Knight of Kalee

Yeah I’m in no way using filler as in a negative sense per se. I actually have kind of a soft spot for slower-paced episodes, I defended the third episode of Loki when the rest of my family didn’t like it for the very same reason.

Indeed the more negative association to “filler” episodes is a more recent issue, given that as audiences we’ve grown more accustomed to modern TV series that keep the plot going in every episode. Because of this any chapter that doesn’t significantly move the plot along or doesn’t land a huge bombshell revelation at the end often stands out from the rest and is tipically dismissed as pointless or filler.

I liked the anthology feel of TCW and Rebels that was kind of evoked by The Mandalorian and I’m glad it has been recovered in some way by the Bad Batch.

The first thing we agreed with my family was: “This was kind of filler, but great filler”. Then I thought this isn’t exactly filler and got the exact same idea of having a couple of episodes without the main Bad Batch at the forefront of the story. They leaned this way with the episode of Omega and Bane, and now we have an episode that’s fully from the POV of new characters with a bit of Crosshair added in, which I thought was a welcome change of pace. The episode also delivered fully in regards to seeing the rise of the Empire from the perspective of the common folk.

Also I liked the detail of the clone commander that was close to the Syndullas (surely a veteran of the battle of Ryloth in TCW) and the fact he isn’t that bent on following orders, despite other episodes suggesting most clones had lost any semblance of individuality and creative thinking after the activation of Order 66. Could he even turn against his Imperial superiors, setting a precedent for the eventual dropout of other clones?

The only downside would be the death of Orn Free Taa, despite his role in the Lords of the Sith novel.

I believe the trio of Mandalorian fighters should have lore-accurate sounds as they flyby. Fortunately the Razor Crest from the Mando series sounds almost the same, so the audio could be sampled from there.

https://youtu.be/CBtWXlQzWJg (0:40 and 1:00)

https://youtu.be/xlUF3NS5H8I?t=150 (Mandalorian scene for comparison)

Jar Jar Bricks said:

Huh, I must have not understood you correctly in one of your other posts from some time ago. I’ll see about reverting it back. Any other suggestions?

Maybe not really reverting it but finding a new place for the original line? To suggest Rey wants to find her self-worth/place in the story, and also that she means to achieve that by following Luke.

TestingOutTheTest said:

Speaking of “She’ll never be a Jedi”, is it possible to add “any longer” to that? Because in the movie she already is a Jedi.

I assumed he meant she wouldn’t ever reach her full Jedi knight status and potential. Like when Yoda tells Luke that he has to fight Vader to cement himself as a Jedi.

Besides as Hal said “She’ll never be a Jedi” retroactively contributes to the payoff of the “I’m a Jedi” line change.

jedi_bendu said:

Nothing much to discuss about that episode. Another very standalone one and a change of pace. Needed more character development or conflict I think, but I still really enjoyed it and loved seeing the Empire use iconography of the Republic - like V-wings and AT-TEs, as well as of course clone troopers. Makes me wonder if we’ll see one of those repainted venators this series. I really hope so.

Yeah, I was intrigued by Echo’s initial unwillingness to the notion of helping Separatists but in the end it didn’t amount to much.

On the other hand I really liked to see Raxus again and was glad that they addressed what happened with the former Separatists. Omega’s interactions with Cid and her natural talent for tactics and dejarik was also a highlight for me.

Servii said:

Artan42 said:

Servii said:

TestingOutTheTest said:

You see it be used against the sequel trilogy, especially The Force Awakens and The Rise of Skywalker. Even Palpatine’s return is criticized for “undoing the Chosen One accomplishment”… especially when these people are well-aware that Anakin only killed Palps specifically to save Luke.

What people don’t understand is that everything is temporary. What people think is that the victory of the OT only matters if it lasts forever.

The victory of the OT allowed for galactic peace for three decades. People were born and lived in peace because of the achievements of the OT. You need to come to terms with the temporarily of reality. Nothing ever lasts forever and thinking anything will… sets you up for sadness and anger.

Thoughts?

