History TearJerker / StarWarsTheCloneWars

* Finally, while [[Film/ANewHope we all]] [[WesternAnimation/StarWarsRebels know better]], the series ends with no [[RayOfHopeEnding glimmer of hope]]. Every movie and series before it ended with a celebration or a reassurance of hope; but ''The Clone Wars'' ends with a clone graveyard in the shadow of a crashed Republic ship, all but screaming that the Clone Wars failed to protect the Republic.
** Even [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MJrEkTEkE4Q the music]] isn't dramatic or sweeping, but a mournful tone reinforcing that everything the heroes did was for [[AllForNothing nothing.]]
* The final shot is loaded with symbolism: after years of bloodshed, a tyrannical empire — literally represented by Darth Vader — marches away to enforce a new system of oppression; Vader walks away from a helmet representing his former student, with [[ThatManIsDead that part of himself dead]]; all that remains of the once-proud [=332nd=] Company is a mass grave on a dead moon, with the heroic deeds of some of the Republic's greatest soldiers forgotten in the wake of their betrayal.

--->'''Obi-Wan:''' You're Satine's sister, aren't you? ... I'm so sorry...

** On that note, there's the vision the Son gives Anakin of what he's going to become in "[[Recap/StarWarsTheCloneWarsS3E17GhostsOfMortis Ghosts of Mortis]]". It's a rapid succession of scenes featured in ''Revenge of the Sith'', ending in an image of Darth Vader and the destruction of what is probably Alderaan. This is all bad enough, but then there's Anakin's reaction - he's ''horrified'' that this might possibly come true, and he's desperate to prevent it. This, combined with DramaticIrony, just makes the whole thing even worse.
*** Despite Yoda's claim that "the future is always in motion", every Force vision Anakin has in the Prequel Trilogy lends legitimate insight into future events. This would imply Anakin's visions of Vader were an inevitability rather than possibility, which has a number of disturbing implications. On a metatextual level, the mere existence of the Original Trilogy meant his role was set in stone. His character never had a choice to become anything but Darth Vader, and that casts a pall over every action he takes in denial of his fate, making it pitifully futile.
** The series retroactively presents Anakin's FaceHeelTurn in horrific detail. In the [[Recap/StarWarsTheCloneWarsMovie pilot movie]] he is brave, resourceful, humorous, compassionate and wise; but over the first three seasons, he pushes himself further and dances with TheDarkSide to save those he cares for. It's only in the final seasons that show not all of it was his fault, like Obi-Wan [[FakingTheDead faking his death]] and Ahsoka's wrongful conviction. Considering the Jedi Council knows that Anakin has ''issues'', you'd think they were trying to turn him against them; and depending on how you take [[KnightInSourArmor Mace Windu]]'s actions, maybe they were.

*** Perhaps they were. In particular, Mace's character is ambiguous at best. He was the one who casually dismissed the idea of the Sith's return in ''The Phantom Menace'' and his first thought upon hearing that Palpatine is a Sith is to go and murder him in ''Revenge of the Sith''. Had he fallen to the Dark Side?

** Of particular note relating to the inevitability, ''The Clone Wars'' retroactively presents Anakin's fall to the Dark Side in horrific detail. In the [[Recap/StarWarsTheCloneWarsMovie pilot movie]], he is brave, resourceful, humorous, compassionate, and wise. Over the course of the first three seasons, we see him push himself further and further in addition to dancing with the DarkSide in order to save those he cares for. Then, the later seasons present the reasons why Anakin is so distant from the rest of the Jedi. First, Obi-Wan's faked death is kept from him so his reaction helps sell it. Then, the Council basically abandons Ahsoka when she is framed for a crime that she did not commit. Considering the Council knows that Anakin has ''[[{{Understatement}} issues]]'', you'd think they were trying to turn him against them.

* Every time you watch ''The Clone Wars'', keep in mind the events that we know are going to happen in the future of the ''Star Wars'' canon (which is presented in the installments that take place after ''The Clone Wars''. That is, the events in ''Revenge of the Sith'' and the Original Trilogy): Anakin will turn to the Dark Side and become Darth Vader (along with the fact that Mace, Padmé, and Obi-Wan will all die by his hands), the Jedi Order will be mostly exterminated (meaning that every single Jedi featured in ''The Clone Wars'' will most likely be victims of Order 66), the 501st Legion will become Darth Vader's personal hit squad, Yoda will be forced into exile for the rest of his life, Palpatine will turn the Republic in to an oppressive Empire, etc. This make all the 'happy' episodes (every time Anakin and Padmé reunite, the future 501st Legion soldiers in training, Yoda giving words of encouragement to the clone troopers) much harder to watch.

