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Continuity & Analysis

Star Wars: Clone Wars - Chapters 1-4 (2003) [S1]
"Like fire across the galaxy, the Clone Wars spread. In league with the wicked Count Dooku more and more
planets slip. Against this threat, upon the Jedi Knights falls the duty to lead the newly formed army of the Republic.
And as the heat of war grows, so too grows the prowess of one most gifted student of the Force."
Star Wars: Clone Wars - Chapter 5 (2003) [S1]
"Troubled is the planet Mon Calamari. Its races have divided. The droid army of the Quarren Isolation League
moves against the Calamari Council. Alone, the Calamari are no match."
Star Wars: Clone Wars - Chapters 6-7 (2003) [S1]
Count Dooku seeks a new ally with the power to defeat the Jedi. On the planet Rattatak, he encounters
a mysterious fighter who dominates every opponent in the combat ring. She introduces herself to him
as Asajj Ventress, a Sith warrior.
Star Wars: Clone Wars - Chapters 8-10 (2003) [S1]
Obi-Wan continues his assault on the Separatist command center on Muunilinst. The Jedi general and his
Clone Army takes the battle directly to San Hill and the Separatist Droid Army.




CONTINUITY
Chapters 1 through 10 form Season 1 of Clone Wars, containing the Battle of Muunilinst, the First Battle of Mon Cala, and the rise of Asajj Ventress.
These chapters take place in the immediate aftermath of Episode II, and clearly predate the earliest material in The Clone Wars series.
The planets Muunilinst, Mon Cala, and Rattatak are seen for the first time. These chapters take place on four worlds:

The opening montage also shows five unidentified planets, as well as Mon Cala and Dantooine, making a total of ten worlds seen in these chapters:

Season 1 and Season 2 of Clone Wars were also released as 'Volume 1'. Those two seasons and the first two episodes of Season 3 are part of
the same unified narrative that ends with Anakin having been promoted to Jedi Knight and General, and returning from battle with his scar,
which leads into The Clone Wars series. The material from each season has been isolated here for the sake of analysis. 'Chapter 5' takes
place before 'Chapter 4' in the 'Volume 1' release, but were aired in sequential order. This makes no difference to continuity.

- The opening montage covers at least the first couple of weeks of the war. Yoda and Saesee Tiin are seen leading clones on an unidentified planet.
Yoda is riding his kybuck into battle, the same one he will ride during the Battle of Coruscant over three and a half years later, seen in 'Chapter 23'
in Season 3. Luminara Unduli and her Padawan Barriss Offee are also seen in a heated conflict on a different, unindentified planet. Kit Fisto is
shown on Mon Cala, as a prelude to his campaign seen in 'Chapter 5'. Mace Windu is fighting on Dantooine, at an earlier stage of the battle seen
in 'Chapter 12' in Season 2. Obi-Wan and Anakin are also fighting on yet another unidentified planet, the same planet seen being conquered by
the Separatists over three and a half years later, in the montage of 'Chapter 22' in Season 3. Yoda, Obi-Wan, and Anakin are all seen to have
returned to Coruscant immediately after these initial engagements.


- Anakin has constructed a new lightsaber, the same saber that Obi-Wan will pass on to Luke, to replace his previous saber which was destroyed in Episode II.

- Palpatine mentions that "Master Windu still fights on Dantooine", which suggests that the Dantooine campaign will last over a year, or it will be
invaded a second time, since around a year later Mace is again referenced as fighting on Dantooine, in The Clone Wars 'Brain Invaders' (S2E8).

- Palpatine is as always pushing for Anakin's promotion and assignment. The Jedi are still cautious about Skywalker, especially given his recent issues,
including having his arm severed by Dooku. They also realize he is strong with the Force, and an exceptional pilot, and they are in great need of all
the help they can get. While they consider their options, Palpatine sticks it to the Jedi in his usual fashion, going right over their heads to appoint
Anakin as a Commander. The Jedi are clearly displeased, as Yoda and Obi-Wan are clearly noticing the increasing trend of Palpatine interfering
in what are normally their affairs, and making decisions before letting the Jedi give their final counsel on the matter.
Main Article: Darth Sidious and The Plan


- The Republic Starfighter Corps begins the war with the V-19 Torrent as its primary fighter. These are relatively advanced fighters manufactured by
Slayn & Korpil, one of the few major producers of starcraft which are not members of the Corporate Alliance or one of the galactic trade guilds.
The Republic clearly maintained a reasonable number of these fighters before the war, and they are now being produced in huge numbers.
The Jedi chiefly fly the Delta-7 Aethersprite interceptors they have been flying since before the war. First seen in Episode II, these are
state-of-the-art precision starfighters manufactured by a subsidiary of Kuat Drive Yards, which do not carry hyperdrives for increased agility.

