STAR WARS THE BAD BATCH has wrapped up its third season, and I enjoyed almost every minute of it. Although it may have started off as a pseudo-continuation spin-off of CLONE WARS, THE BAD BATCH ended up as an exciting and distinct chapter in the STAR WARS universe, uniquely situated immediately after Order 66.
It’s so impressive that STAR WARS has created an animation style that is distinctly STAR WARS; although it’s deviated in the past with REBELS and RESISTANCE, many of the most recent animated series (specifically TALES OF THE EMPIRE and TALES OF THE JEDI) have kept this hi-fi low-poly caricatured look that I can’t disassociate from this universe. THE BAD BATCH darkens both the animation and the story but still feels very on-brand.
That being said, ultimately, the third season felt a bit rushed. It seemed like there was supposed to be another season, leaving some plotlines unresolved and the ending a bit underwhelming. Despite this, the best part of the show is the characters, so it has a bit of wiggle room in its storytelling. I was a little disappointed in the lack of lore; although some aspects of the sequel trilogy were explored (especially Force-sensitive cloning), we never received saga-altering context. The series finale, THE CAVALRY HAS ARRIVED was excellent, but felt more like a season finale.
But all things considered, THE BAD BATCH is a solid three-season watch, especially for fans of character-driven STAR WARS stories. All three seasons are now streaming on Disney+.
