Star Wars: The Bad Batch is a sequel to Star Wars: The Clone Wars - and here are all the episodes you need to watch to catch up with the characters. On May 4, 2021, Lucasfilm launches its next Star Wars animated series. Set shortly after the dramatic events of Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith, Star Wars: The Bad Batch follows an elite group of Clone Troopers who are decommissioned from military service and wind up on the run in a suddenly hostile galaxy.
The titular heroes, the Bad Batch, were introduced in Star Wars: The Clone Wars season 7, and they're essentially the superheroes of the Grand Army of the Republic; mutant clones whose mutations were deemed to be beneficial. They were joined by Echo, a Clone Trooper who served with distinction as a member of the elite 501st but was captured and weaponized by the Separatists before being freed by the Bad Batch. What's more, there are other returning characters from Star Wars: The Clone Wars as well - notably freedom fighter Saw Gerrera and a rising star in the Imperial ranks, Tarkin.
Viewers may well want to catch up on these returning heroes and villains ahead of the show's launch. Of course, because Star Wars: The Clone Wars wasn't told in a strictly chronological order, that task isn't necessarily an easy one. So here's your definitive viewing guide.
The Origin Story of Echo
- Must-watch episode: Star Wars: The Clone Wars season 3, episode 1 ("Clone Cadets")
This is the origin story of Echo, one of a group of five clones who are being assessed by the Kaminoans; they're all unusually headstrong, and the cloners fear they may be a so-called "Bad Batch." This episode is important for introducing Clone Trooper 99, a defective clone who serves as a janitor on Kamino and who will ultimately become a war hero.
Attack on Kamino
- Must-watch episodes: Star Wars: The Clone Wars season 1, episode 5 and season 3, episode 2 ("Rookies" and "ARC Troopers")
Sticking to a loose chronological order, viewers next want to move to Star Wars: The Clone Wars season 1 episode 5 and season 3, episode 2. This essentially serves as a two-part story that sees the Separatists launch an unsuccessful attack on the Rishi moon in order to position themselves for a full-scale strike on Kamino. Echo is one of a handful of new clones stationed on the Rishi moon, and he is inducted into the 501st Legion for his service. Unfortunately the victory at the Rishi moon doesn't prevent the Separatists from getting to Kamino, but the hero of the day is Clone Trooper 99. He proves that even supposedly "defective" clones can be valuable, leading the Kaminoans to reassess their approach to mutations. There would be no Bad Batch without this story.
The Introduction of Tarkin & the Capture of Echo
- Must-watch episodes: Star Wars: The Clone Wars season 3, episodes 18-20 ("The Citadel," "Counterattack," "Citadel Rescue")
Fast-forward to Star Wars: The Clone Wars season 3, and a superb three-part story in which Anakin Skywalker and the 501st are assigned to infiltrate a Separatist prison in order to free a group of high-ranking prisoners. One of these prisoners is Wilhuff Tarkin, a skilled military strategist who swiftly bonds with Anakin Skywalker, and has intelligence he desperately needs to pass on to the Chancellor himself. The rescue is a success, but sadly Echo is believed killed; in reality he is captured by the Separatists, who will weaponize him against the Republic.
Saw Gerrera's Story
- Must-watch episodes: Star Wars: The Clone Wars season 5, episodes 2-5 ("A War on Two Fronts," "Front Runners," "The Soft War," "Tipping Points."
Star Wars: The Bad Batch will also feature the return of a shady figure called Saw Gerrera, a key player in Lucasfilm's transmedia stories. Saw's origin story - including the tragic death of his sister - is told in Star Wars: The Clone Wars season 5, episode 2-5. If you want to see what happens to Saw Gerrera after these events, you need to check out James Luceno's novel Catalyst, four episodes in Star Wars Rebels (season 3, episodes 12-13 and season 4, episodes 3-4), and of course Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.
The Bad Batch In Action
- Must-watch episodes: Star Wars: The Clone Wars season 7, episodes 1-4 ("The Bad Batch," "A Distant Echo," "On the Wings of Keeradaks," "Unfinished Business"
You definitely need to check out Star Wars: The Clone Wars season 7, episodes 1-4. This serves to introduce Clone Force 99 as an elite team of defective clones with desirable mutations, and they work with Anakin Skywalker to track a Separatist intelligence source that is predicting Republic strategies. This turns out to be Echo, who has been transformed into a cyborg and whose mind has been plugged into the Separatists' command systems. Echo is successfully rescued, and joins the Bad Batch.
The End of the Clone Wars
- Must-watch episodes: Star Wars: The Clone Wars season 7, episodes 9-12 ("Old Friends Not Forgotten," "The Phantom Apprentice," "Shattered," "Victory and Death"
Although it doesn't really feature any of the main characters, it's also worth revisiting the final four episodes of Star Wars: The Clone Wars season 7 before watching The Bad Batch. These are concurrent with Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith, and they tell the story of Order 66 from the perspective of the Clone Troopers. It's as yet uncertain whether the Bad Batch actually complied with Order 66 - the trailer for Star Wars: The Bad Batch appeared to suggest they disobeyed, with their mutations presumably meaning they were resistant to the control chips. If that is indeed the case, there could be major repercussions for Clone Force 99.
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These episodes present the essential backstory of the (known) returning characters in Star Wars: The Bad Batch, and they're essential viewing ahead of May 4. The series itself is set in a time period that's been seldom explored in canon, and will no doubt explore how the Republic was restructured into becoming the Empire. While there will be early rebels, the likes of Bail Organa and Mon Mothma will be content to bide their time, waiting for the Empire to overreach. But it's entirely possible Clone Force 99 will cross paths with other known players in this period; Anakin Skywalker's Padawan Ahsoka survived Order 66, for example, and is known to have started working against the Emperor within just a couple of years of its founding.