Tag Archives: shadow

Essential Maul Stories Before Shadow Lord – Last Week In Star Wars

This week we’re talking about the most essential Maul stories you should check out before Maul: Shadow Lord gets here!

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Maul: Shadow Lord Teaser Trailer Breakdown

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We walk you through a shot-by-shot breakdown of the new teaser trailer for Maul: Shadow Lord and we review all-new information about the plot and characters. As always, we look for clues about the story and predict what will happen in the upcoming animated series. Plus, more about the upcoming Original Trilogy changes to Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, and does Dave Filoni really hate Andor, as rumored? Plus, listener feedback and more!

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Star Wars: Maul – Shadow Lord Teaser Trailer and First Poster Arrive

Here’s the latest from: StarWars.Com

Executive producers break down new characters and locations from the animated series, which premieres on Disney+ April 6, 2026, with the full cast announcement and a first look at the story to come.

By Kristin Baver

With a velvety growl, Maul himself invites you to look more closely at a galaxy reshaped by the Empire in Star Wars: Maul – Shadow Lord. Today, the first teaser trailer and poster for the animated series arrived, giving fans our first glimpse at the world of Janix and the machinations of the underworld playing out in an era near the beginning of Emperor Palpatine’s reign.

Beginning with a two-episode premiere on Disney+ April 6, 2026, and two episodes each week leading to a finale on Star Wars Day, May the 4th, Star Wars: Maul – Shadow Lord picks up after the events of Star Wars: The Clone Wars, for a pulpy adventure that finds Maul plotting to rebuild his criminal syndicate on a planet untouched by the Empire. There, he crosses paths with a disillusioned young Jedi Padawan who may just be the apprentice he is seeking to aid him in his relentless pursuit for revenge….

Read the Full Article @ StarWars.com

Maul Shadow Lord Teaser BREAKDOWN

Maul Shadow Lord is coming in April! We got the first teaser and an article on StarWars.com, so let’s talk about what we know about the series, and break everything down!

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Star Wars: Maul – Shadow Lord | Official Teaser Trailer

Chains can be broken. Empires can be shattered.

The two-episode premiere of Star Wars: Maul – Shadow Lord streams April 6 only on Disney+.

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Star Wars: Maul – Shadow Lord | Trailer Tomorrow

Wanted across the galaxy.

Star Wars: Maul – Shadow Lord. Trailer tomorrow.

So, basically, it’s a Trailer for a Trailer!! Looks like they took a leaf out of He-Man’s book!

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Star Wars | Shadow of the Sith

Star Wars – Shadow of the Sith

Get ready to immerse yourself in a galaxy far, far away with the epic return of Luke Skywalker and Lando Calrissian in a thrilling novel that takes place between the iconic events of Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens. The Empire may be dead, but danger still lurks in every corner of the galaxy. Jedi Master Luke Skywalker is plagued by haunting visions of the dark side and a sinister secret lurking on a desolate planet called Exegol. As he grapples with this disturbing disturbance in the Force, his worst fears are realized when his friend Lando Calrissian reveals a new threat from the Sith.

After Lando’s daughter is cruelly taken from him, he embarks on a desperate search to reunite with her. But his efforts are in vain until he crosses paths with a Sith assassin named Ochi of Bestoon, who has been tasked with abducting a young girl. The true motives behind Ochi’s actions remain shrouded in mystery, and as he hunts Rey and her parents across the galaxy, Luke and Lando race to uncover the Sith’s ultimate plan.

Along the way, they encounter a mysterious envoy of the Sith Eternal who has given Ochi a sacred blade in exchange for completing a final mission: to bring Rey to Exegol to complete the Sith’s resurrection. As the stakes get higher, the action intensifies, and the fate of the galaxy hangs in the balance. Join Luke and Lando as they delve into the shadowy world of the Sith and aid a young family running for their lives on a junkyard moon. This is a must-read novel for any Star Wars fan who craves pulse-pounding adventure, thrilling plot twists, and unforgettable characters.

Sources:

Wookieepedia
Read Star Wars
Jedi Temple Archives
Yoda’s Datapad
Youtini

This Article was Originally posted 2023-04-29 16:40:32.

Ahsoka Extras: Part Five: Shadow Warrior

Here’s the latest from: StarWars.Com

Take a look at character posters including Clone Wars-era Anakin Skywalker, along with stills from a landmark installment.

