#tech lives

[echos-gal]

ok i'm rapidly losing hope that Tech is still alive, and this sucks because it was basically the top thing i desperately wanted from this season. i wanted to see him survive. so here's my exhaustive and embarrassingly long list of reasons why he SHOULD still be alive, and if he isn't, why it was a missed opportunity. obviously no hate to the writers or anything, i love them dearly for creating this show!!!

(if you're a "Tech should stay dead for the stakes/so someone in SW stays dead for once/i hate delusional Tech stans" person, kindly keep scrolling, this ain't for you)

SEASON 2:

right from the start, Romar connects with Tech and calls himself "a survivor." HELLO???

in this same arc, Tech breaks his leg in a fall which he survives. he continues to walk on it, fighting off troopers to save Echo & Omega, showcasing his persistence and grit.

one of Phee's first lines is "better late than dead," and we know she shares a connection with Tech. she flirts with him later in this scene. it would be a shame not to reuse this line, i'm just saying....

Cid still owes Tech for racing for her in Faster. we see Cid looking miserable as she betrays the batch in Plan 99, so her playing a part in his rescue/comeback would be a nice way to show her growth. (i'm afraid there isn't enough time for this, though- as much as i thought a Cid redemption was on the horizon!)

Phee and Tech's departure is awkward, and although we have some context from season 3 (they talked more than we realized), the scene would do best if reconciled in person imo. it felt like it was setting up for something, and feels weird to leave hanging.

"don't go running off with any pirates or smugglers" could not have just been a throw away line. it set up for him to do exactly that. how fitting would it be if pirates or smugglers actually did manage to pick him up before the empire made it to the railcar crash site?

Hemlock's retrieval of the goggles shows that he sent a team to look through the wreckage. he thought there was a chance Tech survived, and may have him.

i won't go into the logistics, but big falls ARE survivable. in star wars especially. we have no idea what was below the layer of clouds/mist Tech fell through.

SEASON 3:

this is mostly CX-2 centric. their armor is very similar: the jaw/mouth shape, the hexagons over the ears, the rectangles on the chest, and the pouches/pockets.

"domicile." that is all.

CX-2 uses technology more than the other operatives we've seen, and he gets past the encryption on Phee's ship with ease.

"who are you?" was enunciated in the exact same way Tech says it to Trace and Rafa, which i definitely think was intentional.

CX-2 stops to use his rifle scope in the exact same spot where Tech and Phee stood to let down the ladders in the sea surge on Pabu.

he survives a waterfall plunge on Teth, which appears to have fooled Rex's group into thinking he'd died. the writers could have killed him off there and sent a new operative, but they chose to stick with CX-2 pursuing them to Pabu.

it's worth noting that while this CX is designated as "2," Tech's CT number is CT-9902. he is associated with the number even on a visual level: he's a dual-wielder, he wears goggles, he salutes with two fingers.

FROM A STORY PERSPECTIVE:

firstly, i am sorry and i LOVE the writers, but if you want people to accept a character's death, you've got to show his family and friends' grief. we saw no reaction from Crosshair or Phee, no tears from Hunter or Echo. it feels like fans were sadder about Tech's death than the characters in the story.

Tech seems to have been mentioned more in the second half of season 3 than the first half, which works if they want to bring him back in the finale.

the finale is called "The Cavalry Has Arrived." i really don't think you can have the cavalry (aka the bad batch) arrive without every member present. i also don't think it would feel right to play their theme without Tech there. idk, that feels incomplete!

we saw no body, and Hunter received Tech's goggles not from a trusted ally or friend, but from Hemlock. this calls into question the legitimacy of his claim that the goggles were "all he could salvage."

Tech alive and being held on Tantiss would provide a nice parallel to Echo in the first mission where we meet the batch, in TCW. and [ep 14 SPOILERS] we see that Echo is currently looking more like his TCW self, with his earpiece removed.

feels kinda sour that a character who a lot of people related to as neurodivergent representation would die just a few episodes after having a deep conversation with his sister about it.

likewise (and as a white woman i can't speak for WOC), from what i have seen, Black women are rarely the main love interest of a series! Phee is the ONLY love interest in this whole show, and it would suck to just cut off that romance before it could really become something. a lot of people wanted to see TechPhee become canon.

