#heyclickadee

[im-no-jedi]

Ooh, Omega and Cade for Blorbo Bingo?

two blorbos to discuss??? YES LETS \o/

Omega first!!

baby girl got a bingo! 😁

I think next to Hunter, she gets the worst fandom opinions. even over Crosshair. she unfortunately has the curse of being both a child AND a girl, so yeah. certain people need to get over themselves 🙄

also I highlighted the "unwilling" one because, honestly, I went into the show expecting to dislike her. it just felt random to shove a child into a show like this, but then 1) I remembered this is SW and pairing orphaned children with an unwilling adult is their forte, and 2) I completely fell in love with her from the moment she opened her mouth OMG. she has since become one of my favorite characters EVER and, although it's understandable, I continue to kick myself for ever thinking I wouldn't like her 🥺

oh, and like the boys, I wanna see more of her past! I wanna know what Nala Se was making her do on Kamino! I WANNA SEE HER INTERACTING WITH THE BABY BATCH SO BADLY. PLEEEEEEASE 😩🙏🏻

alright now for the next one. at first I thought you misspelled "Cade" for Cad Bane, but the "e" made me realize it was for Cayde from Destiny (unless I'm wrong LOL)

anyway! MY ROBO HUBBY 😍

another bingo yay!! \o/

GOSH I could talk all day about him fr. like Tech, I will continue to judge the writers for doing what they did to him. although this one was WAY worse than Tech. like this is Loki in Infinity War levels of unnecessary and stupid character deaths. I know everyone praises Forsaken for being the "best" of the DLCs, but this dadgum thing had me in one of the worst depressive times of my LIFE, and I'm most likely only alive today because I was (thankfully) seeing a therapist at the time it came out. I wish I was joking about all this. Bungie owes me compensation for therapy bills 😤

and I'm SURE people will judge me for highlighting the "not enough canon" thing considering he's one of the most developed characters in the entire game but LISTEN. LISTEN. I NEED MORE. you can't just drop all that Exo lore in Beyond Light and then not expect me to want more lore about the main Exo character in that game!! COME ON

I could honestly go on, but I've ranted enough, and I'm not sorry. he's one of my favorite characters of all time and one of my top comfort characters, and I absolutely hate the treatment he was given in canon. leave my robo cowboy husband alone dadgummit 😫

[katara-stan-club]

🎂🎉 Happy Birthday!! 🎉🎂

thank you!!! 💖💖💖

[drafthorsemath]

Batcher is here!

Very happy how she turned out, especially since I haven't made a plush in years. I always hand sew a plush when I first try, just to get out any kinks with the pattern. This is one I'll have to try again, but with a sewing machine to do some of the heavy lifting. Thanks for everyone who showed interest and here's hoping we see more of the best doggo in the galaxy soon!

Tagging: @burningfieldof-clover @ct99r2d2 @mylittlepooka @eclec-tech @eriexplosion @melymigo @heyclickadee @lightwise @barbieburnanator @dahscribbler @madpencil @thecoffeelorian

[apocalyp-tech-a]

Remember in Season 1, Episode 1 Aftermath, Tech says "I am merely stating a theoretical hypothesis based on factual data?" Well, that's what I did, I made a "logical conclusion." From Lama Su coming back when we thought he was dead to the infamous "domicile," it was all factual evidence that was meant to push us in a direction of hoping that Tech would return and that CX-2 could be the way he does it. I'm not stupid, and neither are you. There's an underlying reason that I love Tech not based on just his handsome looks. I don't claim to have an exceptional mind like him and I don't intend to convince anyone that CX-2 was Tech, but I do want to explain how it could be construed through the way that character was presented as well as the possibility of Tech's return in general, that he could have been and none of us were wrong or "losers" to think so.

45 70 Reasons and more well on the way, lol...

General reasons:

*Tech is never seen actually dying.

*Hemlock being untrustworthy source of death certificate.

*The return of many thought to be dead characters in past Star Wars from Darth Maul who was sliced in half to Lama Su - the door closed on him and we thought he was getting shot by troopers only to show up alive later and this happened in The Bad Batch itself.

*CX-2 is shown walking toward the 'light' after dropping off Omega, symbolically toward a future redemption. @astrovoidy

*Height change on starwars.com

*The word 'dead' danced around on official sites and by BB employees

*the similarities to Winter soldier @on-a-quest

*the cryptic tweets that showcased reborn characters like Gandalf

*The official poster of CX-2 shows him in 'good' light. @eriexplosion AND CX-2 is shown looking up and to the side the way the original CF99 members are positioned and facing in their poster as if CX-2 is also a CF99 member

*other people in professional settings like New Rock Stars on youtube thought the same exact thing as well as casual viewers

*the large focus on CX-2, over multiple episodes

*misleading title of last episode "The Cavalry Has Arrived"

*Tech being smart enough to find a solution

*If Season 2 could be compared to Empire Strikes Back, Tech was taken from us the way Han Solo was, but Han Solo was returned so surely Tech would be as well

*no one expected a main ensemble character permadeath

*the fight with Crosshair music had hints of "Plan 99" in it

*Tech’s whole big conversation with Romar was about culture and memory, and he helped Romar restoring a data repository. Between the implication that Tech would have lost his memories and Phee saying, “Tech’s brain was the databank, not mine,” you could easily see that as foreshadowing for Tech getting his memories back. @heyclickadee

*All the little one line reminders and goggles shots up through episode twelve only serve to make the audience want Tech back. They aren’t closure, they’re reminders of his absence. [Tech never being quite mourned.] @heyclickadee

*The goggles are lit, or look like they’re lit, in every scene they’re in except the last one, which sure makes all those earlier shots deliberate. @heyclickadee *CX-2 could have killed all of them at different moments, but chose not to (shooting pilot instead of Hunter for example)

Physical and character similarities:

*the shrimp posture

*the kick in the fight similar to droid kick in S1E1

*the similar hand to hand combat style

*the shooting accuracy- ipsium cave/ plan 99

*the elegant deliberate movement especially of hands and fingers

*the animated head and body when speaking

*the helmet – even has his hairline @jorolle

*the viewfinder similar to Tech's and utilized just as often

*the pouches(!!!)

