Since its debut in 2008, Star Wars: The Clone Wars has slowly become one of the most beloved entries in the ever-expanding Star Wars franchise. Whilst telling exciting stories set in the years between Episodes II and III, the show introduced dynamic new characters (including Ahsoka Tano and Bo-Katan Kryze), explored mature themes, and even managed to clarify and redeem many elements from the Prequel Trilogy.
Though not all arcs were memorable, many episodes of The Clone Wars garnered significant critical and fan acclaim. Here are the best episodes of Star Wars: The Clone Wars, as ranked by their IMDb ratings.
12) Revenge (Season 4) – Average Rating: 9.1
After finding his brother Maul alive and turned into a cyborg, Savage Opress brings him to Dathomir. Mother Talzin uses her magic to restore Maul's memory (and sanity), as well as craft him a pair of mechanical legs. Fueled with vengeance, Maul massacres a village to draw out his old nemesis Obi-Wan Kenobi, who he takes prisoner. But the brothers' plans are ruined when Asajj Ventress shows up unexpectedly becoming Obi-Wan's unlikely hero.
One of the smartest -- and most daring -- creative decisions that The Clone Wars made was bringing back fan-favorite Sith Lord Darth Maul from the dead, and this episode proved the risk was worth it. The promise of a Maul and Kenobi rematch is enough of a treat, but seeing Obi-Wan and Asajj Ventress team up to escape the brothers made this episode an instant classic.
11) The Jedi Who Knew Too Much (Season 5) – Average Rating: 9.1
In the wake of a mysterious hanger bombing at the Jedi Temple, Ahsoka is framed for killing the main suspect with a Force Choke, much to Anakin's shock. Ahsoka is later sprung from jail from an unseen individual, who has further framed her for the murder of some Clone Troopers. She then goes on the run, pursued by Clones and Jedi alike through Coruscant.
Paying tribute to The Fugitive and classic Hitchcock movies, this episode deepens a tense, paranoid mystery that would complicate Ahsoka's relationship with the Jedi Order moving forward.
10) To Catch a Jedi (Season 5) – Average Rating: 9.1
The follow-up to "The Jedi Who Knew Too Much" saw Ahsoka evading capture in the underbelly of Coruscant. She encounters Asajj Ventress, now working as a bounty hunter, who reluctantly agrees to aid Ahsoka in proving her innocence. Meanwhile, Anakin wrestles with the task of bringing his Padawan to justice.
Not only was this episode a great odd-couple showcase for Ahsoka and Ventress, but it also ramped up the mystery to a fever pitch, cementing the story arc as one of the series's best.
9) Shades of Reason (Season 5) – Average Rating: 9.2
In this episode, Maul, Savage Opress and their crime syndicate, The Shadow Collective, team-up with Pre Vizla and Death Watch to overthrow Duchess Satine and take back Mandalore. Through a series of coordinated attacks, Pre Vizsla is able to pull off the coup and install himself as Mandalore's new leader. However, tensions between Maul and Vizsla builds to a boiling point, and the two men end up dueling for leadership of Death Watch. Maul is victorious but loses much of Death Watch's support.
The Clone Wars – and Star Wars in general – often struggles with its political storytelling. However, the depiction of Death Watch's coup and the infighting that follows is thrilling to watch unfold. It sets the stage for the Final Season's explosive Siege of Mandalore arc. Not to mention the magnificently brutal lightsaber duel between Maul and Vizsla, which ranks as one of the best of the series.
8) Sacrifice (Season 6) – Average Rating: 9.2
"Sacrifice," which once served as the show's series finale before its 2020 revival, follows Yoda as he completes his vision quest that Qui-Gon Jinn and the Force Priestesses have set him on. He travels to the Sith homeworld Moraband, where he encounters ghostly apparitions of Darth Bane and Jedi Master Sifo-Dyas. Meanwhile, Darth Sidious and Count Dooku meet and attempt to attack Yoda on Moraband using Sith magic, causing Yoda to have a vision about a final showdown with Dooku and Sidious in their Coruscant hideout.
"Sacrifice" works surprisingly well as a (temporary) series finale to The Clone Wars. It not only foreshadows future events in the Skywalker Saga, like Anakin murdering Count Dooku, but Yoda's musings on an alternate "victory" for the Jedi in their fight against the Sith is a fitting thematic conclusion for the series. Plus, it makes key elements from Legends canon, including Korriban/Moraband and Darth Bane (extra points for Mark Hamill's frightening vocal performance as Bane), and further deepens the mythos of The Force and the eternal battle between the Jedi and the Sith.
7) Carnage of Krell (Season 4) -- Average Rating: 9.4
After enduring the cruel leadership of General Pong Krell during their campaign on Umbara, the Clone Troopers finally begin to rebel against their Jedi Commander once he orders the execution of Fives and Jesse. Later, after discovering that Krell had pitted two squads of Clones against each other, he is revealed as a traitor and hopeful Dooku-disciple, and attacks his soldiers.