Ahsoka is here! Every week, StarWars.com’s “Ahsoka Extras” will collect a bounty of additional content for each episode of the Disney+ Original series.

Ahsoka faces her old Master in “Part Five: Shadow Warrior,” while Hera looks to find out what happened to her friends. See below for character posters inspired by the episode, now streaming on Disney+, and stills from the can’t-miss installment….

Read the Full Article @ The Official Site

Ahsoka Analyzed: 5 Highlights from Part Five: Shadow Warrior

Here’s the latest from: StarWars.Com

Ahsoka has a mystical encounter in an episode that will be long remembered.

Ahsoka Tano debuted in the animated Star Wars: The Clone Wars and has since become one of the saga’s most beloved characters. Now, the former Jedi’s own live-action series, Ahsoka, has arrived on Disney+. In “Ahsoka Analyzed,” StarWars.com picks its highlights for each episode. Grab your lightsabers and join us for the journey.

Reunited and it feels so good.

Coming off Part Four’s insane cliffhanger, “Part Five: Shadow Warrior” finds Ahsoka apparently in the World Between Worlds and face-to-face with her old Master, Anakin Skywalker. Meanwhile, Hera tries to make sense of what might’ve happened to the Jedi and Sabine. If you ever loved Star Wars: The Clone Wars or the team of Anakin and Ahsoka, it’s hard not to be moved by “Shadow Warrior” — an exploration and celebration of their relationship and, within it, teaching and sacrifice. Here are five highlights from the episode, written and directed by Dave Filoni….

Read the Full Article @ The Official Site

AHSOKA After Show Livestream – Part 5: Shadow Warrior

Ahsoka battles her way through the World Between Worlds while Hera searches for her missing friends. But that’s just a fraction of what is really happening this week on AHSOKA with Part 5: “Shadow Warrior.” Join us for a deep dive into this DREAM episode on the RFR AHSOKA After Show livestream tonight at 8 p.m. (7 p.m. CT | 5 p.m. PT). Watch, listen, chat, and call in with your thoughts and theories and be part of the discussion — only on the RFR YouTube channel!

#starwars #aftershow #ahsokaaftershow #livestream #tunein #rebelforceradio #rfr #ahsoka #hera #sabine #ezra #thrawn #rebels #shadowwarrior #filoni #anakin #clonewars
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Ahsoka Part Five Review – Shadow Warrior

Part five of Ahsoka was crazy and weird and trippy and everything I wanted from Ahsoka since it was announced! Here is my review for the latest episode!


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The Clone Wars Episode Guide: Blue Shadow Virus

Welcome to a look inside The Holocron. A collection of articles from the archives of *starwars.com no longer directly available.

(*Archived here with Permission utilising The Internet Archive Wayback Machine)

The Clone Wars Episode Guide: The Hidden Enemy

Episode Air No.: 17
Original Air Date: February 13, 2009
Production No.: 26

Written by Craig Titley
Supervising Writer: Scott Murphy
Series Writer: Henry Gilroy

Directed by Giancarlo Volpe

Key Characters: Padmé Amidala; Jar Jar Binks; Anakin Skywalker; Ahsako Tano; Obi-Wan Kenobi; Dr. Nuvo Vindi.

Key Locales: Naboo

Cast:
Catherine Taber as Padmé Amidala
Matt Lanter as Anakin Skywalker
James Arnold Taylor as Obi-Wan Kenobi
Ashley Eckstein as Ahsoka Tano
BJ Hughes as Jar Jar Binks
Michael York as Dr. Nuvo Vindi
James Mathis III as Captain Typho
Dee Bradley Baker as clone troopers
Anthony Daniels as C-3PO
Gwendoline Yeo as Peppi Bow
Phil LaMarr as Tactical Droid
Tom Kane as Yoda/Narrator
Matthew Wood as the battle droids
Jameelah McMillan as Queen Neeyutnee
David Acord as the assistant droid

Episode Brief: Padmé and Jar Jar are captured while searching for a secret Separatist bio-weapons lab, sparking Anakin, Obi-Wan and Ahsoka to try and save their friends and halt the release of a deadly virus.


Full Synopsis

“Fear is a disease; hope is its only cure.”

