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cross-my-heartt · 1 year

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Alright folks, now that Solitary Clone and Outpost are out and we have more insight into Crosshair’s character, I thought it would be interesting to revisit some of the things he said on Kamino at the end of season one.

I’ve been meaning to make this analysis for a while but I’m glad I’m doing it now because season two gives us a lot more context and material to work with. (Let’s hope the rest of the season doesn’t make me look like a clown by throwing us a curve ball lol.)

Beware this is a quote heavy analysis.

Right off the bat I want to look at his motivations because that’s one thing people often use when they try to dub him as a villain. The thing is, Crosshair’s speech does often makes it sound there’s some more sinister ideological beliefs behind his actions.

“Crosshair, I've seen what the Empire's doing, occupying planets and silencing anyone who stands against them. You know it's not right.”

“You still don't see the bigger picture, but you will.”

But when we look into it, I think the ‘bigger picture’ for Crosshair is something much more pragmatic and cynical than it seems.

To put it simply Crosshair sees the Empire for what it is, he knows how dangerous it is and that stopping it at this point is nigh impossible (and let’s be real, if Luke had caught a stray blaster bolt at any point, the Empire wouldn’t have ended anytime soon.)

He’s even more aware of it than most because he’s on the inside so when he talks about it there’s almost this resigned fatalistic quality to it.

“They did what needed to be done. Kamino, regs, the Republic... that time is over. The Empire will control the entire galaxy, and I am going to be a part of it.”

There’s no reverence here. Compare it to the way any imperial baddie talks, Rampart, Tarkin, Sidious, etc. and you’ll see that this isn’t praise, this is just reality as Crosshair sees it. And Crosshair’s realism is really neat because it’s so uncomfortably close to the truth sometimes.

“Send her on a shuttle off-world.”

“Crosshair, don't.”

“It's for her own good. And yours.”

“Omega belongs with us.”

“Living among fugitives where she's in constant danger? You want to protect the kid, then let her go.”

___

“Blind allegiance makes you a pawn. A real leader protects his squad.”

“Look where that's gotten you. They're all going to die here because of your failed leadership.”

It’s in these moments of rationality that we see Crosshair’s perspective as someone who’s trying to protect his family at all costs, to the point where he’s almost begging.

“It's time to stop running.” (Running is too dangerous, I know the thing that’s hunting you and you can’t defeat it.)

“Don't make the same mistake twice. Don't become my enemy.” (Don’t pick a fight you’re going to lose.)

Of course coming from him, it all sounds like a threat because not only does Crosshair not sugarcoat things, he also finds the most brutal and even cruel ways to say them.

“If I wanted you dead, you would be. Not that it wouldn't be justified.” (I could have killed you but I didn’t. You did things that put you in danger of being killed.)

And because of his tendency to do that, you can easily make wrong assumptions about his character. The most uncomfortable parts of his speech are where he sounds eerily like a supremacist, like all of those officers who serve a bigoted and elitist empire.

“Because the Empire will be phasing out clones next.”

“Not the ones that matter.”

___

“We're not like the regs. We never have been. We're superior.”

But is that really supremacism? If it was would Crosshair treat the people around him as he does? Think about the way he treats Echo, Cody (especially in The Solitary Clone) and of course Mayday. That’s not the behavior of someone who finds other clones unworthy of friendship and kindness.

This is Crosshair being all bark and no bite. And it’s also that toxic coping mechanism that’s been hammered into his head: if you’re good enough, if you’re better than everyone, you earn the right to live and be safe and protected.

The batch’s life has always been about proving themselves, they’re an experimental unit, so it’s no surprise that a mentality like that has festered into something more insidious with Crosshair.

“You all are meant for more than drifting through the galaxy. It's time to stop running. Join the Empire, and you will have purpose again.”

Purpose? Ideological purpose? A higher purpose? Or just purpose in the sense of use, the thing that’s always kept them safe.

What’s funny here is that Hunter follows that line with “You really don't get who we are, do you?” because Hunter struggles with the same dilemma of ‘keeping my family safe’ vs ‘doing the morally right thing’ throughout the show and in most cases he needs an extra push from either Omega or Echo to choose the latter.

He as a leader knows firsthand how difficult the balancing act between those two is with how much grief it causes him.

Crosshair is on the extreme end of that dilemma. That protective side that sometimes overrides morality is much stronger in him and that coupled with his cynicism can make for a dangerous combination.