- Jedi Padawans who are commissioned in the Grand Army are given the rank of Commander, just as Jedi Knights and Masters are given the rank of General.

- Muunilinst is a pleasant, terrestrial world in the Obtrexta Sector of the New Territories region of the Outer Rim. It is the homeworld of the Muuns,
a humanoid species that is noticeably tall and thin compared to most other sentient species. The planet features oceans, seas, and a wide variety
of terrain, much of which is covered by a verdant ecosystem. Muunilinst is well-populated, primarily by Muuns, who live in large cities, as well
as smaller settlements and villas. The capital city is Harnaidan. The planet is an important center for the InterGalactic Banking Clan, like most
Muun planets, however that organization has long been based off of Muunilinst, on the relatively nearby planet of Scipio. The incredible mineral
wealth of Muunilinst is one of the many reasons why the Muun people became so prominent in galactic finance and banking.


- Muunilinst is defended by orbital defense platforms, which are battlestations with laser cannons and heavy turbolasers. They have landing bays and
onboard facilities for large numbers of starfighters and crew. In this battle they deploy massive forces of Geonosian Nantex-class starfighters.

- ARC Troopers are 'Advanced Reconnaissance Commandos', who are one of a few varieties of elite Republic troopers. They are tasked with
special mission objectives, forward recon, and intelligence, in addition to fighting in direct forward assaults with the regular infantry.
As Obi-Wan mentions, they have been selected because they have proven themselves among the best of the clone soldiers.


- The ARC Troopers use a handheld, spheroid remote probe droid, which transmits back a hologram giving them a bird's eye view and live map of the city.
Supplementary material identifies these as 'commando' recon probe droids, also called 'recces' for short.


Obi-Wan calls Captain Fordo "Sergeant" during a transmission in 'Chapter 3'. Obi-Wan calls him Captain in 'Chapter 20',
he is identified in the credits as 'ARC Captain', and is always identified as a Captain in supplementary material.
Main Article: Ranks and Rank Insignia


- Captain Fordo, ARC-77, is the leader of the squad of ARC Troopers. Obi-Wan clearly identifies him as a Captain in 'Chapter 20', however he had earlier
referred to him as a "Sergeant", which was a continuity error, and then in another instance calls him "Commander". This is not a continuity error since
it is his position rather than his rank, as he is commander of this mission. Commander is both a rank and a term used for any senior officer in charge of
something in the SW universe, and is used to refer to officers who have a wide range of actual ranks, from Lieutenants and Captains all the way up
to Generals and Military Governors. This obviously confusing distinction often leads to the misidentification of the actual ranks of officers in SW.
Main Article: Ranks and Rank Insignia

- San Hill, the leader of the Banking Clan and member of the Separatist Council, is taken prisoner by the Republic. He was seen less than a month earlier on
Geonosis in Episode II signing Dooku's Separatist Treaty. He will be seen to be free and have rejoined the Council about three and a half years later in
Episode III. Supplementary material suggests he was freed much earlier in the war than that, possibly as part of a prisoner exchange.

- Separatist Commander Durge is a fearsome bounty hunter who has signed up for the Separatist Military for the opportunity to kill clones. He was intended to
be a Gen'Dai, a unique, boneless race who seem to be immortal, since they live for centuries and can reconstitute themselves even when disassembled or even
reduced to organic masses and fluid. At present, the canon status of Gen'Dai is legendary, and thus Durge may be some other race or even a creation.

- The IG Banking Clan deploys a large number of IG lancer droids, produced by Holowan, the makers of the entire IG series, including the IG series
assassin droids, and the IG-100 MagnaGuards that usually accompany Grievous. This droid series carries the IG name because they were designed
and built originally for the IG Banking Clan, to meet their vast security, enforcement, and debt collection needs.



