# SW Bad Batch



## ctg (May 4, 2021)

First of all the series is situated around the time of Rise of the Empire and it offers a new look on how the Sith took over the Old Republic and became the hated, and most feared faction in the SW universe. As we know it.

I've previously reviewed the Bad Batch episodes in the Clone Wars thread. So head there if you want to find out those pilot episodes for this series coming from Dave Filoni. After the failure of the Resistance, this is a big move, but in the same time it offers a deeper look into what the Emperor were doing in this crucial time that saw the birth of the Inquisitors and other dark developments. Some that are still haunting the audience today, like for example the Dark Troopers in the Mandalorian.

I personally am interested to see where this renegade clone squad can take us and what we'll find out happening in the back ground. There are also rumours that we'll see Anakin in some episodes instead of Darth Vader. How they are going to do it, is a very intriguing question and one that I cannot answer at the the moment.

But I hope you'll join me in the conversation, even if it just an animated series.


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## Rodders (May 4, 2021)

I still need to see The Clone Wars and Rebellion Cartoons. 

Sequels notwithstanding, I have enjoyed Rogue One and the first season of Mandalorian very much and I adored Jedi: Fallen Order. I am pleased that Disney have seen fit to develop so much Star Wars for the TV and I think that this has potential to be a good series.


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## ctg (May 4, 2021)

You don't need to see the Clone Wars. Leave it for now. There is enough here for you to understand and again, we are in the good side, not the bad. The pilot is dark, very dark in Disney terms, and I'm just about to start writing the episode review.


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## Droflet (May 4, 2021)

Just finished watching the first episode. If they keep that up I may well become a fanboy.


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## ctg (May 4, 2021)

Spoiler: S01E01 - Aftermath



I'm glad it started from the way it was supposed to, from executing the Order 66. The Bad Batch is not evil, they were the leftover clone material that went wrong in the big batch that Kamino Clone Engineers manufactured for the Emperor ... not for the Old Republic. And as it is often with the anomalies, these ones turned out to be extraordinary. So much so that recruited Echo from Captain Rex's ranks to make them whole.

Echo could not have found better Clone Brothers than the Bad Batch. After all they are all so extraordinary that they don't fit in the normal Stormtrooper rank and file. They in fact have so much character in them that it is spreading also to their armour ... that is black.

Usually we have associated the Black with the elite, while white is reserved for the normal troopers. Until the New Order start mixing the things. But what happens in the New Order days is nothing we have to know about now. They are just times to come, but I might refer to them if certain models start to appear in the series.

However Wrecker, Hunter, Echo, Tech and Crosshair are the main guys. But we might be in for some surprise guests.






Caleb, the Padawan. I cannot recall a jedi or a renegade named like that but the way they executed the The Termination was superbly done. I was certain that we were going to follow the Clone Wars and not the ending for a couple of episodes for the audience to get know that the Bad Batch is the good guys.

The whole image of a Jedi Master surrounded by the Clone Troopers firing at her is thrilling and terrifying at the same time. There are only so many bolts that you can parry, and then one and another finds the mark. The masters can parry quite a many but they are not invulnerable to laser fire. Even Sith knows that, but that in the strange feature in the Force wielders. They do not carry blasters. Not willingly.

It is almost religious fanaticism to trust on the Force even though the numbers game hands you your *ss every single time. The probability of you parrying endless numbers of projectiles is pretty low and even the true masters of the art need backup.

Those who don't get Crosshair's decision making in the hunt for the padawan should know that he's by-the-book type of character. The chain-of-command is honoured, almost every single time as he says "Good soldiers follow orders..." That's why we have Hunter is in the charge.

He has wisdom beyond his years and as a clones, they'll have limited numbers of them. Although in their case it is unknown if the advanced ageing is going to play a role in their actions.

I loved that Hunter was confused by the execution orders. Maybe that's why he wasn't patched into the regular command channels. In his alter image as Rambo, he is following the Big Man's path as well with no giving in to silly orders, but he judges things as they come across.

