The Bad Batch Echo (spoilers)

It’s always crazy for how far advanced this universe was, Luke’s prosthetic hand wasn’t available during Vader’s time about a measly 30 years prior.

and speaking of Echo’s hand, has he ever had this on the show yet?

 

No, but he'll get it later.

There's some mad stuff on that hot toy, even an EXTENDO ARM!?

 

Spoiler

unless his black series figure is lying to us he gets several attachable things

 

Spoiler

I see that. Gonna start calling him Inspector Gadget. Hope he gets a propeller that pops out his helmet.

 

Echo seems to me just a double of Tech.

And there is not much to tell about him. He chose his path in season 7 by joining the team.

 

I really hope he gets his extension arm

 

It's about 300 so, I'm not sure I'd even call it a toy.

 

As a long time collector, I can’t recall one time Hot Toys has ever adding an accessory arbitrarily for no reason. Especially with how cheap they get sometimes. So this would be the first time, IIRC.

 

While the gadgets the model has look real interesting, personally I'd love it if Echo could somehow get the hand of a B2 Super Battle Droid. Comes with a set of fingers, a wrist rocket launcher/blaster, and he could probably make space for a scomp-link inside it too. Plus it'd be rather poetic for him to rely even more on the parts of droids that he fought against for so long (though he might refuse to get a droid arm just for that reason alone).

 

Also, the model finally answers the question of how Echo's helmet fits on his head!

 

That would be really cool.

 

I'll look for it when I get around to rewatching them then, but I didn't see it the first time around. But it's still nice to get a better look at the design nonetheless.

 

Echo was on point this week, the MVP of this one. He is coming into his own as a great guardian of Omega. He's kind of a jerk like Uncle Frank from Home Alone, lol. Did you see Echo stop Omega from playing with a weapon? I loved how he tapped into some experience for how to get info on Fennec. I also love how he was straight up trolling the Zygerians who captured him and his friends. These guys are lucky Echo was supposed to be dead in season 4, they'd have been up a creek. He warned them it wasn't going to go well for them when he had his gear. He ruthlessly one-shot like four of them to the heart trying to lead the captured slaves out. Those smoking holes. Very angry, very protective, and trying to be a hero. Not holding back for Omega and the other kid watching him. He minds me of Anakin actually in this one.

 

I hope he gets at least some of that in the show; having that much versatility would be awesome and definitely distinguish him from the others.

Omega would.

 

Echo has some impressive moments of brilliance in comparison to the rest of the Bad Batch, too. Even compared to Tech. That goes all the way back to "Unfinished Business". I think Echo may turn out to have even more guile than Fives.

 

Breaking News! Echo will be getting his own spinoff series

 

Hah. I think you're onto something @godisawesome for sure now. Hunter is starting to shut down in my opinion. Echo is building up a bond with Omega now. I think we're going to go through a period where Echo ends up having to take over guardian duties of Omega and he may even end up leading the Batchers at least for a while.

 

Gotta agree with Seerow and godisawesome. I am not that worried about Hunter breaking down just yet, but Echo is a easily the best candidate for a second-in-command of the group now that Crosshair is gone.. though this does make me curious about the relationship between these two. I don't think they ever really talked to each other since Echo joined the crew, and before that Crosshair was rather distrustful of him.

 

I'm not concerned Hunter is going to break from anything like his inhibitor chip. I think he's just disillusioned and depressed. Something like Wrecker, complete disaster, or a bad encounter with Crosshair may push him over an edge where he'll shut down for an episode or two. I think Hunter and Crosshair were closer than it seems, like Rex and Cody. With Echo, Crosshair was either standoffish or antagonistic like with all the other Regs. But I don't think there is a rivalry there. The rival will be Hunter just like in "Aftermath". Being a jerk is just Crosshair's personality, I don't think he's ever been evil until his Inhibitor Chip activated. Staying with the Empire may be an "If you can be em, join em thing." But like Rafa mentioned. He may even have felt held back by Hunter's nice guy tendencies. Crosshair picked his side.

Where Echo is going to shine is he is really the only member who can take over from Hunter if something happens to him. Not just as a leader but as a guardian for Omega. He's being pushed as the most experienced, flexable, and cunning of the group. Wow... Echo is flexable? That's something I never would have thought of saying about Echo. After blowing up and compared to Tech, Wrecker, and even Hunter himself definitely. Echo was definitely giving orders this last episode. It's also interesting that while Hunter is Best Dad and Wrecker is Omega's shadow. Echo both this episode and a little bit in "Rampage" is becoming Omega's mentor. Echo is the second person Omega calls for help. Watch, when Hunter is not available Echo will be first.

Echo teaching Omega how to shot reminded me very much of Rex. It's the first time in a while I've felt like I can see an influence from Echo's former life. Rex relishes training shinies. It doesn't matter if they are Domino Squad, Lux Bonteri, or Ezra.

 

I really, really love the ending of TBB Season 2 Episode 8 where for me, there is some really great characterisation with Echo. Instead of continuing with the team, unlike Tech a few episodes ago with the racer episode, Echo decides to go with Rex and pursue something more meaningful to him other than Cid's latest mission; that being to help save his fellow Clone brothers from what they are beginning to experience with the Empire.

I think Echo's journey with this starts right back to being a prisoner with the Separatists and what was done to him. I feel it's further influenced by the fact that his BB brothers came for him and saved him and feels a sense that he owes one back. And I have felt this (his departure) building a little throughout the season with what he has been saying and what he has witnessed.

I applaud this type of characterisation because it reflects a character growing and evolving from what they have experienced throughout the greater narrative. Echo has not been a stagnant character, nor confined to a box of expectation - with clear and distinct boundaries for what he is perceived to always be. The character has been allowed to grow and evolve as an individual character and not as part of a collective group.

And this sense of individualism in the Clones seemingly is starting to become more and more (in a name sense) within the narrative as Stormtroopers take their place. I realise there are many previous examples in TCW, etc, where quite a number of Clones had their own name outside of their rank number. But there has been episodes with more examples in this season of TBB and I feel like that it's deliberately done for the audience to feel closer to the Clones on an individual level than what they should feel towards the faceless evil of an Imperial Stormtrooper.

Really loving these characterisation aspects.

 

The only question for me is: why don’t the rest of the BB join Echo and Rex? Why do they choose to risk their lives doing criminal odd jobs vs. risking their lives for clones?