*the limberness and agility

*the confident capability

*the crouching/getting on one knee - Tech is an infamous croucher!

*the deviant nature – ignoring orders

*the technology know how

*the flying – some say the turn on Teth was a Tech Turn

*the extraness of tool/weapon twirl

*armpad like Tech's datapad @wolveria

*CX-2's ship has similarities to the Marauder @wolveria

*Tech CC-9902 / CX-2 - both end in 2 @wolveria

*We are reminded this season that Tech was especially good at decryption. What do we see CX-2 doing on Phee’s ship? Yeah. @heyclickadee

*Season two went out of its way to establish that Tech has a high pain tolerance, is a good close range fighter (he won a life-or-death fight with a guy when he had that broken femur), quick processing speed, and is an excellent shot. All skills we see CX-2 exhibit. @heyclickadee

The 'British' accent, speech inflection, pronunciation. and vocabulary (this alone is enough to convince anyone...):

'You better get back HERE." - "I know the girl is HERE."

"The fifth IS Omega." - "The girl IS alive."

"Who are you?" - "Who are you?"

"Naveecomputah." - "Neveecomputah."

"DOMICILE." - "DOMICLE."

Cinematic framing similarities:

*the limping

*the coming out of the water @lilacjunimo

*hooking the rappel hook rappelling down was like dangling off the rail car

*the boulder moving

*helmet viewpoint from CX-2 in finale, only BB members ever had that

Conjectural situations of suspicion:

*the beef with Crosshair

*the constant surviving

*the pausing when choking Crosshair

*the pausing to look at Phee

*The implications that Crosshair seems to know something about CX-2 (he wants to get out of dodge when he knows CX-2 is coming), and the intense lingering guilt Crosshair feels—and which is never dealt with! It’s still there through the finale—implying he knows or suspects it’s Tech. @heyclickadee

*“Whatever they did to you, whatever you’ve done, you’re still one of us,” offered by Rex towards the CXs @heyclickadee

*Crosshair’s character arc this season being partly about realizing that anyone can change and that no one is really beyond saving, which would have continued going somewhere if he thought CX-2 was Tech and considered him beyond saving, but then changed his mind and realized he needed to try. Notice that he does not engage CX-2 in 11 like he did in 7, and that this comes after his revelation about giving people a chance in 9. @heyclickadee

*CX-2 is even more Tech like in 11 than he was in 6 and 7. This implies that he could be starting to wake up, and that almost killing Crosshair triggered that. He doesn’t kill anyone except one of his own guys on Pabu (or Phee) even though it would make his job much easier. He even has Hunter and Wrecker in his sights and moves his aim to not shoot them directly. @heyclickadee

*Crosshair has no way to know that the CX’d clones come out different and that their identities are erased unless it happened to someone we know. In fact, there’s not reason for the CX plot to exist unless that horrific thing happens to someone we know. @heyclickadee

*The first episode of the show starts out with Hunter covering for someone who supposedly died in a fall. In fact, there are direct parallels in the lines: “Where’s the Jedi?” “I stunned him when he jumped. He didn’t make it.” vs “Where’s Tech?” “Omega…Tech didn’t make it.” I’m not saying Hunter was covering for Tech; I am saying that is the only place in the script where we see those phrases matched up. @heyclickadee

*Tech being CX-2 would have fit in perfectly with each member of the batch experiencing a traumatic loss (and regaining) of agency that correlated directly to who and how they are as people. @heyclickadee

Foreshadowing lines:

*More machine than man, percentage wise at least.

*Better late than dead.

*See you around, Brown Eyes.

*Tech's not gone.

*The operative's gone rogue.

*Romar saying he's a survivor and Tech's look at him.

*Don't go running off with any pirates or smugglers. @heyclickadee

Abandoned storyline reasons:

*The romance with Phee, surely it wouldn't be abandoned!? 🙄😡

*CX-2's death being anticlimactic

*The finale seeming rushed and incomplete

*Actors saying there were script changes

*CX-2's accent in the finale was not only not like Tech's as it was in previous episodes, it wasn't even a clone accent (wtf was that) signaling a script change

@wolveria made a great analysis here with her Tech-Genda !

@heyclickadee gave a great analysis here and also great evidence, more in comments!

@vivaislenska has a list as well with some of these points!

@eriexplosion has a great analysis here!

Having said that, here are some reasons it may not have been him:

*Too many characters coming back from the dead.

*The way he says 'clones' in Infiltration was more reg accent.

*Tech's line in the cave to Omega which "was a big one to me” in retrospect: "I am aware that you miss him, but we have to adapt and move on."

