Warning! This article contains SPOILERS for Star Wars: The Bad Batch season 3, episode 9.
An episode of Star Wars: The Bad Batch season 3 directly mentions one of George Lucas’s most controversial Star Wars ideas. Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace introduced the concept of Midi-chlorians to the Star Wars franchise, seemingly quantifying the Force and explaining it through empirical science, as many of these microscopic lifeforms in one’s blood determine their Force sensitivity. This was controversial among many viewers, who preferred that the Force be depicted from a mystical and spiritual framing, and most Star Wars movies and TV shows from the past decade have largely ignored the concept.
Other Star Wars properties have toyed with the concept of Midi-chlorians since their introduction. James Luceno’s novel Darth Plagueis has the titular Sith Lord experiment on Midi-chlorians, explore their connection to the Force, and challenge the idea that high Midi-chlorian counts determine one’s Force-sensitivity. The Mandalorian would further revive these curiosities through Moff Gideon’s experiments on Grogu, with Gideon hoping to infuse his own clones with the power of the Force. Now, however, The Bad Batch has taken it one step further.
In The Mandalorian, Midi-chlorians are strongly implied, with the Imperials referring to them as one’s “M-count.” This nickname – and experiments with the lifeforms – returns in The Bad Batch through experiments on clone troopers. In the episode “The Harbinger,” however, Asajj Ventress directly refers to Midi-chlorians and explains that they do not necessarily indicate one’s ability to use the Force, but they can reflect one’s aptitude for using it. This is similar to the way Midi-chlorians were used in the Star Wars Legends continuity.
Ventress notes that one’s blood does not determine their Force-sensitivity. This aligns with established lore in both the Star Wars Legends timeline and the modern canon. The Legends-era General Grievous had his life saved by a Midi-chlorian-rich blood transfusion, but his Force-sensitivity was unaffected by it. Moff Gideon’s plans to use Grogu’s Midi-chlorians to grant his clones Force-sensitivity likely would have been unsuccessful, as even some clones of Palpatine himself – notably Dathan – lacked Force-sensitivity, while Dathan’s daughter – Rey – did become Force-sensitive. M-counts, however, are still more important now than ever before.
While Ventress hypothesizes that Omega’s apparent Force-sensitivity – and higher Midi-chlorian count than the rest of Jango Fett’s clones – simply occurred randomly, with the sheer number of Fett clones increasing its probability, Omega’s M-count is still indispensable to Project Necromancer. Ventress further notes that while Omega has a higher Midi-chlorian count than her siblings, it is not particularly high compared to those of Jedi, Sith, and Nightsisters, but the compatibility with Force-cloning is all that matters. Thus, Omega will continue to be hunted down in The Bad Batch season 3, as her M-count is vital to Star Wars’ future.