Newsreel:
Battle droids on Naboo! As the
Separatist rebellion rages through
the galaxy, even peaceful planets are
threatened. Following the discovery
of Separatist droids wandering the grassy wasteland, Naboo is once again on high alert. Fearing their home is facing another invasion, Senator Amidala and Representative Binks race to Naboo to assess the situation. Meanwhile, near the Gungan swamplands, an even graver threat is about to be discovered….

ACT I

The gleaming Naboo yacht lands within the cavernous Royal Hangar at the Theed Palace on Naboo. Awaiting its arrival are Queen Neeyutnee, the current Naboo monarch, and Captain Typho. Senator Padmé Amidala, Jar Jar and C-3PO hurry out of the craft and meet with the queen, who reports that Naboo security forces discovered a small number of battle droids in the plains. Neeyutnee wants Amidala to inform the Senate that Naboo is threatened, but Amidala knows the Senate will require more proof.

They retire to a droid repair room, where the fragments of battle droids and a tactical droid are under examination. Amidala finds it odd that the droid remains have such thick mud on them since they were supposedly found in the grasslands. Jar Jar is distracted. He smells something that causes him to poke around the banks of spare parts. Meanwhile, a medical droid begins a robolobotomy on the tactical droid, poking around its memory banks to see what it can find.

The droid springs to life, though its photoreceptors are not functional. At Padmé’s prompting, C-3PO lies to the droid, telling it that it is aboard a Separatist ship. Threepio tries to fish out any information about the droid’s assignment on Naboo. It utters something about a virus, specifically about a leak of a small amount of virus from a secret laboratory. The droid comes to realize it has been duped and clams up. At the same time, Jar Jar has been chasing a bright blue slug-beetle that has crawled out of one of the battle droid shells, and clumsily knocks over several shelves of spare parts. The chaos litters debris everywhere, and disrupts the robolobotomy, shorting out the tactical droid.

Jar Jar humbly apologizes. He explains that the tasty slug-beetle is one of his favorite delicacies, and it can only be found in one place on Naboo — under the perlote tree in the eastern swamps. Jar Jar has unwittingly pointed the way to where the secret laboratory might be.

The Naboo contact the Jedi Council, informing Yoda and Mace Windu of their discovery. Yoda agrees to dispatch two Jedi to investigate. Senator Amidala recommends Generals Skywalker and Kenobi. Yoda concurs. Padmé is determined to locate the laboratory.

Out the Naboo plains, a shaak wrangler named Peppi Bow leads her herd to a river to drink. The shaaks at the stream suddenly collapse and die. Bow is distressed. The river has been poisoned.

A Naboo scout carrier soars over the plains towards the eastern swamps. It sets down near the river, near the dead shaaks. Padmé and Jar Jar emerge in full bio-hazard suits and examine the dead animals. Peppi, unaware of their intentions, attacks them with her electropole. She yanks off Jar Jar’s helmet, and is surprised to see a Gungan underneath. Padmé holds her at gunpoint, trying to get her to calm down. Jar Jar panics without his helmet, but Peppi explains that whatever killed her shaaks isn’t airborne. The poison is in the water.

Padmé explains they are trying to make their way to the perlote trees. Realizing their intentions are pure, Peppi volunteers to guide Padmé and Jar Jar, but Padmé tells her to stay here. It’s too dangerous. Amidala will dispatch Naboo guards to take her back home.

Later, in the thick of the eastern swamps, Padmé and Jar Jar look for anything out of the ordinary. A stalk-mounted photoreceptor emerging from the swamp ground watches them. Observing them from underground is the strange Dr. Nuvo Vindi, the diabolical mastermind behind this Separatist plot. Vindi orders battle droids to the surface to capture these interlopers.

Jar Jar’s bumbling uncovers a metal surface beneath the swamp soil — it appears to be a hatch. Padmé radios Captain Typho, requesting a geo-scan of coordinates SP127. Battle droids suddenly emerge from the swamps and hold Jar Jar and Padmé at gunpoint.

ACT II

Jar Jar and Padmé are shackled and led into the underground laboratory where they are confronted by Dr. Vindi. The unhinged genius declares that he is creating life. He stands before a shielded cabinet filled with small vials of glowing blue liquid, and announces the return of the infamous Blue Shadow Virus, a deadly plague wiped from the galaxy generations ago. Vindi has cultivated it once more. Furthermore, he has created an airborne version of the virus — no longer is it contained only to water. Placed within bombs, the gaseous virus is now an incredibly potent weapon.

