media so that I understand all of the jokes and references that everyone else in this group is tossing around like candy on Halloween.
00:04:27
Speaker
who And also, I tend to prefer animated series over live-action series in general. That's kind of one of the reasons why I hadn't seen very many Star Wars movies in the first place.
00:04:38
Speaker
So Clone Wars seemed like a reasonable location to start. Yes. And so here we are, and we are going through Clone Wars in a reasonable manner.
00:04:52
Speaker
Well, I thought we were doing chronological order. Yes. But you said a reasonable manner. Now that joke makes sense because previous seasons were told with it's frequent flipping back between not just episodes within a season, but also between seasons in a baffling decision. But we're mostly past that now.
00:05:18
Speaker
Mostly. We skipped one episode at the start of the season. We're mostly past that now.
Chronological Order of Clone Wars Episodes
00:05:24
Speaker
Mostly. Mostly. But once we are past that hurdle, it is a straight shot to the end.
00:05:30
Speaker
All right. Yep. And for those of you who would like to follow along, we will link to the official chronological viewing order in our show notes. But I think after our next episode, it's all a straight shot. We marathon towards the end of the series.
00:05:51
Speaker
Yeah. And we will also revisit, because part of this, we also revisited the Jendi Tarkovsky Star Wars Clone Wars series as well. Mm-hmm. Yep.
00:06:01
Speaker
So we'll revisit that as well. Well, as part of our lead-up to the... End of Clone Wars? Oh boy. But we have, we've been talking about, you know, what to do once we're done with Clone Wars. There's a few ideas out there.
00:06:18
Speaker
yeah We just need to, ah looking at how close we're getting, we might actually, know, have to figure that stuff out. Oh man. Figure that stuff out. That sounds like more work than we usually do.
00:06:31
Speaker
This time out, I'm not going to put any false pretenses out there, we are talking about one of my favorite arcs of the Clone Wars, hands down.
00:06:45
Speaker
we're gonna be talking It's a solid great arc. oh yeah I ah love this arc. This is probably the one that I have rewatched the most. Nice. And I was...
00:06:56
Speaker
Thrilled and delighted to get back to this arc. We're going to be talking about The Gathering, Season 5, Episode 6. A Test of Strength, Season 5, Episode 7.
00:07:08
Speaker
Bound for Rescue, Season 5, Episode 8. And A Necessary Bond, Season 5, Episode 9.
The Gathering Arc in Clone Wars
00:07:16
Speaker
And starting off with The Gathering, Season 5, Episode 6. The official description is Jedi Younglings undergo a rite of passage.
00:07:26
Speaker
Oh boy. And right off the bat, Ahsoka is being tasked with escorting six younglings on. Well, how about we just let her explain it?
00:07:40
Speaker
Hurry, younglings.
00:07:44
Speaker
You have proved to be the top of your class. And so now is the time of the gathering. For a Jedi, there is no greater challenge or honor.
00:07:57
Speaker
What is the gathering, Paduantano?
00:08:10
Speaker
The time has come for you to build your own lightsabers. I knew I had this sword answered. Be warned. This is no simple task, and many perils lie ahead of you.
00:08:23
Speaker
Where we are going, there is no place more sacred to the Jedi. So, yeah, i we get the names of all of the younglings, and you they're they're all you know a a wonderfully you know molded and diverse group of of Jedi younglings, and i just i love them all.
00:08:46
Speaker
I love every single one of them. They're all wonderful, interesting characters, but also we get to return... To Ilum! Yes! I know this planet!
00:08:57
Speaker
They head to Ilum, and once they're there, you they they they can't land right where they need to be. They have to trek across the ice because, well, boy why would it be a Jedi ritual without doing it the most difficult way? But first, Lauren, how do you know of Ilum?
00:09:18
Speaker
Well, you see, i played a video game. one Yes, yes, a video game with a certain Cal Kestis.
00:09:32
Speaker
And his ponchos. Yes, and his numerous ponchos, which I collected. Many, many ponchos. Mm-hmm, mm-hmm. Side note there on the ponchos.
00:09:42
Speaker
I love the fact that at one convention, Cameron Monaghan came out on the stage wearing a poncho. Oh, and all these questions that he asked was asked like, well, yeah the the the interviewer was like, so so what's new about Cal Kestis in the sequel to the game that you're talking about? ah Well, ah he doesn't appear to be wearing a poncho.
00:10:06
Speaker
Where's my poncho? With basically the entirety of that interview. Anyway, I'm sorry to have interrupted there.
Lore of Lightsaber Crystals
00:10:14
Speaker
yeah Yes, yes. ah So yeah, Ilum, it shows up in that game. And it's an entire area.
00:10:20
Speaker
And it is a ah very cool area. Both literally and metaphorically. It also appeared in the Jendi Tartakovsky animated series that we mentioned at the top in the introduction.
00:10:34
Speaker
Where we were first introduced to Barriss Elfie and her master, Luminar Undulie. They get there, they get to to a temple that's hidden in the rock and the ice, and ah they they have to get in first.
00:10:48
Speaker
Yes, they all have to work together to use the force to enter. And the channel Betsy into this one. What's gonna work? teamwork and after they do so ahsoka makes a really smug face that should absolutely be a meme i wasn't one and they get inside and yoda's already inside waiting for them yoda's here he's in this episode yes and yoda harnesses the sun through a crystal and melts a big sheet of ice inside the temple, revealing a cavern entrance.
00:11:27
Speaker
This is fit goes back to, I was there when you played Jedi Fallen Order. The attention to detail the game makers had in that game, because it's a one-to-one recreation of this of this area, including the sun...
00:11:47
Speaker
Sun Crystal Puzzle. Yes, and the player does in fact do the thing that Yoda does in this area. Just a fun uptent into detail that was really nice. He opens that up and then he and Ahsoka give them some more detail. he He gives them their quest journal for the video game on what they're there to do.
00:12:12
Speaker
Master Yoda.
00:12:15
Speaker
The Force, made physical, a Jedi is. Comes great responsibility with that, yes?
00:12:24
Speaker
Protect others, how does a Jedi, hmm?
00:12:29
Speaker
Build your own lightsaber, you shall. But first, harvest your crystal, each one of you must. See, I told you, no, I told you. The heart of the lightsaber, the crystal is...
00:12:43
Speaker
focuses the force from the Jedi? It does.
00:12:49
Speaker
If Jedi you are to become, enter the crystal cave. You must trust yourself. Trust each other and succeed.
00:13:00
Speaker
You will. Once you have found your crystal, do not remain inside. As daylight ends, the door will freeze over again and you will be trapped.
00:13:13
Speaker
For how long? For one rotation, there will be nothing anyone can do for you. How will we know which crystal to pick? Only you can know which one is yours.
00:13:25
Speaker
Now hurry.
00:13:28
Speaker
Off they run into the cave. And once the younglings are in the cave, we we quickly start to see some of their personalities and character archetypes come out. you know The first three that come up right away, we see that Petro, the human, is kind of overconfident and impulsive.
00:13:45
Speaker
And Zat, the Nautilun, is the the brainy one. And he's got all sorts of technological little tools to help him out there. yeah And Katooni, the Thalathian, is kind of a natural-born leader.
00:14:00
Speaker
Yes. And I will say this, back when I first watched this, I was, I, in my heart, i as someone that's also a big fan of, like, animation, I could all, and sort of television as well, I was, in my, this whole episode and arc was screaming at the stealth pilot.
00:14:22
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah, I can see Pilot for a spinoff, yes. And now now we are getting an animated series about Jedi younglings in the imminent future at some point.
00:14:32
Speaker
Yes. Petro immediately runs off on his own he could be because he wants to be the first one to find a crystal. Of course. Totally on brand for him. We've known him for 30 seconds and we already know that this is perfectly on brand.
00:14:47
Speaker
Everybody expected him to do this. Yes. And you you you almost expect the whole group as a whole to go, Petro.
00:14:59
Speaker
Petro. But the rest of the kids, you know they stick together, but then they come across three doorways. So then they have to split up. And poor Biff, the Ithorian, who's the one who seems to be, you know, the the most cautious, the the most fearful of things, if you will, is on his own. And so naturally he's scared about that.
00:15:25
Speaker
a I love Biff. He's great. Oh, Biff's great. Also just seeing Ithorians are great. They have four throats. Yeah.
00:15:37
Speaker
Petro just, he he grabs a crystal right away. Yep, it hangs precariously above a pit. Yep, he's like, oh, here here we go, mine, and snatches it. it But Fitz's daring personality that he'd be willing to risk his own life to get his crystal, it's presents itself in a way that fits his personality.