* The fact that there's no [[RayOfHopeEnding glimmer of hope]] at the end. [[Film/ANewHope We may]] [[WesternAnimation/StarWarsRebels know better]], but far as everyone knows, [[DownerEnding there is no hope left]]. Every movie and show ended with a celebration or a scene that reminds everyone there is still hope, from the Naboo Victory Celebration of ''The Phantom Menace'' to Rey rechristening herself as a Skywalker ready to rebuild the Jedi in ''The Rise of Skywalker''. But not ''The Clone Wars''. It ends on a clone graveyard in the shadow of a crashed Republic ship, as a fallen hero visits it as the galaxy's tyrant.
* The final shot of the series carries quite a bit of bleak symbolism with it. After years of bloodshed, [[AllForNothing the legacy of the Clone Wars was one of complete and utter failure to protect the Republic]] as an Empire -- reflected quite literally by the presence of Darth Vader -- marches away to enforce a new system of oppression. All that remains of the once-proud 332[[superscript:nd]] Company is a mass grave on a dead moon, with the heroic deeds of some of the Republic's greatest soldiers lost to time, never to be remembered in the wake of their ultimate betrayal. And Darth Vader has turned his back on a helmet representing his former student, with that part of himself dead.
** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MJrEkTEkE4Q The music]] adds onto the tragedy. It's a low, mournful tune, one that musically, reinforces what the episode's final moments tell us: ''everything'' that the heroes did was for ''nothing''.

* Numerous Jedi Masters have been sent to the worlds we see them die on, Anakin and Obi-Wan have been called to rescue the Chancellor from General Grievous. [[Film/RevengeOfTheSith We know what happens next]].

[[quoteright:350:[[Recap/StarWarsTheCloneWarsS4E10CarnageOfKrell https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/main_qimg_431f94f0835855c6ac2208dbb1eea41f_5.png]]]]

[[quoteright:350:[[Recap/StarWarsTheCloneWarsS4E10CarnageOfKrell https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/waxerslastmoments_cok.png]]]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''[[MyGodWhatHaveIDone I fired on my own brothers...]]'']]
[[AC:"[[Recap/StarWarsTheCloneWarsS4E2GunganAttack Gungan Attack]]"]]

[[quoteright:350:[[Recap/StarWarsTheCloneWarsS5E20TheWrongJedi https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/2ab1b872_3f8e_45a8_963a_5250065019b5.jpeg]]]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''"I'm sorry, master, but I'm not coming back."'']]

[[quoteright:350:[[Recap/StarWarsTheCloneWarsS6E4Orders https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/fives_death_4.jpg]]]]
[[caption-width-right:350: ''"[[IDieFree The mission...The nightmares...They're finally...over...]]"'']]

[[caption-width-right:350:''[[MyGodWhatHaveIDone I fired on my own brothers...]]'']]

[[quoteright:350:[[Recap/StarWarsTheCloneWarsS4E10CarnageOfKrell https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/waxerslastmoments_cok.png]]]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''[[MyGodWhatHaveIDone I fired on my own brothers...]]'']]
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* [[Order66 After twelve years in the making]], [[FinalSolution the time has come]].

* After twelve years in the making, [[ForegoneConclusion the time has come]].

** The last time Ahsoka interacted with Padmé was when the latter defended her at her trial. Her losses in this episode are bad enough, but it's only gonna get worse when she hears the news of Padmé's death. For the longest time, she never knew that Anakin killed Padmé. She also likely didn't know Padmé was pregnant (unless Anakin or Rex told her offscreen) so when she met Bail again she probably had to learn the woman who defended her from the death penalty died with her unborn child. [[FromBadtoWorse She also knew about Anakin and Padmé's relationship]], [[FridgeHorror so she probably would assume she died trying protect him]].

* The poor [[MonsterSobStory titular creature]] gets killed off toward the end of this episode.

* When the Son realizes [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone that he has fatally wounded his sister,]] his scream of agony and utter despair before he flees is heart breaking.

