10 Most Important Star Wars: The Clone Wars Characters

The conclusion of the animated Clone Wars series has come and gone. It, brought about feelings of joy, sadness, sorrow, and satisfaction. The show will go down as one of the best Star Wars adaptations in history. Considering how many books, graphic novels, movies, and television shows there have been, this is saying a lot. 

The Clone Wars understood exactly what it was meant to do and did it exceptionally well. It was meant to bridge the gap between Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith all the while creating a world all to itself. It took the viewer from one end of the galaxy to the other without ever making them wonder why it was doing it. The show was as close to perfection as anything. 

Where it was perfect was creating and giving depth to some of the most memorable characters in Star Wars history. It introduced characters like Ahsoka Tano and Barriss Offee and expanded on characters like Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi. The showed literally introduced hundreds of new characters and never once did so haphazardly. But arguably, some characters are more important than others and due to that we decided to create this list of the most important characters in Star Wars: The Clone Wars.

10. Father/Daughter/Son

Season Three is memorable for many reasons but none are as important as The Mortis Trilogy. The Mortis Trilogy saw Ahsoka, Anakin, and Obi-Wan trapped on a mysterious planet that was strong with The Force. The planet was home to three powerful entities, the Father, the Daughter, and the Son. While the Daughter represented the full power of the Light Side and the Son the Dark Side, the Father represented a balance between the two.

After learning that Anakin was the Chosen One, the Son attempted to recruit him to his side. Fearful of what may happen should the two align, the Daughter leads Obi-Wan to the Dagger of Mortis and tells him that the weapon is capable of destroying Force Wielders. Before he can use it, however, the Son steals it and attempts to kill the Father. By doing this, he hopes to gain the power that the Father holds. Instead of killing the Father, The Son accidentally kills the Daughter.

The trio is easily some of the most important characters in the Clone Wars because A) they represent the Dark, the Light, and the Balance of the Force, B) Once killed, the Daughter becomes an owl known as Morai and bonds to Ahsoka, and C) the characters give Anakin a glimpse of what he will become later in life.

9. Asajj Ventress

I’ll be honest, when I was first introduced to Asajj Ventress I didn’t think anything of her. To me, she was nothing more than Count Dooku’s glorified lackey. As the show went on, however, Asajj Ventress grew in my heart.

Asajj Ventress was a Sith-trained assassin who carried out the most ruthless deeds. She was deadly with not one but two lightsabers and proved herself to be more than a match for Anakin, Ahsoka, and Obi-Wan. Like most other red lightsaber-wielding beings, Asajj thirsted for power. This caused her to betray her master and as a consequence of the betrayal, become a bounty hunter. Although Asajj was involved in many amazing story arcs, it was her involvement in the framing of Ahsoka that cemented her as one of the most important characters in the Clone Wars.

8. Barriss Offee

There are moments in life when a single decision alters the trajectory of the decider forever. For Barriss Offee, that moment happened the moment she bombed the Jedi Temple. 

Barriss Offee was a Jedi Padawan trained by Luminara Unduli. Under her master, Barriss was quickly becoming one of the most impressive Padawan’s the Jedi had ever trained. Unfortunately, a series of events caused her to become disillusioned with the Jedi. Her distaste for what the Jedi had become had wide-sweeping effects. First, Ahsoka Tano left the Jedi Order. Second, Ahsoka’s leaving triggered an emotional response in Anakin further pushing him to the Dark Side. And third, it allowed the Sith to gain more control over the Galaxy.

There isn’t a single character in the Clone Wars with as little screen time as Barriss Offee who caused more chaos. Because of this, she easily makes the most important characters in the Clone Wars list.

7. Maul

After The Phantom Menace concluded, Darth Maul was thought to be dead. The evidence was overwhelming. Not only he had been cut in half by Obi-Wan Kenobi but he also fell down a chasm. At his death, Darth Maul was the most interesting character that nobody understood. The world cried for more of him and thankfully the Clone Wars answered the cries.

Maul quickly became a leading character and found himself thrust into some of the most memorable story arcs the show ever produced. His time in the Clone Wars saw him train an apprentice, take control of Mandalore, kill the “love interest” of Obi-Wan Kenobi, figure out that Anakin Skywalker was to become a Sith Lord, and so much more. For any who felt his treatment in The Phantom Menace was a disservice to the character, the Clone Wars immediately remedied it.