To Vindi’s demented way of thinking, the eradication of the virus was tantamount to genocide. The thousands upon thousands of multicellular organisms spreading war throughout the galaxy are the real plague, and they should not be afforded any superiority.

A Republic gunship lands at Theed palace, and Obi-Wan Kenobi, Ahsoka and Anakin Skywalker emerge. They are met by Typho, who reports that Padmé has gone into the swamps to investigate the outbreak. Anakin is alarmed at this news. Typho introduces Peppi Bow, the last person to have seen Padmé and Jar Jar. Anakin dispatches Ahsoka to accompany Peppi in the search for Padmé.

Typho briefs the Jedi; the Naboo technicians did further robolobotomies on the battle droids, uncovering a holographic image of Doctor Nuvo Vindi, Senior Medic of the Perma families who disappeared about ten years ago. The snippet of holographic recording shows Vindi plotting to release one Blue Shadow virus bomb for each star system.

Typho next reveals the result of the geo-scan of the coordinates that Padmé dispatched. The sensor readings uncovered a huge underground laboratory, with three entry points and a large hangar. Radiation scans also pinpoint a likely location for the bomb assembly room.

The situation is dire — the weaponization of Blue Shadow Virus could lead to a galaxy-wide plague. The Jedi need to strike quickly, decisively — and accurately. A careless blast might unleash the virus on Naboo. Obi-Wan pragmatically weighs the risks — better one planet be poisoned and the plot stopped than thousands of worlds fall victim to the virus.

In the eastern swamps, Peppi and Ahsoka ride shaak-back and find Padmé’s scout carrier. They spot Jar Jar and Padmé’s tracks in the mud. Suddenly, the periscope emerges underneath Peppi’s feet. Both Ahsoka and Peppi try to stay out of the scope’s field of vision.

Night has fallen. Ahsoka reports in to an edgy Anakin. There is no sign of the Senator, so Ahsoka assumes she is in the lab. However, the lab entranceways are lined with pressure sensors. There is no way to enter undetected. Obi-Wan orders AHsoka to detonate a bunker-bomb at the south end of the facility; she is cause a distraction that seals off the bomb area while Kenobi and Skywalker come in through the hatches.

A trio of gunships arrive at the hangar, ready to take the Jedi into the swamps. Kenobi will take care of the virus bombs while Anakin is to focus on the doctor. Obi-Wan reminds Anakin to focus on the mission and not be distracted by Padmé.

Back in the swamps, Ahsoka levitates a bunker bomb thermal detonator charge past the periscopes and at the swamp compound’s south end and detonates it. Alarms ring throughout the lab. Vindi orders all droids to hatch number one, while he dons a special breather helmet.

The gunships arrive at the swamps. Peppi wants to join in the fight, but Ahsoka tells her to stay behind and make sure no one escapes. Peppi reluctantly agrees.

ACT III

Clone troopers led by Captain Rex rappel from their gunship into the breach that Ahsoka has made. She joins them. The other two gunships drop thermal detonators at the other hatches. Kenobi leaps into one, while Anakin jumps into another. The droids are concentrated at Ahsoka’s entrance; her distraction seems to have worked. With the arrival of droidekas, Ahsoka orders her troops to fall back. Elsewhere, Dr. Vindi’s assistant droid has spotted the clone attackers, and runs for it, carrying a Blue Shadow Virus bomb.

Anakin leads his troops to the laboratory, cutting through the airlock doors. He spots Padmé and Jar Jar tied to an electric terminal. Dr. Vindi stands at the terminal’s control, warning Skywalker that if he takes another step, the prisoners will be fried. He orders the Republic invaders to drop their weapons. Skywalker has no choice but to comply and tosses his lightsaber to the floor. The clones drop their guns, and the battle droids surround them.

The droidekas harrying Ahsoka’s troops are suddenly taken out by the collapse of a tunnel caused by Obi-Wan Kenobi. He has arrived with a special bomb squad team of clone troopers.

Vindi knows he can’t hold Anakin for long, so he instead craftily offers the Jedi a choice: capture him, or save his friends. Vindi flips the switch on the electric terminal as he makes a dash for an escape tunnel. Anakin jumps past the firing battle droids to grab his lightsaber, spins and turns and cuts them down, and then uses the Force to toss a super battle droid at the terminal controls. He checks to see if Amidala is all right. She’s shaken, but will survive.

