A scene from "The General."

Opinions // DECEMBER 12, 2019

The Clone Wars Rewatch: Here Comes “The General”

While the clones fight bravely on the front lines, General Pong Krell watches at a distance.

Kristin Baver is a journalist who loved science fiction before she could even write her own name. (Seriously, she was a card-carrying member of the Star Wars Fan Club when she had no other real reason to own a wallet.) Now she gets paid to pen stories and book reviews, interview fellow fans, writers, and other interesting people, and aspires to one day craft a Boushh disguise and join the ranks of the 501st Legion.
Kristin Baver

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.

74: “The General” (Season Four, Episode 8)

“The path of ignorance is guided by fear.”

A scene from "The General."

Synopsis:

General Krell orders Captain Rex and the clone troopers of the 501st Legion to conquer a heavily fortified Umbaran airbase, and will not accept anything less than victory. It is an almost certain suicide mission, unless the clones can use their ingenuity to defeat their new enemy.

Analysis:

While Krell watches smugly at a safe distance, overseeing the suicide mission from afar, the clones are being slaughtered.

A scene from "The General." A scene from "The General."

On the frontlines we join them, an up-close look at the jarring, concussive nature of this particularly grueling battle, expertly directed so one cannot look away.

A scene from "The General."

Outmatched by the Umbarans’ war machines, crushing mechanical beasts, the only way to beat them is to join them, sort of.

A scene from "The General." A scene from "The General."

Outwit, outsmart, outlast is more like it. By stealing some of the enviable tech, the clones even the field and secure a victory, with some paying for it with their lives.

A scene from "The General."

But to Krell, at best they’ve been lucky. And at worst? They’ve paid a fair amount of blood to take the airbase. Fair, of course, only to a general who leads from behind, preferring to fall back and wait for relative safety rather than getting out in front, shoulder to shoulder, ready to take on as much risk as he asks of the men fighting under him.

Intel:

What did you think of the episode? Tell us in the comments below and share on social with #CloneWarsRewatch!

Next up: Come back next Thursday when unrest among the clones leads to a mutiny in “Plan of Dissent.”

Associate Editor Kristin Baver is a writer and all-around sci-fi nerd who always has just one more question in an inexhaustible list of curiosities. Sometimes she blurts out “It’s a trap!” even when it’s not. Want to talk more about The Clone Wars? Hop on Twitter and tell @KristinBaver what you thought about today’s episode.

Site tags: #StarWarsBlog, #CloneWarsRewatch

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