Board 8 > The Mandalorian premiered tonight. Let's talk about it or whatever.

(+) Yeah! (+)

I actually really enjoy that it's kind of episodic and just pulling out all the old western tropes. This episode was the "poor town hires gunslingers to defend against bandits" cliche which has been going for decades, and it nailed it.

I'm not expecting much more than what it is, and it delivers on just giving me a really well made western series that just so happens to be set in that universe. The Star Wars aspect of it is probably the least interesting part of the show which is fine by me

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Yeah, I'm not saying it's a bad thing. It just wasn't what I was expecting. I enjoy the spaghetti western style.
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New episode started off kind of silly with a subpar starfighter duel in media res punctuated by a dumb line but it improved significantly thereafter.

What a waste of Ming-Na Wen tho.

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Episode 5 is up.

Overall didn't seem as good as the others. Seeing Tatooine was cool, if bordering on pandering. I really hate the cliche of the newbie guard getting tricked into releasing the prisoner, so the fact that it didn't work was nice, but I still don't think it was a good plot point. Why did that guy think he would have any chance of taking on the Mandalorian by himself if he couldn't do anything else without his help? That's exactly why I hate that cliche, people throw away what they already have in order to try and gain something that they don't have a good chance of getting anyway. It's stupid. Also kind of sucks Ming-Na Wen didn't last very long, but then again maybe the stinger means she's still not dead?

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It would be very nice indeed if that is true, Kirby. I sort of doubt it given how much time had passed by the time Maybe-Giancarlo-Maybe-Even-Fett showed up though.

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I liked the loud echoing NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO followed by the outer space explosion at the beginning

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Surprised there is no talk about the post-credit scene after Episode 5.

My first reaction was THAT'S THE FETT!, but it's probably Greef Karga...

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The person approaching the body or was there something else I missed?

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SwiftyDC posted...

Surprised there is no talk about the post-credit scene after Episode 5.

My first reaction was THAT'S THE FETT!, but it's probably Greef Karga...

it's either Fett or Moff Gideon imo

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I honestly thought that was just a flashback to the Mando since it doesn't make sense for him to just leave her there without walking up to check on her just like the stinger.

Grand Kirby posted...

Episode 5 is up.

Overall didn't seem as good as the others. Seeing Tatooine was cool, if bordering on pandering. I really hate the cliche of the newbie guard getting tricked into releasing the prisoner, so the fact that it didn't work was nice, but I still don't think it was a good plot point. Why did that guy think he would have any chance of taking on the Mandalorian by himself if he couldn't do anything else without his help? That's exactly why I hate that cliche, people throw away what they already have in order to try and gain something that they don't have a good chance of getting anyway. It's stupid. Also kind of sucks Ming-Na Wen didn't last very long, but then again maybe the stinger means she's still not dead?

Newbie was definitely pretty generically written. He's a newbie bounty hunter eager to prove himself and acts out that trope in every single piece of dialogue he has. You can predict everything he's going to say or do before he says it and not in a good way.

I feel like every episode has been the same way though. The bar intro scene, Mando meeting with his dispatcher Carl Weathers, the last stand against the raiders, the star battle.... Everything is just "take this typical trope and execute in the blandest way possible, but with a Star Wars coat of paint and the Mando in it"

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Episode 6:

Pretty exciting episode. I enjoyed seeing the Mandalorian just go full Batman and take out everyone in the shadows. I'm kind of worried that it's getting too easy, it feels like he needs a big loss soon to balance out all the times he comes out ahead, but I also get the feeling like the mercenaries he locked away will come back sometime so maybe it's building up to something. Glad to finally see Bill Burr make his appearance.

Don't forget, next week the new episode will premiere on Wednesday because of The Rise of Skywalker.

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6 was the best episode yet. Yost is a better writer than Favreau for this show somehow. I'm not thrilled Favreau wrote the last two but I'm sure they'll at least be fine.