To Crosshair there will always be an unfeeling higher power that he has to please in order to earn its favor and protection. Once upon a time it was the Kaminoans, then it was the Republic and most recently it was the Empire – they’re all the same to him.

“The Empire can't protect the galaxy without strength.”

This is what the Empire is doing in his mind, the same thing as the Republic before it. It’s enforcing its will for the sake of peace and you needn’t look further than Cody’s own lines from episode three to realize that this is what things look like from most clones’ perspective, at least at first:

“The Empire seeks to establish peace and order throughout the galaxy. […] Listen, we both lived through one war. Let's not start another. Too many people have died already. We can resolve this without more bloodshed. Please, do this for your people.”

We also see that Crosshair doesn’t think all that highly of the Republic either:

“You betrayed everything we stood for. And for what? The Republic?”

And I think that’s because these big abstract entities hold little meaning to him.

His contract with both the Republic and the Empire is simple: protect and provide for me and my family and I will do what you say. You could even say he was conditioned to think that way. Ironically it’s Hunter who voices where Crosshair’s loyalties really lie when he says they're "loyal to each other and not some Empire" (and accidentally manages to be a bit hypocritical in the process).

And that’s true for Crosshair as well: his relationship with the Empire is not quite loyalty but more like a symbiotic relationship. It’s necessary but not personal:

“That's your problem, Hunter. You take things too personally.”

DBB put it best when he said “his job is not only to hit things from a stealth distance, but I think he also views the world and other people from that distance, as well”. (Remember that line about the bigger picture? Yep, Mr Baker knows his material.)

That’s why serving under Rampart seemed easy for Crosshair, we never once see him question or defy him. But then along comes Nolan who breaks that contract because suddenly things are personal, his hatred for clones is personal, he represents the part of the Empire that’s not just unfeeling but also actively goddamn awful and he makes the mistake of directing that cruelty at someone Crosshair cares about.

That’s both an eye opener and a deal breaker for Crosshair and we see what he’s capable of when things become personal, just how raw and human he can be.

That humanity, I think, is also why we see him split from the batch on Kamino. It might seem counterintuitive at first, but it starts to make sense when you see it from his pov: if you’re someone who’s so deeply devoted to the people you care about, the most painful thing that could happen to you is to be abandoned and rejected by them.

There’s a lot of hurt in what Crosshair says on Kamino:

“And here we all are, together again.”

“You betrayed everything we stood for. And for what? The Republic?”

“You weren't loyal to me. I was one of you. You may have forgotten, but I haven't. And it's why I'm going to give you what you never gave me: a chance.”

“Think of all we could do together. We were brothers once. We can be again.”

“All those missions together and you threw it away.”

And all that doesn’t just go away like that. It’s his pain that pushes him into making a decision that will later haunt him.

At the end of the day, Crosshair’s biggest virtue is how loyal he is to the people he cares about. He’s not like Rex or Echo or Omega, who selflessly put themselves in harm’s way for a cause that’s bigger than them (not for now at least) but you can bet he’ll tear himself to shreds to protect what’s valuable to him.

And you can love or hate that about him but I think it makes for a very interesting character. To quote DBB again: “He's not pure evil. He’s ultimately a rational guy, and there's some humanity in there, too.”

#tbb #sw tbb #the bad batch #tbb crosshair #tbb meta #tbb season two #tbb season 2 #my meta #I had fun with this one #honestly I love Crosshair because there are many ways to interpret the things he says and does #so each 'analysis' may come out different #I'm really eager to see where they take his character #unless they decide to kill him off then I'll just be eager to vandalize something

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butchhansolo · 1 year

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in-universe "logistics" aside, i think it's good that echo has the permanent scomp arm instead of a hand for like. real-world representation reasons.

in star wars sure they have fully articulated replacement prosthetics but we very much don't have that in real life, and i feel like echo with the scomp is good rep for that. he's one of the most competent characters and i think it's good to show that he can do All That as he is, especially with how irl people with only one hand usually are very capable, even more if they've been living with it for a long time, and very rarely do we see that in media.

like, mark hamill once said he talked to a kid for a make a wish thing who was about to have his arm amputated, and the kid said that he wasn't worried because luke did it too. i think that's important

