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The Mandalorian - a general discussion thread - * SPOILERS * — Page 17

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timdiggerm said:

DominicCobb said:
Besides the fact that it makes no sense, I like the idea of people who have literally never heard of the Jedi

Why does it make no sense?

Given the prequels and TCW, I’m not sure how none of those characters had ever even heard of the Jedi, when you consider how important the Jedi were in the Clone Wars (and on Mandalore specifically) and how instrumental Luke was in winning the war.

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Remember Luke had never heard of the Force in the original film. And Old Ben has to explain to him and the audience who and what the Jedi were.

The galaxy is a big place.

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From my reading of the scene in question, Luke knew about the Jedi but not the Force.

The prequels still ruined the lore.

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Tobar said:

Remember Luke had never heard of the Force in the original film. And Old Ben has to explain to him and the audience who and what the Jedi were.

The galaxy is a big place.

But Luke was a 19 year old who’d never left Tatooine. These characters are not comparable to that. I’ve always defended Han as a character who never encountered the force but none of these people have even heard of it or the Jedi? I mean I really don’t care but like I said it strains credulity.

I still don’t really get how they’re portraying Mandos in relation to what we’ve seen in the animated shows either. I imagine they’ll have to explain this a bit, with the dark saber in the picture.

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Yeah, I think that’s exactly what’s being set up. If you’ve never watched the cartoons, you’re taking all these Mandalorian rules at face value, and you’re curious to learn more. If you HAVE watched the cartoons, you’re now anxious to see what happens when Din realizes everything he knew about Mandalorian culture was extremely limited.

It’s kind of slick, really. In season 2 (and probably 3) what happens is one half of the audience gets educated along with Din, and the other half gets to enjoy the pure drama of watching him recontextualize his whole life once he discovers the truth.

It’s a show whose first season features “This is the way” as a mantra/catchphrase, and whose second season is almost guaranteed to say “LOL no it isn’t.”

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Yeah I mean, it definitely is starting to feel like what we’re seeing is a very isolated sect. Which is where the history we haven’t seen - post Rebels - will come in and hopefully explain.

Honestly the big thing I wonder is are we working towards a version of this show where we see him without the mask more often than not? That’s kind of what I’d prefer, as we get to know him more deeply, but who’s to say. I’m sure as the years go on Pascal will be less and less available.

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I gotta imagine S2 is going to have more of him unmasked. The Darksaber (every single person we’ve seen wield it before Moff Gideon was a Mandalorian who, I belive, wasn’t wearing a helmet when they held it) is basically pointing that way. The question is how soon into the run does that revelation happen?

My hope is that this show follows a similar trajectory to Rebels S2, where once the tone was more or less set and people finally understood what the show could be, they essentially went full-speed ahead.

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I also really liked the twist that nobody seems to know what the force is, or what the Jedi are, or who Yoda is. It also means that they have had to infer that this baby Yoda is something important because these bad former imperial folks want it so badly. And right away, the viewer knows a lot more than the characters. It’s a great device, and I hope that the producers continue to use it wisely.

And yes, bringing in “saga” elements would be a sure-fire way to doom the series.

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DominicCobb said:
Honestly the big thing I wonder is are we working towards a version of this show where we see him without the mask more often than not? That’s kind of what I’d prefer, as we get to know him more deeply, but who’s to say. I’m sure as the years go on Pascal will be less and less available.

I’d still prefer the bucket stayed on. Two reasons: first, that’s what I wanted for Boba Fett all those years ago. I thought, taking his helmet off was some kind of blasphemy. I wanted to keep the mystery. And then came the prequels and all that clone shit. Oh well.
Second, in Germany, he is dubbed by Sascha Rotermund, who is by far one of the best voice actors we have. And it fits to the Mandalorian. As long as the helmet stays on. It doesn’t fit for Pascal.

By the way, I heard somewhere that in the Bryce Dallas Howard episode (Sanctuary) Pascal didn’t play Mando, as he was doing a play on Broadway.

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I’m up to Episode 4.
This definitely feels more Star Wars-like than the Prequels and even the new Disney trilogy at times. It has that grimy feel to it, which I like. Baby Yoda attempting to heal the Mando initially and then later revealing his Force powers with the rhino was great.
The Mandalorian himself is a great Star Wars protagonist, though I’d have preferred to not have a typical orphan origin for him. Keep it mysterious is best. But I can see now why THIS character design is so popular.
I never though Boba Fett was a big deal in the OT, and I thought Jango was just silly with him having the ability to shoot missiles, grappling hooks, gauntlet razors, etc. Why not have a buzz saw as well?
But the Mandolorian with the grey/crimson color scheme, and cape, plus the way he carries himself seems more like this intimidating death merchant than the walking swiss army knife of AOTC.
I thought the singing or stining birds upgrade was stupid. How did they know to target the storm troopers but not baby yoda?

So far I’m at the episode where they save the village from the AT-ST. This felt like a filler episode, and reminded me of The Ewok TV movie specials. Not necessarily a bad thing though.

Overall a pretty good series though, so far.

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Finally got around to watching this (got Disney+ for Christmas, had to play catch up).

