Clone Wars Season 7: Episode 2: "A Distant Echo"
Clone Wars Season 7: Episode 2: "A Distant Echo" written by Brent Friedman, Matt Michnovetz, and Dave Filoni, directed by Steward Lee
This was a great episode with A LOT going on!! There were changes I speak to below, but it was still a fabulous episode!! We have action, romance (see the Anidala holocomm handtouch to the left--my heart!!), humor, and horror. It's a lot to take in and it is beautiful!!
First off, the changes. I get why they did the main change as the content in the animatics was a bit mature and the content in this final version was really sweet instead. What was the difference? In the animatics, there's a pin-up Padme on the side of Clone Force 99's ship and Anakin of course gets quite offended. To Anakin's what is that?! Wrecker says, "It's the Naboo senator. She can negotiate with me anytime!" So yeah, it was something that might be seen as slightly offensive or inappropriate for young audiences. The final version instead had Rex escorting Anakin to Rex's barracks so Anakin could make a holo call to Padme. The couple talk about the war and Anakin thinking he could single handedly win the Outer Rim sieges. Padme tells him he's only human and shouldn't expect so much from himself. Sounds very similar to a certain conversation on Tatooine about Tusken Raiders..."To be angry is to be human." Obi-Wan walks up to Rex in the middle of all this and their interaction over what is going on in the barracks is wonderfully funny. The music brilliantly adds to the humor! Poor Rex is in such an awkward spot. After Anakin ends the call and exits the barracks, Obi-Wan makes it clear he knows Anakin and Padme are clandestinely communicating. I love it!! So, I kinda wish we'd gotten both because I am falling in love with Wrecker and I'm always up for more Anidala. But I understand the change.
There were two more changes I noticed that were smaller, one of them I am so happy they did!! and the other I'm pretty sad about. So first, when the D-wing air support droids (pictured below) get knocked out of the tower by the troopers, they now scream, "Whhhhyyyy?!?" as they're falling and it is peak battle droid humor!! Then when Wat Tambor comes on the screen outside the room where Echo is being held, instead of being deviously evil and touting the neutrality of the Techno Union as what will save him from getting in trouble, he's super creepy and says, "Your friend is dead. His mind is ours." We find out what that means toward the end of the episode and *shiver* I definitely prefer the sneaky over-the-top villain version of Wat Tambor rather than the disturbing Wat Tambor…
As for the plot, Anakin, Rex, and Clone Force 99 head to Skako Minor to infiltrate Wat Tambor's city there, Purkoll. and discover whether or not it really is Echo giving off the signal. They run into some trouble with the local Poletec, a people who worship flying reptiles called Keeradaks (see below), but soon win them over and head off...only to discover something chilling to the bone,...
There were some great bits of dialogue and some fantastic moments in this episode!
When Anakin and Padme are talking via holocomm, Padme asks her husband what's wrong as she knows something is up with him. He says, "It's Rex. I'm worried he's letting his personal feelings drive him too much on this mission." Anakin!! How could you say that when that is your go-to m.o.?? Well, Padme's right there with me because she replies, "I wonder where he learned that." I love this woman so freaking much!!
Once Anakin finally comes out of Rex's barracks and runs into Obi-Wan, Anakin's mentor tries to get him to talk about the mission saying the Council's not so sure about it. Anakin keeps brushing him off until Obi-Wan says, "I hope you at least told Padme I said, 'Hello.'" Dang, Obi-Wan is NO fool!! Anakin has no reply for that!
In Clone Forcee 99's ship, the Havoc Marauder, as the crew flies to Skako Minor, Wrecker is lifting a Gonk droid with one arm while gnawing on a large bird leg in the other (see image below)...I'm telling you, this guy has my heart :-P. And that's not all! Later in the episode, when the crew are headed to Purkoll, they're headed up really high in the mountains and after hearing "I hope no one's afraid of heights," everyone looks at Wrecker who replies, "I'm not scared of nothing. I just...when I'm up real high...I got a problem with gravity." And his deep, gravely voice just makes this hysterical.
This episode has so many things going for it, it's hard not to absolutely love it!! Can't wait to see what's in store for us with the third episode of this arc!!
First off, the changes. I get why they did the main change as the content in the animatics was a bit mature and the content in this final version was really sweet instead. What was the difference? In the animatics, there's a pin-up Padme on the side of Clone Force 99's ship and Anakin of course gets quite offended. To Anakin's what is that?! Wrecker says, "It's the Naboo senator. She can negotiate with me anytime!" So yeah, it was something that might be seen as slightly offensive or inappropriate for young audiences. The final version instead had Rex escorting Anakin to Rex's barracks so Anakin could make a holo call to Padme. The couple talk about the war and Anakin thinking he could single handedly win the Outer Rim sieges. Padme tells him he's only human and shouldn't expect so much from himself. Sounds very similar to a certain conversation on Tatooine about Tusken Raiders..."To be angry is to be human." Obi-Wan walks up to Rex in the middle of all this and their interaction over what is going on in the barracks is wonderfully funny. The music brilliantly adds to the humor! Poor Rex is in such an awkward spot. After Anakin ends the call and exits the barracks, Obi-Wan makes it clear he knows Anakin and Padme are clandestinely communicating. I love it!! So, I kinda wish we'd gotten both because I am falling in love with Wrecker and I'm always up for more Anidala. But I understand the change.
There were two more changes I noticed that were smaller, one of them I am so happy they did!! and the other I'm pretty sad about. So first, when the D-wing air support droids (pictured below) get knocked out of the tower by the troopers, they now scream, "Whhhhyyyy?!?" as they're falling and it is peak battle droid humor!! Then when Wat Tambor comes on the screen outside the room where Echo is being held, instead of being deviously evil and touting the neutrality of the Techno Union as what will save him from getting in trouble, he's super creepy and says, "Your friend is dead. His mind is ours." We find out what that means toward the end of the episode and *shiver* I definitely prefer the sneaky over-the-top villain version of Wat Tambor rather than the disturbing Wat Tambor…
When Anakin and Padme are talking via holocomm, Padme asks her husband what's wrong as she knows something is up with him. He says, "It's Rex. I'm worried he's letting his personal feelings drive him too much on this mission." Anakin!! How could you say that when that is your go-to m.o.?? Well, Padme's right there with me because she replies, "I wonder where he learned that." I love this woman so freaking much!!
Once Anakin finally comes out of Rex's barracks and runs into Obi-Wan, Anakin's mentor tries to get him to talk about the mission saying the Council's not so sure about it. Anakin keeps brushing him off until Obi-Wan says, "I hope you at least told Padme I said, 'Hello.'" Dang, Obi-Wan is NO fool!! Anakin has no reply for that!
In Clone Forcee 99's ship, the Havoc Marauder, as the crew flies to Skako Minor, Wrecker is lifting a Gonk droid with one arm while gnawing on a large bird leg in the other (see image below)...I'm telling you, this guy has my heart :-P. And that's not all! Later in the episode, when the crew are headed to Purkoll, they're headed up really high in the mountains and after hearing "I hope no one's afraid of heights," everyone looks at Wrecker who replies, "I'm not scared of nothing. I just...when I'm up real high...I got a problem with gravity." And his deep, gravely voice just makes this hysterical.
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