Introduction

Star Wars: The Bad Batch is an American animated series created by Dave Filoni for the streaming service Disney+.

It is part of the Star Wars franchise, acting as both a sequel to, and spin-off from, the series Star Wars: The Clone Wars.

Outline

Clone Force 99, also known as the Bad Batch – a group of elite clone troopers with genetic mutations that were first introduced in Star Wars: The Clone Wars – take on daring mercenary missions in the aftermath of the Clone Wars.

Dee Bradley Baker stars as the Bad Batch and he also voices other clones in the series, reprising his role from The Clone Wars. Michelle Ang stars as Omega, a female clone that joins the squad.

Cast

• Main (Season 01):
  • Dee Bradley Baker as the Bad Batch, a squad of elite clone troopers also known as Clone Force 99, consisting of Hunter, Wrecker, Tech, Crosshair, and Echo. Star Wars creator George Lucas wanted the Bad Batch to be more unique than other clones, with each having special abilities, but he did not want them to be superheroes. Baker also voices the other clones in the series, including Cut Lawquane and Captains Rex, Howzer, and Gregor.
  • Archie Panjabi as Depa Billaba: A Jedi Master to Caleb Dume.
  • Michelle Ang as Omega: A young female clone working as a medical assistant on Kamino. She is an unmodified replication of Jango Fett, but is genetically deviant from standard clone templates and therefore feels a kind of kinship with the Bad Batch.

• Recurring (Season 01):
  • Ben Diskin as AZI-3: A medical droid on Kamino.
  • Bob Bergen as Lama Su: The prime minister of Kamino.
  • Gwendoline Yeo as Nala Se: The Kaminoan scientist in charge of the cloning process.
  • Noshir Dalal as Vice Admiral Rampart: An Imperial officer responsible for the new chain code registration system and Imperial army recruitments.
  • Dahéli Hall as ES-04: An Imperial Elite Squad Trooper.
  • Rhea Perlman as Cid: A Trandoshan and former Jedi informant who provides mercenary work to the Bad Batch.
  • Liam O’Brien as Bolo: An Ithorian regular at Cid’s parlor.
  • Sam Riegel as Ketch: A Weequay regular at Cid’s parlor.
  • Tina Huang as ES-02: An Imperial Elite Squad Trooper.
  • Ness Bautista as ES-03: An Imperial Elite Squad Trooper.

• Recurring (Season 02):
  • Wanda Sykes as Phee Genoa, a pirate who has contracts with Cid and who takes a personal interest in Tech.
  • Jennifer Hale as Riyo Chuchi, a Pantoran member of the Imperial Senate.
  • Jimmi Simpson as Doctor Royce Hemlock, the director of the secret Imperial Advanced Science Division (ASD).
  • Keisha Castle-Hughes as Emerie Karr, the chief scientist of the ASD facility in Mount Tantiss, and later revealed to be another female clone of Jango Fett.

• Guests (Season 01):
  • Matthew Wood as battle droids and Bib Fortuna.
  • Freddie Prinze Jr. as Caleb Dume: The padawan of Depa Billaba, who escapes Order 66 on Kaller.
  • Ian McDiarmid as Emperor Palpatine / Darth Sidious: The Emperor of the Galactic Empire, as well as the Dark Lord of the Sith.
  • Tom Kane as the narrator.
  • Andrew Kishino as Saw Gerrera: A freedom fighter with ties to the Rebel Alliance.
  • Stephen Stanton as Admiral Tarkin: A high-ranking Imperial officer.
  • Nika Futterman as Shaeeah Lawquane: The daughter of Cut Lawquane and his wife, Suu.
  • Kath Soucie as Jek Lawquane: The son of Cut Lawquane and his wife, Suu.
  • Cara Pifko as Suu Lawquane: The wife of Cut Lawquane.
  • Emilio Garcia-Sanchez as ES-01: An Imperial Elite Squad Trooper.
  • Ming-Na Wen as Fennec Shand: An elite mercenary and sniper hired to retrieve Omega from the Bad Batch.
  • Brigitte Kali as Trace Martez: An ex-smuggler turned freedom fighter and Rafa’s younger sister.
  • Elizabeth Rodriguez as Rafa Martez: An ex-smuggler turned freedom fighter and Trace’s older sister.
  • Corey Burton as Cad Bane: An infamous bounty hunter hired to retrieve Omega. Burton also voices Gobi Glie, Hera’s uncle and Cham Syndulla’s subordinate.
  • Seth Green as Todo 360: A service droid owned by Bane.
  • Rena Owen as Taun We: Lama Su’s aide.
  • Alexander Siddig as Avi Singh: A senator from the former Separatist planet of Raxus Secundus.
  • Sian Clifford as GS-8: Avi Singh’s protocol droid.
  • Vanessa Marshall as Hera Syndulla: Cham Syndulla’s daughter, an aspiring pilot and freedom fighter. Marshall, who also voiced an older version of the character in Star Wars Rebels, used a French accent for the younger Hera to match the native Rylothian Twi’lek accents heard from other characters.
  • Robin Atkin Downes as Cham Syndulla: A famed Twi’lek freedom fighter.
  • Ferelith Young as Eleni Syndulla: Cham Syndulla’s wife and Hera’s mother.
  • Phil LaMarr as Orn Free Taa: The corrupt Imperial representative of Ryloth.
  • Chopper as “Himself”: Hera’s irritable astromech droid.
  • Tom Taylorson as Roland Durand: A Devaronian crime boss.