Bringing to an end one of The Clone Wars' darkest arcs, "Carnage of Krell" demonstrated the show's ability to handle weighty subject matter and themes in the context of war. This is also yet another episode that highlights the Clone troopers as they wrestle with their humanity, further developing them into sympathetic, individualistic characters and not the identical cannon fodder that they were in the movies. Also, Pong Krell was a straight-up jerk, so seeing him finally brought to justice was extremely satisfying.
6) The Lawless (Season 5) – Average Rating: 9.7
The follow-up to "Shades of Reason" deals with the aftermath of Maul's usurping of Pre Vizsla. Maul is holding Mandalorian Duchess Satine (and Obi-Wan Kenobi's former lover) hostage in an attempt to lure his nemesis into a confrontation. Obi-Wan attempts to rescue Satine, but they are captured and Satine is tragically killed. But Maul is not victorious – Obi-Wan is rescued by Bo-Katan and Death Squad, and Darth Sidious arrives to duel his former apprentice, killing Savage Opress in the process.
This episode is as tragic as it is exciting. The death of Duchess Satine in the arms of Obi-Wan was one of the most heartbreaking deaths of the series and added a new dimension to his character. Also, since Darth Sidious was used sparingly in The Clone Wars, his duel against the Dathomir brothers was a welcome – and epic – surprise.
5) The Wrong Jedi (Season 5) – Average Rating: 9.7
In the conclusion to the Temple bombing story arc, Ahsoka is put on trial for the crimes she did not commit. Luckily, Anakin is able to solve the mystery and bring the real perpetrator to justice: Jedi Padawan Barriss Offee. Though Ahsoka is cleared of all charges, she decides to leave the Jedi Order.
"The Wrong Jedi" is a defining episode for Ahsoka, setting her on a mostly solitary journey that would continue during the show's seventh and final season, as well as into Rebels and The Mandalorian.
4) Old Friends Not Forgotten (Season 7) – Average Rating: 9.8
The last four episodes of The Clone Wars turned out to be the all-time fan-favorites, comprising of a final story arc that presented the Siege of Mandalore and Order 66, mostly from Ahsoka Tano's perspective. "Old Friends Not Forgotten" kicks off the arc as Anakin, Obi-Wan and the 501st Legion are busy fighting in the Outer Rim sieges. They are recruited by Ahsoka and Bo-Katan to attack Mandalore in order to take it back from Maul. Although Anakin and Obi-Wan are called away to defend Coruscant from Grievous, Ahsoka leads an assault on Mandalore and encounters Maul.
From the emotional reunion of Ahsoka with Anakin and her old Clone compatriots to the epic siege on Mandalore, "Old Friends Not Forgotten" is pure Star Wars and a blockbuster start to the most ambitious arc of The Clone Wars.
3) The Phantom Apprentice (Season 7) – Average Rating: 9.9
In the second part of the final arc, Ahsoka duels Maul as the battle rages around them. Through Maul, Ahsoka finally learns about Darth Sidious's master plan, including his sinister intentions for her former master, Anakin Skywalker.
This episode is iconic for good reason – Maul and Ahsoka's climactic duel is not just one of the best lightsaber duels of the series, but one of the best duels in all of Star Wars. With foreboding references to the tragic events of Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, it felt like the series was finally connecting with the rest of the saga.
2) Shattered (Season 7) – Average Rating: 9.9
In the penultimate episode of the series, Ahsoka is returning to Coruscant victorious, with a captive Maul in tow. Unfortunately, this trip happens to coincide with Anakin's fall to the Dark Side and Order 66, which turns every Clone on the ship, including Rex, against Ahsoka. While evading her own Clone Troopers and discovering the truth about the Clones' inhibitor chips, Ahsoka decides to do something unthinkable to survive: free Maul from his prison.
Although fans have known that the war (and the series) would end with Order 66, it was still shocking to see the Clones betray Ahsoka, especially Rex. After all, fans have gotten to know and care for the Clones, and to see their free will be finally taken from them was heartbreaking. Apart from the disastrous implications of Order 66, the episode works exceptionally as a cat-and-mouse thriller, and despite being confined to the interior of a Star Destroyer, it felt epic in scale.
1) Victory and Death (Season 7) – Average Rating: 9.9
Now aided by a liberated Rex, Ahsoka continues her quest to escape the Star Destroyer while Maul continues down his path of destruction. As the ship crashes thanks to Maul, Ahsoka and Rex manage to narrowly survive and bury the bodies of their former comrades before departing. In the closing minutes, the crash site is visited by Darth Vader, who discovers one of Ahsoka's lightsabers in the wreckage.
It was inevitable that the ending of The Clone Wars would be bittersweet, given the tragic inevitability of Order 66 and Anakin's fall to the Dark Side. However, fans weren't prepared for how melancholy the series finale would be. The aptly titled "Victory and Death" finally brings the Clone Wars to their end by reminding viewers of the horrific cost of war, even in a galaxy far, far away.