Star Wars: The Clone Wars Launches Season 4 on September 16

Liz Ohanesian

On the Saturday before the one-hour premiere of season 4 of Star Wars: The Clone Wars, we headed to Long Beach's Aquarium of the Pacific for a special screening of the first two episodes, "Water War" and "Gungan Attack." The location may seem odd for a show set in a "galaxy far, far away," but it wasn't, as the Ahsoka and the rest are heading underwater for the start of the season known as "Battle Lines." We won't give away too many details about the episodes, but what happened at Saturday's event is a good indication of what you can expect.

The screening, unlike the actual television broadcast, was show in 4D. As part of the 4D experience, the theater was cold in a misty, windy sort of way. There were times when we were splashed lightly with water and lights flickered to mimic explosions. Outside of the theater, there was an aquarium show that featured divers fighting with lightsabers. If you're a fan of The Clone Wars, you will be in for a treat this week.

Liz Ohanesian

An underwater lightsaber battle at Aquarium of the Pacific

When we spoke with members of The Clone Wars cast on Saturday, three words-- "dark," "epic" and "cinematic"-- kept popping into the conversation.

"As the war is progressing, everything is getting darker, the stakes are getting higher relationships are becoming more intense," says Catherine Taber, the voice of Padamé Amidala in the series.

"The battles are really epic this year," says TC Carson, who plays Mace Windu.

"It's really like watching a motion picture," says Stephen Stanton (Captain Tarkin) of the fourth season. "It has a beautiful look to it and the storytelling is much more on a mature or adult level."

The CG animated, half-hour series fills the gap between Episode II: Attack of the Clones and Episode III: Revenge of the Sith. The events that take place during The Clone Wars help further develop some of the characters who appear in the prequels.

"It actually is a cool time in the Star Wars saga. We get to see how Anakin slowly starts to fall," says Matt Lanter, who plays Anakin Skywalker. "We haven't seen in the films how he takes that slow fall to the dark side."