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Star Wars: The Clone Wars is an American animated television series created by George Lucas. It is part of the Star Wars franchise, exploring the three-year time period between the films Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones (2002) and Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith (2005). The Clone Wars are a series of conflicts fought between the Galactic Republic and a Separatist movement. The Republic's army is led by Jedi Knights and is made up of many clone troopers created from the genetic material of bounty hunter Jango Fett. The series consists of both standalone episodes and multi-episode story arcs that follow different characters, and it features an ensemble cast.

The Clone Wars were previously explored in a traditionally animated "micro-series" titled Star Wars: Clone Wars which was released between the two films. Lucas announced a computer animated expansion of that series in 2005, which became Star Wars: The Clone Wars. The original Clone Wars micro-series is no longer considered part of Star Wars canon. After reviewing early episodes of the new series, Lucas decided to combine some into a film which was released theatrically on August 15, 2008. The series debuted on Cartoon Network on October 3, 2008, and ran for five seasons on the network. After Disney acquired Lucasfilm in October 2012, The Clone Wars was canceled in March 2013.

Many episodes were in different stages of production when the series was canceled. 13 completed episodes were released as a sixth season on Netflix in March 2014. Several other story arcs were released in alternate forms later in 2014, under the bannner The Clone Wars Legacy, and details on further story arcs were revealed in the following years. In July 2018, a final season of The Clone Wars was announced for Disney+. 12 of the series' previously unfinished episodes were completed for the season, which was released in early 2020.

Opening sequence
Most episodes of Star Wars: The Clone Wars begin with the same opening sequence: the series' logo appears in yellow; a phrase of wisdom, which the production referred to as a "fortune cookie", is shown to highlight the moral of the story; and a recap of previous events establishes the premise of the episode. The latter is narrated by Tom Kane in the style of World War II newsreels such as The March of Time.

''Note: The below list of episodes includes the "fortune cookie" phrases at the start of each plot summary. Changes to the opening sequence for some episodes are stated at the start of the relevant season table.''

Episode order
The Clone Wars was designed to be an anthology, combining standalone episodes and multi-episode arcs that were not necessarily produced or released in chronological order. Some episodes in later seasons were set directly before or after episodes of earlier seasons, which Eric Goldman of IGN described as being "amusingly out-of-order" in the classic Star Wars manner; the main Star Wars films were also released out of chronological order. StarWars.com published an official chronological episode order for the series—including the theatrical film and all six seasons—in March 2014, after the series was canceled and released on Netflix. Several unfinished episodes that were released in alternate forms were added to the website's list in June 2015, but these were removed in May 2020 when the final season was added to the list and each episode was linked to Disney+.

Note: The key differences between the episode release order and the official chronological order are stated at the start of the relevant season table in the below list of episodes.

Theatrical film
After reviewing early episodes of the series, creator George Lucas decided to combine some into a film. This was released theatrically by Warner Bros. Pictures on August 15, 2008. Critical reception was negative and the box-office grosses were relatively low, but Warner Bros. still considered the film a success due to it reaching the series' target audience. It grossed $68.3 million worldwide against an $8.5 million budget.

Season 1 (2008–09)
"Ambush" was originally planned to be released later in the season, but was moved to be the series premiere because the producers felt the Yoda-focused episode would be a strong start for the series and something that fans of the Star Wars franchise would enjoy. The episode had the highest viewership for a series premiere on Cartoon Network, and the second highest for any program on the network after the television film Ben 10: Race Against Time (2007). "The Hidden Enemy" is placed before the theatrical film in the chronological order, while "Hostage Crisis" is moved later in the order to follow the third season's "Evil Plans".

Season 2: Rise of the Bounty Hunters (2009–10)
"Senate Murders" is moved later in the chronological order to follow the third season's "Pursuit of Peace". "Cat and Mouse" is placed before the first season's "The Hidden Enemy" and the theatrical film. "Bounty Hunters", "The Zillo Beast", and "The Zillo Beast Strikes Back" are moved up to follow "Children of the Force". "Bounty Hunters" is based on Akira Kurosawa's film Seven Samurai (1954), and the episode is dedicted to Kurosawa.

Season 3: Secrets Revealed (2010–11)
"Clone Cadets" and "Supply Lines" are placed before the first season's "Ambush" in the chronological order, while "Corruption", "The Academy", and "Assassin" are moved up to be before "ARC Troopers".

Season 4: Battle Lines (2011–12)
"Brothers" and "Revenge" open with the series' logo in red instead of yellow to signify the introduction of Darth Maul.

Season 5 (2012–13)
"Revival" is placed directly before "Eminence" in the chronological order. "Secret Weapons", "A Sunny Day in the Void", "Missing in Action", and "Point of No Return" open with the series' logo in blue instead of yellow as a tribute to R2-D2. "The Lawless" is dedicated to Ian Abercrombie, who provided the voice of Palpatine / Darth Sidious until his death soon after recording his dialogue for that episode.

Season 6: The Lost Missions (2014)
After Disney acquired Lucasfilm in October 2012, The Clone Wars was canceled in March 2013. In February 2014, Netflix announced that they had made a deal with Lucasfilm and Disney to begin streaming the series, including the theatrical film, the first five seasons, and a sixth season consisting of 13 completed but previously unreleased episodes.

Season 7: The Final Season (2020)
In July 2018, Filoni announced that a final season of The Clone Wars was being created for the new streaming service Disney+. Three previously unfinished story arcs were completed for the season.

"Gone with a Trace", "Deal No Deal", "Dangerous Debt", and "Together Again" are all placed before "The Bad Batch" in the chronological order. "Old Friends Not Forgotten", "The Phantom Apprentice", "Shattered", and "Victory and Death" have a different opening sequence from other episodes: each episode of this arc begins with "A Lucasfilm Limited Production", as seen in the original Star Wars films, followed by the series' logo in red with John Williams' main Star Wars fanfare from the films. The episodes do not have fortune cookies, instead each episode's title is shown in the form "Part I: Old Friends Not Forgotten".

Unfinished episodes
At the time of the series' cancelation in March 2013, Lucasfilm announced that production on further episodes was halting but some remaining stories would be released as "bonus content". Episodes had been written through the end of an eighth season. 13 completed episodes were released on Netflix in March 2014 as a shorter sixth season, leaving 13 additional story arcs that were in various stages of development:
 * Boba Fett and Cad Bane
 * Crystal Crisis on Utapau
 * Ahsoka's walkabout
 * The Bad Batch
 * Dark Disciple
 * Kashyyyk
 * Son of Dathomir
 * Top Gunn
 * Yuuzhan Vong
 * Return to the Jedi Temple
 * Padme and Mon Cala
 * The Siege of Mandalore

The Clone Wars Legacy
In September 2014, Lucasfilm announced the banner The Clone Wars Legacy under which three unfinished The Clone Wars story arcs would be released in alternate forms.