With season two of The Bad Batch now completed – our review of The Summit and Plan 99 is coming very soon to Fantha Tracks – Michelle Ang discusses the heartbreaking finale and where we leave her character, the young clone Omega at the end of the 16th episode.
When we last see her, Omega has been kidnapped and taken to Wayland, a bargaining chip to force Nala Se to cooperate with Dr. Hemlock and the other Imperial scientists.
Although Ang and Simpson performed in different studios, she was able to watch from afar as Simpson, a fellow onscreen actor, got into the role. “It was very interesting because his process of getting into an emotional place that felt very real — I recognize that he and I work in a similar way. I think [most] voice actors have a different accessibility to their emotional truth. Someone like Dee [Bradley Baker, who plays most of Clone Force 99,] can just turn it on and be very grounded,” Ang says. “It’s interesting because as an onscreen actor, you’re used to being able to control your physicality. As a voice actor all you have is your voice. So, I could see Jimmi really pushing himself and the boundaries. It was really beautiful to listen and watch him work through what personified a villain and his creative desire to really make that unique and distinct was delicious.”
And Omega isn’t alone. In the final moments of the finale, we see her reuniting with her fallen brother Crosshair, and meeting Dr. Karr, played by Castle-Hughes. Once again, Ang was just as surprised as the rest of the fans the first time she learned Karr’s true identity.
“I had no idea!” Ang says. “Brad was sort of tip toeing around what this character would end up being. And then I realized, ‘Oh my gosh, she’s my sister! She’s a clone, too.’” At the time, Ang didn’t know about Castle-Hughes’ casting, and she wondered what actor directors would get to echo her distinctive New Zealand accent. But Castle-Hughes is now an obvious choice. “Classic and also amazing because she’s a household New Zealand name. There was this sort of cultural immediacy that we both shared, which meant that we could just click straight away and fall into this relationship quite easily. It was just really awesome to hear her embody this character that is so different from both herself and from Omega.”