Elsewhere in the compound, Obi-Wan races to the bomb assembly area, while Ahsoka holds off the droids. He and his squad find the room filled with rows of inactive explosives. The bombs suddenly light up as Dr. Vindi remotely activates them. Kenobi surmises that Skywalker didn’t capture the doctor. He also notices an empty slot amid the rows of bombs — one of the explosives is missing.

Anakin orders Ahsoka to search for the wayward explosive. Padmé remembers Dr. Vindi’s assistant, and correctly guesses that it’s the keeper of the missing bomb. The teams split up to find the droid.

Anakin finds Dr. Vindi’s secret hangar and cuts through his battle droid guards. To distract Anakin, Vindi throws a vial of the virus out the blast door. Anakin leaps to catch it while Vindi shuts the door behind the Jedi. Vindi raises the landing platform so he can escape in his shuttle. Anakin begins to cut through the door, and radios to Obi-Wan for help.

Padmé and Jar Jar discover a room filled with a small grove of trees. Inside, Dr. Vindi’s droid cowers. Padmé corners it, and it makes a break for it. Jar Jar tackles the droid, dropping the bomb which Padmé catches. She radios her success to Ahsoka, who dispatches the bomb squad to Padmé’s location.

Anakin and Obi-Wan cut their way into the hangar bay. Vindi drops a trio of vials from his rising platform, forcing Kenobi to break pursuit to catch them and make sure they don’t break.

The hangar launch chute opens, splitting the swamp floor beneath Peppi Bow’s feet. Daylight streams into the hangar. Anakin leaps to the top of the platform and holds his blade at Vindi. Once more he tries to drop a vial, but he is tackled by Peppi, who knocks him down with her electropole. Vindi lies prostrate on the landing platform surface, cackling with glee because his timed bombs are ready to erupt. But there is no explosion.

The clone troopers have deactivated all the bombs.


Trivia & Details

  • When Neeyutnee demands that Padmé inform the Senate of the possible invasion, Amidala instantly answers that they will need more proof. She is clearly remembering the events of Episode I, when a huge invasion of the planet only managed to prompt the motion of an independent fact-finding commission be sent to Naboo to ascertain the truth.
  • The original script had the evidence of plague be at the very start of the episode, moving downstream and affecting an entire Gungan village. Some remnants of this order of events remain in the finished episode. Notably, the tense relationship with the Gungans that Padmé cites stems from this version of the story.
  • The script originally called for the tactical droid to be a tripedal medical droid. This is why C-3PO says to it, “We all want to hear your tale of medical heroics.”
  • The laboratory may have been built over a decade ago during the original Naboo invasion.
  • According to the script, the clones units dispatched to help invade the laboratory are Wildfire, Snow Wolves and Calm Tree.
  • Originally the “rabbit droid” took the bomb and left in Act II never to be seen again. Padmé found the missing bomb in the greenhouse room, left hidden for no apparent reason. The addition of the scampering droid with the bomb was done during editorial, not only for story logic but to add the fun beat where it startles Padmé.
  • The Naboo guards were a late addition, taxing the asset allocation budget for the episode. Consequently, the crew only produced a single guard, who was cheated in camera angles to keep the twin guards from being too noticeable.
  • In recreating the Theed hangar, the crew discovered that the Naboo starfighter’s tails go through the hangar walls in order to fit into their stalls. Dave Filoni consulted with Episode I Visual Effects Supervisor John Knoll about this, and Knoll confirmed they had the same problem in The Phantom Menace.
  • In the script, the plants in the greenhouse room where Padmé finds the missing bomb were originally “tea leaf plants”. In the end, Giancarlo Volpi and Dave Filoni decided it was better if the plants seemed more like they were involved in the creation of the Blue Shadow Virus somehow, hence their blue color.
  • The crew nicknamed the underground laboratory hallway fights the “disco hallways.” Their tube-like design was inspired by the hallway Luke Skywalker explores in Cloud City in The Empire Strikes Back.

Memorable Quotes

“Unless you want to become a box of spare parts, you’ll tell us where that lab is.” — Captain Typho

“I’m having a bad feeling about this. With your permission, Senator Padmé, I would like to shut down before I get sensory overload. ” — C-3PO

“Mesa luven! Is berry berry good tongue-grabben.” — Jar Jar Binks, describing slug-beetles.

