THE CLONE WARS: WHEN DOOKU STRIKES!

Determined to stop Anakin Skywalker from reaching Jabba the Hutt's stronghold on Tatooine, Count Dooku launches another ferocious attack of Dark Side force lightning on the young Jedi, in a highlight confrontation near-climaxing The Clone Wars animated movie. It was great to have the vocal return of Christopher Lee to the villainous role, once more bringing great menace and classy malevolence.

THE CLONE WARS: HELP ON THE WAY!

The odds are not in Anakin Skywaker's favour as the Battle of Teth nears its conclusion. Thankfully, Obi-Wan Kenobi and some Republic reinforcements have handily arrived just in time to firepower assist and ultimately clean up the mess and consequences of Anakin's headstrong plans, in this scene from The Clone Wars animated movie of 2008.

THE CLONE WARS: POLITICAL INFLUENCES...

Striving hard to bring peace to the galaxy, and to especially sooth the escalating troubles with the Hutt clan and its vitally needed space routes, Senator Padme Amidala confers with Supreme Chancellor Palpatine on Coruscant, in a scene from The Clone Wars animated movie.

The late Ian Abercrombie did a fine job continuing the work of Ian McDiarmid in the role of Palpatine and Darth Sidious, and the same too for Catherine Taber, bringing her own interpretation to Natalie Portman's morally courageous Padme. Attending the film's London multimedia screening back in 2008, AFICIONADO noted that the cinema audience was clearly pleased to see these two politically important characters make their way into the film's later stages.

THE CLONE WARS: SITUATION - DESPERATE!

Though they have the strong leadership and incredible powers of Jedi Knights Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker keeping their backs, the Clone Troopers valiantly fighting within the crystalline streets of Christophsis are starting to become overwhelmed by the en masse Battle Droids attempting to cut them off. A memorable scene from the beginning of The Clone Wars animated movie showcasing the Clone Troopers bravery and agility in combat but also showing them getting some savage slaughtering from their inhuman opponents, during some quite adult and gritty moments. The level of violence would be subsequently toned down or handled more discreetly for family audiences once Cartoon Network aired the oncoming series.

Introducing us to the unusual and striking realms of Christophsis, there would be subsequent visits to the intriguing planet on and off the series to follow, and within all parts of the Galactic Timeline.

THE CLONE WARS: A PACT FOR DESTRUCTION!

It is their strength yet also their curse: the Sith 'Rule of Two', with each apprentice eager to usurp the power of their master. Darth Tyranus (Count Dooku) may ultimately have been the sacrificial pawn to his experienced overlord in Darth Sidious, but he would still under the radar pursue his own ambitions, of which his new partner-in-crime in the revenge-fuelled Asajj Ventress proved an eager and capable student!

A great image of the evil duo used in European marketing for the the so far one and only The Clone Wars animated movie of 2008

HAPPY TENTH BIRTHDAY TO 'THE CLONE WARS' ANIMATED MOVIE!

The fate of the universe and an Old Republic may rest in the hands of a Jedi Order now truly overwhelmed by an enveloping fog of darkness and evil, but Jedi Knight turned General Anakin Skywalker thrives on challenge, that raging inner conflict of his between loyalty and love to his new wife now distracted by the beginning of the history-making Clone Wars, as he leads an equally valiant troop of dedicated and loyal band of clones soldiers across the inner and outer rims against the forces of Sith Lord malevolence Count Dooku. Star Wars: The Clone Wars the original animated movie debuted today in the UK, ten years ago.

We knew the film and the subsequent series was going to be a winner the moment Dave Filoni and first series producer Catherine Winder aired sneak peek footage to eager audiences at the US Celebration event of 2007, and AFICIONADO can't wait for the remaining new closure episodes (finally leading in to EPISODE III) that will air in the not too distant future...

KOOL TV Anniversary feature:
https://kooltvblog.blogspot.com/2018/08/soldiers-of-force-clone-wars-tenth.html

CLASSIC ART: DANGER WITHIN THE 'LIVING FORCE'!

The young Obi-Wan Kenobi looks towards the planet Naboo, sensing an upcoming disturbance in the Force, whilst a servant droid awaits his bidding, in this cool concept/production painting for EPISODE I by Doug Chiang.

The image may have been done when the visual realisation of the Prequel era Jedi were still being worked out, or Chiang may have just decided to paint Obi-Wan in the character costume design he conceived and liked the most at that time.

EPISODE IX: THE NEW SUPREME LEADER...?

He's let the past and his legacy fascination of Darth Vader 'die', and he's surely become the Supreme Ruler of the galaxy by the time EPISODE IX's begins- in a timeline set quite a while after the events of VIII. But just what kind of leadership and tactical cunning will the former leader of the Knights of Ren bring to the First Order's destiny, and its role against the building Resistance...?

An always fascinating character to watch, so well played by Adam Driver, it'll be further interesting to see what new physical and mental skills and emotional facets Kylo Ren inherits at the same time the now more confident and challenging Rey does (their building powers, one for light and one for darkness, having run near parallel in The Force Awakens). What will happen when the two eventually meet again after their last lightsaber exploding encounter, and presumably in their final decisive combat...?

'SOLO': WELCOME TO FORT YPSO!

Vandor may have a distinctly cold climate, but it still attracts lots of warm-blooded humanoids and aliens to it from throughout the galaxy, especially at its mountain based Fort Ypso, of which Han and Qi'ra, with Chewbacca in tow, are soon on their way there to acquire the skills of a special individual, in this great picturesque scene from Solo: A Star Wars Story. I love the huge animal tusk assembly above the main outdoor stairwell.

Here's one of the early concept paintings for the Western-esque setting- another visual reference/homage by James Clyne to the classic movie McCabe and Mrs. Miller, from the 1970's, and its snowbound frontier town setting. Clyne would be Solo's longest serving concept artist/designer on the standalone SW film, stretching across two and a half years.

Discover more great conceptual work and behind the scenes information on the film inside the lavish The Art of Solo: A Star Wars Story, written and compiled by Phil Szostak, out now from ABRAMS.

Get it here:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Art-Solo-Star-Wars-Story/dp/1419727451/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1534073891&sr=8-1&keywords=the+art+of+solo

ILM CLASSIC IMAGE: HALCYON DAYS!

With funding from George Lucas and Twentieth Century Fox, the future of special effects film-making would be changed forever more by those talented hippy-esque youngsters of the newly formed Industrial Light and Magic, headed up by let-loose experienced talent John Dykstra. All quickly bonding, they'd work from premises originally located at Van Nuys, California. Grotty and restrictive that early environment must surely have been, yet such movie magic that would come out from it, near unparalleled by the original Star Wars release in 1977!

The original ILM team reunited:
http://www.starwars.com/news/ilm-reunion-40-years-of-star-wars