Clone Wars -- "The Academy" (Ep. 3.6)

-- Those who enforce the law must obey the law.

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We remain on Mandalore as we pick up where the previous episode left off. Satine has requested that a Jedi be sent to their Academy to teach a class about the dangers of government corruption; they send Ahsoka. The Mandalorians require that she not be armed while on the planet, so she has to hand her lightsaber over to Anakin when he drops her off.

The logic around the whole setup for this episode is a little fuzzy to me, even considering that the request for a Jedi is a political feint. Even accounting for the true purpose, the false purpose doesn't quite make sense, and I can't accept that Anakin would leave Ahsoka without her lightsaber considering the ongoing importance placed on them: "Your lightsaber is your life." Of course, it's good to see every once in a while just how much a Jedi (even a Padawan) can do without a 'saber, but I couldn't buy into it.

It's not a horrible episode, but it's definitely not going to make any lists of my favorite episodes, even if it is on Mandalore and even if Satine is in it. The whole story was orchestrated to reveal who the high up corrupt official is, which would be fine except that it feels contrived. Not that all stories aren't contrived, but you don't want them to feel that way.

Clone Wars -- "Corruption" (Ep. 3.5) (Gadreel)

-- The challenge of hope is to overcome corruption.

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One thing I think (know) people often (almost always) miss about the prequels, especially The Phantom Menace, is how much political commentary is contained therein. People get all distracted and wound up by Jar Jar and miss everything else. Some of everything else being a kind of warning about the state of politics, right now, and I think we can see even more of what was in Phantom going on in the US, right now, with the polarization of Congress and the fear-mongering of the Republicans, especially Donald Trumpatine. This episode touches on the same material.

And it's eerily reminiscent of the water issue in Flint, Michigan.

All of that said, I like seeing Satine back even without Obi-Wan in the story.

Mandalore is having some issues due to the fallout of the previous Mandalore story line in which they assert their neutrality. Now, no one will trade with them, and things like food prices are skyrocketing. Corruption and the black market are booming. That's really all you need to know. That and Padme joins Satine in an investigation dealing with sick school children.

Just go watch it.



Now for Angel week!

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