The Bad Batch delivers its best episode yet with the animated debut of Fennec Shand
‘Cornered’ is the newest episode in the Disney+ Original series The Bad Batch, a Star Wars show that follows a group of rogue clones as they try to escape from the reach of the evil Galactic Empire. With the rules ever-changing these four genetically altered clones and their newfound member Omega must fix their ship and scramble their transmissions before the evil Empire catches up to them.
‘Cornered’ is a fun and exciting episode, introducing another returning character, this time from the likes of another Disney+ Original series The Mandalorian. It also reintroduces a planet last seen in The Clone Wars, called Pantora.
Although not playing a large role in this episode’s story, it is exciting to see returning locations and races from across the Star Wars Universe. The episode follows Hunter as he scrambles to rescue Omega from the mysterious bounty hunter, Fennec. On top of this, the episode showed some insight into the future premise of the show and where the story is heading.
Right off the bat, this episode shows the importance of the character Omega through a returning bounty hunter, Fennec Shand. Who first appeared in the Star Wars universe in the new original series, The Mandalorian. The return of her character is a welcomed surprise, showing some history of the character many years before her appearance in The Mandalorian.
We see that she is after Omega, however, her motives and hirer is still a mystery. Unknown to us whether it be the Galactic Empire of the Kaminoans. Regardless, it shows that Omega holds some importance to someone and I look forward to seeing and learning more about our new mystery Bad Batch member.
Some smaller aspects I enjoyed about the episode involved yet again the integration of the new Empire. Here we see a differing perspective to that of previous episodes where on this planet the civilians seem happy that the war is over, indicated through a parade of clone troopers and people cheering.
Smaller details like this help build the larger world and create an atmosphere of differing perspectives and sides, something that is extremely compelling to watch for it allows you to create your own opinion. This show has stood out so far on this basis of focusing on the transformation between Republic and Empire, along with the stunning animation which continues to raise the bar.
Another aspect of this episode I enjoyed was the use of Echo. A smaller detail of the episode, where Hunter sells Echo as a “droid” for credits. It was funny to see Echo argue over the plan and how much he believes he is worth. Until settling for a smaller price anyway. Whilst this takes place we see Omega become separated from Hunter and Echo and end up with Fennec. As mentioned in previous reviews, the continued development between Hunter and Omega’s relationship is extremely compelling.
Here seeing Hunter’s concerned side as he frantically tries to rescue Omega, showing his growing care toward her. During this chase we see Wrecker try and defeat Fennec only to be met with yet another Headbang, leading me to believe that Wrecker may not get a happy ending.
Finally, the end of this episode may give hope to some fans that we may see the appearance of everyone’s favorite bounty hunter Boba Fett, for Fennec appears with Boba in The Mandalorian. Along with that, the episode ends with Fennec contacting a mystery person regarding the status of her mission. I believe this mystery person to be that of Boba.
Overall I enjoyed this episode more than the past two, with mesmerizing animation, compelling obstacles for our characters, and exciting action. This episode stands out amongst the rest. Hopefully, the show continues to build on these hinted plot threads and create a more cohesive story with a clear goal.
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