#tbb #echo #.txt #the bad batch #arc trooper echo #SORRY MUTUALS this has been on my mind since i saw some people being really weird/Actually Ableist about it on twitter back in january and #that post going around just reminded me of it #NOT THAT OP WAS SAYING ANYTHING PARTICULARLY BAD bc like yeah utilitarially a multitool type arm could probably be useful #just imo its nice to have real world rep #also im still taking psychic damage from some of the twitter shit it was like how echo would ''have relief at having a proper hand'' or sth #like um. thats not very ummmm.... thats not really a good thing to say--#with regards to like. a lot of people with limb differences dont feel any particular desire to have a standard limb and a replacement #isnt necessarily the best for everyone or what everyone wants #and acting like all people who dont have standard are all suffering and sad about it is demeaning and patronizing #twitter users when theyve never read about people with limb differences from those people's perspectives #twitter users when theyve never heard of the Lucky Fin Project #sorry for going off agh prosthetics are what i plan on studying & specializing in so i read a lot about this stuff

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skotiwolves · 16 days

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I get the idea of everyone wanting an emotional reaction last week with omega being taken back to Tantiss, and while I also wished there was one, it doesn’t really make sense in my mind

They’ve already been through Omega being taken. While I don’t believe Hunter and Wrecker are completely desensitized to her now being taken there for a second time, I think there’s just an understanding to get to work. To put their anger, their frustrations, to getting her back, not to sit around and fight about it with Crosshair

Besides, that already happened in “The Return” when Cross and Hunter had their fight

“You let Omega be taken to Tantiss” and most of Crosshair’s point in that conversation, while directed at Hunter, is now all true for him, as well. To rehash that again isn’t necessary writing-wise. Both Hunter and Cross have grown since that point and Hunter finally trusts Crosshair now. To shove each other around and get in another pointless argument is counterproductive plot-wise, character-wise, and as watchers of the show

Also pretty sure that Crosshair gave them the run-down of why it happened. Im sure he mentioned that he didn’t want her to do it, but that she insisted. All of them know Omega, her choice to go and the guilt she carries is not a surprise to any one of them

And we don’t see them not react. Wrecker reacts as accurately as he can, as he was just knocked unconscious from the Marauder blast and was probably awake for 5 minutes when he heard the news

Hunter, on the other hand, seems to hash it out in the Juggernaut scenes, especially when the stormtrooper flew over the side and Hunter slammed him into the wall. How aggressively he drives, almost carelessly, to get rampart off-world so that they can get coordinates. He’s their best bet (as far as we know now), and Hunter is going to put that desperation and determination to work to get his little girl back

It is entirely possible for something to happen off screen or for it to be an understood for the viewers. It’s also entirely possible for characters to talk off screen *gasp*. We don’t have to see every little interaction or emotion—that would take away the fun.

#I’m NOT an expert #im jusf spewing my two insignificant and probably incoherent cents at 1am #I’ve just seen a lot of people up in arms about this stuff specifically #sometimes things happen off screen !!#sometimes things are done the way they’re done bc the writers expect the watchers to understand what they’re getting at !!#(which feels like a little too much hope for some media consumers nowadays #but I digress)#we’re not going to see EVERYTHING #I get that it felt like a big scene. and it was! but we’ve already been through this #they don’t have time to mope around. they don’t. and they know that. so they got to work #they got to work because they KNOW omega needs them #and they’re in a MUCH different position now than they were when she was first captured #tbb #the bad batch

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lazinesswrites · 1 year

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I should've been working on my thesis today, but instead I've been thinking about clones. I did also work on my thesis just not as much as I probably should have.

I finally reached the part of Clone Wars where the Bad Batch are introduced and watched it twice and I have some Thoughts. Since you all seemed to like my May 4th post (seriously, it's still getting new notes every day, what's with that? - not a complaint) I figured I'd share.

I will warn you right now: It may become clear in this post that I'm studying Communication, and also that I find Words and How People Use Them really interesting.

So. Okay. We all like Cody, right? He's a good guy. He spends a lot of time with Kenobi, and also Skywalker, so some snark is to be expected, but over all he seems like a nice guy (not to be mistaken for a Nice Guy TM, which is something completely different and not actually very nice at all). It's also made clear that he's worked with the Batch several times before, and that the Batch all seem to like him well enough, for a reg, anyway.

Cody introduces the Batch to Rex as "defective clones, with... desirable mutations". Defective. From a guy who seems to at least respect them, and have earned their respect in turn.

It makes me wonder... How often have the Batch heard that word? How many times have they been called something even worse? Sure, they weren't around to overhear it this time, but that doesn't mean aren't sometimes, or that other people won't say it to their faces.