CX-2 is the one who destroys the marauder. it works well storywise for its pilot to have been the one to do that- the person who worked so hard modifying it, flying it, and teaching his sister to fly it. i'll be lowkey pissed if it turns out some random dude blew it up.

it's also CX-2 who invades and sets fire to Pabu. this is emotionally gripping on its own, but if he is Tech, it's even more so.

we have no idea what the operatives go through. Crosshair isn't telling, but it clearly put him in a really bad place. if Tech underwent this conditioning in his post-fall injured state, there's a chance he could come back from it. Emerie is probably the key to this, if they take the CX-2 route.

this show is all about a family trying to stay together as the Empire desperately tries to rip them apart. seeing the whole family together again - even if not everyone survives - in the finale is the satisfaction that the show ideally would go for. the last time they were all together was the season 1 finale. that was about 2 years ago in the show's timeline.

leaving Crosshair and Tech's final interactions be where they parted on the Kamino platform also feels off. Tech was the one who really vocalized the need to rescue Crosshair in season 2's finale. Crosshair, in the meantime, has changed significantly as a person. Tech's comment about Crosshair being "severe and unyielding," and unable to change this facet of his nature, is incorrect. leaving Tech dead would mean that he never gets to see this change in Crosshair, which makes me feel like a deflated balloon.

FROM MY SELFISH PERSPECTIVE!!!

give me Tech with cool scars and slightly disheveled longer hair. this is such a good opportunity for the creators to give him a sweet new look!

we never got to see Tech without his goggles on, despite Phee constantly referring to his eyes. he definitely doesn't have them right now (they're in the Archium), so we could get Mister Big Brown Eyes if he's alive. it's another missed opportunity if not, imo!

the goggles being placed in the Archium was a beautiful scene that makes me tear up whenever i think about it. it's symbolic, it's bittersweet, and it's exactly where the goggles belong. but was it closure for me? not really.

Tech is a character who became a LOT of people's favorite in season 2, including my own. why kill off a fan-favorite with an entire season to go?

yes, i desperately want a Rex and Echo series. yes, i want the batch to cameo in it, and yes... that includes Tech. making up for lost season 3 Tech content 😎

the finale will feature the zillo beast, and Tech loves the zillo beast. FREE HER! REUNITE THEM! he would love to witness her rampage.

FROM A "SURPRISE!!!!!" PERSPECTIVE

it seems like most people think Tech is either CX-2 or dead. it would be a great finale twist if we DID get CX-2's identity, it's NOT Tech, the audience loses hope, and then he shows up. i think this is actually plausible given the other assassin schematics Hemlock was looking at in Point of No Return. Tech might be in Hemlock's grasp, but not an active operative. having an enhanced clone to toy with is something Hemlock would want to keep under wraps. we see him step out of the assassin chamber at the start of that episode - if Tech is anywhere on Tantiss, i think it's here.

i think the writers have expected us to have all lost hope by now, so his finale reappearance would ideally come as a shock. the finale is almost guaranteed to be a very long episode, so we really might have quite a bit of time to explore his return, if it happens.

secret 16th episode: i know, i'm putting my clown makeup on as i type this. but the previous 2 seasons each had 16 episodes, with a two-parter finale. season 3 is just 15, with a single episode finale. TBB formally ends may 1st, so what if we get a may 4th surprise episode detailing how Tech survived? (that or an epilogue leading into a new series, which i think is more likely actually!)

[alligatorpie1945]

I have some thoughts

So as the finale is fast approaching, I know a lot of the #TechLives supporters are losing hope. BUT I still have faith that CX2 is him or at least a version of him. And there are a couple reasons why.

