Star Wars Switches Genres In Every Season Of Its 10/10 Show

Published Oct 16, 2026, 10:00 AM EDT

Matthew Rudoy is one of ScreenRant's Movie & TV News Editors. He covers the latest in movie & TV news, with a focus on major franchises like Star Wars, The Boys, and Game of Thrones, and also writes some features and reviews. He wrote lists for ScreenRant from 2017-2022, became a news writer in 2023, a senior staff writer in 2024, and an editor in 2025. 

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One of the best Star Wars shows switches genres in every season. After the first movie was released in 1977, the franchise gradually began to make television series, beginning with the animated Droids and Ewoks series in the 1980s. By the time of the prequel trilogy, a Clone Wars series by Genndy Tartovsky came out on Cartoon Network between the releases of Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith.

A different The Clone Wars series began in 2008, coming from Dave Filoni and George Lucas, and building off the animated movie of the same name that preceded it. This show ran for five seasons on Cartoon Network, exploring the galactic conflict between the Republic and Separatists through arcs usually containing three or four episodes. After being canceled, an abbreviated season 6 debuted on Netflix, and a seventh and final season came out six years after that on Disney+.

With the creation of Disney+, Star Wars has not only been able to expand its animated series with the likes of The Bad Batch and Maul - Shadow Lord, but also by creating live-action television, from The Mandalorian to the Emmy Award-winning Andor. These shows have embraced a wide range of genres, including the political drama of Andor to the more adventure-of-the-week format of The Mandalorian. However, none of the franchise's shows have switched genres every season as frequently or successfully as The Clone Wars.

The Clone Wars Arcs Switch Genres Every Season

From 2008-2020, all seven seasons of The Clone Wars feature arcs that switch genres. A perfect example of this is season 6, beginning with the conspiracy thriller of the Order 66 inhibitor chip conspiracy arc, followed by the political drama of the Rush Clovis and Banking Clan arc, the unlikely buddy cop team-up of Mace Windu and Jar Jar Binks investigating a mystery, and concluding with the fantastical Force journey that Yoda goes on. Every three or four episodes is a different genre and has a different tone, and yet, it works in capturing the larger story of the Clone Wars.

Regardless of whether one watches The Clone Wars in chronological order or release order, there is still a variety of genres, which sometimes come with a jarring juxtaposition between subsequent arcs. This is definitely the case in season 6, especially when going from the political drama of Rush Clovis and the Banking Clan to the odd couple humor that comes with Jar Jar and Mace Windu teaming up, and then exploring some of the deepest and most mystical aspects of the Force with Yoda.

Season 6 continues the genre-switching tradition rather than being the first to do it. Another season that excels with it is season 5, which includes the political revolution of season 5's Onderon arc, the adventure of the Younglings arc, the eccentricity of the droid-focused D-Squad arc, the darkness and brutal tragedy of Maul in the Shadow Collective arc, and the conspiracy thriller of Ahsoka Tano being framed in the Wrong Jedi arc.

The Clone Wars Is Proof Of How Star Wars Thrives When It Embraces Multiple Genres

Not sticking to a single genre in each arc, let alone the same characters, is a bold creative choice in retrospect, but it works incredibly well and cements The Clone Wars as one of the all-time best Star Wars shows. The genre shifts help communicate how the Clone Wars are a conflict on a truly galactic scale, affecting the Jedi, soldiers, politicians, droids, and those simply trying to live their lives. It also keeps the show narratively fresh, never falling into a repetitive status quo, all while paying homage to the many stories and genres that have inspired Star Wars.

The Clone Wars proves that Star Wars does not belong to just one genre, and many of the other shows have further solidified this. Andor does not change genres, but it fully commits to its grounded and character-driven political drama, while The Mandalorian commits to a more classic feel of Star Wars adventure.

While it sticks with the same group of characters, tells its story in linear fashion, and does not do as many multi-episode arcs, the animated Star Wars Rebels also nails the genre-switching approach, allowing season 3's sillier "The Forgotten Droid" episode to feel like a natural predecessor to the drama of "Twin Suns" that was years in the making.

The upcoming Ahsoka season 2 is poised to incorporate multiple genres as it balances the more mystical story of Peridea and the Mortis gods alongside the military science-fiction drama of the war between the New Republic and the Imperial Remnant led by Grand Admiral Thrawn. As Star Wars television continues, the franchise needs to continue embracing multiple genres in order to capture the wide range of the space opera.