Wow! What a great show. I had heard good things before watching and my expectations were met: this is a solid and original Star Wars adventure. I’d call it the best thing Disney has done with the brand so far.

My favorite episode was Chapter 6, I also liked Chapters 2,4, and 7 a lot. Chapter 8 might be my least favorite. I’m very confused with the Moff’s plan especially after that great cliffhanger in 7. The whole chapter seemed more interested individual scenes rather than plot.

But overall, this has still been a fantastic addition to Star Wars and I am excited for Season 2. I’m also hyped for the Siege of Mandalore being shown on-screen this February for TCW.

Maul- A Star Wars Story

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timdiggerm said:

It is fascinating that, with the exception of 7, you named the episodes that barely, if at all, moved the plot along. My favorites were 1, 3, 7 & 8, so I am…well, like I said, fascinated.

It’s not that weird, is it? Not everyone likes/prefers series to tell one large story, but rather wants mini-adventures with a connecting through-line. This is one of the reasons I enjoyed this show so much as I don’t like the modern Netflix/HBO style of stretching one story into hundreds of hours. I get why some people like it, but to me it just feels like padding. SW shows like the Mandalorian, CW, Rebels, etc. manage to keep my attention much easier because most episodes are (more-or-less) standalone stories, that occasionally continues or adds to a larger narrative. In this sense The Mandalorian was nearly perfectly structured for my preferences (I actually would have liked a few more episodes like 4-6).

Similarly, my favourite episodes were 2 & 6.

Star Wars is Surrealism, not Science Fiction (essay)
Original Trilogy Documentaries/Making-Ofs (YouTube, Vimeo, etc. finds)
Beyond the OT Documentaries/Making-Ofs (YouTube, Vimeo, etc. finds)
Amazon link to my novel; Dawn of the Karabu.

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ZkinandBonez said:

timdiggerm said:

It is fascinating that, with the exception of 7, you named the episodes that barely, if at all, moved the plot along. My favorites were 1, 3, 7 & 8, so I am…well, like I said, fascinated.

It’s not that weird, is it? Not everyone likes/prefers series to tell one large story, but rather wants mini-adventures with a connecting through-line. This is one of the reasons I enjoyed this show so much as I don’t like the modern Netflix/HBO style of stretching one story into hundreds of hours. I get why some people like it, but to me it just feels like padding. SW shows like the Mandalorian, CW, Rebels, etc. manage to keep my attention much easier because most episodes are (more-or-less) standalone stories, that occasionally continues or adds to a larger narrative. In this sense The Mandalorian was nearly perfectly structured for my preferences (I actually would have liked a few more episodes like 4-6).

Similarly, my favourite episodes were 2 & 6.

That really helped me understand. Clearly, I want the opposite (though honestly, I did really like 2 & 6, it’s just that the overall plot grabs me more). So, the fact that the show manages to hit some notes for both of us is pretty great; they’re striking a good balance.

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timdiggerm said:

ZkinandBonez said:

timdiggerm said:

It is fascinating that, with the exception of 7, you named the episodes that barely, if at all, moved the plot along. My favorites were 1, 3, 7 & 8, so I am…well, like I said, fascinated.

It’s not that weird, is it? Not everyone likes/prefers series to tell one large story, but rather wants mini-adventures with a connecting through-line. This is one of the reasons I enjoyed this show so much as I don’t like the modern Netflix/HBO style of stretching one story into hundreds of hours. I get why some people like it, but to me it just feels like padding. SW shows like the Mandalorian, CW, Rebels, etc. manage to keep my attention much easier because most episodes are (more-or-less) standalone stories, that occasionally continues or adds to a larger narrative. In this sense The Mandalorian was nearly perfectly structured for my preferences (I actually would have liked a few more episodes like 4-6).

Similarly, my favourite episodes were 2 & 6.

That really helped me understand. Clearly, I want the opposite (though honestly, I did really like 2 & 6, it’s just that the overall plot grabs me more). So, the fact that the show manages to hit some notes for both of us is pretty great; they’re striking a good balance.

Yeah, Favreau and Filoni both seem to have a really good grasp on the nuances in what both SW fans and regular viewers want out of a show and have struck a really good balance, which is no small feat in general, let alone with SW.

Star Wars is Surrealism, not Science Fiction (essay)
Original Trilogy Documentaries/Making-Ofs (YouTube, Vimeo, etc. finds)
Beyond the OT Documentaries/Making-Ofs (YouTube, Vimeo, etc. finds)
Amazon link to my novel; Dawn of the Karabu.

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Voss Caltrez said:
I thought the singing or stining birds upgrade was stupid. How did they know to target the storm troopers but not baby yoda?

Potentially don’t read further if you’re still yet to complete the series, but…

…Mando returning with a fairly regular consistency for “upgrades” does have quite a video game feel to it, usually returning with beskar or information that are exchanged as level up tokens for upgraded abilities.

Some of the episodes also have a somewhat one quest leading to another quest vibe feel to them.

It’s not a huge criticism of mine, just a minor gripe that you get the sense of a background structure or formula being adhered to at times during the writing process.