1. I don’t think for a second think the tbb crew would waste nearly THREE episodes of an already short and pivotal season with just a regular clone we have no attachment too. We have already seen these shadow assassins before. So if the identity of this particular shadow isn’t important, then WHY does he have so much plot armor and WHY haven’t we seen his face yet. If he was just another clone, they could easily just reveal that and nothing would be lost. Same if he just died, he could easily be replaced by ANOTHER SHADOW. So clearly the identity of this specific shadow is plot important.

2. Since we have already established that tbb typically doesn’t waste dialogue or screentime. What was going on here? They took several seconds to show Hemlock in this specific lab, (above the tower that earlier we saw another shadow standing guard at, episode 3 I think) looking at a some sort of tank. I bet is he is looking at Tech, healed and in a sort of dormant state. I have a theory that instead of CX2 being a crosshair clone, he could be a Tech Clone. Crosshair stated that the programming didn’t work on him due to his defective nature. WELL maybe it didn’t also work on Tech. So instead of dealing with another Crosshair. They kept Tech sedated and just used his dna to make a super ultra solider. That could explain the shadows utter lack of regard especially considering Omega.

Pic provided by @starwarsdinosaur

3. Possible finale ending: this also works out in the one episode left. Because if the shadow tech is killed, but they find the real tech alive and “sleeping” then they can rescue him and not have to worry about deprogramming him! HAPPY ENDING WITH THE ENTIRE BATCH AND I CAN DIE HAPPILY.

I do feel a little insane after typing this all out. But I needed to share my possibly delusional hope. Because god damnit, I really don’t think Tech died. Anyway, I would love to hear y’all’s thoughts.

[doodlingfoolishness]

This is gonna be one of those nice moments we get in the epilogue, right?

[winters-secret-star-wars-blog]

Calling all Tech girlies

No giving up on our main man! It's not over until the credits roll! We will face the finale with bravery! Either our hopeful delulus emerge victorious or we drive this clown-mobile off the cliff!

[lothcat-lothcat-lothwolf-run]

It’s been 1 week without CX-2

[anthrotulip]

Live footage of me whenever Rampart was on screen in 3.14:

I'm aware he is probably going to useful (somehow) the Grand Tantiss Liberation Plan™ and this is a technically (pun intended) a kid show but it is past time for is timely demise

Also I swear to the force if he gets out of this all somehow, but Tech isn't alive my screams will Echo forever.

[yatzstar]

It takes Omega some time to get used to Tech's style of flying, and he begins teaching her how to pilot a starship. On the way back to Tantiss, Omega notices some familiar things about the shadow clone and his flying style. - Contains spoilers and speculation for the remainder of The Bad Batch S3.

[the-l0st-lore]

I have fully refused to mourn the loss of Tech up until this point. Call it denial or call it hope but oooo boy that final episode is going to hurt twice as much if Tech doesn’t make his return. And that’s assuming we don’t lose more of the batch. I- I just don’t think I have another Victory & Death or Jedi Night left in me?? Like I’m kinda dreading the finale. I’m just so nerrrrrvous asgdjk hellllp

[local-cryptid]

i actually started this a couple weeks ago but with the latest episodes i felt the need to finish it

[shakall]

You chose the wrong side

[coralsnake]

One Last Fight

[lornaka]

While we are all oh so patiently waiting for news on s3 of TBB, here is a Tech painting that I've had in the works for quite some time, commissioned by the wonderful @norraexploradora <3

[alligatorpie1945]

Wanted to draw the updated batch from the new season! And of course we can't forget Tech!

(I am definitely in the #TechLives camp, but until we get an official design. This is how he will stay)

Prints Available Here

[teadrawstuff]

YES. I am on the bandwagon that Tech is CX-2

[kiffobaby]

Happy(?) Bad Batch Wednesday!

Have a silly little drawing to make your day better before it gets so much worse!

I’m going to prepare my clown self for if CX2 isn’t Tech because I’ll feel a right fool.

Bonus 2-Second Comic;

[nobody-expects-the-inquisitorius]

DOMICILE?? INTERESTING CHOICE OF WORDS THERE MAN WHO IS DEFINITELY NOT TECH