![The Clone Wars: ARC Troopers & Sphere of Influence [049-050/134] ✦ Watchalong Reaction & Review](https://img5.samsuka.com/storage/1/it/yf/c6f9d9-019e7b8d-9e04-749b-9f2d-ffa1da0bca0e.jpg)
The Clone Wars: ARC Troopers & Sphere of Influence [049-050/134] ✦ Watchalong Reaction & Review
Added 2022-07-04 04:33:12 +0000 UTCHey everyone! It's time for two stand-alone episodes in The Clone Wars.
Season 03, Episode 02: ARC Troopers [Domino Squad Part III]
Season 03, Episode 04: Sphere of Influence
Let me know your thoughts on this arc in the comments below. [Direct link here.]
✦ KL
Comments
Thanks!
kaiielle
2022-07-07 02:39:05 +0000 UTCHey Kaiielle, fun reaction especially ARC Troopers. I forget how good some of these are. This is only my 3rd watch through over the years and your right about it being a lot to keep track of. Oh yea, before I forget, it’s funny that you mentioned your bangs in the beginning because I was thinking “damn, her bangs look good” haha Thanks again for another fun reaction!
Absher
2022-07-07 02:35:55 +0000 UTCI agree with you that they could have been placed together and opened Season 2 would have been really awesome!
kaiielle
2022-07-05 08:02:45 +0000 UTCHey, Kaiielle! ARC TROOPERS: Epic invasion! The death of 99! The Dominoes get promoted! Ventress at her sultriest! The only thing that mars this explosive installment is its egregious misplacement in the chronology! The separation of "Rookies" (Season 1, Episode 5) and "ARC Troopers" (Season 3, Episode 2) is utterly baffling and the most obvious gaffe in the official order. The two are clearly paired as a Duology about the Invasion of Kamino. The prologue refers to the events on Rishi as if recapping the prior episode, Grievous is communicating with a Kamino-embedded Ventress in both episodes and the level of difficulty of the Separatist offense has increased due to losing the element of surprise which the foiled Rishi mission cost them. The Republic fleet rushes to blockade Kamino before Grievous' fleet arrives having intercepted his transmission to Ventress that he is still committed to the plan despite the increase in danger. I prefer to place this pair of episodes at the start of Season 2 to open the season with a bang and to ensure that Season 2 has a Domino story which it would otherwise lack. The return of the velvety-voiced Togruta Master SHAAK TI played by the honey-throated Tasia Valenza. She was first seen in live-action during the Geonosis arena battle in "Attack of the Clones" and she was last seen in the first Domino episode, "Clone Cadets" (Season 3, Episode 1), overseeing the clones' training. She is the Jedi Council member assigned to Kamino and is a mature female of Ahsoka's species indicated by the longer head-tails. In Legends, she was a fan favorite who met with three different fates until "Clone Wars" settled on the canonical one. In the non-canonical 2003 micro-series, she engages in a breathless duel with Grievous across Coruscant while protecting Palpatine from abduction! Love the teamwork between Rex, Cody, Fives and Echo, the young cadets and old 99. The young cadets are again voiced by young Boba Fett, Daniel Logan. Although similar, these were not the same cadets from "Death Trap" (Season 2, Episode 20). Although heavily telegraphed, 99's death is affecting because he met his end doing what had been denied him in life. The graduation medal gifted to him by Hevy as a token of brotherhood becomes 99's posthumous emblem of honor. Fives and Echo, the sole survivors of Domino Squad, get a field promotion by Rex and Cody to ARC Trooper status. The acronym means Advanced Reconnaissance Commando. Ventress' death-kiss of Commander Colt was removed from Cartoon Network but restored to its wickedly titillating glory for Netflix and all subsequent platforms! My favorite Ventress moment in the series is when Grievous grips her by the arm to gallantly offer protection but, rather than recoil, flinch or protest, she glides her slender fingers about his metal mandible and seductively purrs, "My dear General, there's nothing you have that I could want." Grievous is left agog eating his heart out that he has shed his flesh! It's a potent instance of a femme fatale reveling in her feminine allure. Obi-Wan's underwater ascent first by submersible, then by lifepod, then exposed to the depths is an alarming sequence he almost doesn't survive! Anakin and Grievous are kept apart again as they cannot meet until "Revenge of the Sith". George Lucas is ALWAYS credited as the creator and executive producer. Rather than just receive an honorary credit, he actually consulted on every episode and worked closely with Dave Filoni. The series is Filoni's baby but he openly collaborated with George. Many see Filoni as Lucas' anointed disciple. SPHERE OF INFLUENCE: The return of Pantoran Senator RIYO CHUCHI voiced again by Jennifer Hale who also voiced the Twi'lek who fancied Greedo, TRELLA BARE'AH! "Greedo, baby." Lol. Chuchi was last seen in "Duchess of Mandalore" (Season 2, Episode 14) and was last featured