To celebrate the 10th anniversary of Star Wars: The Clone Wars, and the all-new episodes coming thanks to #CloneWarsSaved, we’re undertaking a full chronological rewatch of the five original seasons, The Lost Missions, and the theatrical release. We’d be honored if you would join us and share your thoughts on the award-winning series.
14: “Lair of Grievous” (Season One, Episode 10)
"Most powerful is he who controls his own power."
Synopsis:
Jedi Master Kit Fisto and his former Padawan, Jedi Nahdar Vebb, track escaped prisoner Nute Gunray to a remote world only to find themselves as the bait in a trap inside the mysterious den of General Grievous.
Analysis:
The introduction of General Grievous's lair is the stuff of a gothic horror nightmare. We have the fortress, a mist-shrouded abode complete with the sounds of creatures in anguish emanating from within the walls. There's the display of trophies from murdered Jedi, the kind of stomach-turning exhibition you'd expect from a serial killer.
But perhaps worst of all are the lengths to which Grievous will go to willingly submit to chilling medical experiments upon his droid doctor's slab. You think, as he's skittering away from the battle, that it can't possibly get worse, but the groan as his mask is removed for replacement, with no sedation apparent, is far more unpleasant.
This dark and twisted episode at once expands on the complex backstory of the coughing cyborg operative and serves to generate more questions about who he was and what he has become.
Grievous and foolhardy Nahdar have a surprising amount in common. "I submit to no one," Grievous declares, but it's clear that he's a willing participant in Dooku's game, still jockeying for the Sith Lord's affections even as it's clear he's been forced into a trap. Villains often act out of fear and pain, and Grievous is no exception. (Although if any resident of the gothic castle deserves pity, it's the Gor.)
