Send in the Clones

While looking on YouTube for Star Wars news, Kris came upon a series of videos by ArTorr.  Part three is a very detailed breakdown of the animated TV series, “The Clone Wars”, which premiered on Cartoon Network, then moved to Disney DX.

It covers the amazing history of the seven-season show.  How it was canceled after season six when Disney bought Lucasfilm, then was brought back by fan demand for a final season.  Which, by the way, sets up the sequel series, “Star Wars:  The Bad Batch”.  One thing I found astonishing (and probably one of the reasons it was canceled) was George Lucas was spending one to two million dollars on each episode.  This was unheard of for a half-hour animated series.   I remember when a million dollars was considered extraordinary for each episode of, “Star Trek:  The Next Generation”.

But more importantly from a writer’s perspective, it focused on the characters, particularly Asoka Tano.  How she went from being a padawan learner – being trained as a peacekeeper – to fighting in battles most of her Jedi carrier, to eventually being disillusioned with the Jedi Order and leaving to find her own path.  The series also brought new light to the Star Wars prequels, which some fans were very critical of.

It also focused on other characters, such as the clone troopers Fives and Rex.  Clones that were created to be generic fighting machines, but eventually struggled with their own identities and individualities.  It also went into the various themes that ran throughout the show such as family, loyalty and brotherhood.

As a writer, I’m very concerned about theme.  Over the years, I’ve discovered that I have a reoccurring theme of family.  My steampunk trilogy is about an adventurer family and a new member that joins in.  And each story has a theme – What is a Hero, the Dangers of Seeking Vengeance and Overcoming Your Fears.

Even if you are not a Star Wars fan, the video is worth watching for its study of character development, themes and plot.  Check it out here  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P9UDN_-Dqe8&t=1930s

Dennis Amador Cherry

78th blog completed.

First Steampunk novel:  72,206 words.  Notice how the word count goes down a little, then up a little?  That’s editing.

First Steampunk screenplay:  Need to update with notes from the novelization.

Second Steampunk screenplay:  114 pages

Second Steampunk novel: 0 words.

Third Steampunk screenplay:  38 pages

We also subscribe to the YouTube channel, Star Wars Meg.  She does daily news updates of everything Star Wars.  https://www.youtube.com/c/StarWarsMeg