On May 4, the Disney+ service released the third season of the Star Wars Tales animated short anthology series, called «Tales of the Underworld». Each of the seasons was dedicated to two characters from the cult universe, of course, not as popular and hyped as Darth Vader or Han Solo, but interesting to the ardent fans of the «Star Wars» brand. In the review below, we remind you who the previous seasons were about, who the creators of the series, led by Dave Filoni, have focused on this time, and whether «Star Wars» still manages to be exciting in such a compact animated format.
Genre short animation, anthology, adventure fiction
Creator Dave Filoni
The roles were voiced by Nika Futterman, Cory Burton, Art Butler, Lane Fector, AJ LoCascio, Clare Grant, Dawn-Lien Gardner, Eric Lopez, Tony Amendola
Premiere Disney+
Year of release 2025
Website IMDb
The tireless Dave Filoni continues to expand the story arcs of various characters in the animated short episodes of the «Tales» anthology. In the first season «Tales of the Jedi», released in 2022, the audience had the opportunity to get acquainted with the background of the Ahsoka Tano and Count Dooku. In the second, titled «Tales of the Empire», which was released last year, and on May 4, the unofficial «Star Wars Day», the story of Morgan Elsbeth and Barriss Offee was also told. And now, in «Tales of the Underworld» (the title, which also includes «Underworld», is still circulating on the Internet), it’s time for Asajj Ventress and Cad Bane.
As in the case of the previous seasons (especially the second one), if these names don’t ring a bell, there’s probably no point in starting to watch the anthology, which requires the viewer to know the matching details and, accordingly, numerous nuances. But if you are, as they say, «in the topic» and are also familiar with the «Tales» series, then you already have an idea of what to expect from the next adventures in a galaxy far, far away. In particular, in the given format, there are six episodes lasting approximately 15 minutes, made in the branded animation style, three for each of the main characters.
To fully understand the picture that the first episode starts with, it’s worth mentioning the novel «Dark Disciple» by Christie Golden — an adaptation of the scripts written by George Lucas and Dave Filoni for the animated series «The Clone Wars», released in 2015. The film will quickly catch a glimpse of Quinlan Vos and Obi-Wan Kenobi and soon Asajj herself was introduced to the audience. Her further acquaintance with a young Jedi hunted by imperial stormtroopers will lead to a classic adventure within the universe — with shootouts, quests, travel, lightsaber battles, potential mentoring, etc.
This is a moderately engaging, compact story that shows Asajj Ventress’s attempts to end her past life and her willingness to lend a helping hand to a suffering person. There is also a side storyline that conveys the message that it is sometimes difficult to let go of war if you have been in it for so long that you no longer know how to live otherwise. This topic will resonate with the Ukrainian audience.
«Tales» offers the backstory of the ruthless mercenary, starting with his hungry childhood, and then follows the story with an adult version of the red-eyed fool in the frame. In fact, this is nothing more than the path of the villain’s formation, made in the spirit of classic westerns, right down to the close-ups of the shooters’ eyes. It’s hard to call this a discovery, the story is rather formulaic, although not without a certain charm. And for many people, Cad Bane himself is a vivid enough character not to regret the time spent.
The series more or less keeps the set quality level, it is pleasant, short episodes are bursting like seeds, and bizarre creatures playfully walk around in the frame. A good aperitif for those who plan to binge watch second season «Andor», the final of which will take place next week.