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smudger9

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17-Dec-2014
Last activity
28-Mar-2024
Posts
692

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Post
#1581724
Topic
Smudger9's Bad Batch Movie Series [EP1: RELEASED; EP2: WIP]
Time

Natealv99 said:

I watched this last night and had a blast! I never really gave this show a chance but this edit made me want to watch the rest of it. The pacing was great in this, it didn’t even feel like 3 hours. Editing was seamless. I’m in the middle of a Star Wars Marathon, so just watched a siege of Mandalore/Rots edit, and this was a perfect follow up to that. Super excited to watch the rest of the series through your edits. Thanks Smudger9!

Thanks for the feedback. I think Bad Batch is an underrated series. Once the side quests are removed, there is a terrific story which fleshes out the Republic/Empire transition.

Episode 2 is progressing well.
I’m 80% done with the second cut. Just the final 2 episodes to do, which play out pretty much in sequence so far less editing needed. All the tricky transitions between the three main stories have been done and it’s all coming together nicely. Looking at 2h30 length, which is great.

Post
#1581133
Topic
Smudger9's Bad Batch Movie Series [EP1: RELEASED; EP2: WIP]
Time

TheDimitrios said:

There is an instance in the first Cad Bane scene where Omegas Bow just disappears from her back.
I think adding the few missing seconds there is worth it to not have the Continuity issue. 😃

What is it about that bow? 🤣

Just got round to looking at this. You’re correct. I’d cut Todo knocking the bow out of Omega’s hand. D’oh. Its back in and will be updated when I release episode 2.

Post
#1580824
Topic
Smudger9's Bad Batch Movie Series [EP1: RELEASED; EP2: WIP]
Time

spunkmeyer said:

Hi Smudger,
Please feel free to send me a link for this, and the Andor project please.

I’d love a bad batch movie without Omega, failing that one without the crew telling her to stay put so that she doesn’t disobey them every frickin’ time !

Omega-free Bad batch! Now that would be an interesting project! I’ll send you the links.

Post
#1580375
Topic
Smudger9's Bad Batch Movie Series [EP1: RELEASED; EP2: WIP]
Time

A big update on this project. I now have a first cut of Episode 2. It has an even 3-act structure and is clocking in at 2h42, which I’m really happy with. As I refine the cut this will come down further and should end up around 2h35.

The working title is “Army of the Empire”. I’m not totally happy with the title and am open to suggestions.

If anyone fancies watching the first cut then I’m happy for input. It’ll be a low res video with centre channel (completely music free)… it’s actually a cool experience to watch it without any music.

Here is the current breakdown:

Act 1 (57 mins)

  • Logos, opening crawl & pan to planet
  • EP1: Opening scene with the Batch on a mission for Cid. I have cut Omega jumping off the Marauder, she stays dangling from the line.
  • EP7: Opening scene of Cade and Slip in the bar discussing the destruction of Kamino. Cade is shot by a sniper and Slip escapes.
  • EP1: Marauder in hyperspace. Echo talks to Hunter about doing more to help clones. Cut reference to Dooku’s fortune. This scene sets up Echo separating from the Batch at the end of act 1.
  • EP7: First senate scene discussing the defence recruitment bill. Rampart and Mac Amedda discuss the events on Kamino.
  • EP1: The Batch return to Cid’s bar with the haul. The Batch meet Phee. The mission to scavenge Dock’s fortune is discussed but Hunter doesn’t agree to the mission.
  • EP7: Chucci discusses her demands for the clones with Rampart.
  • EP7: Clip of Slip on the run.
  • EP7: Chucci meets with Organa and she discusses her clone contact with information about the destruction of Kamino.
  • EP7: Rampart gives the order to assassinate Chucci.
  • EP7: Chucci & guards v Assassin. Rex kills the assassin.
  • EP5: Wrecker and Omega trawl through a scrap yard looking for a compressor. Phee tells a tale to the patrons in Cid’s bar. Omega & Wrecker return and Phee notices the treasure map. The Batch agree to join her on a hunt. AI line from Phee telling the Batch to wait for her to contact them.
  • EP7: Rex Interrogates the assassin.
  • EP8: Batch wait aboard the Marauder. Cut Omega’s references to Gungi. Echo contacts the Batch asking for help. Change Wrecker “I’m tired of waiting for Cid” to “I’m tired of waiting for Phee”. The Batch agree to go to Coruscant.
  • EP3: Crosshair woken by an alarm. He is summoned to Ramparts office and given a mission. Cut specific references to the mission and Cody’s clone number.
  • EP8: The Batch arrive on Coruscant and meet Rex. They discuss getting to Rampart’s Ventor.
  • EP12: Crosshair meets his mission commander and they depart Coruscant.
  • EP8: Cucchi discusses her plan with Organa and he tells her to contact Burtoni.
  • EP8: The Batch retrieve the data from the Venator - the shipyard infiltration sequence has been edited to shorten it.
  • EP8: The Batch get the data to the senate and Rampart is exposed. The emperor appears and introduces the stormtrooper program.
  • EP11: Hemlock arrives on Tantiss. The assets now refer to clone troopers rather than the Zillos. Hemlock threatens Taun We in her cell.
  • EP8: Echo and the Batch got their separate ways.

