I'm jumping the gun on this one, mostly because I just read the online comic and I was really impressed with it. It was a refreshing departure from the others. It had some cool images, but what I liked about it most was that its explaining backstory, not simply the events preceeding the episode. (both these features are unlike the previous 9 comics) Its nice to see Grievous as a character, the self admitted great general with the bumbling army.
I have high hopes for this episode tonight. From the comic, it continues to look like it will deliver.
Beautiful episode, need more like it. Fisto is such a badass, at least his cocky little shit partner got gunned down.
They need to build their characters better though, it's too predictable, anytime a Jedi starts ignoring the code and starts putting their own desires first, they die.
I liked this episode a lot. Definately changed the way I thought about Fisto.
Only 2 negative things in my opinion:
- When Fisto said they needed to retreat and Grievous seals all the blast doors, Fisto says they will have to fight after all. They could have easily cut trough those doors with their lightsabers or with a thermal detonator as the clone commander suggested.
- Gore... which species does he belong to, how did he end up in that lair, how did he become Grievous' pet... He just raises to much questions...
I dont think he's that big of a deal, its just like Jabba's rancor really.
But how awesome would it be to see a whole bunch of them, all armored, with riders on them charging into a massive scale battle. They should do a massive scale battle in one episode, set it on like Dathomir and have a bunch of witches riding down on battle rancors. They need to emphasis the 'War' in 'Clone Wars', so far it's like 'Clone Skirmishes'.
I'd say that dets wouldnt be able to get thorugh blast doors. Sabers...rember in TPM with Jinn and Kenobi trying to break into the bridge of the Fed ship? Sabers can cut through blast doors, but they take a long time...too long. Then Fisto and Nahdar would be trapped between the droids and the door.
Al is a Roggwart. Strongly supports action on climate change.
(Gor)
Well, I thought it was well done, I just found it a distraction that didn't move the plot anywhere...and we're gonna have 3 monsters in the past 4 episodes...
I get sick of troopers riding things. This is not the middle ages...
I think the war needs to be emphaised, but big battles is not the way to do it. If we had big battles every episode it would get repetative and overbearing. I'd expect to see 1 or 2 big battles a season. But it would be nice if we saw something in the middle too. Between "This week ______ was captured and tries to escape" and "WAR!" The series is more about personal battles between the Jedi and Seperatist leaders. That ignores a lot of characters, notably the clones. And yes I think that is a misplaced direction for it to exclusively go.
If you've seen Avatar too, that is a 3 season show that progresses nicely. I'd expect Filoni to follow his previous work at least to some degree.
I thought this episode was allright. Still not great, run of the mill episode without cringe moments. But Grievous is turning out to be a major loser. That doesn't go down well with me.
As to Grievous, this episode kind of saved him imo. He blames his army for his failures (rightly or wrongly) and at least gives him an excuse. However, had two points: the part where Nahdar is looking over all the "trophies"...I don't know how they can say "OMG its so tragic!" when we hadn't seen grievous kill one single Jedi. Secondly, Grievous admitting failure sets up something to change that failure. That was a sign of hope for me...that they might actually address some improvements that make the droid army functional.
My question to you is, what are you looking for in a "great" episode.
Well, I think I'd like to see a more continuous story, like you as I remember correctly. It's all little bitty stories that never really get problematic. It seems every problematic situation is fairly easily resolved. It seems like the CW is no biggie, no big stakes. The Separatists suck, the Clones win... it's all a bit like that. Occasionally something pretty good pops up (like Ventress's last appearance) but then it goes away again. It's like... nothing really matters.... that bothers me.
Well Duh. We knew the plot outcome through the prequels too.
But the plot is not: clones fight Separatists. It seems to be: Jedi fight Separatists. Maybe the series should be renamed: Jedi Wars, because thats all we seem to get.
Besides Anakin and Kenobi fighting bats... I have to wait THREE WEEKS to see what I totally expect to be a disastrous episode. Besides, how insulting. Pirates can capture Dooku but the Jedi can't?
Net Reaction: Positive Season 1 Record: (5)-5 Summary:
This is the second solid episode in a row (the first time in this series that has happened), I have yet to see a "great" episode, but Lair had finally tied this season's record. Unfortunately looking at the next at bat, that record is in jeopardy.
Pros:
Animation: This covers several bases here. First off, there was some real fluidity in the movements: the gentle sway and spinning torrent of Fisto's tentacles, the glassy reflectivity of Nahdar's eyes. The animation of Grievous was also fantastic, especially with him spidering around and swinging from the rafters, they really captured this unique stlye of movement well and it gave a lot of character to Grievous and the episode as a whole. Lastly, there were some exciting angles, like when Fisto stabs the cam a when the troopers fall down the whole that really expanded the visual dynamic.
Plot: There was actually intrigue here. We learned about Grievous, his Kaleesh race, his "upgrades," and most importantly, the rift between him and Dooku, betweeen Grievous and the droids. This is the first time really I felt the plot of the series was moved.