6 > 3 > 4 > 2 > 1 > 5

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Not sure if its my favorite, but 6 was very good.

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6 definitely solidifies this show enjoys an episodic approach. We've had three in a row and 1x02 was much the same. Some fans are not happy but by and large it appears the overall response has been very positive -- even more positive than I feel, in fact.

Btw, any Star Wars comics readers here? Big spoilers for a new Disney+ show that hasn't been announced yet but multiple insiders confirmed: Doctor Aphra!

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Yeah, that was a really good episode. If it wasn't the best, it was awfully close.

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SaveEstelle posted...

Btw, any Star Wars comics readers here? Big spoilers for a new Disney+ show that hasn't been announced yet but multiple insiders confirmed: Doctor Aphra!

oh hell yeah

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iiicon posted...

oh hell yeah

I know!!!!

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all the other comics kinda suck, but Vader/Aphra... Vader/Aphra was good

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Aphra was great in Vader. Havent read her solo book yet, alas.

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I read the first volume of doctor aphra and it was pretty good, I should pick up the rest now

Gotta also dive through the bargain buns to see if I can get any of her first appearance before it skyrockets

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Yeah, if we can get a Vader/Aphra show, I'd be on board with that.

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I actually like the mainline comic a fair bit and Im stoked that its entering the Empire phase. There are a lot of good concepts in there that Id love to see transformed into some form of TV media eventually.

But the Vader and especially the Aphra stuff is definitely better.

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ZenOfThunder posted...

I read the first volume of doctor aphra and it was pretty good, I should pick up the rest now

Gotta also dive through the bargain buns to see if I can get any of her first appearance before it skyrockets

I've been sitting on her first appearance in Darth Vader #3 for a moment like this!
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SaveEstelle posted...

I actually like the mainline comic a fair bit and Im stoked that its entering the Empire phase.

Yeah I'm pretty excited for the line refresh, they have a lot of fun creative teams lined up.

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Man episode six was so good. Definitely one of the best if not the best. I've very much enjoyed every episode so far though I'd put 4 at the bottom. I am ready to get back to the child and his story though.

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episode 7 ought to be up within the next several hours

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doesn't it come out on fridays?

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Coming out early due to Rise of Skywalker.

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God this show is so great. I'm actually upset this came out early because now I have a long wait until the next one

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Episode 7:

Well'p that was pretty great. What a cliffhanger. Love it when shows reunite characters from past episodes, and I was always hoping IG-11 wouldn't be dead. Some great character work all around too. Nick Nolte's character was fantastic, and even though he wasn't around for long I really felt hit hard seeing him dead. What a great way to reveal it at the end too.

Still, I don't exactly know what the Mandalorian was trying to do with his plan to meet up Karga. It was obviously a trap, and him gathering allies to help seemed like a good way to have a contingency or plan a counter-trap and... he doesn't really do any that? All he did was have some backup, and only got out of the trap because Karga changed his mind thanks to coincidence. It doesn't really make the Mandalorian seem any good at what he does.

Also, sorry for fans of him, but Giancarlo Esposito did not make for a threatening first impression. The scene with all the Stormtroopers surrounding the heroes was amazing, and then he steps out and delivers his lines in such a goofy way I laughed out loud. I'm going to miss Werner Herzog a lot...

Still, can't wait for the next one!

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Now that was tense episode, god

Kuiil loss was indeed a heavy hit. Yeah Mando didn't seem that well prepared so much as winging it but honestly he's been winging it a while to good ends that he kinda had ti coming.

I liked Giancarlo's entrance!... I kinda really can't at all detatch him from Gustavo Fring tho, the "ohhh shit" moment was like "ohhhh shit Gus here to teach you how it's really goin' down"

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Didn't realize episode 8 is going to be the season finale

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Grimlyn posted...

Now that was tense episode, god

Kuiil loss was indeed a heavy hit. Yeah Mando didn't seem that well prepared so much as winging it but honestly he's been winging it a while to good ends that he kinda had ti coming.

I liked Giancarlo's entrance!... I kinda really can't at all detatch him from Gustavo Fring tho, the "ohhh shit" moment was like "ohhhh shit Gus here to teach you how it's really goin' down"

lol same re: gus

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Hey, Quinton, can I just say it's absolutely great to see you back on the board? And also, I would love to hear your thoughts on Star Wars when you go see it.

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scarletspeed7 posted...

Hey, Quinton, can I just say it's absolutely great to see you back on the board? And also, I would love to hear your thoughts on Star Wars when you go see it.

Aww, thanks scarlet! I missed you too, bud. And I actually just got back from the new movie! But I need to sort of soak in it for a bit before I comment much. Only thing I'll say here and now is that I liked it.

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aw yeah baby Force choke

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Season finale is up:

The opening bit with the two Stormtroopers was amazing. I loved that scene where they missed every blaster shot.

I was kind of disappointed that after the tension of being surrounded by an army of Stormtroopers, where it looks like there's going to be no easy way out, they just... shoot them all in a big firefight. Even if seeing IG-11 blow everyone away was cool, it was a really lame way to resolve things. They don't even suffer any consequences for doing something so dangerous and unlikely to work until the Moff returns (also, Moff Gideon leaving and giving them more time to come up with a way to escape felt like sloppy writing). The fact that it ends with them going BACK into the cantina and being trapped again was a bizarre piece of storytelling.

That said the episode was still fun to watch. The gondola ride down a lava river was a really neat looking visual setpiece. IG-11's sacrifice was also well done. Things seemed to wrap up pretty quickly after the Moff's TIE Fighter was taken down though. Like I said, I kind of have a problem with how they basically just killed EVERY Stormtrooper instead of finding a way out through a more interesting or clever way. It feels way too easy. But I still look forward to a season 2 and seeing where this story goes. This entire series has been a great way to experience stories in the Star Wars universe, and even if I have a few problems with the plotting, I've always found it compelling and enjoyable.



Also... I like the Mandalorian much better with his helmet on. Please, show, never remove it again.

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Grand Kirby posted...

Also... I like the Mandalorian much better with his helmet on. Please, show, never remove it again.

Yeah I liked the mystery with the helmet and was hoping that they would never show it removed.

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Good episode good season. Looking forward to next fall!

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I kind of knew the helmet would come off eventually but the actual occurance felt a little anticlimactic.

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Yeah, the opening scene was the best comedy setpiece in the series so far. I like where they're setting up Season 2 to go, so I'll be back in once it comes back.

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finally getting to ep8

oh my god these scout troopers are killing me

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This was a great season of Space Western fun.

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Just finished the final episode. Absolutely phenomenal, although the resolution for Greef and Cara was a little shoehorned. That aside, brilliant work across the board. Loaded cast, amazing, sparse writing. The music was insanely, insanely good, the cast extremely memorable. I'm totally on-board if this is the quality of work I can expect from these Star Wars/MCU shows.

Also, as a side note, the actress who played the Twi'lek bounty huntress is the first actor to play a character in Harry Potter, Game of Thrones and Star Wars.

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Marked out hard for the Darksaber showing up in live action for the first time.

Really curious to see where the next season takes things.

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I was generally not impressed with the pacing of the episodes but overall I'm a fan. Last episode was by far the best.

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Murphiroth posted...

Marked out hard for the Darksaber showing up in live action for the first time.

Really curious to see where the next season takes things.

Is that what that weapon was? I thought it was a lightsaber at first, but it looked more curved like a sword. I wasn't sure if it was just bad graphics or what.


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Looking like a glitchy but more sharply defined blade is what the darksaber is all about

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Yeah, check out the Mandalore-focused episodes of TCW and Rebels for more on that particular weapon. Some real good stuff in there. (Also just watch the shows as a whole. Some real good stuff in there.)

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I guess it's time for me to finally watch the clone wars

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