Right after I wrote a whole piece about how The Bad Batch is giving me Saturday Morning Cartoon vibes, they deliver something totally different. “The Solitary Clone” is about as succinct and cunning as its main character, a short story about the aftermath of the Clone Wars from the perspective of the clones who remain loyal to the Imperial project.
In this episode, we’re shown a planet that is holding out for its independence from the Empire. As such, we basically watch a Bizarro World episode of The Clone Wars series, where the new Imperial clone forces invade a planet guarded by battle droids and Droidekas, defending innocents. As the clones carry out their mission to extract a governor being held captive (which plays out like watching a squad-based video game) we see them efficiently defeat their old adversarires, this time, in service of the bad guys.
Crosshair, the errant member of otherwise unseen Bad Batch, is the solitary clone in question, standing not only apart from his former friends, but other “regs” (normal clones), and even, in the end Commander Cody.
Cody is a great choice for inclusion in the story because he is the deepest clone-betrayal we experience in the films. He’s named in Revenge of the Sith, Obi-Wan’s friend, and when Order 66 comes down, he immediately orders our hero shot. We see him here not so much doubting Order 66 as doubting the war effort itself. It makes sense: it’s possible for the clones to believe the Jedi are their enemy, but what of the war they exist to fight? Are they really okay with invading peaceful places now that the Separatists have fallen? The whole point of the clones, as Cody says, is that they think more independently than Battle Droids.
Because the episode has that level of introspection, it’s marvelous to see so many moments of animation that make the world come alive. We watch Cody make a decision to leave without one line that tells us he will. We watch Crosshair take a deep breath in the quiet of his room before he starts the day. We watch Crosshair consistently not finish his meals if he’s called to the office. We watch Crosshair use Cody’s name to correct an Vice Admiral Rampart, who knows the clones only by their serial numbers. “The Solitary Clone” feels acted, for the lack of a better word. You can show us as many creative vistas and designs as you like, but without those moments of behavioral detail, it’s just background to another shootout.
(Not to dismiss the design. I’m going to have to come up with new ways to say “this episode looks great,” because once again, the animation here is more than cinematic, it’s heightened. It’s full of high contrast designs, moody lighting, incredible visuals.)
The episode isn’t interested in Cody for Cody’s sake, of course, it’s real subject is Crosshair. The rest of The Bad Batch believed he was good at heart, one of them, and his darker actions were the result of the Empire’s influence…but is that so? Who is Crosshair? Is there a redemption story coming for Crosshair, a Star Wars specialty, or something else?