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In terms of “filler” episodes…

I don’t think I would consider any of the episodes “filler”. Even Chapter 5, despite not setting anything up, provided lots of insight into world as well as just a fun adventure.

I actually find too much focus on an overarching plot a sign of a “filler episode”. Let me explain. Way too many shows focus on building mysteries and teasing the audience, to the point that’s the entire show.

A good example would be Stranger Things 3. I was bored watching most of it, and I kept wondering when the plot would actually start. Because the first 75% is just slowly teasing the ending, when I would rather they either shorten the season or add new storylines to make each episode somewhat unique.

This is why I like Mandalorian so much: each episode brings something new to the table.

Maul- A Star Wars Story

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OutboundFlight said:

In terms of “filler” episodes…

I don’t think I would consider any of the episodes “filler”. Even Chapter 5, despite not setting anything up, provided lots of insight into world as well as just a fun adventure.

I actually find too much focus on an overarching plot a sign of a “filler episode”. Let me explain. Way too many shows focus on building mysteries and teasing the audience, to the point that’s the entire show.

A good example would be Stranger Things 3. I was bored watching most of it, and I kept wondering when the plot would actually start. Because the first 75% is just slowly teasing the ending, when I would rather they either shorten the season or add new storylines to make each episode somewhat unique.

This is why I like Mandalorian so much: each episode brings something new to the table.

Well put, couldn’t agree more. I had a similar experience watching GoT a while back. I gave up during the second season because it felt so “padded”. I’d watched several episodes and one of the too many plots only advanced so far as to have two characters walk from one place to another. The dialogue was fine and added to their characters, but nothing really happened to their story for several episodes. When something finally did happen it was yet another cliff hanger and at that point I’d simply stopped caring. My personal idea of a perfectly done long narrative in TV series form would be something like the last few seasons of Star Trek DS9. There’s an overarching narrative that’s always present (e.g. the Dominion War and several character arcs, etc.), but each episode (apart from two-parters and such) still felt like their own self contained story. The Mandalorian did a similar thing, where the child and the bounty hunters / imperial remnant hunting it was the overarching plot, yet episodes 2 & 4-6 also told their own stories while still being connected to the main plot.

Star Wars is Surrealism, not Science Fiction (essay)
Original Trilogy Documentaries/Making-Ofs (YouTube, Vimeo, etc. finds)
Beyond the OT Documentaries/Making-Ofs (YouTube, Vimeo, etc. finds)
Amazon link to my novel; Dawn of the Karabu.

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Finally got around to watching the finale. Loved it! Easily my favorite of the whole season. Put a smile on my face so many times!

This whole show is great! It’s the best thing since Empire, and the future of Starwars!

Here’s my ranking of all the season 1 episodes:

GREAT

1.The Redemption (Chapter 8)

2.The Sin (Chapter 3)

3.The Child (Chapter 2)

4.The Mandalorian (Chapter 1)

5.The Reckoning (Chapter 7)

GOOD

6.The Sanctuary (Chapter 4)

7.The Prisoner (Chapter 6)

FINE

8.The Gunslinger (Chapter 5)

http://henrynsilva.blogspot.com/2023/10/full-circle-order-new-way-to-watch-star.html?m=1

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I’m hoping this doesn’t end with them finding Yoda’s homeworld.

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I don’t think this lived up to the hype of “most streamed” TV show. It’s not amazing by itself.
But as far as being a Star Wars spin-off show? It’s great.

One thing I found fault with about the prequels was that it didn’t feel like it occupied the same universe as the OT. It felt like a completely different franchise.

The Mandalorian feels pretty close to the Star Wars TV show I always wanted as a kid.

Here are my critiques though:
-The episode where Mando helps the villagers fight off the bad guys, boring. I did like that it reminded me of the Ewok movies, but the villagers just seemed like some random people you’d find in Silicon Valley.
-I didn’t like that we saw his face. I would have preferred that they have IG-11 take off his mask and we only see a dark silhouette of his face.
-Considering Baby Yoda was going to kill Cara Dunne, I think her response should have been more terrified than just saying, “Not okay!” This little infant creature can apparently kill people with his mind. Play that up!
-Felt like a video game when Mando kept going to the shop keeper, I mean, Mandalorian woman, to purchase more ITEMS/WEAPONS.
-I really hope he loses the rocket pack. Feels like Rocketeer.
-/+ I felt the IG-11 storyline was too similar to T2: Judgment Day, for my tastes. However, younger audiences probably won’t notice it, so I think it was also worked well.

Things I liked:
+Baby Yoda of course. I went in upset they were demystifying Yoda’s species but hey, can’t argue with results.
+I loved that they bring some mystery back to the Jedi and the Force.
+I never saw the appeal for Boba Fett but The Mandalorian made the character design really work. The flame thrower and grappling hook are awesome in action.
+The visual aesthetic of the galaxy is just like the OT or an evolution of it.
+It has an old west feel to it, but space.
+IG-11 coming to save the day on a motorcycle…awesome.

Although I think that the ST has been more polished and has had better acting and more emotional moments, as a whole, I think I prefer The Mandalorian.