Crosshair is still a bad character, guys

[@thegamingagent6822]

Why is the only time we get multiple episode arcs is when it deals with clones, the bad batch has no overarching story and the anytime an episode is actually determined to be good is when a clone we know is on screen, it seems like they try harder when that's the case. Like the clone conspiracy. I miss 4 episode arcs. It's either one offs about things no one cares about, or two episodes of the continuation of the episodes we don't care about. Like did we really need to see an episode about a natural disaster...

[@creedbratton4064]

I stopped watching after the racing episode, then literally last night I decided to try and catch up and just stopped watching after one episode because it had the most stale stupid dialouge and was telling an absolutely pointless story, the descriptions literally said they uncover some shocking mystery and I was waiting the whole episode for the shocking mystery then it just ended

[@plushmadness1553]

@@creedbratton4064 episode 7 and 8 are good and it gets better from there

[@LupusInfernum]

It's called filler unfortunately. They could be putting the episodes to better use but that's Disney for you

[@buek14]

That's where the kids' show vibe comes in. Combine it with Disney and Filoni and you got utter dumbness.

[@chasehedges6775]

@@buek14💯💯👍 Exactly. Filoni and Modern Disney Star Warz is meh

[@joeiorio9654]

To me, Crosshair feels like someone who is afraid of his identity without being a soldier. Who is he if he is not a trooper? He has no purpose. Every other member of the Bad Batch has abilities that can be used outside of war, except Crosshair. He's a marksman. If he walks away from the Empire, he's worried he'll have no purpose in life. His decision with Cody made me realize that he would rather have a purpose under a government that won't respect him, over no purpose and his freedom. It isn't until he realizes how horribly his brothers are being treated that he stands up and defects. Before, he keeps saying, "We're soldiers.” "I’m a soldier.” "Good Soldiers follow orders"' Crosshair is someone who only knows how to be a soldier. Being anything more than that scares him. Crosshair has quickly become one of my favorite characters in the franchise because of this story. He’s obviously wrong and looks through the world through nothing more than a sniper scope and narrow viewpoint, but it’s how he was raised. He said it best. “This is who I am.” 1i think that’s also why the other Batch menters left. Echo values his independence (for obvious reasons), Hunter simply has a more sympathetic and outward look on life, and Wrecker is honestly just too stupid to think for himself. (That’s a joke. Similar to Hunter, he’s just a more sympathetic person who values the right thing over being a war machine teddy bear). I still disagree with a lot of your points, but I really appreciate the analysis on this character.

[@neocomp92]

Fear of loneliness does not override the morality of not killing innocents or the sense of betrayal that your free will was overwritten. If anything, it makes Crosshair seem weak-willed, like that one kid who hangs around with troublemakers because they find him a useful idiot to act as a dope mule, while he gets the sense of belonging in a group.

[@nagger8216]

You mean he wouldn't be useful hunting animals? I'm calling bullshit on that

[@dancingvalkyrie]

This is a lot of head canon that's not even present in the show. People sure do like defending Dave Filoni even though the man puts much less effort in the writing than his own defenders 😂

[@joeiorio9654]

@@neocomp92 is that not the point? I’m not justifying his actions. I’m just saying it may be his thought process. He’s not a nice person at all and far from a good brother

[@itsblitz4437]

👏 😮 very well said there. And good arguments.

[@darko-man8549]

The show is on track to be like Rebels with 80% of the show dedicated to the heist plot line.

[@Democratic_Republic_of_Iacon]

Rebels turned out better than bad batch somehow in retrospect.

[@RedSun446]

8:38 The issue with this that you probably don’t know or forgot is that they Marketed the game, since its announcement, that it would be an Imperial Perspective Story, Iden’s first spoken lines in the trailer reveal were “I’ve been waiting 30 years for this” and it hasn’t been spoken at all in the actual campaign, if that means she’s been “waiting 30 years” to fight the First Order, that makes ZERO Sense because in the story Iden clearly in the game at that point had no idea about the first order, or its threat level, Now if she means 30 years to fight the New Republic or more specifically The Resistance, then it would make sense considering the purpose of the campaign again being “an Imperial Point of view” the False Marketing was really stupid and mislead a lot of us I understand that the Empire is bad and yeah making a story about “Good Guy Imperials” would probably be impossible, but honestly it should be possible, we should explore that grey area more, there’s this movie a friend told me about, I can’t remember the name, but its about German Soldiers during WW2 and they all started off as friends and as the war went on they all became bitter and tired essentially, and its all through their perspective, I’ll probably give it a watch at some point, But my point is, if we can get a WW2 story through German soldiers’ perspective, then I See no reason or excuse as to why we can’t see A movie, Show, or novel about a group of Stormtroopers or even Clones under the rule of the Empire who are just doing their job and NEVER defect, yeah Im tired of defector stories, they’re getting really annoying and predictable

[@cas5447]

Do you mean something like "Generation War" when talking about the movie from German soldier perspective? If not, I can only recommend that as well.

[@Icup200169]

Are you talking about the movie “all quiet on the western front?”

[@RedSun446]

@@cas5447 It might be that, I’ll have to look that up later

[@RedSun446]

@@Icup200169 thats WW1 yeah great movie, but there was movie about germans soldiers more specifically during WW2

[@boogermind]

um, Stalingrad (1993)?

[@Сайтамен]

There is a clue in season 1 - Crosshair considers himself (and the rest of the Bad Batch) superior to other clones. He is the best sharp shooter in the army and he likes being a commander, he believes Empire will always treat him specially. In episode 3 his ego is very hurt that a human recruit said "enjoy being commander...for now) and later he kills him. In episode 15 Hunter says "Empire will get rid of all clones" and he responds "not the ones that matter". Later he elaborates "we are special, in Empire we can have a worthy purpose, do you prefer to run and hide forever?" But after Empire lets him starve on Kamino, Rampart doesn't make him commander anymore and leutenant Dick treats him no other way than normal clones, he realises he means nothing for them.

[@mastertheory4583]

To understand why Crosshair is written the way it is, you have to understand one simple thing: Crosshair was planned from the beginning as a redeeming character, for they (hello, Vader) are much loved by the audience for their "ambiguity. Plus, it's "Bad Batch" after all, and it would be kind of "weird" of the show's creators not to put them together against a common enemy. Based on these point, the following conclusion can be made: the creators intentionally keep silent about Crosshair's motives and goals within the Empire, so that he is not completely associated with them, in the person of the same Tarkin and Rampart - he is just a dummy, not thinking about anything. He is cruel, he does total evil, but it is not because HE HAS to love that evil, but because he is ORDERED to do it. Yes, you correctly point out that such a character is contrary to what we saw in "The Clone Wars," but otherwise Filoni couldn't get a "good" character to do bad things. He needed a hero who was blind in his desire to serve, and it didn't matter who or what - as long as there was just a purpose. If Crosshair had a clear purpose and motivation to work for the Empire based on its policies, doctrine, and actions, then he could not be redeemed. And when a hero has no foundations, it's easier to flip him from side to side (And in my opinion, as hasty as Crosshair's switch to the good side was, it's better than Agent Кallus suddenly being good, who just sat with Zeb for a couple hours, and suddenly all his decades of service to the ISB just got annulled). The reason Crosshair only betrayed the Empire by the "Outpost" series, on the other hand, is because of his internal flaw - he doesn't want to be alone. In the first season, he is driven by resentment against the team and the belief that they will join him--that is what makes him cling so vividly to the Empire, like "my brothers just don't understand how good it is, but I will prove it to them." But in the finale, when they were able to have a heart-to-heart talk, he has to accept the fact that they won't get along, which (plus the shooting of Rampart) may have shattered his views on the Empire a bit. Series 3 even emphasizes this detail in its title, "The Solitary Clone." Crosshair's life turns into a dull routine with no comrades, only orders. And then Cody shows up, with whom he manages to get close in a short time. However, his loyalty to the Empire once again alienates him from his loved one, and here he already begins to realize that something is wrong here, and this is shown through a conversation with Rampart, where Crosshair thinks about something and answers the commander through force. And so, in "The Outpost," not only does he once again see that the Empire doesn't care about him or the clones in general. He realizes that under the Empire he will forever be doomed to be alone-either his comrades will leave on their own, or the newly minted Imperial officer will simply start getting rid of them. And that's when it clicks in his head-he doesn't want to remain a lone vulture in the middle of the icy wilderness, and he'd rather die with his comrades than be left all alone. Other than that, I completely agree with the video. Good job!

[@modernmedieval2312]

Bro i ain’t reading allat 💀

[@SpomalenyClovek]

I couldnt agree more.

[@chasehedges6775]

@@SpomalenyClovek Same. It’s a good analysis

[@SirFlooberis]

@@modernmedieval2312then don’t read it and don’t comment lol

[@mr.mantle3160]

Fax

[@giganticzombie]

A big problem I think the showrunners have is that they can't choose if this is an animated show or of this is a family animated show, a big distinction. Is this Clone Wars or is it meant to be animated Andor? Clone Wars got dark but within the means of a Cartoon Network show. It was mature but not too mature to scare off kids. Bad Batch was marketed for adults who grew up with the Clone Wars, not for kids on saturday mornings, yet the writing *still* doesn't match that. We still have zany adventures with a hint of darkness, sometimes with the few "The Outpost" episodes to push a stronger storyline to keep adults hooked to what is still a kids show. They need to figure that balance out or else people wont care about Season 3.