00:15:57
Speaker
Yes. And then the scene then cuts to Katooni and Zat and we we start to see how personalized and individualized this whole experience is. Because she sees a light off in the distance but Zat doesn't see it.
00:16:17
Speaker
And so he reassures her, you know, that that has to be your crystal because you're the only one who can see that. And I believe in you. i it It may be way up there where you have to climb really high, but I believe in you that you can get up there and do it.
00:16:36
Speaker
Now, part of this was a, at the time, a reintroduction and recontextualization of lightsaber crystal lore.
00:16:47
Speaker
Oh, really?
Younglings' Lightsaber Training
00:16:49
Speaker
Teach us lore, master. Before this time, lightsaber crystals, now better known and much more easy to say kyber crystals, were...
00:17:02
Speaker
Just regular old crystals. That's why there's different colors. The different colors were just the different places you could get a crystal from. o And you could put it in your lightsaber and you could just swap that out like it's just a regular old rock.
00:17:19
Speaker
In the sort of revised canon that's been going forward with the Disney canon as well, lightsaber crystals are much more connected to the individual elements.
00:17:32
Speaker
thusly making the lightsaber a much more personal item to the Jedi. And that starts here with the idea that you can you can't see your crystal until you see it. You can't just pick up a crystal and be like, that's my lightsaber crystal. it's like It's almost like a choosing thing, which also, again, is reflected in the Fallen Order level that involved going to Ilum.
00:18:00
Speaker
And so then next up, Gunji the Wookiee. I love Gunji. Yes. yeah he He hears a whistling sound, but Gennody, the Rodian, can't hear it.
00:18:13
Speaker
And Gennody points out that the spot that Gunji seems to be drawn to is separated from them by a lake that's refreezing.
00:18:24
Speaker
yeah Also, this this is just out of... the Star Wars, this did remind me of, from a comic, from comic books, not specifically Star Wars comics, but DC comics, specifically Green Lantern comics, where there's a Green Lantern who is blind, but recontextualizes their ring as a bell.
00:18:46
Speaker
things like The F-sharp bell. Yes. yeah I just found that to be very interesting that, like, it's, your connection to the Force can manifest in such interesting ways.
00:18:58
Speaker
And so yes, ultimately Gungi has to has to wait. It's testing his yeah patience as he has to wait for the lake to refreeze. Before he can get over there, yep.
00:19:08
Speaker
And of course, once it does refreeze, he'll have to be fast so that the water bottle... So he can get out. Yeah. Meanwhile, there's also Biff, who he finds an ominous redness within the dark caverns. Yeah, it looks like there's...
00:19:28
Speaker
Yeah, it looks like there's this big glowing red steaming fire-breathing creature that's there. But also, with that is a very interesting choice because the enemy of the Jedi are the Sith.
00:19:41
Speaker
Yes. Who are known for their red lightsabers. And so they're also known for inflicting fear. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. And so, then Ganodi is looking for her crystal, and falls through an ice floor into what looks like a cave full of crystals.
00:20:01
Speaker
And she's completely overwhelmed that she might, she's not going to be able to find her crystal in a sea of crystals.
00:20:12
Speaker
And then Petro, oh boy, Petro comes proudly bounding out of the cave and is, hey, you, He goes up to Yoda and Ahsoka. Here you go. here's I found my crystal.
00:20:27
Speaker
As it promptly melts in his hand. and It's not an M&M. it is not an M&M. As Yoda points out, yeah, you found a crystal, all right.
00:20:39
Speaker
Water crystal. Get back in there, kid. But this is a good point to mention that very clearly, just like the cave on Dagobah, the Ilum crystal caves are are and very force powerful or force nexus location. where yes it's These aren't like tests set up by Yoda.
00:21:04
Speaker
This is the force itself sort of manifesting these abilities. So it's entirely possible that some of these rooms and caves are existing just because the because of the Padawans that are there.
00:21:19
Speaker
We got force caves, y'all. Absolutely. it It reinforces how mystical the force is. Mm-hmm. So, yes, we we continue to look around. We see Katooni as she continues to climb.
00:21:35
Speaker
not Not a whole lot of narrative weight in this instance. She she is climbing, though. But you know she's she's demonstrating her perseverance. I'm going to do this. And Zat, meanwhile, he's looking around using a scanner, which reads as Crystal being all around, which stands to reason.
00:21:57
Speaker
But he doesn't see anything. And so he just gets frustrated and he just... smashes that scanner against the rocks. Yep.
00:22:08
Speaker
Then we cut over to Biff, who continues to cower in fear of the ambiguous redness. But he is getting closer in spite of all of his fear. He keeps creeping closer. Honestly, again, it's sort of my headcanon that he was particularly scared of old stories about the Sith.
00:22:30
Speaker
Could be. And then we come back over to Kenodi and she, she continues to see too many crystals. She can't figure out which one is hers. She's getting freaked out by it.
00:22:43
Speaker
Yep. And I can understand that as a choice, choice anxiety, choice paralysis, analysis paralysis. Oh boy. And Katooni gets to the top, gets her crystal and finds another way up there at the top of that cliffside.
00:23:02
Speaker
to leave without having to climb back down the way that she came. And then we cut back to our little buddy Biff, who overcomes his fear and takes his crystal and the ominous red light goes out and the creature was just a rock formation.
00:23:21
Speaker
The real fear was inside of his mind. Yes. And then we cut back to Gennody, who... concentrates, and her crystal flies to her hand.
00:23:32
Speaker
Yes, yes, she allows the Force to guide her. Although, I will say, ah whenever she's holding onto her crystal, she, like, smiles?
00:23:43
Speaker
And her species was not designed to do that. It looks very awkward. it was was... Needless to say that every season of The Clone Wars gets progressively...
00:23:56
Speaker
way better in animes and like leaps and bounds. But yeah, you can't make a Rodian smile, unfortunately. Yeah, no, they're they're not they're not designed to have facial expressions like that.
00:24:10
Speaker
And then Zat relies on himself rather than his technology and finds his crystal right behind him in the ice And so he sacrifices the remains of that scanner to get through the building a bomb.
00:24:24
Speaker
Yes, but notably, he still uses his his technological prowess in order to detonate the scanner to destroy the ice wall on his way. Which again, like the ri in other stories, the lesson would be like, oh, you're too in your head with the technology. But it's like, no...
00:24:39
Speaker
He still needed the technology to succeed. He just needed to not look through He needed to use it as a tool. Yes. Right. Then Gunji waits for the water to freeze and makes his way across to the crystal. And I just want to make a note here about the art for Gunji in this episode.
00:25:02
Speaker
We know it's freezing on Ilum. That's its whole... That's its single Star Wars biome. Yes. And as a Wookiee, Gunji's not in a lot of traditional clothes here.
00:25:15
Speaker
And throughout the episode, as the cavern gets colder, frost is added to his fur more and more, and more steam comes from his breath.
00:25:26
Speaker
yeah i sort of head can its Again, he's, as a Wookiee, incredibly furred, so should be able to handle this pretty well. even though he comes from a planet that's a jungle. so But I feel that that is the force itself, like making it colder on him.
00:25:44
Speaker
Maybe. Could be. I will also say, though, that, ah you know, we talk about ah how silly single biome planets are sometimes, but admittedly, ice planet, out of all the possible yeah single biome planets, ice planet it is like the most reasonable one. We have ice planets, or at least ice moons, anyway.
00:26:08
Speaker
Those exist. Yeah. Pluto's still a planet. Have breathable atmospheres. Yeah, yeah. yeah And so Katooni then falls through the ice and into a dead end that's sealed off with more ice.
00:26:27
Speaker
And then we see Gungi makes it back and almost everybody is there. Only Katooni and Petro remain. Right, and Petro continues comes across Katooni, sees her there, and she asks for help, but he runs off still looking for his crystal because that main cave entrance is creeping more and more closed.
00:26:51
Speaker
And though not... ah The planet cycle of Illum is several actual days. Yes. Right.
00:27:03
Speaker
But then he turns around and helps her escape from where she's trapped... And finds his crystal in the chamber that she was trapped in. Oh, yeah. And so... Katooni makes it back in time, but it could Because the moment that... the The moment that Petro broke her out, she left while Petro looked for his crystal within the location where she was trapped. So Katooni makes it back to everybody first, and she gets through the doorway before it freezes over.
00:27:35
Speaker
But then... Petro doesn't make it. The door freezes over and he's still stuck inside. Except then he shatters through the ice anyway! Yep.