As for the intentions of the writers to either have been forced to change the script, but can't admit it due to NDAs or if they truly meant for CX-2 to be Crosshair's foil which to me was unclear, especially with all of the evidence above, I don't know. At least they could have made CX-2 talk and move like a reg. Making him talk and walk like Tech was kind of cruel on top of a cruel we already experienced in Plan 99. I am not personally attacking the writers, I still love Season 1 and 2 and most of Season 3, but I wish I knew what happened behind the scenes with this and I know I'm not the only one. I think this is the last time I'll personally address Season 3 or the finale unless to support other commentators/creators and for my own fix-it and art and writing. And I look forward to seeing everyone else's works as well and hope no one gives up this beautiful Batch or fandom as I almost did. Canon seems done with him, he belongs to us now. 💜

And if anyone has anything I missed (I'm sure I'll think of more myself), feel free to comment or reblog with that addition or a link to your own post and/or I can edit the OP to include it and tag you. Also, don't feel like you can't make your own post about this subject! But I do hope this maybe helped anyone still dealing with the 'aftermath' like me, to know you're not alone, and you did not read too much into it.

(In retrospect, I can't believe they killed him though, lol. What the kriff were they thinking!?! #too handsome to die #too awesome to die)

[eriexplosion]

Credit to @heyclickadee for bringing up the idea that the show could end with retaking the family picture, but this is the first time I've looked at it closely since then and like, I'm beginning to think that's very likely. I mean, look at the composition, they could have had Tech standing they had plenty of room. So why is he kneeling down in front? Not even in the middle but off to the side?

To create a void to the left. To leave a missing space in the picture, a spot that BEGS to be filled by including Omega. With him alive and all of them reunited, Omega in that spot, they'll finally be COMPLETE.

[laughhardrunfastbekindsblog]

Because I just finished a Rebels rewatch on the same night I came across a few of @heyclickadee 's posts about Tech, I've been thinking about the impact of Tech's sacrifice on the Bad Batch narrative in comparison to other Star Wars character sacrifices.

(I'm not discussing the depiction of the impact of the loss on the other characters/their grief because that's a whole other essay.)

Kanan's sacrifice is deliberately shown to hold weight through the rest of the narrative in many ways, including:

The mission to halt production of the TIEs ends up being a success thanks to him (kinda poor consolation in light of his death, but still... And it even indirectly leads to the success of the mission to rout the Imperials from Lothal because Pryce becomes desperate enough that she makes critical mistakes)

Palpatine himself says there was a disturbance in the Force and the fate of Lothal was altered by Kanan's death

Drives Ezra and the team to listen to the Loth wolves, stopping Palpatine from accessing the WBW AND saving Ahsoka

Seriously, the number of times Ezra refers to lessons Kanan taught him as he navigates events between "Jedi Night" and the finale...

Influences Ezra's choice to not give in to Palpatine's temptation

Drives Ezra to sacrifice himself to defeat Thrawn and save Lothal

Fives' sacrifice (yes, I'm counting the time/effort/significant risks he took to uncover the conspiracy as a sacrifice) is deliberately credited and holds weight through the rest of the narrative and beyond by:

Cluing Rex in on the presence of the inhibitor chips

Which saves Ahsoka's and Rex's lives

Which saves Clone Force 99's lives (among others)

Now, WE know Tech's sacrifice does allow his family to live which ultimately leads to their retirement and finding peace on Pabu; however, the show itself never credits Tech for this outcome. Instead, most references to Tech in season 3 by his brothers indicate how much his absence is negatively impacting their progress in attaining this goal; Omega has one opportunity to credit Tech for teaching her the squad plans, and Phee has one opportunity to reference Tech as an individual who had actual conversations about his family.

Basically, the show doesn't end up allowing Tech's sacrifice to hold the narrative weight and impact it could easily have had, which makes it feel rather less than final. And since it doesn't feel final, I choose to interpret this as yet another indicator that, whatever may or may not have happened behind the scenes for season 3 and whatever future plans Lucasfilm may have, Tech was meant to live and there's still plenty of leeway left for him to return.

[amalthiaph]

✨FIRST BATCH OF COMMISSIONS✨

I do not know how to make a collage. But thank you so much for your patience. This has been a very fun two months in my art journey. I was able to draw things for the first time like meteor showers and droids and it was fun studying and watching tutorials just to be able to deliver the best that I can.

Left to right: amberowl24, nika6q, starrylothcat, heyclickadee, anxiouspineapple99, therisingdarkness, freesia-writes, ilikemymendarkandfictional, niobiumao3

You have beautiful, beautiful OCs and it's an honor to bring them to life.

[skellymom]

🤍💙🤍You are amazing and a value to this fandom!!! Artist, writer, reblogger, whichever role you take in our fandom YOU are loved and needed!  Please keep doing what you do! 🤍💙🤍

💌Send this to others to keep the fandom love and appreciation going!💌

@gonky-kong Dawwww...THANKS! I wuvs you too!!!