Act 2: (62 mins)

  • EP12: Crosshair’s shuttle exits hyperspace. They land on tBarton IV and meet the clones troopers stationed at the base. Insurgents attack the base. Crosshair and Mayday pursue them into the caves.
  • EP13: The Batch and Phee negotiate over the artefact. They grab it and escape.
  • EP12: Crosshair and Mayday continue their pursuit of the insurgents. The pressure mine sequence has been cut. They discover the base and attack. They cause an avalanche and are buried. Crosshair emerges and rescues Mayday who is injured.
  • EP13: Batch and Phee in hyperspace. Cid contacts them due to their absence. Cut Phee’s references to cutting ties with Cid (they turn up at Cid’s in act 3) but keep the rest of the scene.
  • EP11: Lama Su arrives on Tantiss.
  • EP12: Crossshair hauls Mayday slowly back to the base. Nolan refuses to help Mayday. Crosshair kills Nolan.
  • EP13: The batch arrive on Pabu.
  • EP12: Crosshair wakes up in a cell on Tantiss.
  • EP13: The Batch are given a tour of Pabu by Phee.
  • EP14: Clone troopers are ushered aboard a transport. The transport enters orbit and is attacked by Echo & crew who disable it and rescue the clones before escaping.
  • EP13: The Batch Enjoy dinner on Pabu. Omega views the sunset from a boat.
  • EP14: Echo delivers the clones to Chucci on Coruscant. Echo departs to contact the Batch about the data he collected from the Imperial ship.
  • EP14: Hemlock Interrogates Crosshair.
  • EP14: Echo Arrives on Pabu. Part of Omega’s flying lesson is cut.
  • EP14: Crosshair’s failed escape attempt.
  • EP14: The Batch decrypt the Imperial data.
  • EP14: Train and Hemlock discuss the attack on the Imperial shuttle and the Summit.
  • EP15: Echo finds out about the summit.
  • EP14: Hemlock again interrogates Crosshair.
  • EP15: The Batch leave Pabu

Act 3: (42mins)

  • The Remainder of EP15 and all of EP16 play out with minor trimming.
Post
#1579713
Topic
Smudger9's Bad Batch Movie Series [EP1: RELEASED; EP2: WIP]
Time

Kestrel said:

Sounds like a great outline. Still haven’t brought myself to finish season 2 so I’m looking forward to what you put together for your edit. Any chance you’ll have something ready before s3 releases?

I’ve just cut together the first act and Entombed really isn’t a good episode and doesn’t have any relevance to the plot.

There really isn’t a perfect way to integrate Phee and Pabu into the story so I think I’m going to change tact.

Phee does need an establishing scene but I’m now going to switch it to her actual introduction from episode 1. I’m then going to have Hunter completely shut down the mission to Serrano and have the batch stay on Ord Mantell until Rex contacts them.
The downside to this tactic is that Phee gets a rather left field reintroduction at the start of the Pabu episode, but I’ll edit in a time gap for the Batch’s story buy using the outpost and some Tantiss scenes.

It also gives a better 3 act structure:

Act 1: Clone Conspiracy
First part of Spoils of War, Clone Conspiracy, Truth & Consequences.

Act 2: Mysteries of Tantiss
Small sections of Solitary Clone, couple of scenes from Metamorphosis, first part of Pabu, Outpost, first half of Tipping Point.

