Metamorphosis and Sacrifice in The Bad Batch Season Two
Hyperspace Theories
Before turning to the currently releasing third season of Star Wars: The Bad Batch, Hyperspace Theories podcast returns to the concluding episodes of Season Two. Having previously analyzed the first ten episodes, Tricia Barr and B.J. Priester discuss episodes 11 through 16, starting with “Metamorphosis” and “The Outpost” and ending with Tech’s (apparent) self-sacrifice by implementing the tragic “Plan 99” during the squad’s fateful mission to Tarkin’s base on Eriadu. On the theme of metamorphosis and transformation, we consider the introduction of Doctor Hemlock as the...
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The Future of Star Wars
Hyperspace Theories
Hyperspace Theories kicks off 2024 with a new episode analyzing recent developments that appear to chart a new course for the future of Star Wars. Tricia Barr and B.J. Priester begin with the November 2023 news, first revealed in a Vanity Fair article by longtime Star Wars and entertainment journalist Anthony Breznican, that Dave Filoni has been promoted to the position of Chief Creative Officer at Lucasfilm. We discuss what a CCO role entails and how Filoni’s position compares to other CCO roles within The Walt Disney Company overall. Filoni also now holds the title of Executive...
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Ahsoka and the Allegories of Mortis
Hyperspace Theories
The epilogue montage of the recently concluded Ahsoka series on Disney+ included a surprising and exciting image: former Jedi turned antagonist Baylan Skoll standing amid colossal statues of the Father, Son, and (partially destroyed) Daughter of Mortis. These mysterious and powerful “Force Wielders” have a long connection to Ahsoka mastermind Dave Filoni: they interacted with Anakin Skywalker, Ahsoka Tano, and Obi-Wan Kenobi in the Mortis trilogy (2011) in the third season of The Clone Wars animated series, for which Filoni served as supervising director under...
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AHSOKA Tackles the Jedi, the Force, and the Future of Star Wars
Hyperspace Theories
The Ahsoka series on Disney+ has reached its finale. On this episode of Hyperspace Theories, Tricia Barr and B.J. Priester analyze the storytelling in Part Six “Far, Far Away,” Part Seven “Dreams and Madness,” and Part Eight “The Jedi, the Witch, and the Warlord” and consider what Ahsoka establishes for the future of Star Wars tales. We begin by examining the conclusions to the character arcs of Ahsoka Tano and Sabine Wren, and their relationship as master and apprentice. With Ezra Bridger reunited with his old friends, the series portrays three different...
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Ahsoka and Anakin Reunite!
Hyperspace Theories
Tricia Barr and B.J. Priester return for another episode of Hyperspace Theories discussing the Ahsoka Disney+ series, specifically the second act of the story: Part Three “Time to Fly,” Part Four “Fallen Jedi,” and Part Five “Shadow Warrior.” Often Star Wars is at its best when it advances not only the character arcs of its principals, but also the mythology of the franchise, The episodes of Ahsoka, and “Shadow Warrior” especially, mark a great success in that tradition. As we mentioned in our previous episode discussing the two-part...
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Ahsoka Premiere: Masters, Apprentices, and Witches
Hyperspace Theories
The circle is now complete. Dave Filoni, longtime storytelling Padawan to George Lucas, has been Executive Creative Director for Star Wars for and played an instrumental role in the creation and progression of The Mandalorian streaming series. With Ahsoka, the latest live-action Disney+ series from Star Wars, Filoni not only leads the project in full – he wrote all eight episodes and directed the first (and fifth) – but also brings the erstwhile Jedi apprentice from key member of ensemble casts to titular character and central figure. Over the past fifteen years,...
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What Happened to The Mandalorian Season 3?
Hyperspace Theories
On the latest episode of Hyperspace Theories, Tricia Barr and B.J. Priester discuss Chapters 20 to 24 of The Mandalorian, the five episodes comprising the middle and end of Season Three. (In our we talked about Chapters 17 to 19, the trio that began the season.) Overall, the theme of our analysis is the inconsistencies that seem to pervade Season Three from start to finish. Despite that dynamic, we found much to enjoy and praise in Season Three. After the first three episodes focused on themes of identity, the remaining five episodes carried them forward on multiple levels....
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The Mandalorian Season Three Begins By Exploring Identity
Hyperspace Theories
The Mandalorian is back on Disney+ to kick off Season Three. On this episode of Hyperspace Theories, Tricia Barr and B.J. Priester discuss the characterization and storytelling developments unfolding across Chapter 17 (“The Apostate”), Chapter 18 (“The Mines of Mandalore”), and Chapter 19 (“The Convert”). By the end of these three episodes, we’ve learned a lot more about our central characters, yet each of them still faces profound questions about how they will choose to define, and possibly reshape, their individual identities going forward. For this season, Katee Sackoff...
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Facing the Ordeal: The Bad Batch Season 2 Episodes 7 - 10
Hyperspace Theories
In the previous two recordings of Hyperspace Theories, we discussed the two story arc comprising the first six episodes of Season Two of The Bad Batch. In this recording, Tricia Barr and B.J. Priester analyze the next four episodes, which bring the story through episode 10 (of 16) in this season. Building on our previous consideration of the Hero’s Journey story structure in The Bad Batch, we examine how episodes 7 to 10 bring Clone Force 99 into an emotional abyss that typifies the conclusion of the second stage of the journey and the transition into the third stage. In “The...
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The Trials of Bad Batch Season 2
Hyperspace Theories
On the latest episode of Hyperspace Theories, Tricia Barr and B.J. Priester consider the second set of three episodes in Season Two of The Bad Batch. These episodes – “Faster,” “Entombed,” and “Tribe” – present a trio of independent, self-contained missions for Omega and her brothers: accompanying Cid for an ill-fated gambling excursion involving riot racing, a dangerous adventure to seek an artifact in an ancient tomb with Phee, and an unexpected encounter with Gungi, a young Wookiee Jedi survivor of Order 66, that leads Clone Force 99 to conflict-scarred Kashyyyk....
info_outlineWith Season Two of The Mandalorian premiering at the end of the month, our latest episode of Hyperspace Theories revisits the stories told in Season One. Between the three-episode opening arc and the two-episode conclusion falls a trio of distinct episodes that build and develop a number of important character dynamics. Tricia Barr and B.J. Priester discuss Chapter Four: Sanctuary, Chapter Five: The Gunslinger, and Chapter Six: The Prisoner and what they contribute to The Mandalorian’s story progression.
Many of those developments involve the show’s central and titular character. Like the middle of a Campbellian journey, Mando faces tests and trials while encountering allies and enemies. These episodes, for example, reinforce Mando’s distaste for droids and his sworn commitment to never remove his helmet around other people. They also show his worldly experience, his tactical combat prowess and creativity, and the code of honor that plays a role in determining which adversaries he defeats but leaves alive – and which ones he kills. And of course, his relationship with his ward, Baby Yoda, advances too, with a little prompting from Cara Dune, Omera, and Pelli Motto, as well as Mando’s own burgeoning affection for the child.
Check back soon for our next episode, also to be released before Season Two begins, when we will discuss the finale episodes of Season One.
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Related Links
- Hyperspace Theories: The Mandalorian, Chapters 1-3
- The Mandalorian Season Two Official Trailer (YouTube)
Contact Information:
- Hyperspace Theories: Twitter @HyperspacePod
- Tricia Barr: Twitter @FANgirlcantina; email [email protected]
- B.J. Priester: Twitter @RedPenofLex; email [email protected]