This final season of 'The Bad Batch' is coming at us fast. It was less than a month ago that we were treated to a dramatic two-part episode that left the team reeling, and now again this week another two-part episode drops, and it's another doozy. First, with "Identity Crises" we spend time back on Tantiss with Doctor Emerie Karr as she takes over for Nala Se on Project Necromancer. It's the first time a current or former member of The Batch doesn't appear on screen, as we instead spend the entire episode on Tantiss learning more about the insidious work being done there. It's gripping dramatic television. Next, with "Point of No Return", the stakes ramp up to 1000 as the Empire strikes out against Pabu in an attempt to recapture Omega. The action here is stunning and where the episode leaves off sets up a thrilling final few episodes as we lead into the series finale.
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SSSW - The Bad Batch S3E9 "The Harbinger"
The trailer for this final season of 'The Bad Batch' teased the return of a fan favourite character from 'The Clone Wars'. A Sith assassin who has been part of Star Wars since the Tartakovsky animated shorts, who seemingly died in a novel adapted from an unused story from an animated series, only to return in all her glory as neither Sith nor Jedi. That's right folks Asaj Ventress returns to the screen as the titular "harbinger" of bad news. Julian and Rachel discuss Asaj's big return, what the information she delivers about the "m-count experiments" means for Omega, and whether we think this is the last we see of this assassin turned bounty hunter.
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SSSW - The Bad Batch S3E8 "Bad Territory"
After an exciting two-parter last week, where the larger clone conspiracy plotline was brought to the fore, we return to something a bit more quaint. This week's episode falls more into the "mission of week" type format. Something we got pretty used to from seasons 1 and 2, but haven't seen much of this season. That is likely due to the fact that this is the final season, and there just isn't as much time to spend on episodes that don't really drive plot or character development. This week's A and B plot format attempted to tackle both of those tasks, but largely fell short of being a satisfying enough on either level. We see Hunter and Wrecker working with fan favourite bounty hunter, Fennec Shand, as they look for clues on the Empire's "M-Count experiments". Meanwhile, Omega tries to help Crosshair heal is hand tremors. Julian and Rachel unpack the episode scene by scene as well as discuss the first trailer for 'The Acolyte'.
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Episode 194 - Oscars Recap and Dune Part Two
Julian finds some time to link up with Jeremy between the weekly ‘The Bad Batch’ reviews to discuss the winners from this year’s Oscars, the big wins from ‘Oppenheimer’ and the state of the ceremony itself. The guys also review ‘Dune: Part Two’ and preview ‘X-Men ‘97’. Plus some general Marvel and DC news to keep things flowing. All that and so much more on this week’s Tower of Babble Podcast!
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SSSW - The Bad Batch S3E6+7 "Infiltration" & "Extraction"
The larger clone struggle returns to center stage with the return of some fan favorites, in what feels like a sequel to the stellar “Clone Conspiracy” episode from season 2. This two-part episode ramps up tension quickly and then relieves it with exciting action set pieces framed by gorgeous scenery. Crosshair and Omega continue to play a vital role at the center of the plot, and with the assassin clones becoming a larger part of the mystery, we are eager to learn more about how everything ties together. These episodes do a great job of clarifying the stakes for the remainder of the season while also planting seeds for things we know are still coming.
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SSSW - The Bad Batch S3E5 "The Return"
The exciting escape last week left us with the unresolved conflict between Crosshair and the rest of his former squad. In the podcast we discussed how it would be a good idea for the show to slow down for a moment and let Crosshair hash things out with Hunter and Wrecker before jumping back into a larger plot driven narrative. Fortunately it seems like the folks over at Lucasfilm Animation were way ahead of us, as they did just that this week. With a return to Pabu for a reset, the team meets up with Echo to gather additional intel on the whereabouts of Tantiss. The mission takes Crosshair back to the events of "The Outpost" for a spiritual sequel, which feels more than appropriate considering where Crosshair is now in his character arc. Julian and Rachel break down every moment of discord whilst Crosshair does the difficult work of earning back trust.
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ToB Interlude - 2024 Oscars Preview Show
Last year, Julian was forced to look back at the Oscar alone. This was back when Twitter was still called Twitter and they still had a feature called "Spaces". He wondered aloud at that time, "what would next year's Oscars show look like?". Well Fast-forward one year and you have your answer. Things are quite different, for one thing Twitter is now called "X" for some stupid reason, and more importantly Julian is no longer alone. In the spirit of this year's ToB effort to expand the cast and bring more people into the show, he's instead joined by long time friend of the show, Axel Foley from the 'Daily DVR Podcast'. The original format returns as the two hosts take a look at each of the Best Picture nominees before moving into predictions for who they think will take home the hardware, as well as who they think SHOULD win the awards.
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SSSW - The Bad Batch S3E4 “A Different Approach”
With the extra large premiere out of the way, Julian and Rachel can settle back into the traditional weekly cadence. Unfortunately life finds a way to disrupt well laid plans. As such, this podcast drops a day later than usual - apologies. The episode itself was high stakes and thrilling from the jump, and had a potent finish that gave us a good reset for the rest of the season. We got to explore a new planet, Lau, which is already under a heavy Imperial presence and ruled by the iron fist of Captain Mann, a greasy Imperial leader who is out to enrich himself while stationed on a backwater world. The setting makes for an intriguing backdrop as Omega, Crosshair, and Batcher look for a way off the planet.
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Bonus Episode - ToB Film Club - Dune (2021)
When it comes to sci-fi in the real world, the idea that we'd add an extra day at the end of February, every 4 years, would rank amongst the ideas that sound like they come out of a Frank Herbert novel. Which is appropriate considering that the sequel to Denis Villeneuve's adaption of the novel of the same name, 'Dune', releases across the globe today on February 29th, 2024. To celebrate the occasion, Julian and Jeremy look back at the first installment in the series from 2021 and deliver their in-depth review (with a fun "Transformers" sidebar for good measure) as a bonus, publicly available, installment of the ToB Film Club. Something typically reserved for Patrons only, but what the heck, it's a leap year! We recommend taking a hit of some Spice Mélange before diving in. It will help you make more sense of all of Paul's visions and set you up nicely to transition directly into the sequel over the weekend.
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SSSW - The Bad Batch S3 Premiere
Smell that regs? That's the smell of fresh Star Wars animation - breath it in. 'The Bad Batch' dropped it's hotly anticipated 3-part premiere this week and your Small Screen Star Wars hosts are back to unpack each beautifully crafted moment from "Confined", "Paths Unknown", and "Shadows of Tantiss" . Buckle up, as the three episodes come in around 90 minutes in total, which means you are in for a full 2.5 hour recap and review from Julian and Rachel, as the melancholy journey toward the series finale begins. Fortunately each step (episode) on that journey so far has been up to standard. This premiere brings back the gorgeous look and feel from Lucasfilm Animation and the consistently strong storytelling to setup what looks to be an exciting final season. With the board now set it's time to tune in each week to see how this all comes together. We're betting it'll end with a well deserved bang. You know Wrecker wouldn't have it any other way.
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