It’s time for Animaniacs, and they’re zany to the max, so just sit back and relax, you’ll laugh til you collapse, with Animaniacs!

Do you know the nations of the world?  Do you know who Princess Angelina Contessa Louisa Francesca Banana Fanna Fo Fesca the Third is?  Do you randomly scream out Froinlavin! at the least opportune moments?

Then you, my friend, are an Animaniacs fan.  If you’re not, no need to fear, because The Hub channel is now airing the Steven Spielberg animated series.

In honor of this, I am sharing with you some of our favorite Animaniacs segments.  And they are (in no particular order):

Yakko’s World:  Okay, this actually is in order because I’ve watched this probably a hundred times, I’ve seen Rob Paulsen (the voice of Yakko Warner) perform it live, and I love to sing the song.  I saw it before the series aired, and I was hooked right away.  It’s fun and educational!  (and yes, some of the countries don’t exist anymore, but it’s still a fantastic song).

Woodstock Slappy:  For some reason, I reference this episode anytime I hear any mention of the band The Who.  It pays homage to the classic “Who’s on first?” routine, and I have always loved it.

Hearts of Twilight:  Very loosely based on Apocalypse Now (which is based on Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness), this episode sends the Warner siblings deep into the heart of the studio to stop The Director from continuing to make his movie.  But they are thwarted by a group of hippies who chant Froinlavin.

Les Miseranimals:  a parody of Les Miserables, and Runt plays Runt Valrunt (Jean Valjean) and Rita is a Fantine-like character.  Songs include versions of “Lovely Ladies” and “At the End of the Day,” and if you’re familiar with the new film or the original stage version, then you’ll enjoy this episode much more.  Also recommended:  the episode West Side Pigeons.

Ups and Downs:  Wakko and Dr. Scratch n Sniff are stuck in an elevator, and this is hell for the doctor.  And yes, if I ever get trapped in an elevator, I will turn in circles and sing “Chopsticks.”  (Ok, I’ve done it even without getting trapped.  It’s a thing I do.)

Hooked on a Ceiling:  Michaelangelo nervously prepares for a visit from His Eminence.  Unfortunately, the Warners pay a visit and stress him to the limit.  After all, His Eminence is a Very Important Person.  The Most Important.  And who is this personage of import?

SPOILER ALERT!

None other than Steven Spielberg, who, when he sees the fingers of E.T. and Elliott stretched out in a parody of The Creation of Adam, smiles and says, “I like it!”

This is a very small selection of some of my favorite episodes, but be sure to watch Animaniacs on The Hub to determine which are your favorites.  Mon-Thurs 7 PM EST/4 PM PST.

Oh, and if you fall in love with the series or already have the first three volumes on DVD, Volume 4 is now available for pre-order on Amazon.  It will be released on February 5.

The final episode in the D-Squad arc might have been the most exciting of all four. With their mission coming to an end and a Republic Cruiser in orbit to take them home, Colonel Gascon and D-squad find that things aren’t what they seem. The Republic Cruiser is populated by holograms and instantly jumps to hyperspace.

Quickly, they realize the entire ship is a bomb heading for a Republic strategy conference that much of the senate, the military, and the Jedi Council will be attending.

It’s up to them to shut things down.

This show was thrilling as hell and reminded me some much of the best in Star Wars storytelling. The droids had to piece together the puzzle of what was going on at the same we’re left to do the same. The action built beautifully into a perfect crescendo of story, emotion, and sacrifice.

It also had echoes of classic Star Wars. The droids coming off the shuttle and onto the deserted ship had dialogue and walks reminiscent of the Cloud City landing platform in The Empire Strikes Back. And the mouse droid and treaded droid were excellent additions as well. Adding in original droids enables the soundtrack to feel more like the original films.

The thing this episode proves to me more than anything, though, is that the epic stories of the show work the best when combined with enough emotional investment and humour for you to care about the things going on. Last episode, I had no connection to Gregor and the humour of the episode seemed aimed purely at video game nerds. This episode, on the other hand, we were invested fully into each of these characters and their plights, and the target on the other side of the episode was something we cared about. And the humour elevated things. The harder you make them laugh, the harder they will cry. And it’s true.