• Guests (Season 02):
  • Héctor Elizondo as Romar Adell, a local of Serenno who went into hiding after the Empire bombarded the planet.
  • Tasia Valenza as Tawni Ames, the Separatist governor of Desix, who opposes the Empire’s occupation.
  • Max Mittelman as Governor Grotton, an Imperial governor installed on Desix.
  • Ben Schwartz as TAY-0, a droid who participates in races for Cid.
  • Ernie Hudson as Grini Millegi, a Dowutin gangster who was an associate of Cid and oversees Riot Racing on the planet Safa Toma.
  • Jonathan Lipow as Gungi, a Wookiee Jedi youngling on the run from the Empire, and Mokko,[5] a slaver and boss of a scavenging gang
  • JP Karliak as Venomor, a Trandoshan mercenary leader, who works for the Empire.
  • Sharon Duncan-Brewster as Tynnra Pamlo, a senator from Taris and member of the Imperial Senate. Duncan-Brewster reprises her role from Rogue One.
  • Jameelah McMillan as Halle Burtoni, a Kaminoan and former member of the Imperial Senate.
  • Yuri Lowenthal as Benni Baro, a teenage scavenger and ipsium miner.
  • Aleks Le as Drake, a human scavenger and member of Mokko’s inner circle.
  • Crispin Freeman as Lieutenant Nolan, an Imperial lieutenant with particular disdain for clones, and the commanding officer of Crosshair.
  • Imari Williams as Shep Hazard, mayor of Pabu, father of Lyana, and good friend of Phee Genoa.
  • Andy Allo as Lyana Hazard, Shep’s daughter who becomes friends with Omega.
  • Ben Mendelsohn as Orson Krennic, an Imperial commander who is tasked with the Project Stardust. Mendelsohn reprises his role from Rogue One.
  • Andy de la Tour as Hurst Romodi, an Imperial officer who serves under Governor Tarkin.
  • Alain Uy as Lieutenant Maylur, an Imperial officer who serves under Governor Tarkin. Uy also voices a Stormtrooper.

Production

Background

By September 2016, Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Star Wars Rebels supervising director Dave Filoni had stepped back from that position on the latter series so he could focus more on the series’ writing as well as the development of future animated series for Lucasfilm. In July 2018, Filoni announced that a final season of The Clone Wars would be released on the streaming service Disney+ in 2020. The season includes a four episode arc introducing a squad of clone troopers with genetic mutations known as the Bad Batch; the episodes previously existed as story reels for an earlier, unfinished season of the series, and came directly from the plans of Star Wars creator George Lucas.

Development

Disney+ officially ordered a new series from Lucasfilm Animation in July 2020 titled Star Wars: The Bad Batch, a spin-off from the final season of The Clone Wars following the Bad Batch clones in the aftermath of the Clone War. The announcement described the series as Dave Filoni’s vision, and he serves as executive producer alongside Lucasfilm’s Athena Portillo, supervising director Brad Rau, and head writer Jennifer Corbett, with Lucasfilm’s Carrie Beck and Josh Rimes as co-executive producer and producer, respectively. Filoni described the series as “very much in the vein” of The Clone Wars and said it would stay true to Lucas’s vision for that series of telling epic, exciting adventure stories. In August 2021, before the release of the two-part first season finale, the series was officially renewed for a second season.

Casting

The first trailer for the series, which released in December 2020, confirmed that Dee Bradley Baker would return from The Clone Wars as the voice of all the clone troopers in the series, including the members of the Bad Batch and Captain Rex. It also revealed that a younger version of the character Fennec Shand from The Mandalorian would be appearing in the series, and actress Ming-Na Wen soon confirmed that she would reprise her role as Shand. Additionally, Stephen Stanton and Andrew Kishino reprised their roles as Admiral Tarkin and Saw Gerrera, respectively.

Music

Kevin Kiner was confirmed to be scoring the series in January 2021, after previously scoring The Clone Wars and Rebels. He wrote the Bad Batch Theme for the final season of The Clone Wars, and described his score for The Bad Batch as an evolution from its predecessor with a mix of electronic and orchestral elements. Kiner was inspired by the soundtracks of The Guns of Navarone (1961) and The Dirty Dozen (1967), which both feature a band of characters similar to The Bad Batch.

Kiner’s score for the series is being released digitally by Walt Disney Records in two volumes: music from the first eight episodes was released on 25 June 2021, and music from the last eight episodes will be released on 20 August. A track from the albums, “Enter the Bad Batch”, was released digitally as a single on 13 May.

