2019-
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Pros: Cinematography, Special Effects, Potential, Release Model
Cons: Derivative Premise, Formulaic Episodes, Fanservice Dependent
While Disney’s stewardship of Star Wars has been…underwhelming, I was a bit excited to check out Disney+ and The Mandalorian. Admittedly it may have not been for the best reasons. After all, the premise simply focused on what seemed to be a Boba Fett-like character who wasn’t actually Boba Fett, so I was a bit skeptical. And then I heard that they were going to use practical models for the ships like the original trilogy did.
Those effects are truly impressive. I’ve always had a nostalgic charm for imperfect practical effects, but nowadays it’s flawlessly convincing with less risk of aging than CGI. I even like the look of the Razor Crest, which seems similar to the LAAT/i but with a cleaner design. The production quality is impressive for a show, making it look better than most movies. Greig Fraser’s cinematography is excellent, and I think he may very well be the runner-up to Roger Deakins. The show does a great job of capturing the gritty atmosphere that defines the franchise.
The series also has a very effective release model. Disney is one of the few companies whose streaming site possesses enough content to justify a subscription, and individual episodes of The Mandalorian are wisely released weekly during a season’s run. This actually helps foster a shared pop cultural experience that’s rare nowadays.
Of course, these are pretty superficial points of praise, so now to the story, which is pretty derivative. It’s a typical plot about loner who ends up defying his superiors to protect a small child, incurring the ire of the whole world. Shortly after the defeat of the Empire, The Mandalorian (Pedro Pascal) receives a news of a high-stakes job from Bounty Hunter’s Guild head Greef Karga (Carl Weathers). Desperate for something more lucrative than the typical bail-jumper, he agrees to a job from a renegade Imperial official (Werner Herzog) only to find out that his quarry is an infant Yoda. After turning the child in for a payment of enough beskar to construct a new suit, he decides to go back and rescue the kid from vivisection. It’s not the first time Disney taught us that making a deal with the Devil would turn out ok because you can just screw him out of his end. He goes on the run when the entire Bounty Hunter’s guild declares war on him.
So far, most of the episodes are blatant, formulaic filler, often fueled by excessive fanservice. There’s even one episode that joins the plethora of Seven Samurai rip-offs. The bulk of the season involves his hiding from the Guild with the Child, but that time could have been better dedicated to tracking down the location of the infant. Instead, the series features this absurd device that magically knows wherever a bounty is in the galaxy. This is a shame because detective work is interesting and fun to watch, but unfortunately requires research and imagination to write. Fortunately the final two episodes bring the thrills.
The series gives credence to the idea that people supported the Empire out of a desire for order. There's even one direct example of things going to chaos as a direct result of its fall. I think it might be a retroactive attempt to make the First Order more believable.
The cast is mostly solid. Mando himself is a likable enough stoic loner, but not that interesting Werner Herzog is enjoyable, but he’s sadly killed off near the end of the season by bigger bad Moff Gideon (Giancarlo Esposito). Gina Carano is believably robust in appearance as tough girl Cara Dune, but she’s not the most memorable character. The best role in the show is Kuiil (v. Nick Nolte, Misty Rosas as body), an Ugnaught engineer who aids the protagonist. His catchphrase of “I have spoken” is a genuinely endearing character trait, which is why it lacks the ironic memetic potential of Cassian's "six years old" line from Rogue One.
The Child is cute enough, but he’s a little too much of a meme. It’s a bit too manipulative to sink to babysploitation, as is demonstrated by the scourge of Baby Nut. Still, the potential of a Mandalorian Yoda is pretty cool. The puppet looks great, and thankfully they reneged on CGI after getting scolded by Werner Herzog.
One “character” I’m not terribly fond of is IG-11 (Taika Waititi), an assassin droid whom Mando stops from murdering the Child. He is later reprogrammed to protect the innocent as a nurse droid. We’re supposed to like this character, but I don’t buy him as sentient being. He displays no real personality or personal conflict. This is odd because the droids’ personhood has always been effectively established in this universe. As annoying as people find L3-37, I still thought she was a character. I found it a bit annoying that I was to feel something when he self-destructed to save the other characters. He does get one of the better action moments in the show, though.
Possibly my favorite scene in the show was a humorous one featuring two Scout Troopers (Jason Sudeikis and Adam Pally) who chat with each other mundanely while waiting for orders. They are villains and murderers, but it’s interesting to watch them chat like normal people. It’s an interesting depiction of the Banality of Evil. Unfortunately, the show descends into cringe fanboy humor by having them shoot at an object to pass time and missing every shot.
Other cast members include Omid Obtahi, Amy Sedaris, Jake, Cannavale, Ming-Na Wen, Mark Boone Jr., Bill Burr, Natalia Tena, Richard Ayoade, Ismael Cruz Cordova, Julia Jones, Matt Lanter, Dave Filoni, Rick Famuyiwa, Deborah Chow, Emily Swallow, Brian Posehn, Jon Favreau, Mark Hamill, and Horatio Sanz, and members of the 501st Legion of stormtroopers. Clancy Brown is wasted in a decidedly uninteresting role. The second season will feature Michael Biehn, Timothy Olyphant, Katee Sackhoff, Temuera Morrison as Boba Fett, and Rosario Dawson as Ahsoka Tano.
One memorable moment is the prominent display of a portable safe that supposedly resembles the Ice Cream Maker featured in Empire Strikes Back. Now before anyone gets the impression that this is awkward fan service that diminishes the appeal of Ice Cream Maker Man, I want to set the record straight. Ice Cream Maker Man is still Ice Cream Maker Man. Lando announced the evacuation of Cloud City, and his response was to make sure he got out of there with his Ice Cream Maker. If you look closely at the two objects, you'll see that they only bear a vague resemblance in shape and nothing more:
The Mandalorian is an enjoyable show, but it lacks originality. It borrows a lot of plot points and tropes from other works, many of them stale. However, one thing I love about Star Wars is its gritty universe, and it’s good to see a competent show that’s not related to the Skywalker family. This gives it potential to explore the possibilities of the franchise, but it will take a lot more imagination than it has already displayed. Unfortunately its potential is hampered by the obligation to show things through the eyes of a single protagonist who isn't that interesting. It also limits itself to Western tropes most people are familiar with through osmosis.