Sending this out to my peeps (no pressure tags):

@marymunchkiin @talesfrommedinastation @giganonyx @thecoffeelorian

@hugmekenobi @the-bad-batch-baroness @genericficerblog @techs-goggles9902

@arctrooper69 @advisorsnips

@random-chaotic-bitch @dystopicjumpsuit @nika6q @heyclickadee

@n0vqni @multi-fan-dom-madness @doublesunsets @echo-lover

@fionajames @spacemagicandlaserswords @phantom-of-the-keurig @bmarino

@momojedi @violinrox15 @ollietheshark0 @knightprincess

@blueinkblot @stelli-sketches-alt @ci-avmovies14 @melymigo

@crosshair-lover @floraseasbee @sarapaprikas-blog @idoubleswearimawriter

@ovaa-bi-bia @blairaptor @idoubleswearimawriter @melymigo

@knightprincess @ladykagewaki @gun-roswell

@starrylothcat @savebytheodore @maybethatfanfictionwriter @wild-karrde

@jedipoodoo @incognito-lezbean @sarapaprikas-blog @burningfieldof-clover

@purgetrooper77 @freesia-writes @mistress-of-the-empire @ex0genmultifandom

@janellestudies @lucifidious @lizartgurl @notavalidusername

@tink1221 @the-hexfiles @amorfista @scarelitt

@gonky-kong @arcsimper5 @cloneloverrrrr @the-rain-on-kamino

@thebadbatch2022 @clonelovr @half-truths-and-hyper

[batchedzine]

Fresh out of the oven! We're excited to introduce our spectacular Spot Artists!

Osfi Koshmareq - @squad-724 Clickadee - @heyclickadee Kaity Marie - @katekryze Pinkiemme

🍪

We can't wait for you to see the lovely spot art they've been creating!

[im-no-jedi]

21, 24, and 38 for the bad batch ask game, if you’re still doing it?

I ABSOLUTELY am still doing it!! 😁

21. Which Batcher is the best cook?: oh man, my opinion on this has changed over time haha. in terms of who can cook, the ones who pick it up fastest are Echo and Wrecker. Echo is more meticulous and cleaner, while Wrecker makes a huge mess doing it LOL. both of them are pretty good cooks overall, but Echo’s meticulousness puts him over the edge I think. Wrecker is a master at the grill though; he’d make a 4th of July feast that would blow your mind 🤤 also, I have to say it, but I think (despite him not being as good as Echo or Wrecker), Hunter just straight up enjoys cooking. like, it takes him a while to realize, but after helping out in the kitchen a few times, he’d be like “oh this is pretty fun actually”. he’s also good with a grill like Wrecker, and obviously he’d be the best at cutting and preparing food hehe. I could easily see all three of them working together on a Thanksgiving feast or something like that 😋

24. Which Batcher is the prettiest? (I want DETAILS!): all of them??? is this even a question??? 😝 nah fr, I’m gonna be stereotypical and say my sergeant. I mean… the way his hair blows in the wind should be indicative enough 🥰

also... his dadgum smile 😍

(I'm swooning as I make this OMG I need to stop there before I go crazy sldkfjglfdks)

I will give a definite second to Tech though 💙

38. What color do you associate with each Batcher?: ooo this is a fun question! honestly, I think I mostly associate them with the colors on their season 2 armor now, with some exceptions. for me it goes like this…

Hunter: red and sandy brown; any earth tones really

Omega: light blue and very soft yellow

Wrecker: bright yellow

Tech: denim blue (those jeans, man!) and the orangy-brown shade of his hair

Echo: dark cobalt blue

Crosshair: black and silver (like his hair, rip)

[phantom-of-the-501st]

Bad Batch Finale Analysis

Spoilers for TBB Season 2

Tagging some people who want to see some longer analyses: @saturn-sends-hugs @phis-writing @eriexplosion @heyclickadee @questforgalas @panther-os

So... that was a lot. We all have many feelings about things and I'm not sure anyone really knows how to express them. I'm not entirely sure where I stand on some things, so I don't totally know how I feel about these episodes overall, but I can say that I liked them. They're not my favourite of the season, but I did still enjoy them (as painful as they were).

I'm going to try and break down some of my thoughts about bits of the episode, but I don't know how coherent this is going to be. I've been jotting things down in my phone when they come to me, so I'm going to attempt putting them in a slightly more organised order, but no promises.

Probably best to get the heavy bit out of the way first.

Is Tech dead?

No. At least, I don't think so and there are a few reasons for this. The first is that we don't see a body and if we've learnt anything from Star Wars, is that no body = don't trust that they're dead. And even if we do see a body, we can't always trust it! (Looking at you Maul). The second is that he was found by Hemlock. Seems a bit suspicious that he happened to be found by the guy who likes experimenting on clones is it not? I'm sure he'd be happy to scoop Tech up and take him to do whatever awful experiments he has planned. Sorry, but the goggles aren't proof that Tech is dead. Hemlock is probably just throwing them out to break the Batch's resolve and put them in a more vulnerable state.

And the final reason is that if he is dead, it's really cheap. We've already discussed how members of the Batch dying this season wouldn't work particularly well narratively. For a death like Kanan's, it happened near the end of the show, where it made sense for his story to end. It doesn't make sense for Tech's to end here. And yes, an argument can be made that death is unforgiving and that so many people die before their time (in fiction and reality) but from a narrative standpoint it doesn't work. It doesn't hold the emotional gut-punch that it should. Yes, we all cried in the moment (and are still crying now) but how many people are angry? How many people find this "death" pointless and inconsequential? How many people think that it fell flat? I said months ago that I wouldn't be happy if all of this development that Tech was getting was just leading to him dying at the end of the season. It's weak storytelling imo. And that's why I think he's not dead. We may not always agree with the direction that writers choose to take characters, but I think that killing Tech here would completely miss the mark and I trust that they wouldn't do that.