in "Trespass" (Season 1, Episode 15). We also learn that Ahsoka has become friendly with Chuchi in between her episode appearances. PAPANOIDA, the Pantoran Chairman who replaced the war hawk Chi Cho from "Trespass", was George Lucas' cameo character in "Revenge of the Sith" attending the opera with his daughter Chi Eekway who was portrayed by Lucas' real daughter, Katie! He was voiced in "Clone Wars" by Corey Burton who normally does Count Dooku and Cad Bane but he modeled Papanoida's sonorous inflections on Orson Welles! As Lucas is the boss, it's no wonder his character was made into a badass! CHE AMANWE, the older unshrouded daughter, is voiced by Meredith Salenger of "The Journey of Natty Gann" and "April Morning" who normally voices Barriss Offee. ION Papanoida, the son, is voiced by Seth Green of Scott Evil fame from "Austin Powers" who normally voices Todo, Cad Bane's droid. Other returning players are: -- Neimoidian LOTT DOD, Senator for the Trade Federation, named after Republican Senator Trent Lott of Mississippi and Democrat Senator Chris Dodd of Connecticut. -- honorable Zabrak bounty huntress SUGI and deadly Kyuzo bounty hunter EMBO from the Season 2 Kurosawa episode "Bounty Hunters" seen in Jabba's hall. -- the Huttlet ROTTA last seen in the Clone Wars movie! GREEDO, the luckless Rodian blasted by Han Solo in "A New Hope", makes his first canonical appearance! The introduction of Inspector TAN DIVO, a most unusual character. His appearance is modeled after Peter Lorre but made exaggeratedly asymmetrical, his investigative style is modeled after Detective Columbo but made ineffectual and he's voiced by the same actor who voices Spongebob Squarepants, Tom Kenny! In-universe, Divo's daughter works for the Imperial Security Bureau during the time of the Empire but he dies on Alderaan when the Death Star destroys the planet! His grandson becomes a Police Commissioner during the time of the New Republic and writes a true crime bestseller that cherry-picks from the more outlandish case files of his forebears! That's quite an interesting lineage. Divo's droid police force is modeled after the Keystone Kops. Lol. This episode represents yet another discrepancy in the official chronology which I cited in "The Academy" episode of the Mandalore Duology. Ahsoka tells Chuchi in this episode that she's never employed the Jedi mind trick before and she has to use it on the Neimoidian guard twice! On Mandalore, she employs it with confidence even though the Secret Serviceman is able to resist her due to his training. Therefore, "Sphere of Influence" should PRECEDE the Mandalore Duology.
Alex Vazquez
2022-07-04 19:36:20 +0000 UTCI loved that moment between Anakin and Ahsoka too!
kaiielle
2022-07-04 07:50:41 +0000 UTCOk I’ll warn you Kaiielle, Clones are going to get more detailed soon, and at least some of them will adopt more of the skirt piece that Rex has. And if it helps Fives has a 5 tattooed on his head and has a goatee😂, and Echo always has the blue hand print in his chest. ARC troopers are “Advanced Recon Commandos” and look like the guy you thought was Rex for a second but then died. And Rex just promoted Echo and Fives to ARC Troopers! Love seeing Blue George Lucas and his children shoot us a Cantina😂! I really liked the scene where Anakin says “we do it all the time, don’t we snips?” Ahsoka “yep sure do!” Or something like that
Justin
2022-07-04 07:28:46 +0000 UTCThere are two more stand-alone episodes to get through. ☺️ Cool to know about the daughters! Love that.
kaiielle
2022-07-04 06:27:12 +0000 UTCWe are at the end of the standalone episodes with this two. The death of 99 is always sad, no matter how much time i have seen it. He was a defective clone that was aging too rapidly but he never wanted his disabilities to stop him from helping. You will be missed sir, but not forgotten. Shaak Ti first apparence on the show was on the very first Domino Squad episode early on, she is the Jedi stationed on Kamino since the start of the war. Sphere of Influence is one of the weaker episode of the whole series because it is Episode 1 plot redux, even if it is still good with some fun elements like Greedo or the Papanoidas family. Fun fact the Baron and his daughter were played by George Lucas and his daughters in ROTS so the character likeness are based on them. Looking forward to the next reaction, the Ziro Trilogy is one of my favorite arcs of the show. Cheers !
Guiguioh
2022-07-04 06:13:01 +0000 UTCYeah, I talked about Greedo at the end of the episode reaction. ☺️ Did a cheeky Google. 🤣
kaiielle
2022-07-04 05:07:37 +0000 UTCGreedo is in Episode 4 he gets shot by Han in the cantina. Baron Papanoida is in the senate in Episode 3 played by George Lucas himself. R.I.P 99! Grievous and Anakin can never meet till Episode 3, so it's always fun to see how they get around that. The lightsaber duels are always fun when you can tell a animator knows what he is doing as opposed to it looking like action figures being banged against each other.
Jam
2022-07-04 05:05:27 +0000 UTC
