George Lucas sought to expand on his film saga when he createdStar Wars: The Clone Wars, a series that led to radical changes for many belovedStar Warscharacters. Covering the three-year gap betweenStar WarsEpisodes II and III,The Clone Warsfleshed out the stories of Anakin Skywalker, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and new characters like Ahsoka Tano. Some of the franchise’s best stories were told throughoutThe Clone Wars' seven-season run.
However, several characters from theStar Warsmoviesandthe originalStar WarsExpanded Universe(now known as “Legends”) were significantly changed forThe Clone Wars. The original Clone Wars multimedia project of books, comics, and more was completely overridden byThe Clone Wars, as Lucas' cinematicStar Warsprojects were not required to adhere to the EU. WhileThe Clone Warsis now the definitive canon timeline, it’s worth analyzing how Lucas' version affected theseStar Warscharacters.
10Shaak Ti
The Jedi Master who died in many different ways
Shaak Ti had multiple deaths inStar Warsbecause George Lucas and other writers could never decide how she should die. Lucas filmed two death scenes forStar Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith, one where General Grievous killed Shaak Ti and another where Anakin Skywalker killed her during Order 66. Both scenes were cut from the film, soShaak Ti was eventually killed by Darth Vader’s secret apprentice, Starkiller, inStar Wars: The Force Unleashed.
Killed by General Grievous while trying to rescue Chancellor Palpatine
Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith(deleted scene)
Killed by Anakin Skywalker in the Jedi Temple during Order 66
Killed in a lightsaber duel with Starkiller on Felucia
Star Wars: The Force Unleashed(video game)
Stabbed with a blue lightsaber by an unseen assailant in Yoda’s vision
Star Wars: The Clone Warsseason 6, episode 11 “Voices”
That seemed to be Shaak Ti’s definitive death untilThe Clone Warsseason 6 created more confusion. During his vision of the future,Yoda saw Shaak Ti meditating before being stabbed by a blue lightsaber, implying she was killed by Anakin after all. Because of the hierarchy employed byStar Wars' old canon system, Shaak Ti’sClone Warsdeath would have outrankedThe Force Unleashed, but it seems odd for Lucas' team to bring back an unused version.
9Chancellor Valorum
A character brought back from the dead
AnotherStar Warscharacter whose death was changed byThe Clone Warswas Chancellor Finis Valorum. InStar Wars: Republic#61,Valorum was assassinated sixteen months afterStar Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clonesfor raising suspicion about Chancellor Palpatine’s machinations. However, Anakin was still a Padawan in the issue, meaning it would now have to take place shortly afterAttack of the Clonesto align with Anakin being a Jedi Knight inThe Clone Wars.
AlthoughStar Wars: The Clone Warsis part of the new canon under Disney, the events of the show still happened in the Legends timeline. This means the various contradictions between the show and the rest of the Expanded Universe remain a problem within that continuity.
However,Valorum was shown to be alive inThe Clone Warsseason 6when Yoda visited him for information. Whether Valorum was killed shortly afterAttack of the Clonesor halfway through the war, there’s no way he could have been alive closer to the war’s end. This made Valorum’s death andClone Warsappearance incompatible, and his death has never been shown in canon.
8Sora Bulq
A Dark Jedi who served Count Dooku (or did he?)
Sora Bulq first appeared inAttack of the Clonesas one of the Jedi who fought in the Geonosian arena. In theStar Wars: Republiccomics,Bulq fell to the dark side shortly after the Clone Wars began, betraying the Jedi and becoming one of Count Dooku’s most loyal servants. His power was so great that Jedi Master Quinlan Vos believed he was the second Sith Lord, finally killing him in the war’s final weeks.
While he was never prominently featured inThe Clone Wars,Bulq appeared as a background character in season 2, episode 9 “Grievous Intrigue.“The same character model appeared in two more episodes set near the war’s end, and he even appeared at a Jedi funeral. Some fans tried to reconcile this by saying it was another Weequay Jedi, but if this is meant to be Sora Bulq, it would contradict him serving Dooku throughout the entire war.
7Boba Fett
A new Clone Wars bounty hunter origin
While Boba Fett’s arc inThe Clone Warshad some similarities to the books, it also had noticeable differences. The junior novel seriesStar Wars: Boba Fettchronicled young Boba’s life during the war, eventually spending two years on Tatooine working for Jabba the Hutt.Boba didn’t have his first off-planet job until a few months beforeRevenge of the Sith, and it was around this time he sought revenge on Mace Windu for killing Jango Fett.
InThe Clone Wars, Boba sought revenge much earlier in the war and was mentored by Aurra Sing, who was originally his enemy in the books. The series never indicated that Boba took any jobs from Jabba, instead becoming the leader of a group of bounty hunters. Boba also spent time in a Republic prison and met fellow bounty hunter Cad Bane, who would have been his mentor-turned-enemy in an arc that was never completed.
6Quinlan Vos
From serious Jedi to trouble-maker Jedi
While manyStar Warscharacters had a different story in theClone Wars, Quinlan Vos was given a new personality. InStar Wars: Republic,Quinlan was a much more serious character and fully committed to completing his undercover missions, sometimes to the point of obsession. He nearly fell to the dark side trying to infiltrate Count Dooku’s Dark Jedi, but he eventually redeemed himself and returned to the light.
