Hi everyone! I just finished watching Star Wars The Bad Batch episode 13, and it’s one of my favorite episodes so far. This standalone episode one of the most beautiful, adventure-filled, and yet charming stories.
And not only that, we see more contrasts between Omega and Boba Fett. And so today, I’ll go over what I love about “Infested”, and some of its highlights. Then I’ll talk about why Omega and Boba Fett are both the same, and yet so different as well.
Highlights from Star Wars The Bad Batch Episode 13
We get a true Cid episode
This episode of The Bad Batch focused on Cid. She is one of my favorite characters of the series, and in this episode we truly see her shine.
Cid shows again that she is wily and experienced yet kind and honorable. This episode shows again how Cid is a positive mentor for Omega. Mythologically, Cid fills the archetype of the Wise Woman.
While Omega’s Bad Batch brothers are less trusting and compassionate towards Cid, Omega knows Cid is a true friend and deserves their help. As I’ve stated before, Star Wars follows basic fairytale and folklore tropes, but at times subverts them.
It’s common for the maiden of a fairytale to help a wise old witch, and for the witch to help the maiden in return later, but this time, it is the maiden helping the wise old woman. Cid has helped Omega make use of her own talents of strategy. In turn, Omega persuades her brothers to help Cid regain her parlor.
This story, once again provides a contrast with another famous Fett and Trandoshan—Boba and Bossk. Bossk is older than Boba Fett and serves partly as a mentor to the boy when he is young and in prison.
But the relationship is entirely transactional, lacking the genuine friendship and heart underlying Cid and Omega’s relationship.
Roland Durand and Ruby the Space Pangolin
This episode brought the return of Ruby the space pangolin. It was the episode Battle Scars that introduced fans to this purring cutie pie. Not only do we finally learn Ruby’s buyer, but we get to meet him. Roland Durand the Devaronian is the son of a gangster named Isa we are certain to meet eventually.
Roland adores his roly poly pet, and is the only other person Ruby loves. Of course, Omega is also Ruby’s friend. I find it interesting that Roland kept Ruby’s name.
There are lovely little touches in this story, from Ruby’s purring and demands for belly rubs, to Roland turning her on the bar stool for fun. Roland is a fun character himself, and his conversation with Omega about criminal relatives was rather brow-raising.
For one, Roland is only making a grab at Cid’s parlor to impress his gangster mother. He’s clearly in over his head and is fortunate to escape with only a horn lost. But I can’t help but notice that Roland made Cid’s parlor very popular in a short time. Perhaps Roland’s real talent is in running clubs or casinos?
I’m not sure if Omega is aware of her criminal brother Boba Fett and father Jango Fett or not. This exchange between Roland and Omega is peak dramatic irony either for the future, or else a reflection of Omega’s sympathy for something she already knows she has in her family.
Omega feels compassion for Roland, telling Hunter and the Pykes that he simply made a mistake. I feel this is definitely foreshadowing for both Crossfire, who Omega believes in, and Boba Fett as well.
It’s hard not watch this dialogue between Roland and Omega and not think of Boba Fett
Omega and Boba Fett — two children with different paths
As I’ve stated before , Omega’s story loosely follows a Snow White motif. In a Jungian perspective, the Snow White story structure separates Snow White’s life into two parts. One part of her life is with the dwarves/misfits/knights, who are her brother and sometimes son-like figures. The second part is when Snow White meets the complete animus, represented as her prince. For Omega, this will be her brother, Boba Fett
Snow White and Omega again — part 1
In the Woodland Exile part of the tale, Snow White represents the anima, or soul and spiritual guide, for the young misfit men to follow. Snow White is the driving force and motivation that leads the misfits, the outcasts to develop into mature, integrated men.
Omega is Snow White. She is the anima of the Bad Batch brothers. In turn, the brothers are diverse and fractured aspects of Snow White’s and Omega’s soul. They represent a fractured, multi-part animus for the tale’s heroine.