In the Clone Wars episodes they also showed that they are not invulnerable as they got in a very bad spot with the droid army, and their end was very near.

I personally hope that Disney continues in this direction and allows characters to die, if it is needed to show morality among the normal guys.






Proto Tie Fighters. I love seeing the evolution in the imperium war machines, and the fact that the Bad Batch is flying a proto Imperial shuttle (without the big sail and white colour). Palpatin would certainly had made sure that his big army cloning facility at the heart of his schemes were adequately protected.

It was also intriguing to see that the corpses of fallen Jedi had ended in the cloning facility. Almost as if the program for the Inquisitor and other Force sensitive programs were going to be started in the Kamino.

Thing is none of us really knew that. We could only guess and speculate without fully knowing what was going at the background while Big Baddies appeared on the small screen in the Rebels.

More intriguing thing is that all of them were accepted back to their base, even though they are considered as Special Troopers. The secret that was kept hidden for one reason or another from the Coruscant Senate. Like the Jedi Master said their "...exploits are impressive."

I loved that Crosshairs carried the Order 66 and failing the order back to the barracks. It is a beef that needed to be solved. Thing is that Order was tailored in the genetic code and it took extraordinary feats for Captain Rex to defeat them to in order for him to stay with the good guys. Echo was turned by Palpatin's scheme to a human cyborg.






Omega, a Kamino engineered pure transhuman, in the essence of taking it to the transhumanist extremes as a ultimate human being. Super intriguing. I wondered what Kamino ladies had done to him, until Admiral Tarkin appeared on the deck to give the order to stand down on the production.

The manager rightly claimed that their products are far superior to the conscripts Tarkin was going to start pulling from the world. It kind of makes sense and gives the reason for why the average stormies is so bad at soldiering.

In those terms Omega is even more intriguing. As a clone engineers, maybe they pushed Omega's code to limit and made him all ways superior to average humans, even if he is just kid. Just like what happened with the Bad Batch.






For a small squad they are showing skill and knowledge beyond the ordinary. But in places, like in the case of Echo and Tech they are also showing physical weaknesses.

I loved that Tarkin was impressed by their ability to resolve the unfair drone advantage. It is a rare to a get compliment from him when everything else is generally not to is liking. Not that he would say it to team faces.

It was because of Crosshair's report on countering the official story in their execution of the Order 66. What a scheming lizard. LOL.

In his shoes he did the right thing to find out about the loyalties in the eyes of the Imperium, by ordering them to hunt down the rebels in Onderon - the home world of Steela and Saw Gerrera.

There is nothing more rebellious than Saw as even the Rebels cannot handle him and his actions.






Onderon rebels. They have been present in some many games that I have lost a count and to my eyes they all look so normal. It was also refreshing to see Saw without his cybernetic life-support implants.

The way he was explaining the movement ideals made him sound as if he is the father of the Rebellion instead of the Rogue Royalties like Leia's father. Thing is we really don't know who the idea belong to because the rebellion became a galactic movement.

I loved the twist that Omega turned out to be the last and maybe the best of the enhanced soldier, with her knowing being part of the Bad Patch. Hunter's instincts on her were spot on. He only had clues and he put it all together in his mind.

It just he couldn't figure out that Omega turned out to be a Force Sensitive Empath with an ability to see near future, making her a clairvoyant.






What a magnificent stand-off. I loved it and it was kind of obvious for the Crosshair's to turn baddie super-trooper.



Well done Disney and Filoni's team, well done. A great pilot!


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## ctg (May 4, 2021)

Some reports claim that the Padawan was Kanan Jarrus, but that doesn't really fit the timeline or the spelling of his name as Caleb and not Kanan. Did someone spot Kanan in the episode?


