#bad batch defense

[luxris]

it’s hard to summarise just what this show means to me. it’s brought me endless joy and inspiration, as well as introduced me to some of my closest friends. it will forever hold a very, very special place in my heart.

thank you, bad batch 🖤

[archivewriter1ont]

Bountyhunter: Everyone stopped shooting...I’m going to check it out.

Echo: (handcuffed to a chair) I wouldn’t do that if I were you.

Bountyhunter: Why?

Echo: I’m pretty sure there’s a mean, scary monster on the other side of that door.

Bountyhunter: *scoff* Whatever. *opens door*

Hunter: *charges in snarling, knives drawn*

Bountyhunter: *screams*

Echo: Told you. ☺️

Part Two of "Echo Gets Kidnapped" | Part One

[stars-n-spice]

Sneaking Out

Based off of this post from @here-comes-the-moose !

[thehollowprince]

I didn't even open it, because it's Screenrant, but I'd just like to say the Jedi Council didn't need to be redeemed because they didn't do anything wrong. Thank you and good day.

[eclec-tech]

(unsolicited and rambly Hunter defense post under the cut)

I know what people are going to say about this episode--that Hunter didn't do enough and say enough to Crosshair. They're going to say that he should have apologized, hugged him, poured his heart out with tears and promises that he is forgiven and that he will never let him go again.

That's not Hunter.

What we got here was the best we could have hoped for from his character. We got acknowledgement and a willingness to move forward.

These two have had a contentious relationship since we first met them. Both of them are strong leaders. But only one was in charge. That's a difficult dynamic to navigate when you are also a pair of stubborn brothers who don't like to back down.

Hunter wants to trust Crosshair again. That's why he demanded answers. He couldn't just take it from Omega that Crosshair could be trusted again. He needed to hear it from Crosshair himself, because if Crosshair was unwilling to share what had changed during his time in the Empire, Hunter had no basis for establishing trust again. He needed to see that Crosshair was willing to trust him again by giving him answers. But he also knew that Crosshair was stubborn and that kind of vulnerability would have to be forced out. So that's what he did. He forced the truth out of Crosshair.

It was tough love, brother style.

Look at Hunter's face at the end of the episode. It's one of the few times we've ever seen Hunter talking to Crosshair with an open and unguarded expression--no furrowed brow, no frowning, no soul-penetrating stare.

"All we can do is keep trying to be better. And who knows? There might be hope for us yet."

He has stopped saying "you" when he's addressing Crosshair. He's using "we" and "us". He doesn't have to tell Crosshair he forgives him for what's happened in the past. He now understands him.

With understanding, there's nothing to forgive.

[laughhardrunfastbekindsblog]

As a MAJOR Crosshair fan who is endlessly fascinated by his arc/character growth, absolutely loves his stubbornness and sarcasm and love for his family, and keenly sympathizes with him and his feelings of abandonment and broken loyalty, allow me to just put out there...

If one of my siblings shot me or one of my other siblings, I'd do what Hunter did.

If said sibling joined a fascist military and they all came after me and my siblings, I'd do what Hunter did.

If said sibling gave no indication that they wanted to leave said military, I'd do what Hunter did.

Even if said sibling had a completely justifiable reason for their behavior - forced to be under the influence, a massive brain injury that changed their personality, captured and subjected to brainwashing - I'd absolutely try to find a way to help them; but if the one and only way to get to them to help them involved going up against the entire military with its vast resources while my family and I are scrounging for basic supplies... you guessed it, I'd do what Hunter did with Crosshair.

Because in the end, deliberately and openly confronting the military won't help matters. I can't help my sibling if I'm dead. And I sure as heck am not going to have my other siblings do it.

All this to say: Hunter is and always was a fantastic leader who had to make extremely difficult decisions, sometimes made mistakes, but genuinely and earnestly strove to do the best he could for ALL of his siblings - including Crosshair.

(Preemptively rebutting the inevitable "but the squad rescued other people!" - note that Hunter had to be talked into doing anything that even peripherally involved the Empire, and even then the missions were ALWAYS planned out to be stealth missions so as to minimize Imperial involvement, plus they were rescuing people who WANTED to be rescued. No way could the squad have pulled off a stealth mission to get Crosshair when they never knew where Crosshair was AND Crosshair gave no indication he wanted to leave the Empire anyway so he would have to be dragged away kicking and screaming.)

[sonic-fairyspell]

Palpatine and the Empire: The Jedi Order steals children!!!! Also Palpatine and the Empire: stealing the Force Sensitive children

[stellarbit]

I’m so god damn dumb man hahaha my friend and I are watching the bad batch together and at one point Echo speaks and I get a little confused and just go “huh, Echo sounded almost exactly like Hunter there.”

I was completely serious,

My friend:

[werentloyaltome]

paint it over.