That may be how real life works, but Star Wars isn’t real life. It’s a fantasy setting. And Anakin killing the Emperor was meant by Lucas (at least retroactively) to be an act of cosmic significance. It was the destruction of the Sith and the restoration of balance to the Force.

Also, it wasn’t exactly 30 years of peace when the New Republic was embarrassingly corrupt and incompetent, and the new Jedi Order failed to get off the ground, and the main heroes of the OT all ended up failing at life and becoming estranged from on another.

That real-world cynicism has no place in Star Wars.

True, which is why the PT is an example of a perfect democracy where a suitable leader was elected and didn’t plunge the galaxy into a decades long civil war where every system was under the direct control of the leaders personal army and the main bad guy was a failed main character who killed both of the other two main characters.

Thank the maker that SW has never used real life cynicism prior to TFA.

The Old Republic only became corrupt and fell due to decades of Sith subversion. It didn’t fall apart for just mundane reasons like real-world governments often do. And the fall of Anakin is a melodramatic tragedy that, like Luke’s story in the OT, is based in mythical archetypes. That’s not George Lucas just going “Well, real life sucks, so I’ll make my world suck too, lol.” It’s meant to be loftier than that. The Prequels tell a tragic story, but that tragedy is deliberately softened because we know the OT exists and that the good guys will win in the end. You can have low points in a story, but that doesn’t equate to cynicism.

The Republic was failing, though. Palpatine was smart enough to seize its pre-existing weakness to serve his own purposes.

CaptainFaraday said:

I like that the prequels gave Yoda of all people a character arc. He goes from an army general yelling “Around the survivors a perimeter create!” to “Wars not make one great!” in the OT after realising he and the Jedi failed.

Yeah. Probably unintended but a nice side effect I guess. I like to reinterpret Yoda on the basis of the old Order’s shortcomings.

ZkinandBonez said:

It’s interesting how this episode expanded (to my knowledge anyway) how exactly Boba is a clone of Jango. I always took the “no accelerated aging” line from AOTC quite literally, assuming he was the exact same as the other clones just slow-growing, but now it seems that Boba and Omega are basically test-tube offspring with a single genetic ‘parent’. So basically their more akin to real-life cloning while the “regs” are carbon copies of Jango.

Actually you weren’t that far in the first place. Basically all the Fett clones share the same principle (test-tube offspring with the surrogate matrix being a machine rather than a living being), with the difference that regs were also further modified to be more obedient and downplay Jango’s aggresive tendencies. Boba and Omega (possibly excluding whatever mutation made Omega biologically female), are the genetically closest to Jango due to not having other modifications to their genotype and therefore the closest to being his actual “children”.

JackNapier said:

We also now have the only moral Kaminoan.

If you’re referring to Nala Se I’d say she stands on a fairly grey moral ground after what she did in TCW.

CarboniteSolo said:

Mocata said:

I think Bestine was a town on Tatooine on the way to Mos Eisley. Dantooine was more dry in the old EU but they could change that in post. Either way these locations with Turbo Lasers are pretty cool.

Bestine is definitely a planet. It’s been referenced before in an animated series, I can’t remember which one.

Clone Wars, the Republic had a fleet there.

The abandoned cloning facility has become of my favorite BB locations so far, not only because of its creepy atmosphere but also by expanding on the lore of the Kaminoans. Could it have been a place for some of their more bioethically-questionable experiments? The sight of the Kaminoan clones/mutants is pure nightmare fuel (I second the allusion to Close Encounters). Also I can’t help but notice the similarity between the Kaminoan growing vats and those on Exegol. Maybe Palpatine, despite having no more use for a clone army, still required the Kaminoan facilities and assets for his greater-scope contingency plan.

Though I crave for more Batch development (particularly for Echo and Tech), I really liked how they took a backseat and let Omega be the star for this one. She was smart and resourceful, having come a long way from her beginnings, and they did a good job tackling her inner fears of being no more than a Kaminoan pet project.

Nice small wink to the Legends fans with Boba’s original codename being “Alpha”. This looks as further evidence he may cross paths with his “sister” at some point in the future (“Alpha” and “Omega”, anyone?).

