The Bad Batch: What were the Kaminoans doing on Bora Vio?

As Clone Force 99 narrowly escaped Crosshair and his forces in the ninth episode of Star Wars: The Bad Batch, “Bounty Lost,” Cad Bane took Omega to an abandoned city in the clouds on Bora Vio.

Earlier in the episode, Lama Su sent Taun We with a case of unmarked credits to meet Cad Bane on Bora Vio and transport Omega back to Kamino, where Su eventually plans to extract Omega’s genetic material and terminate her.

Fortunately for Omega, things didn’t go according to plan. Fennec Shand showed up on Bora Vio and thwarted the exchange, forcing Omega to find a way to save herself. In the process, she discovered a more sinister and darker side to the Kaminoans. The lab she came across paled in comparison to the bright hallways of Tipoca City on Kamino, and the containers provided an eerie look into what might happen to the clone troopers currently in gestation.

What did the Kaminoans do on Bora Vio?

“Bounty Lost” was the first time the Kaminoans mentioned Bora Vio. We don’t know when and why it was abandoned, but we have a few theories.

Bora Vio could have been a place where the Kaminoans started experimenting before establishing a large-scale operation on Kamino. Similar to how the Jurassic Park franchise had a “Site B” location, which acted as the “factory floor” for various dinosaur cloning operations, this could have been the Kaminoans’ version of a “Site B” before it was abandoned.

The Kaminoans could have also used this facility for stranger experiments. When Omega took a closer look at the lab containers, she saw what appeared to be a Sullustan and a Kaminoan. What if they were Force-sensitive? What if those experiments were connected to Grogu from The Mandalorian or Snoke and Darth Sidious in the sequel trilogy? Stranger things have happened in Star Wars.

It’s also possible the Kaminoans abandoned operations there because they no longer had funding. Prime Minister Lama Su is desperate to continue operations with the Empire. If the Empire cuts them off and fully commits to using conscripted soldiers, the Kaminoans lose their direct source of funding. If they can’t keep the lights on, they could shut off Tipoca City and leave the would-be clone troopers in their tubes, just like how there were still specimens inside of Bora Vio’s labs.

In essence, Tipoca City could potentially become another Bora Vio. What sort of experiments do you think the Kaminoans conducted on Bora Vio? Why do you think they abandoned it? Let us know in the comments below.

Catch new episodes of Star Wars: The Bad Batch on Fridays, exclusively on Disney Plus.