00:27:48
Speaker
Petro! How did he break the ice? Only water made solid was the door. Easy to break, if you have the will.
00:28:00
Speaker
You... you said we would be trapped. Not by the cave, viewer, but by your mind. Lessons you have learned. Find courage. You did.
00:28:12
Speaker
Hope.
00:28:14
Speaker
Patience.
00:28:17
Speaker
Trust. Confidence. And selflessness. Yes?
00:28:28
Speaker
Take your crystals back to the temple and keep them safe. Young Jedi. Yes. Again, swore that I was going to immediately cut it when I was a kid.
00:28:40
Speaker
Immediately cut to a trailer for Young Jedi.
00:28:45
Speaker
A Clone Wars series. And you you were about to say something before the clip started, Nick?
Pirate Attack: A Test of Strength
00:28:52
Speaker
Oh, I was going to say, like, technically, did he succeed? The test parameters were getting out out before the time limit. Yeah.
00:29:03
Speaker
he He did actually succeed. It was frame perfect, though. It was a frame perfect and ending. Yes. And that that ends that episode.
00:29:14
Speaker
And then we go into a Test of Strength, Season 5, Episode 7. The Jedi Younglings and Ahsoka are attacked by pirates.
00:29:24
Speaker
Yes. Spoiler alert. Right? Yeah. in so Spoilers. Spoilers. And so think you have the first word of the day. Yep. Yeah. Yes. We ah we start off the episode with the practice orb from episode four.
00:29:41
Speaker
Training. or Yes. they're They're doing practice orb things. Yeah. song Training remote. No, it's called a practice orb now.
00:29:50
Speaker
Lauren has spoken. Yes. It's called the practice orb. So they're they're on a a Jedi ship. ah We don't get the name in this episode, but we get it a little later. It's called the Crucible.
00:30:02
Speaker
And it's a gorgeous ship. I yeah love the Crucible too. And they're ready to build their lightsabers. And so the younglings are introduced to Hu Yang. And this is a droid voiced by David Tennant, fresh off of his run starring in Doctor Who.
00:30:20
Speaker
And you can clearly hear some of his dialogue was written and performed specifically to evoke the Doctor. Your lesson begins now.
00:30:31
Speaker
May I introduce you to architect and lightsaber designer, Huang.
00:30:38
Speaker
These are them. I swear they get younger every expedition. All have passed the gathering? Yes, sir. Are you sure? But he's a droid. You expect us to learn from a droid?
00:30:52
Speaker
Who said that?
00:30:56
Speaker
Well... ship teaching many a jedi before you and i will continue teaching many a jedi after you call me what you want but inside my memory banks i contain a record of every lightsaber ever made and the jedi can fashion
00:31:21
Speaker
From battles of Rash Fond to the peacekeeping of Paliok to our very own Clone Wars, the lightsaber is a Jedi's only true ally. And how they work? Hmm? Yes.
00:31:32
Speaker
You have broad-be crystals, but they're all useless unless you give them life. Do you know how to awaken the Force within the crystal? No? Then I suggest you listen and learn until you think of a question this droid cannot answer.
00:31:48
Speaker
I love you Yang too. Yeah. I will say that a part of the great love that I have, Hu Yang is amazing, but also it is a lot of people's favorite Doctor who is the 11th Doctor. I see. imitated planes No, Tenet was 10. 11 was Matt Smith.
00:32:09
Speaker
Turn in your nerd card. I only have one more. Then I'll become a jock. And then I'll have to bully you guys. Hey, don't worry. wait Don't worry, Nick. I'll get you into the Sonic series and I'll give you like five new nerd cards. At the expense of like 20 furry cards. Hey, those furry cards are very powerful. You could use those for a lot of things. but But just just listening to the dialogue, that the pattern of delivery is yeah very much the Tenth Doctor. he's you you and the music Even the musical cues are like just a little bit of of the Hoop soundtrack.
00:32:49
Speaker
well and And he's also using the accent that he used as the Tenth Doctor rather than his natural Scottish accent. Which is startlingly very Scottish. Yeah.
00:33:03
Speaker
Oh yeah, he's he is very Scottish. He is very, very Scottish. And yeah just what while we're off on a little mini Doctor Who tangent, Lauren, how familiar are you with Doctor Who?
00:33:18
Speaker
Essentially zero understanding. Okay, so follow along if you will. David Tennant grew up watching Doctor Who and was a huge fan.
00:33:30
Speaker
His favorite doctor was Peter Davison, who was the fifth doctor. Every year they used to do ah for the Children in Need charity broadcast in in Britain, they used to do like a little Doctor Who short that was set in between the seasons that that broadcast occurred in between.
00:33:53
Speaker
And so one year... when Tennant was the doctor, that little short was even a crossover between the 10th and the fifth doctors. sure So he he was living his best nerd life. Okay.
00:34:07
Speaker
So it it gets better. In one of his seasons, there was an episode called the doctor's daughter where the doctor and his companion land on a planet where A sample of his blood is taken and a cloned quote unquote daughter of his is rapidly grown.
00:34:33
Speaker
All right. that That daughter was played by actress Georgia Moffat, who is the real daughter of Peter Davison, the fifth doctor.
00:34:45
Speaker
I see. So the doctor's daughter played the doctor's daughter. Mm-hmm. Yes, I see. and And was the daughter of the doctor's favorite doctor.
00:34:58
Speaker
Right, right. now Now, it gets better. This is when Georgia Moffat and David Tennant met. They went on to get married. Oh, I see. So, the 10th doctor is married to his cloned daughter, who is the daughter of the 5th doctor, who is his favorite doctor.
00:35:16
Speaker
Right, right. Which led to one of the funniest convention moments ever where Peter Davidson is at a convention and he's doing a panel, Q&A panel.
00:35:34
Speaker
And someone asks him, what is the strangest gift that a fan has ever given you? And he lets out this exaggerated, exasperated sigh and says, a granddaughter.
00:35:49
Speaker
yeah
00:35:53
Speaker
ah So what we're saying here is that Star Wars isn't the only sci-fi series that's about incest.
00:36:05
Speaker
Correct. Correct. and you But... but you you you win You win the prize for the most astute, unexpected but an observation possible.
00:36:20
Speaker
ah And it's correct. thats Also, Tennant in another role using that same voice, he was the villain in season one of Netflix's MCU Jessica Jones series.
00:36:36
Speaker
Where he played a villain with... The Purple Man. Well, they never called him that in the show. Well, i I'll see he wasn't purple. Man, he's not even purple.
00:36:49
Speaker
But he has mind control powers and he is this sociopathic, manipulating, and yes, since the Netflix Marvel shows were more mature in themes,
00:37:07
Speaker
Yes, he used his mind control powers in that way with characters, with female characters, including having done so in the past with the title character of the show.
00:37:21
Speaker
Now, he used this same voice that he used, voice and accent that he used for the Doctor and for Huang.
00:37:33
Speaker
And I think that ah as an intentional artistic choice, that makes it a lot more sinister. and what takes it He's more well-known for these. herbing It makes it so much more disturbing because if you're a fan of Doctor Who,
00:37:50
Speaker
You're hearing and seeing the Doctor do all of this depraved shit. Same thing if you're a fan of Hu Yang. Again, even presented to an even younger audience than even Doctor Who.
00:38:04
Speaker
So it's a unique choice. that That's a little David Tennant tangent. I love David Tennant's work. he he's a He's a brilliant actor. And just...
00:38:16
Speaker
I like to imagine he makes a lot of choices himself. he's just He's great, and he was worth the little rabbit hole just now. Well, all right. To a regularly scheduled Clone Watch. sure Yes.
00:38:28
Speaker
Yes. ah Hu Yang, he looks at the group, and he notes that Wookiee Jedi are quite rare. Which is true. in the it' It's true, but in some of the more recent um extended ancillary media... In the High Republic, you can't throw a rock without hitting a Wookiee Jedi.
00:38:50
Speaker
with strength But it's also strange that they don't appear during the Clone Wars era, which is pretty unique. It must have been the attack on the Wookiees. there There are a minimum of three major Wookiee Jedi in the High Republic stories.
00:39:09
Speaker
But anyway. Honestly, I do feel that that is a sort of foreshadowing of how we spoke about last season, the tumultuous relationship between Krasik and Trandosa, and the Trandosas and the Wookiees.
00:39:25
Speaker
It likely is the contribution to like the rareness of a Wookiee Jedi. I see. Foreshadowing is a literary device. Mm-hmm. But yes, so yes, Hu Yang has Gungi use the Force to determine his optimal lightsaber composition.
