Star Wars: The Bad Batch Episode 15
“Return to Kamino” marks the end of an era for Star Wars. The clones make their final exit from Kamino to parts unknown, ushered away by the Empire, which, judging by the way Admiral Rampart fires down on Crosshair and the Bad Batch without hesitation, no longer has any use for these relics of the Clone Wars. But the ultimate destruction of the clone facility comes only after the episode has written one final love letter to its sights and sounds. The art design and animation have been absolutely spectacular throughout The Bad Batch‘s debut season, and “Return to Kamino” is a showcase for the juxtapositions of the drowned planet, with the high-tech, blindingly white hallways of Tipoca City giving way to the post-apocalyptic waters of the rest of the world. Since its introduction in Attack of the Clones, Tipoca City has always looked like a lonely, final refuge on a dying place but never as much as in its own final hour. The Imperial ships looming ominously above the empty city, we knew this could only end one way: with the place that had been such a mystery to Obi-Wan Kenobi and theater audiences in 2002 sinking down to its final resting place, deep below an endless ocean. Stream your Star Wars favorites right here! Crosshair is not just angry that Hunter and the rest of the squad abandoned the Empire, he’s also hurt that they left him behind. They never gave him a chance, he explains to Hunter, minutes before the Imperial cruisers begin firing down on all of them. But a chance to do what? To explain why the Empire was a better option? Why serving a cruel master was better than serving no one at all? Crosshair believes he’s offering the Batch renewed purpose with the Empire but he’s really trying to justify his own actions and a system of control that he seems unwilling to break away from. He doesn’t get why his brothers ran away from their duty, and regardless of what Hunter thinks, Crosshair doesn’t plan to start running now. It’s easier to hide behind orders than to decide for yourself what’s right or wrong. The ending of the episode will definitely leave fans buzzing, as the clones rush back into the cloning facility just as it begins to sink into its watery grave. Of course, the Batch will make it out but will all clones be accounted for? That Hunter chooses to save an unconscious Crosshair as the Empire closes in shows that the damage done by his former friend could still be mended. But is that maybe too easy of a reunion? Crosshair has some redeeming to do to make good with his brothers. Could he choose to sacrifice himself to save his squad from drowning in the finale? That’s what a true hero would do.