The other thing I quite liked about this episode is that you can tell we’re getting closer to Episode III. Buzz droids are one of the coolest additions to the droid armies and to see them on the show is a treat. Perhaps my favorite thing about them here, though, is the sound design. They are so distinct and unique among other droids that it really helps sell the “This IS Star Wars” aspect of the show. But with the joy they brought to this episode, the also bring a bit of dismay. The closer we get to Episode III on the show, the closer we get to the end of The Clone Wars. And the end of the Clone Wars would be a sad thing, indeed.

Overall, as much as I liked the first two episodes of this arc (and didn’t care as much for the third part) the final episode was the best of the bunch. The animation, the lighting, the comedy, the stakes, were all top notch. This is some of the best work that’s been done

But now, with the end of the D-Squad arc, we’re left with 9 more episodes of The Clone Wars this season, and so far they’ve always saved the best for last.

One more episode of D-Squad and we’ll move on to even bigger and better things! As much as I was lukewarm on the last episode, the set up for this one absolutely thrills me.

All is not right aboard a seemingly abandoned Jedi cruiser. Colonel Gascon and his droid team learn the ship is a death trap pointed towards an important Republic conference, and must work against time to stop this catastrophe-in-the-making in “Point of No Return,” airing this Saturday, January 12th at 9:30am ET/PT on Cartoon Network.

The third part of the Droids arc is probably the first one I just wasn’t feeling. Gascon, Artoo, and the rest of the droids have made their way to a city through the void. Still holding the encryption module and needing to find a way off planet and back to the Republic, they look for ways out.

Gascon, finding himself scrambling for food in a garbage pile, discovers an amnesiac clone working as a dishwasher. Reminding him of his heritage, his memory returns and he offers to help them get back to their ship.

That’s it. That’s what the entirety of the episode was.

It has some interesting ideas and moments. There was a message about sacrifice and soldiers, but it seemed a bit ham-fisted. I did like the Russian Sullustan, too. I love seeing the modelers branch out and bring us animated versions of classic Star Wars aliens with a twist. This was no exception. I’d just like to see a benevolent Sullustan now. Or even a young Nien Nunb.

The other interesting idea in the episode seemed more like a bone to throw video game nerds. Gregor is a Republic commando and has to single-handedly help the droids get away. His sequences feel like a first person shooter, right down to the exploding barrels.

I enjoyed the Republic Commando game as much as the next man, but I really didn’t need an episode of The Clone Wars devoted to it. I preferred the droids when they were on their own and acting as comic foils to each other and the drama. This episode was rather dry and had a few oddities to it.

For one, it felt odd that the camera cut every time a character was going to cross the orange water gutters in the street. They were there to add flavor, but at the point where it was set-dressing that wasn’t used or addressed, something just felt off about it. And I also noticed for the first time, too, that there weren’t any stairs at all. Everything is a ramp. Is animating people walking down stairs that difficult?

I might just be the reverse of everyone watching this arc. I loved the first two and this one, the second the brought in a clone, was boring to me and I sort of wish they hadn’t.

But knowing a bit about the dramatic arcs coming up, I won’t–can’t–complain. The Clone Wars has given us a hundred episodes and the vast majority of them have been beyond fantastic. Here’s to hoping we get at least a hundred more.

Something tells me this episode is going to be the part of the droid arc that gets people back on board. It’s exactly what they want to see: A Clone Commando taking the fight to the clankers.

This, the 100th episode of The Clone Wars, airs on Saturday, January 5th on Cartoon Network.

As a bonus, here’s the 100 episode trailer for the show.

The Clone Wars has been going strong for a lot longer than many of us realize. Especially given that Saturday’s episode brings us the 100th episode of the show.

I know some have complained about our current arc, but I think critics might be missing the forest for the trees. The last episode was entertaining, this next one appears doubly so.

From the press release:

Star Wars: The Clone Wars celebrates 100 episodes with a new installment that uncovers an elite Republic clone commando who has gone “Missing in Action,” airing Saturday, January 5th at 9:30am ET/PT on Cartoon Network.

Given the series’ title and its backdrop of galactic warfare, Star Wars: The Clone Wars often focuses on the valiant and tireless clone troopers tasked to defend the Republic from darkness. The vivid personalities of these soldiers often challenge many assumptions about the nature of clones, and has created a roster of individual heroes. This tradition continues in the 100th broadcast episode, “Missing in Action,” with the intriguing addition of Gregor, a Republic clone commando suffering from amnesia who has seemingly forgotten his true nature.

Since its debut in 2008, Star Wars: The Clone Wars has pushed the boundaries of the epic Star Wars saga with high adventure, explosive action, and incredibly detailed animation usually reserved for the big screen. Created and executive produced by George Lucas, the series has continued the story of classic characters like Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi, while adding new heroes, villains, rogues and sidekicks to the Star Wars mythos.

“Thanks to our partnership with Cartoon Network, we have been able to bring The Clone Wars into millions of homes not only in the United States, but around the world,” said Tom Quinn, Lucasfilm’s Head of Worldwide Distribution. “We appreciate the support they have given the series and their enthusiasm for the brand.”

Over the course of five seasons, Star Wars: The Clone Wars has featured elaborate and thrilling action sequences across exotic alien worlds, added to the lore of the Jedi and Sith while plumbing the deepest mysteries of the Force, revealed new surprises about classic movie icons like Obi-Wan, Boba Fett, Darth Maul and Chewbacca, and introduced new characters like Ahsoka Tano, Savage Opress, Cad Bane, and Clone Captain Rex that have grown into fan favorites. It has welcomed guest stars like Liam Neeson, Jon Favreau, Simon Pegg, Seth Green, Clancy Brown and David Tennant, while also making its core cast of talented actors fan-cherished additions to the Star Wars saga’s huge galaxy of stars.

In looking back upon the first 100 episodes of Star Wars: the Clone Wars, here’s what the team behind the series had to share:

· “From the start, the idea was to show that there were many more Star Wars stories left to tell after the six movies. We all love the Star Wars universe, and we wanted to keep it alive on-screen in a way that had never been done before. We looked at everything that had been created before us, going back to the original film in 1977, and we mined concept art, behind-the-scenes footage, comics, games, novels and brought it together with George’s guidance to make a series that jumps to every corner of his galaxy. I’m very proud of my crew, and all of Lucasfilm for being part of this series. I’m looking forward to what comes next. Seven years after Revenge of the Sith was in theaters, it’s never been a better time to be a Star Wars fan, as the best is yet to come! – Dave Filoni, Supervising Director, Star Wars: The Clone Wars

· “To produce 100 episodes of an animated series is a major milestone. But to produce them at the high level of quality of Star Wars: The Clone Wars is an incredible achievement. And it’s a testament to our amazing crew. They are some of the most talented, dedicated, hard-working and passionate people I’ve ever had the pleasure to work with and know. Being a part of making Star Wars and working closely with George Lucas has been an incredible experience and blessing. I truly feel this work will live on forever. Here’s to another 100 episodes! – Cary Silver, Producer, Star Wars: The Clone Wars

· “Star Wars – the movie I saw twelve times as a 17-year-old. The movie that began a cultural and creative universe that now spans generations. For me to be a part of this in The Clone Wars is a dream come true.” – Clancy Brown, Highlander, The Shawshank Redemption and voice of Savage Opress in Star Wars: The Clone Wars

· “The Clone Wars looks amazing and has incredibly dramatic performances from all of the characters. It’s really incredible to have this seamless expansion of the Star Wars universe.”
– Seth Green, Actor/Creator/Executive Producer

· “It is an honor being a part of the phenomenon that is The Star Wars universe. A series that has changed so many people’s lives all across the globe. The Clone Wars has brought me great joy, playing female roles with great strength and creativity. I am so proud knowing that every week families have an action packed and inspiring show to enjoy together. May the Force be with us, always.” – Jaime King, Sin City, Heart of Dixie and voice of Aurra Sing in Star Wars: The Clone Wars

· “It’s a high honor to be a part of the Star Wars universe and such a long running show. Our talented writers, animators and cast of voice actors have made The Clone Wars truly unique. And of course we wouldn’t have hit 100 episodes had it not been for our incredibly dedicated fans that make this possible!” – Matt Lanter, 90210 and the voice of Anakin Skywalker in Star Wars: The Clone Wars

· Having grown up with Star Wars, I cannot describe the thrill of working with Dave and George in pushing this beloved modern myth into challenging and often risky areas. It’s an opportunity I wanted, but surely never thought I’d have. And more than that? Everyone is doing such great work! A barn full of wildly talented maniacs! – Sam Witwer, Being Human, Battlestar Galactica and the voice of Darth Maul in Star Wars: The Clone Wars