Combat: There is so much to talk about here. It was nice to see TACTICS (omg, a tactic) being used when the clones cabled Grievous' legs as Fisto and Nahdar took on the arms. This was awesome, creative, and original, and actually really pulled me into the show. Grievous also got some nice hits on the clones, and I love the sounds of him dicing them even though you cant see it. Grievous also develoeped a nice fighting style where he can use his rotating hands for more than just intimidation. I really thought that was ace. (and it had good sound too) I also loved when Nahdar killed the first Magna guard, he pucked up the pieces with the force and chucked them into another. This was also nice to see the force used in combat in this way. Lastly, the Fisto vs Grievous battle was just sex...Fisto slipping into the fog and popping out again and the pacing was furious, the camera angles creative, and really it was just awesome seeing his tentacles dance after him as he flips around. The saber spinning ignited in the air was a stretch, but that slice and catch was beautiful. Again good camera work.
Fisto: Unlike Luminara who was not really developed at all (beyond strict and b*tchy) Fisto has an attitude and a character. While his smile wasn't captured very well, he did wink at Ahsoka (which I thought was awesome) and his casual escape crouching on the fighter was badass. He also pwnt Nahar and Fil on opening the door. Even in dangerous situations, Fisto kept his cool and stayed in control. That is a jedi master. The accent was a nice touch too. Fisto moves with intention and purpose. That is nice to see.
Environment: The ambiance was also stellar, lots of shadows and fog that really set a great mood throughout the episode. Together with the Kaleesh statues and racks of Grievous' spare parts, this episode had an artistic side that has yet been unseen and served it well.
Nahdar: He died. Thank god. A Jedi has died. Mon Calamari was a nice species to tap too and he was done well, right down the the flappy mouth and eye movement. Fun to see an original character and a creative one.
Theme: This episode had a great fortune cookie that was really referenced throughout the episode. Even better was this episode had great resolution, with Fisto reporting to the council he will one day sit on. Answering power with power is a real topic that has epic ramifications in the world today. Together with the animation and environment, this episode was a clean and cohesive package deal. Good work.
Cons:
Phantom: When Grievous's mask was being removed and then cut to commercial, I actually shouted no at the TV. We have all these beautiful statues of Grievous as a warrior, we take of his mask, but we can't see his face? I thought this was unfair.
Gor: While this battle was beautiful, with Jedi actually doing damage to the thing before being able to kill it, the part where Gor smacks Fil into the ground and his body goes limp, and Fisto's noble finish ala Kenobi and the Acklay, I felt it was an unnecessary plot distraction. Grievous doesn't seem one to keep pets and spending a little bit more time working on Nahdar was probably a better option.
His heart was in the right place, but...: While it was nice to see a Jedi die, Nahdar did everyhting wrong, he was overzealous, overemotional, overconfident, even cocky. It felt a bit like: if you dont follow the code, you die. The jedi compromised all their beliefs during the clone wars, so we better see more die. I also wish Fisto would have been a bit more upset about Nahdar's death. I felt it was a bit too "oh, well."
There are so many: If Grievous has all these trophies....WHY HAVEN'T WE SEEN OR HEARD ABOUT THEM!
Eye-cams. These guys start to look out of place. They fit Jabba's palace in ROTJ, but do they really go EVERYWHERE else? Doesn't anyone else make a different model? They seem ubiquitous now.
Clones: Weak sauce. Their unit is not identified and to my knowledge was not in the move. While its nice to finally see Grievous hack some, Niner and Bel die sauntering into a ship, Jag drops his gun and Fil fires off a few shots before getting tailwhipped.
What I want to see next:
The answer to this weeks episode. Grievous hate the droids and they are incompetent. How does Grievous re-integrate into the Seperatist movement? How do the droids improve? This is a critical question for the series. Will it be answered?
Back to the Anakin/Kenobi doldrums....Weequay pirates and a giant bat...
Mace thew little pieces etc. I felt what Nahdar did was more realistic and visually poetic.
As to the two series...
The Gendy series was well done, but it is HIGHLY styalized. Its kind of annyoing to see Mace demolish an army or Shaak take on 12 Magna guards, or to see SPHATs blown up because they're scratched with a (wtf) LANCE...
The Gendy series has some fantastic moments (V-19s, Fordo shocking Durge in the head), but it also has some annoying ones (lance fighting, those annoying fat blue rats). I can say the same for the Filoni series.
However, the Gendy series is limited in scope and ability due to its short run-times and style (which isn't bad, it has many positives as well). While the Gendy series is over and limited, Filoni's series has a long way to go and tons of potential. I really can't say that the battle of Munnilist was better than Christophsis. That 5 minute sequence is pretty damn amazing. While Episode II of Gendy with Fordo and the ARCs beats all current clone action (except for Gree vs creepy hair boy), I like a lot of the Filoni series, even just on the basis of animation. If it was live action, I'd like that more lol.
So, I'm not really ready to make that final call, but I fully expect to like the Filoni series more. If I was given the choice of what we have with Gendy and what we NOW have with Filoni, that is a tougher call.
He pulled out a blaster to kill the retarded-Jedi-whose-name-eludes-me. That's sneaky. That's clever. That's evil. But if any of you have read the books, comics, or seen the previous series, it makes General Grievous out to be a badass in all arenas.
He needs to kick more ass. I get that he'd have to cheat against top tier Jedi. But I want some fodder. Two or three Jedi that go to take him down and he just slaughters them. Plain ol' outmaneuvering. Allegedly, he's a better combatant than Ventress.