Prior Episodes | 7957 (20 BBY) | Next Episodes
Continuity & Analysis

Star Wars: The Clone Wars - Water War (2011) [S4E1]
When destiny calls, the chosen have no choice.
"Water wars! Tensions run high on the ocean world of Mon Calamari, where two separate peoples,
the aggressive squid-like Quarren and their peaceful neighbor, the Mon Calamari, struggle to maintain
a fragile co-existence. Adding to the strife, the king of the Mon Calamari has been found mysteriously
murdered, leaving his young son, Prince Lee-Char, to guide his people alone. But the Quarren race
will not accept the new ruler as their king. Senator Amidala and her Jedi bodyguard have arrived to
help resolve the matter and to avoid plunging the planet into civil war..."
Star Wars: The Clone Wars - Gungan Attack (2011) [S4E2]
Only through fire is a strong sword forged.
"A government toppled by civil war! Refusing to accept Prince Lee-Char as the next ruler of
Mon Cala, the Quarren people join the Separatist Alliance and launch an all-out attack on
the Mon Calamari. Caught unprepared, the young Prince and his Jedi protectors are quickly
overwhelmed and forced to retreat in the caves far below the capital city, leaving Count Dooku
and his allies to plan their next move..."
Star Wars: The Clone Wars - Prisoners (2011) [S4E3]
Crowns are inherited, kingdoms are earned.
"A last gasp of hope! After the assassination of his father and the fall of his kingdom beneath
a planetary civil war, Mon Cala Prince Lee-Char has gone into hiding with Padawan Ahsoka Tano
as his only protector. With his armies captured and friends imprisoned, the situation seems hopeless
for the Prince. Count Dooku commands his sinister agent, Riff Tamson, to use any means necessary
to bring Prince Lee-Char out of hiding, for he knows that hope does remain as long as the Prince is alive..."




CONTINUITY
These three episodes form a single storyline about the Battle of Mon Cala. The chronological order of episodes
is as given by Lucasfilm, and follows their release order. Three worlds are seen in these episodes:


- The planet Mon Cala is sometimes called Mon Calamari and sometimes Dac. Supplementary material has established that Dac is the native name for the planet,
and that the planet is officially known in the galaxy as both Mon Cala and Mon Calamari. This series uses both names, but favors the use of the name Mon Cala.
Mon Cala is certainly preferable of the two, since it avoids confusion with the Mon Calamari system or the Mon Calamari species which comes from this world.
The Quarren, the other sentient species native to the planet, tend to prefer use of the name Dac, as they are more isolationist and confrontational.

- Mon Cala is a populous world located in the Mon Calamari Sector, in the Slice region of the Outer Rim, first seen in Clone Wars 'Chapter 5'. The planet
features large oceans, and is the homeworld of two sentient species, who primarily live in separate autonomous communities. A Quarren settlement
near the capital Mon Cala City is either where the Chieftain resides, or is the nearest Quarren position, as it is where the Separatist forces amass
before their invasion. The Quarren seem to prefer living underwater, although it is possible they have their own platform cities or facilities.


- A fragile coexistence is maintained on the planet between the squid-like Quarren, described as aggressive, and the fish-like Mon Calamari, described as peaceful.
The two species have a long history having developed on the planet, and different attitudes informed partly by their biology and natural proclivities. Both cultures
live under an agreed upon unified planetary government, and are technologically advanced. They are known as masters of high-pressure undersea engineering,
and consequently are also experts in the construction of large spaceships.

- Most Mon Calamari cities are built underwater, including the capital of Mon Cala City. The buildings in many of the cities are also massive movable submersibles
and starships, and while it is unclear if this is also the case in the capital, the architecture has the same shape and appearance as their ships.


- Prince Lee-Char is apparently ordained to be the next king, suggesting the Republic does not have rules which dictate the types of governments its members have.
We have seen monarchies like Naboo, which are elected, but now we see an important Republic world that is a hereditary monarchy. It is unclear how far this
tolerance extends, and if military dictatorships or theocracies are acceptable under the Republic, either for a primary member world or for a less significant planet
in a Republic sector. The Republic does have anti-slavery laws, so it is clear there are limits, but this shows it is legal in the Republic for unelected leaders to rule.

- The Mon Calamari senator from Mon Cala is Meena Tills, who is seen again in three more episodes before appearing in Episode III. The captain of the royal guard
is Gial Ackbar, a younger version of the famous Rebel admiral from Episode VI.

- The Quarren Isolation League had led an attempt to sieze Mon Cala at the outset of the Clone Wars, about two years earlier, seen in Clone Wars 'Chapter 5'.
In that attempt, a droid army under the command of disgraced former Senator Tikkes was thwarted by clone forces under the command of Master Kit Fisto.
The Republic intervened directly because the Separatist involvement made it an external affair. Nossor Ri and the majority of the Quarren remained committed
to planetary unity and the Republic at that time. Now that the Quarren leadership and enough of their population on the homeworld have shifted in favor of
the Separatists, this is now an internal matter. When the Republic again learns of Separatist involvement, Master Fisto is again sent with reinforcements.


