I'm slightly stunned, to be honest. I had heard it was bad, and so hadn't bothered watching it in any hurry (waiting until 8 years after it's release) but still... I can't believe THIS is cannon, while so much cool stuff isn't.
And that's coming from someone who consistently rates anything 'Star Wars' quite a bit higher than it sometimes deserves, for the nostalgia and because I just love it all so much. But this didn't even feel like it was part of the same universe. Seriously, it's like comparing a cave painting to pointilism, or John De Hart to William Shakespear.
The characters are so flat - this horrible animation style (honestly only slightly better than the kind of shit I was producing after a year in college) doesn't help, as it gives them 0 range for expressions - but the dialogue is also just so stilted. Admittedly that was a problem with much of the prequels, but it's even worse here. The plot is way too thin to be a movie length TV episode, let alone be shown in theaters. The battle scenes were busy, but lacked punch, and a lot of it felt off. The weight of characters and objects, for instance, or muscle movement. Someone running would just come to an abrupt hault, someone lashing out with a lightsaber would move it to its destination, then stop without any slow-down. These are basic principles on animation here, people!
It's like George Lucas hates us or something. I genuinely don't understand how anyone thought this was a good idea, how people watched the finished product and were like "yep, that'll do". Seriously, don't bother watching this. Even if you're trying to introduce a child or an idiot to the franchise, don't let them start with this. Just watch the movies in the order they were made and leave it at that, alright? Maybe watch the christmas special for shits and giggles.
Star Wars: The Clone Wars: 12.5