This Week in The Clone Wars: Anakin on the Attack

Rumor has it that Anakin Skywalker is a great pilot–"the best star pilot in the galaxy," in fact. If you've been keeping up with your Star Wars: The Clone Wars comics, then you've gotten a recent reminder, as the "Hero of the Confederacy" storyline pits Anakin up against a Valahari master pilot. But it's been awhile since Anakin's flashed his skills on the Cartoon Network's series.

This Friday, however, he plays a dangerous game of "Cat and Mouse" with a worthy opponent, the Separatist Admiral Trench. The voice of Anakin, Matt Lanter, sees these episodes as pivoting between Anakin and his imminent fall as Darth Vader:

“Right now, we are portraying Anakin as the hero that old Ben described in the original movie – a brave warrior and a great pilot. . . . I like getting to play the confidence in him – the cockiness. He literally thinks he always has the best plan, and can get his way out of any situation – and the cool thing is that most of the time he can. Yes, we definitely see some flashes of what’s to come. He has a temper, and he likes a good fight. But Anakin has a good heart and good intentions, and I try to bring that honesty to the character. He’s different from the Anakin we saw in the films; he is more likeable and swashbuckling at this point. I just try to bring out that confident Anakin – and I love that characteristic because it’s so much fun for me to play.

“At this point in the series, I would say he’s still a hero – but we are seeing more and more flashes of the dark side, and more of the temper which foreshadows what’s to come. . . Anakin wants to do what he believes is just and fair, but I feel like the entire Star Wars universe has shades of gray. The Republic isn’t necessarily always right and fair, and that’s why Anakin falls in the end. He doesn’t like to follow rules if he feels it doesn’t make sense to do so. For now, that turns out well, and he saves the day. Sometimes, it doesn’t turn out so well…”

The episode premieres tonight at 9pm on The Cartoon Network. Here's your clip:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I9t-b5lXD80