The latest episode of The Bad Batch felt very much like a prequel to Star Wars Rebels, and that’s a good thing as Season 1, Episode 11 offered up some solid additions to Star Wars lore, especially for fans of the animated universe.
Head on down below to check out the full episode breakdown for “Devil’s Deal”.
Eggs
Hey now, how was that for an episode of Star Wars Rebels Season 0, I mean The Bad Batch, or as we shall call it this week, S1E11, Devil’s Deal.
Let’s get to the breakdown as there is some solid lore to unpack.
In terms of the eggs and references we start off with the return of Gobi Glie, Hera’s uncle and a character featured in the Clone Wars and Rebels. It appears we can thank him for Hera’s rebel roots.
Up next in the who’s who of rylothian characters we have Orn Free TAA, a character from the Prequels and Clone Wars. We also get to see Hera’s mom Eleni for the first time. One can see where Hera gets her looks finally as Mrs. Syndulla is also a lovely looking twi’lek.
And to round things out we see Cham Syndulla, another major Clone Wars character and Rebels star. I also want to touch on Clone Captain Howzer, who was actually first revealed via a 4-pack of Vintage collection clone figures as Captain Ballast, so I’m not sure what’s up with the name swap unless Howzer is another nickname of Ballast’s. I’ll have more thoughts on this clone in a bit though.
The best egg/reference of this episode is next and I’m talking about the debut of young Hera and her pal chopper. We predicted her appearance in the Bad Batch on the SWTS, and quite frankly, it couldn’t have been handled any better. Vanessa Marshall is back as her voice and even has the Rylothian accent going. Chopper is chopping, and we even get to see her passion for flying take root. Thank you Dave and team.
During the the capture of Hera we can see that the Empire is still using Clone Gunships, Juggernaut transports, and Clone Speeders.
And while we are on things that move other things, we also see some Blurgs, which were first featured a long time ago in the Ewok movies.
Key Moments
And now for the key moments and a reminder to please like and leave a comment on this video, and if you’re not subscribed already, please hit that button now and turn on notifications.
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Alright, so seeing the Syndulla clan in full was pretty great, but I found Cham’s initial support of the empire to be a key moment in this episode. This is especially true considering what we know happens to his wife, his daughter’s Rebel leanings, and ultimately his thread of rebellion featured in Star Wars Rebels. While he was trying to do the right thing, his support of the empire will ultimately lead to the breakup of his family and the political enslavement of his people.
I appreciated learning that at this stage in the timeline Hera and chopper were already doing rebellious things. She clearly is a Rebel at heart, which we saw partly comes from her Mother and Uncle. This episode was just great at filling in some of Hera’s past, and I found the nods to her love of flying to also be a beautiful narrative touch.
We may not see the fruits of Hera and Omega’s first ever meeting for some time, but I have a feeling it won’t be their last. They will probably link up again in the next episode as I have a feeling the Batch will end up helping her escape, but there could also be future implications from their meeting in the slate of upcoming live action star wars shows set during the Mando timeline.
I’m going with the Syndulla/Imperial trap that closed things out in this episode as its final key moment, and it’s for many reasons. First, Orn Free Taa gets assassinated by Crosshair to setup Cham and Eleni.
Second, this is more than likely the final moment/goodbye between Hera and her mother. We know her mom died at the hands of the Empire, so we will more than likely see that next week, possibly in a save maneuver to ensure Hera’s ultimate escape. I have a feeling Crosshair will be the trigger man too.
Finally, Captain Howzer is clearly not as affected by his chip as the other clones. His actions all episode towards the Syndulla’s hint as much, and he clearly will be involved in helping Hera escape based on how he’s shot after Rampart gives him the orders to find her. He will more than likely sacrifice himself to save her. It should also be noted that he’s one of the only remaining clones wearing styled armor, so it’s just another clue that he’s not like the rest of the robots at this time. Why who knows, but he clearly isn’t all Good Soldiers Follow Orders yet.
It looks like we have a 2-parter on our hands thanks to this episode’s cliffhanger, and with a title like Rescue on Ryloth for next week’s episode, it’s inevitable that the Batch will be getting involved in Hera’s rescue and the insurgency taking off on Ryloth. Again, thank you Dave and Team.
Make sure to tune into the next episode of the Star Wars Time Show in which myself and my co-host Nick will fully breakdown Devil’s Deal and give our thoughts on it as a whole.
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