[@quack499]

There is definitely tone whiplash in this series. I wish they would either stick to a set tone or gradually introduce tension to the tone and series as it progresses.

[@darko-man8549]

The writing matches Rebels in its childishness, which is sad

[@chasehedges6775]

@@anonymous376 Smart, man

[@huesoftheheart139]

I disagree. Crosshair didn’t shoot the Officer because of a change in morality, or a realization it was the right thing to do. A key theme of this show you’re ignoring is the autonomy and individuality of clones. Crosshair at the beginning of the episode the Outpost would leave a clone behind, that’s his personality, mission first, not just the chip. The Outpost changed his character, not his morality. The video ignores this and oversimplifies an emotional moment to a change of idealism v. a change of heart

[@zemox2534]

The guy just hates bad batch and refuse to talk about any if the good points. He just complains for the sake of it

[@dancingvalkyrie]

Cuz Bad Batch is poorly written and poorly paced

[@coyotemars444]

⁠​⁠@@dancingvalkyriehats an opinion. I think the story arcs are well written, and the emotional beats hit. Some episodes being filler have emotional mature elements that revolve around raising a kid and being a family. Its a mixed episodic(normal cartoon) like episodes with Story driven episodes that involve world building. Pacing is fine, i rewatched it twice. It feels grounded to me which, honestly, i havent gotten from many shows. Crosshair has a really cool arc and we havent even seen it all. Its supposed to be about de-radicalizing of a soldier who was characteristically set up to be an asshole. People have those types of family members nowadays with politics. Its a good arc that matches with Anakins, but if he had a family that cared ab him. Crosshair ends up protecting them after a season of attempting their murder and then gains empathy/compassion for people(who ostracized the batch) he deemed below him. W T F YOU MEAN BAD WRITING. Also it deals with veterans getting abandoned by their government, written by a writer who is a Veteran herself. And How theyre viewed. Ptsd/mentalities they get from it.

[@dancingvalkyrie]

@@coyotemars444 "we havent seen it all" Yes we have wtf. He's already betraying the empire after only appearing for TWO episodes this season with only ONE of them actually challenging his "beliefs". Lackluster arc for a lackluster character. Two fucking seasons and this is the best they could do.

[@zemox2534]

​@@dancingvalkyrie He is not fucking lackluster. Just fucking wasted.

[@cheezeebutter452]

8:47 I’d actually love to watch a film or play a game as a high ranking storm trooper who knows what he is doing is wrong but keeps making excuses for it and maybe even never turns good in the end. I think that would be an interesting, albeit dark, story.

[@darko-man8549]

agreed, basically how the Clones originally were : indoctrinated into fascism from an early age, brainwashed to believe what they were doing was right.

[@darko-man8549]

agreed, basically how the Clones originally were : indoctrinated into fascism from an early age, brainwashed to believe what they were doing was right.

[@ArcticWolf00Alpha0]

Or better yet, just have a story where a Stormtrooper is doing his job of protecting innocent people by rooting out rebel hide outs in a civilized area and dies in the process, have him do good things like helping civilians caught in the crossfire and help people to believe the empires doing the right thing, but in the end he dies, and the rebels win the day.

[@cheezeebutter452]

@@ArcticWolf00Alpha0 🤨

[@ArcticWolf00Alpha0]

@@cheezeebutter452 What?

[@Imperialstorm03]

Regarding Iden Versio's defection storyline it's also worth noting that a lot of the disappointment was largely due to how Iden was a *stark* contrast to what we see in game. I don't think people were so much expecting Iden to have a "moral compass" so to speak, perhaps at the very least a corrupt view of how order and security is to be enforced and maintained in a galaxy so accustomed to war, but instead of that, Iden Versio behaves COMPLETELY different in the game compared to the trailer. In the latter there are a plethora of quotes that didn't even make it to the campaign: "Hope cannot save them!" "We avenge our Emperor." To name a few. On top of that, the Inferno Squad novel establishes Iden Versio as a complex imperial fanatic. She's definitely in for the cause having been making ethical decisions to maintain her cover when infiltrating as members of partisans (some of which we clearly see partial guilt for) and she further convinces herself it's for the cause. The game simply undoes all of that in a matter of 3 levels with little time to explore how her views might've changed through the events of book and afterwards. Just my two cents on that. For Crosshair I do also wish you brought up how Crosshair straight up killed his own elite squad in the season 1 finale. Granted, the title and what you've covered thus far do sort of touch on how he's inconsistent, but this part specifically rubs me the wrong way. Aside from the fact that it touches on "OH wow! The bad guy character isn't so bad after all and he might, IN FACT, turn good!!" cliche which is another can of worms, the scene feels like it never happened at all. It's never addressed, never brought up, just another batch of elite imperial soldiers Disney canon introduces only to do fuck all with them.

[@quack499]

You are right about the marketing for Iden Versio; I remember that.

[@samzilla567]

If you read the Battlefront 2 book, Iden was straight up worshiped the Empire. She saw Alderaan get destroyed and felt every single man, woman and child, dissevered to die.

[@Imperialstorm03]

@@samzilla567 I remember. A shame because the book was REALLY good in my opinion, at least in terms of characterization for Iden Versio. I'm still bitter at how the game is such a stark contrast to it and a poor replication of what Iden Versio could have been.

[@pierrejeanf.dupuis4150]

And then we got episode 14. I fully agree that The Bad Batch isn't the greatest Star Wars anything. Making a series for 8 year old and 48 year olds isn't going to be fully satisfying for anyone. Andor is a great show but I dare you to go sit in front of a 30-kid middle-school classroom and force them to binge-watch the complete first season of Andor.

[@CryosisOfficial]

Horrible take regarding the Empire.

[@ShaddySoldier]

Honestly though

[@EX-Flashkick]

They literally blow up planets

[@akas1255]

Disagree on your conclusions on the defectors from Battlefront II. These were an elite Imperial special forces squad who gleefully served them for years if not decades. It was only (the mind numbingly ridiculous plot contrivance) Operation Cinder, after the fall of the Empire, that made them defect. But their previous Imperial allegiance was based off the same exact information set as Crosshair and Meero and in fact is likely much worse as they served the later Empire post-Senate dissolution while everyone else still had degrees of political holdover from the Republic.

[@RevanX77]

Saying that you can't have a story with an Imperial character that doesn't have them either turn on the Empire or be completely evil is frankly insane considering we've literally had decades and decades where stories like that existed. The issue with Crosshair doesn't stem from the character itself, it comes from the lore invented in TCW for both the brain chips and the Bad Batch. In the EU the brain chips were unnecessary because 99% of the Clones were raised from birth to blindly believe in authority, and even then quite a few ultimately disobeyed the order. But in that case Clone Force 99 would never have existed the way we saw it in TCW, because it goes against everything the Kaminoans and Palpatine and the military hierarchy were trying to do by instituting a strict military culture. This issue is what leads to the problem of the impossibility of believing that a clone would want to serve the Empire because they see no difference between it and the Republic, because in TCW and Disneywars almost all of the buildup that showed how the Republic had essentially already become the Empire long before the name change happened. Which is why in Episode III the declaration of the Empire was met with thunderous applause, because people actually wanted it and agreed with it. The situation where you can't believe a good person could want the Empire is a result of modern Star Wars media showing every single part of the Empire being both outrageously evil and laughably incompetent. Like if the guy Crosshair shot had just been a standard military CO and ordered some medical assistance in a timely manner, suddenly Crosshair doesn't shoot him and betray the Empire because he's being treated with cruelty on a ridiculous level from his own superior officers. In ESB even when Vader is killing his own commanders for screwing up, it's not like you see all of those guys also killing their own crewmen for doing a bad job, rather you see them generally being reasonable and levelheaded. In canon the Empire is both dumber and more evil than the droids, so it's no wonder that once every bit of humanity and nuance and perspective has been stripped away, your suspension of belief snaps and the storytelling stops working.

[@dolphin5177]

People were mad about the battlefront 2 campaign was because it was sold we would be in a empire based campaign not 2 missions of empire

[@dilboo]

BB is literally just animated The Mandalorian with 4 guys instead of 1

[@ngabel8956]

Dave Filoni 101: Have fans infer character for you.

[@nagger8216]

It's been like this since the prequels, nothing new there

[@georgeeast9271]

I have to say, while the brainwashing shit is fair. Being left to die in the outpost episode is another level of shit Empire really do be bad

[@georgeeast9271]

Clone wars’ writing quality was never consistent so I forgive bad batch for it’s faults. Very few episodes of Rebels are watchable though, maybe one-two is passable the whole way through? Idk, Mandalorian season 1 - 3 is such a dramatic downgrade too. It’s weird.

[@locomotivefaox]

I think it was interesting for a character, but clones following orders of their own free will was very much a thing. People forget that the inhibitor chips were a retcon.

[@mac1991seth]

The Bad Batch overall feels like a series of mini-games or Star Wars Games Pitch Meeting. This is an episode about pod racing, this is about archeology, this is about exploration and puzzles, this is about stealth. I get it, Star Wars, you used to have a lot of good games.

