The preview video for next week's episode of The Clone Wars, "Defenders of Peace", can be viewed at Starwars.com.


Synopsis from the main site: "While the Jedi combat a new Separatist weapon, the pacifist Lurmen must decide whether they will lay down to the oppressive Separatists or fight with Anakin, Ahsoka and Jedi General Aayla Secura."




UPDATE: From Lucasfilm:

"In an all-new episode of STAR WARS: THE CLONE WARS, the Jedi must convince a pacifist race that keeping the peace sometimes requires taking up arms."





"Stranded on a distant planet, the Jedi must convince its pacifist inhabitants to bend their beliefs and fight for peace in ?Defenders of Peace,? an all-new episode of the hit animated series STAR WARS: THE CLONE WARS, premiering at 9 p.m. ET/PT Friday, Jan. 23, on Cartoon Network.

While the Jedi combat a new Separatist weapon, the pacifist Lurmen must decide whether they will lay down to the invading forces or take up arms with Anakin, Ahsoka and Jedi General Aayla Secura to protect their belief system.

Director Steward Lee and story editor Henry Gilroy embraced the episode?s departure from the more explosive aspects of the war. Focusing on the Lurmen and their beliefs provided a unique opportunity to step away from the central conflict to explore issues facing innocents who are all-too-often caught in the crossfire.

?It?s about making choices,? Lee says. ?The Lurmen chose this pacifist way of life, and the Jedi chose to defend them whether they want it or not. The Jedi must show the younger generation of Lurmen that you have to defend what you love.?

?I?ve always been intrigued by pacifists during wartime ? people who will do anything they can to avoid fighting, yet are inexorably drawn into a battle against their will and without choice,? says Gilroy, who cites Akira Kurosawa?s The Seven Samurai as inspiration for the episode. ?It?s about choosing sides or choosing death. You have the Jedi willing to sacrifice their lives to defend innocents who don?t really want to defend themselves or to be defended. I think that?s an interesting premise.?'


Picture caption: "Even faced with the destruction of their village, the Lurmen elders stand fast in their pacifist beliefs in ?Defenders of Peace,? an all-new episode of STAR WARS: THE CLONE WARS premiering at 9 p.m. ET/PT Friday, Jan. 23, on Cartoon Network."





You can also click here and visit Newsarama where George Takei talks about his role as Lok Durd in The Clone Wars. (via EUC) Excerpt below:


'?I don?t consider it jumping ship,? says Takei. ?The Star Trek philosophy is to embrace the diversity of the universe, and Star Wars is part of that diversity. I also think Star Trek and Star Wars are related beyond both having the word ?Star.?

Not that he doesn?t acknowledge differences, either.

?Star Trek is science fiction,? said Takei. ?Star Wars is science fantasy. Based on the episodes I worked on, I think with Star Wars: Clone Wars we?re starting to see a merging though. It does deal, philosophically, with some of the issues of the time, which is always something Star Trek was known for. War, Peace, Technology, Humanity, Sacrifice and Courage; these issues. I found that engaging.

?The other thing I found is in doing the Star Wars animation, especially when compared to the Star Trek animation, it was really working as an actor. I was actually working with other actors. When we did the recording (for Clone Wars?ED) the had the entire cast there. So we were able to bounce off of each other. You get a better idea of the characterization that way, the vocal rhythms of the other characters."'