The Bad Batch

Review Time! The Clone War is over, the Republic is no more, and the Empire is in power. For the clones of Clone Force 99 (aka The Bad Batch), things have become uncertain. The Empire is quickly showing itself to be ruthless and cruel, and most of their clone brothers seem to be just going along with it. But life become complicated when they find Omega, a female unaltered clone of Jango Fett, and she is desperately wanted by the Kaminoans and the Empire. On the run, and hunted by Crosshair, one of their members, Hunter, Tech, Echo and Wrecker have to protect Omega and find their place in an increasingly hostile galaxy and find out what exactly the Empire has in store for them and the Galaxy at large! With top notch animation and impressive action, the Bad Batch stumbles when it comes to story and characterization. In its 16 episode run, there are several filler episodes that can be skipped entirely and you lose nothing; not great when you are trying to make a good impression with a show of this caliber. The characters are also flat, with Tech and Wrecker being noted examples. Though Wrecker does shine in one particular episode, where the whole scene turns into a horror movie. The dynamic between Hunter and Omega is nice, if a bit cliched at this point, and ultimately Echo is just there. Crosshair becomes the villain early on, but we don’t really get much on his perspective. Some nice cameos from various Clone Wars and Rebel’s characters, which is always appreciated, but I feel that they were the highlights, not the Batch themselves. Ultimately, it is a fun series, but it doesn’t reach the heights of Clone Wars. Although, it has been confirmed for a second season, so maybe it will get even better. At the very least, having more Filoni Star Wars content is always appreciated, and let’s hope there is plenty more to come!