00:39:44
Speaker
yeah ah He yeah tells Gungi to not envision the lightsaber he wants, but the lightsaber that he needs. And then Hu Yang goes looking for lightsaber parts, and we can see the great design that they gave this droid for the purpose that he has. He's got a backpack module that has two extra arms so he can work in front of and behind himself at the same time.
00:40:15
Speaker
Yes. And he's able to sort of reach into those those varying levels of sort of, for lack a better term, a library very of parts and components that any RPG everything like I need to loot this place. I need to loot this place for all the components.
00:40:35
Speaker
Yes, i i need I need to get on the crucible. and but ah But then that'd be the ultimate trick to be like, well, now you have all these parts. Now you must make your lightsaber and you'll be there for a thousand years.
00:40:50
Speaker
Now, his job is to make sure that by the time they leave the ship, the younglings have everything that they need to build their lightsabers, including the knowledge of it.
00:41:02
Speaker
Yes. But now, who's this that's following the ship?
Hondo's Pirate Attack on Jedi Ship
00:41:06
Speaker
Why, it's Hondo! On his flying saucer! He wants to steal the kyber crystals that he knows are on the ship.
00:41:15
Speaker
Mm-hmm. And naturally... Petro is the first one done building his lightsaber. Surprise, right? Whoa. oh and yeah there's a fun There's some fun prints here.
00:41:28
Speaker
Yep, and so how how'd that go with his being the first done building his lightsaber? What's the rush, Petro? With this lightsaber, I'm going to challenge Obi-Wan Kenobi to a duel and kill Grievous.
00:41:44
Speaker
Ha ha ha
00:41:50
Speaker
The only person you are going to kill with that, my young friend, is yourself. You have inverted the emitter matrix, which will cause the power grid to backfire. Light this, and all that will be left of you and your lightsaber will be your crystal.
00:42:04
Speaker
Start again, and this time, please follow the diagram. Foreshadowing is a literary device. I know exactly how dangerous a poorly constructed lightsaber can be. Yes, yes. Now, I didn't put any notes down about this, but listening back to that clip, Petro's dialogue kind of leans into one of the themes that we've talked about multiple times in Clone Watch, which is...
00:42:41
Speaker
they're becoming child soldiers. yeah what is what is What is it that he says, you know hey, I've got my lightsaber built and I'm going to use this lightsaber and I'm going to challenge Obi-Wan Kenobi to a duel and then I'm going to kill General Grievous. Again, that the most importantly, that's the the the escalation of it.
00:43:04
Speaker
Defeat Obi-Wan, one of the greatest of the Jedi Knights. a master duelist and one that even the in several ancillary materials, both before and after this Disney buyout and the Clone Wars series, said that he is the one that will likely defeat General Grievous.
00:43:26
Speaker
His opinion is that he must defeat Obi-Wan and then murder a Yes, a villain, but at no point does he consider his role of a Jedi and the role of of the purpose of a lightsaber to a Jedi.
00:43:45
Speaker
It's a peacekeeper. yeah he He is not thinking as a guardian of peace and justice in the galaxy. No, definitely not. In fact, sees one of the highest of the order as a potential rival to his ability to then take a light.
00:44:03
Speaker
So you in the midst of all of this, you know, cool youngling shenanigans that are going on we're still seeing, you know, some of those.
00:44:16
Speaker
a line that we didn't talk about in the in the sort of cold open to the previous episode, the lack of Jedi Knights is requiring the promotion of more Padawans to this level.
00:44:31
Speaker
Yep.
00:44:33
Speaker
The Jedi are needing more soldiers on the front lines. yeah These aren't even Padawans.
00:44:41
Speaker
These aren't even Padawans. These are younglings. They don't have masters yet. They're speedrunning them through the entire process. And one of them is very much of the opinion of, well, if it takes me taking down, proving myself to defeat one of the grand mass one of the great masters of the Order...
00:45:03
Speaker
In order for me to take down this enemy, I will do so. It's a disturbing type of realization that the Jedi Order is changing in the short time period of the Clone War.
00:45:22
Speaker
And so we we get up to the cockpit and, oh, hey, R2's here. Yeah, R2. Woo! And so that the pirates disable the ship's hyperdrive and board the crucible.
00:45:33
Speaker
Yes. And it's classic pirate today, I guess. They use physical harpoons to tether the ship, and in this setting, I'd expect a more futur rest futuristic methodology, like a tractor beam.
00:45:47
Speaker
Are these pirates skimping out on their tech? <unk> so easy It's Hondo is cutting the corners, don't you know? Because he wants to line his own pockets.
00:45:58
Speaker
I guess that's sort of the implication that tractor beams aren't foreign technology. It's just, well, this is super. And Hondo, especially as we see for this arc, isn't the most wise with his with his credits.
00:46:16
Speaker
Hu Yang gathers the crystals for safekeeping, but Petro palms his. Also, just again, fun design factor that he has a little pocket protector that he can hide the crystals in. Just yeah that's a nice touch.
00:46:30
Speaker
Yep. And the the kids hide in the ventilation shafts. Oh, no, they're they're being sus. They're venting. And Hondo is... No, we're not doing that sound effect for those who were expecting it among us sound effect, though.
00:46:47
Speaker
Now, Hondo is apparently fine with killing kids to make his profit. Yep, yep. he He realizes that the kids are hiding in the vents, and he has his crew smoke him out.
00:47:01
Speaker
But fortunately, a couple of the kids end up with R2, and R2 saves them with the power of a shock! He zapifies some of those pirates. Now, luckily, R2 realizes that he is still in children's media. Otherwise, he would have gone completely leaham on all of of these pirates. oh Oh, yes, yes. They would have no more limbs if R2 was, you know, allowed to let loose.
00:47:28
Speaker
Well, Nick, now, I know that Lauren hasn't gotten there yet, but imagine if it were Chopper instead of R2. Uh, this would be a a rated flick.
00:47:42
Speaker
Those kids would never be the same. They wouldn't. They we wouldn't. Now, Petro slips his crystal back into his saber... and lets one of the pirates have it. And the pirate is like, oh, I've always wanted one of these. And he ignites the lightsaber, and just like Hu Yang said, boom! Yep. now ri And that's why... Foreshadowing is a literary device.
00:48:09
Speaker
Now, Loremaster Nick, we we do get a bit of a clue as to how old the ship, the Crucible, is... with the Old Republic Jedi guy on the cockpit door.
00:48:23
Speaker
Which puts this firmly as like a ancient vessel. Like during the time of when the Jedi and the Sith were actively warped with each other. So that's a period of anywhere between couple thousand 40 50,000 years though I mean, Hu Yang mentions a thousand generations of helping Jedi build those lights. And he specifically calls out that he has schematics on every lightsaber that has ever been built by a Jedi.
00:49:05
Speaker
And most lightsabers built by Sif were built by former Jedi. So he knows of all the different...
00:49:17
Speaker
different configurations. You know, now now i want I want a story in ancillary media, Nick.
00:49:29
Speaker
Because given how long he's been around, he would have been around in the High Republic as well. He likely taught both. for He could have taught them. That's where I'm going with Vernestra.
00:49:44
Speaker
That's where I'm going with Vernestra. With Vernestra, it was... She considered it, ooh, this is a very taboo thing, that I have adjusted my lightsaber so that it also can act as a whip.
00:50:00
Speaker
So... ah what did Did he teach her that, or did she find that information somewhere else? we don't I want that story. She received the vision of its existence, but we didn't they never went into the construction.
Younglings' Rescue Mission
00:50:17
Speaker
I want that story. like the the possibilities, especially with what the accolade was setting up. And and i want I want that story, i i won't say in live action because that's asking for a lot. I want that story, ooh.
00:50:36
Speaker
they They need to do a Tales of the High Republic series of shorts one of these years with their Tales of animated shorts.
00:50:46
Speaker
Poloni, you're in charge now, and we know you're listening in on us, so please. Make it happen and get David Tennant to come in, because we know that you're still on good terms because of Ahsoka. And let let's see you know Vernestra.
00:51:05
Speaker
I mean, that That's a natural for a Tales of the High Republic because it can trace Vernestra from the idealistic young Padawan who became knight super early up to the cynical version that we see in the Acolyte.
00:51:23
Speaker
Again, if we since we are going to see the the actual ending of the Acolyte series, give us that at least.
