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Sarah here, teaching English around the world. Living life and seeing things.
This week’s episode of The Book of Boba Fett is back with more Mandalorian content. An episode that is bookended with real space Western vibes, and feels more a part of the Star Wars franchise than anything we’ve had in a while.
”Chapter 6: From the Desert Comes a Stranger” is directed by Dave Filoni, and is written by Jon Favreau and Filoni. The episode stars Pedro Pascal, Timothy Olyphant, Rosario Dawson, Mark Hamill, and Graham Hamilton.
This Town Ain’t Big Enough…
We’re back in the saddle with another episode of Boba Fett that doesn’t really include Boba Fett. With more cameos from much loved Mandolorian characters, the show is starting to feel less like a new show, and more like the start of The Mandalorian Season 3.
The first of our favourites to feature is everyone’s beloved Marshal — Cobb Vanth (Timothy Olyphant). His moments on screen are exactly what people expect from Star Wars; space Western drama that just builds tension. He has a fun and demanding presence on screen, and the opening scene feels nostalgic, setting a more serious tone that gives more information on the impact that the Pyke syndicate is having on Tatooine. It’s a short opening that plays out perfectly and really draws you in.
One of the final scenes of the episode complements the opening nicely, and really builds the tension in the story. The appearance of the Stranger from the Desert brings a well-known character to the show, as well as something else to add to the drama. The only thing missing from this scene is the soundtrack to the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, as Cobb Vanth finally meets his gunslinging match. It’s a fantastic ending to this week’s Boba Fett but only adds another element for fans to keep track of.
I Came All This Way…
Episode 6 brings all the cameos, with Grogu back to remind us that he’s everyone’s favourite Jedi in training, and Ahsoka Tano (Rosario Dawson) here to remind us that she’s cooler than everyone else. These characters will forever be favourites, and we love seeing them on screen. While we’re hoping for them to feature more beloved characters in the future, it’s difficult to see how they’ll fall into place within The Book of Boba Fett.
Ahsoka is firm, fair, and has some very poignant moments that really help to bring out the emotion of this episode, and has a very nice little reference to The Clone Wars. And Grogu is Grogu — adorable and powerful, part of the reason we all fell in love with The Mandalorian, and none of his scenes would ever be a disappointment.
The real issue with the middle section of this episode is the cold, dead eyes of Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill and Graham Hamilton). His appearance at the end of The Mandalorian worked well, not only because of it being a nice little callback but also because of the brevity of his scenes. The de-aging technology doesn’t seem to cut it here, and it feels emotionless and uncomfortable. His character feels alien on screen and doesn’t sit well whenever he has more than a few seconds as the focus. Could they have recast this character? Absolutely.
As seen with Han Solo and Lando Calrissian, recasting to show these characters at a younger age works, and it would have made the scenes smoother. They wouldn’t feel as jarring, and they wouldn’t have needed to rely too much on running and walking through forests — from a distance.
The Mandalorian (Pedro Pascal) has become one of everyone’s favourite characters in the Star Wars universe, and I’m not mad at the fact they’re utilising him so much in the franchise. Pedro Pascal has always played this character well, but I think he was able to break the hearts of everyone watching with just two simple lines in this episode. It’s nice to see the softer side of Mando coming back into play, and his commitment to Grogu is one of the reasons we love him so much. Pascal has always given so much with so many restrictions, and his performance in this episode cannot be faulted.
A Difficult Decision for Boba Fett
The end of this week’s Boba Fett leaves us on a cliffhanger that will break our hearts, regardless of which way it goes. However, I feel like we have all made our decision on how we would like the story to go. It will set up the future of several storylines, and it’s a strong move to have Grogu (and the fans) choose between these options.
While Episodes 5 and 6 have been a welcome change, it’s still all a little disconnected and this show feels very much like several series that have been pushed together. And although it’s clear that Boba Fett Season 1 is just a build-up to something more, it feels like we won’t be able to get a good resolution on anything that we’ve seen so far. Maybe they have taken on too much with the series, but at the moment, it feels more like a build-up to The Mandalorian Season 3, rather than the end of The Book of Boba Fett Season 1. We can still hope that we’ll get a satisfying end to the season, but as the finale draws ever closer, it seems as though we’ll be left with more questions than answers.
The Book of Boba Fett Season 1, Episodes 1-6 are available to stream now on Disney+.
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Sarah here, teaching English around the world. Living life and seeing things.
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