The Mandalorian: Episode One
The Mandalorian is a new series from Disney set in the Star Wars universe, after the fall of the Galactic Empire but before the rise of the New Order (so the events take place between Episode 6 and 7). It follows a lone bounty hunter who identifies as Mandalorian and wears their signature armor. It stars Pedro Pascal, Gina Carano, Carl Weathers, and Werner Herzog, and the first episode aired on 11/12/19. The Mandalorian is rated TV-PG for sci-fi violence, adult themes, peril and intense imagery. It is available exclusively with a subscription to Disney Plus, the new streaming service from Disney that launched on 11/12/19.
For those who don't want to be spoiled in any way: there will be what could be consider spoilers below. You've been warned!
I watched the first episode today and I immediately thought nerdbois were going to hate it.
Let's go down the list, shall we?
For those who don't want to be spoiled in any way: there will be what could be consider spoilers below. You've been warned!
I watched the first episode today and I immediately thought nerdbois were going to hate it.
Let's go down the list, shall we?
All the protagonists are POC, and all the bad guys are white dudes. Granted, this is the Star Wars universe, so we're not just dealing with the standard human ethnicities and everyone is sort of gray, morality-wise. But it's obvious who we're supposed to root for and who we're not, and we're rooting for the minorities.
The hero needs help, often. He would have died at least twice in the first episode without assistance.
There's a pretty clear father/son relationship burgeoning by the time the credits roll after the first 40 minutes.
While she's not been introduced yet, I am 99% sure there's a lady who is a definitive badass, possibly even more so than our titular hero.
There is no soaring score, no title crawl, no Jedi, and no mention of the force at all.
The hero needs help, often. He would have died at least twice in the first episode without assistance.
There's a pretty clear father/son relationship burgeoning by the time the credits roll after the first 40 minutes.
While she's not been introduced yet, I am 99% sure there's a lady who is a definitive badass, possibly even more so than our titular hero.
There is no soaring score, no title crawl, no Jedi, and no mention of the force at all.
And yet: nerds are overwhelmingly singing its praises.
So what gives? This is Star Wars, but this is definitely not George Lucas' Star Wars. It is much more Rian Johnson's Star Wars (although to be technically correct, this is Jon Favreau's Star Wars). Why are nerds creaming their shorts over it instead of trying to review bomb it into the toilet and cyber bullying the stars off of social media, then?
They don't understand subtlety.
No, seriously, unless it's spelled out for them in words or explicit actions, they have no idea what's going on.
Let's look at that list again.
The hero never takes his helmet off and sounds white. A lot of people have heavy make-up on and aren't easily identifiable as white or POC, and not all of them speak English, either.
For every time he needs help, there's at least two scenes where he's doing it all by himself. So clearly needing assistance is the exception rather than the rule.
The baby/child that the Mandalorian finds at the end of the first episode is old by human standards and just happens to be the bounty he's hunting, so The Mandalorian is not going to suddenly become a surrogate father. I mean, Star Wars isn't about family.
It's called The Mandalorian, not the Lady Badass.
They talk about droids, and Mandalorians, and people have weird names and use holograms, and there may or may not be a tiny green dude with big ears. So yeah, it's still Star Wars, just a bit different.
For every time he needs help, there's at least two scenes where he's doing it all by himself. So clearly needing assistance is the exception rather than the rule.
The baby/child that the Mandalorian finds at the end of the first episode is old by human standards and just happens to be the bounty he's hunting, so The Mandalorian is not going to suddenly become a surrogate father. I mean, Star Wars isn't about family.
It's called The Mandalorian, not the Lady Badass.
They talk about droids, and Mandalorians, and people have weird names and use holograms, and there may or may not be a tiny green dude with big ears. So yeah, it's still Star Wars, just a bit different.
We'll see if later episodes get less subtle and the nerds turn on it, but I hope not. I hope that Jon Favreau has managed to crack the code and create something that is both immediately recognizable as Star Wars, yet evolves the series into something that everyone can enjoy instead of just young white males. I'm certainly on board, and can hardly wait for next week's episode.
Did you also sign up for Disney Plus on the first day and eagerly watched The Mandalorian? What's your take on it and the brand new story that's being told in a very familiar universe? Post a comment and let me know, and have an awesome day!
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