Credit: LucasfilmLucasfilm dropped the first full-length trailer for the final season of Star Wars: The Bad Batch earlier this week, which included some major revelations about the titular team as well as the familiar — and not-so-familiar — adversaries they’ll be up against this time around. With so much at stake, here are three signs that Star Wars is planning on killing off Clone Force 99 in The Bad Batch Season 3, and why that could prove to be a huge mistake.
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What Is ‘Star Wars: The Bad Batch’ About?
‘Star Wars: The Clone Wars’ origins
Before their spinoff show was ever announced, the Bad Batch (AKA Clone Force 99) made their franchise debut in the seventh and final season of the animated Star Wars: The Clone Wars TV series in the aptly-titled episode, “The Bad Batch,” which premiered on Disney+ in 2020. The episode saw Commander Cody and Captain Rex (voiced by Dee Bradley Baker) calling on assistance from an unconventional group of ragtag clones: Wrecker, Tech, Crosshair, and Hunter.
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These mutated clones have special abilities that make them distinct from their “reg” brothers, with Crosshair having enhanced eyesight and perfect aim, Hunter having heightened tracking senses, Wrecker having superhuman strength, and Tech having a genius intellect and strategic prowess. Echo of the 501st Legion would go on to join Clone Force 99 after he was rescued from his imprisonment, rounding out the team from then on.
Post-Order 66 and the rise of the Galactic Empire
Of course, the fall of the Republic would ultimately arrive, with the Clone Army being genetically engineered to kill their own Jedi generals due to their hidden inhibitor chips. However, when Chancellor Palpatine (Ian McDiarmid) executed Order 66, the Bad Batch, unlike their brothers, didn’t follow instructions, as their chips malfunctioned. Still, the ineffectiveness of Order 66 didn’t stop Crosshair from willingly joining the Galactic Empire, forcing the remainder of the group into hiding after a mysterious female clone named Omega (Michelle Ang) came into the picture.
Everything We Know about ‘The Bad Batch’ Season 3
Omega and Crosshair are imprisoned on Mount Tantiss
Given that Omega is a particularly valuable asset to the Empire, being a genetically unaltered clone of bounty hunter Jango Fett (Temuera Morrison), it’s no surprise that Palpatine pulled out all the stops to hunt her down across the galaxy. The cliffhanger finale of The Bad Batch Season 2 saw Imperial leader Doctor Royce Hemlock (Jimmi Simpson) capturing Omega on Mount Tantiss with the hopes of inspiring Kaminoan scientist Nala Se (Gwendoline Yeo) to complete her top-secret project — presumably, cloning Force-sensitives, as we saw via Snoke (Andy Serkis) in the Star Wars Sequel Trilogy.
In the Season 3 trailer, we also see Crosshair imprisoned in the same cloning facility as Omega, implying that the Empire’s not exactly finished with the former Bad Batcher just yet. The sharp-shooting clone did defect in the Season 2 episode “The Outpost” after a jarring campaign on the snowy world of Barton IV, during which he shoots the uncaring Lieutenant Nolan (Crispin Freeman) dead. Crosshair later awakens in an operating chamber where he is greeted by Emerie Karr (Keisha Castle-Hughes) — another female Jango Fett clone — who tells him if he cooperates, he may survive.
Mourning Tech
Another big point the third season of The Bad Batch has to address is the loss of Tech, who nobly sacrificed himself for his brothers after ordering “Plan 99.” Tech fell hundreds of feet into a clouded abyss off of a moving cable car, which seems like a pretty final way to kill off a character. Still, just look at Palpatine, Darth Maul, and even Echo — all people who were presumed dead but were miraculously resurrected by the higher powers at Lucasfilm.
Plus, Star Wars fans are well accustomed to following the “no body, no death” line of thinking, which could mean Tech is indeed alive, granted all we’ve seen of his remains are his shattered goggles. Either way, the crew is bound to be devastated over his death, which is made even worse by their guilt about “losing” Crosshair and Omega to the Imperials, as well as Echo going off with Rex.
Asajj Ventress, Cad Bane, and other noteworthy returns
In terms of appearances, a few familiar baddies from The Clone Wars seem to have made their way back into the narrative for the final season of The Bad Batch. Surprisingly, former Sith assassin Asajj Ventress (Nika Futterman), who was thought to have died in the canon novel Star Wars: Dark Disciple, was shown in the final moments of the trailer, in which she seems to have undergone a change of heart — if her yellow lightsaber is anything to go by.
Bounty hunter Cad Bane (Corey Burton), who made his live-action debut in the Disney+ The Book of Boba Fett series, also popped up in the clip, though it remains unknown whether or not he’ll be a friend or a foe to the title team. Fennec Shand (Ming-Na Wen) and Commander Wolffe (Dee Bradley Baker) briefly appeared in the teaser as well, and from the looks of it, they may play a significant part in helping the remaining members of Clone Force 99 to break Omega out of Tantiss.
‘Star Wars’ Will Kill off the Bad Batch in Season 3 — Here’s Why
3. A familiar episode title gives it away
Following the release of the first full-length trailer for The Bad Batch Season 3, Lucasfilm unveiled the episode titles for each weekly installment, with one in particular catching fans’ attention — and it’s kind of a deep cut. If you remember the Batch’s first appearance in Season 7 of The Clone Wars, you might remember the first line Wrecker says upon arriving on Anaxes: “The cavalry has arrived!” Coincidentally enough, this happens to be the title of Season 3, Episode 15, AKA the series finale.
