The Program | A Bad Batch Animation 

I agree, I really wish the CX squad got more screen time! Ever since we met the first CX clone in s. 2, I’ve been really curious and hoping we’d get more of their backstories… And thanks so much, so glad you enjoyed this!!

Aw thank you so much! I really appreciate that! Despite the darker themes/it being more intense than my other videos, it was so fun to work on. And, the Jason Bourne dialogue is what came to mind when I first watched the Infiltration episode (as Crosshair was talking about the program), so it was satisfying to finally make this and put it all together!

Agreed, I really wish we saw more of them! (I mean, I’m happy/so relieved the rest of the Bad Batch made it and all in the finale, but I was kind of disappointed with how little screen time the CX squad got…) Aw thank you so much! I had a blast making this and I’m glad you enjoyed it!!

Yep.

Yes, they are similar!

Aw thank you, I’m so glad you enjoyed it!! I thought of Jason Bourne and this dialogue the first time I heard Crosshair talking about the program in the Infiltration episode. So, it was really satisfying to finally make this (and try to fill in some gaps in CX-2’s story since he didn’t end up being Tech… or Cody… or a clone of a clone (Crosshair) or [fill in any other CX fan theories] 😂).

@@TealTrooper honestly I don’t mind calling him ARC-Trooper Webb from now on lol. Jason Bourne is one of my favorite franchises so incorporating his story into CX-2’s is like a dream come true for me heheh. It is a little sad that none of our theories came true, but I suppose that just shows that you don’t have to be a named character to be fantastic 😅

@@thevisibleconfusionist1784 ARC Trooper Webb, I like it. (And, cool to know you’re a Jason Bourne fan too!) Agreed! I will say, the fan theories were fun. I really enjoyed all the red herrings and guessing while watching Season 3. Good times…

@@TealTrooper *queue the Bourne soundtrack* Aaaahhhh yes 😌 the good old days…

Thanks!! Agreed, and I’m sure it would’ve been a lot darker than what I did here, sadly. I’ve always wondered ever since we first got introduced to the CX clones in s. 2 what their stories might have been like… Btw, I saw your drawing Megapicsxl shared of Obi-Wan and Cody! It’s so sweet. Do you share your art on any platforms anywhere? (And no pressure if not - I just love your art style and was wondering if you happened to have more posted somewhere to view!)

​@TealTrooper well it turned out great! And yes! I also loved the CXs. So sad we didn't see more of them Thank you! It was super fun to draw it! (I guess I like to create sentimental peices like that at 3am 😂). Curently at the moment I do not have a collection of my drawings up. As soon as I get my YT channel up and running, i hope to post some artwork either on YT or any other media platforms I choose to have. If you have any ideas that could help, I would love to hear them! I'm still new to all this stuff so any help would be appreciated! Thank you for the kind comment though! And good luck on any and all of your future projects!

@@SrirachaSkywalkerEdits212 Aw cool, I’m excited to see more of your art whenever you decide to share it!! Well, I’ve only been on RU-vid for about 6 months, so I’m pretty new to the world of sharing/posting my art too. 😂 I feel like it really depends on what you want to do with your art, how many accounts you want to manage, and if you’re just wanting to casually share it for people to view or if you want to take it further and do some commissions, requests, open an Etsy shop, etc. etc. For me, I’m just doing this for fun. I set up this YT channel to share my animatic video attempts, and then I set up Instagram and DeviantArt accounts as an easier way to share some of my still art. I’m aware that there are other platforms like Cara, Art Station, Pinterest, etc. that other people use, though. So far, YT and Instagram have been cool places to connect with people over recent art/videos, but I do like DeviantArt because of the ability to create/organize Favorite folders and galleries, and it’s a good way to enjoy older pieces of art (some of my favorite Star Wars fan art is from over a decade ago). For whichever platform you consider, I do recommend checking out AI data collecting policies (Instagram is problematic with AI, but DeviantArt does have a “noAI” feature to opt out of AI art scrapping). Not sure if that helps at all, but those are just some things I’ve learned from my short experience… if you discover good places to share art or if you ever have recommendations, I’d love to hear them too! Best wishes to you on you art/projects adventures!!

​@TealTrooper thank you so much for all the suggestions! It's a big help to me! I can't wait to ne able to share my art soon and these ideas are the best start for me. I'll be sure to let you know as soon as anything comes out! Thank you again!

