Like any normal human being, I got up this morning at 5:30 a.m. to watch the first episode of the new season of "The Mandalorian," and like any normal human being, I LOVED IT.
The first part of this post will be my spoiler-free thoughts and reactions, and the second part will be a rumination on the episode and WILL HAVE SPOILERS. Fear not, I will provide ample warning and buffer space so you can avoid the spoilers.
First, my quick take: I LOVED JUST ABOUT ALL OF IT (more discussion below). The excitement I got watching 2.1 was almost enough to make me shout several times throughout the episode, the ire of my still-sleeping wife being a sufficient deterrent. As a lifelong Star Wars fan, I got to see things I'd only previously heard about or read about, in both Legends and canon, and that's really, really, really cool. There were so many little nods to previous Star Wars content that I couldn't help but grin nearly the whole time. I'll discuss more in the spoilers section below.
Like Werner Herzog's unnamed Client, I want to see the baby, and we get plenty of Baby Yoda being just adorable. So worry not about that. There are also TONS of alien weirdos to visually drink in and enjoy, and some deep cutting into a long-time Star Wars pillar that was unexpected but more than welcome.
The start of season 2 immediately feels different than just about all of season 1, and that's inevitable, I think, because we start off with a measure of knowledge and purpose that we really never got in season 1 before the very end. The season starts off basically right where its predecessor left off (albeit it's not clear exactly how much time has passed since The Mandalorian jetted off from Nevarro with Baby Yoda nestled safely in his arms. But it does pick up with the mission our hero was given in last season's finale, and goes right into it.
I will note the episode is twice as long as most of the episodes from last season, and while I don't know the exact reasons for that, I think it may have to do with the success of season 1 giving the creators more space to work with. It may be they felt they had to play things neat in season 1, not knowing what the reception would be. With near-universal acclaim, however, their sandbox got a lot bigger. That makes for a lot more room, for set pieces and for characters.
It was a great start to what I expect to be a very exciting, galaxy-expanding season 2, and I love that we get a week between episodes to chew on and mull over what we get to see and experience.
Now before we get to the spoilers, here is Baby Yoda using the Force to hold them back until you can escape if you so desire.
Still here? You've been warned. Spoilers incoming.
I SAID SPOILERS INCOMING!
Okay.
Obligatory ellipses to give more spoiler-avoidance space:
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Here we go.
- Not everyone is going to love that almost immediately we go back to Tatooine. I don't mind it. The desert world of Anakin's sandy nightmares is such a cornerstone of Star Wars lore now, it in the same moment feels warmly familiar and also kinda old. But more of the former. It's especially a cool return to the world because of how deeply we get into Tusken Raider culture and interaction. The sign language moment from last season was really cool, and this got even better with Mando's communicating with the Sand People in their own language!!
- Add to that the fact we FINALLY GET TO SEE A LIVING KRAYT DRAGON!! To my knowledge this is the first time we see a living krayt dragon in canon and on screen (there might be one in Clone Wars or Rebels?) and holy crap, it was EPIC. When the rumbling sand started approaching Mos Pelgo I was thinking "ooh new sci-fi standard sand worm variant" but when Cobb Vanth said "krayt dragon," my jaw dropped.
- This also just hit me: the dragon is like the sandworm from Dune, it lives in the Dune Sea, and there's a character in the named Cara Dune. WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN?!
- COBB VANTH. Instant new favorite side character in the show. Not only is it the impeccably awesome Timothy Olyphaunt, but it also ties in a character Chuck Wendig created for his "Aftermath" trilogy. In the book, we learn Cobb Vanth is a human who acts as a law enforcer on Tatooine, AND that he happened to possess Boba Fett's armor. In this episode we learn he got it by trading with some Jawas who rescued him in the desert. With Mando demanding the armor's return, it's a cool way to tie in this new character with the lore of the season and developing story of Mandalorian tradition. I also love just how ill-fitting it is.
- Whether it was the writers' intent or not, the battle against the krayt dragon is a neat throwback to the nearly-unanimously-declared best Star Wars video game ever, "Knights of the Old Republic." In the game, the character gets involved in fighting a krayt dragon, and with the help of a hunter kills the beast by blowing it up. That's how they plan to take the monster down here, and they even confront it at its cave, similar to KOTOR (unsure if there's a star map in the TV dragon's cave, though - deleted scene?).
- The giant pearl the Tuskens find inside the dragon's corpse is also a fun nod to KOTOR, as the player can loot a pearl from the fallen dragon and either trade it to the Tuskens or use it as a powerful addition to his/her lightsaber. The medicine ball-sized pearl in the show probably isn't going in any laser swords, though.
- While I'm talking about nods and throwbacks, I found myself wondering and worrying about the creators doing too much of that. Example: Cobb's speeder bike is CLEARLY made from a salvaged engine from Anakin Skywalker's podracer. That, the dragon, the dragon noises (like what Obi-Wan did when rescuing Luke in "A New Hope"), the pearl, Mando hitting Cobb's jet pack to activate it like Han did in Return of the Jedi - all are really fun nods to previous things in Star Wars. I guess I personally didn't think any of it was too much, but I'd be lying if I didn't worry about seeing myself becoming the Leonardo DiCaprio "Once Upon A Time in Hollywood" pointing meme every five minutes. At the end of the day, I'm glad it's mostly subtle. Like, at least Cobb isn't telling Mando the history of where his speeder bike came from.
- I love the continuation of the theme of Baby Yoda being exposed to and seeing violence, and how that might affect him/her. That was a big thing in the two-part finale of last season, as we see the Child try to choke Cara when he/she thinks Cara is trying to hurt Mando. Tie that in with Kuiil's sermon about imprinting as he retrained IG-11, and that's a powerful idea. Mando resorts to violence early and often when a threat appears, and the Child can't help but see and react to that. It's a funny moment when Baby Yoda hides in his pram before Mando attacks the thugs at the Gamorrean fight, but my favorite podcasters Ken Napzok and Joseph Scrimshaw pointed out that the Child has seen enough violence to know when Dad's about to go off, and that's both funny/cute and also troubling. Now, in season 2, Mando isn't afraid to duel Cobb in front of the kid (Cobb even calling that out), and the Child is witness to all the fighting between the miners and Tuskens, and between the humanoids and the krayt dragon. I hope they keep on with this theme and use it to help develop both Baby Yoda AND The Mandalorian.
- Great to see Amy Sedaris and her pit droids again. Solid re-use of a great character from season 1.
- Last thought: FREAKING BOBA FETT!!!!!!!!!!! Tem Morrison's character has clearly been through some stuff, and the scars and simple garb and simple Tusken weapons tell us Fett has never left Tatooine since somehow escaping the Sarlaac. One wonders if he traded his armor for food/water/equipment from the Jawas, and how that might play into the honor code Mando follows.
Okay, that's all for now - bring on the next episode!!
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