1x08 Chapter 8: Redemption

The beginning of the episode left me wishing we could've seen more of this side of Star Wars: regular stormtroopers doing their job, getting into action, and all the unseen dynamics rarely mentioned in the mainstream film trilogies. We did have something in that vein: Republic Commando explored the lives of elite Republic clone troopers; Jedi Academy had us follow the lives of youngling under tutelage of Luke's academy; the original Battlefront showed us the transitioning of a republic to an empire through the eyes of the soldiers.

It's the lives of the mundane, the less than extraordinary, yet still gripping and intriguing. They let us dive deeper to the world of Star Wars beyond the flashy buzzing of lightsabers and spectacles of the magical force.

The Mandalorian wished it could be one of those. Unfortunately, it failed terribly.

In episode 5, @ShrimpBoatSteve has said that the series has became too predictable, and I agree - the finale shows how predictable the whole season is. https://trakt.tv/comments/264475

After the long flashback which most parts we've already seen in previous episodes - seemingly making the scenes feels almost like a filler - The Mandalorian episode 8 seems reluctant to set their foot to the ground with its notable world-building as previously seen in Eps 7 and Eps 1 to 3. As I have previously said, after everyone gangs on The Mando (Eps 7), Baby Yoda/Little One's background (who Baby Yoda is, why is he wanted, what the Imperial remnants wanted to do with him, etc) remains unresolved. As the episode shows us Moff Gideon rising with a darksaber in hand, yet another reference moment: every substance the show can possibly offer will be dealt only in Season 2 (or, worse, more).

Stormtroopers in Star Wars have been infamous for their terribly inaccurate shots, but in this episode it feels like their incompetency is amplified to the point of parody and, of course, plot armors. Scout troopers - which is supposed to be snipers - can't shoot droid right in front of their eyes. Instead of coming in squads, troopers only come individually (incinerators burning the building, a few troopers slaughtered by the blacksmith, a few others guarding the tunnel, and the most stupid of all, Moff Gideon waiting for nightfall just for no reason) which makes for a convenient plot armors for our heroes to trek on their way.

Of course, there are casualties - what is a story without something seemingly at a stake? - but it is nothing more than devices to delay the heroes from their trek. Taking cues from Eowyn's "I am no man" of Lord of the Rings fame, in less than moment-defining fashion IG-11, which himself came as a sort of droid ex machina, said that it is no "living being" while resurrecting The Mando from fatal injuries, remedied every possible threat with its healing devices.

Antagonists can be dumb, but there is a limit to dumbness that can suspend audience's disbelief. This episode has antagonist almost feels like they are intentionally dumb and there is nothing really at a stake when everything can be easily remedied.

This episode is not the worst, certainly, as the action sequence is flashy and satisfying. The one near ending where The Mando utilizes a neat jet jump is clever and actually can show the extent Star Wars can be when the director wanted to think creatively beyond the force. Knights of the Old Republic and the aptly named Star Wars Bounty Hunter played with clever tricks similar to this once a while, and the trick doesn't feel cheap as they stand on a very good storytelling.

The Mandalorian's flashy action, regardless, seems to serve only as explicit fanservice - a style over substance.

There are plenty of action, which, by itself, is quite well-done. The consistently hardly imposing threats, unfortunately, dull down the possible thrill those scenes can offer - in a typical corny action heroes such as Gerard Butler's character in Has Fallen trilogy. The scene, for example, with The Blacksmith let us peek into the martial arts capability a Mandalorian can exhibit. But the rather plot armor of incompetent stormtroopers leave no stake at hand; the martial arts dexterity looks more like a cheap imitation of main trilogies of Jedi's acrobatic feats.

Redemption ultimately ends with nothing to be redeemed about, as the people in this show seems to be forever clumsy. From start to finish, everyone made questionable decisions. Nobody blasted the Mando's group with that large amount of stormtroopers. Nobody checked whether Moff Gideon is dead when the fighter was down (Gideon also miraculously survive the crash), with Carga, a supposedly veteran bounty hunter, lightheartedly saying they are already free of the Empire's grasp.

Everything people said in this episode, just like many episodes prior, are not crafted as if the actors were having human conversation. They were rushed by time - they seemingly appear to be set in motion by the plot's demands, to say X so Y happens; to say A when B moment happened.