Marketing

Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy promoted the series at Disney’s Investor Day event on 10 December 2020, revealing the first trailer for the series. Jacob Oller of Syfy Wire felt the trailer made the series look like a more action-heavy version of The Clone Wars, and compared it to the 1980s television series The A-Team.

Release

Star Wars: The Bad Batch premiered on Disney+ on 04 May 2021, Star Wars Day, with a special 70-minute episode. The second episode was released on 07 May, with subsequent episodes releasing weekly for a total of 16 episodes. The second season is set to premiere in 2022.

Trivia

• The Bad Batch is produced by Lucasfilm Animation, with Jennifer Corbett as head writer and Brad Rau as supervising director.
• The series was officially ordered by Disney+ in July 2020 as a spin-off from The Clone Wars, with Filoni, Corbett, and Rau attached.
• The character known as Echo was a prominent side character in the Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) and was thought to be dead after sacrificing himself in an explosion until being rescued and recruited by The Bad Batch.

Star Wars: The Bad Batch Series

The first season of Star Wars: The Bad Batch premiered on 04 May 2021, and ran for 16 episodes until 13 August. A second season is set to premiere in 2022.

• Series 01 (2021):
  • Episode 01: Aftermath.
  • Episode 02: Cut and Run.
  • Episode 03: Replacements.
  • Episode 04: Cornered.
  • Episode 05: Rampage.
  • Episode 06: Decommissioned.
  • Episode 07: Battle Scars.
  • Episode 08: Reunion.
  • Episode 09: Bounty Lost.
  • Episode 10: Common Ground.
  • Episode 11: Devil’s Deal.
  • Episode 12: Rescue on Ryloth.
  • Episode 13: Infested.
  • Episode 14: War-Mantle.
  • Episode 15: Return to Kamino.
  • Episode 16: Kamino Lost.

• Series 02 (2023):
  • Episode 01: Spoils of War.
  • Episode 02: Ruins of War.
  • Episode 03: The Solitary Clone.
  • Episode 04: Faster.
  • Episode 05: Entombed.
  • Episode 06: Tribe.
  • Episode 07: The Clone Conspiracy.
  • Episode 08: Truth and Consequences.
  • Episode 09: The Crossing.
  • Episode 10: Retrieval.
  • Episode 11: Metamorphosis.
  • Episode 12: The Outpost.
  • Episode 13: Pabu.
  • Episode 14: Tipping Point.
  • Episode 15: The Summit.
  • Episode 16: Plan 99.

• Series 03 (2024):
  • A third and final season was announced in April 2023 and is set to be released in 2024.

Production & Filming Details

• Director(s):
  • Brad Rau … (15 episodes, 2021).
  • Steward Lee … (6 episodes, 2021).
  • Saul Ruiz … (6 episodes, 2021).
  • Nathaniel Villanueva … (6 episodes, 2021).
• Producer(s):
  • Josh Rimes … producer (17 episodes, 2021-2022).
  • Carrie Beck … co-executive producer (16 episodes, 2021).
  • Jennifer Corbett … executive producer (16 episodes, 2021).
  • Daisy Fang … producer (16 episodes, 2021).
  • Dave Filoni … executive producer / executive producer (16 episodes, 2021).
  • Athena Portillo … executive producer (16 episodes, 2021).
  • Brad Rau … executive producer (16 episodes, 2021).
  • Ivan C. Shih … production executive (16 episodes, 2021).
  • Alex Spotswood … associate producer / producer (16 episodes, 2021).
  • Sareana Sun … executive producer (16 episodes, 2021).
  • Andy Tsao … production executive (16 episodes, 2021).
  • Athena Portillo … executive producer (unknown episodes).
• Writer(s):
  • Jennifer Corbett … (written and developed by) (17 episodes, 2021-2022).
  • Dave Filoni … (created, developed and written by) (17 episodes, 2021-2022).
  • George Lucas … (based on ‘Star Wars’ and characters created by) (17 episodes, 2021-2022).
  • Matt Michnovetz … (story editor and written by) (16 episodes, 2021).
  • Tamara Becher … (written by) (2 episodes, 2021).
  • Amanda Rose Muñoz … (written by) (2 episodes, 2021).
  • Gursimran Sandhu … (written by) (2 episodes, 2021).
  • Christian Taylor … (written by) (2 episodes, 2021).
  • Damani Johnson … (written by) (1 episode, 2021).
• Music:
  • Kevin Kiner … (12 episodes, 2021-2022).
• Cinematography:
• Editor(s):
  • Nicolas Anastassiou … (8 episodes, 2021).
  • Nate Cormier … (7 episodes, 2021).
• Production:
  • Disney+.
  • Lucasfilm Animation.
  • Lucasfilm.
• Distributor(s):
  • Disney+ (2021) (USA) (TV).
  • Disney+ (2021) (World-wide) (video) (VOD).
• Release Date:
  • Series 01: 04 May 2021 to 13 August 2021.
  • Series 02: 04 January 2023 to 29 March 2023.
  • Series 03: 2024.
• Running Time: 23-75 minutes.
• Rating: TV-PG.
• Country: US.
• Language: English.

Video Link(s)