“War Mantle” may have been my favorite episode so far. I was hoping from the moment the series was announced that we could see how clones such as Gregor or Wolffe deserted.
Other than the typical “Omega convinces a reluctant Hunter” exchange at the beginning, this episode felt really fresh and we finally reached a couple of important milestones: the clone lines of production have been officially shut down, and the Empire has taken control of the Kaminoan assets. More importantly, it marks the earliest in-universe appearance of the TK troopers.
I’m also glad we had a bit more focus on Echo, with this mission feeling more personal for him due to the parallels with his own rescue from the Techno Union.
The fanservice was also cool: return of the clone commandos, the McQuarrie-inspired prototype Stormtrooper armor, seeing V-wings in action, a gonk droid doing what it was made for, etc. Also can we comment on that Scorch cameo, even if he had less than a minute of screentime?