[here-comes-the-moose]

Okay so I always talk about how Tech gives me the vibes of being pretty calm unless it comes to his wife (Phee) or his siblings, so I was just imagining Tech getting a bit heated in a situation like that and Phee is basically like 😮😍😏

[jedi-enthusiast]

Ok, I know that I already reblogged @antianakin's post about why Anakin didn't need to murder an entire Tusken village because 2-3 of them killed his mom (original post here), but I just feel the need to talk about one of the most damning examples of why Anakin has no excuse for that response.

Post Order 66 Jedi/Clone interactions.

Let's just say, for the sake of the argument, that the entirety of the Tusken village--including the literal babies and children--all took part in the torture/murder of Shimi Skywalker. No exceptions.

Anakin's response to his mother's death is to murder everyone with no remorse or a second thought. Even when he confesses what he did to Padme, the RotS novel clearly shows that he doesn't actually feel bad about what he did. Most of his worry is about what others will think of him and, ironically, about how he's a "good Jedi" that should be better than this.

Now let's move on...

Every clone took part in Order 66 in some way.*

The clones murdered every single Jedi they could in cold blood (albeit without a choice), including the children, with only a miniscule few survivors. How many do we canonically have right now that didn't get captured and become Inquisitors? Obi-Wan, Quinlan, Cal, Caleb/Kanan, and Gungi are all I can think of at the moment.** That's 5 Jedi, out of thousands, that survived--and that's not even mentioning the destruction of their places of worship/cultural artifacts and the shitty propaganda spread about their culture.

* I'm not including the Bad Batch because, my own opinions about the show/characters/writing/etc. aside, we can all agree that the only reason their chips didn't activate was because they're Filoni's beloved OCs and he has a habit of trying to make his OCs "special" in some way.

** I'm not including Ahsoka in this because, like she says repeatedly as of Season 7 of TCW onward, she isn't a Jedi and doesn't see herself as such--and for the same reason I'm not including Grogu, since he's like...a Mandalorian apprentice now and not technically a Jedi. I'm also not including Luminara because she eventually gets captured and killed pretty early on and I'm trying to only include Jedi that are alive for a significant amount of time in the Imperial Era.

So, how do the Jedi treat the clones after they murder their entire family and destroy their culture? Let's look!

-----

Example One:

Obi-Wan Kenobi never learns about the inhibitor chips, as of current canon. He is 100% under the impression that Cody and the 212th (as well as all of the other clones) just up and betrayed him and the Order for no reason. He also watched the security tapes that, yes, showed Anakin killing children, but also would have shown the clones killing Jedi as well.

In the Kenobi show he runs into a clone veteran of the 501st--a veteran who, in all likelihood, probably stormed the Temple and was a part of its destruction.

Does he spit in the clone's face? Call him a murderer? Kill or harm him in any way?

Nope!

He gives the veteran some of his credits, even though it's made a point in the show that Obi-Wan is now working with limited funds and is very poor at this point in time. He doesn't have credits to spare and he is supposed to be looking for Leia, but he takes a moment to give some to someone who took part in the genocide of his people.

He also routinely thinks about Cody and the 212th in the comics! He remembers them fondly and still connects Cody to the feeling of hope, even though they tried to kill him! Even though he has no idea that they never wanted to!

-----

Example Two:

Kanan Jarrus/Caleb Dume knows about the inhibitor chips, but in Rebels it's made very clear that he thinks that it's just something the clones made up so that they didn't have to take responsibility for their actions.

In Rebels, Ahsoka makes the (objectively bad) decision to send Kanan out to find her "old friends" to help the rebellion.*** Kanan then finds out that her "old friends" are three clones, only after he gets there and sees them. He reacts in a panic and ignites his saber, clearly freaking out a bit.

*** I'll probably expand on this later, because I have a lot of opinions on this particular decision of hers, but anyway-

Does he try to hurt and/or kill them? Do they have to fight him off? Does he even lunge in their direction or deflect Wolffe's blaster bolt at him?

Again, nope!

He steps in front of Ezra in a defensive position and, when shot at by Wolffe, deflects the bolt into their ship. Then, when Ezra steps in and says that Ahsoka said to trust them, Kanan de-ignites his saber and they all have a conversation about them helping in the rebellion--even though Kanan clearly doesn't trust them at all and is dealing with his PTSD while being there. Eventually he even comes to get along with/trust Rex, albeit in later episodes.

-----

Example Three:

Gungi, in the Bad Batch, meets up with the Batch and immediately recognizes them as clones. Now, we don't know his opinion on them and their betrayal because it's never really expressed, but it's safe to assume that he has no idea about the chips (at least, until Tech tells him) and it's clear that he's very scared at that point in time.

What does he do?

He hides in the corner of the ship and is wary about the food they offer to him.

That's literally it.

And then later in the episode he works together with TBB and trusts them enough to let them help defend his village.

-----

So, even with most of the Jedi either having no idea about the chips or likely doubting that story, we're shown over and over again that the Jedi never seek revenge against the clones or try to kill them after Order 66. Even though their lives were ruined by what the clones did/took part in, they're never shown to be actively trying to cause them harm.

