“The Mandalorian” is taking a sharp turn from critically acclaimed first seasons, and viewers are on the fence about it.
The series captivated audiences for the first time in December 2019 with its mysteriously masked lead and adorable Baby Yoda, skyrocketing the Disney+ streaming service.
Mandalorians are not new characters in Star Wars. Their origin in the films is first seen in Boba Fett’s inherited armor, and eventually we see Mandalore in the “Clone Wars” and “Rebels” TV series.
Many fans enjoyed seeing the “Star Wars” world between the original trilogy and before the sequels. The series holds a whopping 14 Emmy awards, with nearly 3 times that number in nominations.
Until recently, the series received major praise for including characters such as Bo-Katan Kryse and Ahsoka Tano. By Star Wars standards, it was near-perfect.
The season starts off with Din seeking redemption after removing his helmet to look at Grogu at the end of season 2. He is instructed to bathe in the Living Waters on Mandalore. Enlisting the help of Bo-Katan, he ventures to Mandalore, finds out that it isn’t cursed and redeems himself in an underground pool in episode 3.
We then see a new, shiny Coruscant, beaming with the New Republic. Dr. Pershing, the scientist forced into the Empire’s research, speaks on the “Imperial Reintegration” program. He befriends a former Imperial officer who sets him up to be captured by New Republic officers and put under intense electrotherapy.
Before the season aired, Jon Favreau clarified the “Mandalorian” timeline in an interview for the podcast “Skytalkers.” Seasons 1 and 2 take place over the course of “many years” without a specific number (for reference, the first season previously took place over 6 months), and Grogu trained with Luke Skywalker for about 2 years.
This clarification from Favreau stretches the timeline between the end of the Empire and the beginning of the First Order. “The Mandalorian” will tie itself into the Sequel Trilogy.
“The Mandalorian” will fix the dumpster-fire of continuity that the sequels left behind. Dr. Pershing continuing to pursue his cloning research on force sensitive beings will inevitably lead to the creation of Supreme Leader Snoke and the development of the First Order.
This oversight has ruined the season, as plot corrections are becoming an oversight, neglecting a major villain or conflict for the actual main characters of the show. So far, the season looks like it’ll be Din training Grogu to be a Child of the Watch with the possibility of a romantic subplot between him and Bo-Katan.
I’m not sure what I was expecting, but it wasn’t this. I was hoping to see more of Ahsoka, like a preview of her show or different pockets of displaced Mandalorians. I also love the relationship between Din and Grogu, but where’s the plot? It was over in three episodes and the fourth was just filler — although we do see Bo happy, a rare sight.
Ana Santana, a sophomore motion pictures production major and longtime “Star Wars” fan, expressed her frustration with the show.
“I think that the story structure needs some fine tuning,” Santana said. “The arc is lost within these mini side-quests, and most fans are expecting something more out of the show that had two pretty great seasons.”
Like Santana, I am disappointed. I hope my opinions are proven wrong by the end. While I have no issue with the writers’ attempt to smooth over what happened in the pre-prequel, using “The Mandalorian” to do it is 100% the wrong move.
This popular show has already established its viewers, so why change it? I’d rather see an expansion on Rey and Kylo’s childhoods, Luke’s revival of the temple (looking at you, Sebastian Stan!) and an explanation of the political and developmental changes. I’m hoping that the remainder of the season has a clearer plot line, and that the series maintains its previous integrity.