by Jake Bourgeois, Contributing Writer
I’ll be the first to admit, when Star Wars: The Clone Wars came to an end and the next animated Star Wars television entry was announced as The Bad Batch, I couldn’t suppress a twinge of disappointment. “But I wanted the Ahsoka and Sabine Rebels sequel series,” I whined in my head, before resolving to give this one a shot.
After all, with not only The Clone Wars, but Rebels and The Mandalorian, anything Dave Filoni’s involved in at this point gets my benefit of the doubt — though Jennifer Corbett also serves as his co-creator here. While they don’t quite hit the highs of the final four episodes, the season seven arc introducing us to the titular Bad Batch certainly had me intrigued about the characters. Clone Force 99, as they are also known, are clones that have had certain tendencies enhanced: Hunter (leadership), Crosshair (vision/marksmanship), Wrecker (strength), Tech (brains), and Echo, a holdover from The Clone Wars. Furthermore, the premise set up in the trailer which set the show up as one taking place in the immediate aftermath of Revenge of the Sith, a point in time relatively unexplored in current cannon. The show explores what happens to the clones after the rise of the Galactic Empire and how they fit in — or don’t — into the new world order.
The result is a well-executed series that I’ve been more than happy to consume alongside my Friday morning breakfast. The main reason the show works is that it gives us characters to care about. Having 16 additional episodes to focus on means we really get to settle in and get to know the Bad Batch members. While their chemistry was apparent in their initial arc, it truly shines over the course of a full season. The setting takes advantage of the transitional period between the Republic and the Empire by presenting some great character moments as our heroes have to do some real soul searching and determine their role in the galaxy.
There are some notable newcomers, too. Namely, young Omega joining the crew and Cid, a former Jedi informant that provides them with their missions throughout the season. Our new players immediately fit right in. Omega slots seamlessly into the team as a new member and has some great chemistry with the crew — particularly Hunter and Wrecker. Cid, voiced by the always fantastic Rhea Perlman, has a fun, if not sometimes threatening relationship, with her reluctant employees. They even throw in a couple of other characters from other television properties, but never in a way that feels cheap or takes away from the story they’re trying to tell with the main characters.
Technically, like the final season of The Clone Wars, the visuals are once again spectacular. The show looks fantastic and really shows how far things have progressed in the Star Wars animated canon. The action is well shot, so to speak, and there are plenty of stunning landscapes from across the galaxy far, far away. While Ludwig Göransson rightfully got plenty of praise for his score work in The Mandalorian, the OG of the television universe, Kevin Kiner returns to score this series. Unsurprisingly, he is fantastic, per usual. The Bad Batch’s theme is fantastic, as is Omega’s. Being a veteran of this world, Kiner knows when and where to use subtlety versus bombast. The music is never a distraction and always elevates the action on screen.
When one of the few true missteps is from the opening moments of the entire series — when a returning voice actor doesn’t quite fit in his era-appropriate body — you know you have a pretty solid season of television. While I enjoyed every episode, I had small quibbles at times with the order, as an episodic entry could feel like it threw off some of the momentum of the series. Having said that, each episode in the series adds something, perhaps not to the show’s forward momentum, but solid character development moments at the very least.
When compared to other Star Wars animated television, the range of the episodes is lesser in both directions. While there aren’t any episodes or moments that are duds or make you want to roll your eyes — like a droid- or Jar-Jar-centric Clone Wars episode or some of the kiddy episodes of Rebels — the series never quite reaches the highs those shows reach at their best either. That’s not to say there aren’t standout moments, including a satisfyingly tense two-part season finale.
Despite my initial disappointment, what we have is another solid and fun adventure in the animated canon of the Star Wars universe. The Bad Batch is well worth the investment and has me excited for the show’s second season, announced on precipice of the first season’s two-part finale. Oh, and that other series I was disappointed I wasn’t getting? It’s looking more and more likely that’s coming in the Ahsoka series.
It’s almost like these folks know what they’re doing.
Grade: B+
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