This episode almost feels like a filler to conclude the dragging episodes this season has been. Screenwriting-wise, this whole season is nothing but bait-and-switch to justify next season(s).

There is much to be said about this kind of terrible business model, where series is written with nothing exactly in mind but to find reasons to continue producing the franchise - the same business model Disney has been using on their MCU franchise and Star Wars films/spinoffs - but the crowds of gladly willing moms awing for Baby Yoda and nerd dads geeking over Star Wars reference doesn't leave enough rooms for those commentaries.

A truly excellent way to finish season 1. The only reason that it didn't get a 10 is because having successfully taken down Moff Gideon's TIE Fighter, Mando didn't fly his ship over the wreckage and blast it to smithereens before he flew off. This would have made logical sense as, left alive, MG is going to be a constant threat to Grogu's (and his own) safety. Surely worth using a little ammo for, to be sure, to be sure? Obviously MG has been set up to be the main antagonist for season 2, so he needed to survive, but it is very un-Mandalorian of Din Djarin not to be thorough. This is NOT the way ;-) Additionally, it seems very odd that nobody seems to know anything about The Force, or about the Jedi, despite the Jedi having been "Guardians of the Galaxy" for hundreds of years, until The Empire eradicated them. Enough of the protagonist/neutral species live for long enough that they will have been aware of, or even lived during the times of the Republic, maybe will even have known a Jedi Knight or two. The Empire made no secrets about using the Force to achieve its objectives and to punish "rebel scum" and incompetent admirals. The fall of the Empire was brought about largely because of the efforts of a Jedi Knight using his Force powers, who subsequently set up a Jedi training academy. With this in mind, the reason that the remnants of the Empire were so desperate to get hold of a youngling who could potentially have Force capability akin to the most powerful Jedi Grand Masters in history, akin to the powers of the Emperor himself, should be painfully obvious.

After a series of shows that felt like filler episodes, The Mandalorian churned out a strong two-part Season One finale. Indeed, since the show apparently didn't have a whole lot of main plot material to work with in the first place beyond "keep the baby safe" and "take odd hunter jobs," the season didn't have much forward momentum until episode seven when Mando again joins forces with Greef Carga to take out the "Client" and use the baby as bait, meanwhile getting back in the good graces of the Guild. The episode included an interesting bit of long-term storytelling, as the droid IG-11, which was programmed to kill the baby early in the series, was then reprogrammed by Kuiil to protect it, and by the end of the season, IG-11 had completed his redemption story, as it were, sacrificing itself for the group, which by then included Mando, the baby, Greef and Cara Dune. We are also introduced to Moff Gideon, played by Giancarlo Esposito, who is a warlord with imperial aspirations. The baby has used its powers sparingly throughout the season, but displayed its mental might when it deflected a juggernaut's flame thrower. Since these two episodes had a good bit of action and forwarded the main plot along somewhat, they get a thumbs up, even though we're really not any farther along in identifying where the baby is from or what the nature of his species is or why he such a prized possession, other than an implication from the Armorer that it may be connected to the Jedi in some way that has yet to be explained. In any case, I've come to expect that we're probably just going to get some more serialized one-off episodes in which Mando just goes off and does a thing that has little consequence toward his ultimate goal, but I've enjoyed the wild west-esque feel of the show and am looking forward to what Season Two has in store.

Simply fantastic. The road getting here was a bit bumpy for sure but it's almost entirely worth it for this spectacular finale, one that wraps up the season long arc in a satisfying way while also leaving the door open for Season 2. If Kuiil was the highlight of the prior episode, then IG-11 is the unsung hero here. Bringing together the themes of nature vs. nutrue to it's logical conclusion, it's a powerful act of self-sacrifice that shows the important yet simply message of "we are more then our programming". Not a deep message, but Star Wars has always succeeded in delivering simple yet introspective themes in it's work.

And then there is Taika Waititi's direction, and out of all the directors on the series Waititi easily is the one with the most distinctive style, and he brings it to the series. The opening scene is particularly inspired and feels like something out of Thor: Ragnarok or What We Do in the Shadows, being both funny while also letting the story progress naturally. Ludwig Goransson's excellent score is also at it's best here as well, and the action scenes are well shot and choreographed with a keen eye for effects work. The best episode of the show yet - time for Season 2!