This is the Bad Batch episode I’ve been waiting for.
The Plot
It opens with the Bad Batch wrapping up a mission for Cid. While discussing the profits of said mission, where Cid reveals that she’s exploiting them shamelessly, some of the regulars start hassling a shrouded figure. Blaster fire is exchanged, revealing that the figure is actually Rex.
When Rex realizes that the Bad Batch still have their inhibitor chips, he tells them they need to be removed. They meet on Bracca, a junk planet under control of the Scrapper Guild. Rex leads them to a Jedi cruiser which should still have medical facilities capable of removing the chips.
Before they are able to remove Wrecker’s chip, it triggers when they discuss Order 66. Wrecker fights his comrades, including going after Omega for associating with traitors. Ultimately, they succeed in removing the chips, and Rex leaves them. The final shots of the episode focus on members of the guild advising they’re going to report them to the Empire.
The Good
I’m most familiar with Bracca because of the video game Jedi: Fallen Order, but I am aware it’s made appearances in various other texts and mediums. The rope crossing also reminded me of Jedi: Fallen Order and the number of times I fell to my death not catching a rope in time. Perhaps the biggest nod this episode gave to another Star Wars narrative was the monster in the water. The creature is larger and scarier than the garbage chute cyclops python creature in A New Hope, but I enjoyed the homage. I love when Star Wars does this. It connects the universe with its various protagonists in a myriad of tiny ways I truly appreciate.
Looking back on last week’s episode, I do feel mildly foolish not jotting Rex’s name down as a possibility for the shadowy figure. What can I say, I really enjoyed the dynamic the Martez sisters had with Ahsoka so it made thematic sense to me, but it also makes narrative sense that it’s Rex.
The final confrontation between the Bad Batch and Wrecker, culminating in Wrecker chasing Omega, is a mostly satisfying ending to the foreshadowing leading up to this moment. Wrecker’s big brother relationship to Omega has been established since the very early episodes, so it was fitting that she’s the last clone standing, as it were, before Rex manages to stun Wrecker before he can harm Omega.The juxtaposition of him pointing a gun at Omega to the beginning of the episode when they are sharing a post-mission treat together is heartbreaking.
There’s a moment where Rex stares at his helmet. His expression is inscrutable, but there’s a sense of loss, of grief. Perhaps he thinks of Fives and the brothers he couldn’t save. Perhaps he thinks of his existing conflict against the Empire. Perhaps he is simply tired. I would have loved more of these understated moments in the episode.
The Bad
The beginning is a complete waste of time. I don’t care about the creature they procured or Cid to be frank. I question how Hunter thinks working for Cid is a better alternative than possibly joining Rex to serve what may or may not be left of the Republic (which is its own can of worms). I’m so glad I know that Rex goes off on his own for at least a little while with several of his brothers because the Republic will never care about Rex the way he cares about it.
I tire of Cid, and I know she’s a character we’re supposed to hate, but I do not enjoy hating her, and I would generally prefer that she is no longer putting the Bad Squad in danger and treating them terribly.
Echo and Rex do not have a particularly emotional reunion, not even a subtle or understated one. This is very par the course for the treatment of Echo, but I still find it disappointing.
Tech mentions Crosshair very cavalierly. It feels odd in comparison with Hunter’s guilt in a recent episode where he realizes they left a man behind. I’m assuming Crosshair is going to show up again now that the Scrapper Guild are reporting them to the Empire.
In Conclusion
I had very high hopes for Wrecker facing his inhibitor chip. It’s hard, sometimes, for a story to fulfill all expectations, especially since Bad Batch will sometimes prioritize action sequences over character development. With Wrecker as an underdeveloped character (alongside Echo), the moment could never truly fulfill my every expectation. That said, it is still a mostly satisfying end, and I look forward to Crosshair entering the scene.