Act 3: The Finale
Second half of Tipping Point, The Summit, Plan 99.

Post
#1578864
Topic
Smudger9's Bad Batch Movie Series [EP1: RELEASED; EP2: WIP]
Time

Sirius said:

I watched the season 1 edit, and I really liked it. Personally, I found Cad Bane’s plot a bit filler and out of touch with the main plot of the movie you constructed, but I think that’s just me. And personally I didn’t understand much What happened to Gregor, because it seems like he disappeared out of nowhere 😄. But I thought the edit was very solid, I really had a good time watching it

Yeah the Gregor cameo was very random. I wish I could have cut the whole episode out, but Hunter’s capture is pivotal to the story.

Post
#1578780
Topic
Smudger9's Bad Batch Movie Series [EP1: RELEASED; EP2: WIP]
Time

I finally had some time to sit down and get a plan together with this edit. There is a great edit hidden in this series with a very strong core story. The side quests also have nothing to do with the core story, which makes them easy to ignore - there are no Omega’s Bow problems in this season!

Cone Conspiracy/Truth & Consequences and The Outpost plots work beautifully side-by-side and feed perfectly into the 3-part finale as the final act.

However, the challenge here is the Batch themselves, thanks mainly to Echo separating off midway through the season. Had he not separated I could have started the edit with the Batch already on Pabu and covered their separation from Cid in the crawl, but Echo’s absence on Pabu means that is a non-starter.

The solution I’ve come up with is to have the Batch working for Phee and opening the edit with Entombed, which of all the side quests its probably the best with a great India Jones vibe. Entombed can be intercut with Clone Conspiracy to set up Rex’s request for help. Entombed also ends with a reference to searching for another ancient item which can then feed into the start of the Pabu episode later.
As the Batch leave the entombed planet I’ll add in the Hunter/Echo conversation from EP1 about doing more to fight the empire, this sets up their response for Rex’s call for help and Echo’s separation from the Batch.

The Batch then join Rex in Truth and Consequences and I will intercut this episode with The Outpost to introduce crosshair.
The final scene of Truth and Consequences will lead into the final scene of The Outpost and then Hemlock’s arrival on Tantis from Metamorphosis. This gives enough time for Echo and The Batch to go their separate ways - the Batch will continue their treasure hunt with Phee from the start of Pabu and Echo will intercept the clone transport.
Crosshair’s escape and Echo returning the rescued clones to Coruscant are intercut with the Batch settling down on Pabu and then once Echo arrives on Pabu, the finale plays out in order.

This is a very basic first cut and it’s clocking in at 3h2mins. It should be very easy to edit it down to 2h45, which is a very similar running time to my season 1 edit.

Post
#1578212
Topic
Smudger9's Bad Batch Movie Series [EP1: RELEASED; EP2: WIP]
Time

yoshif8tures said:

How far into episode 2 have you gotten?

Not that far unfortunately. Editing time is pretty limited at the moment due to life getting in the way!

I have the clone conspiracy and crosshair plots sorted. I’m struggling most with the Batch’s story. They almost play second fiddle in the core storyline and the separation of Echo and move to Pabu are real spanners in the works!

Post
#1574071
Topic
Smudger9's Bad Batch Movie Series [EP1: RELEASED; EP2: WIP]
Time

TheDimitrios said:

The Bow thing is definitely not worth including a complete side arc.

With the training sequence I would say it might have a bit of value to show at least a little of it, not only because it flows better in that moment, also because the location comes back at the end.

But make no mistake: Outstanding edit and just like TNR my Goto version of this content from now on.

Tip for bystanders: Rebels Recut has the Ryloth Arc as a bonus episode which can be slotted in after this cut without too much headache, giving a very full-universe picture for a complete Star Wars Binge.

I agree with your points on the training sequence. However, time was the main issue with this edit. I just didn’t feel I could accommodate another 5mins, I needed to get them out to Onderon as quickly as possible to move the plot along.

Post
#1573903
Topic
Smudger9's Bad Batch Movie Series [EP1: RELEASED; EP2: WIP]
Time

TheDimitrios said:

Watched it today and it was super nice as always!

