In the Disney era of Star Wars, it is easy to become overwhelmed with content. With the arrival of Disney+, new Star Wars shows have come out at a rapid pace. Some of the shows have been really good (The Mandalorian, Andor), while others have felt a bit forced. The Bad Batch is an animated show that I think is one of the better Star Wars shows. The Batch are a group of genetically imperfect clones, trying to survive after Order 66 and the rise of the Empire. They work independently, but generally favor the Rebels. They become a target of the Empire as Omega is a part of their group. Omega is a female clone of Jango Fett, and the Empire is interested in continuing the cloning project started by the Kaminaons.
Season 2 of The Bad Batch suffers from the occasional episode that wanders from the main plot and seems pointless, a theme that occurred in season 1 as well. However, in general, season 2 does a much better job of pushing the main story forward, and it is a big story. Following the end of the Clone Wars and rise of the Empire, we discover that the Clone project on Kamino was shut down following an attack by the Empire. Emperor Palpatine announces the Storm Trooper project to replace the Clone army. The Empire isn't finished with cloning, however. This makes sense, because we all know that the Clone Troopers are better soldiers than the Storm Troopers. Instead of continuing to use Nala Se's technology on Kamino, they decide to destroy Kamino, hold Nala Se prisoner, and attempt to develop their own cloning tech. Cloning is a popular topic with the Empire, as we've seen discussions about this in The Mandalorian as well, which takes place much later in the New Republic era. Regardless, the Bad Batch get caught up in the Empire's scheme because of their relationship with Omega.
One of my biggest complaints with season 1 was Omega's naive approach to the problems the Batch faced. She would encourage them to take action in situations where there seemed to be huge risk and very little to gain. In season 2, Omega has grown up and matured a bit, and I was happy to see that she did this much less. With the exception of a couple of episodes, season 2 did less side tracking missions and mostly focused on the big picture. Any time we get a glimpse of the early Empire it is interesting.
A couple of side notes for season 2. The animation looked fantastic, as usual. I was able to watch the second half of the season in 4K thanks to Operation TV Swap. This was actually the first time I have seen a show in 4K, and it looks amazing. You can definitely tell a difference between it and HD. The season ended with a cliff hanging announcement that one of the scientists working for the Empire is also a female clone. Up to this point, we were left to believe that Omega was the only female. This revelation will surely have downstream effects, but we will have to wait until season 3 to find out what they are.
No comments:
Post a Comment