· “The Clone Wars is Star Wars for a whole new generation. To be a part of it, let alone to be Obi-Wan Kenobi, is beyond awesome.” – James Arnold Taylor, Johnny Test and voice of Obi-Wan Kenobi in Star Wars: The Clone Wars

· “The milestone of 100 episodes is a reflection of the amazing work and dedication of the entire Clone Wars cast and crew. Being a part of this production has been an honor and privilege that has changed my life forever.” – Ashley Eckstein, Founder of Her Universe and voice of Ahsoka Tano in Star Wars: The Clone Wars

· “Star Wars: The Clone Wars is like nothing else on television. It makes me remember how much I loved Star Wars as a boy, and inspires me to love Star Wars all the more for the thrill, the fun, the heart and sheer inventive awesomeness. The Clone Wars is Star Wars, better than ever. – Dee Bradley Baker, American Dad and voice of the clones in Star Wars: The Clone Wars

· “Back in 2005, when David Acord and I met Dave Filoni, he showed us a hand drawn video storyboard sequence of Anakin and his new apprentice leapfrogging battle droids and scaling a cliff with an AT-TE walker. Even from that humble sequence we could tell that this show was special. In between our geeking out over our love of Star Wars that day, Filoni asked, ‘I wonder if you guys wouldn’t mind adding some sound effects.’ Well, 100 episodes later we still share that bond, and we have all been able to put that love back into the show. We proudly hold this series in our hearts like we do the film saga.” – Matthew Wood, Supervising Sound Editor and voice of General Grievous in Star Wars: The Clone Wars

· “From the beginning, I think we all felt there was something truly special about The Clone Wars. I will be forever proud and grateful to have had the chance to be a part of this show. It has been an obscene amount of fun, I have met the most amazing fans and made friends for life in my Clone Wars family. Congratulations to the whole Clone Wars team on 100 beautiful episodes!” – Catherine Taber, Star Wars: The Old Republic and voice of Padmé Amidala in Star Wars: The Clone Wars

· “I was a Star Wars fan long before I was a Star Wars actor, and to now be part of something that has completely re-energized the franchise, and to be entrusted to voice a character as beloved as Yoda… well, the word ‘humbled’ doesn’t do what I feel justice. Thank you to George, Dave, our stellar cast, everyone at Lucasfilm and the fans, for making this show matter.” – Tom Kane, Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes voice of Yoda in Star Wars: The Clone Wars

I’ve been a fan of Don Hertzfeldt for years. I first became aware of him when I viewed “Rejected” during my freshman year of college back in 2001. It was one of the funniest things I had ever seen and since then I’ve tried to keep up with his work. Well this morning I got a hold of the feature film version of “It’s Such a Beautiful Day,” this film tells the story of Bill, a normal human being as he lives his life, but some mental complications arise and he’s forced to see his life through a distorted lens. I was unprepared for what this film was going to do to me, I had laughed many times at Hertzfeldt’s cartoons and in the first minute I found myself doing the same thing. I laughed so much that I actually had to stop the movie for a moment to catch my breath and in that moment I wondered if the film could sustain itself for the next 60 minutes. I pushed play and then I was treated to one of the most fantastic journeys I’ve ever been on. I laughed, I cried, I hurt. The movie was beautiful and heart wrenching and I could feel myself in Bill. The movie plays with your emotions in ways you didn’t think possible or had forgotten they could be played with. When the film ended I sat in my chair complacent and in awe of what I just watched. Afterwards I went to my top ten list of 2012 and placed this movie right up on number one. This movie is amazing and I can’t recommend it enough. What made me laugh was I watched this film on what is supposedly the last day on earth, and if it really is the last day on earth then I’ll have been glad to have had this film be my last. So I implore you to get your hands on a copy of this film.

You can purchase this film directly from Don Hertzfeldt’s website:

http://www.bitterfilms.com/

This bot has a terrible tendency to blurt in interviews. Bots can be fangirls too, you see. The gem produced in this particular session was “you’re like the Charles Napier of voice actors!” All I meant was that Ms Wahlgren has been in just about every cartoon or video game you have watched in the last 20 years, yet she could still go to Trader Joe’s on a Saturday afternoon and not cause a mob scene. Kari’s whopping 236 imdb credits include Enchantress, Gwen Stacy, Emma Frost, Tigress… She’s been Jedi, Samurai, Pixar characters, Dreamworks characters, and Willow freakin’ Rosenberg. That’s so cool. Kari was gracious enough to spend a little time with me last week to celebrate the premiere of her new show on the Hub network – Kaijudo: Rise of the Dual Masters, in which she plays Allie.

