Credit: LucasfilmThe ending of the latest episode of Star Wars: The Bad Batch (2021) “Tribe”, could spell big things for one of the main characters.
The episode saw Clone Force 66, led by Hunter (Dee Bradley Baker, who voices all the Clones) head to Kashyyyk with young ward Omega (Michelle Ang). They made the journey to the forest world after inadvertently rescuing young wookiee Jedi Gungi (Jonathan Lipow) from the clutches of malevolent droid criminals the Vanguard Axis.
Their time on the lush jungle planet gives us a glimpse into the devastating damage the Empire is wreaking on it, working alongside the Trandoshans to raze the verdant flora and terrorize the fauna. Gungi leads the Bad Batch into battle against the raiders, and with the help of wookiee leader Yanna (Shelby Young) reconnects with his people and his planet. The latter helps them in their fight, with the wookiees communing with the trees to get their assistance in the fight.
The final battle against the wicked Trandoshan leader Commander Venomor is won with the Vinrath, canopy-dwelling spider creatures who overpower Venomor and carry him off to a grisly fate.
In the episode’s closing moments, we see Hunter and Tech speaking with Yanna while watching Omega and Gungi commune with the huge trees nearby. Yanna has agreed to bring Gungi into her group. Hunter observes that both Omega and Gungi are still children, caught up in a galaxy at war.
Yanna responds with wisdom, saying: “When a young one leaves, the trees weep. But when they return, the trees sing. As this child has found his new home, perhaps, one day, we all will find a new path.”
Hunter responds by saying he hopes it will be one far away from war. Looking at the implications of that statement, we could see the Bad Batch begin to try to extricate themselves from the wider conflict, or at least try and find a way to let Omega live a somewhat ‘normal’ life despite the developing backdrop of the Galactic Civil War.
This would resonate with the overall themes of the episode, which sees the gang bring the young wookiee back to his distressed home planet in an attempt to salvage some kind of regular existence for the Jedi.
There was also an interesting thread about assumed identities, with Gungi discovering a group of ‘good’ Clones, reversing some of his perception post-Order 66, and Gungi himself being something of a surprise reveal for those who haven’t previously encountered the character in The Clone Wars (2008).
What did you think to the ending of the latest episode of The Bad Batch? Tell us in the comments below.
About The Bad Batch:
From showrunner Dave Filoni comes a new animated Star Wars sensation. Created as clones of bounty hunter Jango Fett, Clone Force 99 — ‘The Bad Batch’ — are an elite force of Clone Troopers who turned their back on the Galactic Empire’s regime to carve their own path through the galaxy. Alongside young ward Omega (Michelle Ang), they embark on adventures during a time of great turmoil in the galaxy.