#62 Season 3 Episode 18

“Adaptation is the key to survival.” 

With help from R2-D2 and a squad of captured battle droids, an elite team of Jedi and clone troopers led by Obi-Wan and Anakin attempt to free a captive Jedi general, Even Piell, from an impenetrable prison. Despite orders to the contrary, Ahsoka Tano tags along, though she proves indispensable when the infiltration mission begins to evolve. Piell and his fleet officer, Captain Tarkin, are liberated from their cells, but now the fugitives must escape the Citadel itself.

The Citadel Commentary, Preview and starwars.com Episode Guide.

Original Airdate: 14 February 2011
Writer: Matt Michnovetz
Director: Kyle Dunlevy

Concept Art and Trivia

Osi Sobeck is a Phindian, an alien species that originated in the Expanded Universe, specifically the Jedi Apprentice series published by Scholastic, Inc. The species was first pictured in The Essential Guide to Aliens Species, published by Del Rey Books in 2001. Osi’s design hews closely to the art by R.K. Post.

For James Arnold Taylor’s characterization of Osi Sobeck, he performed the dialogue with pauses and inflection inspired by Christopher Walken’s distinctive speech patterns.

Ashley Eckstein, who ordinarily voices Ahsoka Tano, joins James Arnold Taylor, Matt Lanter, Tom Kane, Corey Burton, Cara Pifko, Phil LaMarr, and Gary Scheppke as the voice of a tactical droid. The droid, K2-B4, has been colored to match the Lola Sayu environment: purple and yellow.

K2-B4’s colors also work well as the droid’s name is a nod to crewmembers who are fans of the Los Angeles Lakers. When K2-B4’s animation model was created, the Lakers won the championship. Kobe Bryant’s number 24 translates to K2-B4.

The texture of the exterior Citadel walls is meant to be visually reminiscent of the Death Star surface when seen from afar.

During Season One, discussions about getting past droid scans led to Supervising Director Dave Filoni and writer Henry Gilory developing the carbon-freezing tactic, though it never made it into an episode. Gilroy later used it in an Expanded Universe Clone Wars comic book story, The Shipyards of Doom. Its use in ‘The Citadel’ brings it to the screen.

Fives’ comment “I don’t want to end up a wall decoration” is a nod to Han Solo’s time in carbonite.

Some of the smallest asteroids seen orbiting Lola Sayu are re-textured rocks seen floating over Mortis or Iego.

According to the screens in the Citadel orbital security stations, the Separatist shuttle that R2-D2 commands is an escort shuttle, class type B.

Even Piell is a Jedi Master first seen in Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace. Piell’s short height and long ears caused many fans to speculate some sort of relation to Yoda (some called him “the pink Yoda”), but Piell is a distinct species: a Lannik.

Though Even Piell is male, in the live action movie, he was portrayed by a woman: Michaela Cotrell.

The Citadel combat scenario seen during the clone training sessions in “Clone Cadets” are named after the Citadel installation in this trilogy.