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## Valtharius (May 4, 2021)

Disney's annihilation of the Expanded Universe traumatized me. I've been emotionally incapable of watching or reading any new _Star Wars_ content since then. This is tempting though. Maybe I will subscribe someday.


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## Glaysher (May 4, 2021)

ctg said:


> Some reports claim that the Padawan was Kanan Jarrus, but that doesn't really fit the timeline or the spelling of his name as Caleb and not Kanan. Did someone spot Kanan in the episode?


Kanan was not his original name, Caleb was.


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## ctg (May 7, 2021)

Spoiler: S02E02 - Cut and Run



"Hunter, she's a child! What are we going to do with her?" Echo asked. I've been thinking about the same thing. The Clone Force 99 isn't best suitable place for a child to grow up, but it is safer than being in Kamino that is going through changed to fit in the new galactic order under the Imperium.

It's just this has happened so many times before, starting from Anakin and ending with Ezra. Not forgetting about the Baby Yoda. It is a repetition that has served Disney and Lucas a great deal, but it shouldn't be the only way to raise the profile.

Back in the day when all of this started Luke was a Young Adult. Not a child. And it worked. But you look at young Omega, a person who has not experienced anything outside Kamino's clone facility and you put her in the galactic settings, and you'll have to wonder how she is going to survive, even if she has the Bad Batch on her side?

It's not an easy thing. The one thing that Disney fails to show is the culture shock, even though everything is new to Omega. Seeing her to touch ground was delightful, but at the same time possibly dangerous, just because she has had such a secluded life.

What we don't know is what the Kamino engineers did to her? Did they boost her immune system to cope with all sorts of things. 






Cut and Suu said: "More clones who has lost their way..." and I was surprised, because the only other lot we know to survive the ordeal are Commander Rex's boys in the Rebels. It's just since the clone force was already under Palpatine's command, I'd in his shoes, moved the clones to serve in more elite ranks and not do Tarkin's purge.

I just keep shaking my head to whole ordeal as we know they, the clones, have a limited lifespan. Suu said, "Kamino's do anything without a purpose," and since Omega shows very young age, I'm assuming that they gave Omega everything they couldn't give to the clones, including longevity.






"How do you disappear?" Hunter asked. "That's easy. Put being a soldier behind you and make a new life for yourself," Suu answered. But it ain't that easy when everything you're, the purpose of your life, is being a soldier. Especially if you're hunted by Tarkin's bounty hunters.

In other words, it didn't work for Mando, or Rex and I really doubt it works for Hunter and the boys. Omega however might actually learn to live a good life outside Kamino, if she survive to the days of New Republic. Nothing is set in the stone, especially as we have not heard about them in the latter parts of the Star Wars myths.

Maybe the darkest aspect, which has not come out in the other series, is the fact that everyone, and everything needed to be registered for the Imperial Archives. Personally it reminds about ordeals that Eastern Germany did to its citizens.

Hence, no wonder why so many galactic citizens chose to fight against the Imperial order rather than accept it as the new norm.






Speaking of which, Imperial Impound Lot. That is certainly a new thing that we haven't seen before and I did it funny that is is so freaking small, even though you'd expect it to have tens of vessels instead of two.

The only problem that I saw was that the guards were made from the clones and not regular stormies. If it had been them, the whole thing would have been super simple. I also loved that Echo finally had a role to play in the squad as an elite slizer.

I get Hunter's decision on sending Omega out instead of keeping her with the squad. The girl however made up her own mind and chose four daddies instead of a new family.

Did she made a right decision?



Note, the runtime for this episode is around 27 minutes, which is a bit longer than the usual twenty minutes you get in the Clone Wars or the Rebels. Disney might look as if they're pushing these out in accelerated schedule, but the next one is scheduled to air at 14th of May. So, one week from now.


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## Parson (May 7, 2021)

Hm, I have to say that this would be about my least favorite group to follow in this universe. I was glad that there weren't more of these shows in the *Clone Wars*. But I might give it a grudging try. I'm really waiting for the *Ahsoka *stories. 

