Thoughts and Theories On 'Star Wars: The Bad Batch'
Star Wars and Dave Filoni made their triumphant return to animation with The Bad Batch on Disney+. It premiered on May 4th, and I can't think of a better time to launch a show like this. The show takes us back to everything we loved about Dave Filoni's original The Clone Wars series, but it adds enough new material to tell a new story. Before I go any further into the first episode, I want to clarify that there will be some spoilers for the episode ahead. It may only be the first episode, but there are some moments that might be better experienced with fresh eyes.
From the minute the show started, it had me hooked. The classic The Clone Wars banner is shown in red, and then it fizzles away to reveal The Bad Batch banner. Then it transitions immediately into a battle during Revenge of the Sith. This battle takes place while Obi-Wan closes in on General Grievous on Utapau. I really liked that it stared during Revenge of the Sith. It makes the Star Wars universe feel slightly more connected, and it shows that there are more people in the galaxy beside the main characters of the movies who are dealing with problems. This battle leads into an epic attack by Clone Force 99, and it gives us a nice cameo by a familiar Jedi.
The show then takes us into Order 66, and this time we get to see it from the front lines of the war. This starts to give us a look at what to expect from the rest of the season. We learn in The Clone Wars series that the clones have chips put in their heads which make them follow Order 66, but The Bad Batch (for the most part) don't have these chips. That is the interesting thing about the show. We are getting to see what it is like for a group of clones to experience the fall of the Jedi, the rise of the Empire, and the brainwashing of their brothers. It isn't set after the Empire has been long established like in Rebels or Solo. This is showing us the direct aftermath of the Clone Wars and Order 66. That makes me excited to see where the rest of the story goes. Yes, I do care about seeing what happens to Clone Force 99 and the slight fracture of their group, and I am interested to learn more about the new character Omega. I am more interested in seeing how the squad reacts to the new Empire, the formation of stormtroopers, and how they relate to the forthcoming rebellion, if at all. The Bad Batch could be the first canonical in-depth Star Wars story to really give us the perfect version of the turmoil of the time period between Episodes III and IV from the soldier's point of view rather than from the eyes of the Jedi. I look forward to seeing the galaxy's immediate change from the perspective of the former warriors of the Republic.
I don't want to do a complete synopsis of the first episode or give major spoilers, so I will just add at the end of the episode, they hint that they are going to see a friend somewhere in the galaxy. A lot of people suspect that this could be Captain Rex, which would be really cool, but I think it is more likely to be Fennec Shand because she has already been revealed in the trailers and announcements. That doesn't mean she is the only cameo we will see, and the first episode gave us more than a few cameos. I look forward to seeing some familiar faces, but I don't think it is super necessary to cram in Jedi, Sith, or The Clone Wars characters. That being said, it would be cool to see someone like Bail Organa, Captain Rex, or Ahsoka show up here and there. I also have a suspicion that The Bad Batch will connect in some way with Rebels, Rogue One, or maybe even Jedi: Fallen Order. It is purely speculation, but I think it would be cool to see these events from the eyes of the exiled clones.
I love shows and movies with ragtag, misfit, specialized soldiers, and I think that is what The Bad Batch is working on giving us. It looks like it will be The A-Team but in space, and I fully support that! Even if they don't talk a lot about the rise of the Empire, Order 66, the clone chips, or the fall of the Republic, I will be satisfied with the group of unique misfits solving problems for the little people in the galaxy and being chased by the Empire.