“I suppose one could never have too many lab rats. Please, escort our guests inside.” — Dr. Nuvo Vindi

“Wonderful specimins! What’s a life-form like you doing in a swamp like this?” — Dr. Nuvo Vindi

“Meanwhile, as we speak, thousands and thousands of so-called ‘superior” lifeforms are spreading their disease of war throughout the galaxy! Perhaps they are the ones who should be eradicated?” — Dr. Nuvo Vindi

  • “There’s a good chance we’re about to destroy all life on this planet, including the Senator’s, so, yes. I’m on edge. Why aren’t you?”
  • “I’m better at hiding it.” — Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi

“Oops. What happened?” — Dr. Nuvo Vindi, his plot being foiled.

  • “Senator Padmé can be very hard to stop once she has made up her mind.”
  • “Good point. I know what you mean.” — Captain Typho and Anakin Skywalker

“She’s right next to me. I’m okay too, thanks for asking.” — Ahsoka Tano responding to Anakin’s queries about Padmé.

Star Wars | Alphabet Squadron: Shadow Fall

Star Wars – Alphabet Squadron: Shadow Fall

Join Alphabet Squadron on their thrilling Star Wars adventure as they continue their hunt for the deadliest TIE fighters in the galaxy! The New Republic may have celebrated their victory, but the remnants of imperial tyranny still linger, and Shadow Wing is one of the most dangerous among them.

Despite Yrica Quell and her ragtag team’s relentless pursuit, the elusive Shadow Wing remains out of reach, and the pressure to apprehend them before they strike again is starting to fracture the squadron. In a last-ditch effort to end this once and for all, Quell teams up with Caern Adan from New Republic Intelligence and General Hera Syndulla to devise a risky plan that could finally bring Shadow Wing to justice.

However, the enemy has evolved and Soran Keize, the last of the Imperial aces, has taken control of Shadow Wing, breathing new life into the faltering unit. Keize has found purpose in leading his lost soldiers to safety, but Alphabet Squadron is determined to stop him. Led by their former mentor turned traitor, Yrica Quell, they are the only thing standing in Keize’s way.

Will Alphabet Squadron be able to take down Shadow Wing, or will Soran Keize’s leadership prove too much for them to handle? Buckle up and get ready for a pulse-pounding ride through the galaxy!

Sources:

Wookieepedia
Read Star Wars
Jedi Temple Archives
Yoda’s Datapad
Youtini

The Clone Wars Episode Guide: Shadow of Malevolance

Welcome to a look inside The Holocron. A collection of articles from the archives of *starwars.com no longer directly available.

(*Archived here with Permission utilising The Internet Archive Wayback Machine)

The Clone Wars Episode Guide: Shadow of Malevolance

Episode Air No: 3
Original Air Date: October 10, 2008
Production No: 9

Written by Steve Melching
Directed by Brian Kalin O’Connell

Key Characters: General Grievous, Anakin Skywalker, Ahsoka Tano, Jedi Master Plo Koon
Key Locales: Balmorra Run

Cast:
Matt Lanter as Anakin Skywalker
Ashley Eckstein as Ahsoka Tano
Tom Kane as Admiral Yularen | Narrator
James Arnold Taylor as Obi-Wan Kenobi | Plo Koon
Dee Bradley Baker as the clone troopers
Matthew Wood as General Grievous | battle droids
Corey Burton as Count Dooku
Gwendoline Yeo as Nala Se

Episode Brief: With the help of his Padawan Ahsoka and Jedi Master Plo Koon, Anakin utilizes new long-range Y-wing bombers to lead a bold strike on General Grievous’ warship, the Malevolence, and its destructive weapon.

Notable: Introduction of the Y-wing bombers.


Full Synopsis

“Easy is the path to wisdom for those not blinded by themselves”

Newsreel:
A deadly weapon, unleashed! The
Separatist battleship, Malevolence
advances unopposed through Republic
space, tearing apart any ship that
stands in its path. After a daring rescue
and narrow escape, Anakin Skwalker
prepares a counterattack on the
enemy and its diabolical droid
commander, General Grievous….

ACT I
Within the hangar bay of the Resolute, Anakin Skywalker and Admiral Yularen brief the assembled clone pilots of Shadow Squadron on their strike mission against the Malevolence. As the bulk of the fleet is engaged elsewhere, this strike mission will operate on its own. The Malevolence‘s primary weapon is geared against capital ships, so Anakin believes a small squad of bombers could outmaneuver it and target the warship’s bridge, knocking out the ship and General Grievous. The clones — including Matchstick and Broadside — are eager for a fight. Jedi Master Plo Koon, however, expresses his reservations about Anakin’s aggressive attack strategies, an opinion that Ahsoka Tano shares.