Can you tell me a little about your character, and your favorite parts about playing her?

I play Allie Underhill and she’s one of the trio of our superhero trio of kids, and she’s kind of an affluent, sassy, sarcastic kid. Definitely very snarky but also very loyal to her family and friends. She gets in with the dual masters and into fighting the forces of evil in the show and we follow her journey as she finds out about the Kaijudo world, and her powers with it, and gets closer to her friends along the way.

(My favorite) is the humor element! I love the fact that she’s such a snarky charcter. It’s a lot of fun to play her. They’ve really been doing a nice job as the series goes on exposing little vulnerable sides of her, so I think they character development has been nice. They’re adding little layers. We’ve recorded a lot of episodes, and here’s hoping we’ll record a lot more!

Is recording this show a situation where the entire cast gets together to record?

In this particular case they do try to get as many members of the cast together as possible. We don’t always have everyone there at the same time but they do try to get as many people in the room as they can. It’s really nice because then we get to play off of each other a little bit more and hear what each other is doing. It’s always great when you can record as a group.

Is this becoming more the trend?

It kind of depends on the show. Now that there’s a lot more celebrity casting it’s kind of more rare to record as a group because you’re juggling with not only a lot of different peoples’ schedules but a lot of times people in different cities so you may have cast members that are in New York or shooting something in London so it’s actually less common now to record as a group. So it’s nice when you actually can record together.

But with games you record by yourself, right?

9 times out of ten with games you record by yourself. I’ve had a couple of experiences where if I was playing a lead opposite of someone else they would try to do some of our sessions together and that’s really fun. But most of the time with games you’re recording by yourself.

Do you have any technical preferences? And equipment you prefer?

I do find in certain studios that the way they mic the actors it kind of sounds a little bit better in the final product, but basically I’m pretty open to just rolling with whatever situation I’m thrown into. Some of the voice actors I know have a microphone that they actually take with them to different studios to record with but I haven’t got quite that fancy yet.

You have played so many iconic characters – who’s left? Do you have a dream role?

I’m a big Birds of Prey fan. I love the graphic novels, and I think my secret dream role would be Black Canary. So if they ever do a Birds of Prey cartoon I would… Man, I would be “Villager #2”

I always say the Hub is “bringing back Saturday mornings” – making watching cartoons in your jammies an important thing again – what were your favorites when you were a kid?

I watched a lot of them, I watched “The Smurfs,” I watched “Dungeons and Dragons”…

Do you know that all the women I talked to have all mention D&D? None of the guys!

Oh, it was great! There was that, there was “She-Ra,” “Masters of the Universe,” oh man. There were some goodies. I watched all of those at some point.

Do you have a vocal maintenance regimen or any practices to keep your voice in shape?

It depends on the character. Sometimes if I know it’s going to be a vocally stressful character I might do warm ups in the car, or like sing a little bit, or just do funny little “aaaAAAAAAAaaaaaaa” kind of noises and things just to kind of loosen my voice up. Sometimes I’ll run lines in the car on the way to the studio. Prevention is really important. If I feel the slightest cold coming on I will probably just cancel dinner plans and just stay in and rest. I think “avoiding being sick” is the thing that every voice actor tries to do.

Your list of roles is so diverse and constant – when do you rest?

I try to rest and watch football on Sundays.

Ooh, who’s your favorite team?

I grew up in Kansas so for the longest time the KC Chiefs were my team, but they have broken my heart so many times that now I just kind of follow it season by season, like whatever team or player intrigues me I’ll be cheering for them that season. So right now it’s the Denver Broncos.

Heh, I’m with you on that. I grew up a Browns fan.

OOOH WOW (hearty laughter)! Oh my gosh, I’m sending you a big hug!

“Kaijudo: Rise of the Dual Masters” airs on HubTV on Saturdays, 2 pm EST 11 am CST, and along with Ms Wahlgren also stars Phil LaMarr, Scott Wolff, Grey DeLisle and Oded Fehr!

