After another betrayal, will Cid return in The Bad Batch?

Warning: This article contains spoilers from The Bad Batch Season 3, episode 10, "Identity Crisis" and episode 11, "Point of No Return."

Even though Cid hasn't appeared yet in The Bad Batch Season 3, she may have just betrayed the Batch once again. The Batch were always more loyal to her than she was to them, with the Dowutin gangster Grini Millegi even warning them early in Season 2 that such loyalty doesn't go both ways with Cid. They needed to watch their backs with her.

Millegi's warning foreshadowed the ultimate betrayal in the Season 2 finale, as Cid informed the Empire that the Batch had returned to Ord Mantell. This allowed Dr. Hemlock to kidnap Omega and take her to Mount Tantiss.

Cid has now helped the Empire find Omega and the Batch again in Season 3. When Dr. Hemlock contacts CX-2 in "Identity Crisis," the clone operative shares, "I tracked down the Trandoshan and pulled some intel out of her. She gave up the name of a pirate that's been in contact with the target."

With this information from the Trandoshan, who is clearly Cid, CX-2 tracks down Cid's associate, Phee Genoa, and steals information from her ship that leads him to Pabu. CX-2 and an array of Imperial forces quickly occupy Pabu, where they blow up the Marauder, open fire on the docks, destroy all ships and sea skiffs, and are about to begin burning homes before Omega bravely gives herself up.

Even though Omega was taken on her terms this time, Cid's intel still allowed the Empire to find and take her again, along with destroying one of the Batch's homes, the Marauder, and compromising and hurting their other home, Pabu.

It's easy to assume that Cid willingly betrayed the Batch again. She very well may have, but CX-2's wording may suggest otherwise. Saying he "pulled some intel out of her" makes it sound like she may not have parted with the information easily. Regardless, Cid still hurt the Batch once more. She looked ashamed after betraying them in the Season 2 finale, but no amount of shame or guilt changes what she's done.

Will Cid appear again before The Bad Batch's finale?

Mentioning Cid again raises the possibility of whether she will appear again before The Bad Batch's final season ends. After Season 2, it seemed like she could be the Lando Calrissian of this story, a character who betrays the heroes in the middle chapter when backed into a corner but is redeemed and becomes an invaluable ally in the third and final chapter.

At this point, though, it is unlikely to happen. There are only four episodes left in Season 3 and a great deal left to resolve without bringing Cid back into the story. Beyond the limited time left, Season 3 has done a stellar job with Crosshair's redemption, showing that true redemption is a gradual and painstaking process that takes time externally and internally.

Any sort of redemption at this point with Cid would feel rushed and unearned, particularly in contrast with how the series has handled Crosshair's redemption. If Cid isn't going to be redeemed and do the right thing, there aren't many narrative reasons to bring her back, as there is no need to affirm her selfish and manipulative ways further.

After "Point of No Return," the Batch are in a difficult spot with Omega gone with no way to track her after Crosshair missed his shot. They don't even have the Marauder anymore. There is a slim possibility that Cid could perhaps help them in these endeavors with a new ship or a contact who could help them find Mount Tantiss. Though, it's difficult to imagine them reaching out to her after what she did to them in Season 2, and that's without them even knowing that her intel caused their current predicament. They will more likely turn to Phee for help.

Not every villain or unsavory character in Star Wars needs to be redeemed. This is a difficult but valuable lesson for Omega and all viewers to learn, as some people will never change for the better. Not everyone can grow and learn from their mistakes, as Crosshair has.