brian solberg

I sat on the couch with my two sons this morning (the youngest in my lap) and watched two episodes of Star Wars: The Clone Wars. Watching lush CGI Star Wars adventures on a Saturday morning with my boys was a treat. Iapos;ve read a few reviews of The Clone Wars, and theyapos;ve all been negative. Pity those that never outgrow their hip cynicism.

Iapos;m thrilled at the prospect of this series. George Lucas employed an army of artists to create characters, ships, costumes, locations and such to flesh out the three prequel films. It would be a shame not to use all of that work to provide fans with some additional adventures in that universe.

I particularly liked the on-going reminder that "the Old Republic" was not defeated by the Empire but rather it became the Empire. The Republic warships are early versions of the Imperial Star Destroyers that we see in episodes IV - VI. The chest plates on the Jedi generals are the same later worn by black-clad Darth Vader. Those Republic warships are commanded by the same British-accented admirals that later command the Imperial Navy.

I like that when the clones troopers take their helmets off we can see that theyapos;ve made attempts to establish themselves as individuals with different hair cuts. Also, we learn that the republic makes every effort to evacuate wounded clone troopers and provide them with medical attention.

Most of all, I like the expanded canvas that a TV series provides. If you like Star Trek: The Next Generation, imagine if the only Trek material featuring Jean-Luc Picard you ever saw was Star Trek: Generations, Insurrection, and Nemesis. Would the phrase, "Tea: Earl Gray, hot," even ring a familiar chord in your consciousness? A TV series allows for so much more depth of character and complexity of story than a movie or even a series of movies can.

Perhaps I had the advantage of genuine child-fan enthusiasm in the room that I could tune into, but I have zero truck with critics who claim that this series is ruining their child-hood Star Wars memories.

The boys are now playing Lego Star Wars on the PS3.

california county fremont, brian solberg, brian sokolow, brian sokol.