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Part of becoming an in depth Star Wars fan means watching Star Wars: The Clone Wars. It is impossible to truly appreciate everything happening in the current TV shows unless you have seen the Clone Wars.
However, not everyone has the time to invest into 7 seasons with almost 20 episodes per season. One article says that to watch all of the Clone Wars it would take 2 days, 18 hours, and 30 minutes (Life Hacker Article).
That's why I have made this Guide to Star Wars: The Clone Wars with five levels of commitment, each level increasing the number of episodes you watch.
Key - The list is organized by season with the episode #. Not all of them have their official title here. When there are groups of episodes that carry on a plot line, I've titled those as a description of that plot line and who is involved.
Level 1 - low commitment - important to understanding the plots of current TV shows
Season 1
Ep 5 Rookies (Clones)
Ep 13-14 Jedi Crash
Season 2
Ep 12-14 The Mandalore Plot
Ep 20-22 Boba Fett
Season 3
Ep 5-6 Mandalore Plot 2
Ep 10 Heroes on Both Sides
Ep 12-14 Nightsisters
Ep 15-17 Overlords
Season 4
Ep 14 A Friend in Need (Death Watch)
Ep 21-22 Brothers (Darth Maul)
Season 5
Ep 1 Revival
Ep 2-5 A War on Two Fronts
Ep 6-9 Ahsoka and Younglings
Ep 14-16 Maul and Mandalore
Ep 17-20 Ahsoka
Season 6
Ep 1-4 Clones
Ep 10 The Lost Ones
Season 7
Ep 9-12 The End
Level 2 - low commitment - better context for future shows
Season 1
Ep 5 Rookies (Clones)
Ep 11 Dooku Captured
Ep 13-14 Jedi Crash
Ep 16 The Hidden Enemy (Clones)
Season 2
Ep 5-8 Geonosis
Ep 10 The Deserter (Clones)
Ep 12-14 The Mandalore Plot
Ep 20-22 Boba Fett
Season 3
Ep 1 Clone Cadets
Ep 2 ARC Troopers (Clones & everyone)
Ep 5-6 Mandalore Plot 2
Ep 10 Heroes on Both Sides
Ep 12-14 Nightsisters
Ep 15-17 Overlords (Father Time Plot)
Ep 18-22 The Citadel
Season 4
Ep 7-10 Cool Clones Story
Ep 11-13 Slaves of the Republic Plot
Ep 14 A Friend in Need (Death Watch)
Ep 19-20 Ventress
Ep 21-22 Brothers (Darth Maul)
Season 5
Ep 1 Revival
Ep 2-5 A War on Two Fronts
Ep 6-9 Ahsoka and Younglings
Ep 14-16 Maul and Mandalore
Ep 17-20 Ahsoka
Season 6
Ep 1-4 Clones Cool
Season 7
Just watch all of these :)
Level 3 - higher commitment - these are the episodes I will watch each time I re-watch the show (great characters, great plots)
Season 1
Ep 1 Ambush
Ep 5 Rookies (Clones)
Ep 9 Cloak of Darkness
Ep 11 Dooku Captured
Ep 12 The Gungan General
Ep 13-14 Jedi Crash
Ep 16 The Hidden Enemy (Clones)
Ep 17-18 Blue Shadow Virus
Ep 22 Hostage Crisis
Season 2
Ep 1 Holocron Heist
Ep 2 Cargo of Doom
Ep 5-8 Geonosis
Ep 10 The Deserter (Clones)
Ep 11 Lightsaber Lost (Ahsoka)
Ep 12-14 The Mandalore Plot
Ep 15 Senate Murders (Padme)
Ep 17 Bounty Hunters
Ep 20-22 Boba Fett
Season 3
Ep 1 Clone Cadets
Ep 2 ARC Troopers (Clones & everyone)
Ep 5-6 Mandalore Plot 2
Ep 7 Assassin (Ahsoka & Padme)
Ep 10 Heroes on Both Sides
Ep 12-14 Nightsisters
Ep 15-17 Overlords (Father Time Plot)
Ep 18-22 The Citadel
Ep 21-22 Padawan Lost
Season 4
Ep 7-10 Cool Clones Story
Ep 11-13 Slaves of the Republic Plot
Ep 14 A Friend in Need (Death Watch)
Ep 19-20 Ventress
Ep 21-22 Brothers (Darth Maul)
Season 5
Ep 1 Revival
Ep 2-5 A War on Two Fronts
Ep 6-9 Ahsoka and Younglings
Ep 14-16 Maul and Mandalore
Ep 17-20 Ahsoka
Season 6
Ep 1-4 Clones Cool
Ep 10 The Lost Ones
Season 7
Just watch all of these :)
Level 4 - high commitment - These are all of the episodes you can SKIP if you still don't want to watch all of the show, but are down to watch most of it
EPISODES YOU CAN SKIP
Season 1
None
Season 2
Ep 18-19 Zillo Beast Plot
Season 3
Ep 8 Evil Plans (R2 & C3PO)
Ep 9 Hunt for Ziro
Season 4
Ep 1-3 War between water peoples
Ep 5-6 Droids
Season 5
Ep 10-13 Droids
Season 6
Ep 8-9 Windu & JarJar
Ep 11-14 Yoda and spiritual forces
Season 7
none
Level 5 - highest commitment
Watch all of the episodes. Some parts of it are a haul, but I promise it's worth it if you are someone who wants to dive deep into Star Wars.
I hope this is helpful to all of you Star Wars fans out there!
May the force be with you!