To my eternal shame, I am yet to watch any of the Star Wars Spinoff Cartoons. Given that I have Disney plus though, and that this is the first one I can watch as it airs, I decided that "The Bad Batch" was as good a place to start as any.
When Order 66 signifies the defacto end of the Clone Wars, Clone Force 99, otherwise known as "The Bad Batch" decide that the newly formed Empire will force them to make tactical and morale decisions that they can't agree with. Liberating Omega (Michelle Ang) a young clone girl from Kamino, the team attempt to maintain a low profile whilst undertaking whatever missions they can find. Omega though is a prized asset and several dangerous interested parties make her their target.
It's hard not to start the series with immense praise for Dee Bradley Baker, who plays all the members of Clone force 99 and manages to make each feel like there are both a clone of the others, and a fully realised character in their own right. Michelle Ang manages to keep Omega on the right side of annoying too, even when 'precocious child' is a bit of a trope. There's also a nice turn from Rhea Perlman, as a recurring character Cid. Ming-Na Wen makes two appearances, with her returning "Mandalorian" character Fennec Shand. Sian Clifford appears in one episode, making it a nice little in joke that both the "Fleabag" sisters have played robots in Star Wars.
The animation style is nice, both the character work and the scenery vistas are excellent. The stories are generally solid family friendly types adventures, with the gang often put in mild peril, before escaping thanks to the one of the various skills each member has. A few of them were, to my mind, a little underwhelming - but generally the show entertained both me and my son enough that watching them each weekend morning was a fun little ritual.
Genuinely looking forward to season two, and now I'm in, I guess it's time for the Clone Wars.