On the topic of Boba, so did anyone notice the metal plate on the back of Cad Bane’s head? Could it mean his standoff with Boba already happened? 😦

If Andor is set after the official formation of the Alliance (i.e. Rebels season 3) there’s a reasonable chance we may see one of the forgotten rebel bases such as Dantooine.

A lot of the criticism comes from the same portion of the fandom that believes there’s an executive civil war at Lucasfilm between Kennedy and Favreau/Filoni. So honestly, pure BS.

Most of the toxicity has been directed to the fact it’s the High and not the Old Republic, the so-called woke propaganda, particularly a bunch of queer characters (a pair of trans Jedi twins have been mocked the most) and things they call “unoriginal” like the character Geode (the living, sentient rock) and a starship named Vessel.

I really liked Light of the Jedi and I’m intrigued to know more about a thriving Republic and Jedi Order. The creative group behind it includes some of the best authors from the new canon (Charles Soule’s comics and Claudia Gray’s novels rank among my favorite pieces of SW media). And I can’t wait to know more about The Acolyte. Just hope the fandom menace doesn’t derail the project, it would be such a shame.

Jar Jar Bricks said:

Here’s a (possibly?) controversial decision I’ve made. I’m keeping the Leia flying into the Raddus stuff. Poppa’s edit removes it, but I really think it works quite well in novel form for the following reasons:

1. There are multiple pages beforehand devoted to what Leia learned from Luke about the Force in her training.
2. No wonky CGI effects that make her look like Mary Poppins.
3. Descriptions of what’s going on with her body while she’s out in space which imo makes things more believable.

Honestly, the only reason I don’t like Leia flying in the movie is because of the CGI. I don’t dislike the idea in general (especially since it’s built up in the novel), so I think this works fine.

I agree with your approach. Leia’s survival in space is good on paper, with a rather questionable execution (between the buildup, CGI and the cinematography). Its exclusion from movie fan-edits makes sense but it would work nicely if kept in the book.

jedi_bendu said:

I think this was my favourite Bad Batch episode yet. So much of it was tense and there were a whole LOAD of fantastic scenes, like Crosshair’s first standoff with the Batch in the artillery chamber, igniting the engine, and the very western style shootout with Bane. Those were amazing. I love TCW and Rebels, but in both of them, regular separatist droids and stormtroopers respectively rarely feel like a threat. One of the highlights of TBB so far - and this episode in particular - is that the Empire (or at least, Crosshair) is really on top of things. The Batch were being blocked at every turn until finally they managed to turn Crosshair’s strategy against him.

Omega being captured is another similarity with Mando to add to the list, but I genuinely feel it was done better here than it was in chapter 14. I felt more. And I can’t wait for next week.

I have preferred TBB over Mandalorian regarding both the menace value of the Empire and the kidnapping. The Stormtroopers are so useless in Mando they look almost lifted from Rebels (particularly in S2), and Omega’s capture felt less contrived than Grogu’s.

This is also one of my favorite episodes so far along with the pilot, chapter 3 and chapter 7. It was very pleasant to see Crosshair again, and Cad Bane showing up is a welcome fan-service.

sherlockpotter said:

Hmm, yeah, that’s true. Good catch. Maybe I’ll just try and change 3PO’s definition of Exegol then. Something like “Legend describes it as a lost temple to the Sith,” instead of “Legend describes it as the hidden world of the Sith.”

Yes please! This line always bothered me for that very same reason.

I believe the graffiti ideas would work best if paired with the reordered Zorii talk + the repurposed citizen revolt shots. If it were the graffiti alone it’d be a fun Easter egg but the further context would make it feel somewhat more significant to the “rebellion/spark of hope/we’re not alone” message.

This is all sorts of amazing!!

I really like the third version of the eyes. I think what sells it is the reddish iris rim more than the brightness of the eyes.

I would love to have this as well!

Jar Jar Bricks said:

And Chase, where exactly in the film does that footage come from? I seem to remember footage of First Order troopers on Kijimi from the documentary that could be used so we wouldn’t be removing a transition from somewhere else. Other than that, I definitely like it.