Where is everybody else on this planet and what are they doing while their leadership and future are in question?
Why don't they get reinforcements from other cities in the region? It is true the Mon Calamari are known to be
peaceful, so they may not have a large reserve of fighters, but considering the stakes, they really should call for
backup. Even with the painful reductionist tendency which creators often employ to reduce entire planets to
one city and its surroundings, this has gone way too far. There are at best a few hundred individuals involved
in these battles. It is understandable that the need for character driven stories and the constraints of animation
and budget prevent telling some of these stories on the scale they would truly have. Certainly, the animators
should be applauded as this episode was their most ambitious and complex battle up to this point in the series,
and the story was told well, but they make no attempt to explain why there are so few people on an important
and significant Republic world. All that would be required is to reference the fact that fighting was going on
all over the planet, such as in some of the cities seen in Clone Wars 'Chapter 5'. That would explain why
reinforcements were not available, and off-world assistance was needed. The characters shown make no
references that would indicate they even consider the possibility of getting help from one of the many other
cities on the planet, and after the battle show no urgency to deal with fighting elsewhere or suggest it is
imperative to contact forces everywhere and tell them to stand down. After the one battle with a few hundred
people in the capital city, Riff Tamson tells Dooku the planet is secure. This was not well thought out at all.
Main Article: Galactic Population


- The Mon Calamari cities use pressurized tubes where water is moving in a jet to facilitate travel between structures and locations around the city.

- The Separatists employ 'hydroid medusas', which are giant cyborg jellyfish-like creatures from the planet Karkaris. The Karkarodons have cybernetically
enhanced these naturally dangerous creatures and turned them into a weapon, which they transported and deployed during the fighting.


The Council is in urgent need of an underwater race that has a standing army and is close enough to send help quickly.
Based on that criteria the Gungans were either a poor choice or basically the only choice. Naboo isn't anywhere near
Mon Cala in galactic terms, about half of the diameter of the Republic itself. Couldn't Master Fisto have contacted his
fellow Nautolans on Glee Anselm? It is possible the Nautolans don't have a standing army, as they are known as
a peace-loving race, but are considered formidable warriors. The Gungans aren't violence prone either, although they
may be more militaristic. Glee Anselm is much closer to Mon Cala than Naboo, but if we rule them out for some
reason, of the 200 or so established canon races, the majority aren't naturally underwater races, however there are
some. Obviously there may be a great many more in the galaxy, some more significant than others, but it's hard to
believe none of them were closer to Mon Cala. Considering that the two other criteria are that they need to be loyal
to the Republic and already have an army, the Gungans were likely one of the only choices. Mentioning how close they
are is the exact opposite of the reality: that even though the Gungans aren't close by, they are the only ones suited to
help. This would have led to questions as to why the Republic had so few SCUBA troopers, and why there were no
reinforcements available, but that isn't a continuity issue. The problem isn't that the writers didn't know where planets
are in relation to each other in the galaxy, the problem is that because of the writers, these knowledgeable Jedi don't
know simple facts about their own galaxy. If the writers weren't certain the planets were close to each other, they
should have left out those references and the story still would have worked. It is the writers' responsibility to research
continuity before developing dialogue, and the creators' responsibility to keep material consistent and accurate.



- Boss Lyonie has replaced Boss Nass as the leader of the Gungan High Council.


Anakin seems to lose his lightsaber, which would have fallen to the bottom of the ocean. How did he find it later
once the fighting ended? It seems like it would have been buried under debris and churned up seafloor material.
Perhaps the Force can help to sense where an object with a kyber crystal in it is, especially if one has a personal
connection to it. Perhaps droids or scanners or some other method was used. It isn't particularly important, but
it is an interesting question that would have continuity implications depending on how it was answered.


- Masto Fisto sees the giant electric eels and says, "Ah, eels. Very dangerous." Perhaps there are similar giant electric eels on his homeworld of
Glee Anselm, or somewhere else in the galaxy that he is familiar with, or perhaps the giant electric eels of Mon Cala are well known.
For whatever reason, Fisto is quite familiar with giant eels and the level of danger they represent.


- Dooku calls Nossor Ri "Senator" during their last conversation shown. It is possible the Quarren chieftain is being made a representative of the planet in
the Separatist Parliament, as a runner-up prize for giving Tamson control of the planet instead of him. Otherwise, this is a script error, as the Calamari
Sector's senators at this time are the Mon Calamari Meena Tills and the Quarren Tundra Dowmeia.


