The trailer for the seventh and final season of The Clone Wars was recently released, and it’s amazing!
The show will make its triumphant return on February 21 on Disney+ and will release weekly with new episodes, leading up to the culmination of the show, ending it properly the way it was always intended to: with the Siege of Mandalore! And based on this trailer, it’s going to be absolutely amazing and emotional.
Check out the trailer here:
Let’s break down all of this!
The opening shot of the trailer is of a ship emerging onto the screen above a planet, in a shot that reminds me of the very first shot we ever saw in Star Wars, with the Tantive IV coming across the screen in A New Hope in 1977. We also hear the beginnings of a voiceover from Maul, which runs throughout these opening shots and which we’ll get to in just a moment.
There’s also a shot of Bo-Katan carrying her helmet and looking over a ledge. You can see smoke, what looks like fire off to the right, severe damage on the platform in front of her, and a crashed Republic gunship. So she pretty clearly is looking over the remains of a battle – but where? The obvious guess is that this is on Mandalore… but before or after Ahsoka’s efforts?
Obi-Wan Kenobi and Mace Windu, both appearing as they do in Revenge of the Sith, stand with their lightsabers ignited, with some clones nearby, surrounded by tons of battle droids. This is from the Bad Batch arc, but it’ll be great to see the Jedi in action once more.
Another shot that is from the Bad Batch arc, we see clones walking at a base, with a shuttle arriving. This is the same location that we saw in the announcement trailer for The Clone Wars.
We then cut to a shot of Maul suddenly opening his eyes, and we get a close-up on the former Sith’s face. It’s hard to tell anything about where he’s at, but perhaps now is the time to note his voiceover. Up to this point in the trailer, we have heard Maul’s voice overlaid on these shots saying, “Soon, the galaxy will be remade. The Jedi, and Republic, will die.” So the stakes are pretty high. But how does Maul know all of this? I have a guess I’ll share when we get to his later dialogue.
There’s a ship that arrives on a planet. That’s about all I’ve got. Butas Alex Damon of Star Wars Explained theorized, this does look somewhat like Oba Diah, which is the homeworld of the Pykes, who appeared in the Celebration trailer for The Clone Wars (which was never officially released publicly but is nonetheless available to watch online). So that’s as good of a guess as any right now.
This is a very interesting shot for a number of reasons. Firstly, it’s just cool to see a group of Jedi gathered around meeting and discussing strategy.
But secondly, note who the Jedi are that are gathered around: on the left side of the table, there is Ki-Adi Mundi, Aayla Secura, and Plo Koon – in other words, these are the three Jedi who make up the tragic Order 66 montage in Revenge of the Sith! I’m not sure if this has any relevance to this scene, but since it. does seem that the show will overlap with the events of the film, I wonder if this means something. It could just go to show us the connection these Jedi and clones had, making it more heartbreaking to see what happens so soon after.
Ok, and third, take a look at who is on the right of the screen in the hologram: it’s Depa Billaba! She also is killed during Order 66 (though not shown in ROTS), and she is killed protecting her padawan, who appears right next to her here, named… Caleb Dume! That’s right: Caleb Dume, aka Kanan Jarrus, one of the main figures of Star Wars Rebels, will appear in The Clone Wars! I don’t really expect much from him at all, and in fact this show could even be all we get, but I think it’s so incredibly cool to see this tie-in. It’s not forced, makes a ton of sense, but is really thrilling and exciting.
I’m not really sure if these shots go together; the Mace Windu one is followed immediately by the Obi-Wan Kenobi reaction shot, but it’s always possible that Kenobi is reacting to something different. And then in-between the Kenobi shot and the one of Yoda there is one of Maul, which we’ll get to next. But I’m grouping them together here because of the dialogue that is said.