And what almost makes it worse is, I don't think Cody meant anything bad by it. It wasn't an insult, just a word, a fact - a way to describe them that Rex would understand. An Rex probably doesn't see it as an insult to them either; a cause for concern, maybe, but not too bad, because Cody clearly trusts them to get this job done. And Rex seems to respect 99, too; another 'defective' clone (see his comment about naming them Cloneforce 99 'a nice touch') (idr if Cody is ever seen interacting with 99 or talking about him or giving away an opinion one way or another, but probably he liked 99 just fine too).

What I'm getting at is... Just because Cody and Rex don't use 'defective' as an insult, that doesn't change the fact that it is a negatively charged word, especially when directed at clones, who are people, but often treated more like droids; where defect means damaged, means not worth it, means decommissioned, means dead, in one way or another. And the fact that the word is so commonplace that good guys like Rex and Cody use it so flippantly... That must be really fucking hard, to live with that moniker hanging over your heads all the time, no matter how good you are at what you do (A 100% success rate doesn't happen accidentally - that's what happens when you can't afford to be anything less than perfect). No wonder they try to turn it around; wear it like armor: Yeah, we're a "bad batch" but we're still here.

Honestly, "regs" seems kind in comparison.

#Star Wars: The Clone Wars #Star Wars: The Bad Batch #tbb #tbb meta #Commander Cody #Captain Rex #tbb Hunter #tbb Crosshair #tbb Wrecker #tbb Tech #Clone Wars season 7 #I have some more thoughts about trust and teamwork in the Batch but that's gonna be a separate post at a later time #(like when I've had dinner. or tomorrow. or something. might actually do a crazy thing and queue it)#(I should also check that post from the 4th to see what it was I said would be in a different post in that one)#(and then consider actually writing said post)

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darlin-djarin · 8 months

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whenever i think about the bad batch i just get sad. it could’ve had so much potential. it could’ve fixed so many things. it could’ve fixed the whitewashing already going on in the clone wars, but instead it made it worse. it could’ve stopped the stereotypes of body types and facial features, but it didn’t. it could’ve had more expansion on characters with disabilities, such as echo, and how they live their life with their disabilities, but they just completely dismissed it and moved passed it like it was nothing. it could’ve portrayed black/poc characters, such as saw gerrera or sid, in a more positive light and show their truer intentions, but it just made them seem more violent. so many little details are so icky about it, it’s just sad. it’s sad because it had so much potential and only did more harm than good.

the characters are cool i guess and the concepts and the plot is cool but there were so many things just Wrong with it, it’s upsetting. and like… couldn’t they just have the decency to unwhitewash the characters?? it surely can’t be that hard… considering they’re a billion dollar company 😐

#i just think omega is so cute and sweet and the fact that she is directly related to only being in the bad batch is so sad #because i don’t like posting about the bad batch in a positive way but i just wanna reblog some art that i like yk #without having to be accused of being a bad batch supporter #like the show could’ve been so cool and so many concepts are so interesting #but it’s just out of taste to show positivity over the show until lucasfilms addresses all those things #and it’s like. ughhhh #i like some things about it but i obv don’t support it and i just wish things were different because so much about it could’ve been so good #it’s just sad #star wars #oil.#the bad batch

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boba-fettuccine-alfredo · 1 year

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bet the bad batch didn't expect to adopt a little magpie

#all the shiny things #“is it tReAsaH?”#she totally has a collection of random shit she finds on different planets #which probably confuses Tech to no end #the bad batch #the bad batch omega #tbb omega #tbb s2 #the bad batch season two

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cryiling · 7 months

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THE BAD BATCH FUNKO POPS ARRIVED WHO CHEERED 😽‼️ sorry I only got the original batch 😿 echo will always be in my heart tho 🫶

and I got ahsoka literally my wifeyy !! 😻😻

u guys hunter and crosshair came with these pins and they are SOOOO COOL OMG i wish there was an option like that for tech and wrecker but alas 💔 disney just hates us

#the bad batch #tbb #star wars #sw #ahsoka #I LOVEEEE THEM OMG #LITERALLY THE BEST THING THAT HAPPENED TO ME THIS MONTH #i can't stop looking at them omg I'm obsessed #ykw their height difference is so fucking hilarious to me HELPP #HUNTER IS LIKE CANONICALLY SHORT COMPARED TO THEM AND IT'S SO FUNNY TO SEE #is he actually shorter than ahsoka too omfg 😭

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a-lil-perspective · 2 years

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Wrecker: Why do people who use baby changing stations always come back with the same baby???

Crosshair: What the fuck are you even talking about anymore.

