Director: Saul Ruiz
Starring: Dee Bradley Baker, Archie Panjabi, Michelle Ang, Freddie Prinze Jr., Ian McDiarmid, Andrew Kishino, Stephen Stanton
In this week’s episode of Star Wars: The Bad Batch, the crew find themselves on Pantora in search of food.
But it’s not all easy as Omega is being tracked by a renowned bounty hunter.
This episode sees the return of Fennec Shand (Ming-Na Wren), a bounty hunter who was last seen in The Mandalorian.
It’s implied Shand will have a larger role in the series, which is welcome given her cool and commanding presence on screen.
One thing that does stand out about this episode is that the spaceport looks gorgeous.
Art director Andre Kirk and animation director Keith Kellogg are doing some really special work with this show that’s easy to forget as it is so consistently high.
Equally the fight scenes between Hunter and Fennec feel gritty and well-choreographed.
The calibre of any action in this show is incredibly high and a testimony to the skill of those animators working on it.
Star Wars: The Bad Batch Episode 4 follows some pretty predictable story beats
Credit: Disney Plus
Read more: Star Wars: The Bad Batch Episode 1 Spoiler Review
It’s also impossible not to notice how many poor citizens are abused by the entire cast of the show.
From being swindled to losing some groceries, murdered police officers to stolen speeders, the life of normal people in this galaxy is a tough one even with the end of the Clone Wars.
A fun moment was seeing Wrecker and Tech learning the nuances of negotiation (by that I mean bribery), which reminds us that it is not only Omega who is learning how to live in the normal world but the entire batch.
Hopefully, the opportunities this situation provides will be further mined in later episodes, perhaps for both comic and tragic effects.
Nonetheless, the story follows some very predictable beats.
Wrecker’s easy defeat, a speeder chase and a capricious droid are all mainstays of this universe.
Thus as an avid watcher of both The Clone Wars and Rebels, I feel this is an episode that I’ve seen before in some form.
Nothing has really progressed in terms of the plot.
This show feels more like a side quest in a video game
Credit: Disney Plus
Read more: Star Wars: The Bad Batch Episode 3 Spoiler Review
Whilst Wrecker’s headache has also seemingly gone, a positive sign that we’re not about to lose him to his chip,
I can’t help but feel as if the opportunities that might have led to could have been incredibly interesting.
That’s not to say that every episode needs some deep meaning and influence (I’ve seen enough Clone Wars to know that isn’t possible), but this does feel a little like another side quest in a game that is otherwise brimming with possibilities.
Hopefully, we’ll find out more about the main storyline soon.
What do you make of this review of Star Wars: The Bad Batch Episode 4?
Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
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