@@SrirachaSkywalkerEdits212 No problem, glad it was helpful! Awesome! 👍

Thanks so much!! Ever since we met a CX clone, I’ve been wondering what that process might’ve been like and how much was voluntary willingness (to have your identity erased, etc. etc.) vs. influence by the brainwashing/chip alterations… which is why I tried to take a more nuanced interpretation with for CX-2. Yeah.😢 I couldn’t find the Mando’a word/phrase for this, but you’re too kind!! Vor’e!! 😊

@@TealTrooper Oya!! Ba'gedet'ye! I always wondered the same, but I could only speculate. The way you portrayed it couldn’t have been more accurate, plus based on what we know :,). (At least I hope so and it wasn’t actually anything worse 😅. Then again, it’s Hemlock 😔.) Aw, anytime! 😊❤️

Thanks so much, glad you enjoyed this! Same here, I loved the designs of the CX squad. And, as relieved/surprised as I was that the rest of the Bad Batch made it out of the finale, I would’ve loved to have seen more of the CX squad in action. And to have found out who they were… (but I enjoyed all the different fan theories about them - Tech, Cody, clone of clones, etc.)

Yeah…. it’s a bit more intense/depressing than some of my other videos… 😢

That would’ve been such an interesting story!!

Thanks, glad you enjoyed it!! Yes, I would’ve loved to see more of CX-2 (and the CX squad) too. A series on them would be really interesting!

Thanks so much, so glad you enjoyed it!! Even though it’s a bit of an intense video, it was so fun to try out different angles for the drawings and “camera” movements!

Yeah, this one was a bit darker/more intense!!

Thank you so much, I really appreciate that!! The “camera” movements were really fun to try to figure out with this video. I was trying to go for that shaky handheld camera feel (without going too crazy with it) that we see in Jason Bourne and other movies.

@@TealTrooper You nailed it!!

Thank you so much! (And yes!!! You saw Megapicsxl’s Reunion animation too? It’s so good!!!!) Okay, so I admit - I started storyboarding this when season 3 was still coming out, and I was keeping it open in case CX-2 did end up being Tech… but, after seeing the finale and the way things went, I decided to go this route instead. But, yeah, it really didn’t hit me that Tech was truly gone until that finale…

It’s funny, I thought about Jason Bourne as soon as Crosshair started talking about the CX program in that episode (like six months ago)… So, it was really fun to draw/put this together finally! 😁Glad you enjoyed it!!

Hey!! Good to see you here from DeviantArt, Pixel!! And, thanks so much! Yes, it was fun to add that in - the last word is supposed to be “speed” (I was going for a “character sheet” type of reference, like stealth, speed, agility, etc. to fill up the space 😂). Glad you enjoyed this!

I really appreciate it, thanks!! Glad you enjoyed it!

I know right? 😭

Well, golly, thank you!! 🫡

Just doing my duty! 🫡 (Glad you enjoyed it!)

Your work deserves you a medal

Yeah, the first time I watched that episode when Crosshair talks about the program, this Jason Bourne dialogue is what immediately came to mind!

@@TealTrooper it’s good dialogue for the scene

@tealtrooper Question, do you draw these from memory?

@@FrogStir4884 Aw thank you so much!!! That’s really kind of you. And, good question! What I’ll do is rewatch TBB scenes and pause it to take a good look at what’s going on. (For example, Hemlock’s training/lab room during the finale episode, because I couldn’t remember off the top of my head what it looked like). Then, I’ll freehand draw my own interpretation of it (I never trace or anything). So, in this video, the experiment table/tube etc. doesn’t look exactly like it does in the show, but I feel like it’s close enough that people will know what it’s supposed to be. I also had to remind myself what the CX helmet looked like, but once I drew my version of it, I just went off of memory and tried to make the rest of my drawings consistent with each other. Sorry that was a bit long-winded, but yes, that’s basically my process! Hope that makes sense (let me know if it doesn’t!). 😂

@@TealTrooper Wow! Cause it looks fantastic! And the tube thing did look something like it from the show too! The CX helmet does look on spot too! Ohhh! I would have a problem with doing it from memory that's why mine seems so flat and limited. I thought I had to do it from memory, but sometimes i would look at references and then they would look nicer. But I thought it was the wrong way 👀 Your art style is cool! And interesting! It stands out, and looks realistic (like close to the actual characters) and same as the mapping you did! Thank you for telling me what you do for these! Yes it did make sense 😅

@@FrogStir4884 With so many characters (especially all of the different clone armor colors and designs), that would be so hard to go just off of memory! I can’t keep all of them in my head. 😂 And, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with fact-checking (as long as we’re drawing it each in our own style). 😄 No problem, I’m happy to share! And thanks so much for the encouragement, too. It’s fun to talk about these things with a fellow artist/animator!

@@TealTrooper It is hard doing it from memory 😅 No problem!😃

Yes, I had been wondering about the CX clones ever since we got introduced to them! It was a lot of fun to make this to try to fill in those gaps (despite it being more intense/darker themed…) Glad you enjoyed it!

Aw thanks!! Glad you enjoyed it!