The cut from Tarkin announcing a demonstration to after the training was a bit abrupt, maybe this could profit from leaving at least a few seconds of it in…

Smaller thing that can probably not be easily solved: Omegas Bow kinda comes out of nowhere. (Dont remember how the show originally introduced it, been a while)

Yes, the Tarkin cut was as good as I could get it because his opening line references the training test, which I cut.

Omega gets the bow on a random side-quest that has no relevance to the main plot of the season. It first appears in this edit as she runs out of Cid’s bar. Since you see a shot of her taking an interest in one of the artefacts there, one could suggest that she takes it from Cid’s office.

Post
#1573152
Topic
Smudger9's Bad Batch Movie Series [EP1: RELEASED; EP2: WIP]
Time

honestabe said:

I watched through this edit. I expected it to be very good as I skimmed through the changelog. The effort level was clearly there. Personally, I watched this specifically looking for a movie that connects the dots with the rest of the Star Wars universe. I was not specifically interested in a story about the Bad Batch. The only Bad Batch content that I watched previously were the opening scene involving Caleb/Kanan and the Ryloth saga to connect with Rebels. (Leaving out the Ryloth portion was the correct decision as it was too far off to be a necessary inclusion, but for those interested I recommend watching Rebels Recut by g00b).

This edit far and above exceeded my expectations. I really believed I watched a highly entertaining, emotionally compelling, and strong character-driven story.

I was very skeptical of the Bad Batch characters as they were portrayed briefly in the Clone Wars. Therefore, leaving the Clone Wars bit out was clearly the correct decision. To my own surprise, I found myself loving all of the characters. They came across wonderfully, warts and all other shenanigans. The edit really put in strong character development.

Considering I have not watched most of the material beforehand, I felt the story flowed very smoothly. Not once did I scratch my head and wonder what was going on despite all the cuts, transitions, and rearranged material. The story really flowed smoothly. From the opening crawl all the way to the ending, I was engaged the whole way through - I never found myself even a bit bored. This was an action-packed, fast paced movie that goes by quickly in spite of the nearly 3 hour length.

The edit without question gave me what I wanted going in. That is, I wanted to see the story of the transition from the clones to professional recruits, and I was not disappointed in the slightest in that regard. I also liked the bit involving the bounty hunters who were recruited by the Kaminoans with competing visions.

The only issue I have, and this is not something an edit can fix, is the whole concept of the inhibitor chip. I was never a big fan of it. I would have always preferred more of the concept of free will, which is why I really loved Crosshair removing the inhibitor chip and choosing to be evil voluntarily, including the massacre of innocent civilians. This is very dark, but it humanizes the clones.

Overall, this is an A+ edit and I think it can enjoyed by people who are not Star Wars fans who simply want a good story. I highly recommend everybody in this forum to take a crack at this one.

Wow, thanks for the amazing review honstable. The most useful feedback is from people watching the material for the first time. When i’m editing a series together I get to know the story so well that it’s easy to lose sight of what is needed for the plot to make sense. Your desires aligned perfectly with my aims for this edit. To stick to the core plot that connects with the rest of the Star Wars universe. There is some amazing content in the Bad Batch that helps bridge the PT-OT gap, but also a lot of boring and repetitive episodes.

Overall my TV edits are intended to be an engaging summary of the main plot presented in the form of a Star Wars movie that has rewatchability (just like the movies) and also allows casual fans to enjoy the series without having to sit through the whole show.

I’m currently storyboarding season 2. It’s even more unbalanced than season 1. Some amazing and emotional episodes mixed with some really monotonous episodes. It’s shaping up to be another really good movie!

Post
#1573004
Topic
Mando EP2: Search for the Jedi [V2 RELEASED]
Time

Darth Raditz said:

For these revamped New Republic edits, I’ve always been in favor of ending Episode 2 with Grogu being captured. Lets you have a dark ending, you get to move most if not all of the Luke crap into one Episode, and you get to trim even more of Book of Boba Fett to your liking and avoid most of the bad stuff there as well.

This is the plan that makes most sense from a movie length point of view and I’ve got some great ideas to make episode 2 about Boba and Mando. My one issue is the time skip between the end of S2 and start of season 3, which would then be part of episode 3.

