The second season of The Mandalorian is finally here. The season premiere was simply awesome. A great start for what will hopefully be an amazing second season, but we need to talk about the elephant in the room. If you’ve seen the episode, you know what I’m talking about. If you haven’t seen it, then shame on you. For now, I’m going to assume that we’re all up to speed and equally as curious. The season premiere had a lot of great things. From Timothy Olyphant’s Cobb Vanth, to the Tusken Raiders actually being the good guys for a change, to Mando blowing up a huge sand worm from the inside, what more can we possibly ask for? Well, it turns out, the show gave us one last shred of awesome to geek out about with a final cameo appearance.
I’m talking about the one and only Boba Fett, the original coolest bounty hunter in the galaxy. His famous armor actually appeared more in the episode than he did. That’s odd, especially since Cobb Vanth was wearing it to protect his town. When we saw Boba Fett himself, it was only for about five seconds. He clearly made it out of the Sarlacc Pit, but he had the scars to show it. His age showed, he had new weapons, and he was clearly living as a hermit. As far as quick cameos go, his couldn’t have been better. He watched from a distance as Mando rode away with his armor, and then walked away.
It was good seeing Boba Fett again. I don’t have to talk about how popular he is. I mean, come on, he’s Boba Fett. Every Star Wars fans know the name, know the look, and know that he’s one of the most iconic characters in the franchise. All true, but there’s something disconcerting about him that many fans don’t want to admit. What exactly did he do in the original movies? He followed Han Solo, led Darth Vader directly to them, but then what? Darth Vader was the one who tortured Han, froze him the carbonite, and handed him over to Boba Fett. Oh, and last I checked, Boba Fett only fired his weapon once or twice at Luke in Empire. And let’s not talk about how anti-climactic his (at the time) death was in Return of the Jedi.
Isn’t he supposed to be the deadliest bounty hunter in the galaxy? Well, based on what we’ve seen in the movies, the famous Boba Fett didn’t come close to that title. I was hoping The Mandalorian would be his chance to actually do something that’s actually cool. I get it, it’s still very early, but understandably so, I have some questions that many other fans have. For one, what has the new and scarred Boba Fett been doing all this time without his armor? My guess, he’s been living as a hermit, hunting and scavenging, basically just trying to survive. His bounty hunting days are probably behind him, but I’m still very confused about something.
As of now, he’s a shadowy figure who keeps a sharp eye on things from a distance. He was probably aware that Cobb Vanth was wearing his armor for a while. If that’s the case, then why wouldn’t he try to reclaim it? That armor was his and made him quite popular throughout the galaxy. It’s also the only thing he has that resembles his dead father, Jango Fett. That armor is sacred to Boba Fett, so I find it hard to believe that he would just let someone else wear it. Well, he clearly didn’t try to take it from Cobb Vanth by force, but now that Mando has it, he’s clearly going to be keeping a close eye on it. Maybe he was just waiting for the right moment, but now that he sees another man wearing similar armor, perhaps he wants to see where he’s taking it?
This leaves us a lot to think about, but it could be setting up for a really big story arc for Boba Fett. Before we talk about how much bigger his role can be, we need to remember where we last saw him. He was thrown into the Sarlacc Pitt. Yeah, I’m guessing he had to fight like hell to get out of that monstrosity. My point is, the man who fell in there probably isn’t the same guy who came out. It’s most likely that the Sarlacc Pit did some serious damage to his brain. It’s possible he might not fully remember who he is. After all, last episode was the first time we ever saw him without his helmet. The Boba Fett we know always wears his armor.
What if the now armor-less Boba Fett has no idea who he is, but the armor is the only thing that will help him remember his past life? Maybe that’s why he didn’t try taking it back from Cobb Vanth by force. It does make sense, but then again, the whole amnesia thing is pretty cliche by now. If that’s not what the show is going for, then I reckon they’re going with one of two arcs. The first is a redemption arc. Can you imagine Boba Fett as a good guy? That would certainly be a bold route to go, considering we’re so used to seeing him as a villain. He could be a valuable ally to Mando and offer him much guidance.
His reasons for wanting to turn a new leaf is what would be the most interesting part about it. Perhaps he could just be searching for a new purpose. Without his armor, he could feel like nothing and he now desires to be a warrior again. Hey, maybe he can reference on how lame his apparent “demise” was in Return of the Jedi? That would be pretty funny.
On the other hand, the second route could be the expected one: Boba Fett vs. The Mandalorian. Mando is carrying Baby Yoda with him, a force-sensitive youngling. Where is Mando taking him? Wherever some rogue Jedi are. The Jedi are responsible for killing Boba’s father and the Jedi are also responsible for where he is now. I reckon he wants some payback and Mando could indirectly lead him to what Jedi are left. Would he go alone? It’s possible he’ll recruit some bounty hunters to join him and then it would be Team Mando vs. Team Boba. Now that sounds awesome. If Boba is still a villain, he’ll stop at nothing to destroy the legacy of the Jedi and prevent Baby Yoda from continuing it. At some point, Boba Fett will once again wear his famous armor and that’s when he and Mando will duke it out.
Now that could very well be the greatest fight in Star Wars history. So what episode will Boba Fett appear next in? He might be in the next episode or might not appear until the season finale. Whatever the case, we’re all itching to see what the show is planning to do with Boba Fett. He’ll either be Mando’s greatest ally or his greatest enemy. Both of our favorite bounty hunters are back.
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