The power lances used in this battle are an interesting addition that are also not seen again anywhere, despite both sides
apparently having them, and utilizing them in this battle. They are described by supplementary material as capable of
producing immense heat at the tip, allowing them to puncture metal, drive right through troops, and ignite potentially
explosive material. They are probably not shown again because they are a ridiculously overpowered weapon that would
create a web of continuity issues and questions as to why this superheating technology isn't used to design automated
weapons that could easily defeat either army. Their use in these chapters is also a bit ridiculous, even for a cartoon,
where one must always suspend a bit of disbelief to enjoy the art and the story. No matter how hot the tips of these
things are, the amount of contact time needed to do some of what they are shown doing is governed by the laws of
thermodynamics, and is simply insufficient, not to mention the physics of hard objects hitting hard objects which are
also ignored. The scene where the two sides speederbike joust with the lances, on the other hand, is more plausible.


- The planet Mon Cala, also called Dac and sometimes called Mon Calamari, as it is here, is a primarily ocean world located in the Mon Calamari Sector of
the Slice region of the Outer Rim. It is the homeworld of the fish-like Mon Calamari and the squid-like Quarren. The two races seem to mostly live apart
from each other, but have long remained united under a single planetary government. While most cities on the planet are underwater, some Mon
Calamari cities extend above the surface of the ocean, and culminating in domed platforms not entirely dissimilar from that found on Kamino. These
cities act as a direct conduit between other worlds and the underwater civilization below, facilitating the arrival of craft only suited for air and space.


- Quarren forces loyal to the Quarren Isolation League launch an assault on Mon Calamari facilities, likely in support of whatever faction of Quarren on
the planet which initially wish to support the Separatists. These forces apparently would not heed the leadership of Quarren leader Nossor Ri, who
has initially remained loyal to the longstanding planetary unity between the Mon Calamari and the Quarren, and thus is still loyal to the Republic.
The political mood of the Quarren on Mon Cala will shift over the next two years, to the extent that their leadership will seek to join the Separatists,
leading to a brief civil war on the planet, as seen in The Clone Wars storyline which begins with 'Water War' (S4E1).

- Jedi Master Kit Fisto was recently promoted to the Jedi High Council, along with Obi-Wan, to fill the two vacant seats. He is therefore already
an accomplished Jedi Master of high standing. He is seen to be a powerful warrior as well as a wise and honorable person. He is a Nautolan,
who are an amphibious species. As such, he is at times dispatched to handle important situations on water planets, such as Mon Cala.

- The Quarren also have impressive underwater cities, including one seen with a similar architectural style to the nearby Mon Calamari city. Quarren cities
do not appear to be modular and made of vessel-like buildings, as is the large underwater Mon Calamari city that has been seen.


- The Quarren Isolation League deploys a crab cannon during the battle, a huge mobile artillery piece with a beam cannon for its main weapon. It has
laser turrets on its surface to protect itself from attack. Its primary beam cannon is capable of destroying large military warships.

- Rattatak is an arid planet in the Trilon Sector, in the Western Reaches of the Outer Rim. It has a breathable atmosphere for Humans and most
other interstellar species, and clearly at least the remains of an ecosystem. It is the homeworld of the Trogodiles, a cave dwelling, crocodile-like
species. In legendary material it is also the homeworld of the Rattataki, a grey humanoid species of whom Ventress was a member, however
she has been retconned as being a Dathomirian, who are genetic descendants of Zabraks and Humans. Rattatak is still the world she was raised
on, however the canon status of Rattatakis is unclear, as it either refers to a sentient species, or simply to the inhabitants of this planet.
The planet itself is remote and little known to interstellar society, and is not part of the Republic.


- The Sith prefer to choose their agents and apprentices by pitting combatants against each other in lethal contests. Only the strongest are
considered worthy, and those who fail are obviously of no importance to them. Dooku tells Ventress her infiltration skills are impressive,
but that he is looking for 'assassin'. While he is actually looking for a potential Sith apprentice of his own, the title of Dooku's assassin will
become what Ventress is referred to as by allies and enemies.