[@defenderofminorities3056]

das crazy because the 2 crosshair episodes have been my favourite of the seasons.

[@thesithcynic3398]

What’s the matter bro? Are Crosshair’s morals inconsistent?

[@shawnellesmith]

No sh#t.

[@STPstudio47]

I feel like they did crosshair dirty. As soon as it was revealed that he no longer had a chip but still is on empire's side after his squad rescued him. From what I understood he valued loyalty above most things. He says when no longer under the chip's influence that the bad batch abandoned him and didn't even try to save him (while they did some other dangerous missions). The empire however picked him up and tended to his wounds, so he stayed with them, being a soldier etc. But as soon as Rampart leaves him to die I thought he was gonna maybe rejoin the squad after they saved him or that he's gonna go after Rampart, but nah he still went to the empire that explicitely stated they no longer want clones no matter their loyalty. I feel like he was a great addition to the squad and it wasn't the right character to be made the bad guy. It contradicts how he and the squad were portraited in tcw, that they don't care about politics, they only listen to hunter, they're not opressors, they do help the victims of war (those aliens in the village from clone wars s7), they don't care about regular clones, and so on. And those episodes with him and Cody, or the one where he shoots his superior, should have been before the chip reveal, that way they still could have made it work.

[@nagger8216]

One thing I will say, wasn't it completely their fault they even had to defend that village in TCW to begin with? Like, the droids were tracking them and only came to the village because the Bad Batch were there. I feel like if they just got in their ship and left nothing would've happened.

[@FuddlyDud]

I think you made some great points when comparing TBB to Andor. That said, I will offer Crosshair's character one out: he is stubborn and conflicted. The best way to think about this is in IRL situations where maybe you and a friend are talking about a certain contemporary event and he gets it completely wrong. You try to tell him how it actually went, but he shrugs it, denies, or just ignores what you have to say. He may come around, but the initial reaction is being stubborn when presented with conflicting information. An even better way to approach this is with modern conversion stories. You have very troubled people doubling down on their own actions they know are wrong, that the evidence obviously makes it wrong, and yet they keep doing it. Look to the SS of Nazi Germany or the KGB of the USSR where people are doing the most awful things, yet do it anyways despite conflicting things they tell themselves. So, with Crosshair, I see the same thing. He is doubling down because he needs it to work, and it fits what he is good at. However, over time with enough exposure and tearing down of his already feeble worldview, he finally breaks when he is worn to his core (both physical and emotional). This is why he cracks and kills the lieutenant, for Mayday was much like him...following orders as the last dogmatic thing that made some sort of sense (just as it made sense to ordinary Germans to participate in the Holocaust). :/ I think you are totally right TBB has not executed this well, so hopefully they pull it together in the end. :)

[@wizard_of_poz4413]

Little stupid to think crosshair isn't allowed to think in an authoritative manner without some stupid macguffin chip magically making clones evil only when the plot demands and selectively turning their agency on and off as the plot demands

[@quack499]

Well don’t you think Crosshair’s motivation is just a solider following orders. He’s only ever known the life of a soldier and when given an order he follows it. They do point out in the pilot that they’ve disregarded orders in the past, but could those orders just have been specifics on how to complete the mission instead of them disobeying a mission’s objective. I think Crosshair has been hidebound on the perspective of the creed “good soldiers follow orders” which compels him to comply with the objective he is given. Gradually as his worldview is constantly challenged he finally realizes the error in such a mantra as it leads to unnecessary deaths of clones. A viewpoint that we the audience and the rest of the bad batch held from the start. We see his malcontent for the command of the empire he is placed under with Governor Price. Is his story any different from all the other clones slowly realizing the truth of the empire? He comes to the same conclusion that other clones arrive at; that under the Republic they were looked after and well equipped, but under the empire they are expendable. Crosshair’s journey is only different in that he is given a different skill set than other clones and uses that to his advantage as he navigates his internal conflict of blindly following the empire and realizing the morality that must be considered around following orders.

[@rebekahwalker2004]

Palpatine had no plans to use the clones long term, at least partially due to their rapid aging. Well why do they? I can see accelerating the clones aging to get them old enough to deploy sooner, but why does their aging have to stay accelerated? If the Kaminoans can do all the things they do with clones surely they could turn the clones' rate of aging back to normal for a human once they reached 18-20 (technically 9-10 chronologically) right? there was no need for them to age at twice the normal human rate for after 9 or 10 years.

[@caveboy5770]

I honestly forgot this was still going on. It’s so boring.

[@frantictoast3741]

No you didn't.

[@caveboy5770]

@@frantictoast3741 ?

[@chasehedges6775]

It’s a very mediocre show that I stopped watching after the first season.

[@itsblitz4437]

I don't know i thought the show covering the Post-Clone wars and early Empire years. It also goes in about how exactly Clones got phased and how it inspired rebellion.

[@skywalkersbutido6375]

@@Misery7531lmao no

[@zachseabass7414]

Exactly! I never could understand those people who would advocate Crosshair's decisions. He was the bitter and sarcastic squadmate who gave the least regard for orders or a command structure in that matter. Remember how he provoked conflicts with Rex or Jesse during their first meeting though the latter both were outranking him? And someone wants to believe that type of guy would obey the rigid and tyrannic imperial regime? Give me a break. I call bad writing. The same bad writing that couldn't even properly write Echo's reaction towards Fives' death.

[@kingorange7739]

You mean promote conflict with regs who he already had a dislike for because of how they used to bully him and his squad but when it came down to Anakin giving orders, he followed without question. And yes he would obey it because he was still doing his duty as a soldier and held a belief that the Empire would value him for his strengths.

[@kingorange7739]

@@anonymous376 Which was the first time his loyalty fell into question. However that alone did not cause him to realize the organization as a whole didn't value him.

[@kingorange7739]

@@anonymous376 You mean a home Crosshair had little to no care for?

[@voiceinyourhead8284]

Disagree completely. Crosshair didn't like the baseline clones. He is a prime example of the "good soldiers follow orders." Plus without his squad, he doesn't have anything to fall back on. He just sticks with what he's best at doing

[@Jarvernors]

I know I'm a bit late to the party here, and others may have addressed this issue, but I really don't see why a character being a bad or misguided person would justify them being a bad protagonist material. There are plenty of video games where you play as a "bad guy". Which can go from any shade of grey to just full on evil, and such characters can still be engaging and enjoyable, and in some ways even relatable. The idea of playing as a bounty hunter, an imperial officer, trooper, or some type of special forces unit, could be fascinating, as long as the character's personality, principles, and motivation are understandable, and at least tangentially relatable. Hell, even if the character isn't relatable at all, doesn't mean people couldn't enjoy playing as them. Playing an evil character can be rather fun, even if you aren't a monster, yourself.

[@Backseatsman1]

That last episode "Pabu" had me rolling my eyes the entire time. I understand it was a world building episode and those can be great but "Pabu" seemed very out of touch with how a Post-Republic world would be. The place is an Island Paradise that hosts exclusively refugees. The episode starts off implying its a hidden secret but then the question becomes how did all these refugees get there? On top of that they don't have any craft on the planet besides the BB ship that arrives. How do they get supplies on a regular basis? On top of that it seems like Tsunamis hit this island about every 30 years. To top ALL of this off when asked directly what will they do once the empire shows up they just shrug it off and say eh we will be fine. The BB actually want to hang around because "omg Omega happy" not one of them usher the criticism of "Yeah but how safe is she actually here, she may have it rough with us but at least we can keep her safe". We all know that they aren't going to stay on Pabu because in the next episode or two, Crosshair or the Empire is going to show up kidnap Omega and probably bomb the island into oblivion. I truly hated that episode I cheered when the tsunami wiped out their homes. You can't expect me to be sympathetic about these people losing their homes when they know tsunamis hit this island about every 10 to 30 years.

[@dietmar1236]

I swear, a city needing to be evacuated from a tsunami is probably the worst star wars conflict of all time xD

[@sealco]

@@dietmar1236 better the sequel baseball bat lightsabers

[@tk-6967]

8:53 Hard disagree. Only if we judge the Empire's atrocities by modern standards. Most people don't know and probably wouldn't care in-universe. Whether because of state indoctrination or whatever. It is like saying that every German who fought till 1945 is somehow a bad person. I agree that explanations need to be given to justify why people serve the Empire, but ultimately this is kind of Filoni and other writers' fault for making the Empire as a whole seem cartoonishly evil. Yes, the Empire committed terrible atrocities, but according to TBB, you'd think everything changed on the flick of a switch. People think the Republic was a proper democracy, but it simply wasn't. The Republic didn't allow *people* to vote, it allowed *systems* to vote. Those systems could do whatever the hell they wanted. The Dug species (Zebulba's people) for example were literally a colony of the Gran people (3 eyed aliens seen in Episode 1 and in the Jedi Knight series) who ruled over them. It wasn't sunshines and rainbows for people before the Empire, and certainly there were very justifiable reasons for serving the Empire. That can be made clear while still showing the Empire being ultimately bad, but it doesn't mean that the millions of loyal Imperials serving post-Endor are some kind of evil Nazis or whatever.

