Just when Clone Force 99 looked to have escaped the pull of Order 66, Star Wars: The Bad Batch proves no one truly gets away. Disney+'s latest addition to the Star Wars franchise begins with Palpatine triggering Order 66, sending most of the Republic's clone troopers into a Jedi-killing frenzy. Due to their unique mutations, Hunter, Wrecker, Echo and Tech of Clone Force 99 avert that fate, retaining their senses, even if close pal Crosshair isn't quite so lucky. Taking the young Omega with them, it seemed Clone Force 99 only had to find a hiding place away from the Empire, and they could live in relative peace away from the wars to come.
Sadly, that rosy forecast has proven well wide of the mark. Since running from Kamino in the premiere episode, Wrecker has take a few bumps to the head, and suffered headaches out of nowhere. The knocks initially seemed like a possible homage to the infamous Stormtrooper gaffe in A New Hope, but the longer Wrecker's problems persist, the more sinister his predicament begins to appear. Upon suffering yet another noggin hit in "Decommissioned," Wrecker briefly went down the same path as Crosshair, uttering the "good soldiers follow orders" mantra so synonymous with Order 66.
Obviously, this is a bad omen for everyone's favorite "punching first, questions later" clone trooper. It seems inevitable that before The Bad Batch comes to an end, Wrecker will succumb fully to his inhibitor chip programming and turn on his allies. Wrecker has forged a very close bond with Omega since the child jumped aboard the Havoc Marauder but if, as many suspect, Omega is a Force-sensitive clone, Order 66 could force Wrecker to turn a gun on his tiny new friend. The Bad Batch looks to be setting up an emotional ending in which Wrecker, desperately clinging to his humanity, begs his comrades to put him down, or else he'll lose control and kill them all.
Beyond that grim destination, The Bad Batch reveals a wider tragedy behind the whole Order 66 situation - just when the clones think they're out, Palpatine pulls them back in. Clone Force 99 know they lucked out by avoiding Order 66, but even Tech doesn't fully understand how their mutations protected them. As demonstrated with Wrecker, as long as those inhibitor chips remain intact, the Bad Batch will never be safe, no matter how far they run from the Empire, or how well they hide. Wrecker is the member of Clone Force 99 most susceptible to charge head-on into fights - his role is to soak up damage like a big bald sponge so, naturally, he's the one whose inhibitor chip is taking the most knocks. But if Hunter got a bash atop the head, or Tech tripped over Gonky, how long until their chips start taking hold too? The whole team is a time bomb.
Seemingly the only way Clone Force 99 can be forever rid of Palpatine's influence is to remove their inhibitor chips which, predictably, isn't a straightforward process. Fortunately, the Bad Batch have a friend who did exactly that, and he's due to appear in future episodes. Captain Rex was lucky enough to be traveling with Ahsoka Tano when Order 66 was triggered, and though the good soldier tried to follow orders, Ahsoka subdued her friend, found his inhibitor chip through the Force, and instructed the nearby droids to remove it. Rex has already been referenced by Cut Lawquane, and when he finally makes his debut in The Bad Batch, the clone captain might be able to help Wrecker and the gang shake Order 66's shadow - permanently.
No comments:
Post a Comment