"Juggernaut" marks the twelfth installment in the third season of Star Wars: The Bad Batch. This episode was first shown on April 10, 2024.
The Batch find themselves in need of a risky escape while searching for an unexpected source.
Omega, a prisoner, arrives at Tantiss Base aboard CX-2's CX Dagger vessel. CX-2 escorts the restrained Omega down the docking ramp, where Dr. Royce Hemlock greets her. Hemlock removes her restraints, commends Omega for her surrender, and guides her into the base. They traverse the main corridor before descending via a turbolift to the Central lab, now under the control of Emerie Karr.
Hemlock instructs Karr to commence testing Omega's Midi-chlorian levels. Karr initially hesitates but ultimately follows Hemlock's orders. When Omega inquires about Nala Se, Hemlock reveals that the Kaminoan scientist is imprisoned and unable to aid in any escape attempts. Hemlock departs, stating he will return for the results. Omega attempts to reason with Karr, but Karr insists she has no choice. As she takes a sample from Omega, Karr voices her relief that her younger sister is safe, but pauses briefly when Omega sharply questions whether she truly is.
Meanwhile, on Pabu, Imperial forces begin to reappear, arriving in LAAT gunships from their Venator-class Star Destroyer. Hunter and Batcher meet Crosshair and Wrecker at their hideout. Hunter relays that the Imperial troops have retreated, but the cruiser continues to disrupt communications. Wrecker expresses his anger that Crosshair let Omega surrender to the Empire. Crosshair retorts that the Galactic Empire would have destroyed the town if she hadn't, and points out that she stopped them from doing so. Wrecker laments the loss of Omega and their starship, the Marauder. Hunter adds that they lack the means to locate Tantiss Base.
Crosshair proposes that former Vice Admiral Edmon Rampart might possess the coordinates to Tantiss Base, explaining that he sent Nala Se there after the Empire "decommissioned" Tipoca City. Hunter questions why he didn't mention this earlier. Crosshair responds that he does not want to return to Tantiss. Crosshair concedes that Rampart is not trustworthy, but emphasizes that he is their only remaining option.
Before Crosshair can continue, Batcher barks. Phee Genoa and AZI-345211896246498721347 emerge from a trapdoor hidden under a table. AZI requests they not shoot. He explains that he found Genoa while scouting. Genoa has been informed by AZI about the Imperial search on Pabu. When Hunter asks how she arrived undetected, Genoa explains she used a hidden cavern entrance to dock her ship. Genoa tells Crosshair that Tech told her about him, and accepts him as a friend. Crosshair informs the group that Rampart is serving his sentence at the Imperial labor camp on Erebus.
On Erebus, a HCVw A9 turbo tank crosses a bridge to another area of the labor camp. Rampart is working in a mining facility under the supervision of a masked alien prison foreman, whom he dislikes taking orders from. While traveling through hyperspace on Phee's ship, the Providence, Genoa provides the Bad Batch with a holomap of the labor camp obtained from a contact. Hunter inquires if she can get them close to the camp's perimeter without being detected. Genoa confirms she can, but warns about the guards and security systems inside the camp. Wrecker believes they can handle the Imperials.
Crosshair suggests using a terminal at one of the checkpoints. Hunter tells Genoa they will contact her for a pickup once they have located their target. The Providence exits hyperspace. Amidst several class four container transports, Genoa activates her ship's "stealth mode" by shutting down the engines and descending into Erebus' atmosphere. She restarts the engines in the lower atmosphere and lands the clones on a mountain near the labor camp.
The Bad Batch approach a large suspension bridge where they stun two TK stormtrooper guards. They then access a terminal to pinpoint Rampart's location. Rampart impatiently awaits the end of his work shift. He struggles to understand the Ugnaught foreman due to their language barrier. The two join other prisoners lining up outside Transport One, a turbo tank repurposed as a prisoner transport.
Crosshair informs Hunter that Rampart is scheduled to be transported back to the prison from the mining structure. Hunter, using his macrobinoculars, confirms that the prison is on the other side of the bridge. Hunter suggests intercepting Rampart during transport. Wrecker is excited about confronting a turbo tank, but Crosshair advises against a direct assault. Examining the surrounding terrain, Hunter proposes going beneath the turbo tank.
