Credit: LucasfilmAfter we spent last week exploring Crosshair (Dee Bradley Baker) finding out first hand how the Empire will treat the outdated Clones (hint: not well), this week we rejoin our titular Star Wars: The Bad Batch gang themselves for an adventure on the island paradise of Pabu…
Related: Recap: ‘Star Wars: The Bad Batch’ S2E12, “The Outpost”
In a dive bar, we find Omega (Michelle Ang) and Phee Genoa (Wanda Sykes) meeting with some mercs led by Crowder to collect a prize piece. Hunter (Dee Bradley Baker) surreptitiously watches on. She catches them trying to poison her drink, but they have a back up plan of a toxic insect which they release to kill her. Luckily, Hunter takes it out with a thrown knife — but ends up in a standoff.
Wrecker reveals himself and the bar descends into violence. Omega ends things by dropping a large lighting decoration onto Crowder. Tech, located elsewhere, gets the call to pick up the gang. Escaping in a cloud of smoke to their shuttle, they make it away with the artifact and into hyperspace.
Phee suggests to the group that Omega might need some other friends her own age, to learn from outside of combat, when Cid (Rhea Perlman) gets in touch. She threatens them for not working with her for a long time. Phee says Cid isn’t someone they want to cross, and says she has a plan for how they can get out of it.
The Marauder lands on a small island, Pabu, Phee’s ‘home away from home’. It’s a verdant paradise, and home to the Archium, a large building that stores treasures from across the galaxy. Most of Pabu’s villagers are refugees and Phee rescues artifacts related to their cultures.
A man, Shep Hazard (Imari Williams) shows up, along with a girl, Lyana (Andy Allo), who calls her Auntie Phee. Shep is mayor of Pabu. Lyanna and Omega connect and Shep invites the group to dinner. He tells Hunter that Upper Pabu is the oldest part of the island, which expanded beyond the ancient wall to Lower Pabu as the community grew.
At Shep’s home, he speaks of how Pabu is a sanctuary for those affected by the war. He tells Hunter there’s no better place to raise a child.
Lyana and Omega run off to play, while in a shocking development, Wrecker is somehow full. Down by the water, the two girls take a boat out to the sunset. It’s a peaceful vista. She reminisces about being surrounded by the ocean on Kamino, but how different it felt.
Back at Shep’s, Phee and Data watch as the island’s lights come on for the evening. But Hunter senses something is wrong. An earthquake rumbles across the island.
Data says the island is at risk of a huge sea surge. A siren sounds, as the water begins to recede. They must get everyone in town to the higher ground. Omega and Lyanna leap from their boat as the water vanishes. The pair must run to shore as a huge wave approaches.
Phee and Data try to accelerate the evacuation by deploying the rescue ladders at the top of each wall. Hunter gets into the Marauder to fly out and retrieve the girls. Shep and Wrecker just make it up the ladder as the waves cover Lower Pabu.
The next day, villagers are shellshocked by the devastation on the lower island. Shep says the people are resilient, and Hunter and Data offer their services to help rebuild.
Clone Force For Thought About Star Wars: Bad Batch – “Pabu”:
This episode offers a hope of sanctuary and peace for the Clones and Omega — but even that comes with a price, with destruction following our group even to this island paradise. It was nice to see this benevolent side to Phee, and up until the sea surge, Pabu really is idyllic. I’ll confess there was a moment where I thought we were seeing an inhabited version of Ach-To, with the sparse rocks and even the Pabu houses looking similar to those seen on Luke Skywalker’s island retreat.
Instead, we had a nice run of relaxing bliss. And even post-disaster, we saw optimism: the islanders will rebuild, and the Bad Batch will be there to help. My main fear is what will pull the group back into the Imperial crosshairs afterwards… and will the Empire be so kind to this utopia?
What did you think to this week’s episode of The Bad Batch? Tell us in the comments below.