Thank you so much, I appreciate it!

Aw thank you! Yeah it’s a bit intense, but it was still a lot of fun to make!

Glad you enjoyed it! (And thanks!!)

Aw cool, happy to have you here!! And thanks!! This was so fun to make, despite it being a bit intense and having darker themes… And you noticed the tears! I tried to take a nuanced interpretation for CX-2 (wondering how much of this was voluntary vs. how much was it from being reconditioned? etc. etc.), so that was a way to show that maybe a part of CX-2 didn’t want to let go of his old self/identity.

@@TealTrooper Thank you! Yeah, I really like the ambiguity regarding how much was his choice vs. how much was the conditioning. I just wish we could've seen more of them, it felt like they killed CX-2 off too... I don't know if _easily_ is the right word, but his death felt hollow. Like there should have been more to his story. Especially with the way they personified him with the camera angles and those little moments of vulnerability. I wasn't expecting him to be Tech, but I just kept thinking they were going somewhere else with that, and I feel a little cheated out of a story. (I still love this series with all my heart and soul, though)

@@cmpiepho Well said! Agreed, I really felt like they were setting up CX-2 as a character who we’d get to know a bit more since we got those several scenes with him… Yeah, The Bad Batch is a really special show - I love it so much too!

Thank you so much!!

Thanks so much!! Despite it being a bit of an intense story, it was really fun to work on!

Aw thanks so much!! So glad you enjoyed it!

“Emperor Palpatine has approved this message.” 👍

Thanks so much, so glad you enjoyed it!!

Thank you so much!!

Thanks so much!! Hey, btw I hope your hand is healing/healed up okay!

@@TealTrooper It’s doing much better! Thanks for asking! 😊

@@Arwenn-edits No problem, and glad to hear that!

Thanks, glad you enjoyed it!!

Aw thanks!!

I really appreciate it, thanks! (And, I’ll try! 😅😁)

Aw thanks!! Glad you enjoyed it!

Thanks so much!! Yeah, Hemlock is actually a really fun character to draw! And I had to include Scorch in at least one scene, albeit briefly, so it was fun to draw them side by side. 😁

@@TealTrooper Your Welcome, of course we got to add Scorch 😉 Also I have an idea you don’t need to feel like you have to do it but I was wondering if you can create a short animation on the republic commando books. I’m sure you have lot of ideas and animations you want to do so you don’t got to do it just wondering because I love all the animations you been making.

@@TheBudgieCrew You know, I’ve had an idea for a RC Omega Squad animatic (and a few for RC Delta Squad) that I started writing down notes for/storyboarding (my problem is that what I’m picturing in my head is kind of complicated and I’m not sure how to draw/make them yet 😂!) I was thinking of one based on the RC Order 66 and Imperial Commando 501st books focusing on Darman… Was there a certain part of the books you had in mind? (I’m open to ideas, although I make no promises LOL!)

@@TealTrooper Ohh that’s interesting! I would love to see those. Hmmm maybe something in triple zero?

@@TheBudgieCrew Good idea, Triple Zero would be cool… especially since we start getting to know Ordo and Skirata in that. I’d have to think about what part of the story to tell and find some potential songs, though… 🤔

Agreed, it is really sad…

Thanks!!

Hey there!! Yeah that was fun to figure out - in the Procreate Dreams app, I had separate groups/tracks for the foreground and background that I moved in opposite directions (for the scenes when we’re looking over shoulders, etc.). I then put those groups under a large group, which I then did some zoom in/out and slightly up/down movements for that “shaky camera” feel on the whole scene. And a pinch of the gaussian blur tool to try to create that “camera focusing in/out” effect. Hopefully that all made sense (let me know if it doesn’t!). I’m not sure if other animating apps have these tools, but if yours does, it’s a lot of fun to play around with. 👍That’s what I did - I just played around with the movements until I liked how it looked (later I found out what I was basically doing is called “parallax” - so I learned something new!).

@@TealTroopersuper impressive! Thank you so much!

@@gettysanimations No problem! 👍 (Thanks, btw!)

It's from one of the James Bourne movies I think

@@josefinagonzalezdamico4538 oh I thought it was from halo or the winter soldier

The Jason Bourne films

@@StarWars_TheFan oh I thought it would be from the winter soldier

@@Choctrainer1005 The stories are very similar!

Isn’t it?? As much as I wish we got more info on the CX clones’ backstory in the show, I get why they didn’t give us more details other than hints here and there (probably for the younger audiences’ sake). But yeah, I’m sure it was really dark. That’s why I tried to show some of that potential intensity without getting too dark in this video. Ever since we met the CX clones, I’ve always wondered how much was voluntary/willingness vs. brainwashing/conditioning/effects from the chip…

Yeah, the EU lore is a whole different level!