Star Wars means a lot to me and I’ve been wondering how to approach covering it here. Earlier this year, I tried to rank everything in the Star Wars mythos and well, that was a stupid idea. Stupid is a maybe a bit harsh, I still really like the idea of the ranking everything but it’s a huge undertaking and with my having a full time job, four kids to parent, five to six podcasts to co-host and produce each month (that require me to watch movies and play games), and still find time to spend with my wife, it was maybe biting off more than I can chew right now.
Anyway, I still want to incorporate Star Wars into what I write about and The Mandalorian is the perfect opportunity to do that. And instead of writing a review of each episode, I thought I’d just make a post throwing out my thoughts on the episode. Thus the name Whistling Birds.
If you don’t know what Whistling Birds are you even watching The Mandalorian? But seriously, they are the cool little guided missiles that Mandalorians can equip and help with crowd control when they are outnumbered. So, these posts may not be super coherent and they are sure to be spoiler filled. You’ve been warned.
Chapter 9: The Marshal
*The opening shot is great with Din and The Child walking out of the darkness. Then the ominous music kicks in and we’re drawn in to where the mystery of what business the two of them have.
*The Gamorreans fighting is great. The Child’s expression while watching is pretty much how I was feeling.
*I love that as soon as The Child sees there is danger, it reaches over and shuts his bassinet. Din then has an excellent brutal fight sequence with a bunch of thugs. The Gamorrean trying to frog splash him and ending up going through the bench was excellent.
*Oh cool, we’re going back to Tatooine… again. But that also means likely only one thing, Boba Fett. Ugh, not loving that idea.
*Nice to see Peli Motto again. And R5.
*Din having a cookout with the Sandpeople was nice. Generally we’re only ever shown them as being antagonists but Din treats them as actual beings.
*The slow ride into Mos Pelgo is great and really reinforces the fact that this is a Western, which I love (even though I generally dislike Westerns).
*The reveal of The Marshal is great. It’s clearly not Boba Fett and Din is obviously skeptical. Even more so when he takes off Fett’s helmet.
*Cobb Vanth may seem like just another random character that Din comes in contact with, ultimately forming an alliance with him, but he’s more than that. Vanth is a character from the novel Aftermath. It’s significant because up until now, everything has always been segmented between each other. Characters from live action show up in the books but generally not the other way around and certainly not in the live action stuff. This is really cool for me and it means the universe that Disney is working on is actually united.
*Krayt dragons are cool.
*Vanth’s speeder, a repurposed pod racing engine, looks oddly familiar. Let’s just not reveal it was actually Anakin’s sometimes implication is enough.
*The set up here is very familiar to the Imperial Walker episode from last year. Big problem to deal with, Din and allies get the regular folk to band together to take it down. There’s no problem with that but I think it does show what The Mandalorian is. Yes, there is an overarching storyline but most every episode will be standalone except for a few here and there.
*Bantha tooth brushing.
*I love the townhall scene.
*Poor Banthas. Not only are they bait for the dragon but they are strapped with explosives.
*Seeing Din and Cobb fly off to take on the dragon, and then to see them shooting on the ridge, is pure Star Wars. It brought a huge smile to my face.
*Din getting eaten and then flying out of it to explode the dragon was awesome. I’m a little concerned he’d be willing to just leave The Child with Cobb though. Yes, Cobb proved he is a worthy ally but still to just leave The Child with him is sketchy.
*The krayt pearl was a nice touch.
*Temuera Morrison showing up in the final shot is… I’m not sure how I feel about that. Look, I know Boba Fett is beloved by Star Wars fans and hell, I love the guy too but I’m also ready to leave the past behind us. The armor should have been enough (and it should have stayed with Vanth), and we already know they are bringing in other known characters this season, so I’m not sure I’m on board for bringing him back. Maybe it’s a red herring and Morrison isn’t who he seems to be but we’ll see.
*Overall, I loved the episode. Maybe my favorite of the series so far but I’m still on the high of the series being back so I’ll wait to make that call.
Anyway, more next week. Likely earlier too as I now have a plan for this. What did you think of the return of The Mandalorian?
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