Directors: Various
Purchase: Amazon
Most die-hard fans of the Star Wars universe are already aware of the popular Clone Wars television series, however the CG animation and overall tone of the show made me think this was one for the kiddies and not something I’d be interested in. Thankfully, I can say I was incorrect in that assumption, as I am now ready and willing to consume all six seasons of this highly entertaining galactic nerd-fest that stays surprisingly true to the films, despite its cartoonish demeanor.
Star Wars: The Clone Wars began on Cartoon Network back in 2008 and was an immediate success, gaining acceptance from old-school fans and introducing an entirely new generation to George Lucas’ epic science fiction universe. The show would remain on Cartoon Network ’til mid-way through the sixth season, when Disney decided to take over and place it under its giant umbrella. The rest of the season was later released in its entirety on Netflix and is now collected on Blu-ray for everyone to enjoy.
Titled The Clone Wars: The Lost Missions, this final season looks to wrap up the Clone Wars saga with 13 episodes of political intrigue, espionage and plenty of Jedi action. Those who watched the previous seasons of the series will find themselves in familiar territory here, and while it could just be the crisp high-def goodness of Blu-ray, the show looks more polished and detailed than ever before.
Contained on two discs, this set has a combined runtime of 287 minutes and features a 16-minute documentary on the show, as well as four additional unfinished story reels, rounding out the bonus content to about two hours.
Admittedly, I did not have time to run through all five previous seasons before writing this review, so there were several aspects of the complex storyline that required me to do a little research in order to understand what was going on, so it goes without saying that it’s not advisable to start the series with this release. Fortunately, as of this writing, all six seasons and the feature-length film that kicked off the series are available on Netflix Instant, ready and primed for your binge-watching pleasure. Each episode on the Blu-ray also features quick recaps to give you a refresher if you forgot any of the main story beats.
If you’re looking for some solid Star Wars fun to hold you over until The Force Awakens hits theaters, then this is definitely one to check out. Since you can watch all the episodes contained in this Blu-ray on Netflix though, I recommend only picking this up if you’re already a big fan, or if you want to see the unfinished story reels, which are a very cool addition.
