Clone Wars

Concept and development

The first reference to the Clone Wars appears in George Lucas's third draft of the first Star Wars film, which mentions a diary of the Clone Wars kept by the cyborg General Kenobi. The final version of the film includes two brief mentions: Obi-Wan Kenobi is referred to as a general who served Leia Organa's father, Bail Organa, during the conflict. In drafting The Empire Strikes Back, Lucas considered introducing a clone character involved in the wars.

Leigh Brackett's first draft developed Lando Calrissian as a clone from a planet of clones that were nearly made extinct by the war. Boba Fett was initially considered as being from a group of shocktroopers nearly wiped out by Jedi during the Clone Wars. These concepts were not included in the final film. Lucas guarded the details of the Clone Wars more closely than any other element of Star Wars, making them off-limits to licensed products and books.

Lucas has noted that Palpatine's rise to power parallels that of Adolf Hitler in Nazi Germany, as both were granted emergency powers. He also cited the Vietnam War and Watergate scandal era as primary influences for the political backdrop. The clone forces at the conclusion of Attack of the Clones were the largest digital army created for a film at that point. Lucas proposed opening Revenge of the Sith with a montage of seven battles on seven planets but instead focused on Anakin Skywalker.

The absence of that montage partly led to the CGI-animated Clone Wars television series, which Lucas said could better depict the conflict.

Depiction

The Clone Wars were first referenced in A New Hope, when Obi-Wan Kenobi told Luke Skywalker his father had fought in them, and later in Leia Organa's message, which noted that Obi-Wan had served her father, Bail Organa, during the conflict. Attack of the Clones, the first film to depict the war, ended a Lucas-imposed ban on licensed material from that era. The movie begins with the Republic worried about star systems leaving to join the Confederacy of Independent Systems under Count Dooku.

Chancellor Palpatine tricks Jar Jar Binks and the Senate into giving him emergency powers. Investigating attempts on Senator Padmé Amidala's life, Obi-Wan learns Dooku used a dead Jedi Master's name to secretly commission a clone army for the Republic. Yoda leads the clones to rescue Obi-Wan, Padmé, and Anakin Skywalker on Geonosis, sparking the war's first battle. Afterward, Yoda says, "Begun, the Clone War has." The film ends with Anakin and Padmé secretly marrying, breaking Anakin's Jedi vows.

Analysis

People have often linked the political side of the Clone Wars to the build-up to World War II. One comparison points out that Palpatine, like Adolf Hitler and Nazi Germany, used war and scapegoats to stir up public emotion, securing support and power. Another observer notes that Lucas, as a baby boomer, may have drawn on World War II generally, and that the original trilogy's dark era resembles the Cold War. Journalist Chris Taylor also sees the Clone Wars as a parallel to World War II, while Anne Lancashire finds naming similarities with the American Civil War.

Several sources have also compared the conflict to the Iraq War. An Antiwar.com editorial argues that Star Wars first makes overthrowing oppressive government seem right, then suggests the corrupt tyranny in question is our own. A Wiretap article claims the Bush administration, like Palpatine, exploited fear to gain power. Lucas has said the Iraq war did not exist when he created the Clone Wars, but he noticed parallels between the Vietnam War that inspired Star Wars and the war in Iraq. Producer Rick McCallum confirms the Clone Wars predated the Iraq War, adding that Lucas is shaped by the Vietnam era.

Impact and critical response

Chris Taylor, author of How Star Wars Conquered the Universe, calls the Clone Wars a major part of Star Wars lore. After Return of the Jedi, Kenner devised a storyline involving the return of an exiled genetic terrorist and his Clone Warriors to keep its toy line active. Timothy Zahn said the clones' unexpected appearance fighting for the good guys in Attack of the Clones was wonderfully blindsiding. After seeing the CGI Clone Wars television show, Zahn was grateful that Lucasfilm rejected his initial Heir to the Empire draft, which involved an insane clone of Obi-Wan created during the conflict.