Fyraltari watches The Clone Wars (2008) for the first time

[Fyraltari]

Season 1, Episode 11: Dooku Captured

Spoiler: Recap

Show

We begin as Anakin has been captured by the separatists while hunting for Dooku and Obi-Wan sneaks aboard a droid frigate to rescue him. This feels like there's an episode missing. Kenobi gets to do some Metal Gear action before reaching the detention facility. The first cell holds two random aliens so he locks the door back. Clearly Jedi don't believe in "the ennemy of my my ennemy...". As he tries another cell, Anakin jumps him assuming he was a Separatist interogator. If only you people had psychic powers that would allow you to find and detect one another. Turns out Anakin let himself be captured even entrusting his saber to Obi-Wan to make it more convincing. I mean the onmy reason this isn't maximally suspicious is that there doesn't seem to be a point to this plan at all. Anakin complains that he won't be able to become a Master if Obi-wan keeps making plan that involve his capture. "You are a master... at getting caught!" This is why he's going to kill you all, you know.

They confront Dooku who was meditating just as Ahsoka and a fleet arrive. The Sith Lord takes the time to diss Skywalker before activating a trap door beneath him. Anakin follows through the laundry chute of doom while Kenobi tries to beat them to the hangar. They both arrive to late to stop Dooku but Obi-Wan feels entitled to be snide at Anakin over this for some reason. The pursue in a Separatist shuttle as the battle rages on. Obi-Wan and Anakin both gloat about a better gunner/pilot than the other is a pilot/gunner. If this is supposed to be witty banter it really isn't. They manage to shoot Dooku's ship but Obi-Wan misses a vulture droid and Anakin can't dodge it so both ships crash-land on the planet below.

Our dynamic duo wastes no time before shifting blame for the crash on the other and seriously what the hell? Theya re supoposed to have been friends for over a decade, brothers in spirit if not by blood so why do they act like this? Obi-wan only talks to belittle Anakin and half the time Anakin speaks it's to be put down by Obi-Wan and the other half it's to bite back. They don't sound playful either, they sound like the beginning of a buddy cop movie when the protagonists still hate each other's guts. Moving on, they find Dooku's ships and destroy his homing beacon. They proceed to track him to some caves and start looking for him, somehow not sensing his presence. Hee throws some rocks at them, knocking them out, steals Skywlaker's lghtsaber and leave, collapsing the entrance. Odd. Why not steal Kenobi's as well? Or better yet, kill them both? Dooku gets back to his ship only to find a bunch of Weequay digging stuff out. He hides their identity and their leader (Hondo Ohnaka) offers him a ride to the nearest settled planet. For a fee.

The Jedi come to and Obi-Wan start mocking Anakin for losing his lightsaber to a rock. Anakin shoots back when Obi-Wan's stops working because it was hit by a rock. As they look for Anakin's they are attacked by a creature called a gundark (they were mentionned back in AotC). Kenobi lets it play with Anakin (who deosn't appreciate) for a while before knocking it out with some more rocks. However the commotion has breached a pocket of toxic gas and another gundark is coming. The Jedi try open the entrance as fast as possible before collapsing and being rescued by Ahsoka, Rex and their troops. Thy then try to pretend they ahad the situation under control rather than be thankful. Pathetic. Ahsoka has none of it and let Skywalker know it. This amuses Obi-Wan. Urgh. He really is at his worst today.

Dooku and Ohnaka arrive at their destination in a flying saucer-looking ship. Huh. Guess eevery Sci-fi universe is obligated by law to have of these somewhere. However Dooku discovers that rather than a settlement this is a pirate base, oh and Ohnaka recognized him because of course he did. Dooku's claim of being a Sith Lord doesn't impress the pirates (would they even know what a sith Lord is? IT's been a millenium since that was common knowledge). Ohnaka pawned both of Dooku's lightsabers and inteds to take him hostage. Dooku is outnumbered and surrounded and since this isn't Knights of the Old Republic he can't use Sith Lightning at 360°. He offers whatever amount of money Ohnaka wants. The pirate is coy enough to guess how the Separatists would answer to that (Bang! Bang! Boom!) and contacts the Republic instead. This matter is important enough to be brought to some of the Republic's bigwigs meaning: Masters Yoda and Windu, Supreme Chancellor Palpatine, Senator Amidala and ... sigh ... Representative Binks. Palpatine at first refuse to deal with the pirate claiming that the holographic image of Dooku he showed them could be faked but Yoda identifies Dooku's saber and they decide to send Obi-Wan and Anakin to confirm his capture (alone and unarmed insists Ohnaka) before sending a Senator and Jar Jar to bring the payment (1, 000, 000 credits in spice (isn't that space drugs?)). Sending Jar Jar to the rescue is probably Sidious's way of sabotaging the mission. Cunning. Ohnaka says he doesn't want to get involved in the war something he should probably have thought of before capturing one of the two heads of state.

Anakenobi arrive at Ohnaka's base and things are quite tense as the JEdi don't trust the pirates (sensible) and as the pirates have Anakin's saber. They are shown Dooku's cell where he is chained into a contraption identical to the one he had Obi-Wan in back on Geonosis. He chooses to rub Anakin's recent capture in their face though and seems confident he will escape. However he does tell them to tread carefully around the pirates, less they end up in the same situation. Anakin thinks the pirates wouldn't burn bridges with the Republic as they just wna ttheir money. Dooku retorts that they are greedy, deceitful and above all else stupid. "It's a wonder you don't get along, then, says Obi-Wan. You have so much in common." Zing! The count is proven right, though, as while Anakin and Obi-Wan enjoy a weequay banquet (Anakin enjoys the dancers and Obi-Wan facepalms) to celebrate the deal, one pirate pours something in their drink. Both JEdi use Force assisted-sleight of hand to exchange their drinks with their respectiv neighbours. Anakin wonders how a bunch of pirate managed what they couldn't (not helped by Ohnaka pretending it happend thanks to an epic fight) and Obi-Wan concludes it must be a cosmic lesson in humility. They drink to that as their neighbours collapse.

Spoiler: My thoughts

Show

Not much to say about that one, it' smostly set up for the next episode. First appartition of Hondo Ohnaka (who isn't even named in the episode) and manages to pull the Han Solo-ish lovable rogue act.
Why is Obi-Wan so terrible, though?