6. Count Dooku

Like Maul before him, the live-action version of Count Dooku left little to be desired. The character was poorly written, seemed to lack the power that came with being a Sith, and didn’t serve any purpose other than being killed by Anakin Skywalker. The Clone Wars fixed this.

Although Count Dooku was nothing more than fodder, the Clone Wars proved that he embodied what it meant to be a Sith. Like Maul, Count Dooku trained an apprentice, but not just any apprentice. He trained one of the foremost assassins in Star Wars history, Asajj Ventress. In addition, he ran through worlds destroying them and their people without giving it a second thought. Worst of all, he forced his Separatist followers to join his cause with threats and tragic ultimatums. Count Dooku was malicious, powerful, evil to the core, and one of the most important characters in the Clone Wars.

5. Obi-Wan Kenobi

Obi-Wan Kenobi worked because the Obi-Wan Kenobi in the Clone Wars was slightly different than the Obi-Wan Kenobi of the live-action movies. Unlike the live-action counterparts, this Obi-Wan was flawed. In one of the greatest story arcs in the show, Maul took control of Mandalore. As a result, the former leader (Satine Kryze) was taken into custody and used as bait for Obi-Wan.

When Obi-Wan caught wind of this he immediately made his way to Mandalore to free her. His attempted rescue proved fatal as, during it, Maul impaled Satine with the Dark Saber. As she lay dying in his arms she looked at him and said “Remember my dear Obi-Wan, I loved you always. I always will.” The look in his eyes was both haunting and painful. At this moment, we all knew that even the mighty Obi-Wan felt conflicted by the Jedi way.

4. Anakin Skywalker

Anakin Skywalker grew up with a weight on his shoulders that very few could ever understand. He was the Chosen One destined to bring balance to The Force. He was to be the one responsible for ridding the galaxy of evil. And he was the one to bring forth a time of great prosperity. Instead, he plunged the galaxy into darkness and ruled it with an iron fist. 

The Clone Wars did the one thing that the live-action prequel movies couldn’t…they showed exactly why Anakin Skywalker was one of the best Jedi to have ever lived. Anakin was respected by his peers (kind of), feared by his enemies, and as a result, arguably the greatest General in the history of the Republic. If not for the Clone Wars, nobody would’ve ever known this. 

3. Captain/Commander Rex

With the exception of one other on this list, no character has received as much love from fans as Rex. As Captain and later Commander of the 501st Legion, Rex fell under the command of General Anakin Skywalker and his Padawan Ahsoka Tano. Like the other clones, Rex was loyal to the Republic. What made Rex different from other clones was that his belief in the Republic began to waive as the Clone War carried on. 

By the sixth season, Rex learned that each clone had an inhibitor chip inside them. Once activated, the chip forced the clones to turn against the Jedi they served. What nobody knew was that the betrayal by the clones leading to the death of the Jedi was all a plan created by the Sith Lord, Darth Sidious. In one of the most emotional scenes of the show, a tear fell down Rex’s face as he learned that his brothers had become his enemies.

2. Darth Sidious

I had a tough time not putting Darth Sidious in the number one spot and I’ll tell you why. Darth Sidious was the architect behind the entire War. He orchestrated everything that happened without anyone ever knowing exactly what was going on. Better yet, he did it in plain sight as the Chancellor of the Senate.

Darth Sidious is one of, if not the most powerful Sith Lord to ever exist. He has stood toe-to-toe with Master Yoda, Master Windu, Darth Plagueis, and lived to tell the tale. He is the reason that Star Wars exists and the reason that Anakin Skywalker turned to the Dark Side. Darth Sidious is one of the most important characters in the Clone Wars because, without him, we wouldn’t have this list to countdown.

1. Ahsoka Tano

Make no mistake, while the name of the show references the Republic Army, the show was built around the growth and exploits of Ahsoka. For as much as the Clone Wars follows the conflict between the Republic and the Separatists, it follows the development of Ahsoka Tano even more. Not Obi-Wan Kenobi who started and ended the series as a Jedi and General.

Not Anakin Skywalker who started and ended the series as a Jedi and General. Ahsoka Tano started the series as a bratty teenager and ended the series as a woman capable of making galaxy-altering decisions. Ahsoka Tano bought into the Jedi way of thinking only to leave it all behind. And Ashoka Tano, who went from the most hated new character since Jar Jar Binks to arguably one of the most beloved characters in Star Wars history. Simply put, Ahsoka is the reason that the Clone Wars was a success.