– Spoiler Review –
The Bad Batch has their first mercenary mission, freeing a surprising package from slavers, while attempting to uncover the identity of their attacker on Pantora in an equally fun and enjoyable episode, “Rampage.”
Since Fennec Shand’s attack on Pantora, the priorities and goals of the Bad Batch have changed, as one of their own is threatened and they aren’t simply going to hide and wait it out, it’s not their way. First and foremost, fortifying Omega, as Tech repurposes Crosshair’s comm device for her so she can call for help if she ever gets in trouble, while Hunter instills in her a strict set of rules for how she should operate when going into the field. It’s an understandable reaction to how close Shand got to taking Omega away from them and it’s very fitting for the Dad Batch to go from so casual to very strict in a blink of an eye, as most parents would after their children were threatened or in danger. Omega enjoys the comm device, using it as a toy no matter how often they tell it isn’t, which reminded me a lot of my childhood, messing around with toy walkie talkies throughout the neighborhood with friends, but she isn’t a big fan of the new orders. When Hunter orders her to stay on their ship, which I hope they install a lock on now and I’m surprised they didn’t when going into protective dads’ mode, she’s visibly hurt and disappointed, but she does as she’s told because she understands he means the best for her. She has to go and rescue them anyways, but maybe she’ll understand the need for her to stay back in the future now.
The Bad Batch travels to Ord Mantell to search for Cid, a contact Echo knew Jedi used from time to time, but he actually never met. Voiced by Rhea Perlman, Cid was one of the highlights of the episode, from her world-weary, but witty humor to her ability to turn on a dime and show she’s not to be messed with, and I really hope she’s in more episodes going forward, being their point of contact for new and interesting missions like the one they get caught up in “Rampage.” Cid initially misleads them, figuring out they have no idea who she is, but Omega intuits who she really is, which is the second display of the young clone’s intuition that makes me very curious what the Kaminoans were planning/attempting with her. Cid claims her business has taken a hit after the Jedi were wiped out, but she’s got a comfy office and offers of more jobs, so it’s likely not as bad as she’s suggesting. The price for their requesting information, finding out who the bounty hunter was who attacked them and why hired them, is one mission from her: rescuing the child Muchi from Zygerrian slavers holed up in some ruins on a different part of Ord Mantell.
Recon of the encampment suggests they shouldn’t have much trouble taking out the Zygerrian slavers, who featured in an arc of The Clone Wars‘ fourth season, but things quickly turn sideways when the slavers’ brezak, a reptilian gliding creature, takes the Batch unawares and the slavers get the better of them with their net throwers. Omega is none the wiser to her team’s failure until some Zygerrian’s board the ship and she takes it upon herself to rescue them, sneaking away and through the encampment. During her sneaking around, the Batch meets this particular group of slavers’ leader, Raney, whose dialogue reveals some interesting details about what’s happened since Obi-Wan, Ahsoka, and Anakin had their run-in and escaped from the slavers’ clutches during the war: the Republic took Kadavo from them, which forced them out into the galaxy, but with the Empire around, he believes they can restart and thrive under them. Thanks to Omega, things don’t go so well for this planned restart, as while she gets caught, it’s not before she opens up a cage sitting at the edge of the encampment, out of which bursts: Muchi, an adolescent rancor!
“Rampage” had been fun up until this point, keeping an entertaining pace this show has seemed to hit episode after episode, but this moment took it to the next level and gave the episode its name. The rancor under Jabba’s Palace is a large, lumbering beast, but a young rancor is anything but, as Muchi proves quickly, bounding around the camp, throwing stones at the slavers or leaping great distances, even managing to outrun speeders a bit. Her escape is the distraction the Batch needed, with Wrecker breaking them out of their chains and freeing the other people already caught, bringing them to the realization Muchi is the rancor, further complicating matters. Raney and his brezak chase down Muchi, but thanks to the Batch getting free, she has a fighting chance, battling the flying lizard and winning, while Hunter takes down the leader. But how to get a giant, rampaging rancor back to the city willingly? Turns out they have a hierarchical society, Tech’s insight, and Wrecker steps up to the plate, though the two are an even match, hilariously tiring each other out and becoming friends in the process. The increased animation fidelity really shined throughout Muchi’s rampage, giving it a very cinematic feel, from the rocks bursting as she throws them around, to her battling the brezak, while even the sizzling crack of the Zygerrians’ whips felt and sounded more harmful than ever before.
When Bib Fortuna shows up in the episode, being the one to request the return of Muchi, part of me thought how neat it would be if Muchi grew up to be the rancor in Return of the Jedi I mentioned before, but I remembered pretty quickly we already knew its name and it was definitely not Muchi. Either way, it was an interesting moment to have Fortuna show up anyways, as it suggests the Batch are in Jabba the Hutt’s orbit now, and Cid’s underhanded threat she can keep a secret about her new clone friends makes me wonder how long she really can. Beyond connecting threads to The Mandalorian, with Shand and now Fortuna, and maybe The Book of Boba Fett too, I imagine this moment was a hint the Batch’s run from the Empire could very likely get them caught up with more and more nefarious characters. It’s not totally clear the ultimate intent of this show yet, besides the threads on Kamino regarding the Empire phasing out clones, but it feels like we’re getting closer to understanding its scope with each passing episode: with Shand’s identity known to the Batch now, but not who hired her, it feels like the answer to that mystery will reveal a lot about what’s to come in the show.
Here are a few other things:
- Turns out the crossbow we saw Omega have in last trailer wasn’t a Nightsister bow, as theorized, but rather a Zygerrian one. Similar technology though, so I’m curious if they took it from the haunted remains of Dathomir or if there’s a darker reason behind it and they already have some remaining witches enslaved.
- If I’m not mistaken, this is the first time Ord Mantell has actually been glimpsed on screen, though we’ve seen it in comics before, even canon ones like Darth Maul: Son of Dathomir.
- It’s a little moment in the episode, but I was delighted when Wrecker gives Omega a high-five when Cid calls her the brains of the group; these two are hilarious together.
- It was neat to see some non-Black Sun affiliated Falleen! They aren’t all bad people, and often Star Wars has problems stereotyping a entire species as one thing, so even this little moment is a good way to start doing better. However, I do hope we see some Black Sun-related Falleen, as I imagine this series will find itself up against criminal organizations of their ilk before long.
- Kevin Kiner’s (and sons!) score will be on its way to stream and purchase later this year: June 25 with Volume 1 (Ep. 1-8) and August 20 for Volume 2 (Ep. 9-16). But for now, there’s one song so far on Spotify!
The Bad Batch’s “Rampage” is a fun episode, with Muchi stealing the show from the usual scene stealer Omega, while the expansion of their contacts and universe holds lots of promise for what could be in store for the show going forward.
+ Muchi steals the show
+ Protective Dad Batch and Omega’s continued ingenuity
+ Great potential for the show going forward
Ryan is Mynock Manor’s Head Butler. You can follow him on Twitter @BrushYourTeeth. You can follow the website on Twitter @MynockManor and Instagram @mynockmanor.
THE BAD BATCH REVIEWS
Season One: 1.1 Aftermath | 1.2 Cut and Run | 1.3 Replacements | 1.4 Cornered