In the Ryndellia system, the Malevolence continues its assault, blasting apart another Republic convoy. A lone medical transport flees the carnage, but it is overtaken by the weapon’s ion plasma blast. Even its escape pods are targeted for annihilation. General Grievous relishes the destructive power of his weapon, but continues to be frustrated by the incompetence of his battle droid troops. He smacks one to pieces out of anger, and gets a brief chastisement from a holographic Count Dooku, who notes that these droids are pricey and the Republic are never so callous with their soldiers.

That is precisely a weakness the Separatists plot to exploit by targeting the Republic’s secret Outer Rim medical station. The Kaliida Shoals Med Station, not far from Naboo, is unprotected and treating over 60,000 wounded clones. Once destroyed, the Jedi in the Outer Rim theater will have no place to send their wounded troops.

Back in the Resolute‘s hangar, Shadow Squadron’s Y-wing bombers undergo preparation, and Anakin assigns Ahsoka as his tailgunner. Admiral Yularen reports in with news of the Ryndellia attack. Anakin theorizes that Grievous will likely target the Kaliida Shoals station. Stellar densities in that area of space limit the Malevolence‘s hyperspace capabilities, giving Shadow Squadron the opportunity to intercept it via a shortcut. Plo Koon decides to join Anakin’s squadron flying fighter escort.

At the Kaliida Shoals station, Kaminoan administrator Nala Se receives a warning from Admiral Yularen. It is impossible to evacuate all the wounded from the station. Obi-Wan Kenobi also chimes in via holocom. He has contacted the Naboo, who are sending ships to assist in the evacuation, and he plans to arrive as well aboard the Negotiator.

The Y-wings depart from the Resolute‘s central hangar deck, tailed by master Plo’s Delta-7B fighter. They check in, and then blast off into hyperspace. The nimble fighters will take Anakin’s shortcut to Kaliida Shoals, while Obi-Wan’s warship will take the longer route.

ACT II
The Malevolence travels through hyperspace at a velocity well past lightspeed, but it’s not fast enough for the impatient General Grievous. The navicomputer has had to calculate a complex course sidestepping the Kaliida nebula. The Y-wings, however, can negotiate the dust cloud, so Shadow Squadron emerges from hyperspace to traverse the nebula: a short cut dubbed the Balmorra Run that Anakin Skywalker learned from smugglers in his youth. Entering the cloud completely obscures the fighters’ scanners. Ahsoka is increasingly concerned by this dangerous course of action.

At Kaliida Shoals, the evacuation proceeds slowly, with the stabilized patients being moved to medical transports first. The more critically wounded and those in bacta tanks cannot be moved just yet.

The Malevolence is in its last parsec of travel when Count Dooku reports in. He has received intelligence from Lord Sidious: the Republic has launched a small strike force led by Anakin Skywalker to intercept and attack the Malevolence. Grievous fears nothing, for his ship is unstoppable.

In the heart of the nebula, Shadow Squadron suddenly stumbles upon a swarm of giant neebray mantas, deep space leviathans. The annoyed hulks begin to swim around the Y-wing fighters, and Anakin orders evasive maneuvers. Shadow Two (Matchstick) grazes a neebray wing as he flies by, causing damage to his portside thruster stabilizer. Anakin orders bantha formation — a single-file flight pattern that allows the squadron to thread its way past the beasts. The fighters emerge from the nebula, where the neebrays will not follow.

At this point, half of the Kaliida Shoals facility has been evacuated. Still not enough, to Obi-Wan Kenobi’s thinking, as the Negotiator plies through hyperspace. Kenobi hopes Skywalker will intercept Grievous in time, or else 30,000 clones still lie at risk.

ACT III
The Malevolence bursts into realspace and is immediately swarmed by Anakin’s squadron. Grievous orders the ship brought about, and vulture droid fighters launched. A group of medical transports flee the Kaliida Shoals station, and Grievous targets them with an ion blast, followed by a turbolaser volley. The battle is joined.

