The Mandalorian The Mandalorian 2.01 - Chapter 9 - Discussion Thread (Spoilers Allowed)

When you say ‘something we haven’t seen already’ I think you are making a massive generalisation.

I love Star Wars and have watched the series and movies a million times over, yet I’ve only read a few books and I never played KOTOR. You have to remember that this isn’t a show just aimed at die hard Star Wars fans who have read every book and comic. This is aimed at Star Wars fans from all ends of the spectrum. While I can appreciate you may have found it repetitive there will be tonnes of people like me who are aware of the pearls, krayt dragons, Cobb Vanth etc but haven’t actually read the material that they have previously been involved in

 

I didn't realize it was Boba until I came here since it was so fast. I too liked Baby Yoda and the fight scene at the beginning, "Do you want to do this in front of the kid?" And without missing a beat he say, "He's scene worse." I had to laugh at that and thought no kidding. I also liked seeing, if not the Tuskens in a sympathetic light, that they had a genuine culture. It was a nice touch.

I like the expansion of Tatooine as well. Usually, whether it's TCW, Rebels, whatever, we see one town pretty much, here we learn that there are in fact 2 additional towns. I forget the other one. Oh and the music was awesome! I love the Western theme.

 

This is something I had not considered, but now really hope this is the route that they take with Boba.

This is character development and growth to its very essence; its not regurgitating the same story (ie. Marvel) over and over again. Because fans can get so bogged down with a character that they have to be this way, or they have to be this way and they are not allowed to change from that. That's a superhero; not a character in a fictious universe!

A character should be allowed to grow and develop because for me, its what deepens my interest in them; though I'm not speaking for any other fan when I say this part. I don't want them to always be the same character. I want them to go on their own personal journeys and have those character arcs entwine with the main Star Wars timeline when the time calls for it.

So I really hope your idea plays out Bor. It will, IMO, further deepen the character depth of Boba Fett.

And maybe the reason why he hasn't and may not put his armour back on is that despite not being Mandalorian, because of some moral stance within him, maybe he honours the idea of once the helmet (and possibly the armour) comes off, it doesnt go back on. Maybe its his own way to honour the creed.

 

Did not think of that. Thank you.

Wow.

The Siege of Mandalore and the "Night of a Thousand Tears" happened at the end of the Clone Wars. And since then I guess it can be said that all, or most, Mandalorians started to adopt the practice of not removing their helmet. Even Boba Fett, a "non-Mandalorian."

And so there we are.

EDIT: Oh, forgot about Rebels. Never mind.

I guess it's still just a practice that started at some point with certain clans.

 

Wonderful episode. Everything was on point. So much care and respect has gone into it and it shows.

 

If in fact that was Boba I think you can infer straight away that he’s a changed man. There’s no way prime Boba Fett would just waste his days away wandering the deserts of Tatooine.

 

Have to be honest, I hope Boba ends up in a sort-of antagonist role.

 

Been thinking about when Cobb and Mando first meet and I'm digging the mutual respect they quickly established. I got the sense that Cobb knew he wasn't going to beat Mando in a fight and made an effort to acknowledge he knew he wasn't supposed to wear mandalorian armor. It even felt like Cobb knew that somebody was going to show up for the armor, it was just a matter of time. They both read each other as honorable men and Cobb wanted to have one last ride with the armor while getting Mando's help to kill the Krayt Dragon. This allowed Cobb to keep the respect of the townspeople without having the armor. It was almost a mini iron man arc for Cobb, learning it's the man and not the suit.

 

How do Mando and Cobb Vanith activate their jet packs? In the clone wars we saw mandalorians use their wrist gauntlets but in this episode they didn’t need to press anything.

 

If it helps in any way, I don't remember Boba pressing anything in ROTJ either. I think to remember something about the helmets having inner devices for such functions, could that be it?

 

blue tooth

 

Re: the fate of Baby Yoda, It’s best to try and enjoy this show in the moment because the ST guarantees that everything goes to crap eventually.

 

Baby Yoda's fate is the future of star wars.

 

Ah but if you don't call the child a Jedi or even make him a jedi then technically he doesn't have to die. easy!

 

Loved the massiffs, too. More PT goodness.

 

Exactly! Just kick back, enjoy some action, added canon stories, and don't worry about the future.

 

It was an enjoyable episode - nice to see more alien characters.

It was a good brawl with the Gamorreans and refreshing to see a different type of planet.

I find it interesting that the Tusken Raiders have a nicer side.

The Krayt Dragon stuff ties nicely with Legends.

And we finally get a continuation of what happened to Boba Fett.

I feel it was a missed opportunity not having a unique design for a Tusken raider though like the epic Shaman design from the unseen Boba Fett/Cad Bane arc from TCW.

 

So as someone who lurks more than anything these days largely because Star Wars fandom is so divided, I feel like I'm watching the OT all over again and it feels incredible. The Mandalorian is the most excitement I have gotten out of Star Wars in so long. It feels like it could fit into Legends or Canon! Great for PT or OT fans or something in between or none of the above! I can't believe I have so much love for a Star Wars project again.

 

So, what line of work are you in, Cobb?

 

This is the way…. To make great Star Wars!

Let’s take a moment to remember many banthas died to bring us this episode. It seems the stagecraft technology is even better here than it was in the first season.

Video Review:


I didn’t realize until the end credits Karesh was played by John Leguizamo. The combination of CG and practical effects / prosthetics was REALLY impressive. Given the facial features, it had to be largely CG, but it LOOKED like practical effects.

