Review: The Bad Batch Episode 11 - Metamorphosis Brings Back a Long-Ignored Clone Wars Plot Thread

Metamorphosis is an episode that will be particularly special to fans of The Clone Wars, which really should be anyone who is watching The Bad Batch.



I believe the content of this episode may have been teased by Dave Filoni a long time ago, possibly at a previous Celebration, but I'd still forgotten it was coming. Once you watch the opening scene, which has all the atmosphere and tropes of a horror story, you should be able to put two and two together and figure out which Clone Wars loose end the episode is tying up here.



It's difficult to say anymore without spoiling the premise of the episode, but there's plenty else going on too. One particularly tantalizing plot thread from The Bad Batch's season 1 finale is built upon with some interesting developments and there are some fun character beats for members of the Bad Batch themselves as well.



It's a very strong episode that fans of The Clone Wars should find particularly exciting. I can't wait for next week's installment.



Spoilers ahead...







I was thrilled to the see the Zillo Beast again. Well, technically not the same Zillo Beast we saw in The Clone Wars -- presumably that one is dead now -- but a young clone of the original. It's funny to think that even though we haven't seen the Zillo Beast in 13 years, Metamorphosis is only set roughly three years after the Clone Wars arc. So even though we've had to wait a long time, the Empire has been working pretty diligently on cloning the Zillo Beast to weaponize its armor.



The opening scene was great, evoking memories of the Alien franchise with the terrifying xenomorphs hunting their prey. As soon as we saw the clone commando being chased by something in the shadows it became pretty clear that this must be the Zillo Beast. The episode spent the first 10 minutes or so building up to its first onscreen appearance, like a good monster horror story should. By the time we first meet the baby beast, its head even looks slightly reminiscent of a xenomorph.







We don't spend all our time on the transport ship though. I was delighted to return to Mount Tantiss for the first time since the season 1 finale, and I imagine those viewers still unfamiliar with the Zillo Beast would have been excited by this at least. A new human scientist named Doctor Hemlock arrives at the facility, specifically to continue with cloning work (I believe the clone commando Scorch from the Republic Commando Legends video game greets Hemlock, though sadly with a standard clone accent this time).



Hemlock is voiced by Jimmi Simpson, and anyone who's seen Westworld will know he's very capable of playing ominous and sinister characters. He plays the scientist very calm, sometimes speaking in whispers, which only serves to amplify his creepiness as the animation shows the excitement rushing across his face when talking about his work.







He's arrived on Mount Tantiss to work on the Zillo Beast, but it seems he's also leading the work to clone Palpatine as well. It's never directly confirmed, but Nala Se teases that she knows exactly what Palpatine wants to use her research for and she refuses to be a part of it. It could be that she's talking about the Zillo Beast, but I got the sense she was talking about Force sensitive cloning here.



Later on, Lama Su is brought to the facility to help provide information on Nala Se to ensure her cooperation. I had assumed that Lama Su died in the destruction of Tipoca City, so that reveal was a very welcome surprise. True to his character, he doesn't hesitate to inform on Nala Se, only bargaining for his freedom in exchange.



He tells Hemlock that all they need to ensure her cooperation is Omega; if her safety is threatened then the scientist would do anything to keep her alive. It's pitiful from Lama Su, as it's painfully obvious that the Empire won't honor their promise to set him free in return for the information. He's a loose end that they can't afford to have running around speaking to anyone.







Speaking of Omega, we see the Bad Batch talking to Cid over hologram. They've reached the end of their tether with her, angrily pointing out that she left them for dead on that last mission. Cid is frustratingly unapologetic and more concerned with assigning them another job -- salvaging the wreckage of the transport ship that secretly houses the Zillo Beast.



It seems we'll be reaching that crossroads with Cid soon enough. Even Omega has had enough of her at this point, and Tech only suggests doing the job to end their relationship with her amicably. That way, she won't be motivated to inform on them to the Empire. I did enjoy Wrecker's excitement at each of Cid's lowball offers as she haggled with Hunter and Tech. It was nice subtle way to play up the dimmer side of Wrecker's intellect without overtly drawing attention to it in an embarrassing way.



Soon enough, the Bad Batch reach the ship and investigate what happened, noting the claw marks along the walls and reinforced walls that had been bent out of shape. Getting back into the horror atmosphere, the build up to the Zillo Beast's reveal was well done. It wasn't too scary for children to watch it, but it slowly built up my excitement as I waited to see if I had guessed correctly.



It's then revealed that not only is this a clone of the original Zillo Beast, but the experiments on this new beast have produced an unfortunate side effect. This monster feeds on energy, and grows more quickly the more electricity it is exposed to. Presumably, the Empire wasn't aware of this, as they surely wouldn't be carrying electrostaffs to keep it in line if they did.



Omega helps piece together what actually happened on the ship, namely that the Empire was using Kaminoan cloning equipment on the monster, but I appreciated that the episode took a moment to point out her naivety when she reacted in horror to learning that the beast ate all the clones on the ship. She's a productive member of the team now, but it was an important reminder that she's still a child and ignorant in the ways of the galaxy.







Tech blew up the engines the beast was feeding on so it began to make its way towards the village nearby. Having a village nearby was smart, as it introduced stakes to the conflict. It would have been easy to make this a barren planet as it would still be pertinent to stop the Zillo Beast before it killed lives somewhere else, but having civilians nearby brought an immediate danger to proceedings. It also introduced an extra layer of sadness when the Empire arrived later on. I thought they'd massacre the villagers to stop reports of the Zillo Beast spreading, but they imprisoned them all instead. Perhaps they'll be freed by the Bad Batch next week.



The beast started feeding on some pylons near the village, causing a blackout. The energy was enough for it to grow in size until it finally resembled the Zillo Beast form we remember from The Clone Wars. It's still not remotely as huge but it was still great seeing it again.



The Empire showed up to reclaim the beast, using lasers that actually penetrated its armor. It's interesting to learn that the Empire has weapons that can kill it, at least before it grows to a gargantuan size. It also means that its armor isn't quite as impenetrable as Palpatine would apparently like it to be.







The Bad Batch watched the Empire wound the beast and capture it again before they were run out of the system. Realizing the amount of damage the Imperials could do with an asset like that, they forwarded their intel on the beast to Rex and Echo. Omega perked up with the mention of Echo and it seems like we could be seeing the other two clones next week, as the Bad Batch go on a mission to remove the Zillo Beast from the Empire's control.



I'm excited for Rex and Echo to return next week -- far sooner than I anticipated -- and I can't wait to see how this arc ends so we can see the story of the Zillo Beast wrapped up neatly.



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