Hunter: *is suddenly afraid to leave his babies with Uncle Wrecker*

#wrecker might accidentally come back with a different baby #honest mistake #XDD #tw swearing #ba’vodu bad batch #incorrect quotes #bad batch incorrect quotes #the bad batch #wrecker #wrecker bad batch #bad batch wrecker #crosshair #crosshair bad batch #shitposts #it’s a lil thing

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hello-there-cyarika · 2 months

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TBB S3E07 SPOILERS

I just had a quick thought:

You cannot and will not convince me that that shadow trooper telling Crosshair “You had your chance to be one of us. You chose the wrong side.” is not Tech being angry/upset/whatever that Crosshair chose the Empire over the Batch, not that he resisted conditioning to be a shadow trooper.

#I MEAN COME ON #first of all the accent sounds different enough from a regular trooper to be noticed through the voice modulator #especially in that scene where he speaks to Wolffe #(also Wolffe 🥺🥺 come home 🥺🥺)#second of all he framed it as a choice #when clearly they’re forced and conditioned into the roll (from what I can tell please feel free to correct me!)#like also this shadow trooper has HELLA plot armor I mean hello??#also I am THOROUGHLY convinced that these shadow troopers are the phase 1 dark troopers from battlefront lol #the phase 1 dark troopers were LITERALLY created during the early years of th empire and were made using veteran clones #and giving them cybernetic parts #(up to like 70% of their bodies wow)#which is also horrifying when you realize that they’re now literally becoming the things that the people who hated them said #‘meat droids’#ugh #tbb #tbb spoilers #tbb s3e7 #tbb s3 spoilers #the bad batch season 3 spoilers #the bad batch season 3 #hello there talks

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stoat-party · 1 year

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Omega has done something concerningly impulsive in every episode so far except The Solitary Clone (which she wasn’t in). It’s cute when it all works out but, uh… I’m really hoping it’s not some sort of foreshadowing.

#maybe it’s just to signify that she’s grown in confidence and is able to make decisions now #yeah that’s what we’ll call it #the bad batch #tbb season 2 #tbb s2 #the bad batch season 2 #omega the bad batch #bad batch season 2 #omega tbb #tbb omega #omega bad batch #how many different ways are there to tag the same two things

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chaosjedimasterk · 1 year

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It might an unpopular opinion but I’m chill if they throw romance into Star Wars. I’ve seen a lot of dislike of the Tech and Phee flirting lately and while I can understand not being interested in it, I think it’s trying to speak to a place we’ve seen very little of. There’s like a whole rant under the cut here about my thoughts on the season so far. I’m cool if you have different opinions I’m just throwing these into the void.

I also preface this with I am honestly pretty chill about the media I consume and general have liked most of everything Star Wars puts out. I’m here for fun and vibes.

This whole season of the Bad Batch is trying to explore who these men are without the Republic. Who they are without being soldiers. Who they are as their own men, in their own right. What choices are they going to make for themselves and Omega. What does life look like for a tool of a governing body that exists no more?

Which like, is often times what real life soldiers have to do when they’re no longer useful to their government. Like the clones being decommissioned - super realistic to how the US government treats its vets. In my opinion at least. They care about you until you’re not useful. Who are you then if you’re not a soldier?

Additionally this last episode showed us the literal foundation of Star Wars which is hope, community, and light existing in darkness. Sure shit is bleak, but if we come together and WORK together, it’s so much better than alone. The batch is used to being their own squad. They didn’t have a whole battalion like the 501st or the 212th. They were 4 to 5 dudes. They need to learn how important community is to fighting fascism . Each way someone learns is different, hunter is learning who he is through being a father figure, Crosshair is being thrown through the absolute ringer to learn this lesson, and maybe Techs is being a partner and learning nuanced social interactions? Wrecker i haven’t pinned but he’s very much protect my brothers and protect my sister.

While Phee had gotten kinda stereotypical pirate treatment, she’s one of the first black characters we’ve gotten who hasnt moved through some sort of extremest route. Yes she’s a pirate but we are getting to see a relatively soft black woman on screen. Who is warm, and kind and funny and very laid back. Who is “liberating treasures” and I think that has to speak for something too.

I could be totally wrong about this, but I’m honestly so curious to see where the writers take this show. And how they continue the tech and Phee narrative.

#star wars #tbb spoilers #the bad batch #tbb s2 #it’s okay to not like things but it’s also okay to like them #i like when Star Wars explores different genres

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