Grievous next targets the jumble of dogfighting fighters, even though his vulture droids are in the mix. Anakin orders his fighters to fly to the edge of the incoming disc of crippling energy. The Y-wings pour on all the speed they can, but Shadow Two’s crippled stabilizer slows him down. Matchstick’s engine blows, and he spins out of control, plowing into trooper Tag’s Y-wing. Both fighters erupt in flames. The rest of the squadron crests the ion wave, though three other fighters, Shadows Six, Seven and Ten, are caught in the blast and immobilized. Anakin is now down to almost half his original squadron, possibly not enough for him to continue his mission.

The remaining Y-wings close in on the Malevolence, and the warship’s point defense batteries create a withering curtain of anti-starfigher fire. As another Y-wing is blasted out of the sky, Ahsoka urges Anakin to abandon this course of action: they need a new plan. “Master, you can make it, but everyone else is getting shot down!” she urges. Meanwhile, Grievous charges up the ion cannon to target the medical station. Anakin realizes his Padawan is right: he abandons his bid to destroy the bridge and General Grievous, and instead targets the prime weapon.

The remaining fighters of Shadow Squadron change course, and fly toward the starboard ion cannon. Volley after volley of proton torpedoes launch from the fighters and strike the disc emitter as it builds up its ion charge. A cascade of explosions rock the Malevolence. The ion cannon fires, but the blast loses direction and expands outward, backfiring and crippling both ion emitters and disabling the vessel’s hyperdrive. Kaliida Shoals is saved, but the Malevolence lives on, defanged and limping away.

Just then, Obi-Wan Kenobi’s taskforce emerges from hyperspace. The Negotiator continues pursuit of the Malevolence while Anakin’s Y-wing fighters head to the medical station.

Docked at the medical station hangar, Plo Koon congratulates Anakin on his successful run. Anakin meets with Nala Se, who thanks Skywalker for the lives he saved. Skywalker, though, remains focused on the lives he has lost.


Trivia & Details

  • The “Crumb Bomber” — the Republic gunship with the Kowakian monkey lizard illustration on its side — was stationed within the Resolute hangar.
  • The four-legged power droid is called a plunk droid, and sure enough, that’s what it says as it shuffles about.
  • The chairs at the briefing are basic office chairs with casters, just like the chairs aboard the original Death Star.
  • An as-yet-untold adventure has established that Anakin is wary of Ahsoka’s piloting (see episode guide for “Downfall of a Droid” on November 7th for more information).
  • Deep space leviathians within a dust cloud have been seen before in the expanded universe, in the novel Lando Calrissian and the Starcave of ThonBoka, with the massive Oswaft living within the ThonBoka nebula.
  • After Grievous callously beheads a battle droid gunner, there is a replacement one ready to take its place.
  • The script and earlier versions of this episode had the Jedi fortune cookie read: “Easy is the path to wisdom for those not blinded by ego.”
  • The look of the Clone Wars-era Y-wing bombers stems directly from the design of the original Y-wing and speculation from Episode IV Visual Effects Art Director Joe Johnston that the Rebel Alliance Y-wing was a “chopped” version of an older craft. An earlier idea of a skinned or fully faired Y-wing appeared in the Star Wars: Incredible Cross-Sections book from DK, but that design differs from the final look of the Y-wing bombers seen in this episode, which more effectively bridges the design aesthetic of the prequel and original trilogies.

Memorable Quotes

“Minimal casualties, maximum effectiveness. That’s us.” — Broadside, describing Shadow Squadron’s motto.

“Boy, this is a lot more fun when they’re not shooting back!” — Battle droid gunner aboard the Malevolence.

“The care these Jedi show for their troops is a weakness.” — General Grievous

“Target those escape pods! I have a reputation to uphold!” — General Grievous

“Cut the chatter, Ahsoka.” — Anakin Skywalker, Squadron Leader

“Broadside, we make it through this one, drinks are on me.” — Matchstick

“Does anyone care what the Padawan thinks?” — Ahsoka Tano

“This is old fashioned flying. You have to feel your way through to stay on course.” — Anakin Skywalker

  • “That one looks hungry!”
  • “Nah, it’s just smiling at you.” – Ahsoka and Anakin, regarding a neebray

“I have a bad feeling about this.” — Battle droid gunner.

  • “That’s kind of true, Snips.”
  • “From a certain point of view.” — Anakin Skywalker and Plo Koon, responding to Ahsoka taking credit for changing the final attack plan.