Chapter 5: Return of the Mandalorian
*The following contains spoilers through Chapter 5 of The Book of Boba Fett*
It didn’t take long for us to get the “Chewie, we’re home” moment in this episode, as only moments into chapter 5 we got to hear none other than Din Djarin say his trademark “I can bring you in warm, or I can bring you in cold” which introduced us to the now-fan-favourite character in the very first episode of his own show The Mandalorian. What followed was 50 more minutes of Mando’s journey to reconnecting with Fennec Shand, who asked him to join them in Boba Fett’s fight against the Pykes.
First things first, it is interesting that a show with his name in the title would have an episode where Boba Fett doesn’t even appear, and while I anticipated (and predicted) the Mandalorian would return, given the music theme at the end of Chapter 4, I fully expected Boba Fett to depart Tatooine and search out Mando as this week’s episode. As Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni have informed us all previously, most of the shows they are developing for Disney+ will feature some degree of crossover, and bringing Din Djarin (and apparently maybe Grogu?) allows us to catch up on their story and perhaps pave the way for a more focused plot and storyline for The Mandalorian season three when it airs.
It’s not completely far-fetched that an episode of a Star Wars show would focus on a non-titular character. After all, two episodes of Mandalorian season two offered more back story and more focus on other characters (Looking at you, Ahsoka and Boba), so it’s not uncommon for Favreau and Filoni to dive into other stories mid-season like this. However, this one seemed much more Din-focused than Boba-focused, even presenting another character tease at the end of the episode that could take us even further away from the story that the first four episodes of The Book of Boba Fett presented. It also seems daring for the showrunners and writers to take an iconic character whose solo outing has been over 40 years in the making, and turn his own show into a channel to expand the story of some completely different characters. Understandably, the reaction I’ve seen to this aspect hasn’t been great, but I think the payoff over the next two episodes will be worth it.
Mando wielding the Darksaber is everything I hoped for; in the prologue scene it almost came across like the Darksaber has filled him with more anger (will we get a Dark Side Grogu???) as he carves his bounty in half quite adeptly. All this was done because he needed directions to the Mandalorian covert in the amazingly-designed halo setting reminiscent of Cloud City. There, we find the Armorer and Paz Vizsla, apparently the only two surviving Mandalorian warriors from the Nevarro covert we saw destroyed by Moff Gideon’s stormtroopers in Mandalorian season one.
What transpires there is a very interesting series of events; Din is told by the Armorer that his Beskar spear is no bueno for him, since he has the Darksaber now, so she melts it down and makes some alarmingly tiny armour for his Foundling – Grogu, of course (more on him later). Then, after Din seems unworthy of wielding the Darksaber, Paz Vizsla, whose ancestor created the weapon, challenges him to a duel for ownership of it. Din wins the duel and is promptly banished from the covert after revealing he has removed his helmet.
Turns out the Mandalorians who survived are still religious fanatics who will abide by their code and nothing else, while Din is pretty quick to up and leave. I think my theory about his becoming disillusioned with the traditional Mandalorian ways are starting to strike true, as he doesn’t hesitate to depart the covert, yet he still falls back into his old habit of saying “I am a Mandalorian, weapons are my religion” before boarding the commercial flight to Tatooine.
On Tatooine, he is reunited with Peli Motto (Amy Sedaris) who hooks him up with a refitted and repurposed Naboo Starfighter; the same kind that Anakin flew in The Phantom Menace. Together they fix it up and he takes it for a spin through part of the Boonta Eve Podrace course (ramp up the nostalgia!) before Fennec shows up to invite him to join them.
With Boba absent from this episode, the focus is on the crossover character, and what leads him to rejoining Boba’s world. However, instead of focusing purely on his present and on the story that he will share with Boba Fett, the focus shifts away from the titular charatcer of the series. The revelations of this episode have nothing to do with Boba’s central story, but more to do with Din Djarin and the larger Star Wars Universe. Mainly, the focus of the series has suddenly become the Darksaber, and also how Din has apparently not moved on from the attachment he forged with Grogu.
The very last line of the episode, “First, I need to pay a visit to a little friend,” is ripe with teasing that next week’s episode will feature more Mando and perhaps more Grogu. However, I don’t see how it’s possible to do so without bringing Luke Skywalker back into the fold, unless Din straight up kidnaps Grogu, and with more prestige Star Wars characters inevitably about to make a return to or debut in the live action universe, I think an appearance from Luke would overshadow and undermine this season.