--- What you don't learn? Just to be sure of the spelling I googled Asoka, found it was Ahsoka and then found he was an Indian prince who helped spread Buddhism in Asia circa 300.


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## ctg (May 8, 2021)

Parson said:


> I'm really waiting for the *Ahsoka *stories.



You mean the live action series? I personally do find watching the Imperium rise up in the power both fascinating and terrifying. So far, the Bad Batch has not gone down the same route as some of the previous series, but at second episode it is not as dark as I'd like it to be. Although I suspect some of the kids watch this show, so maybe it's better that the worst of Emperor's atrocities doesn't surface. 

I mean Palpatin has been very efficient on hiding the fact that a few planets got "purged" during the Clone Wars. The galactic shock is only expressed when he uses the first Death Star, not before. But interestingly there has been tones, saying that Jedi were good and that the clones committed a mass murder.


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## Parson (May 8, 2021)

ctg said:


> You mean the live action series?


Yes, that. I will check out the Bad Batch, but haven't yet.


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## Parson (May 10, 2021)

Well watched episode 1 of the *Bad Batch* and was pleasantly surprised. Not bad at all. I will proceed to episode 2. I certainly didn't see the flip flop for Cross Hair, but Omega joining that was obvious from the moment she's introduced. The cynical part of me thinks that they had to have a lead female character, and a little girl was too good to pass up.


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## ctg (May 14, 2021)

Spoiler: S01E03 - Replacements



Nothing unexpected at the beginning. Except the fact that the team were in the hyperspace with no food or spare-parts to fix the damn shuttle. But that's also the thing when you're a soldier, you almost always have a backup. Somebody who'll fix, feed and supply everything one needs to do fighting. 

That's gone and frankly, the boys are doing worse than Mando at this point. It just I cannot recall that they were hit during the escape run, other than in the initial firefight ... with Crosshair and the clone brothers. If so, it took a long while for the malfunction to finish.






What we know about the various inhibitors, they never really work in the SW universe. There is always something and in the Echo's case, the chip was forced to separate from the system, while in the Crosshair's, it's working as intended. Kamino's are remarkable engineers.

Their clones mostly does what it says in the sales pamphlet. They are effective soldiers, where as going back to drafting normal types, leads to all sorts of problems that carries over to the days of New Republic. In the rebels case they had no choice, but in Tarkin's, he had a choice. Even if there is the budget limit supposedly in place. 

Would Emperor been killed, if he'd continued ordering clones from Kamino? The interesting thing is that Tarkin continued ordering clones, as a special program. Does that mean that particular program became the source for Dark Troopers and other oddities in the Imperial Ranks?






The way I see it, Hunter and Omega are Kamino's top line products, even if the Bad Batch doesn't fit in the order parameters. We don't even know the extend of modifications they've done on the girl, but it has to be massive, even if she looks like a normal girl. 

My big bet is that she's Force Sensitive and the clairvoyancy is just part of her skills. Not that it's working all of the time. In the dragon case it didn't work at all. But I loved and were terrified at the same time, when she picked up Hunter's pistol and the flashlight and went after the dragon.

The clone engineers never put her through the combat drills. Then again, she didn't need to as the dragon wasn't really interested on having one. Her pacifistic ways proved to be a success or is because the Kamino's did something?


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## JohnM (May 16, 2021)

I have one word: Bleh.


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## BAYLOR (May 16, 2021)

Valtharius said:


> Disney's annihilation of the Expanded Universe traumatized me. I've been emotionally incapable of watching or reading any new _Star Wars_ content since then. This is tempting though. Maybe I will subscribe someday.



I wish they could have found a way to keep the Yuzan Vong.


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## Rodders (May 17, 2021)

I can understand why Disney would want to put their own stamp on it. They'd be accused of being lazy if they just took all of the EU and just adapted it to the big screen.


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