[@frantictoast3741]

"Post Empire landscape" Sir do you know what post means in this context? Shouldn't it be post Republic landscape?

[@zeromech1450]

I understand where you are coming from but i think it comes from a fundamental misunderstanding of crosshairs character. You point out that his being fascistic after order 66 was out of character for him and the rest of the squad notices this. This is your justification for believing that crosshair doesnt actually think there is no difference between the republic and the empire. But theres a few things you are missing. For one the republic was shown in the clone wars to become more and more militaristic as the war went on. By the end of the clone wars the clone army was enforcing everything. Much like imperial stormtroopers. The republic had become a police state with over half the politicians in office being corrupt. The only major difference besides moral compass between the republic and the empire is the republic was a “republic” and the empire was a dictatorship. I put republic in quotes because we all know it really wasnt. And the second thing you are missing is crosshair himself has always been more ruthless and cold blooded than his clone brethren. You see glimpses of this in his first appearance. He doesnt care about the regs and even insults rex for caring about other clones. This was all before order 66 and shows his moral compass wasnt in line with the others. Its probably part of what made him such a good assassin. So because of this him following the empire without his inhibitor chip isnt surprising. Like at all. And his comment about the republic and empire being the same may not have been only due to the chip. It could have just as easily been his subconscious mind. So the only questions left are when did he get his chip removed? And why he got it removed. We know he still had it in when order 66 came down because he repeated the same line tup did when his chip malfunctioned. Giving him the order early. The answer to this question is something we wont get until crosshair is rescued by his former team. As for my opinions on this. I think its much more interesting to have a character with a flawed moral compass taking extra time to see the atrocities of the empire. And only after it becomes extremely personal for him does he finally see the truth. Crosshair at heart was a selfish person until this episode. Growth. Character development. I think what they are doing with crosshair is phenomenal. The rest of the batch i find extremely uninteresting and too kid friendly. I loathe the side story episodes.

[@SirPage13]

I don’t think he would disagree with what you’re saying. You are liking the IDEA of this story arc, and he is criticising the EXECUTION of this story arc. In the end, they didn’t make it feel like a believable character. You COULD make a believable character like the one you describe, but to us there are opposing or conflicting information that leads us to perceive him in another light. When the storyline reveals that it was your view that was correct, we just feel like they failed horribly in showing us the signs, or failed horribly in accidentally givning us proof of the contrary. His actions could make sense, but they don’t make sense under very particular ciscumstamces that are in the show. It might not even need a big fix, but it would have a huge impact. ”I understand what you’re trying to say, but your words suggest something else.” Is the sort of feeling I have towards the writers of this show.

[@neocomp92]

The only episode after this review didn't address any of your questions. Just made Crosshair a self-sacrificing man who got caught in Omega's orbit by signaling the Batch to abandon him in favour of her. Why? Well, that's what Omega (and the writers) do, make everything center around her that their characters take a dive in the doldrums. My concern is that with the next season being the final one, what is Crosshair's ultimate fate. Because if he's going the Darth Vader route, I have *huge* issues with it. He hasn't shown recognizance for his crimes as an Imperial, no matter how the story tries to paint him as a tragic and sympathetic human pincushion. Personally, I hate the redemption in death trope because of its selfish nature. It involves hurting or killing multiple third parties, and ultimately denying them the chance for justice because we're supposed to keep our eye on the character. Whether or not you think the character should be punished or redeemed is a matter of individual decision, but why are the victims (or their loved ones) *not* considered worthy of this opportunity? The other issue is whether the Batch recognise and apologize for their part in leaving Crosshair behind. Especially Hunter. You'd think the turning point at Bracca should focus the Batch on getting Crosshair back, but alas Hunter never could settle on whether Crosshair was a brother worth risking it all for, or a PNG just like every other enemy he meets. At the end of Season 2, he really did not learn his lesson on making and sticking to major decisions. What worries me is if Crosshair is made as the only "wrong", then congrats TBB, you wasted everyone's time on a lesson every organised religion on Earth could give for free. That there's a hard line between "us" vs "them", and they are wrong. If only "they" could see the "Light". We don't need to do anything because our "truth" is so obvious that we need only wait for "them" to see it, or they will get the ultimate punishment. No matter the collateral damage or how we achieve our ultimate good.

[@simpeldisaster4533]

Yeah I liked cross hair when I thought the reason he stayed with the empire was he didn't believe the Republic went far enough for victory and security. But his eventual turn is just so obvious it fails to have any impact. Honestly if it had been as simple as "I am a cog in the machine and I mean nothing". Having been his mindset and it would have made sense. But that he flips because he realizes that exact thing....yeah ruined my favoritism for cross hair.

[@cornbreadisfye3688]

I just hard disagree. At first crosshair really did believe that there was no difference between the republic and the empire and he views himself as nothing other than a soldier. But after he witnessed Kamino getting destroyed and him being left for dead he began to actually think, then talking to Cody and hearing his defection he also began questioning. What finally pushed him over the edge was mayday and the lack of care he received by the empire

[@PebkioNomare]

These *are* all clones. There's going to be slight variance, of course, but I would expect them to all basically make similar choices in similar scenarios. That is why Crosshair is conceptually interesting... because his contrary choice speaks to a causal event so profoundly different from the normal clone existence. But then he defected anyway; all he needed was an extra push more than the other clones. And now the causal event couldn't have been *that* profoundly interesting if all it did was prolong Crosshair's defection by a relatively small amount of time. It's worse than that, even, because there's not even a hint that he's abandoning anything specific to *him* by giving up on the Empire. Now he just seems like a uniquely *stupid* clone who couldn't understand what all of the other clones did until it was hammered into his thick skull. It took him a couple more injustices than everyone else needed, apparently.

[@Sianic12]

I always assumed that Crosshair's Chip never worked to begin with. The reason he went along with Order 66 is just that... he saw nothing wrong with it? I mean the Bad Batch members mention several times how they're not that fond of following orders, but clearly they do follow them to some extend, given that they're an elite squad of the Republic Army that's sent on several precarious missions. Surely the Republic wouldn't do that if they just defied any and all orders they ever received. So Crosshair probably just went along with Order 66 because he was following his orders. It's never really established what Crosshair in particular thinks of the Jedi, but given this context it's likely he never liked them much to begin with. He seems to have a colder and more cynical view on most things anyway so his reaction does make sense, or at least it's not super surprising. Him extracting the Chip anyway later on could've been motivated by many things, like the fear of being mind controlled in the future were the Chip to ever fully activate. As to why he remained loyal to the Empire, well... I always had the feeling that Crosshair just couldn't betray everything he worked for for the last couple years. I mean: he fought for the Republic his entire life and put his life on the line for it countless times. Now the Republic has finally won the war and just because it calls itself "Empire" now, doesn't change the fact that he's committed his entire life to this nation. Now he's supposed to turn his back on it because Hunter says so? Combine that with an inmate desire of Crosshair to lead and be the one in charge for once, and it becomes clear why he would choose to leave his team mates: he could continue to do what he's always done, and potentially even rise in ranks (which he did). Crosshair wasn't characterized all that much before the Bad Batch series, so this doesn't contradict anything. It just shows what kind of person Crosshair really is. However, the events of Season 1's finale, the Cody episode, and the Outpost episode all slowly but surely weakened his belief in the Empire. He began to see more and more just how replaceable he was to them. Seeing an Imperial Official just leaving a clone to die because of how expandable he saw them was the final straw, and Crosshair just broke. This next bit goes beyond what was known at the time of this video's release, but Crosshair beginning to regret his decisions, specifically cutting ties with his brothers, makes sense from this point onward. He's done what he mocked and judged his companions for in S1, what he couldn't think of doing back then. Now he's just like them, and he understands why they did what they did. He wants to make up for his betrayal, and that is why he warns them of the threat for Omega. He thinks he doesn't deserve a second chance, even though Omega has already forgiven him. Even after he rejoined his old squad, he still doesn't believe himself to be fully redeemed, which is symbolized by his shaky hand. I'm positive that the moment he manages to forgive himself will also be the moment the shaking in his hand disappears. All of that being said, I do agree that much of it relies on things that happened after S2 E13 and on a lot of interpretation and head canon. The show definitely should've showed us more of this character and inner turmoil, especially at the start of S1.

[@Jimbo305]

Dont ever let bro cook again

[@tonystank3091]

Of course, the Bad Batch's *first* mistake was trying to *reason* with a guy they *knew* to be brainwashed and under the control of a chip that is *known* to be utterly uncontrollable once activated.

[@marcuso.530]

I came into this video thinking I'd disagree fully, but you brought up some very interesting points that I agree with. Still gonna hold off judgement until after the season is over as I still feel there has to be something more, but by and large very well made.

[@Runningbaldman]

I enjoyed Cross Hair. I feel that him staying with the Empire speaks to how we seldomly break away of what we know. Graduation goggles if you will. Like when we quit a job for a new one. The last day seems bitter sweet as we leave the comfort of the known for an unknown. After the chip being removed, Cross Hair stayed with the Empire b/c that is what he knew. The life he had known as a soldier got to continue. That said, I am no fan of what the house of mouse has done with the franchise. Even with the “chosen one” Filoni they can’t get it together. Filoni hasn’t had any good work since Clone Wars when Lucas was involved. Yes, the Clone Wars wasn’t great, but it was Filoni’s bets work.