00:51:34
Speaker
Please. It's a little bit more of the light whip because it was cool even in that one scene. it was. But so the lights are out on the ship now and the kids sick the training remotes on some of the pirates.
00:51:52
Speaker
Yeah, yeah. They do some they do some home alone nonsense with the practice orbs. That they do. We're going to be calling them practice arts, aren't we? Yes, yes, they're practice
00:52:06
Speaker
arts. That's just what they are now. and so Yes, we get some Ahsoka versus Hondo. Excitement in that regard. and I explained what the purple-tipped spears were. Yeah, yeah. Yeah, the electro staffs.
00:52:25
Speaker
yeah the electro stas He's got one of those. Yeah, well, of course he does, because he's Hondo. Of course. it's how ja That's how he's able to duel with Visoka.
00:52:40
Speaker
And yeah, the kids the kids decide that they want to fight back as well. But in all of their fighting back, Hu-Yin gets blasted. the Yep. He's blasted to pieces.
00:52:52
Speaker
And their their way of of taking a taking everything out, you know getting everything taken care of, is they they they pull an alien here, kinda.
00:53:03
Speaker
the The boarding tube seal... You know that really old movie, Alien? You are not Tom Holland, Nick. Sorry. Well, yeah, not British enough. like The boarding tube seal's broken. And one of the pirates gets just sucked out into the vacuum of space and we see it.
00:53:24
Speaker
Or remember, folks, this is a kid's show. In Star Wars, he's able to breathe his last breath, so it's not a quick death. No. And Ahsoka got pulled into the boarding tube.
00:53:38
Speaker
Yep. So Hondo is going to sell her for the profit that he lost by not getting the kyber crystals. Yes, he says that he's going to turn Ahsoka into profit.
00:53:50
Speaker
Uh, Hondo, you probably shouldn't say that, that you might end up on some sort of files. Oh, he definitely already is. Yeah, I mean, this this is Hondo. We're gonna see which ones, in fact, later on. Yep.
00:54:03
Speaker
And so, that takes us to Bound for Rescue, Season 5, Episode 8. The younglings must infiltrate the pirate's den in disguise.
00:54:14
Speaker
So the kids call for Jedi help, and Obi-Wan answers, Hey, Petro, I dare you challenge him to a duel. Take right now. they you you dogin You're talking it's a mad bad for Pootoo.
00:54:28
Speaker
But Obi-Wan's gonna send Cody and deal with Hondo while... The kids want to help Ahsoka, but Obi-Wan tells them not to do anything.
00:54:40
Speaker
And then the Separatists attack, delaying Cody's departure. Yep. So the younglings pass their time, because they don't know all this is going on, constructing their lightsabers. Yes. And Gungi's looks awesome. Oh, yeah.
00:54:57
Speaker
Yeah. the the the big The big, like, fang at the end? Mm-hmm. The big fang at the end, the the wooden hilt, it just, oh, it looks awesome. Oh, yeah, it's great. It looks awesome.
00:55:08
Speaker
But Katooni's lightsaber doesn't work. Oh, no. she She can't get it. she She hasn't gotten it constructed properly, and it won't work. It happens to a one in five.
00:55:22
Speaker
Speak for yourself. Whew.
00:55:27
Speaker
And then, uh-oh, the crucible is leaking coolant. If they don't land the ship, then the engines will overheat and explode. Which does help to to add to the fact that this ship is ancient. It's like a coolant link will cause the whole ship to explode.
00:55:46
Speaker
Yeah. Is okay? If the engines keep getting hotter, yes. Look, look, this just gives me more potential for explosion hamster shenanigans, okay?
00:56:00
Speaker
Remind me to never let let your explosive hamster get near to anything like the Crucible. Because it's full of lightsaber crystals, which are explosive. Yes.
00:56:13
Speaker
So they decide to land on Florham, which is where Hondo and company are. And... Fancy that! happy Hey, coincidentally, we can rescue Ahsoka while we're here.
00:56:24
Speaker
Yes, yes. Petro in particular is very determined about an Ahsoka rescue mission. Hondo's still holding Ahsoka captive. And the space battle is still going on. And Grievous boards Obi-Wan's Venator. And Grievous is finally back in form. Oh yeah. We're we're getting in yet another Grievous versus Kenobi fight, everybody. But also, he is just, he is being ruthless. He's crushing, he literally crushes the clones full on, like, chest right in.
00:57:00
Speaker
Now, the kids land and try to figure out how they're going to get into Hondo's fortress, which is where this conversation is is going on.
00:57:12
Speaker
You know the Republic won't pay a ransom for me, and the Separatists can't be trusted. They'll betray you kill us both. Yes, I know this, my dear. The Separatists are no friends of mine.
00:57:24
Speaker
Don't ask me why B'Doku holds such a grudge against me since our little I-held-him-postage affair. The truth is, I have my side set on more nefarious criminals than I.
Ahsoka and Hondo's Negotiation
00:57:39
Speaker
A businessman who will pay handsomely for a Jedi.
00:57:43
Speaker
A female Jedi at that. You don't scare me, Hondo. Oh, by the way, they don't care if you're dead or alive.
00:57:54
Speaker
mean, I prefer alive, less messy. But I find my mood so changeable these days.
00:58:04
Speaker
And i I meant to edit down a clip, you know, just because it's Jim Cummings of Pooh saying, oh, bother. Ah, yes. In case you didn't know this is Jim Cummings as the voice actor, who is Winnie the Pooh.
00:58:24
Speaker
Yes. And Grievous and Obi-Wan keep fighting some more. And, you know, I had honestly forgotten how much Obi-Wan there was in this episode of the storyline.
00:58:41
Speaker
Well, it's only really this episode, but he's rather significant as the weird stopgate from ending the arc.
00:58:52
Speaker
that' Right. I'll be honest, I don't think that we needed as much Grievous and Obi-Wan in this episode. Like, I feel like we only really needed them at the very start to justify why the kids were, know... Especially considering how...
00:59:06
Speaker
naturally in spoilers in the next episode we could have just had grievous without the obi-wan part i think uh the the grievous and obi-wan part explains why obi-wan isn't just like okay yeah cody go pick up But also, and this is the episode that introduces that. The kids could have just naturally drifted towards Florida because that's where Hondo is. Well, you know, what what I'm saying is that ah we we definitely needed the scene at the very start, but then the rest of the scenes, we didn't really need those. We just needed the very first one.
00:59:48
Speaker
we it' Basically the extent of this is Grievous just massacres a whole bunch of clones for no narrative reason. And I feel like, you know, considering that this is this is the story arc for the Jedi younglings,
01:00:03
Speaker
But for most of this episode, the Jedi younglings are basically just one collective character. And that's going to be kind of an issue for the rest of this arc, honestly. Also relying on entirely luck-based scenarios. I feel like if we had cut out most of the Obi-Wan and Grievous stuff in this episode, just leave it to that initial scene where we justify that they're being attacked so they can't help, and then focus more on the younglings and giving them more individual character arcs that they can like further progress through.
01:00:37
Speaker
I think that would have made this overall storyline more special, more focused on the characters that are unique to it. yeah Which are already strong and very good, and we're already getting some solid development in the previous episode. And also, if we need to like resolve that, it's like... Yeah, Obi-Wan's basically it his fleet retreats and Grievous basically does a menacing chuckle at the end and implying he's going appear in the next episode. if that That's the stinger. it's like there There is cool Grievous action here, no doubt. all but i feel like someone Solid Grievous action. Probably the best we've had in a long time.
01:01:19
Speaker
I just feel like the... the the time could be spent better with focusing more on the younglings rather than focusing on agrees. As I recall this, this is just, oh, they're flipping destiny points down to progress the story now.
01:01:38
Speaker
Yeah. So anyway. need i Yeah, go ahead. go ahead But yeah, so Ganoti is left behind to to handle the ship because she's the techie one while the rest of the younglings go to rescue Ahsoka.
01:01:53
Speaker
And while they're on there with their way, they are spitballing plans on the way. They're not even spitballing plans. They're like, what are we going to do? i don't know. We'll get there. But they encounter a traveling carnival that is heading to Hondos.
01:02:09
Speaker
Yep. Which is why I call it like, they flipped a destiny point to create a convenient narrative excuse because there's nothing that these characters did to earn this ability to...
01:02:23
Speaker
youtube conveniently get into Hondo's camp. And again, that's something that could have been done by, as you said, like giving them more time. like they could have scoed One of them could have scouted it out or called the the ah carnival.