Dooku appears to fly using Force levitation, which is an advanced application of basic Force push/pull used on one's
own body. It is an impressive power that really doesn't get used enough for its potential utility. Why are a number
of great Force abilities revealed in this series which fit within the canon of the Lucas Trilogies forgotten later?



- Ventress arrives on Rattatak with two Jedi lightsabers, leading to questions about how she got them. While not certain, these questions
are essentially answered in The Clone Wars 'Nightsisters' (S3E12). Dooku destroys her lightsabers, severing her final connection
to her past, replacing them with two red lightsabers that have hilts reminiscent of his own curve-handled lightsaber.


- The Sith are a religious order with disciplines beyond simple adherence to the dark side. While the Rule of Two is the only absolute doctrine of
the 'modern' Sith, the Sith also have philosophy, ancient Force-utilizing practices, fighting methods and techniques, and even styles of dress.

- Sidious' sending Ventress to Anakin may seem surprising, given that he ultimately wishes to turn him to the dark side, but is all part of his plan.
As was evident from the arena contest which Ventress won, the Sith prefer to constantly test their agents and potential agents. If Ventress is
destroyed, Anakin is proven more worthy, but if he is destroyed there is one less powerful Jedi, and the one prophesized to destroy the Sith is
eliminated. Sidious would therefore move on, having seen Anakin wasn't powerful enough to survive. We will see Dooku and Grievous tested
in this same manner. As far as Ventress is concerned, she is there to be used up while taking Jedi down with her, just as Maul was, and
eventually Dooku will be. He tells Dooku that the winner of their confrontation is irrelevant, saying that "it matters not, she is merely
an instrument to bring forth the eradication of the Jedi."
Main Article: Darth Sidious and The Plan


The Separatist Commander Durge has an arm brace that shoots tiny shards of metal. This leads to the obvious
question of why don't people shoot tiny pieces of metal more often in SW? Obi-Wan demonstrates why bullets or
other tiny pieces of metal aren't going to be a good weapon against the Jedi, since they can be easily stopped or
reflected using the Force. This ignores that enough metal shooting weapons firing at a Jedi from multiple angles
would probably be a great weapon. The primary reason they aren't used anymore is the same reason a crossbow
isn't still used in combat on our world today. While it is still a lethal weapon, modern armor can stop it, which is also
the case in SW. Bullets would be of little use against standard armor, and blasters are favored for the very reason
that they have the potential to burn through most armor. Blasters also weaken energy shields, while metal does not.


- The Acclamator-class assault cruisers which transport entire divisions and their equipment from planet to planet are also seen to be effective in
naval combat. They are armed with a dozen quad turbolaser turrets, which are effective against medium-sized warships and similarly classed
battlestations at close range. These guns are also used to clear landing zones of enemy forces or obstacles in order to debark troops.

- One of the great abilities provided by the predictive Force power is the ability to pilot with great proficiency. As seen in Episode II, even a pilot
like Obi-Wan, who doesn't like flying, and isn't considered particularly skilled at it, can still use it to effectively fly through an asteroid field while
avoiding most of the laser bolts being fired by a skilled operator chasing him. For those like Anakin and Ventress who are naturally excellent
pilots, the use of the predictive Force ability makes them both highly elusive targets and incredibly powerful and versatile attackers.

ANALYSIS
The Clone Wars begin on Geonosis, and quickly envelop thousands of starsystems. Having had the opportunity of advanced preparation, the Separatists
begin the war with the initiative, with the Republic reacting to their first moves. The droid armies are too numerous, and at this early stage the Republic
Navy is outnumbered by the Separatist Fleet. This leaves the Jedi and the first wave of clone soldiers scrambling to contain their offensives. The primary
advantage of the Republic, the superior quality of its forces, is at this point largely mitigated by the massive size of the droid army, both in terms of
troops and in terms of complete armies capable of planetary-wide invasions. This means that the Republic must pick its battles at the beginning of
the war, leaving many worlds to be temporarily abandoned by the Republic after Separatist occupation. Those worlds where the Jedi are making their
initial stands are supplied with the first waves of Separatist reinforcements, in an effort to kill as many Jedi as quickly as possible during the chaos of
the first month of the war. As many as two-hundred Jedi are killed in the first year of the war, the worst casualty rate at any point prior to Order 66.