[@taste_is_sweet]

Haven't seen the show, but here's my completely uninformed guesses about why Crosshair stayed with the Empire: 1) He thought his chip was removed, but it actually wasn't (maybe that was part of the turned up to 11 brainwashing). Instead it wore off more slowly over time, like it did for the other clones, finally happening in the Outpost episode. 2) He did get the chip removed, but the turning it up to 11 permanently altered his brain so while he thought he was making his own choices, he really wasn't. Again, this wore off by the Outpost episode. I know there's no evidence for any of this, but there apparently wasn't any direct evidence for his chip being damaged in the first place, either. So I figure it fits. :D

[@zath6425]

I agree with the views presented in this video, but I feel like you're somewhat skipping over the fact that a big part of Crosshair's decision to stick with the Empire was because he was bitter about the rest of 99 basically abandoning him and giving up on him (from his perspective). Yeah the Empire brainwashed him, but Crosshair has always been the more cynical and self-centered of the Bad Batch. Even as early as Season 7 of the Clone Wars we get a line where he literally says he wouldn't be happy if he was left behind. So while he'd probably be pretty pissed with the Empire, he's even MORE pissed with the people he thought were his friends. What exactly is he supposed to do? He's a soldier, fighting is what he's good at. The Empire wants him to fight for them, so he does. If he splits off he'll be a refugee just like his squad, except worse off because they at least have each other. He isn't serving the Empire because he genuinely believes in their doctrine or anything, he doesn't care about order or any of that crap. He didn't give a shit about The Republic, Jedi, Kamino, or even other clones. He's always been in it for number one. The only people he really cared about were his squadmates, and in his eyes they chose some girl they'd just met over him. But over time he starts to notice things. Have doubts. Cody splitting from the Empire was the first eye opener for him. Then the Outpost happened, and that was the final crowbar to the camel's back. At first he couldn't give less of a shit about Mayday, but over the course of the mission they start to bond. Mayday saves his life, he sees how poorly he and his men are being treated. He realizes as you so eloquently put it that the Empire doesn't give a shit about him and would gladly throw away his life and his talents if it meant they'd spare themselves the effort. Before this he was being treated pretty well, personally carrying out missions for Rampart, getting the chance to hunt down the people who betrayed him, but by Kamino he's had time to cool down and adjust to the end of the Chip's influence. So he offers them the choice to join him in working for the Empire, and this is where my argument falls apart sadly. He was pretty much left for dead by the Empire here, and was rescued by his squadmates. There's no reason for him to continue working with the Empire after this. I guess he's still bitter with them? Tl;Dr Crosshair isn't fighting for the Empire because he believes in their cause. He's doing it because he saw his squad abandoning him for Omega as an even worse betrayal than being brainwashed, and he'd rather have a chance to make use of his talents and skills than be a fugitive. The second the Empire stopped treating him like he was special, and he saw just how much they didn't give a shit about him, he stopped serving them. Which makes sense if you ignore Kamino where he tried to paint the Empire as being the morally correct option for them all.

[@SheevTalks]

But they didn’t abandon him and his reasons for thinking they did are non-existent and contradictory to the information he has, which is why I didn’t bother addressing that defense. He chased them off world. He literally gave them no other choice but to leave him behind. Looking at it purely from his perspective: what were their options? Surrender or run. How does them surrendering help him?

[@zath6425]

@@SheevTalks You misunderstood, I'm not saying that I think they abandoned him, I'm saying that is what HE thinks happened. He's being unreasonable and bitter for pretty much no real good reason, but that's realistic for Crosshair to do IMO. Though I have to admit I could've phrased what I said a lot better, it was mainly me rambling on about my headcanon more than making observations.

[@SheevTalks]

@@zath6425 No no, I understood you. Im saying HE has no reason to think that with the information he has.

[@zath6425]

@@SheevTalks I agree, but I always assumed it was because of the chip microwaving his brain

[@kingorange7739]

@@SheevTalks the short answer for why he thinks that is because throughout Season 1, Crosshair has seen and heard the Bad Batch risk their lives time and time again for people they don’t even know. The Separatist senator, Cham Syndulla, etc. in his mind, they took the time to try to rescue those people but not himself when they were still under the impression he was brainwashed. This is made worse by the fact that as soon as Hunter got captured, they risked everything to save him but not Crosshair. Now yes it is unreasonable that Crosshair doesn’t see the difference in circumstances. But the way he saw it, they were prepared to risk everything including their lives to save Hunter, Omega, or even random strangers, but not him.

[@AlienIOIandroktone]

Doubt a comment this late is gonna change your mind but what I got from the show is Crosshair didn't think he was deserving of redemption, maybe because of his actions under the chip's influence. After he got it removed he doubled down because the only people he had to go back to he didn't believe would take him back or even that would deserve having him after everything he'd done. It was only after he bonded with the other Clone who died without reason that he saw how the empire was treating Clones he knew deserved better (as opposed to himself).

[@StarWarsHour]

I actually thought that the chip amplification failed and it had to be removed to save his life.

[@kennethferland5579]

I had a similar interpretation, but that the so-called amplification was a lie told by Nala-sea who was actually turning the chip off, her reasons would have been a desire to protect Omega (why she values Omega is still a mystery but that she dose is clear).

[@bcvetkov8534]

I'm disputing the claim that anyone who supports the Empire is inherently Fascistic (Since the term doesn't even exist in the franchise as a whole. Same with Communism. Lucas should've a better job in explaining why the Empire is worse than the New Republic even though when you read anything about the New Republic it displays the opposite.) because human beings are very complicated as a species and it doesn't help that the Rebel Alliance committed just as many war crimes as the Empire during the Galactic Civil War. If you're a farmer on a random planet and a rebel fleet decided to glass your farm and kills your family in the name of "democracy" I wouldn't blame you enlisting in the stormtrooper corps. As if there wasn't multiple phases of the Galactic Civil War!! The problem with the Empire and how its written is it HAS to be set up in a way for the rebels to inevitably beat them. The plot armor is so laughably obvious that it seriously destroys any serious elements trying to be set up in the Star Wars universe. It's frankly lazy and it undermines the brilliance of the original trilogy. George Lucas is to blame for a lot of the problems in this franchise. He sold his soul and his creative works to Disney so he deserves some flak for what happens in his IP he made. The New Republic that is set up after the Empire collapses is a total fucking joke. I would even argue that it does a worse job than the Empire does in administrating the entire galaxy. Piracy and Crime are rampant everywhere. The new government is ran so incompetently that it singlehandedly showcases to everyone that it deserves to die for turning on Leia for simply being Vader's daughter even though she AND LUKE and the team SAVED THE WHOLE GALAXY FROM THE EMPIRE. It's so infuriating how stupid storytelling has gotten in this universe. It's absolutely pathetic. (The 6 movies prior to Disney's foray into ruining the most popular Sci-Fi IP of all time should be remembered fondly.) (Andor and the Clone Wars are the exceptions; no one is saving Star Wars guys. We have to accept that its dead and mourn it as we do for all franchises that are desecrated for corporate greed.)

[@troo_6656]

Chips started out as bs and they continue to be just that. This is taking EU concept and applying it landscape that isn't made for it and then not even bothering to do the bare minium to justify and explain the characters. Because that's Dave Filony in a nutshell. That's all Dave ever did with star wars. He can't create his own unique stuff without picking of existing work while never taking the time to understand what made it good in the first place. The Clone Wars is a child's play in current canon compared to the old EU clone wars. There clones that weren't conditioned to obey commands as rigorously still had very legitimate reasons to despise jedi and the immidiate post Order 66 world was their time to shine, to show the galaxy order and peace. Now since TCW was much less brutal and jedi were kinda alright to the clones while giving every single clone free will bar bs chip who's rules change with the flip of a dime creates nonsense world where legitimate interest in the empire makes no sense. Because Filony can't write competent and understandable antagonists, he can only write saturday morning cartoon villains which makes moraly gray characters impossible to maintain

[@mitchellmccallum9778]

Crosshair was generally a more cold and callous personality, it was easier for him to ignore the cons and embrace the pros of the empire and yes what his bretheren did was deemed traitorous so he embraced his resentment of them to cling to the changing landscape til he is exposed to how the empire has hurt his non traitorous clone brothers.

[@HolyNorthAmericanEmpire]

The empire did nothing wrong

[@specialunit0428]

I just had a thought: It would have been better imo if BOTH Hunter and Crosshair were under the affect of the chip, and Omega and Tech and Echo and Wrecker were as they are in the BB. Then in an episode they remove the chip in Hunter and he turns back to their side while this gives time for Crosshair to continue being an antagonist and then his chip is removed and he goes back to them before Kamino's destruction. In my opinion, the Bad Batch is very rushed and poorly written as a whole, "missed opportunities" is a phrase that sums it up well.

