Where to now for The Mandalorian?

 

I think The Mandalorian is the best thing that has happened to Star Wars in several years – since Rogue One, in fact.

The Mandalorian is set in the Star Wars universe after the demise of the Empire. Removing Vader and his Emperor would have started the process but it would have taken years for the still-powerful Empire to fall completely – and even more for the New Republic to take over. Out there in the frontier regions pockets of Imperial loyalists would use what muscle they still had. We see Imperial stormtroopers in grubby white armour co-existing with bounty hunters and bandits. Law and order is sporadic and local. I can imagine this is the sort of thing that would have happened as the Roman Empire crumbled so I find that setting eminently convincing, made more so because I know what happened to the Empire in the past.

The show has been described as a spaghetti western in space and that's pretty accurate. In each new episode, the Mandalorian (a mysterious man in a mask) arrives in a new setting, looking for a way to reunite Baby Yoda with his own kind. That quest is the thread that ties the series together. Mando is usually told he can have the information he seeks if he carries out a certain task – which, of course, he does.

The Star Wars background is always there. In the first series we had a number of blasts from the past. In one of the earliest scenes in episode one Mando strides through a frontier town and we spy a creature being roasted on a spit. It's the same species as the nasty little critter we saw in Revenge of the Jedi sitting next to Jabba in his palace, enjoying Leia's torment. When Mando takes on the bounty, he is assisted by Kuiil, an Ugnaught who had been indentured to the Empire. The Ugnaughts appeared in The Empire Strikes Back in Cloud City, scavenging parts which turned out to be sections of C3P0, who had been blasted by Imperial troops. IG-11, the bounty-hunting droid, first appeared on the bridge of the star destroyer Executor in The Empire Strikes Back when Darth Vader sent out bounty hunters to find the Millennium Falcon. And so it goes.

In the first season, we never saw a Jedi – although it was clear that Baby Yoda had the power. The characters were fresh and new, with no lingering nostalgia about the Skywalker legacy.

 

 

 Enter season two. We still have the spaghetti western vibe, with each new episode a new adventure. In the first episode, Mando returns to Tatooine to help kill a krait dragon, which looks remarkably like Dune's sand worms. You might remember the skeleton on a sand dune, in shot as we see C3PO struggling in the desert early on in A New Hope.) We meet a group of Mandalorians who don't keep their helmets on at all times. They are true Mandalorians, from the planet Mandalore who want to regain control of their planet. (That's a bit of history you'll find in the animated Clone Wars series.) They want the dark sabre, a symbol of Mandalorian kingship currently in the possession of the series villain, Moff Gideon.

In a later episode we meet Ahsoka Tano, a Jedi who had been Anakin Skywalker's padawan. And then Boba Fett reappears. It seems the legends were right – he survived being ingested by the Sarlacc (Return of the Jedi).

I loved the final episode of season two of the Mandalorian. I was on the edge of my seat several times and found the ending – frankly, quite astonishing and very convincing.

And yet…

To me, the Mandalorian is a masked stranger riding into town to right wrongs, the Lone Ranger in space. He's a tough, resourceful individual – but he doesn't have any super powers. He's not a force-wielder. I hope the producers don't go down the Skywalker path. Keep on setting fun stories in that Galaxy far, far away but don't try to resurrect the old characters as was done in Solo: A Star Wars Story. And keep the Jedi encounters to a minimum.

After that final episode, after the credits, there is a short teaser starring Boba Fett. I gather, though, that The Book of Boba Fett is a spin-off, not The Mandalorian season three. It should be fun.

And for those who like flashing light sabres, Ahsoka Tano apparently gets her own series, too, set within the timeline for The Mandalorian. Ahsoka will debut on Disney Plus around Christmas 2021. 

Disney has finally admitted there will be a Kenobi series, starring Ewan McGregor. It sounds promising.

So there'll be plenty to see in the Star Wars Universe. What The Mandalorion season three will bring is anybody's guess. There's plenty of room for more content, for instance the battle to regain control of Mandalore. And what actually happened to Moff Gideon? And why do they want Grogu's blood?..

But please, please, please - nothing resembling The Force Awakens. Please. 

And since you're here... one of my books is part of the Our Heroes story bundle. You can buy 4 full books for $5 or 11 for $15. It's great value and part of the profit goes to Hero Dogs which helps to support veterans returning to civilian life. Here's my contribution

Interested? Pop over to Story Bundle and check it out

 

A handful of screen offerings

 

As the days shorten in the Northern Hemisphere, people's thoughts seem to lean toward indoor activities, such as watching movies.  Or at least, that was what used to happen before covid-19. These days I suppose indoor activities are the norm. for many people.

There are a few interesting offerings for science fiction fans.

I'm looking forward to season two of The Mandalorian.

Then there's a new version of Frank Herbert's classic SF Dune. I have high hopes for this one. I was seriously unimpressed with the 1984 movie (Sting was in it) and although I didn't mind the first episode of the mini-series with John Hurt, I quickly ran out of steam with that one, too.