That footage is repurposed from later in the film. It’s originally placed when Kylo lands on Kijimi and says one line or two to the Knights of Ren.

Great analysis! I also thought Cal could appear, or his boss/friend. Maybe in the next episode?

Also I think the creature in the wreckage was confirmed as a Dianoga.

It’s certainly one of my favorite episodes so far. That Wrecker scene was emotionally charged and for a moment I even considered the possibility of him dying or being left behind for his own sake. The Wrecker-Omega relationship was also great. Wrecker’s like that one easy-going, funny uncle who always gave you treats behind your parents’s backs and took you out on fun activities.

I was glad to see Bracca again. It’s been a while since I last played Fallen Order so can anybody confirm if this “Scrapper guild” is the same one Cal joins in the game?

I concur Rex and Echo should have had more screentime together.

And finally, I wonder who was Rex talking to before he left. I really hope it’s not Ahsoka in order to avoid further retcons to her own novel, though honestly I wouldn’t be surprised.

I also prefer season 1, though I don’t consider 2 bad or disappointing by any means.

S1 just has a simplicity to it that makes for a welcome and overdue change of pace. And is very audience-friendly both for hardcore and casual fans. When recommending Star Wars to a friend that might have a preconceived bias against the movie saga, I always suggest starting with the Mandalorian S1, because it’s a simple yet engaging and beautifully told story that happens to be situated in the SW universe.

Though S2 is perfectly comprehensible for non-fans, arguably a bit of its impact is lost when you don’t know the relevance, backstory or fan-following of characters like Boba Fett, Bo-Katan, Ahsoka, etc, even though I loved their respective episodes.

I’m not gonna lie, I was almost moved to tears by Luke’s appearance at the end (except for maybe the CGI effects…). But now that the Jedi quest storyline is resolved by now, I don’t expect the future path of the show will rely on galaxy-shrinking cameos. Ahsoka and Boba are getting their own spin-offs, the show now has to build up to the retaking of Mandalore and the Imperial plot (even if Grogu is not with Mando anymore, we still need resolution to what are the Imperial Remnant’s plans).

In a way, The Mandalorian is shaping up to be like Rebels. A self-contained first season, a second one full of cameos, returning characters and a powerful climax involving a major saga player, and the third onwards gradually go back to the beginning, developing the main characters and building up to a conclusion that pays off their personal arcs rather than a galactic-scale event.

Man, I was getting worried as I got the return of the Martez sisters spoiled for me, but fortunately they were much better executed in this episode than their overlong TCW arc. They seemed way more competent this time, and yeah I wouldn’t mind if they return or become recurring characters.

Overall I really liked this episode, more than the previous two or three since it finally pushes the plot a bit forward. I was very happy to see Corellia. The only aspect I’m sorely missing is Crosshair and the developments at Kamino.

My first guess for the sisters’ mysterious employer was Ahsoka because of the cloak, until I remembered about the pronoun thing. I considered other candidates like Bail Organa or Saw Gerrera, but the fact they’ve got R7 makes me confident its Rex, setting up his future appearance in the show as we’ve seen in the trailer.

Cid was fun the few seconds she was onscreen. I like her role as the quest giver 😄

The way they’re developing Omega has been really good. I really liked how this time the Batch trust her enough to let her actively help on their mission rather than confining her to the ship. The bow training moments were endearing and maybe felt as a way of intentionally downplaying any Mary Sue aspects some people may have issues with (though I haven’t found Omega to be a MS at all) and the pay-off was good if a bit rushed.

And I was really clamoring aloud for Wrecker to get better 😢

Latin alphabet is technically canon, known as High Galactic, (the in-universe reason why the ships are called X-Wing, Y-Wing etc.) but yeah it would break the suspension of disbelief. There’s a reason after all why Lucas removed the Latin writing in the OT.

I think Aurebesh script should be there but only a simple phrase like “Skywalker Lives”, but symbols and pictures should be the meat of the graffiti art. The Aurebesh would be there as a treat for the lore nerds to decipher later, which happens frequently in SW media.