Hogan Reviews

The second season of the Bad Batch follows a very similar formula to the other CG Star Wars cartoons in that there are some amazing standout episodes that fans of any age should go out of their way to watch mixed in with some classic cartoon side-steps aimed younger (though never to the point of at least still being fun for all ages, so long as you don’t take yourself too seriously) The story of how the Clones become phased out and why is really well told here as the series continues to explore that rarely seen “just after Episode III” time period. So let’s take a look already!

The overall arc of the season is “how the Clones were phased out” and thanks to the Clone Wars cartoon series fleshing out the Clones as people with their own personalities it shows us the answer to this in a very classic Imperial way as the Emperor wants all the cloning technology for himself (one of the few good things from Episode IX that keeps trickling down…) and so he begins pushing a new bill to recruit troopers instead, pushing for his officers to treat Clones as old Imperial property to dispose of when available (dehumanising a people to make it easier to mistreat them? Where do the Star Wars writers get this crazy stuff from…) This coincides with several Clones beginning to regain their own personalities after the effects of the inhibitor chips wear off, like Commander Cody, Obi-Wan’s commander from Episode III (and the cartoon) who after doing a mission with the still-loyal Crosshair sees the writing on the wall and vanishes after the mission, upsetting the former Bad Batch member who thought he might have found a new ally.

Crosshair moments before reaching his breaking point.

This is leads to the absolute stand-out part of the season: Crosshair himself. He’s mocked by Vice Admiral Rampart for choosing to return to work for the Empire after being stranded on Kamino for over a month, and then is sent on the mission with Cody where he sees his fellow Clone turn while he still stays loyal. Later Episode 12 is once again Crosshair only as he is sent to be under the command of a Lieutenant Nolan, who is the most over-the-top evil/cowardly commander you’ll ever see. He treats Crosshair and the Clones he’s assigned like he’s been given old guns to give to his actual soldiers and then when they arrive on the planet they’re assigned to the surviving Clones are mocked and berated for not doing their jobs despite not getting any new equipment or assistance. Crosshair and the leader of these Clones Mayday are told to recover some stolen cargo and along the way Mayday saves Crosshair from a mine and the two bond a bit, enough that after an explosive fire fight causes an avalanche Crosshair carries Mayday back to the base and begs to get help but Nolen mocks the very idea as Mayday dies in Crosshair’s arms. Finally this is the last straw and Crosshair shoots Nolen dead in cold blood before collapsing. The slow burn, Crosshair’s desperation to hold on to the military life he knows despite the writing being on the wall, it was all so well handled and written. This isn’t the end for Crosshair but I’ll get to that in the Spoiler section…

What’s that? The Bad Batch themselves? Oh yeah, good point! Hunter, Tech, Wrecker, Echo and Omega are a well-oiled machine at the start of the Season, and they spend a good few episodes doing one-off missions for Cid like a lot of the last season, and a lot of these are where the story stalls. Still, there are some highlights, like the Batch finding former Padawan Gungi and taking him back to the Wookie homeworld of Kashyyk; an episode that pays homage to Indian Jones by using new character Phee Genoa; an episode that pays homage to Alien by using the Zillo Beast from all the way back in Clone Wars Season 2 to do some tense space-ship horror leading to a straight up Godzilla reference; and the two-part mid-season special of “The Clone Conspiracy” and “Truth and Consequences” which sees Rex ask for the Batch’s help when Clones start to be hunted and killed by a mysteriously mechanised Clone with no memory.

“Whoops, sorry, um… wrong room. I’ll just be leaving now.”

Also targeted is Senator Chuchi who is among the few in the Senate to try and put forward a retirement plan for the Clones should they be classed as obsolete. The Batch are disgusted to find out that Rampart is claiming Kamino was destroyed by a storm and uncover video evidence of Rampart destroying the city, which is played in the Senate but while this does lead to Rampart being arrested Emperor Palpatine himself arrives, calls Rampart’s actions barbaric but then puts forward that his Clones destroyed their own home City and that shows an alarming president, manipulating the Senate (and the Batch themselves) into getting the “Defence Recruitment Bill” into effect, most likely his plan anyway. Classic Palpatine! After all this Echo decides to leave the Batch and join with Rex and his rebel Clone force to try and free as many Clones as possible.

Before I get to the shocking finale in the Spoiler Section I’ll also mention that after Rampart’s sudden end we get a new lead villain in the scientist Dr. Hemlock, who’s got the unnervingly well spoken and quiet psychopath voice down to a tee. He’s a great foil. Episode 13 “Pabu” was actually a pretty weak episode by itself but it shows Hunter beginning to come around to the idea that maybe they should quit the fight and settle down on the lovely titular planet, especially after Omega makes a friend. It’s the classic “false hope” thing, I’m afraid…

Overall Thoughts:

The Bad Batch and Phee take in the sights… that you can’t see. Trust me though, it’s very nice.

The Bad Batch Season 2 is one of those things that if you catch the “wrong” episodes you’d dismiss it as just another cartoon but hit the “right” episodes and you’ll get more great writing, storytelling and action that fits right alongside the other Star Wars series, both animated and live action. I can’t say the whole season was “banger after banger” but there were some frankly amazing episodes. A strong overall rating, but do checkout the Crosshair-centric episodes and the mid and overall season two-part finales one way or another.

So things really got good in the last three episodes. “Tipping Point” sees Crosshair getting tortured in Mt. Tantiss by Hemlock and his scientists, including an oddly familiar-sounding woman called Emerie Karr, but he manages to escape and send a message to the Batch to warn them that Hemlock is after Omega as he wants former Kamino Clone expert Nala Se to help with Palpatine’s “request” and knows that she cares for the young female Clone. The message gets through and although there is some doubt as to its validity they refuse to leave “one of their own” behind so plan to sneak into a secret Imperial meeting with the help of Echo and his information network and plant a tracker on Hemlock’s ship so they can find out where he is, and therefore where Crosshair is. The plan actually goes without a hitch at the start, they sneak in, the tracker is successfully placed… but then Hunter and Tech find out they’re not the only ones who have snuck in and find Saw Guerrera and his radical rebels who are deadset focused on blowing the building sky-high.

Hemlock assures Moff Tarkin that his evil plans are unlikely to be stopped by anyone being heroic… at least for this season.

An alarm goes off and they have to escape in the hurry, not enough time to diffuse the explosives so Hemlock’s ship and the tracker all go up in flames (but the man himself as well as other top Imperials are all safe) The Batch makes their escape but sadly during the exciting sequence Tech seemingly gives his life so his brothers can escape. Now this felt telegraphed by Tech forming something of a relationship with Phee, including a nice “see you soon” scene before they left for the mission, but it was SO telegraphed that I thought it was a bluff… until it actually happened, and that oddly made it work against all odds! Instead of returning to Pabu they end up back as Cid’s bar, Hunter, Wrecker and Omega all injured, but Cid gives them up to the Empire for a large pay-out and while Hunter and Wrecker manage to escape with the help of Echo Omega is captured by Hemlock and brought to Mt. Tantiss. While the remaining Batch swear to search for her Omega reunites with Nala Se and an unconscious Crosshair before the rather obvious reveal that Emerie Karr is another female Clone like Omega…

It was very much the Empire Strikes Back of Seasons, leaving our heroes beaten, bloody and having to search for one of their own against all odds. Looking forward to the next season!