IR TV Review: THE BAD BATCH - EPISODE 14 (“War Mantle”) [Disney+]

The skew towards the Rebellion takes another turn in "The Bad Batch" in Episode 14: "War Mantle". While it is more a reveal episode (even though not much is revealed), it does mirror an episode in "The Mandalorian" in a way from Season 2 in terms of the infiltration of a facility. What is interesting in many points is what the score points to. in a series of short sequences, the theme from the chase through the Death Star is distinctly heard. The reasoning is unclear since this before "Rogue One" and definitely before the construction of the space station. The mission here is one of rescue and not assigned by the Batch's current employer Sid. The importance of their rescue is not known as there is not enough information disclosed about the person in question. On the flip side the Caminoans story moves forward a little bit so we can get some kind of idea what happened to them as the Empire rose. A major cliffhanger element does come into play but what it ultimately means in the bigger storyline is anyone's guess. A certain air rescue is actually done with exceptional prowess since in this series there is not as many air battles. But the way this is pulled off actually brings to mind echoes of "Temple Of Doom" and "The Matrix" on certain levels. This episode at its base though is a collection of moments but don't really coincide to form a cohesive piece although the next episode will likely explain. B

By Tim Wassberg