Star Wars: The Bad Batch Season 3 Episodes 1-3 review
After the traumatising end to ‘Star Wars: The Bad Batch’ Season 2, fans braced themselves for the show’s return, and it is finally here, just over a year later. The first three episodes show an improvement in quality, with fans getting a much better idea of Mount Tantiss, and setting up conflict for future episodes.
Episodes 1 and 3 focus entirely on Tantiss and Omega’s struggles. The first episode is a bleak scene setter, showing her routine as she goes about as Emerie’s assistant. It’s a necessary start for the season, and helps feel like her capture was worth it. It establishes key locations within Tantiss, something that the third episode pays off. It does rush some key plot points such as Omega’s escape happening perhaps a bit too easily, but there are still fantastic details within.
One of these is the development of Omega’s and Crosshair’s relationship. It begins with Crosshair flat-out rejecting any help or friendship Omega is offering him, but as she wears him down his prickly exterior, he starts giving some feedback and positive reception. This culminates in them escaping together, no doubt Omega will force Crosshair to confront his brothers.
The major detail, revealed in Episode 3, is the true purpose of Mount Tantiss. Emperor Palpatine (voiced once again by Ian McDiarmid) visits, somehow bringing an even more gloomy atmosphere to the place, and wants Hemlock to show him progress on Project Necromancer, a brilliant connection to Season 3 of ‘The Mandalorian.’ Audiences get some details too, tying Omega to the project that might have huge canon ramifications.
Hemlock’s presence as the unscrupulous Imperial scientist and head of Tantiss is as fantastic as ever, with Jimmi Simpson’s quiet voice dripping with menace. Hemlock never had to speak loudly to get his point across. While the other horrors he’s been subjecting the clones to have yet to be shown, audiences get several hints with Crosshair’s degradation, and a quick look at the new Clone Assassin, who will have a bigger role in the story going forward. Perhaps he’s the first Death Trooper, or the first Dark Trooper.
Episode 2 is an outlier in this regard. It focuses on Hunter and Wrecker attempting to find leads to Tantiss, first by picking up information from the Devaronian crime syndicate from Season 1 Episode 13. It still doesn’t justify that awful episode, though it does give it some legitimacy, if not much. The pair journey to a different jungle planet, one covered in creepy vines. The remains of an Imperial science base is there, but more importantly, three ragged clone cadets, helping to give an insight into the horrible things that happened to them after the war. This is what ties it to the other two episodes.
The Imperial science base houses some information on Hemlock, though the reason the Empire abandoned it soon becomes clear, as the creepy vines (called slither vines) are actually taking over the planet, the result of an experiment gone wrong. They’re very similar to the Drengir from the High Republic, a likely intentional reference. It leads to some enjoyable one-off action, even if the episode would have been better placed before Episode 1 or after Episode 3.
‘The Bad Batch’ Season 3 has got off to a great start, with a fascinating look at the innards of Mount Tantiss. It didn’t miss out on character either, pushing the relationships of key characters forward with fun action. Episode 2 is more of a traditional episode of what audiences might be used to, however provides another glimpse at how the clones were unjustly treated after The Clone War. Hopefully the rest of the season can maintain this sense of momentum.
