The entire run of The Bad Batch is about at an end, as the penultimate episode of the series aired this week, titled “Flash Strike”. It’s setting up a thrilling finale, as in this episode the squad moves closer and closer to the Imperial fortress of Mount Tantiss.
Let’s dive in to this episode review, and as always, full spoilers are ahead.
En route to Tantiss, the Bad Batch prepares for what will happen upon arrival, as Echo (aboard the Imperial transport) looks at various files. Echo also, along the way, dons an Imperial stormtrooper uniform and steals a droid hand to fit in, which is a nice disguise. But it’s also a bit ironic to see a clone trooper wearing stormtrooper armor, given everything the Empire has been doing. They’re trying to phase out the clones in favor of the enlisted TK troopers, and Echo is now trying to fit in as one of them.
Predictably, though, as soon as the ship arrives in Tantiss’s orbit, they’re detected. Which is exactly what we figured would happen, but it’s nice to see how capable the Empire is in this. Doctor Hemlock isn’t messing around, and they’ve detected that Clone Force 99 was at the facility above Coruscant. So he orders increased security, and as soon as they detect the squad’s ship, the Empire springs into action, shooting them down and locking down the base. This show, like Andor, really does show the Empire’s threat and might, presenting it as a nearly impossible challenge to go up against, and I think that’s great. Especially this early on in the timeline, where the Empire won’t be defeated for two decades, it’s good to get glimpses as to why they present such great threats. They’re very much on top of it here, and Hemlock isn’t messing around.
All of this also leads to a great moment with Omega, though, in the vault with the other kids. They hear the rumblings of blaster fire, and Omega knows: her brothers have found her. It’s a really great moment, and Omega realizes that she’s got to help them. So she has the other kids cover for her and begins to investigate. In the course of her sneaking around through the shafts in the base, she discovers where the Zillo Beast is being held, and I’m so glad that the showrunners are following up on that thread. After seeing it earlier in the series captured and brought to Mount Tantiss, we knew that the Empire had other cloning projects there. And I’m sure that the beast is going to come into play in a big way in the finale, as it seems to tie right into Omega’s plan. Presumably, she’ll release the Zillo Beast to cause destruction in the base – and a distraction for her and the others to escape.
While all of that is happening, Clone Force 99 must navigate through the treacherous jungles of Tantiss, trying to evade stormtroopers as well as a massive beast that Rampart inadvertently awakens. Rampart’s helplessness and constant screams throughout the episode are great, and there’s a particularly great comedic moment where Hunter is asked if Rampart survives and he answers “unfortunately yes.” But Rampart wounds up captured by the Empire, and we still don’t fully know whether to trust him. But I do think we are starting to see enough that we can formulate some guesses. Earlier in the episode Rampart questions whether Crosshair has really changed and really cares about more than just himself now, which I think is meant to make us as the audience wonder too. But now that Rampart is captured, I could see Crosshair’s display of his selflessness being him rescuing Rampart along with the others, and Crosshair taking some heroic actions to free his brothers. He never wanted to go back to Tantiss – and his hand tremor is a constant reminder of the horrors he encountered there – but Omega being captured was enough to drive him back to the one place he didn’t want to go. I’m guessing he’ll step up in an even bigger way for the sake of his brothers. But we’re also reminded that no one is safe, and Wrecker takes a nasty hit to the armor by the beast – leaving his armor weak, which could come into play later.
By episode’s end, Omega has a plan, but her squad are still outside the base in the jungle. The lone member to infiltrate the base so far is Echo, and the episode ends with him confronting Emerie. They both had heard plenty about the other from Omega, and Emerie tells Echo that he’ll have to trust her if they’re going to save Omega and the others. At this, Echo learns that Omega is not the only child imprisoned on Tantiss, which changes things considerably. But it’s also our indication that Emerie is going to help their cause, and she’s going to help Omega and the others escape. She’s a clone herself, who struggled to find her place until Hemlock gave her a belonging. But she’ll likely help the rest of the clones have a better future, perhaps at the cost of her own.
In all, this was another strong episode, but the big thing that confuses me is the pacing of it all. We’ve got just one episode left, and I really can’t fathom how it won’t be a much longer-than-normal episode even though reports indicate it isn’t. There are so many threads to wrap up, and it feels like the show has been slowly building up toward it for weeks now. That slow build has been effective and led to some compelling episodes, but I’m curious to see how it will all feel if the finale is a bit rushed and isn’t any longer than normal. There’s so much still to tackle that I think it’s going to have to be handled with extreme care and precision for it to stick the landing. I have confidence, but I’m also a bit curious and anxious to see it. But that’s really the only hesitation I have with this episode, as the story itself that unfolded was a compelling one that gets us ever closer to what promises to be a thrilling finale next week.
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