S01.E07: Chapter Seven - In the Name of Honor

[benteen]

Yes, Bryce Dallas Howard and Dave Filoni are the best directors.  RR doesn't look like he brought much to the table in this series but Favreau has to take the blame here for the direction of the show as he wrote or co-wrote every episode. 

[Sarah 103]

4 hours ago, magdalene said:

Personally I don't need the continued adventures of Boba and Fennec on Tattoine - unless we got lots of Cobb Vanth in it.

This is what I want. Give me the Cobb show with occasional cameos by Boba and Fennec. 

4 hours ago, magdalene said:

It was called in the production sheets "season 1" but I don't know? 

That doesn't really mean anything. They might have planned for multiple seasons but after the feedback/response, they may decide it's a one and done and season 1 is the only season we get. 

[arc]

2 hours ago, benteen said:

Yes, Bryce Dallas Howard and Dave Filoni are the best directors.  RR doesn't look like he brought much to the table in this series but Favreau has to take the blame here for the direction of the show as he wrote or co-wrote every episode. 

I'm happy to blame Favreau too, but I vaguely understood Robert Rodriguez was essentially the showrunner of this show.

[snickers]

On 2/10/2022 at 4:49 AM, Llywela said:

I'm laughing because this is exactly what I did. I tried watching episode one, got bored within three minutes and switched off, then heard about all the Mandalorian/Grogu content in episodes five-seven and came back to watch those episodes only. And I didn't have any trouble following the plot, either, despite not watching the first four episodes!

I'm wondering how many people did this....I'm sure quite a few

 

When they first announced this at the end of S2 of the Mandolorian I thought I probably wouldn't watch it, but then with the lack of shows to watch on Disney Plus that I was interested in I decided to watch it. 

 

It wasn't terrible, but it wasn't great either....it had some good parts (not counting the Mando/Grogu stuff) like the Tuskan Raider storyline, the Hutts, the Rancor, but I would probably say the bad stuff outweighed it....the Pykes were so boring

 

But of course Mandolorian 2.5 redeemed it.....I'm with everyone who enjoyed their scenes together....and the line of the series goes to the Amy S. with the "Grogu? That's a terrible name" I'm glad the writers can make fun of themselves....

 

But I have to say-as happy as I am that the dynamic duo are back together, I kinda felt like it cheapened that great ending the two of them had last season, I was so shocked that Mando took off his helmet and we saw Pedro Pascal's face again...considering all those rumors abound that he wasn't on set all at all and was "asked to leave"...such garbage

[joanne3482]

On 2/9/2022 at 8:34 PM, callmebetty said:

I wish we could have Krysstann(I know I didn't spell that right) or is it Santo? I think Boba was calling him that. Anyway wish he could be in Mandalorian.

That would be awesome! I was so worried he would die and glad he didn't. 

[Ilovepie]

Finally finished watching this and concur with everyone - Boba was better as a mysterious bounty hunter. As a main character, not so much. Mando and Baby Yoda saved the show. They were awesome and I appreciate the gift of more of them in the midst of this boring show. Personally, there were many characters introduced in this show that would have made better spin off:

Apologies for spelling. I could look up these names, but I'm too lazy.....

1. Fennec Shand on her own. At this point, she's smarter and cooler than Boba. I did enjoy her sneak attack at the end. Good riddance to the cowardly mayor!

2. The Hutt twins- I thought that was going to be interesting and a show of Boba fighting the true heirs of Jabba would have made a better plot then the spice thing. But no......

3. The bad wookie Krsantan or whatever. I freaking love him - definitely my new favorite. I hope we see him again - he's too cool to be abandoned now, right????

4. Peli - what a delight she is! "Grogru? That's a terrible name!" I would love to just see what trouble she gets into in her garage with her dumb droids and the people who come through there, and also, her bad taste in men jawas lovers..........

5. Cad Bane. Such a cool villain. Totally wasted here. Bummer.

I honestly don't know what the point was for this show as far as Boba was concerned. If they mostly just wanted to show him escaping the pit, they should have had HIM be the guest episode in the third season of the Mandalorian instead of this show with almost half the episodes featuring Mando. If they had just done a one-off episode showing him escaping and what he went through with the Tuscans, I think that would have been enough.

