‘Star Wars: The Bad Batch’ Three Seasons Later, What Was the Point?
As we close the book on The Bad Batch, let’s take a bit to reflect on what this show was, what it added, and if it was worth the watch.
After three seasons, The Bad Batch has finally come to an end. It’s been a rollercoaster ride of a series, with entire blocks of episodes that were flawless followed by episodes that felt like 90s anime-style monster-of-the-week. But overall, how does The Bad Batch stack up? Is it worth the time commitment? Does it really add anything to the lore of the galaxy? Or is it just a fun way to waste some time if you—like me—aren’t quite over the clones yet?
What The Bad Batch Added to the Galaxy—If Anything
I’m being honest, The Bad Batch only seemed to answer questions I didn’t really have. What were the clones up to during and after Order 66? It was interesting to see, but most of that could have been extrapolated from other shows. What cloning programs failed before the great Palpatine-is-somehow-back-Snoke introduction? I mean, I guess now I know why cloning in the future is iffy when the Kaminoans clearly had it down to an art. In fact, the only question that this show answered that even sort of had was, “What’s the Bad Batch up to?”
But I don’t think that that’s necessarily what this show adds. What we don’t get in new lore, we do get in closure and a grand finale for some of our favorite clones. And if you’re one of the many people who walked away from The Clone Wars with a deep affection for them, that may be enough.
The Friends We Made (and Lost) Along the Way
As is the way recently, many of the characters we meet throughout these seasons are cameo appearances or callbacks. Many showed up in The Clone Wars or will show up in Rebels. Others made their way from live action. And yeah, sometimes there can be too many cameos. But it also makes sense why Tarkin, for example, may stop by some of these locations from time to time.
But we also meet some brand new characters, lose some characters, and regain characters we thought were lost. The most notable addition was Omega, who was clearly written to have the same annoying-child-to-cool-kid growth curve as Ahsoka Tano. Did she succeed though? ‘Ehhhh…
Don’t get me wrong, I liked Omega just fine at the beginning and only liked her more by the end. But when the ‘you’ll learn to love this character!’ path is so obviously planned out, it feels a little manipulative and a little like re-hash. I don’t foresee Omega becoming a multi-medium fan-favorite character with her own show down the road. But I do think it would be cool to see her make an appearance from time to time.
But is It Worth Watching, Though?
This is the question. And I don’t know. For my friend who has watched most of the live action movies and shows but knows nothing of The Clone Wars, probably not. For somebody like myself who’s watched everything and read quite a bit? Probably, yes. The Bad Batch was a show written for people who love Clone Force 99 and that’s it. If your feelings on them are negative or neutral, or even, “They’re okay, I liked it when they showed up on screen I guess,” this will likely feel like a big waste of time to you. Especially the first half of season two.
But if you’re the person who’s always watching the background characters for proof that Rex is still alive and with the rebellion, if your favorite episodes of The Clone Wars and Rebels wanted a clone and especially any of the Clone Force 99 were featured, and if you feel very strongly about any of them having a chance at a happy retirement from Republic service, this show was made for you.
Did you watch The Bad Batch? Did you think it was worth the watch? Which episode or story arc was your favorite? Let us know in the comments!
May the Force be with you, adventurers!
