The Bad Batch Series – Clone Force 99's Complete Saga
Our season-by-season hub for The Bad Batch: Clone Force 99, Omega, the Empire's cloning secrets, and the most beautiful animation in all of Star Wars.
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🎬 The Soldiers the Empire Threw Away
The Bad Batch begins where most Star Wars stories would end: with the fall. Season 1 opens on the firing of Order 66 — the moment the Republic becomes the Empire — and tells the story of that catastrophe from the ground floor, through the eyes of the clones engineered to make it possible. Our heroes are Clone Force 99, an elite squad of genetically distinct clones whose mutations leave them just independent enough to question what they’ve been ordered to do.
Hunter, the tracker and reluctant leader. Wrecker, the gentle giant. Tech, the deadpan genius. Echo, the scarred survivor. And Crosshair, the sniper whose loyalty to the Empire fractures the family. Into their lives comes Omega — a young, unmodified clone who becomes their heart, and the reason these discarded soldiers find something worth fighting for. It’s a found-family story dressed in the saddest moment in Star Wars history, and it’s gorgeous from its first frame.
AdStar Wars: The Bad Batch – The Complete Series (Blu-ray) (opens in a new tab)
All three seasons of Clone Force 99 in one set — the best way to take the squad's full journey.
Series Content
Explore all articles, reviews, and guides in this series.
“Star Wars: The Bad Batch Season 1 picks up at the exact moment Order 66 fires, following the elite, genetically distinct Clone Force 99 — Hunter, Wrecker, Tech, Echo and the loyalist Crosshair — as the Republic they served becomes the Empire overnight. Adopting a young clone named Omega, the squad turns mercenary to survive in a galaxy that no longer wants them. It's a gorgeously animated, emotionally warm transition story that bridges The Clone Wars and the original trilogy, and it confirms the animated era as the best-looking Star Wars going.”
“Star Wars: The Bad Batch Season 2 trades some of the first season's wandering for a tighter, darker arc. As Clone Force 99 scrapes by as mercenaries, the Empire's sinister cloning program — and its hunger for Omega's pure genetic material — moves to the centre of the story, planting seeds that reach all the way to the sequel trilogy. Crosshair's loyalty frays, the worldbuilding richens, and the season ends on a sacrifice so devastating it reframes everything. Beautiful, focused, and genuinely heartbreaking Star Wars.”
“Star Wars: The Bad Batch Season 3 brings Clone Force 99's story to a near-flawless close. With Omega in Imperial hands, the season becomes a tense, focused rescue that doubles as a meditation on family, redemption and what kind of galaxy our heroes are fighting for. Crosshair's long road back, the dismantling of the Empire's darkest cloning secrets, and an epilogue that points Omega toward the rebellion combine into one of the most satisfying send-offs the animated era has produced. A gorgeous, emotional, perfect farewell.”
Disclaimer: This review and its visuals were created with the help of AI. Some links may be affiliate links – we may earn a commission if you make a purchase, at no extra cost to you.
🧠 Why The Bad Batch Is the Most Beautiful Star Wars
Let’s lead with the thing that made our household fall for this show: The Bad Batch is, frame for frame, the most beautiful Star Wars ever animated. The lighting is extraordinary — glowing sunsets, neon underworld dens, the cold sterile blues of Imperial labs. The backgrounds are painterly, the character animation is fluid and expressive, and the action is staged with genuine cinematic muscle. There are individual shots across these three seasons that belong framed on a wall.
But it’s not just a tech demo. Underneath the beauty is a focused, emotional story about obsolescence and family — about what people are worth when the world that built them no longer wants them. That’s surprisingly grown-up material, and the show handles it with warmth and patience. It’s also one of the franchise’s most important connective pieces, quietly tracing how the Empire’s darkest cloning secrets reach all the way to the resurrected Emperor of the sequel trilogy.