Rampart is secured in a holding cell on Transport One. A stormtrooper announces to the prisoners that they are returning to base. As the turbo tank nears the bridge, Hunter declares he will secure the cockpit while the others secure Rampart. The clones use grappling cables to board the turbo tank, triggering the sensor alarms. A stormtrooper emerges from the roof hatch to investigate.
The Bad Batch enter the turbo tank through the hatch. Wrecker incapacitates the driver. With the holding cell door magnetically sealed, Crosshair instructs Wrecker to remember Plan 55 as they enter the block. The clones use their blasters to shoot the stormtroopers guarding the prisoners. Rampart recognizes Crosshair, addressing him as CT-9904. They contact Hunter about the target. When Rampart asks if they intend to kill him, Crosshair jokes that it's tempting. The clones release the other prisoners, who are allowed to leave the tank into the wilderness.
At a bridge control tower, an Imperial weapons technician informs the warden that Transport One has made an unauthorized stop mid-route. The warden orders the technician to diagnose their comms. Back at the transport, Rampart realizes the clones need something from him. When Crosshair asks about the location of Tantiss Base, Rampart asks how much that information is worth to them. Crosshair retorts that he is not in a position to negotiate. Rampart disagrees, stating that he will only talk if they get him offworld. He asserts that they won't get what they want if he doesn't get what he wants.
Hunter instructs Wrecker to operate the cannons as they approach the bridge. Meanwhile, the technician reports that Transport One's comms appear to be jammed. The warden and technician look out the window and notice the tank is accelerating. Realizing the transport has been compromised, the warden orders the deployment of gunships and the sealing of the bridge. Transport Two is rerouted to intercept the hijacked transport as the bridge deploys several barriers.
Hunter drives Transport One through the heavy barriers. The Bad Batch also exchange fire with Transport Two, which is approaching from the opposite end. Unable to penetrate its armor, Hunter orders Wrecker to disable the wheels with rockets. The rockets successfully disable Transport Two. Hunter accelerates the turbo tank over Transport Two and lands safely on the other side. Rampart attempts to grab a blaster, but Crosshair shoots it out of his hand before stunning him.
Stormtroopers board two LAAT gunships as Transport One plows through a second set of barriers and crosses the bridge. Once they clear the perimeter, Crosshair carries Rampart into the cockpit and Hunter requests a pickup from Phee Genoa. Wrecker manages to shoot down one of the gunships, causing it to crash and explode. The second gunship pursues Transport One along a narrow cliffside road. Several stormtroopers are deployed from the troop bay and disable the dorsal turret cannons. Hunter manages to shake off three stormtroopers, with two falling off the cliff and one being crushed against the cliff.
The LAAT gunship manages to disable the wheel controls before Genoa destroys the gunship. Genoa flies the Providence over Transport One, allowing the clones and the unconscious Rampart to board her ship via a forward docking ramp. Wrecker jumps off the turbo tank just before it falls off the cliff. Hunter and Crosshair pull him to safety.
Once in space, the Bad Batch confront Rampart, who has regained consciousness. Crosshair demands he fulfill his part of the agreement. Rampart admits he doesn't know the exact coordinates to Tantiss, which are a closely guarded secret, but claims he can find a way around that. When Crosshair threatens to return him to prison, Rampart argues that they are in this together.
Meanwhile, Karr completes her analysis of Omega's blood, revealing a high M-count. Hemlock returns to the lab, and Karr informs him that her blood sample yielded a favorable M-count replication. Hemlock expresses no surprise. When Omega asks what it means, he leads her to the Tantiss vault, heavily guarded by Clone commandos. Hemlock tells Omega that an individual's M-count cannot be directly replicated and that earlier attempts have failed. As they enter a red screening room, he alludes to Project Necromancer's experiments, which involve mixing samples from various specimens. These failed until they combined her sample with one of their M-count specimens.
Inside the third section, they pass through a second line of Clone commandos. Hemlock tells Omega that she is vital to their work here. Upon entering the vault, Omega encounters three other Force-sensitive children, including Eva, Jax, and Sami. The children are playing with hologram blocks. When Omega asks who they are, Hemlock says that these are the rest of the puzzle and says this is her new home. The doors close. Above, Scalder and other scientists observe from an observation room.