So there is literally no way you could possibly justify Anakin killing an entire village of Tuskens because of his mother's death, when--in arguably the same/a worse situation--the Jedi are actively shown not doing that.

[daniellescottart]

So here’s my theory…especially after finishing Thrawn: Ascendancy Trilogy:

The double snake head decals on Thrawn’s star destroyer Chimera is of course symbolising the creature itself & would simply be seen as such by imperials but a fact known to us novel fans is that it is the design on his ring gifted to him by Uingali & the Paccosh. Symbolising him as a Guardian & friend. My bets are on Thrawn having this design added to his flagship as a contingency plan should it ever come into danger within the unknown regions. (cue the Rebels season finale) we know the Paccosh do this to their own claimed enemy ships therefore the Chimera would instantly be identified & assumed by any outsider as being associated with or owned by the Paccosh - meaning they would likely be contacted & would lead to an investigation/ rescue or recovery.

I furthermore guess that eventually this leads to Ezra being introduced to the Magys in hopes of helping the Chiss predict upcoming battles & finish off the Grysks. I mean like - he can access the world between worlds and literally time travel the past so why not the future? Whilst the nyix mines on the “off radar except to those who know” planet Sunrise are used to rebuild Thrawns imperial ships.

[probadbatch]

Who's your favorite clone character who has appeared on TBB but isn't a member of Clone Force 99?

[kybercrystals94]

Flame Snuffed Out

Read here on Ao3!

Febuwhump 2024 | Day 10 | Prompt 10: Killing in Self-Defense

Rated: T | Words: 475 | Summary: An analytical mind does not negate the overwhelming emotions of killing a sentient for the first time… [Character Focus: Tech, Hunter]

CW: Descriptions of death / killing in self-defense

His eyes never shut. Not once. He didn’t even blink. But a flame Tech hadn’t even realized was flickering there snuffed out, and a cold, dead – quite dead – darkness took its place. And he fell. Not like a droid falls. He fell like an injured brother falls – like a living, breathing creature falls. It hurt, the sound of dead – quite dead – weight hitting rubble.

Alive.

Dead.

Quite dead.

He was quite dead.

“Tech?”

Tech looks up from the Marauder’s control panel. They are in hyperspace, have been in hyperspace for some time, but Tech is surprised his hands are still around the yoke. He releases it, drops his hands into his lap. “Yes, Hunter?” he asks.

“You seem…off. What is it?”

“You are mistaken. I’m fine.”

Hunter stands there, watching him, trying to detect the lie. His eyes flicker with that flame. Flame snuffed out. Darkness. Dead.

Tech looks away. “I’m just tired, I suppose, if you must know.”

“Tired,” Hunter echoes. Doubt saturates the word.

“As hard as it is to believe,” Tech snaps, “I am capable of feeling tired after a difficult mission.”

Tech stands, tries to brush past, but Hunter shifts, blocking him. “I don’t think being tired is the problem. I think you killing that sentient is.”

“We’ve all killed, Hunter. We’re soldiers. It is war,” Tech practically seethes. He takes a step back, but he doesn’t want to look at that flame. He won’t meet Hunter’s eye.

“You haven’t.”

Tech bristles. “I have.” He hadn’t. Until today. Flame snuffed out. Dead. Quite dead. He was quite dead. Unblinking, darkness staring at the smoke filled sky.

Wrecker had to grab Tech’s shoulder, give him a shove to get him moving again. Wrecker must have told Hunter that. He shouldn’t have hesitated. He should have been unfazed, unaffected. He was a soldier. Death should not influence him. Not him. Not with his analytical mind turning and processing with inhuman speeds. But it had.

But this wasn’t just death. Not just passing a corpse on a battlefield.

Flame snuffed out.

The sentient had been poised to fire at Tech. But Tech beat him to the draw. Pulled the trigger first. Deadly aim. Instantly dead. Alive. Dead. Quite dead. Only a sixtieth of a minute and a blaster bolt in between.

“I want to help you,” Hunter says, reserved gentleness.

Tech glances up. Wishes he hadn’t. Looks away. “I am quite capable of helping myself.”

He shoves against Hunter, bodily moves him aside so he can go by. He is through the cockpit door when Hunter’s voice follows him. “Don’t dwell on it too much. It was you or him.”

Tech doesn’t give the impression he hears or will listen.

But he does try.

END

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[bbgoffic]

This week on "good" people microaggressions on "bad" people, our awkward on the social front superstar Tech missing that,

Social Bonding Queue

Of Cid proposing the script of "I owe you one,"

The batch is unaware of the mental place Cid was in while she was captive, but at the time she had them racing for her categorized as a personal favor.

By Tech answering "Yes, I would agree," instead of "don't mention it," he reframed it back into a business transaction.

And Cid, on team damaged, has the reaction of someone who thinks themself silly for taking something personally.

Though Cid probably hadn't decided on betraying them yet, this little interaction here framed the batch as "associates" rather than "friends" and that doesn't exactly help.

[tychee123]

does anybody else think about how that as rex aged he became less and less recognisable because clones never lived long enough to get old