Here’s our honest placement: in our house, The Bad Batch sits just a notch below Rebels — it’s a more contained, spin-off-flavoured story, and its first season is the loosest thing in this corner of the galaxy. But “a notch below the best animated Star Wars ever” is still extraordinary company, and on pure craft, nothing in the franchise looks better.
📺 The Bad Batch Shape: A Season-by-Season Guide
Like all the great animated Star Wars, this isn’t a flat line — it’s a journey, and we rate it that way. Here’s the shape:
The Beautiful Beginning (Season 1 — 9/10)
Gorgeous and warm, if a little loose. Season 1 establishes the squad, introduces Omega, and depicts the Empire’s birth from the inside. A few mid-season mercenary missions wander, but the animation and the found-family heart carry it completely.
The Gut-Punch (Season 2 — 9/10)
Tighter, darker, braver. The Empire’s cloning conspiracy moves to the centre, Crosshair’s tragedy deepens, and the finale delivers a sacrifice so devastating it reframes the whole series. This is where the show grows up.
The Perfect Farewell (Season 3 — 10/10)
Focused and fully resolved. A tense rescue, Crosshair’s earned redemption, Omega’s coming-of-age, and an epilogue that bridges to the rebellion. One of the most satisfying send-offs the animated era has produced.
AdStar Wars: The Clone Wars – The Complete Series (Blu-ray) (opens in a new tab)
Where Clone Force 99 began — the ideal companion watch that gives Order 66 its full weight.
👨👧 Why It’s Great Family Viewing
The Bad Batch is a smart family watch, with one eye on the age dial. Young Omega gives kids an instant point of entry, and the squad’s fierce protectiveness models exactly the loyalty and care you want your children to absorb. The episodes run a comfortable ~25 minutes — perfect for a weeknight slot — and Season 1’s lighter tone makes it accessible from around 9+.
As the show darkens, it grows with your kids. The later seasons tackle authoritarian science, loss, and redemption, and they’re better suited to 10+ and a watch-together approach. That’s a feature, not a bug: these are exactly the conversations — about courage, family, and standing up to cruelty — that the best Star Wars invites. And reaching the finale together, after three seasons with this squad, is a genuine family-memory moment.
One practical note: while The Bad Batch stands on its own, it rewards a little homework. Watching The Clone Wars first deepens Order 66 and the squad’s origins enormously — which is why this show sits right alongside it in our wider hub.
How to Use This Hub
Below you’ll find all three season reviews as cards, each with our honest per-season rating and a full breakdown of story, characters and family suitability. The golden rule: watch in order, Season 1 through Season 3. The show is heavily serialized, and the gut-punch of Season 2 and the payoff of Season 3 depend entirely on the foundation Season 1 lays.
For the bigger picture, The Bad Batch lives at the centre of our Star Wars Animated Era hub, alongside The Clone Wars, Rebels and Maul. And if you want to see where the prequel films and these shows intersect, our guide to watching Revenge of the Sith with The Clone Wars is the perfect companion piece.
The Bad Batch: The Dadnology Verdict
Three seasons. One squad. A kid who gives them a reason to keep going. The Bad Batch is proof that a Star Wars spin-off can be both the best-looking thing in the franchise and a genuinely moving story about family and redemption. It starts gorgeous, turns gutting, and ends near-perfect — a complete, beautifully told saga that earns its place among the jewels of the animated era. A 9/10 as a whole, and on pure craft, the most stunning Star Wars there is.
Scroll down, start with Season 1, and meet Clone Force 99. Just be ready: by the end, Omega will feel like family.
All three seasons of The Bad Batch appear below, in recommended watch order.
Build the saga: the Bad Batch are clones forged in the war the ARC-170 fought — our LEGO ARC-170 Starfighter (75402) review covers the brick fighter.
AdLEGO Star Wars ARC-170 Starfighter 75402 (opens in a new tab)
The clone-era workhorse fighter, in brick — fitting for the squad born of the Clone Wars.