The Quarren Isolation League is one of the principal members of the Separatist Alliance. The Quarren are one of two races from the planet Mon Cala,
also known as Dac, along with the Mon Calamari. The planet's Senator during the Separatist Crisis was Tikkes, who was ousted before the war, and
allied himself with Dooku seeking to regain prominent standing. He became one of the eight members of the Separatist Council. While Mon Cala
initially sided with the Republic, the Quarren Isolation League held great influence there, which would eventually lead to civil war on the planet.
At this early point in the Clone Wars, the League is far more significant on the many planets the Quarren and Mon Calamari have settled or colonized.
Among the more significant components of the League is the Free Dac Volunteers Engineering Corps, which is affiliated with the Commerce Guild,
and is a major starship manufacturer for the Separatist Navy. The inclusion of the Quarren as shipbuilders for this rebel alliance of Separatists is
an inversion of the position of the Mon Calamari in the Rebel Alliance, and organization which represents a future inversion of the Separatists.

The Republic attack on Geonosis in Episode II served to free the captured Jedi and attempt to capture Dooku, but its primary objective was the capture
and shut down of the droid foundries. Just as attacking Kamino to stop the production of clones is a major Separatist objective, the Republic likewise
prioritizes shutting down the Separatist war machine by taking out its large-scale droid construction facilities. As such, the droid factories on the planet
Muunilinst are among the Republic's first targets. The assault has a secondary objective of capturing those leaders of the IG Banking Clan who have
joined the Spearatists. Muunilinst is the homeworld of the Muun species. Just as the Trade Federation is dominated by Neimoidians, and the Techno
Union by the Skakoans, the Banking Clan is dominated by the Muuns. Like the other trade guilds, the Banking Clan claims neutrality in the conflict,
but are firmly aligned with both camps. In the case of the Banking Clan, its headquarters on Scipio is still a 'loyal' and neutral member of the Republic,
but the Muun homeworld of Muunilinst, their next most significant center, has seceded to become a member world of the Separatist Alliance.

The Republic brings a massive force to Muunilinst, necessary for a planetary-wide invasion of a major populated world. Anakin and a large starfighter
contingent engage the enemy's orbital defenses and their fighters, giving cover for the landing. This necessary engagement limits their ability to
provide air support to the troops below. Obi-Wan leads the invasion of the capital Harnaidan, with the aim of capturing the planet's leadership and
forcing their surrender. Direct invasion of large and heavily populated worlds that willingly chose to join the Separatists, like Geonosis and Muunilinst,
are direct violations of what the Jedi are supposed to stand for, and show the Jedi and the Republic's hypocrisy, as they supposedly love democracy
and value self-determination. As was the case on Geonosis, the combination of droid factories and Separatist leadership presents too important of
a victory not to put their ethical concerns aside. This is the great genius of this war which Sidious has orchestrated, as he never forces the Republic
or the Jedi to violate their most basic tenants and principles. Instead, the choices presented by the war lead them to choose to make those decisions
themselves, out of fear and desire to end the war. The Jedi were already a galactic police force working for a corrupt Senate, who have been forced
to choose between using violence against civilians to maintain order and their standing, or allow the galaxy to descend into mob rule.

Despite taking heavy losses, the naval Battle of Muunilinst is a resounding victory for the Republic. Muunilinst was well-defended, with better orbital
defense facilities than most starsystems seen, and a huge corps of fighter craft. While the Republic was forced to sacrifice large numbers of pilots
and their fightercraft to defeat the enemy fighter group, the Republic heavy cruisers prove to be more than a match for the orbital defense platforms
that protect the planet and function as carrier facilities for their fighters. The lack of Spearatist warships was the key factor in this battle, likely due
to available fleet resources at this time. A world like Muunilinst with a strong defense was not spared any of their forces which were needed elsewhere,
since the Republic would have to contribute significant forces to overcome them. The intelligence the Republic has gained about the hidden droid
factories had made this invasion enough of a priority to commit the necessary forces to this invasion, something the Separatists were not prepared for.


FURTHER ANALYSIS
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