Still, I can't regret this show for what they gave us of my favorite baby. So glad he chose the beskar - he has lifetimes to train as a Jedi, but for him, only a short time with his daddy!!!! My heart almost exploded when he jumped into Mando's arms. And curling up next to that Rancor was so precious I almost died again. I can't stand the cuteness - now excuse me while I go buy some more Baby Yoda merch........

[Sarah 103]

31 minutes ago, Ilovepie said:

Personally, there were many characters introduced in this show that would have made better spin off:

Apologies for spelling. I could look up these names, but I'm too lazy.....

4. Peli - what a delight she is! "Grogru? That's a terrible name!" I would love to just see what trouble she gets into in her garage with her dumb droids and the people who come through there, and also, her bad taste in men jawas lovers.

I would never have thought of this as a spin-off, but it could work and be brilliant. It's a classic workplace sitcom, like Taxi or Wings. It would work best with 20-30 minute episodes. 

She needs another person to interact with on a regular basis. I'm thinking maybe while she does most of the work in the garage on ships, there is someone else handling the books/financial side of things that we haven't seen because for the stories she has been in so far, that part of the business isn't important. All of the characters she has to deal with, what her love life is like, this would be fantastic and I'm now slightly dissapointed it doesn't exist. 

[Ilovepie]

1 hour ago, Sarah 103 said:

I would never have thought of this as a spin-off, but it could work and be brilliant. It's a classic workplace sitcom, like Taxi or Wings. It would work best with 20-30 minute episodes. 

She needs another person to interact with on a regular basis. I'm thinking maybe while she does most of the work in the garage on ships, there is someone else handling the books/financial side of things that we haven't seen because for the stories she has been in so far, that part of the business isn't important. All of the characters she has to deal with, what her love life is like, this would be fantastic and I'm now slightly dissapointed it doesn't exist. 

From you lips to Dave Filoni's ears! ;-p

[FnkyChkn34]

On 2/13/2022 at 3:50 PM, benteen said:

Yes, Bryce Dallas Howard and Dave Filoni are the best directors.  RR doesn't look like he brought much to the table in this series but Favreau has to take the blame here for the direction of the show as he wrote or co-wrote every episode. 

I also liked Taika Waititi's work on The Mandalorian.

On 2/13/2022 at 6:17 PM, arc said:

I'm happy to blame Favreau too, but I vaguely understood Robert Rodriguez was essentially the showrunner of this show.

I thought that Favreau and Filoni run the Disney+ Star Wars shows, but if they handed over the reins to someone else for this one, maybe that's why the audience as a whole didn't like it nearly as much?  Interesting.  

I tried to google it and different sources seem to list all three as the "brains" behind it, but I make this comment to laugh at the Wikipedia entry - it lists Pedro Pascal as one of the three stars of the show.  I get that he was a focus in the last 3 episodes, but he was still only in 3 of the 7 episodes... LOL.  And I'm still not convinced that he was in the suit; I think he only did the voice-work.  

[arc]

1 hour ago, FnkyChkn34 said:

I tried to google it and different sources seem to list all three as the "brains" behind it

The Hollywood Reporter called Rodriguez a “co-showrunner”. So I guess he didn’t have full control. As you say, Filoni and Favreau oversee the live-action TV side of SW and I’m sure Lucasfilm top execs like Kathleen Kennedy have a say too. But as a co-showrunner Rodriguez bears more responsibility than the average hired gun episode director.

[LilJen]

Why did they keep ripping off Dune, with the “orange power” and “spice” references? 🙄

and Bad Cowboy Dude’s lack of nose reminds me of Voldemort.

Edited February 16, 2022 by LilJen

[magdalene]

43 minutes ago, LilJen said:

Why did they keep ripping off Dune, with the “orange power” and “spice” references? 🙄

and Bad Cowboy Dude’s lack of nose reminds me of Voldemort.

I was told that George Lucas was partially inspired by the Dune novel  when he filmed the original movies. He was also inspired by Westerns, Japanese cinema, and adventure serials.