01:02:40
Speaker
There's ways that they could have done that without a stubbing upon it. They use the force and claim to be acrobats and join the carnival. And that's fine. that goess That is fine. Cause that's the characters doing again. If I, again, I have to use TPC RPG rules was like, yeah, they, they earned the ability to join it, but it's like the carnival thing is just comes out of nowhere.
01:03:08
Speaker
And Grievous takes control of the ship and heads to the bridge where holographic message triggers.
01:03:28
Speaker
Grievous, you have defeated me and taken control of my ship. Congratulations. However, if you're watching this message, that means I'm boarding an escape pod and shall soon be safely away from the ship, which is about to self-destruct.
01:03:44
Speaker
General Grievous...
01:03:48
Speaker
it It's more Obi-Wan, Anakin war crimes. Of course. But also, we've seen the amount of time it takes from the bridge of Avenger-class Star Destroyer to the Hangar Bay.
01:04:05
Speaker
Grievous was going on super speed. Oh yeah, he was booking. Oh for sure. For sure. And that self-destruct is exactly what happens as Grievous hauls ass out of there.
01:04:19
Speaker
But like he was hauling, like, unbelievable. Like, he's just, like, speedrunning the entirety of it. Honestly, it would make more sense if it from the from the from the bridge out the airlock into the open hangar bay.
01:04:41
Speaker
Absolutely.
01:04:45
Speaker
So, the Carnival performs for Hondo. Now, is it just me, or is this kind of wholesome entertainment for ruthless pirates?
01:04:58
Speaker
It Although apparently Hondo did cut off the heads of the Carnival's last performers for disappointing him. Well, considering our standards, at least in the Star Wars universe as a greater whole, the alternative is Java the Hutt.
01:05:15
Speaker
Yeah. It just it just seems a a traveling carnival just seems kind of wholesome for pirates. But apparently they do at least suffer the same fate if they're disappointed.
01:05:28
Speaker
A summary execution. Don't worry, Daryl. Don't worry, Daryl. The traveling carnival is, in fact, partaking in animal cruelty. As most carnivores do. Okay. Awesome. Awesome. Okay, there we go.
01:05:41
Speaker
And, oh, even though they don't know it yet, child exploitation. Like a carnival should do. the The kids come out in disguises to perform and immediately Ahsoka clocks who they are and she's like, oh no.
01:06:00
Speaker
She's fucking up- I can't believe this. Ahsoka's like, oh no the children that I've been left in charge of as a children are now in danger. They joined the circus.
01:06:14
Speaker
A slightly less, a slightly more dangerous organization than the Jedi Order. So, okay. The Rebels voice cast has said many times that some of their scripts in episodes with Hondo were written to just let Jim Cummings riff.
01:06:34
Speaker
And it seems to me like his, who wants to see Hondo's boobs, huh? When he's invited to be part of the act might be one of those riffs. Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if Jim Cummings came into that a little bit soft and was like,
01:06:53
Speaker
Well, time I'm Hondo. I'm having a good time. Yep. And ah what while we're speaking of Hondo too, so I watched these four episodes over two nights, right?
01:07:05
Speaker
And as I was watching these second two episodes, I was waiting for Stephanie to to head off to bed. And she finally said, okay, I'm going to bed. was like, okay, now I can watch Clone Wars without you just going into a fit of rage. And she said, oh, is it a Hondo episode?
01:07:23
Speaker
ah It sure is. Yes, it is. Stephanie has it. She has her reasons that they are unknown to me why she does not like Hondo.
01:07:39
Speaker
I would say that they are unreasonable, but I would say that with an asterisk, and that that's like she's perfectly reasonable, obviously, and she is not going to hurt me if I say that.
01:07:50
Speaker
And so, Lauren, if we get around to to watching Rebels on the show, you will then have, you will understand the context of this now when I say that there's a line in the series finale of Rebels that um I had already watched the finale and she was homesick watching it the next day and texted me at work that that she was watching it. And then I get a text, it's like,
01:08:24
Speaker
Fucking Hondo made me cry. Oh, no. ah
01:08:31
Speaker
and this is knowing that the reason that he has never appeared in any game that I have run with you involved and in several games since is because he's so violently against the character of Hondo.
01:08:47
Speaker
I mean, just let her murder him. We did! And that was not enough. i thought that it would allow me to do it again, but the minute I did another game where I implied his existence, he was like, I'll leave right now.
01:09:06
Speaker
just Just let her murder him over and over and over again, like some sort of horrific Groundhog Day list.
01:09:15
Speaker
Honestly, you described Stephanie's perfect game then. ah but So yes, anyway, the the drunk Hondo, he gets very distracted, very drunk, and the children get Ahsoka's lightsabers off of him.
01:09:32
Speaker
And they they use her lightsabers and free Ahsoka, and at this point, the rest of the pirates recognize the kids. And afraid that Hondo's going to kill them,
01:09:46
Speaker
the carnival takes off, leaving the kids and Ahsoka behind. i mean, this is a justifiable fear, apparently, given yes what happened the last time they performed. Yes. And the absolute chaos ensues.
01:10:00
Speaker
Absolute chaos ensues. Everything falls apart. and And we see once again, after they they get away, at least for now, that Ahsoka is absolutely Anakin's Padawan.
01:10:15
Speaker
How do you feel? Better now. I could pretend to be angry, but you were all very brave. Thank you. You disobeyed orders.
01:10:26
Speaker
Well, I've learned from my master that sometimes doing the right thing means bending the rules.
01:10:34
Speaker
If Obi-Wan wasn't busy fleeing from General Grievous after breaking war crimes, he he' had he'd have like either very aggressive he's ever you'd be very cross about this.
01:10:46
Speaker
Yes. Yes, he would. And that takes us into Unnecessary Bond, Season 5, Episode 9, The Pirates and Younglings Join Forces When Grievous Attacks.
Battle on Pirate Planet Florum
01:10:58
Speaker
Yes, and we start off with a pretty intense action scene. The group is still escaping the pirates on the vehicle that they stole. And Gennote, who is still on their spaceship, needs to save the day as she was busy fixing ah their droid buddies.
01:11:14
Speaker
And unfortunately, Gennady comes in to swoop in and save everybody, ah the ship's engines are hit during the rescue. and It was a pretty classic like star Star Wars, Steven Spielberg, multi-level like fun action sequence.
01:11:31
Speaker
Oh, yeah. Absolutely. Yeah. Uh, only few of the younglings... Honestly, the surprise twist was that it failed. Yeah. Only a few of the younglings even managed to get on the ship, but, uh, then the ship crashes, so it doesn't really matter that much.
01:11:46
Speaker
Yep, and they recapture Ahsoka and the kids. And at that point, Grievous invades Florum. Yeah, it is also a fun repeat back to the to the original Florum Hondo episode. We thought they escaped, but they didn't. No, they didn't.
01:12:06
Speaker
Yep. But you Grievous invades and then we get this.
01:12:16
Speaker
General Griever, Sly Brezu? What a surprise. Have a seat. What, may I ask, is honor? You can dispense with the pleasantries, pirate.
01:12:29
Speaker
This planet is now under sympathetic control.
01:12:35
Speaker
And what do you suppose that means? It means you have a new master.
01:12:48
Speaker
Honorable Knacker, we meet again. As I recall the last time we met face to face, I was your prisoner. And you attempted to barter me off to the highest bidder.
01:12:59
Speaker
But can you blame me? I mean a Sith Lord. What a handsome price you would get. Silence! You are going to pay the price for your treachery. Well, I'm a reasonable man.
01:13:10
Speaker
Name the price. I'm sure we can reach. There will be payment, but no deals. Only demands. Your entire arsenal will be melted down. Everything you own is now property the Separatist Alliance.
01:13:39
Speaker
now one thing that i noticed there as i was pulling the clip even hondo calls Dooku out as being a Sith Lord. Yeah, he does. He does. He knows what a Sith is. And that might be a quote-unquote continuity error later. Because he did also call him a Sith Lord in this in the first arc that we met Kondo as well. So he does know what Sith Lord is.
01:14:12
Speaker
Well, and he knows that Dooku is one, more importantly. Yeah, so there is a continuity error when we encounter some other characters later on this season.
01:14:28
Speaker
ah it It sounds like Nick is heading off into the Force Cave on Ilum to find his crystal. Yeah. ah Nick, come back from the cave. It's going to freeze over. And you know what i mean it was like a couple of weeks ago. i do, I do.
01:14:45
Speaker
We all know that. Yep. So yes. Thanks to Puxatawney Paul or whoever that ground holiday is, we're going to probably have winter again. Yep. Like we, Nick, we have winter every year.
