10 yrs after the events of The Phantom Menace. We enter a time of seperation. A Naboo transport escorted by two fighters lands on Coruscant. As it lands on the platform, we see R2-D2 and one of teh guard captons on the fighters. The Transport is destroyed, killing the Senators decoy Corde. We see that the other fighter pilot is Padme and she quickly leaves the platform. The Jedi Council meets with the Chancellor, Yoda greets Padme and Plapatine recommends a Jedi protection detail for Padme. He recommends Kenobi and Skywalker. The Jedi arrive at the Naboo embassy and meet with Padme. Two bounty hunters talk about the missed asssassination attempt. Padme sleeps and the Jedi keep watch with R2. Anakin and Obi-won talk while a droid deposits two poisonous snakes into Padme’s bed. The Jedi sense something amiss and charge in, Anakin slices the snakes and Obi-won leaps out of the window to catch the droid. He flys above Coruscant until the bounty hunter shoots the droid. Anakin arrives in a speeder and picks up Obi-won. they follow the bounty hunter through the city. Anakin takes a short cut and jumps onto the bounty hunters speeder. They fight and he disables the speeder. It crashes in a seed outskirts area. They follow the bounty hunter into a bar.
Anakin searches the bar while Obi Wan gets a drink. Obi Wan is attacked and they take the bounty hunter outside to talk. Before Zam Wessell can talk she is shot by a poison dart. The Jedi Council instructs Obi-won to track down the other bounty hunter. Anakin is instructed to protect Padme as she returns to Naboo. He talks with the Chancellor to help direct Padme to return home for her safety. Obi Wan expresses concerns with Anakin being given his first mission. Padme puts her power in Representative Jar Jar Binks and departs – she is clearly annoyed as she talks with Anakin. As they depart Anakin is given instruction to only do things with direct contact with the Council or Obi Wan. They leave with R2.
Obi Wan goes to Dax’s Diner on Coruscant. He tells him everything he can about he Kamino Saber Dart and how to find the planet it is on. The Jedi Archives have been no help. Obi Wan seeks assistance from Master Jocasta Nu and she informs him that if there is nothing in the archives it does not exist. He consults Yoda, who tells him to go there and check it out. They are troubled that a Jedi must have erased the information from the Archives. Padme and Anakin return to Naboo. Padme wants to travel to the country and be safe in her estates. Obi Wan travels to the location and finds a blue water planet called Kamino. He is greeted warmly and was told that he was expected. He is brought to the leader of the Kaminoans who tells him that Jedi Master Syfo-Dyas commissioned an army for the republic with 200,000 units ready and a million more on the way.
Anakin and Padme flirt. She is restrained and he is eager. Obi Wan tours the cloning facility and learns how they created the army. He is introduced to a Bounty Hunter named Jango Fett and his son (an unaltered clone named Boba). He asks to meet this bounty hunter. Anakin and Padme keep flirting. Obi Wan meets Jango and Boba Fett. Fett says he was recruited by a man named Tyranus (nobody knows the significance of that). Anakin keeps hitting on Padme. He professes his undying love, she is uncomfortable. Anakin says they could keep their relationship a secret. Padme does not think that is a good idea. On Kamino, Obi Wan reports to the Council and the council asks Obi Wan to bring in the Bounty Hunter. Anakin has nightmares that his mother is in trouble. He tells Padme that he must go help his mother. Obi Wan sees Boba and Jango trying to flee and they attack him. He is knocked off of the side of one of the platforms but he is able to enter the complex again. As Jango and Boba depart, he is able to land a tracker on Slave 1.
Anakin and Padme land on Tatooine. They go to Watto’s shop and ask about Shmi. He relates that Cliegg Lars bought Anakins mother and married her. Obi Wan follows Jango and Boba, they attack him as he leaves hyperspace. His ship is damaged but he manages to hide and follows them down to the surface of Geonosis. Obi Wan sees a lot of Trade Federation ships on the planet surface. Anakin and Padme go to the Lars farm and meet C-3P0. Anakin is told that his mother was taken by the Tuskens. He gets on a speeder and heads out to find her. On Geonosis, Obi Wan sneaks into a meeting with the heads of the Seperatists – led by Count Dooku. Anakin arrives at the Raider camp and finds his mother dying. Shmi dies in his arms and he gets hella angry, he murders the entire camp and takes Shmi home. Yoda feels a disturbance in the force. Obi Wan tries to send a message to the Council and it goes to Tatooine. He is captured shortly after. R2 receives the call. Anakin and Padme decide to go to Geonosis to help Obi Wan.
Anakin retransmits the message to the Jedi Council. Yoda goes to Kamino. The Council goes to Geonosis. The Senate at Jar Jar’s urging votes to grant emergency powers to the Chancellor to meet this new threat. Dooku tries to convince Obi Wan to join him, he refuses. Anakin and Padme are separated on Geonosis and go through a droid factory. They are both ultimately captured by battle droids. Anakin, Obi Wan, and Padme are reunited in an arena where they are going to be killed. They fight three beasts and win. The Viceroy and Dooku send droids to kill them, and at that point the Jedi arrive and protect the trio. Just as all the Jedi are surrounded Dooku calls a cease fire and asks for their surrender. Yoda arrives at the front of the Clone army. The battle truly begins. Anakin and Obi Wan go after Dooku with Padme, she falls out of their transport and arrives late to the confrontation. Anakin is upset and charges Dooku, losing his right arm. Anakin and Obi Wan are defeated. Yoda arrives and saves them but lets Dooku escape to save their lives. At the end of the movie, we see Anakin and Padme Married, we also see the Chancellor oversee the arrival of the Grand Army of the Republic. There is a moment in the battle of Geonosis where Dooku escapes with the Designs for the “ultimate weapon” which is the death star.
“Begin the Clone Wars have.” Is the standout phrase from Master Yoda. Watching chronologically, you see Dooku use Syfo-dyas’s access code to delete Kamino from the Jedi Archives, not really a mystery to the viewer. Personally, I really dislike this Episode. Anakin is a creep. His pursuit of Padme is not romantic, but fully lustful and continues despite Padme’s continual requests to stop. If she were my daughter, I would want to get that dude as far away as possible.
I also find it interesting that the Jedi do not actively probe more into why the Grand Army of the Republic was created and how. They get that something fishy is going on, but they are still quick to use the troops to aid their cause – which ultimately leads to their downfall.