Written and Directed By: Jon Favreau

Music By: Ludwig Goransson

Produced By: Kathleen Kennedy and Colin Wilson

[Warning Mild Spoilers Ahead]

Despite watching the first season as soon as it concluded a year ago, I did not like The Mandalorian and found it overhyped. The idea of making a live action Star Wars TV series as a kid, one that was similar to Star Trek, was a dream of mine, and it seems like a no brainer. Still the first season felt more to me like a prototype than an actual series. A barebones plot that takes a long time to get going, with only popularity on its side.

From the look of season two however, it seems creator Jon Favreau has finally figured out how to leverage innovative technology to tell a classic serialized story. That’s a core of Star Wars. And with a diverse spinning team of creatives like Dave Filoni, Rick Famuyiwa, and Bryce Dallas Howard the show stays fresh while remaining steady. This is Disney leveraging the talent and resources they’ve acquired without running away with it like they did on The Rise of Skywalker.

“Timothy Olyphant [Cobb Vanth] walks into a bar wearing Boba Fett armor, damaged with a bullet hole in the head, he removes his helmet, something a Mandalorian would never do. Grizzled like an old Seth Bullock or a Raylan Givens who just doesn’t care anymore, he seems like the one character on Tatooine’s Mos Pelgo who isn’t phased by Mando’s shit.”

If that sentence was as fun to read as it was to write imagine what writing for this show feels like. Unlike the first season, you feel the fun the filmmakers are having. It’s also very distinctly cast. Episode One also features some of the best directing of Favreau’s career. It demonstrates how far he’s come since the underwhelming action of Iron Man, the crushing world building of Iron Man 2, and the undercooked writing of Cowboys & Aliens. The Mandalorian most of all shows in Favreau, a writer director who has learned from his mistakes.

I look forward to the rest of the series and anticipate the ups and downs, reprisals and new surprises. I haven’t changed my opinion on the first season and the bought Best Drama series Emmy nod didn’t change my mind.

My fandom: I am a fan. I saw Episode III in theaters and it remains one of my favourite films. I discovered the original trilogy on DVD. I originally thought like everyone that Empire Strikes Back was the best, but on re-watch I appreciated the cleanliness and writing of the original film. I saw and reviewed the sequels and spinoffs. The only one of those I like is The Force Awakens. I remain absolutely annoyed with The Clone Wars part of the canon because the animated film was so awful. Although I understand since Disney has no strong creative oversight (evidenced by Episode IX) it will mostly fall on Clone Wars creator and Mando writer Dave Filoni’s shoulders. Sidenote I hate The Last Jedi.