Clone Wars (or, Mace Windu: Superman)

[Ghostwind]

Okay, my kids are watching Volume One of the Clone Wars cartoon series that I checked out from the library. Is it just me, or are the Jedi being portrayed as WAY over the top? I mean, that segment with Mace Windu singlehandly stopping a droid army was extreme even for Star Wars. Although, I will admit to a slight smile when they did the homage to the Coca-Cola commercial and Mean Joe Green (you older readers will know what I am talking about).

 

[Fast Learner]

Well, it's certainly over the top if you compare it to how easly Jedi go down in RotS. Like a house of cards in a hurricane, baby.

 

[Ankh-Morpork Guard]

Way, way over the top. Of course, that's the fun of it, really. Goes great with the style of art, too.

 

[Dark Jezter]

Mace Windu's mopping up of the droid army on Dantooine in the Clone Wars series is one reason why I believe that Palpatine wasn't playing possum when Mace Windu had him cornered in Episode III (that, and there's also the fact that the Episode III novelization definately makes it sound like Palpatine was really at Windu's mercy).

 

[Viking Bastard]

This is how Jedi are supposed to be, damnit. Frickin' supermen.

 

[Ankh-Morpork Guard]

Mace Windu's mopping up of the droid army on Dantooine in the Clone Wars series is one reason why I believe that Palpatine wasn't playing possum when Mace Windu had him cornered in Episode III (that, and there's also the fact that the Episode III novelization definately makes it sound like Palpatine was really at Windu's mercy).

Its not a good idea to compare Clone Wars with the movies. Again, Clone Wars is insanely over the top. That's kind of the point. It'd be easy to show the same thing as the movies, but Clone Wars gives us almost a legendary type of view on the Jedi rather than a more accurate one.

 

[wingsandsword]

Also, if you listen to the commentary tracks on the DVD, they admit that even for the "over the top" Clone Wars, this is the big one. They used Mace Windu since he's supposed to be the most powerful Jedi (alongside Yoda), and even then they were worried about Lucasfilm approval on the whole thing (but Lucas approved it with no problems).

The Clone Wars series is a little stylized and exaggerated, just like the animation style it's done in.

Oh, and the commentary track makes it crystal clear, that was an intentional homage to the old Coke commercial (and establishing that there are plenty of people througout the galaxy who see the Jedi as heroes, and I saw an implication that even after Palpatine demonized them and much of the galaxy hated them, there were plenty of people who still respect the Jedi).

 

[Dark Jezter]

Its not a good idea to compare Clone Wars with the movies. Again, Clone Wars is insanely over the top. That's kind of the point. It'd be easy to show the same thing as the movies, but Clone Wars gives us almost a legendary type of view on the Jedi rather than a more accurate one.

Well (as mentioned by wingsandsword), Mace Windu is supposed to be an incredibly powerful Jedi, so even though the action scenes in Clone Wars were obviously exaggerated, I stand by my belief that Mace Windu really could have killed Palpatine if Anakin hadn't interfered.

I'll back off from this now, though, lest this thread sidetrack into a "Was Palpatine playing possum?" discussion.

 

[Testament]

This sums it up quite nicely

So I finally got around to watching Clone Wars. I'm not a rabid Star Wars fan by any means, but I find the setting enjoyable and when Lucas remembers that he's great with ideas and horrible with dialogue he makes a good movie. The Clone Wars series kind of embodies that: Lucas's ideas/story, someone else's execution. It raises an interesting question though. Why do they bother with Jedi who aren't Mace Windu?

I could see the argument that non-Windus exist as a legion of decoys who, in order to be the most convincing decoys possible, don't know they are decoys. They take their "training" very seriously and do all kinds of posturing and generally appear competent. It would not be foolish to pay attention to a gaggle of such individuals if they came running at you brandishing all manner of laser-bladed weaponry. Windu would be nestled somewhere in the middle of the pack, but you'd never know until your cauterized limbs were sent sailing over your head -- itself also sailing and, hey, why is it so cold suddenly? -- and by then it's too late.

I wonder how the Jedi convince themselves that they're more than shields of meat for Windu. Maybe they've never seen him fight so they don't know to what degree they're all outclassed. It's the difference between shooting a bullet and throwing one.

It's a shame he's not half as impressive in Episode 3. But if he was, they'd have called it Star Wars Episode III: Shut the Up.

 

[Crothian]

Clone Wars is not over the top. Clone Wars is d6 Star Wars, the movies used the d20 version. If you've played both systems, you know what I'm talking about!!