Mace Windu says, “I sense a plot to destroy the Jedi.” Yoda says, “Great care we must take.” Now, if you remember, this is word-for-word what they say in Revenge of the Sith! In fact, someone on Twitter took the time to overlay the statements on top of one another and show it side-by-side:
I think this is a really important revelation in this trailer: the show will indeed at some point run concurrent with the events of ROTS. This was assumed all along, but it looks like things will tie together in a much stronger way than we even realized. It looks like we’ll be seeing these lines from Windu and Yoda again, just from a different perspective (Obi-Wan’s?), which is really cool. I love the possibilities this creates with potential tie-ins to the movie… but it also makes it even more certain that we’ll be dealing with Order 66. Get your tissues ready.
Right after we hear Mace Windu say, “I sense a plot to destroy the Jedi” and then see Obi-Wan react, we see Maul using the Force on a clone trooper, who looks like Jesse based on the markings on his head. But what is Maul doing? Is he trying to extract information?
Well, based on where this is cut in the trailer it’s clearly intended to lead us to a certain conclusion, and I’m going to take that opportunity: Maul obviously knows at least part of the plot, and so I wonder if he’s trying to do something with the inhibitor chip in Jesse’s head? Perhaps Maul is attempting to execute order 66, or he’s just trying to find out more information about it. Of course, it could be something entirely different too. But that’s an interesting possibility that I think the trailer is cut in such a way to at least make us wonder.
We saw this shot in the Celebration trailer took, of Ahsoka riding a bike across Coruscant as the sun sets.
One of the sisters Ahsoka encounters in this arc (either Trace or Rafa Martez), asks Ahsoka, “why would anyone walk away from being a Jedi?” The trailer then takes the opportunity to show us briefly Ahsoka walking away from Anakin at the Jedi Temple at the end of season six, reminding us of what happened. Based on what little we know of these sisters, we know that they have lived very different lives than Ahsoka and likely can’t imagine how someone who actually has power and success and status could walk away from it.
As we hear a voiceover from Ahsoka in response (which we’ll get to in just a moment), we see Bo-Katan offer her hand to Ahsoka for a handshake, who takes it. I’m guessing that this is probably them agreeing to join forces to attack Maul’s army. I’m super excited to see more of both Ahsoka and Bo-Katan, as they’re both great characters.
In response to the question of why someone would walk away from being a Jedi, we hear Ahsoka’s answer: “We were trained to be keepers of the peace. Not soldiers.” I include that here because it looks like Ahsoka is actually saying those last few words in the shot of her on the bridge of the Republic Venator, with who appears to be Rex. So it does seem to me that Ahsoka actually says this line to Rex and not to the Martez sisters, though I imagine that her answer will be pretty similar in both cases.
And she’s absolutely right. One of the biggest themes of the prequels is that the Jedi had lost their way, and the brilliance of George Lucas was that he explained that the Jedi had lost their way by becoming warriors. We have seen other Jedi struggle with this too in various stories, and I think Ahsoka is especially well-positioned to notice this and point it out: not only does she see that the Jedi have lost their way, but she also has seen them personally turn against her wrongly.
The Clone Wars was the downfall of the Jedi not because they lost on the battlefield but because they lost their ideals. And as such, they actually lost by getting involved in the war. It’s a powerful lesson and fascinating to explore, and I’m glad that it sounds like we’ll be getting to from Ahsoka’s point of view.
There’s a shot of Anakin cutting down battle droids in action, which is from the Bad Batch arc. Nothing hugely significant, but I do appreciate how the trailer cuts from Ahsoka saying the Jedi weren’t trained to be warriors to Anakin fighting droids. Anakin is the one who most represents – and was impacted by – the Jedi losing their way.
We get a look at some of the notable clones, and we hear a voiceover from Rex that continues through a few other shots and then cuts to his face actually speaking these lines. Rex says, We clones, have mixed feelings about the war. Without it, we wouldn’t exist.” And this is another really fascinating thing to explore: what do the clones think about the war? They don’t like conflict and seeing their brothers killed, but they nonetheless recognize that without it they wouldn’t even exist. It looks like Rex could be saying this in the same setting as Ahsoka says the previous line, and I would absolutely love to see the war angle portrayed from the perspectives of both Ahsoka and Rex.