01:15:05
Speaker
it' It's not something, it's not a mystical thing. I mean, we're in Texas. We don't have winter every year. Yeah, we do. Yeah. We didn't used to back in the good old days. Yeah.
01:15:19
Speaker
In any case. ah So yeah, the the pirates realize that their leader has been taken and they're in a bit of a pickle. And Ahsoka suggests working with the pirates.
01:15:31
Speaker
they're not yep They're not too interested in it at first, but she eventually manages to convince them. And so they take ah they take their big tank-ish vehicle, and R2 starts driving it around, us is sort of in an incognito manner to get past the droid. R2 with a tank. Yep.
01:15:52
Speaker
And so one of the tanks... I mean, it's still better than Chopper with a tank. Yep. Oh, Chopper with a tank. did There wouldn't be a Florum anymore. One of the B1 droids says that, oh wow, an R unit actually got a whole tank, huh? That's pretty impressive. And then R2 absolutely sasses of this guy. Which is also incredible because R2 units are used for astro navigation.
01:16:20
Speaker
That's an incredible amount of data storage that they need for that. a And B1 droids are... B1 droids. Yes.
01:16:32
Speaker
They get past the droids and Ahsoka goes to rescue Hondo. Right. And Hondo starts talking to, hes he's like striking up this bond almost with Katooni.
Katooni's Lightsaber Completion
01:16:47
Speaker
And he's the one that actually you spurs her on to finish constructing her lightsaber Because he he asks to see it. He he says that seeing the construction of a light... He has to all of their... Well, first he first he has to see all of their lightsabers.
01:17:06
Speaker
Whenever Katsui is the only one who doesn't have hers, he that's when he, you know, starts asking her to build her own. Yeah, and he says that seeing the construction of a lightsaber would be worth the price of a ship.
01:17:22
Speaker
And... But apparently, after... multiple times that he has been prepared to outright murder these children.
01:17:35
Speaker
Oh yeah, but just plan to like destroy them. Apparently today he kind of likes them.
01:17:44
Speaker
So why the big show? You didn't really have a choice. You know we have to work together. Beautiful. you know what we are about to
01:18:15
Speaker
beautiful Yeah, it's just hot hondos Hondo's values change with the wind. Exactly. But Hondo has values, and that's what makes him such an interesting character.
01:18:32
Speaker
Yes. Now, the freed pirates fighting through an army of droids. it's It's big action scene time, everybody. Yep.
01:18:43
Speaker
and Oh yeah, we've got Nick, I think youre you love this part. It's time for Grievous on his bike. on he's on evis' like it's It's not correct bike. It's it's ah not his wheel bike. So what's what's the what's the story with the bikes that the Grievous bikes?
01:19:03
Speaker
In episode three, he's one of the most iconic scenes of General Grievous is his his cool wheel bike. And It's a major part of a chase sequence in Star Wars Episode 3. And it's like, that's when everyone talks about it. Like, that's Grievous' wheel bike.
01:19:24
Speaker
This is not his bike. it's It's a weird speeder thing that only appears in this episode. When it could have easily been his cool wheel bike.
01:19:39
Speaker
Interesting. I had his cool wheel bike in in Star Wars Galaxies. Yes.
01:19:49
Speaker
It's really cool. It's just strange that they gave him a mode of transportation that is like wholly new, but isn't his iconic wheel bike?
01:20:05
Speaker
And i just I just don't like that. Yeah, whenever we were watching the episode, Nick keck kept complaining about the bike, and I was like, well, I guess I better write this down, because it seems like this is something you care about. No. I better put this in the notes. It's quite literally, I'm just deserve like, why didn't they give him the wheel bike? It's really cool.
01:20:26
Speaker
And is ah yeah we're getting close to episode three, so associated him with the wheel bike. I just like to wheel bike. All right.
01:20:37
Speaker
We couldn't tell. hmm. So yes, there's a big chase sequence. Without the wheel bike. Yes, yes, without the wheel bike. And on Hondo's vehicle, Katooni rides with Hondo.
Hondo's Secret Hangar
01:20:50
Speaker
So whenever Hondo takes a secret exit over to his secret hangar bay with a bunch of spaceships, Katooni is the only one of the heroes who's with him.
01:21:01
Speaker
And he's he's basically willing to just leave everyone else behind, but he's ultimately convinced to help, thanks to Katooni. And, yeah, then then they have then they have another Grievous fight with Ahsoka.
01:21:20
Speaker
Grievous goes spider mode. Yeah, he goes spider mode. he mode. He's going to go double with spider mode because the wheel bike has spider mode. Oh, okay. Nick's not going to let the wheel but the lack of the wheel bike go.
01:21:34
Speaker
No, no, he won't. But that's okay. As Ahsoka fights Grievous, in comes a fire spray piloted by Hondo to save the day. And as I was watching this... Say its name, it's the Slave One.
01:21:50
Speaker
No, it's not because this isn't that fire spray. It's a fire spray.
01:22:01
Speaker
There is absolutely nothing to indicate that this is the Slave one Well, you see, Daryl, whenever we were watching the episode, nick Nick told me that this was the Slave one Yeah, it is the Slave one it's It's the same one that crashed here during the Boba Fett arc, which was the Slave Oh, I totally forgot all about that. Okay.
01:22:22
Speaker
And it's the same book it's the same book same blue color as Jango Fett's ship, which was the Slave one Okay, fair. Fair enough.
01:22:33
Speaker
Fair enough. I had forgotten about it crashing there. Crashing it press when Aura Sink was trying to escape.
01:22:43
Speaker
Okay, like said, fair. I had forgotten all about that. All right, we figured it out. And with Hondo saving the day, he brings everybody back to Obi-Wan.
01:22:57
Speaker
At which point, Hondo starts to try to spin his initial attack on the younglings as a rescue from the start. Of course he does. I almost pulled the the clip of the exchange.
01:23:11
Speaker
I almost pulled that clip, but ah yeah just I love Hondo... obi-wan interactions they're always fun oh yeah but it's good great but katuni seems to have made a positive impression on hondo as he gives her this nod as he's leaving yes and i'm sure that this relationship will be expanded upon in the future of ah Obviously, because these characters are so well-written.
01:23:49
Speaker
They're like like all going to return in substantial appearances down the line.
Appreciation for Younglings' Stories
01:23:53
Speaker
so So I love these kids. I love Hu Yang. I love the Crucible, and I've wanted to see more of these younglings ever since these episodes. And we got exactly one of the six of them in a single episode of the Bad Batch, but that's it.
01:24:12
Speaker
But I am confident that the younglings will return in Avengers Doomsday. Of course. Because everyone's coming back.
01:24:23
Speaker
Mm-hmm, mm-hmm. I'll even have a new Let's Play by then. Hopefully before then. Yeah, hopefully before then. But i I do... All joking aside, I did really like these characters. And I wanted to see so much more of them. but when i When I... Even then, when I was watching it and said that I recognized that this was like a stealth pilot or or clear like way to start a spinoff,
01:24:55
Speaker
I was down for it. I was like, no, no. That wasn't, like, most people would call that an inch. I was like, no, no. I see what they're doing, and I'm down for it.
01:25:06
Speaker
Yeah. Let's see where they go. and they they clearly struck a chord with the audience, too, because around the time that Rebels was in production, there was fan art of the characters aged up to the... Tons of fan art.
01:25:23
Speaker
To the Rebels point of the timeline, in the Rebels style. Which is ah slightly more stylistic than even this stylistic version, which also did turn off some fans. with it's People who grew up with Club Wars were like, yeah, we can see it.
01:25:46
Speaker
And I just i wanted so much more of these kids. give give a answer Give us comic books. Give us something. Give us something.
01:25:58
Speaker
I did make the unfortunate joke that they do return, but that's in episode three. And that that was an off-color joke. Yes.
01:26:10
Speaker
No. No. I mean, we we know we know that Gunji was around after episode three, thanks to Bad Batch. Yeah, it doesn't speak well for the rest of the team.
01:26:23
Speaker
Yeah, we don't know about the rest of them. and my I like the old Legends days when the the purge of the Jedi seemed more like, yeah, we we managed to kill about 10 of them.
01:26:42
Speaker
Because there was a Jedi around every corner who survived Order 66. Honestly, that's still a complaint with the fandoms, like, with how many we have. It's like, do you think there were 10,000 Jedi Knights?
01:27:01
Speaker
And to to be fair, in the current continuity's media, whenever one does show up, it's so they can be killed off more often than not. It's like, it's And the ones that we saw in the Order 66 purge was mostly masters.
