Editor’s Note: The below contains spoilers for The Bad Batch Episode 13.
The Big Picture
- Echo’s unique background and experiences make him a valuable member of the Bad Batch team.
- In “Into the Breach,” Echo finally gets to showcase his skills and leadership abilities on a heroic mission.
- Echo’s versatility and quick thinking set him apart from the other members, making him indispensable in solo missions.
Star Wars: The Bad Batch has the difficult task of developing all the characters in the titular squad, which is ever-growing. These unique clones were created with special skills, giving them each an established role in the group, but Echo (Dee Bradley Baker) is different. Though, like the rest of the Bad Batch, he was introduced in Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Echo showed up much earlier in the series as a reg. What sets Echo apart from the other clones is not genetic, like most of Clone Force 99. Instead, it’s due to his experiences. Despite being one of many clones in the series, Echo played a memorable role in The Clone Wars as he grew from a new recruit to an ARC trooper. For a long time, Echo was believed dead, and though he was rescued, he would never be the same. This story sets him up for his role in The Bad Batch. But as a member of Clone Force 99, Echo became the backup tech support as the series failed to dive into his past.
Echo is an incredibly skilled soldier, but his talents are not written into his genetic code, and therefore, he seems to fill in the extra roles on their mission. But Season 3, Episode 13, “Into the Breach,” changes that. In this mission, Echo gets to be the hero, showing off the quick thinking, determination, and fighting prowess he needed as an ARC trooper. Despite Echo technically leaving the Bad Batch, Season 3 takes the time to highlight the character and everything he should be, finally doing justice to the only reg the Bad Batch has allowed to join their squad.
Star Wars: The Bad Batch
The ‘Bad Batch’ of elite and experimental clones make their way through an ever-changing galaxy in the immediate aftermath of the Clone Wars.
- Release Date
- May 4, 2021
- Creator
- Jennifer Corbett, Dave Filoni
- Seasons
- 3
- Studio
- Disney+
- Franchise
- Star Wars
Echo Doesn’t Have a Specific Talent Like the Rest of Clone Force 99
Though Echo is as skilled as any member of the team, his talents are different. Genetic mutations give Hunter heightened senses, Wrecker an advantage in strength, Tech a higher intellect, and Crosshair the necessary skills to make him a marksman, but Echo has no such advantage. Instead, he was trained as a reg on the Domino Squad, nearly failing his exams because he couldn’t work with his team. However, once they figured it out, Echo, Fives, Heavy, Cutup, and Droidbait were shipped out like every other clone.
The Domino Squad was hit with heavy losses, but as they fought back, they impressed Captain Rex, who had the survivors, Echo and Fives, added to the 501st Legion to serve under Rex. Echos and Fives were later promoted to Advanced Recon Commandos, “ARC troopers,” an elite distinction given only to those with great potential. As an ARC Trooper, Echo was expected to handle missions deemed too complex for the standard clone, proving his capabilities.
But Echo becomes different after he is captured on Skako Minor. Assumed dead, Echo is left to the enemy, who turns him into a cyborg. When Rex and the Bad Batch rescue him, Echo no longer fits in with the standard clones, so Hunter offers him a position in Clone Force 99. Echo’s experience makes him a valuable team member, but he does not have a designated role like the others, especially as they operated long before he joined them.
“Into the Breach” Highlights Echo’s Skills
Throughout The Bad Batch, Echo’s role on the team has been undefined. Clone Force 99 does not need a leader or a talented but ordinary soldier. Because Echo now has a cybernetic arm that allows him to directly interface with computer systems, he naturally lends himself to a technological role. But Tech mostly had that covered for the Bad Batch. So, the series often doesn’t know what to do with him. Since the loss of Tech, Echo has become the primary technology expert, but “Into the Breach” lets him be more than that.
With Omega (Michelle Ang) once again imprisoned on Tantiss, the Bad Batch is on a rescue mission, but without the facility’s location, they can’t do much. Finding her location is a complex mission, which requires them to break into an Imperial facility to steal the coordinates from a ship, only to discover that the coordinates aren’t uploaded after the ship leaves. With no time to waste, Echo chooses to board the ship, promising to take down the sensors, so the rest of the team can latch onto the ship, but it’s a more complex task than it sounds.
First, Echo must board the ship without notice, which he does, using his creative thinking to get onto the leaving vessel. Then, he must break into the computer system, which raises an alert. Echo quickly takes out the guard sent to check the disturbance while keeping his presence secret from the rest of the crew. To succeed, as he does, Echo has to use all of his ingenuity, planning, and combat training, demonstrating exactly what he is capable of. While Hunter or Crosshair could have handled the stealth part of the mission, and Tech would excel at taking down the sensors, Echo does it all on his own.
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‘The Bad Batch’ Season 3 Finally Highlights Echo’s Strength
It took most of the show’s three seasons for Echo to get this moment, and technically, he is no longer a permanent part of the team after he chose to leave in Season 2 to join Rex in helping the mistreated clones. When it comes to this team, Echo’s strength is his versatility. He is not only an extremely competent soldier, but is also quick thinking and able to play multiple roles on any given mission. This may set him apart from the other members of the Bad Batch, but it is why they need him.
While Clone Force 99 is effective, they rely on each member for something specific, and if that member is not present, they have to rethink. Echo can fill in those gaps, but he is rarely the first one they come to with a problem, meaning he shines the most on solo missions. It was long past time for the series to give Echo a moment in the spotlight, but fortunately, it happened before The Bad Batch‘s upcoming conclusion.
The Bad Batch is available to stream on Disney+ in the U.S.
