Confused a little bit, I am

Don't get me wrong: I'm sure I'll be one of the first ones on Aug. 15 to go see "Star Wars: The Clone Wars" when it hits theaters.
Any loyal "Sean's Space" reader knows I'm a huge "Star Wars" geek and I've watched just about everything George Lucas has ever put his name on. (Ever seen "THX 1138?" I have ... and it's kinda weird. And did ya notice the Yoda-speak in the title of this entry? What's that tell ya about my fan-dom?)

With that said, and with my vast (if not nerdy) "Star Wars" background in mind, here's my question: How does this new flick differ from the 25 "Clones Wars" shorts that ran on the Cartoon Network from 2003 to 2005, and has subsequently been released as one movie on DVD?

Both releases document the years between when "Episode II: Attack of the Clones" ended and "Episode III: Revenge of the Sith" began, and they detail the Clone Wars, which have long been discussed on screen but never seen on the big screen.

But other than the new film being computer-generated, as opposed to the traditional animation of the Cartoon Network series, I've yet to learn exactly how this new movie is different from its predecessor.

If nothing else, I suppose that curiosity, in particular, will hasten my trip to the theater next week, as I'm sure it will for other fans like me.