Post
#1572879
Topic
Mando EP2: Search for the Jedi [V2 RELEASED]
Time

My issue with the 2-movie option is that the overall plot for season 2 is very basic… find the Jedi. If you split the season, the movie for the first half doesn’t actually achieve anything. He starts of looking for the Jedi and ends with him looking for the Jedi. The other issue is that the footage from episodes 6, 7 and 8 barely covers 90mins, so it would be a very short movie. I could incorporate Episode 5 but that makes an even less satisfying ending to the first movie.

I guess the other option is to stick with the single movie but end it with the Child’s capture and push Luke’s rescue to the next movie.

The next movie would thus be:
Act 1:
Luke’s rescue.
Act 2:
Mando’s rejection by his covert and a trimmed down Boba on Tatooine plot.
Act 3:
Mando and Boba reunite.

Post
#1572829
Topic
Mando EP2: Search for the Jedi [V2 RELEASED]
Time

TheDimitrios said:

Having the Morgan fight would also be nice because of the Thrawn reference, it would give us an idea of what Ahsoka is up to early on. But I see why that is difficult Structurally.

Just throwing out ideas: Maybe this is a 2-movie edit?
One that intercuts Ahsoka with Mando, culminating in them finally meeting and working together at the end. (Opening fight scene of Ahsoka attacking the city would also need to be reinstated)
And then one that shows Bobas journey parallel to Mandos, culminating in those 2 meeting.

a bit less concise, but maybe it would give the audience more room to breath.

Intercutting Ahsoka with Mando isn’t an option unfortunately. There is only one Ahsoka-only scene that occurs before Mando arrives on Corvus. Meanwhile Mando has arrived on Tatooine, killed a Krayt dragon, walked to Mos Eisley, evaded the New Republic X-wings, travelled to Trask, headed out on a trawler, met Bo Katan, captured an Imperial cruiser and then traveled to Corvus.

Having the Ahsoka v Morgan duel now feels almost essential in light of the Ahsoka series, but I’m really trying to stick to a single movie for this edit so I’ll have to see how it all feels.

I have toyed with the idea of ending this movie with the capture of the child, but it would be a crime not to have Luke’s rescue as the final scene.

Post
#1572719
Topic
Mando EP2: Search for the Jedi [V2 RELEASED]
Time

So having polished Episode 1 (and finished my S1 Bad Batch edit), it’s on to episode 2. First and foremost, I will upgrade it to 4K.
The main aim with this update is to produce the best possible through-line for my NEW Republic series. Since my last update we’ve had S3 of the Mandalorian and Ahsoka. I foresee quite a few areas for adjustment.

  1. The relationship between Din and Carson Teva. In true Filoni style, this seemingly minor relationship turned out to be quite important. Having cut most of this side story I need to decide how to re-integrate it so that Carson reaching out to Din in episode 4 makes sense. I will probably need to re-instate the Razrocrest crashing on the Snow planet and use AI dialogue to change the references to “The prisoner” to references to the events on Navarro.

  2. Do I include the Ahsoka-Morgan fight? This will strengthen the link between this edit and episode 5. However, I don’t think it is actually needed, and it is yet another side quest in a very quest-heavy season. I already have an acceptable explanation for Din having the beskar spear (using Din’s dialogue from Mando S3 about Jawas finding it on the surface of Mandalore), so I’m still keen to leave it out.

  3. Boba’s storyline from the Book of Boba Fett. I included some of this parallel activities, particularly him retrieving Slave 1 from Jabba’s palace. However, for runtime and story reasons, I’m considering taking that back out. I removed the campfire scene with Fennec from episode 1 and I think leaving his story a mystery is the way to go.

  4. Where to end the episode. The Luke rescue is by far the best way to end the edit from an emotional perspective, but there is the option of ending this edit when the child is captured by Gideon. This would then allow me to include the Navarro portion of the season.

Post
#1571640
Topic
The New Republic EP1: A Vergence in the Force 4K (The Mandalorian Season 1 Edit) [V4 RELEASED]
Time

TheDimitrios said:

Yeah, I know Lukes training is supposed to be months, but the movie itself never read that way to me. Always felt like a retcon after the fact by the power of interviews and commentaries, exactly like Feloni now tries to sell Grogu having been with Luke for a long time.

Passage of time is a weird concept in Star Wars. The movies all feel like they span a few days, but it’s usually a matter of months.