Last week’s episode of Star Wars: The Bad Batch wasn’t terribly consequential, but we did learn that a conflict with Cid is likely on the horizon. This week, we go on a treasure hunt that unearths something far older and deadlier than the team is expecting.
As always, the recap portion of this review will contain plenty of spoilers along with some brief explorations of Star Wars lore.
Mapping a Path
Star Wars: The Bad Batch (Disney+)
The episode opens with Omega and Wrecker looking for parts in a junkyard. When they return with their finds to Cid’s Parlor, we see Phee (the pirate we met back in the season premiere) regaling some patrons with exaggerated tales of her adventures. As if on cue, she notices that one of the pieces of junk Omega brought appears to be etched with coordinates to an off-map star system.
Omega can barely contain her excitement when Phee says the system contains a planet that’s virtually guaranteed to have treasure. Hunter isn’t thrilled about the idea of a treasure hunt (especially after how the last one went), but decides they can go.
The group uses the artifact Omega found to chart a course for the hidden planet. When they arrive, they’re surprised to discover that it’s basically a wasteland. Lucky for them, the artifact also happens to be a compass, which leads them to the foot of what appears to be a large mountain. Phee notices a gap in the rocks and asks Wrecker to move them, which reveals a secret entrance (OF COURSE).
The group heads inside, completely unaware that they’re being stalked by a monstrous creature.
Star Wars: The Bad Batch (Disney+)
It doesn’t take long before they find a wall covered in ancient etchings. Phee identifies them as markings for the entrance to Skara Nal, a place from old pirate legends that was built by the Ancients, who predate even the Jedi.
*Side Note: Although there’s currently a lot of conjecture online about who the Ancients are, nothing concrete has been confirmed. My current favorite theory is that the Ancients are the Rakata, a race that first appeared in the ‘Knights of the Old Republic‘ video game (nearly 4,000 years before ‘Episode IV: A New Hope’). The group was also mentioned recently in ‘Andor.’
James Whitbrook at Gizmodo has a great breakdown of who the Rakata are based on Legends material (i.e. pre-Disney era stuff that may or may not still be true), but here are the basics:
- Their species is super old, dating back at least 30,000 years before ‘A New Hope.’
- They’re very likely the first species to develop hyperspace travel.
- They’re both technologically advanced and militarily aggressive, at one point conquering almost the entire galaxy and ruling it with an iron fist.
Of course, none of this matters if the Ancients that Phee is referring to aren’t the Rakata, but that’s my theory and I’m sticking to it (for now).
Phee then reveals that the Skara Nal also contains a priceless treasure called the Heart of the Mountain. Hunter is understandably hesitant about going after it, but he’s no match for Omega’s enthusiasm combined with Phee’s persuasive confidence.
Star Wars: The Bad Batch (Disney+)
The group attempts to go further into the mountain by lining up the symbols on the wall. Unfortunately, this causes a cave-in that traps them inside. Omega then realizes that some of the symbols are a different color from the rest, thus hiding them from the pattern. She puts the compass on Phee’s lamp, illuminating the correct pattern via a lens and opening a new tunnel.
After walking through, the group is attacked by the monster from outside (who really should’ve gone after them before they escaped the entryway). They manage to fight it off, but the skirmish causes ANOTHER cave-in, this time resulting in Hunter, Phee, and Omega being separated from the others. Thankfully, Tech is still able to reach the trio on their coms. He tells them that his group will use alternate pathways to eventually meet back up with them in the primary tunnel.
Later, Hunter is nearly killed when part of the aforementioned tunnel collapses. Omega notices (via the compass’ lens) that there are more hidden markings on the ceiling. This leads her to an indention that it fits inside perfectly. She twists it, causing the marked ceiling to rotate down and form a secure pathway. The compass cannot be removed from the lock, but Phee is confident that Omega will lead them the right way.
The Destroyer
Star Wars: The Bad Batch (Disney+)
The two groups meet back up in front of a door, which opens with surprising ease and leads into a vault. Upon entering, Phee spots the Heart of the Mountain (an artifact covered in purple diamonds) and pulls it from the wall.
Moments later, all the vault doors close. As if that weren’t bad enough, the vault itself rises up on four legs and begins blasting the planet’s surface with a giant beam. Tech astutely points out that removing the Heart of the Mountain appears to have activated some type of ancient war machine that they’re stuck inside of. Phee initially rebuffs his suggestion that they put the Heart of the Mountain back, but Hunter points out that the Skara Nal is currently on a path toward their ship. If it destroys the Maurader, they won’t have any way to leave the planet.
Phee begrudgingly agrees to help them put it back. Before they can, however, the monster shows up again and begins attacking them, which causes the Heart of the Mountain to fall inside a gap. Phee retrieves it while the Bad Batch fights the creature. After hurling it out a window (which was pretty awesome), Hunter saves Phee seconds before she’s thrown from the vehicle, as well. She then gives him the Heart of the Mountain, which he passes to Tech and Omega. They replace it seconds before the beam can destroy their ship, causing the Skara Nal to shut down.
On the way back to the ship, Phee proposes that they all go after another legendary pirate treasure. Hunter isn’t thrilled about the idea, but Omega is 100% on board.
The Verdict
Star Wars: The Bad Batch (Disney+)
Remember a few episodes ago when Echo told Hunter that they needed to do more to help others instead of just fending for themselves? Whether you agree with that or not, I think we can all agree that it would’ve made things more interesting than they are now.
Since this season’s third episode (which was arguably the series’ best), we’ve had two bottle episodes filled with great visuals, but not a lot of substance. You could argue that this quest offered a potential windfall that would aid Echo’s desired mission, but that feels pretty thin — especially when we ended with the group likely heading off on another Indiana Jones adventure.
Speaking of Dr. Jones, “Entombed” hit all the treasure hunt story beats, but in a paint-by-numbers fashion. Even the reveal of what the Skara Nal actually was (which looked incredible) felt predictable. It also didn’t help that Phee was relegated to being a diet version of Hondo Ohnaka. It’s no easy feat making a character voiced by Wanda Sykes appear boring, but this script managed to pull it off.
All that being said, the gorgeous visuals and tantalizing Easter eggs were enough to keep this one from being a total loss. Let’s just hope next week’s episode brings us back to The Bad Batch‘s much more enjoyable main narrative.
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