"Trespass" marks the fifteenth installment of Season One in the Star Wars: The Clone Wars animated television program. Specifically, it holds the position of the fifteenth episode when considering the entirety of the series. In terms of chronological placement, it falls between the Season One episodes "Defenders of Peace" and "Blue Shadow Virus."
A contingent of Republic clone troopers, led by Obi-Wan Kenobi, Anakin Skywalker, and Captain Rex, arrives on the frozen world of Orto Plutonia to delve into the vanishing of a local clone trooper unit. Accompanying them are C-3PO and R2-D2, along with a delegation of Pantoran officials, including Senator Riyo Chuchi and Chairman Chi Cho, who leverages his political power over the Jedi to achieve his objectives. Despite Orto Plutonia's seemingly lifeless, icy environment, Chi Cho adamantly asserts that, due to its location within the Pantora system, Plutonia is, by definition, Pantoran territory. Obi-Wan informs Chairman Cho that the Galactic Senate holds the authority to make that determination.
Obi-Wan and Rex investigate the local Republic base, discovering all clone troopers deceased, yet the consoles remain untouched. They soon uncover a nearby Separatist base, where the droid crew has also met its end, suggesting a third party's involvement in both incidents. The only clues to this unknown entity are a footprint in the snow and a fleeting image captured on a holographic distress signal.
Back at the Republic base, Riyo Chuchi expresses her reservations about the Separatists being responsible for the attack, citing inconsistencies in the evidence. However, Chi Cho remains unyielding in his stance against what he perceives as a violent enemy, regardless of their identity.
Anakin and Obi-Wan follow the clues to a nearby canyon, where they observe reflections of light. Shortly thereafter, they encounter the Talz, primitive yet sentient inhabitants. Despite the language barrier, Obi-Wan and Anakin successfully communicate their peaceful intentions and arrange a meeting between the Pantorans and the Talz. Upon relaying this information, Chairman Chi Cho dismisses the notion of the Talz being a sentient race, labeling them trespassers and animals, and asserting that Pantora has found no life on the planet in all their history. Riyo Chuchi interjects, stating that the Senate should decide this matter, but her attempts are futile.
Upon arriving at the designated meeting place, the Talz chieftain, Thi-Sen, respectfully requests that the Galactic Republic cease its presence on Orto Plutonia and withdraw all forces. However, Chi Cho continues to deny the Talz's sentience, arrogantly declaring Plutonia as Pantoran property, deliberately provoking a war. To justify his actions, he proclaims this an internal Pantoran affair. Anakin and Obi-Wan implore Riyo Chuchi to seek a diplomatic resolution to this political conflict. She then contacts the Speaker of the Pantoran Assembly, who grants her the power to negotiate peace and declares the Chairman out of order.
However, this resolution is delayed; while returning to their base, Chi Cho and his escort are ambushed by a Talz war party, forcing them into combat. Chairman Cho sustains a severe injury from a spear to his back. Anakin, Obi-Wan, and Senator Chuchi arrive just in time to rescue Cho, Rex, and the remaining escort from being overwhelmed. However, with his last breath, Cho demands the extermination of the Talz for the "good" of his people, issuing it as his final command. Chuchi politely refuses, informing him of the Assembly's decision. Stunned by the fact that he was overruled and that his people prefer peace, claiming that he died for them, Chi passes away. Senator Chuchi advocates for a peaceful resolution, successfully ceasing hostilities and ceding sovereignty of Plutonia to the Talz. As she and the Jedi board a gunship, Obi-Wan requests that to maintain peace, she should make it last.
During the production of the TV series, George Lucas expressed his desire to create a classic Western narrative, portraying seemingly primitive indigenous people defending their homeland against a superior military force. Dave Filoni mentioned in an interview that the visual inspiration for Orto Plutonia's environment came from black and white photocopies of the Badlands made by George Lucas, who sought the stark contrasts for depicting the ice planet. Ralph McQuarrie's Hoth concept paintings were then incorporated into the episode's design process, but without the blue color saturation. The stylized ice landscapes were modeled after McQuarrie's original vision of an ice planet. The snow in the episode plays a significant role in conveying the story's emotional tone. Joel Aron developed varying densities and types of snow to mirror the story's moods, including the moment when Chuchi "buries the hatchet" with the Talz leader, the blizzard subsides, and the snow gently falls.
The music played at the end is a more somber rendition of The Battle of Christophsis.