RELATED: Who Is the Stormtrooper with a Jedi Lightsaber - and How Did He Get It? How McQuarrie's Concept Art & the Final Design Compare In an earlier interview with McQuarrie himself, he explains that he did not initially expect his concepts to be the final versions, but 'in the end for the most part some of those paintings were virtually rendered intact on to the screen in Star Wars.' In regards to McQuarrie's original stormtrooper designs, they are similar enough to the final versions, even though there are minor changes in the design. In the documentary, George Lucas states that McQuarrie's influence on the series was 'incalculable.' Lucas elaborates further, saying that McQuarrie's designs 'were so accurate in terms of what wanted' that Lucas found it easy to fully realize his desires for most of the films' designs. McQuarrie's designs were so iconic that they still inspire the overall design of the series today. In Ralph McQuarrie, Star Wars Concept Artist: A Tribute to a Master, released in parts by, George Lucas and other major figures in the franchise discuss McQuarrie's impact on the Star Wars franchise. The TK stormtroopers' design draws from McQuarrie's concept art.

RELATED: The Bad Batch Rescues a Beloved Star Wars Rebels Hero Ralph McQuarrie's Influence on the Star Wars Franchise They're not as skilled, but there's an endless supply of 'em.' Thus, with the new TK troopers, the Empire hopes to remain in power through the quantity of their forces rather than the quality. Gregor explains, 'These recruits come from all over the galaxy. However, when they rescue Gregor later, they discover the truth: the Empire is replacing clone troopers with human recruits. Echo assumes that they are clone troopers with updated armor. In 'War-Mantle,' Hunter, Echo and Tech first glimpse the new TK troopers when they scout out the Empire's secret base on Daro during an attempt to rescue Clone Captain Gregor. This choice by the showrunners honors McQuarrie's work on the franchise. A different stormtrooper design is also a logical move, considering The Bad Batch takes place almost two decades before the original films occurred. While their uniforms still resemble the original trilogy's familiar stormtrooper uniform, their designs are actually inspired by Ralph McQuarrie's original concept art for Star Wars: A New Hope. In 'War-Mantle,' the show unveils the first official batch of 'TK' stormtroopers.

In Star Wars: The Bad Batch, the Empire has been quickly transitioning from clone troopers to stormtroopers. WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Star Wars: The Bad Batch Episode 14, “War-Mantle,” streaming now on Disney+.

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