TV show of the Week: The Mandalorian – Episode 1

When Disney announced they were making another trilogy of Star Wars films, and subsequently disclosing how they’re denouncing the extensive amount of lore that’s built via TV shows, games, and graphic novels and only focusing on what’s been said and done in the films only – that avoided the writers and directors of the new trilogy crumbling under the immense amount of pressure which would undoubtedly be put upon them, because if they hadn’t abandoned the lore, one slight contradiction would cause major uproars across the internet. By only staying within the confines of the films, it’s harder to fall into the continuity trap. That being said, it hasn’t stopped Disney from expanding the Star Wars universe anyway with their own films and TV shows, focusing on explaining a couple of mysteries that not even the expansive lore hasn’t explored yet, such as how the plans to the Death Star was acquired, Hans Solo feat of making the Kessel Run in less than 12 Parsecs.

Star Wars’ lore is one of the biggest fictional universes in popular culture, whether you treat it as cannon or not, you have to admit the amount of information available is almost limitless and will continue to expand along with the new TV shows and comic books being made and published. Enter The Mandalorian, a brand new TV show set after the events of episode 6, when the empire fell and before the new order began. The Mandalorian focuses on a brand new character, a bounty hunter, tasked with bringing in the most valuable asset, and the most curious character for fans of Star Wars, a baby Yoda. Of course not specifically the younger version of Yoda, just a younger version of a member of his race.

As the first episode, it’s full of action and sets up a decent amount of story and mystery to keep me intrigued as to what happens, but not enough for me to rush towards the second episode, but instead just enough to entertain me whenever I do get round to watching the second episode.

The Mandalorian made sure to keep it within the confines of the movies so to avoid any contradictions and continuity issues with the lore it now believes to not be part of that universe anymore; therefore, it’s not bogged down with too many references and Easter eggs, but instead is just good old-fashioned Star Wars – a simple premise, simple characters, epic action sequences. It reminisces that of the original trilogy with handmade models of ships, whilst also bringing into the modern age with updated technology to round of any rough edges here and there. It’s classic Star Wars, today.

It’ll be interesting to see where this show goes, which of the famous characters will appear, if any, but if it keeps purely enclosed in its own story without paying any homages, I’ll be happy with that because we all know it’s set within the Star Wars universe, and the first episode proves that, that’s all we need.

Thanks for reading

Antony Hudson

(TonyHadNouns)