Star Wars: The Bad Batch’s Neurodiverse Representation Means Everything to Me

I never imagined that watching The Clone Wars would lead me to a show that would mean so much to me. When the first trailer came out for Star Wars: The Bad Batch, I was fairly curious, but little did I know what would be in store for me.

Neurodiverse Representation Is Hard to Come By

As someone who is neurodiverse, I’ve always found it hard to watch shows or films that try to represent different neurodiverse conditions — especially forms of media that depict people with autism, such as The Good Doctor and Atypical. Though there are plenty of people who can relate to Shaun from The Good Doctor and Sam from Atypical, and I’m glad that representation is there, there are plenty of people who aren’t like that — like me. I find it hard to relate to the neurodiverse protagonists in those shows.

So, when I came across Star Wars: The Bad Batch, I was ecstatic once I noticed its neurodiverse representation. Although at first, I didn’t notice it — I was just excited to watch a new Star Wars animation after becoming obsessed with The Clone Wars and Rebels during the COVID pandemic. But once I rewatched The Bad Batch‘s first season a few times, I started to notice the subtle neurodiverse notes in the characters — and then Season 2 came along and the representation was fantastic. Whether that was intentional of the writers or not is unsure, but I was happy regardless. It’s a Star Wars show and there are characters I felt a relation to: that’s absolutely amazing.

Since then, there are other shows I’ve discovered that are great at showing neurodiversity in all its different colours too, like Heartbreak High and A Kind of Spark, in which the neurodiverse characters are portrayed by neurodiverse actors. Those shows also make me feel seen, and I can relate to characters when watching them. I’m finally able to shout out, “That’s like me!” But Star Wars: The Bad Batch is the show that will always mean everything to me.

Star Wars: The Bad Batch Hits All Sorts of Neurodiverse Notes

As someone who loves Star Wars and has a big interest in the animated side of the franchise, The Bad Batch quickly became one of my favourite shows. Of course, in the Star Wars galaxy, they don’t share names of conditions that the real world does. You won’t find a character saying they have ADHD or autism. However, some characters do share traits with real-world conditions. The members of Clone Force 99 are prime examples of a variety of neurodiverse traits:

• Hunter was engineered to be highly sensitive. His traits are like that of SPD, also known as Sensory Processing Disorder. Lights are too bright, smells are too strong, and noises are too loud, as well as other things. I always find it fascinating when we see their living spaces, as the lights are always dimmed. When they leave the Empire and a new squad takes their room on Kamino, the lights are bright.
• Tech shows quite a few autistic traits, from infodumping and having little obsessions to struggling to understand others’ emotions and expressing his own feelings. There’s even an episode in Season 2 called “The Crossing” where he practically confirms he’s neurodiverse.
• Wrecker shows signs of ADHD. There are several moments in the show where Hunter orders his brothers to execute a certain plan, and Wrecker either forgets, needs reminding, or takes a few moments to remember the plan.
• Crosshair is more difficult to figure out, but that seems intentional. He’s quiet, keeps his walls up, and doesn’t talk much. He also has a very narrow view of things, and his mind can only be changed by big events. Crosshair also has a habit of chewing toothpicks which could be seen as a sensory trait related to autism.

The Crossing Was a Big Moment for Neurodiversity

Star Wars: The Bad Batch‘s Season 2 episode “The Crossing” is a particularly big moment for neurodiverse people. The episode shows Omega struggling to adapt to the departure of Echo. Throughout the episode, there are some very tense moments between Tech and Omega. Tech is struggling to understand why Omega is upset about Echo leaving. The highlight of the episode, and the moment that essentially confirms Tech is autistic, is when Omega looks to Tech and asks why he doesn’t care. He admits he does with a line that is quite possibly one of the best and most memorable quotes in the show — a line that means so much to so many people: “I may process moments and thoughts differently, but it does not mean that I feel any less than you.”

That quote resonates with me and many others in The Bad Batch community. It is a moment that finally makes me feel seen. To witness a character in one of my favourite shows say that, means everything to me.

Out of all the Bad Batch characters, Tech has the most neurodivergent representation. There are many moments with Tech that display his neurodiverse traits — moments that I feel a relation to. One such instance is when Cid is briefing the Batch about their next mission. As soon as Tech hears something that he has an interest in, he interrupts and begins to infodump. Another moment is when he struggles to have a conversation with Phee. He can’t keep eye contact with her (I can never keep eye contact with people) and is visibly awkward throughout that conversation. Other times, he’s fine with her. Then again, Phee had a thing for Tech, and he likely noticed.

A Star Wars Experience Unlike Any Other

Every week when The Bad Batch would air, I would get excited and happy. I’d go online and post about my excitement and share that feeling with others in The Bad Batch community. It was amazing to revel in the story and emotions that came with it with others. It was the first time I’d ever been able to connect with others online, and that was partly thanks to how others also felt a relation to the neurodiverse elements of the characters. It was fascinating to discover so many other people just like me.

However, there is one moment that I thought I’d never experience when watching a fictional series. I’ve never really been a person who gets emotional over fictional characters — unless it’s an animal. So, when one of the only characters I’d ever felt I related to died, it was one of the hardest moments of my year. I sat there in my room and felt real emotions, as if someone close to me had just passed away. Tech’s death still affects me and many other viewers to this day.

Despite The Bad Batch Season 3 lacking in areas of its neurodiverse representation (such as Hunter’s enhanced senses disappearing in some episodes and the lack of acknowledgement to Tech), I’ll always be grateful for the amount we got in Seasons 1 and 2. I’ll always be grateful for Star Wars: The Bad Batch, and I could never imagine my life without the show. The Bad Batch means everything to me, and its neurodiverse representation is the cherry on top. I even met Dee Bradley Baker (the voice of the clones) at a convention once. In our conversation, I mentioned neurodiversity and how I could see myself in the characters, and he told me in Tech’s voice, “It’s good to be different.”

Star Wars: The Bad Batch is available to stream on Disney+.