Word came down on Monday from Lucasfilm that it was “winding down” production of Star Wars: The Clone Wars animated series, sending many fans into a state of geek sadness.
The show’s supervising director, Dave Filoni, was trotted out in a video that is available for viewing over at Star Wars.com (http://starwars.com/news/a-new-direction-for-lucasfilm-animation.html) in which he talks about the diligence of his crew and the fact that fans of the show will be able to access “bonus content” in the near future.
His video ends showcasing a battle in which a clone trooper kills a Jedi, foreshadowing the infamous Order 66 Palpatine issues that brings about the decimation of the Jedi Order at the hands of the troops they commanded and fought and died alongside during the Clone Wars.
As some of the readers of Big Shiny Robot may know, your faithful scribe is also the co-host of a Star Wars podcast that sometimes delves into the Clone Wars via interviews with the voice actors and writers who help bring the show to life.
In Episode 65 of our show, Star Wars Book Report, which you can find here, we interviewed veteran voice actor Stephen Stanton, who has voiced among others young Admiral Tarkin, as well as Colonel Meebur Gascon, Mas Amedda and Moralo Eval.
During our chat, which ironically was looking back at the first 100 episodes of The Clone Wars, Stanton revealed he has already voiced some episodes for what was supposed to be the sixth season of the show.
“I’ve already been extensively working on season six, so I think the direction they’re going in is awesome. I can say that, just from a fan’s standpoint. I’ve been involved with some episodes and you sit there and you think, oh man, nobody can talk about this for the next year and a half – however long it takes to get this stuff out. I could never think up the kind of stuff that these guys come up with on a regular basis.
“Where I want it to go is really where they want to take it. I’m just along for the ride and I’m happy to do that.”
Stephen Stanton voiced several characters on Star Wars: The Clone Wars animated series, including Moralo Eval, Colonel Meebur Gascon and the young Admiral Tarkin.
I know I’m not alone in expressing frustration over the demise of the show on Cartoon Network in the U.S. and on Teletoon in Canada. This show has become as beloved as the six films in the eyes of many Star Wars fans and, according to Stanton, the actors who helped give voice to the iconic characters knew that.
Stanton, who joined the cast during the second season in the episode Duchess of Mandalore, said the show was considered special among voice actors.
“Anytime I’m talking to anyone about the show … the first thing they say is, ‘I want to be on Clone Wars.’ It’s a show a lot of people would like to experience being a part of. I feel privileged and honoured to be a part of it.”
One of the reasons actors took to the show was that there was a degree of seriousness when it came to the stories being told – something many other animated series don’t have. The mentality of Filoni and the others working on the show was take the time to get it right rather than just getting it done.
“It’s handled like if you were in costume and on a set,” Stanton said. “It never feels rushed. It’s all done at a logical pace and at a pace that lets everybody do their work properly.
“There’s a respect for the material. We’re doing some very serious stuff, so you … want to stay focused on the job at hand. … You have to take it as serious as if you’re on the set and on location in Tunisia, doing it for real.”
Stanton added that he was a fan of the show before signing on. As such, he said he has been proud of the work he and his castmates have done, as well as the impact they’ve made on Star Wars and the community of Wars fans. He said the show was “exceptional” and “one of the best series on TV.”
“It probably has just as many adult fans as it does kids because the stories have become so complex and so very Star Wars-y,” he said. “It’s not like a dumbed down or a simplified version of Star Wars. It’s really an extension of the saga, just being done in computer animated form.
“It’s found a much wider audience than I think was originally intended or anticipated.”
Now, all we can do is hope that someone at Disney and Lucasfilm gives the show the respect the final episodes deserve and delivers them to the fan base in a way that celebrates the tremendous achievement that The Clone Wars represented not only to the advancement of animation on TV, but to the Star Wars universe as a whole.
* Wayne Chamberlain is the co-host of the Star Wars Book Report podcast, available on iTunes, as well as a contributing columnist and editor with Postmedia News in Canada.