Clone Wars Debriefing: "A Sunny Day In The Void"

[lazypadawan]

The droids and their leader Gascon are attempting to race back to the Republic with the encryption chip when fate strikes and leaves them marooned on a seemingly-barren planet.

Yes this is the second time this season that somebody ends up having to bail out on some planet but what happens here is very different from what happens with the young Jedi.

The humor and adventure from last episode are still there. The opening had to have been inspired by the original Star Tours ride when the ship comes out of hyperspace into the middle of a comet shower that buffets the ship. Then it rolls into scene inspired by TPM when Artoo and his droid buddies try to fix exterior damage.

Actually that latter scene keeps you on your seat even though you’re pretty sure Artoo’s going to make it . KT is almost swept out to space and it takes a droid lifeline to save them all.

Once the ship bails out on the planet, they realize it’s a giant salt flat where it seems like it’s always hot and sunny to boot. Gascon rather unwisely finishes his water as they trek out for help and quickly loses it when the situation seems hopeless. There’s a lot of talk back and forth between Gascon and WAC the pit droid about the difference between programming and training, as well as between “organics” and droids. Gascon sinks into despair when he realizes he can’t survive much longer, while WAC remains calm because he doesn’t have to worry about things like food, water, and shelter. Artoo and the others strike out on their own. But just as you wonder if this turned into some kind of dark yet humorous existential exercise, along come a stampede of native ostrich-like beasts. And if there are living things, there’s water. Gascon and WAC literally hitch a ride to water and what civilization has on that planet. (Artoo and Co. already beat them there.)

Credit the Clone Wars crew for delivering an entertaining, thoughtful episode that features only one character from the films and it doesn’t even speak English. I read on Big Shiny Robot this is the last Clone Wars for 2012, so we have to wait until next year to see how Gascon, Artoo, and friends complete their mission.

Comments

[darth-pipes.livejournal.com]

The comet storm was awesome and I love the simple design of the void.

I thought WAC speculating that Gascon was going to jump to his death was pretty damn funny.

[krpalmer.livejournal.com]

I was thinking myself that "the void" and Gascon's reactions to it took the episode in a surprisingly dark direction for one continuing to feature "a bunch of comedy relief characters." It did make me think of "the white space" from THX 1138, actually; the comets in fact made me think it was a plain of ice at first.

Artoo abandoning Gascon left me thinking the loveable astromech can have an outright ruthless edge too at times when it comes to companions who don't seem to be keeping up; I wound up thinking of him letting Threepio go his own way in Star Wars and bumping him down into the droid factory in Attack of the Clones.

If this is the last new episode of the year, I suppose that just lets me meditate a bit more on the almost surprising way this season is turning out. The previous season had seemed uninterrupted action, taking a darker turn still with the return of Darth Maul; things have been lightening up throughout this season, though.

[knight-ander.livejournal.com]

The first five minutes of the episode were probably the most intense I've seen on the show; an edge-of-you-seat kind of intensity. I loved that! There was a moment there (very brief) where I thought KT was a goner, too.