Grins. so it's not "ripping off" but rather an ode to all of those influences.

[johntfs]

On 2/10/2022 at 5:37 PM, arc said:

He literally has a jetpack that could take him from the city all the way back to the rancor pit at the palace! And Mando flew his jetpack even further in s2 of his show.

The Pykes were HQed several hundred miles away.  They're also very noisy, so sneaking wouldn't work too well.  Fennac murking those assholes was fine.

[FnkyChkn34]

12 hours ago, magdalene said:

I was told that George Lucas was partially inspired by the Dune novel  when he filmed the original movies. He was also inspired by Westerns, Japanese cinema, and adventure serials.

Grins. so it's not "ripping off" but rather an ode to all of those influences.

My friend kept trying to find all the samurai movie references, and I really didn't care about what he was saying.  Because Grogu.  I understood that there were a lot of references to old westerns, but...  cute baby puppet!  That's all I'm really here for. 😉

[arc]

16 hours ago, johntfs said:

The Pykes were HQed several hundred miles away.  They're also very noisy, so sneaking wouldn't work too well. 

Mando’s jet pack took him easily that kind of distance on his own show. And who cares about noise? It’s Mos Eisley, not an isolated tent in the desert. Boba could have landed a couple of blocks away and walked the rest on foot.

To me, the point is narratively that it was unsatisfying for Boba to not personally avenge his adopted tribe. For a crime lord, he did astonishingly little delegation throughout this entire series. (He also did very little hiring, so he didn’t have a lot of people to delegate to.) Delegating the one thing that actually had personal meaning for his character was unsatisfying. 
 

Maybe it would have been more acceptable if Fennec had had any kind of character arc of her own.

[Sarah 103]

10 hours ago, FnkyChkn34 said:

My friend kept trying to find all the samurai movie references, and I really didn't care about what he was saying.  Because Grogu.  I understood that there were a lot of references to old westerns, but...  cute baby puppet!  That's all I'm really here for. 😉

I totally understand that. When I'm watching The Mandalorian I go back and forth between identifying the classic movie they are referencing and also going "awww" over how cute Grogu is. 

Edited February 17, 2022 by Sarah 103

[johntfs]

6 hours ago, arc said:

Mando’s jet pack took him easily that kind of distance on his own show. And who cares about noise? It’s Mos Eisley, not an isolated tent in the desert. Boba could have landed a couple of blocks away and walked the rest on foot.

To me, the point is narratively that it was unsatisfying for Boba to not personally avenge his adopted tribe. For a crime lord, he did astonishingly little delegation throughout this entire series. (He also did very little hiring, so he didn’t have a lot of people to delegate to.) Delegating the one thing that actually had personal meaning for his character was unsatisfying. 
 

Maybe it would have been more acceptable if Fennec had had any kind of character arc of her own.

It was perfectly satisfying to me in terms of the narrative.  The point of Fennec going there is that she's going there while the fight is still happening and the HQ Pyke are focused on it.  

If Boba had waited to finish the battle and then flown there himself, the Pyke would most likely be gone to plot some new attack.  Since Fennec left early she got there and got into position before they could leave.  And then killed the lot of them.

Boba entrusting his vengeance to Fennac showed that he trusted her with something even more important to him than his own life.

[arc]

2 hours ago, johntfs said:

Boba entrusting his vengeance to Fennac showed that he trusted her with something even more important to him than his own life.

It wasn’t vengeance though, because he didn’t know till Cad Bane told him, long after Fennec left. From his point of view at the time, it was just a mission to defeat the Pykes’ superior numbers by attacking their HQ and leaders directly. And that wasn’t even Boba’s idea. Fennec said they had to take out command and control and then Boba asked her to do it.

[Amarsir]

On 2/16/2022 at 4:42 PM, arc said:

To me, the point is narratively that it was unsatisfying for Boba to not personally avenge his adopted tribe. For a crime lord, he did astonishingly little delegation throughout this entire series. (He also did very little hiring, so he didn’t have a lot of people to delegate to.) Delegating the one thing that actually had personal meaning for his character was unsatisfying. 