This next one I happened across by accident, one of those titles listed down the right side of the screen when you watch YouTube. It piqued my interest. Books and movies are always throwing up possibilities for new stories. A minor character might end up getting his own story. Admiral Philip Guthrie in Linnea Sinclair's Dock Five series comes to mind. Or you might read something in a novel and find yourself wondering how that happened? In my Morgan's Choice, Admiral Ravindra has a tattoo, something men of his class just don't have. I turned that into a short story (Ink).

Back to YouTube. I noticed a short film entitled Birth of a Monster – a Star Wars story. Half the fun of this one was trying to work out how it fitted into the Star Wars universe. I won't spoil it by telling you – if you've watched the original trilogy, you should be able to work it out. It's about twenty minutes long.

It adds depth and understanding to an otherwise puzzling scene.

 

Why I love The Mandalorian

Without in any way minimizing the importance of the Covid-19 pandemic, I'll bet most of you are stuffed to pussy's bow with articles on the subject. I certainly am. So, this week I've been using my self-imposed social isolation to revisit some favourite shows.

I've started my second viewing of The Mandalorian which goes to show I really enjoyed it. Although I'm a Star Wars fan, I don't enjoy everything the franchise churns out. The prequels left me underwhelmed and I despised The Force Awakens. I haven't seen the last offering yet. It will happen in the fullness of time. But I did think Rogue One was excellent. And all of that got me to thinking. WHY did I like The Mandalorian so much?

 I expect anyone who's interested has probably already seen the show. This post isn’t going to be littered with spoilers – or at least I don't think so. But if you haven't seen the show yet and spoilers are a concern, please leave quietly and close the door behind you.

So… why does The Mandalorian work? Lots of people waving their hands around are shouting 'Baby Yoda!!!' And I can't deny that's part of the appeal. He's cute and powerful and very much just a kid. In that respect I think he's very well written (We're saying 'he' – but he could be a 'she', couldn't he?) The eyes and ears are very expressive – child-like yet, wise. And the behaviour is kid-like, too.

But for me it was more about the richness of the show's setting. 

The Mandalorian is set in a universe after the demise of the Empire. Removing Vader and his Emperor would have started the process but it would have taken years for the still-powerful Empire to fall completely – and even more for the New Republic to take over. Out there in the frontier regions pockets of Imperial loyalists would use what muscle they still had. We see Imperial stormtroopers in grubby white armour co-existing with bounty hunters and bandits. Law and order is sporadic and local. I can imagine this is the sort of thing that would have happened as the Roman Empire crumbled so I find that setting eminently convincing, made more so because I know what happened in the past.

The producers have called upon bits and pieces from the earlier movies without thrusting the analogy down our throats as was done in The Force Awakens. (Desert planet, cute droid, orphan kid, planet-killer death ray etc etc. Don't get me started.) 

In one of the earliest scenes in episode one Mando strides through a frontier town and we spy a creature being roasted on a spit. It's the same species as the nasty little critter we saw in Revenge of the Jedi sitting next to Jabba in his palace, enjoying Leia's torment. When Mando takes on the bounty, he is assisted by Kuiil, an Ugnaught who had been indentured to the Empire. The Ugnaughts appeared in The Empire Strikes Back in Cloud City, scavenging parts which turned out to be sections of C3P0, who had been blasted by Imperial troops. IG-11, the bounty-hunting droid which features in the Mandalorian, first appeared on the bridge of the star destroyer Executor in The Empire Strikes Back when Darth Vader sent out bounty hunters to find the Millennium Falcon. And so it goes.

What's nice about these characters from the past is that this show enables them to be more than bit players. Kuiil comes across as a real person with a past and some amazing skills. In the second episode, Mando's ship is looted (not trashed) by Jawas in a sand crawler. We all remember them from A New Hope when they picked up R2D2 and C3P0.

Characters like Cara Dune work, too, because they're placed in context. Cara was a Rebel shock trooper during the war with the Empire. When peace broke out she couldn't adjust and became a bounty hunter. She comes from Alderaan, which as we all know was blown to bits by Grand Moff Tarkin and the first Death Star. I can imagine, after that sort of history, she would have trouble settling down. I was especially impressed with the way she worked with Mando in their support of a village against bandits who had obtained an Imperial AT-ST. The episode was reminiscent of The Magnificent Seven. 

The other thing Disney did was learn from the failure of Solo. The movie itself wasn't bad - but 
fans couldn't accept anyone but Harrison Ford as Han Solo.Danny Glover as a younger Lando Calrissian wasn't quite as fraught with danger, but even so.

But back to The Mandalorian. So many of the episodes evoked "Star Wars" without in any way regurgitating the storyline. Sure, as with all Star Wars stories, you have to turn your credibility sensors right down when it comes to physics. I'll add that while the earlier episodes are spaghetti westerns in space, later episodes hint at something more that I hope will come out in the second series, due (I think) in October.

I'm looking forward to it - and I'd love to know what you thought.