As we hear Rex saying that line, we get a shot of Rex and the Bad Batch charging out of a door and firing at battle droids.
They fly now? The next sequence sees a battle raging on a bridge, and clone jet troopers fly in and fire, resulting in explosions. It’s hard to tell where this battle takes place, however, but it doesn’t look like it’s from the Bad Batch arc. Could that mean this is part of the Siege of Mandalore? Or is it another previously unknown fight?
I think this is from the Bad Batch arc, and we see troopers hanging on as a winged creature flies through the sky.
We see Maul again, and he begins speaking, and it then continues on as we get other shots. Maul says, “All part of the plan. The plan. Everything is about to change.” As I alluded to earlier, I think Maul might know a bit more than we initially thought. He says that this is all a part of the plan and that everything is about to change, and I actually think he might be referring to Order 66 here. In this season of The Clone Wars we are very close to that moment, so it’s not a stretch to think that Maul knows it is coming soon. But how might he know this? Well, remember, he was the apprentice to Darth Sidious before Darth Tyranus. We don’t know the exact timeline of all of it, but Maul trained under Sidious for years, as the Dark Lord of the Sith manipulated things from the shadow as the phantom menace. I think Maul surely knew certain aspects of Sidious’s master plan that Dooku wound up helping put into action.
So I think it’s quite possible that Maul knows what is about to occur and is readying himself for it. He could very well know that the plan – the one his old master has been putting into action for years – is about to come to fruition, which will change everything.
And as Maul says, “the plan,” we see Ahsoka. She is standing alone on the bridge of a Republic cruiser as it is in hyperspace, and she is holding her head and looking concerned. I wonder if this has something to do with Order 66; maybe she is sensing it happen? If so, this will surely be an emotional and tragic moment.
Anakin Skywalker is looking just like he does in Revenge of the Sith, reminding us that we are getting very close to the movie’s timeline. And he’s not happy.
Anakin is angry because he is looking at Admiral Trench, and as he does so he ignites his lightsaber. This is from the Bad Batch arc, which will see the return of Trench, who was long presumed dead after his defeat above Christophsis at the hands of Skywalker. He escaped death once again, however, and is causing more trouble. Trench’s only appearance in the show so far has been in the season two episode “Cat and Mouse”, which actually is the first in the series chronologically. It’s kinda fitting, then, that he’s making his second and final appearance in the show’s final season.
This is a really cool shot, as Rex and other members of the 501st stand in the hangar to meet Ahsoka. You also can notice their helmets are painted in honor of Commander Tano, who will wind up commanding them in the Siege of Mandalore. I love the look and think it’s really great how it honors Ahsoka and pays tribute to her, and I can’t wait to see it!
This looks to be Ahsoka’s reaction to seeing Rex and the others standing in the hangar with their orange helmets.
Obi-Wan Kenobi stands amidst a fog, with his lightsaber ignited.
On Mandalore, Maul’s forces battle the Republic. You can notice a member of Death Watch with markings paying tribute to Maul, and then other shots that show a battle sequence.
Ahsoka rides her bike on Coruscant and must run along the wall briefly in order to steer herself.
A spider droid fires upon a group of clones and alien creatures, sending them – including Rex – flying. Again, this looks to be from the Bad Batch arc.