[@yuzustridh3794]

i wish that instead of making crosshair remove his chip they should’ve just said that due to the mutations of the bad batch their chips had differing levels of effectiveness and crosshair just so happened to be the only one who’s chip was most effective and then later on when he starts to defect they can just say that the extreme increases of the chips effectiveness ended up breaking it so his amount of servitude to the empire can vary drastically so the writers can explain his usual seeming complete loyalty as either him being too scared to know what would happen if he defected or him being absolutely loyal at that time

[@lukescrew1981]

I still think that the chips are the biggest pile of shit introduced in TCW along with Ahsoka

[@kingorange7739]

I can agree that the chips are horrible and should had never been a thing

[@lukescrew1981]

@Giltspark You could've easily make it work without the chips

[@kingorange7739]

@Giltspark Not quite all that needed to be done was to explore the other side of the clones. I have no issue with having some clones written the way TCW did. But it was on the show to actually help establish the clones real loyalties and when it came down to it they would choose the Republic first. And there are so many ways that could had been done that wouldn’t require such a cheap plot device

[@lukescrew1981]

@@smugplush True

[@TisDansk]

Cry

[@jlw7787]

It's simple guys, Crosshair never removed his chip. He LIED. He LIED because he wanted them to believe that his actions were his own and to convince his team to join the empire. C'mon, they have shown every important clone chip removed. They showed Crosshairs chip being intensified. If it was removed they would have shown it.

[@kingorange7739]

The showrunners literally confirmed he wasn't lying. For one, Crosshair would have nothing to gain by lying to the team. Secondly and more importantly it goes against what the show is trying to say not only about Crosshair but also the Bad Batch team. Crosshair is not written to just be another "poor victim of the big bad chip." He is written to be someone who actually challenges the pov of the BB by taking the easy route. Staying with the Empire wasn't the right thing, it was the easy thing because he thought it would enable him to do the same thing he has always done, be a soldier. It isn't until he realized no matter how skillful or loyal he was to the Empire, they would cast him aside like he was nothing did he finally turn on the Empire.

[@jlw7787]

@@kingorange7739Okay, so we know he had the chip in during episodes 1-8 (Reunion). No haircut, no scar. He got hit with engine heat at the end and the next episode he was in bandages during the space chase. Episode 11 and 12 he's on Rylof. in Episode 14 he pops up when Hunter is caught and locked up at the secret facility. He obviously transfers Hunter to Kamino for episodes 15 and 16 where he mysteriously tells the squad that he had his removed "a long time ago"???? When??? We know 💯% his chip was intensified in episode 1. Tell me when he removed it? What did he do, say, "Hey Rampart, I want the chip in my head removed, that's an order....."? A chip that Rampart isn't even supposed to know about....? Btw, where is his scar? Hunter checked and it wasn't there. Just his burn scars... He LIED

[@kingorange7739]

@@jlw7787 Dude I am not going to debate with you on the semantics WHEN THE LITERAL CREATORS SAID HE WAS TELLING THE TRUTH!!!!! Get that through your thick skull. To answer, there are many different ways he could have had the chip removed. For one considering how badly the Crosshair got hit by radiation within the venator engine, it is very likely that it shorted the chip out and made it no longer functional. From there, it is likely that it would have been removed by the Kaminoins when he was returning to Kamino in order to prevent it from becoming a full tumor like what happened to Tup. Also BB takes place through out the span of at least a few months to a year, so even the timeframe between the mid season finale in episode 8 vs episode 16 could had happened within the span of many months. Especially since Crosshair would have needed time to heal from his injuries anyways. Also not every chip removal comes with a scar.

[@kingorange7739]

@@jlw7787 You still failed to answer my question for what reason Crosshair would have to lie. Crosshair lying about the issue would make no sense for him to do. Also considering how the Bad Batch treated him in episode 16 it is clear that even they knew he was telling the truth about it. Stating "We made a choice and so did you."

[@jlw7787]

@@kingorange7739 You realize that makes zero sense. You just made up a story to support your argument. Please send me the link where the writers said that. I think they lied to you too.

[@Chirishman343]

i think the big problem is disney is utterly unwilling to show ANY positives for living under the empire's rule. it isn't shown to be preferable to the chaos of the outer rim, it isn't particularly competent (with the only exceptions being vader, thrawn, and the emperor himself), and seems to be a police state without any of the benefits of a police state. they won't show people not wanting to fight after dealing with massive civil war and find the empire preferable to going through that again. give me SOMETHING to work with.

[@ArcticWolf00Alpha0]

The reality is the writers are not capable of creating a complex or even a simple story in regards to why the Empire is in the eyes of a lot of people a saving grace and actually had good uses. Yes, the Empire was ruled by evil Palpatine and Vader but it had control over trillions of average people. Do the higher ups at LucasFilm actually believe that I'm going to think that everyone who serves the empire is evil by default??? No...Im not.

[@allmensland2106]

9:18 I think what people want is an Argel Tal from 40k. Someone who does horrible things and acknowledges them, but is still complex and interesting, and even relatable to some level

[@skellymom]

7:36 Very good question...however, maybe Hunter is being a bit of a smartass and isn't really answering the question for a reason? The Bad Batch are Black Ops. And, they report to SOMEONE, but they aren't supposed to tell anyone who. They do the dirty jobs, and do them in an unorthodox way. They are essentially Military Mercenaries working for a shadowy arm of the Republic. I've never really thought the Republic was all good and right. It definitely had it's dark side. It would have made a good story to dedicate a few episodes to that. These guys doing dirty jobs for a supposedly heroic Republic. Or...it's just bad writing and a huge gaping plot hole. I also think because The Clone Wars and The Bad Batch being a kid's show had writers and producers NOT going into too many dark directions. Honestly think if it was more of an adult show that kids MIGHT watch, there could have been some REALLY good topics they could have tackled.

[@daveholland6293]

"Muh fascism" "Muh bad guys" Don't you think there are plenty of people who WANT to play the "bad guys" or fascists? Are you really trying to moralize the idea of having an Imperial show or game that has the main character as a fascist? That's super lame and pozzed as hell.

[@Mortimer_RS]

What a fkin lame strawman, reading this was a complete waste of my time and I don't even know why I fkin bother.

[@heavenly2k]

Some good points raised here. Theres not enough fleshed out details in contemporary Star Wars relating to how people are propagandized into supporting the fascist Empire.

[@MattM-wo4wu]

100% agree that Bad Batch is not a good show (I would even call it actively bad), but I disagree that you can’t write a story where the protagonists are imperials and they neither defect nor are terrible people. Granted we are talking about a fantasy literal “evil empire”, but that’s not the way real life works. Case in point, WWII where you were either on team Stalin or team Hitler. Both refines were oppressive and committed atrocities, but it would be wrong to say that none of the individual soldiers involved were heroes in any sense of the world.

[@martar.2085]

Well, to me soldiers who fought in S & H armies were no heroes. Soldiers who fought against H & against S were heroes. Soon dead heroes during the Uprising & after, but heroes. That's what I want in my heroes. Sorry. So. Luke Skywalker is a hero. So is Rex. So is Kallus (since Fulcrum to be exact, not before). So is Hera. So is Ezra. Crosshair? Idk yet, I'm still on early season 2. I'll comment later. If you want rl ww2 heroes, look at the Warsaw Uprising and after (in the forests, after) for example. That's heroes. Subjective opinion, I know, many will say. That's fine.

[@GOODYGOODGOOD789]

6:07 I may note that the lien you're talking about is when the Galactic Empire just started (at most) a few minutes ago, so it's hard for anyone to see any difference between the Republic and Empire.

[@sleepykhajiit1875]

Hard disagree with your points about a game or show from the Empire's PoV. Their political leanings shouldn't get in the way of making a good game and good art should still be able to critique fascism from the perspective of their own troops. A good example of this is Undertale. You can choose to become a genocidal maniac, literally slaughtering every living thing in that universe, and despite letting you do that, the whole time, the game is like 'wtf, please stop' and the final encounter pits you as the final boss, with your opponent trying to save everyone from you! And guess what? Undertale is one of the most popular games of all time, because it lets you do this and critiques your actions as you do it. People desperately miss games from the early 2000s and before where you get to play as the bad guys. Defector story's are f-ing weak, played out and in most cases (battlefront) have little to no substantial critique of fascism, its just 'bad guys, bad, we join da good guyz'. That is trash and Star Wars in particular is in grave danger of just doing that same story (along with the heroes journey) on repeat until the end of time. The series deserves better.