The aqua droids take Ahsoka's lightsabers, but in some shots she is still wearing them on her belt as a prisoner.
Conveniently, the droids bring them along everywhere they take her, so that she can steal them back later.


- The Mon Calamari and Quarren on Mon Cala seem to be on generally good terms after uniting to resist the Separatist occupation in the capital.
Lee-Char is made king, and is welcomed by a majority of the Mon Calamari and the Quarren.

ANALYSIS
The Quarren Isolation League is an important and influential member of the Separatist Alliance, representing the most isolationist and nationalist faction of
the Quarren population on Mon Cala and the many worlds that Quarren have settled in significant numbers. Their position as a major starship manufacturer
for the Separatist Navy gives their agenda a greater weight in Separatist strategy. The League first attempted to seize Mon Cala with a droid army at the outset
of the war, a move which not only met a firm Republic response, but failed to inspire a significant local uprising among the Quarren population. The resulting
planetary unity had steadily degraded over the first couple of years of the war, and now the League makes a play for control of the homeworld by having their
Separatist allies murder the well-respected King Kolina. His personal charisma and general acceptance amongst the Quarren held the planet together. While
the Quarren would under any circumstances oppose being ruled by a Mon Calamari, they were willing to be ruled by Kolina. He presided over a prosperous
and equitable period on the planet, and cultivated not only peace but unity between the two peoples. He was able to maintain this even with the strong
Separatist sympathies of the Quarren for more than half of the Clone Wars, just over two years time. This made him an obstacle to Dooku and the Sith plans.

Riff Tamson is appointed the Separatist Ambassador to the planet, in order to pressure his Quarren allies to join him in an insurrection and coup as part of
a regime change operation. Tamson is from the relatively nearby planet Karkaris, located along the Overic Griplink, a regional hyperspace route which connects
the important Perlemian Trade Route to the Calamari sector and its capital planet of Mon Cala. It is the homeworld of the shark-like Karkarodons, members of
the Separatist Alliance. Much of the Overic Griplink is under Separatist control, and the Mon Calamari Sector largely surrounded by Separatist positions,
including many smaller worlds within the sector. Mon Cala is not only a sector capital and notable Republic member world, it is also an important bastion of
Republic authority in a region dominated by the Separatists. The civil war is instigated on the planet to achieve the strategic goal of removing this Republic
linchpin, and punishing the Mon Calamari for their loyalty to the Republic. Dooku will install Tamson as ruler of the planet, as it is better to have a power-hungry
and obedient administrator who has no concern for the ultimate fate of the planet or people under his control. Nossor Ri wants to rule but does care about
his own people, and at least a little about the Mon Calamari. He will not want to go along with Dooku's plans for forced-labor and brutal oppression, and
certainly does not share the Sith goal of leaving the planet broken and disadvantaged. Master Fisto suggests from experience that Dooku will ultimately
enslave the Quarren as well, a fact that Nossor Ri begins to see quite quickly after his assistance is no longer deemed necessary to secure the planet.

The Battle of Mon Cala, and the planet's brief civil war, begins with the Quarren and Separatist droid army assault on Mon Cala City, which we must logically
assume was combined with similar offensive action at vital cities and installations throughout the planet. Republic SCUBA reinforcements are dispatched
under Master Fisto, as the Jedi Council trusts him in these matters. He is an excellent underwater warrior, a wise tactician, and an experienced negotiator.
As a leading member of the Jedi Council, his assignment also reflects the importance of this matter to the Jedi and the Republic. Dooku sends reinforcements
to strengthen the government he helped to install, including Trident-class assault ships, which once again show the incredible variety of capabilities and attack
potentials they possess. The Republic counters by sending Gungan reinforcements, who despite recent strains on their relations with the Naboo and
the Republic, have a great deal of loyalty to Padme and concern for her safety. The Separatist forces win the battle for the capital, effectively taking control
of the planet. The Separatists are defeated not long after, principally because they moved too quickly in pushing a radical agenda, leading the Quarren to
realize they are being betrayed before the Separatist position can be fully cemented. Separatist worlds which willingly joined the Alliance and work for its
goals are still usually afforded respect of their sovereignty by Dooku and the Separatist Council, as the facade of a reasonable democracy must be maintained.
For captured Republic worlds, neutral worlds, and smaller or politically unimportant worlds within Separatist space, the Alliance is openly a reborn Sith Empire,
ruling by force and violence, destroying culture and infrastructure, and using the population for forced labor. The Jedi and their allies are able to spare
Mon Cala, and the Mon Calamari most of all, from this fate, which will prove of great importance. It is only because the Mon Calamari emerged from the Clone
Wars relatively intact and in a position of strength that they are able to preserve enough of their civilization to play a central role in opposition to the Empire.


FURTHER ANALYSIS
Report Pending