Parallels to Echo's "death"

Coming off that point and characters not really being dead, this whole situation with Tech feels very reminiscent of what happens to Echo. A character that sacrificed themselves and was left behind, believed to be dead? If he has been taken by Hemlock and is going to be experimented on, then it really parallels what happened with Echo. And if I'm completely honest, I don't totally know how I feel about this. Yes, I'm happy that it means that there is a good chance that Tech is alive, but I also worry that that narrative is going to start feeling very repetitive.

We've touched on the idea of Crosshair's story paralleling Echo's and how that could lead to some interesting character dynamics. I have always been really interested in exploring that and how it could create an interesting understanding between those to characters. But now having the same happen with Tech? I don't know. Part of me worries that they are at risk of just telling the same story over and over again. It removes the idea of this unique dynamic between Crosshair and Echo. Don't get me wrong, I would love to see Tech and Crosshair having something as personal as this to bond over, but we don't know much about their past yet. I feel like it would've been interesting to explore a connection between those two from their past and let Echo keep this story beat as a way of becoming even more entangled with the Batch. I guess I'm just worried that they are going to make this a connection point between Tech and Crosshair and Echo is going to get sidelined again.

Also, three members (aka 50% of the Bad Batch) having very similar story arcs involving being left, experimented on and then rescued? I don't hate it, but it could get a bit too repetitive for my liking.

Wrecker

Time for some character breakdowns! Oh, Wrecker... I wanna give him a big hug, I really do. Back in TCW, Wrecker was shown to be really close to Crosshair. With the competitions that they had going on, you could tell that there was a strong bond there. And even at the beginning of TBB season 1 when he's hitting Cross with Lula, you can see that close brotherly dynamic. And then all the stuff with Crosshair happened and Wrecker lost that. It would've been a massive blow to suddenly no longer have that presence there. We've seen Wrecker say that he misses Cross, you can hear the heartbreak when he confronts Cross about not trying to come back, and you can hear the hope in his voice when he finds out that Crosshair might have betrayed the Empire. Losing Crosshair was a massive blow, especially for someone who is as emotionally in-tune as Wrecker.

And then season 2. Crosshair isn't there, so we really get to see one his deep connections with another brother: Tech. Him helping Tech at the riot race, him helping Tech during 2x9 even though they had been bickering the whole time, and then him teasing Tech in 2x13. We really got to see the bond between those two this season, which makes it all the more heartbreaking. Wrecker lost Crosshair and then he lost Tech.

And then he lost Omega. We know how close he was with her. He had one of the most prominent connections to her in S1 and even some really sweet moments in season 2. They were incredibly close and now she has been taken as well. Wrecker is having everyone taken away from him and it hurts so much to watch, especially for someone who is as open about their emotions as he is. I just want to give him the biggest hug.

"Yeah. Me too."

And you know what, he probably blames himself as well. He was going to go to grab Tech but it was too unsafe. Tech knew this, that's why he sacrificed himself. But Wrecker was the one to try and grab him and instead he just had to watch his brother fall into the clouds. And then he couldn't protect Omega either. He lost two members of his family in quick succession and he probably blames himself for both of their losses. Everyone does, but with Wrecker especially, he probably believes that he didn't do enough to protect Tech.

Echo

(Fun fact I actually started full on crying while writing this section)

*Deep sigh* Okay. Time to mentally prepare myself for this bit.

Anyone who knows this page will know that I love Echo so much. He is hands down my favourite Batcher and one of my favourite Star Wars characters of all time (along with Rex), so anything sad to do with him is painful to watch. I'm not gonna lie, I think I might actually be handling Tech's "death" better than the scene of Echo alone in the cockpit. I can think of Tech falling and just about hold myself together, but I think about that scene with Echo and it breaks me (although that may also be the denial I am in about Tech).

But enough about my personal feelings on this bit, let's break that scene down.

"I don't enjoy solitude."

Yeah... that somehow hurts even more than it did. He hates being alone and yet instead of going to be with one of the Batchers (e.g. sitting with Wrecker), he chose to go and sit alone on the Marauder. That deep sigh and the despondent look over at the empty chair next to him is one of the hardest things that I have had to watch in this show.

This man has already lost his entire squad. He was there when Droidbait, Cutup and Hevy died. He came back from Skako Minor only to find out that Fives was gone too. He lost the brothers closest to him and now that he's found this second family, he's losing them also. We know how close Echo was with Tech especially. Those two were in sync a lot of the time. We didn't see them together as much this season as we did in season 1, but we have moments like in 2x8 when they are working together to get the information off the Venator. Tech was Echo's partner in crime, much like Fives used to be, and now he's gone as well. As much as I don't want Echo to die, I don't want him to be the last one standing and this is why. Just thinking about how much this must hurt Echo is beyond heartbreaking.

And just because this wasn't sad enough, I'm going to throw another thought out there: Echo feels guilty for not spending more time with the Batch. We don't know for certain, but I definitely wouldn't be surprised if he felt this way. I've spoken before about relating to Echo and seeing a lot of my own feelings reflected in him and this would be one of those moments. I've lost people before who I wish that I had spoken to more. All you can think about is every time that you wish you had just stayed on the phone longer, or said hi when you could, rather than being distracted by other things. Echo probably feels the same way. He spent what was probably over a month with Rex and while we know that it was the right thing for him and the right choice to make, he probably regrets not spending more time with the Batch and with Tech. In that moment, I imagine that he's thinking about many things: Crosshair, Domino Squad, whether he would've been able to spend more time with or even save Fives if he hadn't blown up, and all the time that he spent with Rex that he could've spent with Tech.

