The weather outside might be frightful (well, in some parts of the world) so clearly the best way to counter it is to watch some more Clone Wars!  Season Two is off to a solid start as Cad Bane enacts more of his dastardly plans!  Okay, maybe they aren’t all that dastardly or even really his plans but that would’ve stopped me from using the phrase ‘dastardly plans’ which would’ve been a crying shame.

Holocron Heist
Sometimes this show has some really good episode titles.  This is one of them mostly because it sounds so delightfully campy.  It wouldn’t feel out of place as the title for a pulpy detective novel.

The episode itself, however, decidedly does not get off to a good start for Ahsoka.  She really is a good temperamental fit with Anakin.  They both have this stubborn mindset where they are convinced that they know right and can win.  I have a feeling that I’ve commented on this before but I just keep finding more and more reasons to like what a good match they are.  And how Obi-Wan is inevitably left sighing as no one listens to him.

Cad Bane has a really well done character design and aesthetic but I still haven’t warmed to him as a character yet.  Mostly, I’m left just shrugging.  He doesn’t have quite the same charisma as Hondo but then again, who does?

Something that I did really like about this episode though is that it brought things back home again.  We had that to an extent last episode too but this felt different as it was more directly tied into the war effort.  It’s neat to see how things are proceeding at the Jedi Temple while the majority of their members are out fighting for the Republic.

Also, has anyone noticed that one of the hallmarks of this show is the high number of sassy droids?  You had noticed?  I thought I noticed you noticing.

Cargo of Doom
Right off the bat, what I don’t like about this episode is how they completely skipped over Cad Bane finding and capturing Master Bolla Ropal, the Jedi Master who was guarding the Kyber crystal that has the names of all the Force sensitive children.  It was set up as a plot point in the previous episode and then the bulk was dealt with in the “Previously” clip.

I feel bad for this nice Admiral who seems to be the head of the fleet that Anakin is attached to.  Everyone keeps coming up with all these insane plans (like boarding another ship using planetary walker craft) and he’s just standing there going:

His frustration is amusing though.

I have to give some major props to the animation department here because the major battle sequence in this episode is amazingly well done and it’s also something that could only be pulled off in an animated world.  The gravity generators in ship’s hull are turned off and what results is essentially everyone fighting while either floating in the air or latching on to either the ceiling or the ground with magnetic boots.  The fight scene is well choreographed and well executed and I’m just very very very impressed.  It was by far the highlight of this episode.

“Ahsoka, wait!  We’ll take him together!”  How does it feel to be on the opposite end of a line like that, Anakin?  HOW DOES IT FEEL?

Children of the Force
Anakin and Ahsoka will not be winning any Jedi of the Year awards.  How did they not catch on that Cad Bane was masquerading as one of the Clone Troopers especially after Anakin even said at the end of the last episode that he could still sense Bane through the Force?  How?

Every time I praise how well paired the Anakin and Ahsoka master/padawanship is, I inevitably have to turn around and sigh at them again.  If Ahsoka had a different master, maybe that Master would remind her that revenge is not the way of the Jedi.  I’m honestly very worried for her now.  I hope so much that she doesn’t end up falling to the dark side.  Speaking of the dark side though, I am a little unnerved by how Anakin, Obi-Wan, and Mace simultaneously used their mental powers against Bane.  That feels like it’s wavering towards dark side just a bit more than it should.

I must admit that when Anakin and Ahsoka went to Mustafar?  A part of me got incredibly nervous and somewhere inside, a little part of me got choked up because I know what’s coming.

Is Cad Bane routinely escaping going to be like Grievous routinely being incompetent?  I feel like it is.

Apparently this was the episode of questions.

Senate Spy
There are a lot of conflicting feelings going on for me with this opening scene between Anakin and Padmé right now.  On the one hand, I’m repressing high-pitched squeaking noises about how adorable and in love they are.  On the other hand, it’s nice to see that the animators came up with a brand new outfit for Padmé that isn’t clearly based on a film costume even though I’m not sure how I feel about those pants.  And then there’s a third other random hand where I am torn between applauding Anakin and sighing at him for how easily he was able to manipulate Padmé into agreeing to spy on the potentially traitorous Senator.  That boy is smarter than he looks.

The pants outfit is probably really not that appropriate for an actual Senate mission though.  I’m not saying this from a ‘omg cover up ur ladies’ point of view.  I’m saying it based upon how her Senate outfits usually look?  I find this to be a wee bit inappropriate.

That said, this Senator Clovis is a bit sleezy.  Why anyone didn’t figure out that he was dirty earlier is beyond me.  I dislike him.  A lot.  Hopefully he used to actually be a decent person back when he and Padmé were a thing.

And that’s it for this week’s episodes.  I know: you’re all heartbroken that there only were four episodes this time.  Blame the packaging folks.  But hey!  Stay tuned for next time when… uhhh… more likely than not, the Clone Wars will continue and one of Dooku’s lieutenants will almost succeed in their plan but will ultimately fail and Dooku will make grouchy faces at them.  As always, you can follow my progress in relative real time on Twitter @chaosbria or the hashtag #HondoCaravan.