The Bad Batch Archetypes Analysis

Wrecker's Anima

This is the second part of the character analysis for Wrecker. I will be referring to "Goddesses in Everywoman" by Jean Shinoda Bolen for this analysis.

Wrecker's anima is Aphrodite, or Venus as the Romans called her, and she is the Goddess of Love and Beauty. Her influence is so great that she has many relationships with other gods and mortals, and she makes many mortals fall in love. The Aphrodite archetype helps a person to enjoy love, sensual and sensory experiences, to appreciate beauty, and to be creative. Wrecker has shown to have this archetype multiple times. When Rex, Jesse and Kix first meet the Bad Batch, Wrecker is the first teammate to take off his helmet and create an engaging and charming impression of the team (an active Aphrodite trait). This helps to make them less intimidating to the regular clones since Rex has heard about their 100% success rate and their aggressive and unorthodox ways of completing their missions. Wrecker acts as Aphrodite the Lover when he wants Tech to get with Phee, and he teases Tech that he has competition upon seeing the closeness Phee and Shep shared (an attempt to incite jealousy on Tech so he will make a move on her).

Wrecker is shown to be a sensual person, especially in "Reunion" when he caresses and kisses a proton torpedo. His sensuality enables him to enjoy the pleasure and beauty this life has to offer. In "Battle Scars", he creates a tradition to have Mantell Mix with Omega after a mission, teaching her to let loose and enjoy life amidst all the danger and chaos. In "Pabu", he is so satisfied by the local food that he gladly expresses that he has never been full and he enjoys this place. In "Rampage", after the rancor Muchi drops from exhaustion, Wrecker pats her to sleep, showing his gentleness towards living beings. In "Entombed", he encourages Omega to find anything that catches her eye in a junkyard, which shows that he has the ability to see beauty even in the things that are perceived as garbage. This is evident in how he appreciates Gonky the defective Gonk droid and he even gently places Gonky down in "A Distant Echo" (I headcanon that Wrecker is the one who takes Gonky in and Hunter allows it). This does explain why he supports Omega's desire to go for a treasure hunt with Phee because as the "liberator of ancient wonders", Phee can appreciate the cultural value of the ancient artefacts she collects (instead of monetary value), which is an Aphrodite trait as her values are subjective in nature.

Jean Shinoda Bolen describes Aphrodite to have a unique quality of consciousness, in which she calls it "Aphrodite consciousness". The Aphrodite consciousness is more focused and intense than diffuse awareness, yet more receptive and attentive than focused consciousness (these are explained in my character analysis for Omega). It is like a limelight that effortlessly draws our attention on what is being illuminated on the stage. Whatever or whoever is under the limelight becomes fascinating, and we are moved, energized or inspired by what we see. A person who has an Aphrodite consciousness can draw people out and attend them in a loving and affirming way, making them feel attractive and interesting. This consciousness also serves as a natural method of relating and gathering information for people who like to be surrounded by other people and focus their total attention on themselves intently.

Wrecker uses his Aphrodite consciousness when he is annoying Crosshair by playing around with the head of a battle droid in "The Bad Batch" and shoving him with his tooka toy Lula in "Aftermath". In Greek mythology, Aphrodite gravitates towards people who are creative, complex, moody or emotional. For Wrecker, that person is Crosshair because he is an emotionally intense person. Unlike Wrecker who can move from one emotion to another swiftly, Crosshair stays in one emotion intensely and it takes time for that emotion to subside. Wrecker is aware of this and he knows that it is not exactly healthy for Crosshair, for example, Crosshair will stay aggressive even after the battle is over, and he may make others feel uncomfortable with his aggression even when it is not directed towards them. To attend to his emotional needs, Wrecker annoys Crosshair, shifting his focus towards him which helps his emotions to subside faster. He attends to Crosshair in a loving and affirming way as he does not get hurt when Crosshair responses angrily or rudely towards him because he knows that Crosshair never means it and his responses are just a drawback of his emotional intensity. Besides, as long as Wrecker can distract Crosshair, he considers it as mission accomplished. Since they always have each other's backs in the Clone Wars, I am certain that Crosshair does appreciate Wrecker's efforts to care for his emotional needs.