Even if you make the right decisions in life, it can still be hard to look back and not regret things. I think that this is one of those things for Echo. He made the right choice in joining the Rebellion but now he's lost Tech and he will never get to spend that time with him again.

Hunter

This is where things might start getting controversial because I seem to disagree with a lot of people about Hunter's reaction to things and by that, I mean that I understand why he reacted the way he did. Now, I want to preface this by saying that me understanding his response doesn't mean that I'm not angry at him on some level ("Understanding you does not mean that I agree with you" *gets sad thinking about tech again*).

I've seen some people saying that Hunter's response was apathetic and out of character for him and I've got to say this... no it wasn't. I find it interesting that a lot of the people that I've seen defending him are (like me) not particularly big Hunter fans. A lot of Hunter stans are going off about how this response doesn't make sense but to me it does. Now this is just speculation, but I wonder how much people's headcanons and perceptions of Hunter started to cloud their idea of who he is as a character. As much as I don't love Hunter, I do recognise the fact that he is a man with a lot of those flaws and those flaws can make him interesting, but I think that some people miss them because they look at him with rose-tinted glasses and see him as the perfect dad. But let's break down why I think Hunter's response makes sense.

I'm not going to lie, when I first heard Hunter say that they were going to get Omega back, my first response was "where was this energy with Crosshair?" and its that response that opens this up for analysis. Hunter wasn't sure if Crosshair needing help was a trap (which I've already said in another post was a valid response), so he was never going to react to Crosshair needing help in the same way as Omega needing it. Yes, it's harsh, but that doubt would've always been there. And Hunter's just lost one of his brothers trying to go back for Crosshair. They have no idea where Hemlock is, they don't actually know what is happening to Crosshair, Hunter has never been 100% certain that the whole situation isn't a trap and now Tech has just died because of it.

Yes, Tech sacrificed himself to not just help the others, but to also help Crosshair, but all that means nothing if they're all dead. Hunter, Omega, Wrecker and Echo just about escaped with their lives and with no information, it didn't seem reasonable to carry on with the mission. They couldn't do it with five of them, how would they manage with four? And you also have to remember that Hunter has a child to worry about. Yes, they could get Crosshair back but that's a very big ask. What happens if another one of them dies? Omega is left alone? All of this needs to be taken into consideration. Making the decision to settle on Pabu was a reasonable choice, even if it hurts to know that Crosshair is going to stay trapped with the Empire.

You can disagree with it, you can be angry at it, you can list all the reasons why Hunter is wrong but you can't ignore all the reasons why Hunter is right either. Like I said, I am also angry at it. But tbf, I think I'm more angry at the situation than I am at Hunter. It took me a few hours to work that out, but I get why Hunter chose what he did. I wanted them to carry on fighting for Crosshair but I also understand why he chose to stay on Pabu. And I also get why he chose to go back for Omega. Yes, she's a child, but he also knows for certain that she is actually in trouble. He could never be sure of that with Crosshair, he knows that Omega is in a situation she didn't choose. It's frustrating, but it makes sense.

And going back to people's perceptions of Hunter, I think some people fail to see that actually, a lot of what Hunter does is with selfish intentions. A lot of it is disguised as things that are for the greater good, and I think he believes that as well, but a lot of his decisions are based on what he feels. Yes, he's the one that is in charge of the squad, but his decisions tend to be more self-centred than some people realise. I think that's why Echo is an interesting addition the the squad. He's not only second in command, but he's also not afraid to push back against Hunter and his decisions; he's more willing to question the sergeant's choices. And I think part of that is from Echo's own stubbornness as well. (Side note: Echo's choices can also be a little self-centred (like when he agrees to going to Coruscant without much discussion) and I acknowledge that). We know that Hunter's choices aren't always what the squad thinks because we see them choosing to vote against his decision in 2x1.

I think that if you really look at Hunter and realise just how flawed he is, and how many of his choices are selfish, it makes sense why he said what he said in this episode. It isn't out of character for him.

However, that's not to say that you can't get angry about it. Hunter's devotion to Omega has caused him to make some weird decisions and at points it can feel like he cares more about her than his brothers. I think a lot of that may be down to the fact that he's never been in this position before and isn't use to what it's like to be a father. Parents can make some odd sacrifices for their children and we may not always agree with them. So while I think it's perfectly reasonable to not like Hunter that much here, I don't think that it's necessarily strange behaviour for him. It's exactly what I'd expect given what we've seen from him up until this point.

Random additional point that I somehow missed: Hunter has now lost half of his squad. Do you realise how much stress that man must be under? He probably feels like a failure, so it makes sense for his initial response to be "let's go and find somewhere safe" and then hitting a breaking point that leads to "we're not losing anyone else" (although that breaking point is also heavily influenced by his selfish thoughts).

Emerie Clone Reveal

Honestly, I don't have a whole lot to say about this bit, just that it kind of fell a bit flat? I have two reasons for why this might be.

We predicted that it would happen. That's not to say that twists like that can't be satisfying, but rather than ending on a shock revelation, it ended on more of a "we know" moment.

I was in such an emotional state over the rest of it that I just didn't care. I had greater concerns at this point so it didn't really hit that hard.

But those are my opinions. I don't know how this scene was for other people, but for me, I don't think it had quite the gravity that they were going for.

