1. Star Wars: The Clone Wars

The animated Clone Wars series started off as an okay-but-not-great show that filled in the gap between the prequel movies of Episode II and Episode III. But as the series continued, it quickly became fantastic, not only filling in the gaps left by the films, but providing us something they didn’t: Chemistry between Anakin and Obi-Wan.

If you just watch the prequels, Anakin and Obi-Wan barely seem close, let alone like brothers, and the actual Clone Wars are a background detail that feels far away and weirdly not all that dangerous. The animated series fixes this, providing us with an action-packed and well-written series of arcs that not only show us what happened during the Clone Wars but also how Anakin slowly moves toward the dark side, the things that push him there (the Jedi, mostly), and his inevitable fall to Darth Vader.

Most of Star Wars outside the movies can be skipped unless you love the franchise and want more of it. Clone Wars is the big exception. So much of Clone Wars has continued to appear in books, comics, games, movies, and other TV shows. Ahsoka’s arc starts here. It’s where we meet Hondo Ohnaka. And it’s the series that Rebels builds off of which itself has become a backbone of modern Star Wars. Clone Wars is a key piece in all of this and essential viewing if you want to understand the Star Wars universe. And lucky for you, (most of) the show is really good. — ZZ