01:27:29
Speaker
But the that not only was was that a joke in the Legends continuity, Lauren, Dark Horse Comics even produced a one shot called The Purge that was about Vader botching an attempt to take out a surviving Jedi.
01:27:52
Speaker
And at the end, coming home with his tail tucked between his legs and Palpatine's like, you know what? No, everything's fine. You wiped out all of the Jedi. We purged them all. That's the official story. Beautiful. Part of legends was that most of the Jedi, unfortunately, or perhaps,
01:28:16
Speaker
for better or worse, gave up and renounced the Jedi Order. We can't win.
01:28:27
Speaker
But it's like, hey, you what what you going to do? What you going to do? There's some ways. it did this there's some ways get that In a way that's both realistic and also what makes what someone like Luke Skywalker much more heroic standing out and becoming the resurgence of the Jedi.
01:28:47
Speaker
yeah Everyone else mean saw the the downfall and just decided, like well, we're going turn it all in. Well, and I mean, that that's also the foundation of my absolute favorite moment in the premiere of Rebels.
01:29:03
Speaker
But we'll get there. It is true. But yeah. We'll get there. But so what, what, what'd you think of the youngling arc, Lauren?
Critique of Youngling Arc
01:29:13
Speaker
I think the, the first episode was definitely the strongest of the four.
01:29:17
Speaker
It was fantastic. I feel that's inarguable. That's probably like a episode that needs to be seen by like anyone who wants to get into star Wars.
01:29:28
Speaker
Like there's some arcs in this series that are like, are great. was like, If you really want to know what like a lightsaber is, this is the episode. Yes.
01:29:39
Speaker
The second episode... It explains the connection to a Jedi, their lightsaber and everything. it it It really contextualizes that really well. The second episode was still really great.
01:29:51
Speaker
It was still a lot of fun. ah But then around the the the third and fourth episodes, it feels like the the narrative kind of loses its focus. It starts trying to focus on too many things and too many characters all at once. where i really one eat I really wanted to see the younglings do more. I wanted to see them go through more character development. I wanted to see...
01:30:15
Speaker
more of their characterizations but in episodes three and four they mostly just sort of merged into a singular character they became for lack of a better this is from an old legends concept a padawan pack i suppose just a group of anonymous padawans who had like traits and abilities But they aren't characters anymore.
01:30:47
Speaker
Again, they could have used unique abilities to like facilitate certain things to Ahsoka's release. But instead, it it was taken up by the Obi-Wan grievous fight, which was so great, awesome.
01:31:06
Speaker
But that took up time and basically made everything like to weird... Oh, there just so happens to be a traveling carnival. And there's a senior there's there's also a lot of emphasis on Hondo. And, like, Hondo is fun, but I know that we're going to get more Hondo elsewhere. This is that this is the only instance that we are going to get of the Padawans.
01:31:31
Speaker
again let's But that's also hindsight bias, because, like... when watching this, like, we we didn't know when we're going to get Hondo. I mean, the writers did. and Until, like, again, like, Clone Wars is cancelled after this season. Yeah.
01:31:48
Speaker
So we don't, so they did they were putting in Hondo when they wanted to. And, kind of what you're describing also kind of describes the state of comics for the last, you 20, 25 years and the concept of comics being written for the trade.
01:32:13
Speaker
Whereas if you notice in our in our previous episodes, as we have selected which episodes to cover in our episodes,
01:32:25
Speaker
Sometimes they'd be like, okay, well, here's a storyline that's three episodes long, but here's one that's five, and here's one that's two, and here's a standalone episode. As you've probably noticed in seasons four and five, everything is pretty much four episode arcs. Yeah. yeah they ander work there For the most part, especially the previous one and most of the previous season are much more cohesive.
01:32:53
Speaker
Not every storyline needs to be this long yeah it's like the the youngling story and this gonna sound odd since i just said i want more to this day i want more of these characters but their story as it was set up in the first episode of this arc really could have gone the two episodes yeah basically The capture of Ahsoka was inflection point where it's like, we we they won. With their grit and their individual abilities, they managed to defeat the pirates.
01:33:37
Speaker
It's only the capture of Ahsoka that turns it into a third arc. It could have been those two episodes. And Ahsoka basically saying, good job, we we won.
01:33:53
Speaker
Good job. You faced your first real trial as young Jedi. Yeah. yeah And off we go, yo...
01:34:08
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah. But, you know, I don't begrudge getting them, even in what limited capacity we got them for two more episodes. Yeah. Yeah. You know, episodes three and four, they are still fun. i just wish that they had actually focused on the younglings more. It's it's really just a matter of the the episodes lost focus and they...
01:34:32
Speaker
they're They're dealing with too many characters all at the same time, basically. Well,
Production Challenges and Enjoyment
01:34:38
Speaker
once it becomes an actual, know, once the conflict is coming from an external source and it is a quote-unquote action story, they take a backseat to the veteran character.
01:34:50
Speaker
Yeah, pretty much. Which is understandable, but... let her teach them how to deal with a situation like this so that we get their personalities. Yeah. yeah it are have lido Have Hondo teach Katooni some stuff. that kind That could have been an interesting dynamic.
01:35:10
Speaker
There's many ways to sort of script doctor this. there was like It seems like, okay, we have these episodes and we have these concepts and we're just going to puts them all together right now.
01:35:26
Speaker
And that seems like it seems like a rush job on production side rather than like a storytelling telling problem. Yeah,
Anticipation for Next Arc
01:35:35
Speaker
because the stories are there.
01:35:38
Speaker
But yes, that said, despite my complaints, I did overall quite enjoy this series of episodes. Same. they are These are really great episodes, even with the ah structural issues. Yes.
01:35:52
Speaker
It's definitely definitely my favorite episodes in quite a while, I feel like. I had a feeling that these would be more more up your alley when we got to these. Honestly, I'm pretty sure we're going to probably do like a ranking of Clone Wars arcs or these episodes or something like that at the end this.
01:36:14
Speaker
But I'm pretty sure that these are prop if it was an an arc, you probably would like put this arc probably pretty high. Yeah, yeah, most likely. Or if any episodes, you'd probably put the gathering pretty high as well.
01:36:27
Speaker
Yeah, yeah, no doubt. Next up, we we will be getting into... ah Actually, ah the the next arc that we get into, I think well will really be kind of up your your alley. because Oh, yeah? Because weirdness and droids. Ooh, I'm into that.
01:36:49
Speaker
I'm going to be up front... I don't hate this arc, but it's not my favorite. Well, maybe I'll make you enjoy it more somehow. But again, it's been a while since usually I will admit that I have skipped it on a couple of rewatches.
01:37:07
Speaker
So maybe, maybe watching it with a fresh face would be what I need to like appreciate it more. Perhaps
Engage with Casual Nerdity Online
01:37:15
Speaker
so. We do want to thank everyone for joining us for Casual Nerdity.
01:37:21
Speaker
And we will be back again in two weeks. We hope you enjoy you that you will join us then, too. In the meantime, be sure to follow us on socials, Facebook, Instagram, Threads, Blue Sky, ah Twitter, slash X. We are Casual Nerdity. What is It's Twitter.
01:37:41
Speaker
We're casual nerdity, all one word on all of those. Although it occurs to me on blue sky, we are casual nerdity.com. Oh, okay. Because we are, because we are verified. Oh,
Merch Store Launch
01:37:53
Speaker
we have our own website.
01:37:55
Speaker
Neat! We did But we also have just recently launched our merch store where you can help support the podcast by going to store.casualnerdity.com and pick yourself up a t-shirt. We've got a couple of t-shirts.
01:38:14
Speaker
Some really neat ones. Yes, yes. Perhaps someday we'll have a Bubble Boys shirt and maybe even a Practice Orb shirt. yeah Don't get ahead of yourself.
01:38:28
Speaker
They're trading remote. You can also
Supporting the Podcast
01:38:32
Speaker
help the podcast get a larger reach by giving us a good review on your podcast platform of choice. Or if you're listening through YouTube, do all of the cliched YouTube things of liking and subscribing and getting notifications. And we want to get all of those algorithms going. There's a bell that you can click too.
01:38:54
Speaker
don't know what that means. And we just want to get more eyes and ears on the show. But
Conclusion and Gratitude
01:39:01
Speaker
thank you once again for listening and we hope to see you next time. And so long.
01:39:07
Speaker
Bye. This has been casual nerdity. We hope you've enjoyed your time with us and look forward to having you back.