Finding Nemo is a movie that never clicked for me upon its initial release. It was the second time I skipped a Pixar release during its initial run in theatres. (The first was Monsters Inc., which seemed like it would be boring to me.) Finding Nemo went on to be the highest grossing film of that year, and it still never saw a penny from me.

Years passed, I picked it up for my kids on DVD, and they loved it. They must have watched it a hundred times. But I still never saw it in its entirety. I’d only catches pieces here and there and not think too much about it.

I was sent the Blu-ray for review and I have to say: I’m an idiot for having missed this film. I love Andrew Stanton’s work and I have no idea why this would have been any different. It’s charming, heartwarming, extremely funny, and classic Pixar.

Why didn’t you guys tell me it was so good?

Perhaps it resonates more with me now that I’m a father? I was still a brand new father when it came out originally and it seemed like it would just be “another kids movie” when it came out, but I am still awed by how wrong I was. And so much credit has to go to Albert Brooks. That guy just has a funny voice and his timing is perfect. Even when he’s being serious he’s spot on.

As for the Blu-ray, like any film as high quality as Pixar makes, the Blu-ray elements look absolutely astounding. This film takes place mostly underwater and the volume and feel of that is never lost through the entire narrative.

Aside from the incredible film quality, the Blu-ray boasts a boatload of special features that would be of interest to any fan of film or student of story or animation.

You can (and should) pick up the Blu-ray in a 5-disc set for less than $25 on Amazon.

Here’s a peek at some of those great special features they featured on the Blu-ray, like this piece about original opening of the film:

And here’s a piece about flashbacks:

And here’s another one about Albert Brooks and never saying lines the same way twice:

This arc is clearly the comic relief before we get into the meat and bones of what this season is really about and the overarching arc. But I don’t care that this is a distraction. Gascon and D-Squad are still escaping with the stolen cryptography chip and making their way back to the Republic.

Everything about this arc is working for me and the humour of these episodes are firing on all cylinders. Gascon is such a likable character and the way he plays off of WAC is simply perfect.

But the humour isn’t all that’s well done in these episodes. The lighting in this episode must have been exceedingly difficult to pull off, but all of the hard work certainly paid off. The first bit of lighting effects that took my breath away was BZ’s surgery. The bits of electricity and puffs of smoke were extremely pretty. But then they were outdone by the beauty of the comets. With the droid pilot and running into the comet field, it felt very much like an homage to the original Star Tours, and the only thing that would have made it better was if Paul Ruebens was voicing WAC and he actually said, “Comets?… COMETS!”

The next homage I loved was something from Phantom Menace. One of my favorite tense but comedic moments in that film was when Artoo and the droids are sent out in the middle of the blockade to fix the shield generator. Seeing Artoo learn from those mistakes at set up the other droids as spotters was genius and played to the themes of the episode about altering programming and perspective. Perhaps that was me reading too much into things, but that’s how I saw it, any way.

As soon as they landed on the salt flats of the planet, I was instantly reminded of a more colorful THX-1138. Half of that movie plays out in a white void and it’s unsettling, working to great effect here on Gascon. This is the challenging part of the lighting, but the model painters and the lighters did a fantastic job making this entire landscape plausible.

The other thing it conjured (especially knowing the new love of Doctor Who the cast and crew has found) was the David Tennant Doctor Who special called Planet of the Dead.

And the comedy… I mentioned the comedy, right? But the heights of maudlin humour this episode reaches when WAC is almost hoping that Gascon will kill himself had me howling in laughter. Might some people find it inappropriate for the kids? Maybe. I thought it was funny. Especially since Gascon was forced to pull himself together and endure.

The only thing funnier than that were the arguments about who would lead D-Squad once Gascon offed himself.

Then, when they decide to split up and WAC remains loyal to Gascon (of course the other faction is led by Artoo), they find themselves running out of options. Then, a Jurassic Park happens. A flock of flightless birds run through the desert, scaled appropriately to Gascon as WAC as the Galimimus were to Dr. Grant and the kids. Gascon decides to trust their instincts and hop a ride to water, knowing the birds will be attracted to it.

The shots, animation, and lighting in the sequence screamed Jurassic Park and it put a smile on my face.

The episode ended mid-story and I’m quite disappointed that we’ll have to wait until next year to reach the conclusion of the arc. I’d have almost liked for them to wait on the whole arc until they came back from break. Either way, I suppose, there’s something to look forward to.

Congrats to the cast and crew for another great episode of The Clone Wars.