Kevin Burwick of MovieWeb isn’t exaggerating when he states that Star Wars fans are already buzzing about the first episode of The Mandalorian. At this point however thinking a movie might be on the way still seems a bit premature until at least another couple of episodes have come out. Having seen it along with everyone else it’s easy to say that yes, this new series is exactly what people were hoping for no matter how many little foibles here and there people want to point out. The nostalgic quality of it is great since seeing such familiar sights as other bounty hunters, various species that we’ve already seen (Kubaz and Jawas and Kowakian monkey lizards, oh my) and learning that the Mandalorian is not alone in the universe have been used as great additions so far. If anyone can remember, Jango Fett and Boba Fett tended to remain solitary during their run, while so far the titular character seems to belong to a clan and is dependent on them for his armor and possibly his weaponry. Plus, if you’ll notice, as awesome as he is, the Mandalorian can still be taken by surprise, as he was taken down by one of the bipedal creatures known as as Blurrg before being saved by Ugnaught moisture farmer named Kuiil. Trust me, the names aren’t that important until later as they tend to pile up. But the whole episode kind of gets forgotten when the Mandalorian finally inspects the bounty he was sent to get, the same bounty that the droid, IG-88, is about to shoot before the Mandalorian puts a blaster round into its metal cranium.
I won’t spoil the rest but so far the show is absolute gold despite what David Sims of The Atlantic has to say. It’s true that the plot is a little thin, but given that this is a series and not a movie it makes sense to only give out so much at a time in order to keep the suspense up and keep people coming back for each episode. It’s likely that some people simply want everything all at once as we would get with a movie, but anyone that’s read any of the Star Wars books or the older graphic novels knows full well that the Mandalorians are a rich and very insulated culture that don’t share everything, and the series so far has that feeling to it, which is nice since it doesn’t feel the need to give people everything on a silver platter but instead seems to give it one parcel at a time. Giving too much all at once in any series is kind of a recipe for disaster since there’s little interest to keep going when people know the story already and can possibly guess as to what comes next. In that manner the story is kind of self-defeating since giving everything in the first act is something that has been done but is still risky since it’s a chance for people to say ‘been there, done that’ and then move on without ever having to see the rest of the project. With The Mandalorian however it seems best to go slow and steady and keep the action at a level that is just enticing enough that people will wonder what’s coming next.
It’s pretty obvious from the start that Mandalorians have a reputation throughout the galaxy that causes a different reaction in various individuals since some think that they’re tough enough to take one down while others know to fear the very sight of the distinctive helmet and armor. This doesn’t mean that people don’t try their luck however since in the opening scene a group of toughs decide to have a go at the lone bounty hunter and are instantly made sorry that they ever gave the confrontation a second thought. From reading the books, Mandalorians are beyond tough and are raised in a culture where you fight or you die, there is little to no middle ground and most of the time it’s fit only for cowards. Think of them as the Spartans of science fiction, because obviously their armor is of great importance and just about anything they can get a hold of can be a weapon. Should a movie ever be made though it’d be interesting to think just what time period it would be in, though it does seem as though the focus might remain within the timeline between the fall of the Empire and the rise of the First Order. How this would work out is uncertain since the idea is still just that, an idea. Hopefully Disney will keep it that way until they see how people respond to the entire first season, as jumping the gun and butchering another Star Wars movie probably wouldn’t be a good idea for the franchise.
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