Star Wars: 10 Differences Between Quinlan Vos In Legends Vs. Canon
Quinlan Vos was recently name-dropped on Obi-Wan Kenobi, but what are the differences between his Star Wars Legends and canon versions?
Quinlan only appeared in a single episode ofThe Clone Wars, but it was enough to establish his more carefree and laid-back demeanor, making jokes at Obi-Wan Kenobi’s expense.Star Wars: Dark Discipleby Christie Golden, based on eight unproduced episodes ofThe Clone Wars, had Quinlan go undercover and team up with Asajj Ventress to assassinate Dooku. WhileDark Discipletook inspiration from Quinlan’s Legends arc, it wasn’t enough to make him feel like his previous incarnation.
5General Grievous
A far less menacing version of a great villain
General Grievous was a radically different character before he appeared inRevenge of the Sith, andThe Clone Warsdoubled down on this change.Grievous was much more menacing and clever in the old Clone Wars timeline, perfectly encapsulated by his first appearance in theStar Wars: Clone Wars2D micro-series where he fought five Jedi at once. He also had a tragic backstory where the Jedi and the Republic failed his people, pushing him to join the Separatists.
While the modern incarnation of Grievous began withRevenge of the Sith,The Clone Warsmade him even more goofy and less intimidating. Grievous' evil personality was more over the top, he was often outsmarted in battle, and he lost several lightsaber duels. This was a far cry from the military genius and unstoppable warrior from the Clone Wars multimedia project, and the show even hinted at a slightly different backstory for how he became a cyborg.
4Asajj Ventress
A much earlier character redemption arc
WhileThe Clone Warsversion of Asajj Ventress was initially a faithful adaptation of the character, her story eventually went in a completely new direction.In the books and comics, Ventress served Dooku until the Clone Wars were nearly over, realizing her master had forsaken her before dying in Obi-Wan Kenobi’s arms. However, she had really gone into a healing trance and stole a ship to disappear into the far reaches of the galaxy.
BUY STAR WARS: DARK DISCIPLE ON AMAZON
InThe Clone Wars, Darth Sidious ordered Dooku to kill Ventress when he sensed how powerful she was becoming.Ventress' journey eventually led her to become a bounty hunterand at times work with the very Jedi she had once fought against.Star Wars: Dark Discipleconcluded her story by having her sacrifice herself to save Quinlan Vos, thoughStar Wars: The Bad Batchseason 3 revealed that she somehow survived.
3Barriss Offee
Alive but fallen to the dark side
One of the most surprising character changes inThe Clone Warswas the fate of Barriss Offee. The show started off fairly consistent with Barriss' portrayal in the books and comics, where she was a loyal Padawan and a skilled Jedi healer throughout the war.Barriss even became a Jedi Knight and took a Padawan named Zonder, but she was killed on Felucia during Order 66.
While Barris eventually found redemption in canon thanks toStar Wars: Tales of the Empire, there was no undoing such a radical change to her story.
This made it nearly impossible to believe whenBarriss was revealed as the mastermind behind the Jedi Temple bombing in theClone Warsseason 5 finale. She also betrayed Ahsoka Tano by framing her for the crime, delivering an impassioned speech to Ahsoka’s tribunal about how far the Jedi had fallen. While Barris eventually found redemption in canon thanks toStar Wars: Tales of the Empire, there was no undoing such a radical change to her story.
2Anakin Skywalker
A new story and a new personality
Perhaps the most shocking character change inThe Clone Warswas Anakin Skywalker, the main character of George Lucas’Star Warsmovies.The Clone WarsAnakin often feels completely different from his film counterpart, sporting a more charming personality, more natural confidence in a leadership role, and a deeper voice. He also had his own Padawan, something that was never alluded to in any of the movies.
The Clone Warsalso made Anakin a Jedi Knight early in the war, unlike in the books where he was knighted six months beforeRevenge of the Sith. These different characterizations mean each timeline adds a different context toRevenge of the Sithdepending on which a viewer is familiar with. It’s standard forThe Clone Warsto depart from the Expanded Universe, but a bit startling when it changes such a prominent film character.
1Darth Maul
Giving a Star Wars villain his time to shine
However, theStar Warscharacter who undoubtedly changed the most from the big screen to the small screen was Darth Maul.Before 2012, Maul surviving his duel with Obi-Wan never made it far past fan theories and speculation, and the books affirmed that he died on Naboo. A few comic shorts played with the idea of him returning in some way, but these were either non-canon or of debatable canonicity.
This completely changed when Lucas decided to bring Maul back forThe Clone Warsand tasked the crew with figuring out how to make it happen.The show greatly expanded on Maul’s character, giving him much more dialogue and evil plans of his own, rather than being Darth Sidious' servant. With a new characterization and an entirely new chapter added to his life, Maul is the most notableStar Warscharacter changed byStar Wars: The Clone Wars.
Star Wars: The Clone Wars
Cast
Star Wars: The Clone Wars is an animated series that explores the intense conflict between the Republic and the Separatists. Featuring a mix of loyalty shifts and alliances, it delves into complex mysteries of the Force and showcases pivotal moments for characters like Anakin Skywalker and Master Yoda.