[@BroMan-xp9pw]

The episode with captain mayday was actually very good

[@riley-dv8eu]

For me Crosshair comes to me as someone who believes that he and his squad, the type of Clone thar they are, are vetter then any other Clone from the Republic, he believes that they deserve special treatment then normal people I like how this show then shows that He is one of the few clones that simply continues to serve the empire willingly and i have an awful feeling he had his chip removed around like ''Bounty lost'' after he got burnt by accident To me Crosshair is sorta a sociopath too, as he didn't wish yo try and socialize with any of his new squad because he didn't fit in and never really cared to know any of tven je just worked with them and tolarates them, that's it His obsession to find and capture His old squad alive to make them join, to me stems from a want to reconnect a bond tjat they had before when the republic existed, but then after Rampart just left them to be destroyed, his view of it began ti slowly crumble Knowing that his squad now would likely not be allowed in the empire at that point, he allpws them to leave lying that they perished, but chose to stay likely because ''it was all he had now" his now just nonechalant loyalty and keeps working on random missions for them It isn't until he met Mayday, A Reg, someone who usually looks down on him, someone he usually holds some contempt, and forms an actual bond with him, understood his pain understood how he was feeling, and when he didn't maje it, angry that the empire was never gonna accept him or anyone like Mayday as equal chose to betray them and was willing to accept any punishment for it, until Omega convinced him to continue fightimg for what he believes now to be truly righr I understand that it's not for everyone but i still enjoyed ot I love the bad batch, and enjoyed how the story went and honestly, Crosshair's story for me is what always made me connect, but that's just me

[@heofnorenown]

It seems Crosshair had some kind of grudge against the rest of the bad batch and it was only when he experienced the empire’s cruelty first hand (and heard about it from other clones) that he flipped (it still took way too long though). And I must agree with the point about defector stories, they’re happening too often from a storytelling perspective, but it’s a box of the writers own creation because the empire is so blatantly, obviously, and comically evil that no one with a shred of moral decency can stay in the empire for long, unless they’re kept in the dark. This is what is so frustrating about old republic officers like Yularin or Coburn who stay with the empire because they view it was the legitimate galactic government, despite it’s obvious crimes. It does raise the question of what happened to the old officer corps after the rise of the empire (I think in legends they were purged of Jedi sympathizers).

[@TorisTerrorTime]

It’s completely possible that he has some type of mental disorder/disorders. Although there’s not a lot of neurodivergent representation in the Star Wars universe Tech is autistic ,making him one of the few characters that aren’t neurotypical, so it wouldn’t be surprising if they decided “let’s make Crosshair even more mentally unstable and thrown in another neurodivergent character” and considering that for the majority of season 2 every possible new character died within minutes of screen time [yes I was extremely pissed because I’ve been wanting a new character which is why I included this] it kinda seems like they enjoy making people go insane. There are a lot of unanswered questions that I ,and I’m sure everyone else, want answered but I definitely still love the show and while it’s confusing at times there no turning back for me and my hyper-fixation on it. I’m definitely excited for season 3 ,not just because I want answers and to see Emerie more, because I have faith it’s going to be extremely amazing and that they’ll finally give answers instead of more questions.

[@ibleminen]

I kinda disagree with the fact that everybody working for the empire is bad/evil. I think some of the people realise that the empire is corrupt but they’re trying to make it better by doing good things.

[@jeremyallen5974]

OR they go along with it because they know the Empire has no qualms massacring civilians to show their strength (see: Vader threatening Lando and the denizens of Bespin in ESB)

[@ibleminen]

@@jeremyallen5974 that could be true, though it could also be because of indoctrination or the fact that they turn a blind eye to it because the empire could have brought new prosperity their systems, kinda like how people from Russia and china turn the blind eye to their countries wrongdoings.

[@ibleminen]

It’s similar to Germany during ww2 as many people Germans were extremely poor after the First World War and was easily manipulated into doing evil deeds, as hitler initially helped them get out of poverty.

[@eziosblade3]

The main problem with Battlefront 2 was that it was marketed as a game from the Imperial side, not just a few missions but a true Imperial story, same with the problem that Battlefield 5 had, it was marketed as a historically accurate game of WW2 but they left out easy wins like a story of female russian snipers, which just gave biggots and idiots room to bullhorn over the good criticism

[@stovikz]

Bro thrives off negativity

[@chasehedges6775]

With how mediocre the modern SW stuff is, I don’t blame him.

[@nagger8216]

@Matthew Short lol, lmao even

[@cancerousnut7767]

I’d argue he’s just a very hollow one.

[@DEMONX62]

Operation Cinder was lame and didnt make any sense. Its a tired story to have mustache twirling villians and the obvious good guy under dog to fight it. There are some sociopaths and psychopaths out there that are just evil people, but I cant justify that every single cog in the machine is just another evil person. I dont even like the idea of the bad batch and I think cross hairs arc was just to add drama. But on the other hand I feel story telling is a bit more interesting when you can understand where the "bad guys" are coming from, rather than being another story summarized that the good guys are oppressed but come on top every time vs the one dimensional bad guys that just like to be evil. P.s. i havent even watched andor so i have no idea how that goes but its probably along the same lines i expect disney writing to be.

[@mastercheeks2]

Maybe he thinks he removed his chip Meaning he was brain washed into thinking so

[@kingorange7739]

That doesn’t make sense

[@mastercheeks2]

@@kingorange7739 That's because it doesn't I said it out of cope I meant it as a maybe threoy but yes you shouldn't have to explain it yourself in this show

[@devildelirious8662]

So the first episode is still the best it's gotten

[@tk-6967]

4:26 It doesn't actually make sense, no. The clones are no longer the regular Imperial Army, they are the stormtrooper corps, which is supposed to be the more loyal, elite, independent branch in the military. Yet Filoni has decided that they aren't going to fill that role at all, because Stormtroopers are bad, dumb and incompetent, and clones are the opposite of that according to his characterisation. Of course, none of that is true in the lore, but he's contradicted that so much so he clearly doesn't care. The clones should be serving for at least 3 more years, and then they may either be retiring or moving to desk jobs/training jobs, which was generally the agreed upon thing. But now, Filoni has fucked over that perception in order to fulfil his headcanon that the clones will rebel and that stormtroopers are really incompetent, neither of which is in the slightest bit in line with *any* lore.

[@missionisagape]

I mean it was a good twist because it pulled the rug out from us a little. I disagree with the video essay though I often agree with your opinions. I think there is a reason presented in the show for the thing: Crosshair dosen't want to listen to Hunter. Hunter believes in something, he has faith. Crosshair dosen't believe in anything, really even right and wrong. The outpost forced him to believe again in good because he finally was forced against his will to believed in bad. The truth was in front of his face but he dosent care. its like real life: people don't always accept faith, hope, even if its obvious. Crosshair WANTS to hurt himself, until he dosen't. He dosen't want to be friends with the others even though they are his only 'family' maybe he dosen't want family. He is an unbeliever. I don't know what they will do with the character at the end or if season 3. In a lot of was Cody and Rex serve as foils to Crosshair, not Hunter. He is the only one who reacts differently.

[@elitheOG]

If he wanted to have missions and a purpose he could have also could've been paid just being a bounty hunter. And not betraying his family and blaming them for leaving him behind. 🤦

[@kingorange7739]

That still isn’t a purpose. A bounty hunter is little more than a hired gun that in the grand scheme of things changes nothing. And yes he blamed them for leaving him behind because not once did they try to rescue him when they still believed it was his chip making him do what he did

[@chasehedges6775]

Would have been better, honestly

[@marcuso.530]

Being a bounty hunter hopping from meaningless contract to meaningless contract won't bring purpose to anyone.

[@darko-man8549]

@10:00 yes, this would have been a good story, but with a clone who we had never met or explored in depth

[@dietmar1236]

How I see it, what Crosshair wanted was a purpose, and aimlessly roaming around the galaxy and doing mercenary jobs wasn't that, which is why he chose to stay with the empire, not caring about the things that happened around him. He was also still seen as an elite soldier and was used as well as respected as such. So I think the reason he defected just now was, because of his de-rank, he was used like a normal soldier, being send on missions that were under his skill level or straight up suicide missions (like two men being send out with bad equipment being send out to attack a bandit outpost). Thats just my thoughts, but you do have a lot of good arguments, and Crosshair just not giving a shit isn't that good of an explanation. Guess for what he wanted there was just no better alternative.

[@Sangth123]

I completely disagree with the "We can't have a story from the Imperial perspective" idea. Literally all we're ever shown of the Empire is how evil they are, but if they actually were, why did anyone join them to begin with. Some people may have come from even worse places in the galaxy, and the Empire was the only order they could find.

[@ShaddySoldier]

If i was in the outer rim being attacked by pirates and such big bluey thrawn rocking up would be pretty good times.

[@martar.2085]

​@@ShaddySoldierYup.

[@erikbihari3625]

Anyone remembers the episode where wrecker's chip activated from too head blows? It's where crosshair was almost cooked alive In that old republic cruiser's fire pipe! Didn't remove it.🕵️‍♂️

[@kingorange7739]

What?

[@erikbihari3625]

@@kingorange7739. Like sheev here said, he's chip was burned out when he nearly got cooked alive!

[@quack499]

That is a good observation.

[@kingorange7739]

@@erikbihari3625 and?

[@erikbihari3625]

@@quack499. Thank you!

