The Bad Batch encountered a devilish beast in the Season 2 episode Metamorphosis, which may lead to seeing it again or further understanding the reason it was captured in the first place. This is what we know about the Zillo beast in The Bad Batch.
What is the Zillo Beast in the Bad Batch Season 2?
The Zillo beast is a unique creature where most weapons have minimal impact on it. The armor-like skin seems impenetrable as blaster fire has little effect other than making it angry. During the creature’s first appearance in The Clone Wars, Anakin Skywalker learned it was impervious to lightsabers, proving how dangerous it is to encounter a Zillo.
Its tough skin makes it difficult to handle, but its ability to grow in size after consuming raw energy is devastating for anyone who stands in its way. The Zillo beast broke out of its cell in The Bad Batch and evaded capture long enough to grow monstrous in size. Eventually, the Empire arrives on the scene with many ships and incapacitates the giant Zillo beast with a special beam of energy.
Why is the Zillo Beast significant for the Empire?
The Bad Batch Season 2 episode highlights the Empire’s desire to control cloning. Although they haven’t perfected their techniques yet, the Zillo beast might play a role in the future. In his battle with Yoda in Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith, Yoda absorbed, blocked, or deflected the lightning energy from the almighty Sith. The Zillo beast has similar abilities that might be useful during continued research.
Palpatine doesn’t find a way to grow larger by consuming energy, but perhaps their research with the captured Zillo leads to perfecting their cloning facilities. The Rise of Skywalker proved this success as a clone of Palpatine was created, which could indicate the captured Zillo has more of a role to play in that process – and that’s what we know about the Zillo beast from The Bad Batch.