The Bad Batch Season Three: The end of an era
This past Wednesday, May 1, we received the final episode of the Star Wars animated series The Bad Batch (2021-24). While the show’s first two seasons were great, especially season two, this final season of the series had a lot riding on it, and fortunately for us fans, it didn't disappoint!
Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008-20) is often considered the pinnacle of Star Wars; its storytelling is among the best in the series and helped redeem the prequel films. The films suffered from issues like Clone Troopers feeling like lifeless canon fodder, but this series made said clones so much more, especially loved by fans. At the end of this series, we were introduced to Clone Force 99: “The Bad Batch.”
Seeing The Bad Batch’s evolution from their first appearance to this season is genuinely impressive, as their development has been excellent. The biggest example of this is the squad's sharpshooter, Crosshair. He once was the timid one who left his squad to stay loyal to the Empire, but—this season especially—we see this blind loyalty get questioned as he finally betrays the Empire, an act that makes him reassess his entire personhood in the process. This season, we saw how much he acknowledged his past mistakes, learned from them, and committed to his squad, but he wasn’t alone here.
Omega is a character I initially thought was an annoying kid thrown in for comedic relief, but her journey and importance have become unmatched by the series’s close. We see her go through so much herself and for her brothers. Yet, this generic plotline is flipped upside down when her importance is truly explained, and the Empire finally needs her for their secret project, “Necromancer.” Regardless of her importance, her bond with Hunter, Wrecker, Crosshair, Tech, and Echo is at the heart of this series's success.
Although there are so many references to Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008-20), this series takes place right after the end of the war. The Bad Batch (2021-24) doesn't rely solely on pure nostalgia and references to the series, though. The Republic’s transition to the Empire after the war is one of the most interesting periods in all of Star Wars. Fortunately, with The Bad Batch (2021-24), we get to see different aspects of this, like Clones being ditched for conscripted soldiers’ new Imperial vehicles, along with how they have destroyed any trace of the Jedi.
The finale of this season and series was nothing short of exhilarating, with the groundwork laid down perfectly in the episodes leading up to it. Mount Tantiss, where Omega is imprisoned along with many others, is under attack by The Bad Batch along with an unexpected ally whom we saw tear at Coruscant during the Clone Wars. The ending of the series was great, and I found the conclusion shocking; I expected events to turn a certain way, but to the writers' credit, they did a great job mixing it up while also making it emotional.
The end of this series also marks the end of the prequel era. From 1999 to this year, we got different films and series like Star Wars: The Clone Wars and The Bad Batch that contributed to this great time for Star Wars, but the end of this series is probably the last time we see the much-beloved Clones. While it did have its rocky points, this is the Star Wars I grew up with. I remember watching Star Wars: The Clone Wars on Cartoon Network as a kid. The end of that series marked the end of my childhood in 2020. The Bad Batch is the series that started my freshman year here at Geneseo and fittingly ended as I graduate in a few weeks.
This is my last article as a writer for The Lamron, as I will be graduating soon. In the two years I’ve been writing, I have met so many great individuals and grown as a person and writer. For those who may have read any of my various articles, I greatly appreciate you. My time writing for this paper has been amazing, and I wouldn't trade it for anything. Thank you.
Thumbnail photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons