The acclaimed show continues with new planets and old faces.
Good things come to those who wait. After its highly successful first season, The Mandalorian has returned to our screens just in time for another lockdown. After the year we’ve had, it was perfect timing for Jon Favreau to reveal what happened to our favourite galactic heroes. This much is certain: The Mandalorian and Baby Yoda are a duo I would cross galaxies for.
The eight-part series follows The Mandalorian (Pedro Pascal) on his mission to return The Child, a.k.a. Baby Yoda, to his ancestors. Along the way, they embark on multiple adventures, be it saving a town from a giant sand monster or battling an army of ice spiders. Each episode is perfectly balanced with the right level of dynamic tension and light-relief comedy that is essential for a hit series.
As a loyal Star Wars geek, my eyes were glued to the TV during every episode of season two. What made this popular series even better was the expansion of the Star Wars universe. We were transported from our living rooms to multiple planets and locations — perhaps the perfect distraction during a global crisis. Much to my delight, we were also treated with the return of not one, not two, but three familiar faces.
Assuming this reader has already watched the season, I can say that the long-awaited comeback from Boba Fett did not disappoint. Last seen supposedly being eaten alive by a Sarlaac on Tatooine, Star Wars fans rejoiced when we saw our favourite bounty hunter once again. This was perfect considering we had heard rumours of a spin-off series based on the cult character, and his return proved us right.
Despite expressing my long-held admiration for Star Wars, I am one of the rare devotees who has never seen The Clone Wars. So, when it came to Ashoka Tano’s emergence during a lightsaber fight sequence, I wasn’t jumping out of my seat. Still, her character wasn’t misused like Lando Calrissian was in the disappointing The Rise of Skywalker last year. She was given just enough screen-time to leave us satisfied, yet hungry for more.
If teasing us with two beloved characters wasn’t enough, Jon Favreau decided to go one step further. During the final episode, The Mandalorian battles against an imperial general in order to rescue The Child. When all hope seems to be lost, one of the most iconic movie characters of all time popped back into our lives.
A young Luke Skywalker with a questionable CGI complexion showed up at the last minute and, for a brief moment, I became a child again. Moving past the terrible animation, I was almost reduced to tears when Luke adopted Baby Yoda and completed The Mandalorian’s mission. That, for me, was powerful.
