This Week in The Clone Wars: Separatist Heroes, plus New Character Models

In 2006 or so, when Alex Doonesbury was getting ready to go to college, the strip marked the new stage in her life by drawing something differently. Her eyes! (Before | After) No longer (literally) wide-eyed and innocent, she became a little more knowing.

In this week's episode of Star Wars: The Clone Wars, a similar change affects Ahsoka Tano, as well as Anakin and Obi-Wan. (You can see Ahsoka's original eyes here.) Dave Filoni, supervising director for The Clone Wars, says this is no accident:

“Over the course of the series so far, our characters have been affected by the conflict, so the changes we are seeing are a reflection of what they've gone through and how they've changed. . . We're getting closer to the events of Episode III, and the look of the series is moving toward that look and those designs. We don’t have a live-action point of comparison for Ahsoka, but her development is definitely as pronounced as anyone’s. When the war began, she was just a kid; she was strong and capable, but she had a lot to learn – and she’s been through a lot. She’s been changed by the things she’s seen and done, and now we’re seeing that reflected in her look. She’s older, more mature. In this episode, we see a significant step for her emotional development, in addition to her aesthetic development. Coming face to face with the enemy is going to be an eye-opening experience for her.”

This week's episode is a particularly good one to showcase these complex new looks, as it introduces Ahsoka to nuances in the war. With Padmé Amidala, she travels in secret to Raxus to forge a peace agreement with the Separatists, and must confront her own prejudices and preconceptions when she comes face to face with the enemy. She will learn that there are “Heroes on Both Sides.”

Here's a clip:

The episode premieres tonight (Friday, 11/19) at 9pm ET/PT on The Cartoon Network.