For Carl Jung, the animus was not the same as the anima for men. Jung believed men had only one singular image of the feminine anima that acts as a driving force or motivation. He believed women had multiple images of their masculine animus.
As a side note, while I personally don’t subscribe to Jung’s psychoanalytical beliefs, it’s important to understand them to understand Joseph Campbell and to understand Star Wars. Why? Because Star Wars takes a Jungian and Campbellian approach to stories and chooses myths that fall in line with Campbellian structures.
With that in mind, it’s worthwhile to note that Jung believed the animus archetype helps the woman or girl connect with the psyche and understand herself. Tech, Hunter, Wrecker, Echo, and Crosshair are all separate aspects of Omega that help her to understand parts of herself, the same as the knights or dwarves do the same for Snow White and the Dead Princess.
Boba Fett as the Prince — part 2
This means the second part of Omega’s story will be her meeting with the unified animus that complements her. I think this is clearly meant to be Boba Fett
He is her truest brother, directly made from Jango himself as Omega is. The Snow White tale, he would be the Prince. For this Star Wars tale, the prince/animus is going to be the figure she meets at some future point, which will signify Omega’s complete initiation into adulthood and integration with the self.
The relationship with her Bad Batch brothers will prepare her and help her to grow and became an integrated woman in her own right, as the Knights and Dwarves do for Snow White.
Star Wars loves it’s anima and animus stories. First we have Luke and Leia as twin Jedi, then Rey and Ben as the spiritual Dyad (the ultimate DIVINE COUPLE), and now Omega and Boba Fett as dual clones. While Ben and Rey are romantic and spiritual, Luke/Leia and Omega/Boba are familial in their relationship.
Differences between Omega and Boba Fett — and how they are the same
Omega and Boba Fett are foils of one another. We see Omega’s compassion in truckloads, but it’s important to remember that Boba did not start his life as a ruthless, murderous boy.
Indeed, The Clone Wars makes several points of showing Boba’s pain at seeing his clone brothers harmed. He cannot bring himself to kill one of the adult clones at Aurra Sing’s behest in season 2 episode arc. And note that Aurra Sing is a Dark Mother/Mentor figure for Boba Fett.
However, Aurra Sing encourages the worst in Bob. She punishes Boba for his compassionate feelings, driving him to only kill and get vengeance. Ultimately Aurra abandons him. Boba is in such shock and pain that Aurra abandons him, it’s all he can think about for a moment.
Like Omega, he fears abandonment above all. This abandonment by mentors, fathers, mother figures and even Republic society sends Boba into a further downward spiral. Both Boba and Omega show in their series that fear of abandonment is a major negative motivator for them. As unaltered clones, did Jango Fett face the same fear? He likely did.
And this is where Omega and Boba’s differences occur. They are different because of their life circumstances. One Fett faces death and abandonment at an early age, the other is nurtured so compassion can grow.
Omega has had an offscreen, but seemingly positive relationship with her mother figure Nala Se, who does not abandon her, but rather lets her go for her own protection. Cid is a positive wise woman who encourages Omega’s talent for strategy.
Omega’s brothers help her to grow when she needs to, and protect her. She can trust her brothers not to abandon her. She and Boba are the same children whose lives diverge into different directions.
Omega is a Boba Fett that never got to be, and Boba is an Omega tossed away and forgotten. Both children have compassion, we see it in the Clone Wars. Boba always held that capacity for love and the desire to be loved. Alternatively, I wonder if Omega has within her Boba’s sense of rage. Boba’s rage, his vengeance, is born out of pain. He tells Ahsoka that he is not a murderer and that he only wants justice.
And I think that is something we should pay attention to. Omega and Boba Fett both innately desire justice–the same as the Jedi, ironically. Boba never finds that sense of justice realized in his world. Omega’s sense of justice is strong as well–we see her get angry at the concept of slavery. But we’ve never seen her anger be tested, seen her face an injustice she is helpless against.
I don’t know when these characters will meet. Like Luke and Leia, and Ben and Rey, they are destined to meet. Will Omega and Boba Fett find balance?