Feelings now vs 2x8

This is less of an analysis of the episode itself, but more of a reflection of my own feelings. What surprised me is that even though this episode destroyed me in the moment, I'm weirdly not going through the same "crying every time I think about this episode" moment that I did after episode 8. I really struggle after 2x8. Every time I thought about that final scene I just cried (which led to me trying to pull myself together on the way to lectures before I started sobbing in public). But with the finale... I'm sad but I don't cry about everything? Or at least not the parts that I expected to be in bits over. I can think about Tech falling without bursting into tears, but I think about that 20 second moment with Echo and have to grab the nearest box of tissues.

I think it's because of a mixture of things. One is that I am in denial over Tech's death. I don't believe that he's actually dead and even if I did, then I'd just be more annoyed at weak storytelling than actually being sad about it. Another is that as much as I love Tech, Echo will always mean so much more to me. I connect with Echo on a level that I don't with Tech, so I'm always going to have a stronger emotional reaction to content with him in. I cried so hard when Tech "died" but now I'm having more of a breakdown over Wrecker and Echo's reactions. It's strange, but there are a lot of complicated feelings over this episode.

Summary

...I don't know. There are a lot of thoughts and emotions swirling around with this episode. I do have some criticisms and worries, but I don't think that they're bad episodes. I preferred this season over the last (despite having gripes over the lack of Crosshair and Echo) and I think that the entire team did a really great job.

The ending was always going to be controversial. People have ideas of what they think is going to happen and when that doesn't happen, the default reaction can be "this is bad". I think everyone is just a little bit lost atm, but I'll be interested to see what the consensus is a little bit further down the line. Feelings are very much a mess right now.

But I guess that these are my thoughts for now. Turns out that a lot of my predictions were way off the mark but I'm not mad about it. I'm glad that it didn't go exactly how I expected. I'm a little bit cautious about some story elements moving forward (as mentioned in the rest of the post) but I'm looking forward to where they take this show (preferably more Echo and Cross content).

I've just realised that I didn't say anything about Omega's feelings. Oops. Clearly that's not where my head is at right now.

[drafthorsemath]

I'm hoping to finish her tonight, but here's some progress on Batcher! I need to add her feeties and stuffing and sew her up.

Tagging: @burningfieldof-clover @eclec-tech @heyclickadee @eriexplosion @lightwise @dahscribbler @melymigo @ct99r2d2 @mylittlepooka

If you'd like to be added or removed from this tag list, let me know! I just tried to find those who commented and reblogged.

[tbb-appreciation-week]

The results are in! After looking at the interest check survey I did last month, you spoke, and you chose to participate in an Appreciation Week for the boys and Omega!

So, in the coming weeks, I'll be rolling out another survey for you to choose the prompts. It'll be done in 2 phases. The first big selection phase will be done through a form where you can decide up to 10 prompts in different categories (SWF, Dialogue, Tropes/AU, NSFW, and color palettes). Then, in the second phase, I'll post polls here on Tumblr with the most voted in each category to get the final 7!

Regarding the event date, there was no consensus, so I'm taking @superiorsniper's suggestion and pick the week from September 3-9. I'm mad that I didn't think the 9/9 as date myself! So, thank you for your wonderful suggestion!

Why not sooner, you may ask. Why not in May, for example? Honestly, I was never fond of doing it then, simply because there are so many Star Wars fandom events during that month. I don't want anyone to feel overwhelmed or having to choose between this and another event because of a schedule/free time issue.

By hosting it in September, that leave us plenty of time to choose the prompts, plan, get hyped, and create before the final date comes. I want this event to be as lay back, stress-free as possible. This is something for fun, so I'll do my best to give as much time as I can for everyone to create.

Be sure to follow the blog and stay tuned for coming news!

Also if you have questions or suggestions, reach out to me through the ask box or DM (either here or my Star Wars blog @nimata-beroya)

Tagging people who were interested @sunshinesdaydream @fantasyproductions @myrtlesb @corona-one @beepbeepimacreep @heyclickadee @sinfulsalutationsfics @a-weird-1 @taro-666 @pretty-little-blue-sky @erin-is-sky @two-feet-of-topsoil @arkofblake @dindjarindiaries @superiorsniper @apocalyp-tech-a @thecoffeelorian @bloodalmonds @leosardonyx18 @photogirl894 @woottoncreek @myloveistoolittle @genericficerblog @l-lend

[eriexplosion]

Escaping Mount Tantiss

So having sorted through the trailer, I think I've pieced together at least one grouping of the shots. About midway through the trailer (around 1:03) we get some shots of troopers getting into battle stations.

Taking a look at it this is clearly the defenses for Mount Tantiss. On a wider shot from earlier seasons you can see the turrets lining the entire perimeter.

We get a shot of the ship they're shooting at around 1:07 (and I don't think this is editing trickery, we see the turrets firing green shots and that's what hits the escaping ship) and it pretty clearly matches the ship we see Omega and Crosshair walking away from earlier in the trailer, around 0:28

Now I don't think that the blast that we see hit the ship is what ultimately takes it down, because when we see Omega struggling to pilot around 1:23, in what looks like a similar cockpit, it's daytime versus the night time escape.

So after being shot they may have been able to make it a ways away, however I doubt that it would be off planet, meaning that they are probably still on Weyland when they crashed. And as @heyclickadee pointed out in a post, the crash shot has a lot of those very distinctive diagonal rocks, both in the foreground and the background, which match the background of this shot from around 1:00.

My guess is this happens in episode three, Shadows of Tantiss or the very end of Paths Unknown, leading into most of their attempts to evade recapture being in episode three - after escaping and crashing elsewhere on Weyland, they're still in danger and likely to be found at any moment, thus still in the shadow of Mt Tantiss. (It's very possible that ultimately, Crosshair escapes here while Omega is recaptured, allowing him to return before her?)

