The Mandalorian returned last night for the start of a third season. It brought some great action sequences, intriguing new characters, cute moments, and weak writing.
We catch up with Din's (Pedro Pascal) cult baptising a new member when a giant reptile attacks. He seems to be invulnerable to handcannons so it's lucky Din shows up in his refitted Naboo starfighter to blast the thing. And what thanks does he get?
None at all. Not even a mention. It felt strange, like the big, impressive action sequence was added in post. At the very least, someone could've said, "Your deed will not earn you a place back among us." There is not even the tiniest part of me that wants Din to get back in with these people. I'm going to be frustrated if this season doesn't have an arc in which Din learns he doesn't need them.
This has been a consistent problem with Favreau's writing on both Mandalorian and Book of Boba Fett. He can't seem to establish believable motives for philosophically driven people. You might not agree with the Jedi philosophy about not forming personal attachments, but you can see the logic in it as it's explained. With the Mandalorians, the only explanation really is, "Because they're aliens!" The same goes for the people who abandoned Bo Katan (Katee Sackoff) because she doesn't have the Darksabre. It's really odd, especially since many of them knew perfectly well why she doesn't have it. The beliefs and practices of other cultures can seem strange and illogical, but they do have underlying reasons, and if you write a fictional cultural without such reasons, it feels insubstantial.
It was nice seeing Carl Weathers again. I don't agree with the circumstances of Gina Carano's firing but I was never particularly invested in her character so I don't miss her. And frankly, it makes the galaxy feel bigger when it's not the same characters constantly turning up over and over.
Grogu with the mechanic rodents was cute and Carl Weathers' constantly trying to interpret them was funny. I also liked the pirates, especially the captain who looks like Swamp Thing.
And kudos to Favreau for actually having one of them say, "Avast!"
The Mandalorian is available on Disney+.
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