His cameo at the end of Mandalorian season two was such a surprise and such a shock that I don’t think we can return to him this quickly only a year later. I feel like Favreau, Filoni and Rodriguez have more up their sleeve than they are letting on, and perhaps there will be more paths that intersect when Din seeks out Grogu. Will Boba and Fennec join him in finding the little guy, knowing that his powers could tip the scales of the oncoming war into their favour? Or, maybe Boba will dissuade him from going to visit him entirely and season three of Mandalorian will cross that bridge. With Dave Filoni writing and directing (presumably) next week’s episode, it actually makes sense that Grogu could return to the story, but as I said I would bank on other characters coming into the fold whether or not we get an appearance from our favourite Star Wars baby.
Speaking of characters returning to the story, it was fun to see Paul Sun-Hyung Lee’s New Republic pilot back in action, and was I the only one squinting at my screen to see if it was Sebastian Stan in his sidekick’s X-Wing? It is curious as to why the New Republic would have any kind of presence anywhere near an Outer Rim planet like Tatooine, unless the reason for their presence revolves around Luke and his Jedi facility – I have already seen some speculation that it could be located on Tatooine, which WOULD make sense given that it is his homeworld, familiar ground, and all that. Otherwise their presence does feel fairly random, unless some New Republicans (which sounds weird, we’re going to need a better name for them) are going to intervene on the struggle for Jabba’s territory…which also feels random.
In any case, while detracting completely from the focused plotline of Boba Fett’s character, this episode was full of background to Mando’s current situation, and as mentioned before, the fate of the Darksaber. But, what is interesting now is depending on who the Pyke Syndicate’s big bad is, the Darksaber could actually change hands in this season’s finale. We know Mando isn’t the greatest fighter out there, and especially with the Darksaber, as the Armorer says to him, he seems to be fighting the weapon more than his opponent, which could lead to someone defeating him and claiming the sword. Think about it, if Qi’Ra or even Darth Maul is brought into the mix, as some people are speculating (I’m not buying into the Mace Windu theories), it’s conceivable that they could end up wielding the Darksaber, meaning Mandalorian season three could be Mando reunited with Bo-Katan in an effort to retrieve the famed Mandalorian weapon.
Chapter 5 also exposed the dichotomy and opposing philosophies that the Jedi and Mandalorians have. There is a reason so few Mandalorians have become Jedi (Tarre Vizsla, creator of the Darksaber, being the most notable), mainly because as Din Djarin discovers in this episode from the Armorer, the Jedi are supposed to sever all ties and attachments. This is the traditional view of things, dating back to before Order 66 and the Jedi Purge; as you may recall, holding on to attachments is exactly what drove Anakin Skywalker to the Dark Side. But now with Luke Skywalker training the next generation of Jedi, what are the chances he would ask for that? He still holds on to feelings for his friends and family, so why can’t Grogu? For Mandalorians, as Din Djarin states, “Loyalty and solidarity are the way.” At some point these two opposing philosophies will create a decision for Grogu. I thought it would wait until later episodes of The Mandalorian, but it is heavily hinted that we’ll see him sooner than expected.
As you can tell, this episode has actually generated far more thought and excitement among viewers for Din Djarin’s story and potential reuniting with Baby Yoda than it has for Boba Fett’s actual conflict and the war with the Pyke Syndicate. As I stated earlier, I believe bringing Luke Skywalker in is unlikely, as his focus at this point in time is setting up his Jedi training/Temple (I don’t believe Ben Solo has been born yet, and he certainly isn’t old enough to have destroyed everything yet), and likely wouldn’t leave that to go and help some former enemy bounty hunter.
However, with the crossover potential of this series now that Mando is back and wants nothing more than to see Baby Yoda, it’s clear that Favreau and Filoni are not containing single seasons of their series to any one character or story, but rather are conduits for somewhat contained storylines that then open the door to the greater story at work in the current live action universe.
Once again I will spend much of the next week mulling over new questions which an episode of Boba Fett has brought up as opposed to reviewing answers to previous questions. Filoni has never disappointed with any episode he has directed in The Mandalorian, so I’m very excited to see what his story will bring next week, and can’t wait to see who else is going to get recruited to Team Boba for what should be an explosive and epic finale.
Chapter 6 of The Book of Boba Fett streams exclusively on Disney+ on Wednesday, February 2nd.
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