The Clone Wars S7E2 — “A Distant Echo” Review (Full Spoilers)

A pivotal Anakin moment, a haunted Rex, and a harrowing final image push this final season toward its inevitable Revenge of the Sith endgame.

A huge moment in the opening minutes plays the heartstrings and reorients this arc as a true final march. Revenge of the Sith now feels like it’s looming just out of frame, and that’s helped by smart tweaks from the original Bad Batch story reels. Back then no one knew this would be the show’s last run; now Lucasfilm does—and you feel the narrative pointing toward a finish line.

The Anakin beat here is one of my favourite additions to the prequel era’s emotional scaffolding. It’s lovely that Anakin trusts Rex enough to make him a confidant about Padmé, but sad that he doesn’t extend that same trust to Obi-Wan. Why is that? They’ve shared as much together as Rex and Anakin have. If Anakin had been more open with Obi-Wan, perhaps their eventual ending in Revenge of the Sith looks different. The holo-call with Padmé is equal parts charming and aching: she wisely tells Anakin to trust Rex as Rex has trusted him, while Anakin’s lack of faith in Rex’s ability to stay objective is, of course, tragically ironic.

There’s perfect imagery in that conversation too—two lovers face-to-face (holo or not), heading into the darkness to come. Padmé looks obviously pregnant to us, but Anakin—precognition and Jedi insight be damned—can’t see what’s right in front of him.

The hour is powerful for Rex as well. His outbursts at the Bad Batch and his inability to separate the mission from his grief are tough to watch. Rex hasn’t always had the spotlight Cody did in earlier seasons, but after his turn in Star Wars Rebels he’s rightly central here. Knowing how emotionally invested he’s become as the war winds down will make the Order 66 fallout hurt even more.

As far as dark imagery goes, those final minutes—Echo’s body unplugged from that nightmarish rig—are up there for the series. He’s barely hanging on, his eyes hollow. You feel Rex’s self-blame immediately. We know there was nothing he could have done, but it’s eating him alive.

Amid all that heaviness, the show still finds room to breathe. Wrecker bench-pressing a gonk droid is exactly the kind of tonal valve Star Wars uses so well.

I barely remember the original story reel at this point, which is a gift—it means I’m taking what comes next on its own terms. However Echo’s rescue plays out for Rex, it’s going to land hard. I’m bracing myself.

The Clone Wars: The Final Season is currently airing on Disney+.