Honestly, as I was watching this first episode, I kept thinking, “This really isn’t very good.” So, hopefully it improves over the next few episodes. It had a couple of decent moments, but I feel those were outnumbered by other scenes that were, let’s just say…lacking.
I think the best part was the introduction of IG-11 (even though they started milking the whole self-destruct joke way too often). Unfortunately, most scenes were merely mediocre, and the episode doesn’t start well with the rather clichéd and poorly done bar fight. Which is then followed by the frankly stupid monster-under-the-ice scene (it’s as if J.J. Abrams was writing this). Also, the numerous references/callbacks to things from the OT started to be a bit ridiculous (Kowakian monkey-lizards on a spit, the gatekeeper droid, handy-dandy carbon-freezing slabs, etc.).
But, since it’s Star Wars, I’ll keep watching and hoping it gets better.
See, the OT references you didn’t like, I loved. I got a good chuckle out of the Kowakian on a spit with another looking on. I questioned the carbon-freezing until I realized that after it worked so well for Fett with Han, that such a process might just catch on in the bounty hunter world. Especially where you can risk dead or alive. I did think the episode was a bit slow, but it fit the story and the characters. And the shootout at the end was great. I thought the story paid off pretty well. As first episodes go, it was very above average. And I loved the beast riding alien that kept saying “I have spoken”.