“ | Grotton: I am here to relieve you of your title, Mistress Ames, by order of the Galactic Empire. Tawni Ames: As I have told your government, Desix does not fall under Imperial jurisdiction. Take your forces and leave peacefully. |
„ |
~ Grotton arriving on Desix to replace Ames as the new governor. |
Governor Grotton is the tritagonist of the Star Wars: The Bad Batch episode "The Solitary Clone".
He is the appointed Imperial governor of the agrarian desert planet of Desix following the Clone Wars and the founding of the Galactic Empire, in which the Empire invaded the planet and usurped its previous governor, Tawni Ames, installing him as her successor.
He is voiced by Max Mittelman.
Biography[]
“ | I am the legitimate governor of Desix, you scrap-heap! | „ |
~ Grotton to a B-1 Battle Droid as he was being held hostage. |
When the previous governor of Desix, Tawni Ames, informed the Galactic Empire that the Separatist planet, Desix, was not under Imperial control, Grotton came to Desix to inform Ames that the Empire had received, processed and rejected Ames' request. Upon arriving at Desix City, he informed her that he was sent to remove her from office, but she took him hostage and sent word to the Empire that he would be released if Desix was recognized as an independent planet. Because the Empire didn't want to negotiate with Desix's people, instead they sent Crosshair, Commander Cody, and a squad of clone stormtroopers led by Cody to rescue him and secure the city.
In reality, Ames knew that forces sent by the Empire to negotiate a peaceful solution did not really want peace, so she sent reprogrammed Battle Droids to fight Crosshair, Cody, and the clones. As he was being held hostage, Grotton demanded Ames and her droids release him, who then explained her distrust with the Republic during the Clone Wars—when they failed to provide aid to Desix—as a motive in refusing to accept Imperial oversight of her planet, citing that Count Dooku correctly predicted the Republic would transition into something worse.
Once Crosshair and Cody reached Ames' hideout—located in the city's bell tower, Ames threatened to shoot Grotton, but Cody managed to peacefully deescalate the situation by negotiating with her into releasing him. Upon being freed, an angry Grotton ordered Cody to execute Ames, to which he remained hesitant when he repeated his order, until she was shot by Crosshair. Grotton then ordered the clone troopers to put Ames' body in the square as a warning to the people of Desix. After the rescue, he started acting as the new governor of Desix, and he oversaw the Imperial occupation of the planet.
Following the occupation of Desix, Crosshair would be summoned to Vice Admiral Rampart's office, who informed him that Cody had deserted the Empire.
Personality[]
“ | Grotton: Nicely handled. Now execute her. Cody: Sir, I promised a peaceful-- Grotton: You did. I didn't. Now execute her! |
„ |
~ Grotton ordering Commander Cody to execute Ames. |
Grotton was an arrogant Imperial governor who was highly confident that he was the legitimate ruler of Desix and was easy to displease when his authority was questioned. This trait would put him at odds with Cody when he refused his order to kill Ames following a diplomatic negotiation, making him leave the Empire when he realized its true colors and how its agents operated, as exemplified by Grotton.
Despite his intimidating persona, Grotton was also hypocritical since he didn't hide his fear when Ames and her battle droids held him and his troops at gunpoint—forcing him to surrender, suggesting a cowardly side to him. Furthermore, his cowardice is reinforced when he demanded for Ames' death, whose body he would later use for display in the city's center to instill fear amongst its residents should they attempt to dissent from his authority and potentially recognize Ames as a martyr for future rebel activity.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- It is possible that Grotton may have reported Cody for disobeying a direct order to kill Ames and questioning the Empire's status quo, and his "desertion" was merely his imprisonment or execution.
- This could be supported when Rampart—who wanted to push for the Imperial Defense Recruitment Bill (first mentioned by two disgruntled clones in the same episode) to replace the clones with human conscrpits and was responsible for the destruction Tipoca City on Kamino to end their production—called Crosshair into his office to reveal Cody's absence.
External Links[]
- Governor Grotton on the Star Wars Wiki