Two small additions, first there's a sequence of a ship spiraling out immediately after the shot of their ship getting blasted, but I don't believe it's actually the same ship, however it's hard to tell as it's from a completely different angle. It is spiraling down at night though, which leads me to believe it's not when we get the Omega piloting shot at the very least.

And secondly, if you'll excuse the purple tint, while fading in from the shot of the Teth Monastery, if you look, there is also a very easy to miss little Creechur accompanying Omega and Crosshair.

It's either a droid or some sort of quadruped but it looks organic from what I can see of it. Which makes me wonder if they might be accompanied by this beastie from later in the trailer.

[lightwise]

They Call Themselves The Bad Batch

Parallels between TCW S7 E1 and TBB S3 E11

Watching the latest TBB episode, I realized there are some striking parallels between the very first time we meet our boys in season 7 of the Clone Wars, and watching them be hunted down on Pabu after everything they’ve been through. I know this isn’t the last episode, but this is the countdown to wrapping up this part of their story. Let’s take a look at the first time we see them on screen vs. now:

TCW: The Bad Batch is brought in to help find an algorithm on Anaxes that has been causing the GAR to lose tons of battles by “learning our tendencies and using that data against us”. Rex was one of the army’s best tacticians and he was being defeated by his own strategies being copied. 

TBB: CX-2 uses every tactic that the Batch possesses against them (tracking, data decryption, sniping, hand to hand, demolition). The Batch was the best the army had and they are defeated by CX-2 in this episode. 

TCW: Cody asks his superiors (Mace and Anakin) to let him take a team and go behind enemy lines in order to try and find/defeat this algorithm. 

TBB: Omega convinces Crosshair to help her give herself up to go back to Tantiss so they can finally rescue the clones still imprisoned there. 

TCW: Rex looks at a picture of his “family” - Cody, Fives and Echo. Also, this is where we get Cody’s famous line “sometimes in war it’s hard to be the one that survives”—which is exactly what the entirety of TBB has been about. 

TBB: Omega puts memorabilia of her family—Tech’s goggles and Lula—into the Archium for safekeeping and remembrance.

TCW: Cody and Rex have a conversation about Rex’s theory that Echo might actually be alive. Cody’s response begs him to not have “misplaced hope. I need you to be focused on this.” 

TBB: Omega and Crosshair discuss their limited options as the Empire closes in on them on Pabu. “Think about the greater mission. I’m just a small part of it”. 

TCW: Tech brings the Havoc Marauder brought in onto the platform with the infamous Tech turn. 

TBB: CX-2 has his ship brought in by remote with a menacing turn mid-air so the ramp faces them after capturing Omega.  

TCW: Wrecker’s (and any Batch members’) first line - “The Cavalry Has Arrived”

TBB:  - The last episode of the series will be titled this. 

TCW: Crosshair is introduced as being able to hit precise targets from 10 klicks away.

TBB: Crosshair misses the most important shot he could ever make.

TCW: One of Wrecker’s first “feats” that we see him perform is rescuing Cody from a downed gunship before it explodes. Cody is then severely injured, flat on his back, and out of commission for the mission.

TBB: Wrecker risks his life and rescues Gonky before the Marauder explodes. He is unconscious and flat on his back for the rest of the episode.

TCW: Tech tells Jesse and Kix that “maps can be wrong. Hunter never is”. 

TBB: Crosshair immediately notices when Hunter’s senses go off and asks “what is it Hunter?” “Not sure, but I don’t like it.” 

TCW: Rex states “We should move out before reinforcements arrive. Our position has been compromised”. 

TBB: Omega tells Lyana that it’s safer if they leave, and Crosshair notes to Hunter that ships don’t blow up by themselves and therefore they’ve been compromised. 

TCW: Tech is easily able to hack into the computer and give Rex a reading of the algorithm and pinpoint its location, in the process finding out that it is actually Echo on Skako Minor. 

TBB: The episode opens with CX-2 hacking into Phee’s ship and decrypting her data logs and flight patterns to Pabu. 

TCW and TBB: The episodes end with ships flying off into the sunset with eerie red lighting, and the Bad Batch theme music playing is a somewhat melancholy version of their theme rather than the standard one. 

✨ Tag List ✨

@drafthorsemath @freesia-writes @ladyzirkonia @jedizhi @the-little-moment @sunshinesdaydream @the-bad-batch-baroness @heyclickadee @burningfieldof-clover @dreamless-daydreamer

[eclec-tech]

Last Line Challenge!

Rules: In a new post, show the last line you wrote (or drew) and tag as many people as there are words (or however many you like).

Thank you for tagging me @apocalyp-tech-a!

This is a line from a story that won't happen for a while yet. I just write down a little here and there when what I've daydreamed about becomes something solid. This line involves Wrecker and a guest aboard the Marauder:

Someone was shivering badly, and he was pretty sure he knew who it was.

Fourteen words, fourteen tags. Okee-dokey, who wasn't tagged in the post I was tagged in...

@drafthorsemath, @toucheholland23, @lightspringrain, @vivaislenska, @amalthiaph, @heyclickadee, @kimageddon, @ladykagewaki, @cloned-eyes, @dickarchivist, @vimse, @therisingdarkness, @sinisterexaggerator, @howthekriffdidigethere ...and anyone else who feels like sharing what they're up to!