Karesh alludes to the price of beskar continuing to rise throughout the Galaxy.

We know that the Mandalore was decimated by the Empire at some point during the original trilogy era. Sabine entrusted Bo Katan with the Dark Saber to unite the clans of Mandalore in season 4 of Rebels which takes place roughly a year before A New Hope.

So we now know there are other culverts or clans of Mandalorians in hiding elsewhere in the Galaxy and that these groups are entirely decentralized. Which makes sense – other Mandalorians don’t have the same rules about removing their helmets.

The Gamorean guards fighting in the ring appear to be using vibrating blades, which I know exist in the novels and have been used in The Clone Wars, but I believe this is the first time we have seen them used in live action. I may be wrong though. Not sure about the fight at the end of Solo between Qi’ra and Draven Vos

I thought the scene where Mando leaves Karesh hanging from the street lamp, then breaks the light was really effective. It was set up a few minutes earlier when baby Yoda sees the red eyed creatures looming in the periphery. Seeing them all light up when the light goes out, then swarm in was very effectively creepy.

The story structure for the episode was somewhat familiar and most of the plot beats were predictable, but it was still a lot of fun. There were a ton of nods and references to past Star Wars stories which were done in a really meaningful way and lots of really interesting worldbuilding.

I really liked Timothy Olyphant’s character, Cobb Vanth, Vanth Extermination, and hope he comes back later in the season, like Kuill in season one. The speeder bike he rides seems to built using a repurposed engine from Anakin Skywalker’s podracer from The Phantom Menace. I thought this was really cool – we know that after the race, Qui-Gon facilitated sale of Anakin’s pod and it would make perfect sense for it to eventually be scrapped and sold for parts.

This is the most prominently the Sand people have ever been used in a Star Wars story. They have always been framed as barbaric, and though this story doesn’t dispel that notion entirely, it does humanize them and show another side to their society.

The manner in which the Krayt Dragon was killed was also not unexpected, but the whole sequence was still really impressive. I really liked the way they expanded the aspect ratio when the Krayt Dragon arrives on the scene in full and shrunk it again after the battle had concluded. I haven’t noticed if they previously used this technique, but it was really effective here in conveying the scale of the Krayt Dragon and also made the action easier to see and follow.

For those who have played Zelda: Breath of the Wild, the whole battle reminded me a lot of fighting the Molduga mini bosses in Gerudo desert.

Mando blowing up the Krayt Dragon from inside out is perhaps an intentional nod to Boba Fett and his surviving the bowels of the Sarlacc Pit.

It was still cool to see the face ‘revealed’ for the first time post-prequel era on screen. He looks really grizzled with lots of scars… and no eyebrows.

Boba was given a really interesting story arc in the Clone Wars as we saw him slowly growing into the Galaxy’s most notorious bounty hunter. With Dave Filoni heavily involved in the Mandalorian, I’m really excited to see the continuation of Boba’s story. I hope we get to see more of him in the next episode.

I also wonder if this means we’ll see Ming Na Wen’s bounty hunter character return in the next episode.

I was glad they brought back the mechanic and pit droids. I’m also really curious to see how Cara Dune, Greef Carga, and Moff Gideon re-enter the story.

Best baby Yoda moment in the episode, probably when he hides in a spittoon when Mando and the Marshall are about to fight.

This episode also had a lot of callbacks to season 1. The episode very much felt structurally similar to the pilot episode. The reveal of Boba is a similar twist or hook to the child / baby Yoda’s introduction. Mando meets a new ally in the form of Kuill / Cobb Vanth, Vanth Extermination. And the Sand People celebrating the Krayt pearl reminded me a lot of the Jawas and THE EGG! SUGA! SUGA!

Overall, this was a GREAT start to the season. I went in completely blind – I haven’t seen any of the trailers, so I’m really excited to see where this season goes. I have a few spoilers about characters who may potentially appear based on the casting rumors

Also, if the law enforcement gig doesn't work out in the long run, perhaps he should consider rebranding. Krayt Extermination.

Cobb Vanth, Vanth Extermination.

 

That really is all he was ever intended to be. "Looks cool, seems to be a bad***". As a kid in the late 70's I remember his layout in the pages of the Star Wars Fan Club newsletter Bantha Tracks. It had a heavy emphasis on his armor and gear.



I still remember getting that issue and seeing "wookie scalps" pointed out on the diagram and getting all worried about Chewie.

 

Oops.... forgot about Rebels. But like you said, maybe something that, for whatever reason, he decided later on after escaping the Sarlacc.

 

Do y'all think this episode was originally supposed to be in theaters with the aspect ratio change. the CGI looked like a million bucks. I mean this is better than a lot of big budget movies CGI, that dragon looked awesome. I am thinking it was supposed to be in theaters and then covid hit.

PS I'm rewatching the episode again and I really wish we would have spent a little more time where that first scene took place, that was an interesting planet and I wish we saw more of it

 

I really don't like the idea of resurrecting Boba Fett, but I'm of the opinion that if Filoni is involved, he won't be using Fett as a cheap gimmick. I have faith in Favreau and Filoni to deliver an awesome Star Wars story to us over the course of the next seven chapters.

I was amazed how excellent the special effects were in this episode. I mean, for the most part, they're filming this indoors, inside The Volume, but wow, it looks like they're on location in the desert! That Krayt Dragon was IN-CRED-I-BLE, and I don't think we've had such a large creature in any live-action Star Wars? This might be in Zillo Beast territory, perhaps someone who's watched those episodes of TCW could do a comparison.