** There is, however, a HopeSpot—he sees that [[ThereIsAnother there is another Skywalker]], and it's implied that he gets at least a glimpse of the events of the Original Trilogy, leading up to his own death, the [[HeelFaceTurn redemption of Anakin Skywalker]] and the fall of the Galactic Empire. At the end, Yoda, now with knowledge of the secret to eternal life, infers to Obi-Wan and Mace Windu that while they may not win the war, by becoming one with the Force—a technique that the Sith can never master—they will be able to sow the seeds of [[Film/ReturnOfTheJedi victory over the Dark Side once and for all,]] showing that even in darkness, [[HopeSpringsEternal there is hope.]]

** The last time Ahsoka interacted with Padmé was when the latter defended her at her trial. Her losses in this episode are bad enough, but it's only gonna get worse when she hears the news of Padmé's death. For the longest time, she never knew that Anakin killed Padmé. She also likely didn't know Padmé was pregnant (unless Anakin or Rex told her offscreen) so when she met Bail again she probably had to learn the woman who defended her from the death penalty died with her unborn child. [[FromBadtoWorse She also knew about Anakin and Padmé's relationship,]] [[FridgeHorror so she probably would assume she died trying protect him]].

* A small moment, but still sad: After being rescued we see Plo genuinely saddened after he finds out that he, Wolffe, Boost, and Sinker are the only ones who survived the attack.

-->'''Maul''': ''([[LaughingMad laughes in disbelief]]) Too late?!'' For what? The Republic to fall?! It already has, and you just can't see it!

* Gar Saxon’s abandonment by Maul, whom he liberated from incarceration at the hands of Darth Sidious and a figure he clearly looks up to. The Shadow Collective could have been a family to Maul. The way Gar Saxon was discarded (albeit knowing dying in battle is the Mandalorian ideal) so ruthlessly, it was no wonder we see him as a broken toady come ''Rebels''.

* After twelve years in the making, [[ForegoneConclusion the time has come.]]

* As if Order 66 wasn’t bad enough, what makes it worse is that the 332nd clones are still wearing the helmets painted in Ahsoka’s honor as they’re trying to kill her. Just minutes ago these men would have gladly laid down their lives for her, and now they’re trying to gun her down without mercy.

* Does the medic symbol on the medbay doors remind you of anyone?

* Poor young Karis dying words to Ventress, still holding onto hope that the Nightsisters could defeat the Separatist Droid army.

* In the episode, Ventress outright ''begs'' Mother Talzin not to leave her alone on Dathomir.

* Also, ''R2's'' near-death is this, especially for viewers who haven't seen ''Film/RevengeOfTheSith'' onwards. It really does look like that the previous episode's events have inspired D-Squad. Anakin's tone of voice when he orders for a search party to look for R2 is also heartbreaking.

** To quote Tumblr user rise-of-ahsoka, “Vader didn’t have to fly to a small, remote moon to look for the remains of one, insignificant Jedi in the old wreck of a Republic Cruiser, but Anakin — oh, but Anakin needed to.“
* Consider everyone Ahsoka had ever met and known throughout the show:
** The last time Ahsoka was with Padmé was when the latter defended her at her trial. Her losses in this episode are bad enough, but it’s only gonna get worse when she hears the news of Padmé’s death. For the longest time, she never knew that Anakin killed Padme. She also likely didn't know Padmé was pregnant (unless Anakin or Rex told her offscreen) so when she met Bail again she probably had to learn the woman who defended her from the death penalty died with her unborn child. [[FromBadtoWorse She also knew about Anakin and Padmé's relationship,]] [[FridgeHorror so she probably would assume she died trying protect him.]]
** Her last interaction with [[ParentalSubstitute Plo Koon]] was when she refused his and council's offer to her to rejoin the order. And he couldn't join the meeting in the previous episode because he was busy flying with his squadron... Unlike with Yoda, Obi-Wan, or Anakin, he never got to make some sort of amend with Ahsoka before everything came crashing down.

*** Perhaps they were. In particular, Mace's character is ambiguous at best. He was the one who casually dismissed the idea of the Sith's return in ''The Phantom Menace'' and in ''Revenge of the Sith'' his first thought upon hearing that Palpatine is a Sith is to go and murder him. Had he fallen to the Dark Side?

* For viewers who saw the GrandFinale of ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsRebels'', knowing that Ahsoka is the only one of this series' PowerTrio to come out of the original six Star Wars movies alive ''hurts.'' All their adventures, their triumphs, their failures, all the meaningful moments they shared...and in the end, only [[SoleSurvivor Ahsoka]] is left to tell the tale of ''The Tragedy Of Anakin Skywalker''.