The Mandalorian

[The Human Q-Tip]

SW is such a vast universe with so many ways to go. All you need is solid writing and strong characters and someone who understands the lore. That's all this show was! Simple episodes, simple writing, but still creative because there's such a big sandbox to play in. It certainly helped that they had an end in mind (which I think it's obvious the current saga didn't).

And it wasn't like they skimped on fan service. There were like 10-15 easter eggs an episode (maybe more). And it ended with the Darksaber, which almost made me cream myself.

Maybe the original trilogy was such a confluence of events that it's very difficult to recreate in film form. Maybe the future is streaming shows. And maybe they can take what worked here and start applying it to films. There's a HUGE list of great characters and stroylines waiting to be adapted to film.

I've never seen anything other than the movies. Never read the books or watched any of the other tv shows.

To me, the "lore" should set the rules that must be followed, but if you let the lore dictate the actual stories (at least in an obvious way), you're really limiting yourself as to the type of stories you can tell. What's really incredible about The Mandalorian is that it just told good stories, with very good characterization and great drama. It can appeal to someone who isn't even a big Star Wars fan at all -- I think my dad would have liked it, and he never watched SF. But they also blended in seamlessly stuff that appeals to the true "fanboys". That's a very tough tightrope to walk, and they did it perfectly.

I have no idea what the Darksaber is until I saw people talking about it here. But what was really cool about that scene was that the director didn't overemphasize it with closeups, etc.. I noticed it, but he didn't jam it in our faces to make it obvious that "this is really important" in a way that made me feel like I was missing something important than only obsessed fans would understand. And my guess is that its significance will be revealed organically in the telling of the story, not as some secret bit of lore that only fanboys will truly understand.

Just a fucking great show that I've already re-binged. And that scene when the other Mandalorians arrive to bail him out in Episode 3...just damn.

 

[col63onel]

To me, the "lore" should set the rules that must be followed, but if you let the lore dictate the actual stories (at least in an obvious way), you're really limiting yourself as to the type of stories you can tell.

I mean exactly that.

 

[The Human Q-Tip]

I mean exactly that.

Right. I'm just kind of in awe how perfectly they managed to do that. The biggest flaw in the sequels was that they did the opposite. It was like they decided "all we have to do is recycle Star Wars tropes/lore, and fans will eat that shit up".

Also, the baby Yoda also is just a brilliant storytelling device. Ridiculously cute, opens up massive lore/storytelling potential, and counterbalances perfectly the harshness of the overall environment.

 

[Pioneer10]

I mean whoever was the designer for this better have fucking got a big ass Christmas bonus (I mean Wall Street Hedge fund type). This is going to make Disney hundreds of millions? The Board is like fine you screwed up the sequels but Baby Yoda will keep the dividends going.

https://streamable.com/s/fero6/verrna

 

[Sebastian]

I don't know how I even lived before this came out:

 

[-Akronite-]

Overall found it an enjoyable watch, but not as enthralled as many. Baby Yoda is cute, but I feel like they are actually continuing a trend of screwing up lore with him. Baby Yoda is a powerful force user and hopefully that gets some explanation. I don't have a problem with people being force sensitive and it giving them power (Anakin's ability to fly, Luke using the force to destroy the death star), but it's weird to me when they give creatures with no apparent training specific force powers. It's what bothered me the most about Rey in the sequel trilogy. How did she know what a Jedi mind trick was? Why are we NOW introducing goddamn healing abilities? Why is Baby Yoda ALSO able to heal people? Why has this never been used before/WARNED ABOUT in the prequels just to be thrown in like "yeah, that's a Jedi thing..." Am I fucking crazy?

That's a minor squabble with this show though.

I think they did a serviceable job of making likable characters (Nick Nolte was quite good) and telling a simple story. I did feel like so many of the escapes in the show felt really un-clever, though. Like usually we get to a tense spot and then BLAMMO Mando starts shooting his way out or flame throwering or something. Half the time it felt like they weren't even trying to come up with something, he just starts doing what he could've done right away but for some reason had a standoff first? And when it wasn't that it was Baby Yoda dues ex machina'ing the place. I suppose it's hard to keep coming up with interesting escapes and stuff but just felt like it lacked creativity. That being said, the fact that they stripped the universe down to a simpler story is why the show works at all, so maybe trying hard to be clever all the time isn't the point.

Here's a question: Why did the nurse robot take the baby into town and start a firefight if they wanted to protect BY? Was it something Nick Nolte did or did the writers just need a way to save Mando?

 

[The Human Q-Tip]

Here's a question: Why did the nurse robot take the baby into town and start a firefight if they wanted to protect BY? Was it something Nick Nolte did or did the writers just need a way to save Mando?

I assumed the robot had determined that the Mandalorian was necessary to the long-term preservation of the child, and so had to save him.

One thing I liked is that combat robots/droids previously in Star Wars had been somewhat comically inept, and easy to destroy. Didn't make sense to me that droids would have such crappy aim, etc.. This actually looked/acted like a robot designed for combat - terrifyingly good, with shitloads of firepower..

 

[Hurl Bruce]

I don't know how I even lived before this came out:

It loses the beat halfway through. Still recommend.

 

[Ohio]

We back.

Great first episode.

 

[Adam]

Incredible! Does everyone else assume

Spoiler: End character

is boba fett

 

[GOMD]

Incredible! Does everyone else assume

Spoiler: End character

is boba fett

Hope so.

My nephew and I love this show. He's watched the new episode 4 times already. Glad to have something awesome to look forward to every friday, for a while.

 

[Hurl Bruce]

Incredible! Does everyone else assume

Spoiler: End character

is boba fett

Spoiler

That's the same actor, so there's 0% chance it's not him. That and the same actor is credited as Boba Fett on IMDB for this episode.

 

[Tonedef75]

Spoiler

That's the same actor, so there's 0% chance it's not him. That and the same actor is credited as Boba Fett on IMDB for this episode.

that first season 2 episode was better then every episode in season 1, and season 1 had some fantastic episodes. It was definitely better then any of the prequel and sequel movies, and could probably make an argument that only Empire and and A New Hope were better. I love the format of these 2 main characters meeting others while traveling through the galaxy that you’re likely to see reappear down the line.

SPOILER BELOW




And yes, that character at the end IS who everyone suspects it is. The funny part, is that as soon as we learn they are traveling to Tatooine. I guessed it would be him. When we learn it’s just the armor, I was bummed, but then my 12 year old, was like, Dad, it doesn’t mean his dead. We were high fiving at the end.

 

[The Human Q-Tip]

To me, It feels very much like The Outlaw Josie Wales (in Space) and I think that was the best of Eastwood's westerns. The whole western vibe to the show just works amazingly well -- kind of a reminder of why that genre was so successful for so long. Probably not a coincidence that Rogue One, the best of the recent movies, also had a western/Magnificent Seven/Seven Samurai feel to it.

Cool thing about the end character scene was that it was significant even if you didn't recognize the character -- it was an important moment because it told you that who the Mandalorian was looking for was still on the planet.

 

[col63onel]

Finally watched episode 1. This show is so good.

In episode 6 of season one, the last shot is someone walking towards a dead body. 100% that was Boba Fett then.

They do have the unenviable task of showing how he survived the sarlac. If they do it poorly, gonna be a lot unhappy fanboys.

Also pretty sure the opening scene was Lothal from Rebels.