[@darko-man8549]

Fans seem to see Filoni as an infallible creator of SW media, but honestly, I’m seeing more and more that CW and SOME of Rebels is the exception rather than the norm

[@nerdyoutube7847]

This season has a lot of boring filler but we have at least gotten a few interesting episodes so far like with palpatine and the conspiracy

[@ReasonX3]

I find some arguments somewhat strange. If there are several clones who decide to start their fight against the Empire, it doesn't mean that every single other clone should think the same way. While his answer: "I removed the chip long time ago" - creates some questions and if it was damaged by the activated engines of the Venator, then he should've said something like: "My chip doesn't work anymore", - his motivation never seemed to me unnatural. He is OK to work for the Empire, because he believes that he is too important, due to his skills and experience, and he won't be phased out like the regs, whom he never saw as equals anyway. He also wanted everything to be as in old times - he believes that regular human soldiers are miserable and works with them only because he is forced to. By killing them in front of his brothers, he tries to show that everything can be as before - he wants them to join him, to prove himself that his choice was correct. But the crew refuses to join the Empire, leaving him empty inside. His fear of unknown, his pride and reluctance to admit that he is wrong don't allow him to change his mind. Time passes and Crosshair constantly notices two things: the Empire literally equates him to the regs, and that more and more clones desert, even Cody. I believe at this point Crosshair already understands - there is no future for him in the Empirial Army - he will be phased out just like other clones, he made the wrong choice, but he needs one final push. And here enter: lieutenant, who believes everyone are expendable, except for him of course, and Mayday - a reg clone, who was able to cause feelings of respect and brotherhood in Crosshair. Mayday's death and lieutenant's answer that they both are expendable instrument for the Empire, form that last push for Crosshair. He kills that lieutenant and becomes a prisoner inside a laboratory, where most likely he'll die. His brothers won't save him and I doubt that he even wants that. He wouldn't even dare to try to ask for their help - he believes he doesn't deserve that chance, let along what wright he has to put them in danger. But there is still something he can do to make amends - he can at least warn them that the Empire is looking for the girl. I don't expect that my thoughts will make someone to change their mind, but Crosshair is a character I associate myself with. I had moments in my life, when my mind was telling me to make one thing, but either because of fear or simply self deception I was doing things that were not right for me. So I somewhat understand why Crosshair was staying with the Empire for so long.

[@HolyknightVader999]

They can't even go straight with Crosshair as a character. We should've seen him arm-in-arm with Darth Vader and other sinister clones, while the Emperor keeps the Clone Army because they're effective. He only scrapped the clones' exclusivity within the Stormtrooper program after the Kaminoans betrayed him-seven years after the Empire was established.

[@erikbihari3625]

I heard a comments in some video That said, to only watch episode six, since that's where the actual plot kicks in!

[@the_watcher2122]

at the beginning of season 2x12 crosshair didnt give a shit about the other clones because he felt outcasted from the regs then betrayed by the bad batch but mayday caused CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT thats why he dint care but now at the end of the episode does

[@PANCAKEMINEZZ]

9:01 Id offer a counter and say that it's not entirely that we just moral greyness fir the sake of it (though i agree that people do get way too hung up on concepts rather than execution). However, i think the reason people didnt want another defection story is because it's just done to death and people want to see and explore WHY someone might side with the Empire. There were people living under its rule who were perfectly fine and content with it. And much like any other regime in real life, there are normal people who live inder and support either in spite of their evils, believe it will change one day, or perhaps are even ignorant of the evils. Having a story where we get to see why people would support the empire or get a view into the lives of people who are just fine with it, would be like the same fascintion people have woth looking deeper into Nazi Germany: the fall of the Weimar Republic, the rise of Hitler, how the people reacted, and how the people lived under what was essentially a police state that was secretly carrying out attrocities behind closed doors. There's so many interesting things to explore there with a story. Following a character who starts out in support of the Empire who becomes disillusioned but perhaps doesn't want to give up their comty place for the greater good (or end up in a worse spot) is one idea. Or hell, follow an imperial officer and Star Destroyer where the loyalty of the thw officer is challenged: perhaps he believes in the idea of the empire but believes that it's the people at the top who are running it wrong. You could have a hopeful reformist who isnt loyal to the Emperor himself, but the idea he was sold on. Maybe he defects as the Empire crumbles to hopefully reestablish the system he thinks will work, not the emperor's way or the rebels' way. There are a lot of stories and angles you can take to have a sympathetic non-defector view of the Empire. Sure, you cant twist the empire into an "akshually its good" entity, but there are different things you can do to add sense to those who might follow it. Explore hopeful reofrmists who think the republic reform is a bad idea, people who tell themselves every lie in the book to justify their following of the regime, people who are just ignorant, or even just people who see it as a way to survive. I think just looking at the topic as "empire is and can only ever be bad and those who follow it are too" would be like saying the same thing about every person in Germany who believed in the Third Reich's propoganda or didnt do anything to stop it. In a vacuum we can say this, but it is way more conplex and complicated than just good or bad... Dare i say.... Grey?

[@ngabel8956]

The inhibitor chips are a massive problem for characterization. Their function is never explained and their consequences are never explored meaningfully. The clones were fine in the PT but then along comes the Clone Wars series and with the goal to characterize the clones, it forgets that the majority are supposed to be obedient soldiers. It's gotten to the point where I cannot possibly tell if an imperial clone is acting on free will or not. I don't know how clones feel about their actions, considering they did bad things, but didn't seem to have any choice in the matter. Is "regaining control" a matter of will power or of the chips wearing off? I can write all the head cannon I want, but these shows never addresses the bigger questions. Does someone like Cody regret executing Order 66 and serving the Empire? Would they find a way to rationalize their actions? How do they feel about being stripped of their free will? Does that fact alleviate their guilt?

[@voiceinyourhead8284]

I mean that’s something that is literally being explored now in Bad Batch. What happens when a soldier starts questioning his orders?

[@laisphinto6372]

the Problem they made the clones so much Independent that freaking conscripts are more loyal than the filoni clones. the chips is retarded and was only introduced because people are so dumb to believe that clones are such a bunch of nice guys whi cannot kill anything,so you have that convient mcguffin that gets rid of clones bad site by removing it to save your favorite OC. people defend that Shit with but they are so human they could never kill a jedi , these people never bothered to read a history book

[@jeremyallen5974]

You do realize the Empire ruled the galaxy through fear and massacred anyone who spoke out against em, right? Not that I'm defending Crosshair, I'm just pointing out that the people who went along with the Empire were scared shitless of being disappeared in the middle of the night

[@nagger8216]

Yeah, but this takes place during the *first year* of the Empire. You'd think they'd ease into that overtime so people would be more accepting of it, rather than immediately becoming space Nazi Germany overnight. Like, that's exactly what Palpatine's plan was, coaxing people into being comfortable with giving up their freedoms by slowly eroding them over the years until they're used to it. Cranking the dial up to 11 in your first week of office as Emperor for eternity kinda exposes your hand a little, no?

[@owenfg00]

In season one he was in a position of power, being in charge, and he stayed. In season 2 after he comes back we see him go on 2 missions where he is no longers as important and he realizes how unimportant the clones truly are to the empire

[@EmperorArticulates]

Wrong. Crosshair is peak

[@quack499]

You could explain why he’s wrong. Or you could explain why Crosshair is peak. I give this comment an F.

[@chasehedges6775]

@@quack499 Crosshair is a mediocre character

[@chasehedges6775]

@@smugplush👍👍👍

[@ЮрийЗагуменнов-ш7ц]

Насчёт Баттлфронта: люди разозлились не столько из-за того, что там были персонажи-перебежчики, а из-за того, что перебежчики были ЭЛИТНОЙ СИЛОЙ Империи.

[@martar.2085]

I will prolly disagree with you, Sheev, once I watch season 2 for the first time. Brb.

[@ulty1472]

4:58 AND THATS WHY DISNEY/FILONI CLONES SUCKS

[@JGburneraccount]

starwars is so crap now god damn, mando season 3 is worse than I thought possible.

[@OneroseArts]

Ultimately there isn't a true moral grey. It's a mix of good and bad disicions and motives as a character decides how much of their morals their willing to sacrifice. Your right there can't be a good or "grey" character who continues to work for the empire, because either they see no problem with it (are evil). Or they are to afraid to leave (coward).

[@kingorange7739]

To suggest that is rather rigid of how actual human thinking is. Plenty of human beings have either justified evil acts in service of a greater good (ends justify the means) or at the very least will put up with the institution in the hope of it being reformed into something better.

[@QuietVillain]

Theses companies think merchandise is what they need to sell. But if they would sell the video games with updated information from these shows and movies. They would save money and make money . But everytime. They nis the mark. Selling grogu toys really that important?? Compared to selling a virtual grogu in game like battlefront 2. They just seemed confused on what and how to sell shit to customers.

[@DerricsRevenge]

Honestly I always thought the star wars mythos was laughably bad at saying the empire was the worst thing ever. The clones just being chip controlled was boring as fuck

[@martar.2085]

Surprisingly, I disagree a bit, probably because I love Crosshair, but still... I'm gonna present my points of disagreement later. & I'm sure we could agree to disagree. Unlike with my poor ooc Ahsoka in Ahsoka tv (I love Ahsoka, Ezra, Thrawn, Hera, Jacen and Sabine so I tried to love "Ahsoka" but I can't, at this point even if Eli Vanto appeared in "Ahsoka" even he prolly wouldn't be able to save "Ahsoka" for me, even Kallus wouldn't, prolly, so I gave full likes on your "Ahsoka" vids.... but here, on Crosshair, sorry, I subjectively disagree. I'm not giving this vid a like, but I'll rewatch it later, so at least giving it a watch. Interesting points. Engaging. Not quite good faith or optimistic enough for me, subjectively. I'm a born optimist. 😆

[@RoamingAdhocrat]

he's called Crosshair because he's cross. it's like poetry, it rhymes