So, what does this mean for Clone Force 99? Well, the name seems to imply a full circle moment of sorts, taking a page out of the Disney+ Loki show’s book by alluding back to an earlier moment in the series. Beyond that, it suggests that a “cavalry” will be employed to, presumably, rescue Omega, and it seems likely that Hunter and Wrecker will recruit Rex, Echo, Wolfee, Gregor, Fennec, and perhaps Asajj to do so. This kind of “one last job” trope typically means that our heroes are in for an intense showdown, making it likely that not everyone — even the Bad Batch — will make it out alive.
Mark your calendars.The final season of Star Wars: #TheBadBatch is streaming February 21, with a three-episode premiere, only on @DisneyPlus.
Mark your calendars.
The final season of Star Wars: #TheBadBatch is streaming February 21, with a three-episode premiere, only on @DisneyPlus. pic.twitter.com/rghN9hJ1CZ
— Star Wars: The Bad Batch (@TheBadBatch) January 22, 2024
2. Emperor Palpatine is simply too powerful
We already know that Palpatine is ultimately successful in his efforts to clone Force-sensitives, thanks to Star Wars: Episode IX – The Rise of Skywalker (2019). With this in mind, it seems like even if the Bad Batch manages to destroy the Emperor’s secret storehouses on Mount Tantiss, it will make little difference. Based on this fact alone, things aren’t looking too good for the Bad Batch — especially when considering that Darth Sidious’ right-hand man is none other than Darth Vader. Hunter, Wrecker, Echo, and Crosshair are, without a doubt, capable warriors, but it’s safe to say that they have no chance against the Chosen One himself.
1. The series is coming to an end
Perhaps the most apparent sign that Clone Force 99 will meet their untimely end lies in the knowledge that the third season of The Bad Batch is confirmed to be its last. While Omega voice actress Michelle Ang has hinted that her character’s story is far from over, it’s hard to imagine where Hunter, Wrecker, and the rest of the crew would go next after (hopefully) saving Omega from Mount Tantiss — unless they fully retire and live out their days on Pabu, which seems unlikely, given their nature.
After all, we haven’t seen the Bad Batch pop up in any post-Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi (1983) media yet, and it seems unlikely that Lucasfilm would want to revisit the Imperial era anytime soon, as they’ve somewhat exhausted that point on the Star Wars timeline. With Omega being the only member of the crew to have a real future ahead of her, that makes her the most plausible candidate for a potential Disney+ spinoff show or live-action adaptation down the line. For now, however, it seems like Lucasfilm could be preparing to say goodbye to the titular team in the most heartbreaking way possible.
Would Getting Rid of the Bad Batch Be a Big Mistake?
The Bad Batch have become fan-favorites
Despite being somewhat recent additions to the galaxy far, far away, Clone Force 99 has cemented itself as a fan favorite thanks to some stellar character development, drastically contrasting personalities, brotherly interactions, and heroic stunts reminiscent of The Clone Wars. It also helps that the Prequel era has experienced something of a revival in recent years, with fans being curious about the immediate aftermath of Order 66 — a generally unexplored period in Star Wars history.
With this in mind, it might be a colossal mistake to bid farewell to The Bad Batch now that the series has found its footing, with audiences warming up to its vast array of worlds and characters since its premiere in 2021. However, it is important for co-showrunners Dave Filoni and Jennifer Corbett to recognize when there’s simply not enough story to tell, so kudos to them for quitting while they’re ahead.
Killing off Clone Force 99 could be a huge blow to ‘Star Wars’ animation
When news broke that Lucasfilm’s Industrial Light & Magic visual effects animation studio in Singapore, which oversaw the production of The Clone Wars, would be closing after 20 years, many fans became understandably concerned for the future of Star Wars animation. After all, the franchise — aside from Tales of the Jedi, Young Jedi Adventures, and Star Wars: Visions — appears to be shifting its focus to more live-action projects like The Mandalorian and Ahsoka, with The Bad Batch being one of the sole animated shows to arrive on Disney+ in recent years.
With the chapter closing on The Bad Batch, permanently erasing Clone Force 99 from Star Wars storytelling hinders the prospect of a future spinoff show, which, in following its predecessor, would likely be animated. Of course, there could be ample opportunity to bring Wrecker, Hunter, Echo, and Co. into live-action if they survive the upcoming season, but it would be at the cost of their animated roots, continuing a frustrating trend of “legitimizing” characters by adapting them into live-action.
The Bad Batch still has plenty of story to tell
As mentioned, it’s essential to know when to quit. But with The Bad Batch having aired for just two seasons and set to conclude with a third, it seems like the Star Wars spinoff is being cut unusually short. Still, for being such a short-lived series, The Bad Batch has certainly packed a punch, exploring hard-hitting subjects like clone rights, Palpatine’s experiments on Mount Tantiss, the criminal underbelly, and what it means to be unthinkingly obedient to oppressive forces of power.
As opposed to The Clone Wars, which relied heavily on a mix of serialized storytelling and “filler episodes,” The Bad Batch seems to be getting more and more intentional with its pacing, and it looks like Season 3 will be the most crucial yet. Only time will tell if the show will have the time and space to properly tie up all loose story threads in just 15 episodes or if the final product will be a jumbled sprint to the finish line.
The three-part premiere of Star Wars: The Bad Batch Season 3 will arrive on Disney+ on February 21, 2024.