It’s Padme! I’m not sure how much of a role she is going to have this season, so I’m really glad to see her show up in this trailer to at least assure us that she’ll appear this season. She shares a touching moment with Anakin here, as they hold hands “across the stars” (see, it really is so fitting and beautiful). Anakin is probably away as part of the Outer Rim sieges, which is what kept him and Padme separated for so long leading up to ROTS. But you’ll notice that Padme is letting on that she’s pregnant, holding her stomach in a pretty telling way. Rather than just assuming this is a plot hole, however, let’s wait and see what happens. I can think of two really easy explanations: (1) first, it could just be that Anakin is ignorant and doesn’t notice until Padme tells him, which would be pretty fitting for his character; or (2) this could actually take place after Padme tells him in ROTS, since we know this season overlaps with the film. Either one of those are really possible.
There’s a battle in space between the Separatists and the Republic, but we don’t really have any context for where this battle takes place. But what I think would be really cool is if this show gave us a glimpse at the Battle of Coruscant as well, since it’s going to tie in to Revenge of the Sith.
A gun fires upon Republic Y-Wing bombers.
One of the Martez sisters reaches for something (maybe even her sister?) as Ahsoka stands close behind.
This is probably from that same scene we glimpsed earlier in the trailer, when Anakin arrives to confront Trench, as he slices down the tactical droid and looks pretty angry.
In a clever bit of trailer cutting, after Anakin strikes down the droid in anger, we see a hologram of Obi-Wan Kenobi, with his hood up, looking dismayed.
We get another glimpse at a space battle – is it the same one as earlier?
Ahsoka holds the hand of a 501st clone trooper. We don’t really have any context to this shot, but I’m really curious about it. The most natural assumption is that it would be Rex, and if so, is he wounded? What if this is after he removed his chip? Or something in connection with Order 66?
We see Rex putting on his helmet.
Here’s the money shot of the trailer, as we cut to Mandalore, where Maul and Ahsoka stand facing one another. We see Maul finish his voiceover: “Every choice made, has led to this.” Explosions are rocketing the sky outside in the distance, but inside, it’s just the two of them preparing to duel. Ahsoka ignites her twin blue lightsabers, and then Maul ignites his double-bladed red lightsaber and charges. I absolutely cannot wait to see this fight!!!!!
Notice too that Maul has re-constructed a double-bladed lightsaber, which he didn’t have during the previous seasons of The Clone Wars. Half of the blade is Maul’s old saber, which I think is pretty cool – Maul took the old part and paired it with the new.
A Separatist ship explodes as a shuttle leaves it; again, I’m thinking this might be a part of the Bad Batch arc.
Ahsoka rides in a Republic gunship on Mandalore (you can see a gauntlet fighter) as a gunship next to them explodes.
Anakin and the Bad Batch fight against alien creatures on top of a rock structure.
The Martez sisters and Ahsoka are on the run, as something explodes.
Maul is on a Republic cruiser, and he uses the Force to tear off a door and hurl it down the hallway at clones who are firing at him, knocking them down. This is pretty crazy and exciting, but what’s happening?
So here’s what seems to happen: Maul and Ahsoka fight as part of the culmination of the Siege of Mandalore, and Ahsoka wins. She probably takes him captive aboard the Republic cruiser, but he escapes in connection with Order 66, which distracts Ahsoka and Rex and allows him to flee as the clones turn on the Jedi. And if that’s true, then I wonder if we’ll actually get to see both Maul and Ahsoka fighting clones!
A Republic gunship flies through the sky, narrowly avoiding an explosion. I think this is probably part of the same sequence as the shot earlier, when one of the gunships gets shot down. If that’s the case, then this probably happens during the Siege of Mandalore.
Ahsoka grabs her lightsabers and ignites them…
And she stands with lightsabers ignited atop a hologram table, with Rex lying beneath her trying to get up, as the blast doors close. Part of what really excites me about this shot is that I think this is Ahsoka trying to fend off the clones in wake of Order 66. The clones probably turn on her as the order is given to eliminate the Jedi, and we know that Rex didn’t turn like the others, so the two of them probably mount a defense. I wonder if Rex gets injured, though, since here we see him trying to stand up? We can’t really tell from this, but I am confident it will be really exciting and really emotional.
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