Disney

Disney

Disney

Disney

Disney

Disney

Disney

As someone born in the mid-1970s, it's sometimes hard to wrap my mind around Disney's stewardship of the Star Wars universe. Being born into the world a few months before what we now know as A New Hope meant waiting a long time between new chapters of this amazing story set a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away. Beyond the original trilogy, that Christmas special, and two Ewok movies (that I am sure got cinematic releases in the UK but which were also TV specials here in the US), filling in the back stories of the Empire and the Rebellion was something kids did for themselves with the wide array of toys so many of us spent so much time playing with.

These days it's hard to swing a womp rat without hitting some new Star Wars property or other. Such has been the cadence of new theatrical releases that, in the wake of a box office performance by Solo that was merely "fine" rather than "exceptional," people were even talking about the idea of Star Wars fatigue! Well, add one more new thing to the list. At this year's Comic-Con, a panel on the ten-year anniversary of The Clone Wars animated series ended with a surprise: a new season of 12 episodes has been commissioned to run on Disney's streaming service (which launches next year).

The first animated look at the Clone Wars was Genndy Tartakovsky's distinctive 2D take that ran from 2003 to 2005, collecting a couple of Emmys in the process. Then, in 2008, a 3D animated series—The Clone Wars (note the definite article)—aired. Developed by Dave Filoni, this show ran for five seasons on The Cartoon Network and then got a six-episode final season shunted to Netflix in 2014. (An unused story arc would form the basis of another 3D animated show, Star Wars Rebels.)

Over at starwars.com, Filoni explained what it means to him to be able to finish telling the story:

Personally, it’s very rewarding. Any opportunity to put the final pieces of the story in place is meaningful as a storyteller. I’m happy for the opportunity to define these things and the end of this part of the Clone War. It also makes me reflect on all the people that I got to work with over the years. It reinforces the things I learned from George. It reminds me of the important elements that go into making Star Wars. So, it’s nice on several levels, and I think for the crew that’s still here that worked on Clone Wars, they feel that, as well.

I don't know whether or not Star Wars fatigue is real, but I for one am excited about this. You can tell different stories, and in different ways, when you don't have to cram all the plot into two-and-a-half hours, something Disney has demonstrated to good effect with its Marvel shows on Netflix. Now with its own streaming service on the way, there's presumably a desire to make sure the content isn't all reruns. That means more original content. In addition to this new season of The Clone Wars, we're also getting a live-action Star Wars series directed by Jon Favreau (of Iron Man, not the White House) that takes place after Return of the Jedi but before The Force Awakens.

Listing image by Disney