The Mandalorian 3 – Disney+ Raises The Bar

In 2019, right when Disney+ launched, they opened it with the very first live action Star Wars series, ‘The Mandalorian’. While there were some who didn’t quite get it at first, being a Star Wars superfan I grasped the concept immediately. If you played “Knights of the Old Republic” or watched “The Clone Wars” animated series you’d recognize the name. Mandalorians were these enigmatic figures that show up in the galaxy, functioning as expert bounty hunters. When George Lucas worked on “The Clone Wars” series, he attempted to give them a backstory and did a decent job overall. Sadly though, being an animated series primarily directed to kids this hindered his efforts. Then the Disney+ series came.

I have thoroughly enjoyed every episode in The Mandalorian series. The plot revolves around two central characters, The Mandalorian, a bounty hunter who is part of a secret society of other country hunters, who is dispatched to destroy a target. Upon reaching the destination The Mandalorian discovers his target is a child, who looks like a little baby Yoda. The Mandalorian makes a decision to save little baby Yoda and embarks on a quest to figure out the origins and purpose of his new ward.

What makes this so worth watching is how the series doesn’t feel like a TV series. It’s more like a visual novel, enhanced by the fact that each episode aren’t called episodes but ‘chapters’. A nice touch. But there’s a lot of focus on characterization, world building and a tense plot that continues to build.

‘The Mandalorian’ also does an admirable job of fusing together a lot of loose ends scattered through the various Star Wars movies and shows. We’re into the third season currently an already I’ve seen appearances from Boba Fett, Luke Skywalker, Cad Bane, Ahsoka Tano, and Boka Tan. There’s various references throughout to events from the movies. I also appreciate how the series attempts to bridge the massive gap left from “The Return of the Jedi”, to “The Force Awakens”. When I watched “The Force Awakens”, I loved every minute of it, but I was left with some questions. What happened to the new government that was taking place? The Empire had been destroyed, so where did these First Order guys come from? There were so many large, glaring gaps I just couldn’t ignore. To my surprise, The Mandalorian has thus far done an admirable job of smoothing the story out.

Let’s be clear about something. Lest I gave the wrong impression, The Mandalorian isn’t a filler show, it truly is it’s own, unique story. What the writers and producers have done is take some of the original concepts left by George Lucas and spinning their own tale out of it. For example, many would remember the Tusken Raiders, the nomadic, desert tribe. In the movies they were treated as just wallpaper practically. Not particularly important and I never thought anything of it. But here, they are actually fleshed out in a meaningful way. I mentioned the fantastic appearances from favorite characters, but I should also mention there’s a whole slew of new characters added to the series. Characters I want to see more of. I’m also impressed at how the series manages to defy genre. It’s a sci-fi, it’s also a thriller, and even a western all rolled into one.

As I write this I’m watching the end of Season 3. A Season 4 is inevitable, and I welcome it. So far I’ve been treated to some great acting, fantastic action scenes, and fascinating looks at Mandalorian lore. Just when I think this series is tapped out of ideas, it keeps surprising me. Throughout Season 3 I got to see how the New Republic is fleshed out, giving out the politics and failings of a new government. Also watching the quiet building up of a sinister new power. There are still questions that haven’t been answered. I think the writers are dragging their feet here on purpose, but I suppose that’s OK.

Usually when companies try to write spin off series’, they’re almost always nothing more than shameless money grabs. Spin-offs tend to be cheaply produced, poorly constructed, but we watch it anyway hoping to see more of the story we all love. I’m happy to report that so far, The Mandalorian is a welcome break from the norm. It’s continuing to prove that series’ while probably a result of our ever shrinking attention span, still can function as excellent stories.