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Star Wars: The Clone Wars Series 1 - Episode 16 - “The Hidden Enemy” reviewed by richard whittaker Directed by Steward Lee

Written by Drew Z. Greenberg

Starring: Matt Lanter, James Arnold Taylor, Dee Bradley Baker

Loyalty is a complex, complex thing. Take the clone army. These disposable troops were designed for loyalty to the Republic and little more. So what if one displays the same rebellious streak of self-preservation that came from their genetic wellspring – Bounty hunter Jango Fett? Where would his loyalty lie then?

Deep in the war, Anakin Skywalker (Lanter) and Obi-Wan Kenobi (Taylor) are defending the plant of Christophsis from the Separatists when they and their forces are suddenly ambushed by droids. It soon becomes clear that they have been betrayed by one of their own. But since ‘their own’ consists solely of clone troopers bred for loyalty, there’s something deeper afoot than just a turn-coat’s pay-off.

One of the advantages of being George Lucas is that it’s probably pretty easy to get people to return your calls. That’s probably how he got Drew Greenberg to plot this little conspiracy piece. Genre fans will probably be most excited about his background as a story editor for Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Smallville, but his status has been elevated by his work on the serial-killer-as-hero dramedy Dexter. While it’s nowhere near as dark as that murderous romp, bringing Greenberg in for this episode makes sense because, like his other more mature and blood-drenched show, this episode blurs the lines between good and bad. As clone commanders Rex and Cody try to find the traitor, they’re not just searching for a comrade but a brother. Voicing every trooper, Baker engages in some glorious schizophrenia, bouncing between characters that he distinguishes from each other with subtle cadences, adding personality and even pathos to what could otherwise be cookie-cutter set dressing. To boost their humanity, Greenberg even dares to make the Jedi slightly unappealing by comparison: After all, a clone is a clone is a clone, and the generals’ attitude to their massed troops is ambiguously drawn. Is it the isolation of command, or a blasé dismissal of a replaceable asset?

What could cause real serious confusion is that, while this episode comes after The Clone Wars movie, it actually takes place before it. Which explains why Christophsis isn’t a ruin, the reference to the heavy cannons that are pivotal to the movie, and how there’s a quick cameo by General Whorm Loathso, the Scottish-accented Separatist commander that sips tea with Kenobi in the movie. Eh, what’s Star Wars without some reverse chronology?

But putting the series back onto its first battleground gives former story board artist-turned-director Lee an opportunity for something other directors haven’t achieved before. The droid army has often been shown as clanking buffoons, but by shoving wave after silent wave of them at the Jedi, Lee makes them coldly threatening instead of foolish.

Action may be his strong point. The final fight between Cody, Rex and the traitor is an elaborate melee that

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