I completely agree. And Fennec was teleportation-level good at assassination there, which already seems lazy. I could overlook that if it wasn't supposed to be meaningful. But to explicitly make the connection and then not have Fett directly involved really drives home how he was barely a guest star in his own series.

[Peace 47]

On 2/14/2022 at 12:34 AM, snickers said:

But I have to say-as happy as I am that the dynamic duo are back together, I kinda felt like it cheapened that great ending the two of them had last season, I was so shocked that Mando took off his helmet and we saw Pedro Pascal's face again

I actually think episodes 5 and 6 of this show were an excruciatingly in-depth enough look at just how lost Din and Grogu are without each other, so I didn’t feel that the impact of their separation was given short shrift in this show.  The loss of the kid, his home, his covert and his purpose practically made Din suicidal, if you take a darker view of his extreme willingness to die alongside Boba in this episode (not his willingness to stay with Boba, which is understandable given his morals, but his embracing of the idea that they will die there).  That would have been pretty depressing to continue well into a hypothetical Mandalorian Season 3.  

I do wish that this show had given a bit more context around Grogu going with Luke in the first place, given that he backtracked at first opportunity.  Grogu certainly had some ambivalence about going in the S2 finale (Luke saying that Grogu did want to go, but Grogu also still hanging onto Din’s leg until Artoo distracted him).  In this show, Grogu doesn’t seem very happy to be with Luke at all.  He demonstrates a few moments of engagement, but overall seems distracted and lonely (just like Din is).

I guess that one could argue that Din and Grogu were locked into perceived obligation and what they thought was best for the other in S2, and their decisions here are about free will and a choice on whom you make your family/ friends, which I guess is a theme of the show overall, given the choices that Boba, Fennec, the Freetown citizens, etc. make.  “Found family” and all that.

One thing that I liked about this episode was Din’s renewed motivation and clarity once Grogu was back:  Din couldn’t properly wield the Darksaber in episode 5, but here in episode 7 (when he used it on the droid to (ultimately) protect Grogu), Din could deploy it much better. 

[arc]

9 hours ago, Peace 47 said:

One thing that I liked about this episode was Din’s renewed motivation and clarity once Grogu was back:  Din couldn’t properly wield the Darksaber in episode 5, but here in episode 7 (when he used it on the droid to (ultimately) protect Grogu), Din could deploy it much better. 

To my recollection he looked awkward. The main improvement I saw was that it seemed like he had decided to work with the Darksaber feeling heavy by mainly striking on downward slashes. But ideally I would think a Darksaber that has fully embraced him and vice versa should be as fluid, nimble, and lightweight as any Jedi or Sith lightsaber wielder.

[Peace 47]

3 hours ago, arc said:

To my recollection he looked awkward. The main improvement I saw was that it seemed like he had decided to work with the Darksaber feeling heavy by mainly striking on downward slashes. But ideally I would think a Darksaber that has fully embraced him and vice versa should be as fluid, nimble, and lightweight as any Jedi or Sith lightsaber wielder.

I agree with all that.  It’s just that before Din saw Grogu in this episode, he couldn’t use the Darksaber on the droid at all, and after he is reunited with Grogu, he is able to pierce the force field around the droid and actually use the Darksaber against the droid.  I guess you could attribute that to the fact that the force field and the droid itself were weakened by the rancor’s simultaneous attacks, but I just thought it might have had something to do with Din have a renewed purpose, too.  Din has a long ways to go, though, in working through everything that has happened to him, before he is going to be actually good with the Darksaber.

[magdalene]

On 2/21/2022 at 4:48 PM, Peace 47 said:

I do wish that this show had given a bit more context around Grogu going with Luke in the first place, given that he backtracked at first opportunity.  Grogu certainly had some ambivalence about going in the S2 finale (Luke saying that Grogu did want to go, but Grogu also still hanging onto Din’s leg until Artoo distracted him).  In this show, Grogu doesn’t seem very happy to be with Luke at all.  He demonstrates a few moments of engagement, but overall seems distracted and lonely (just like Din is)

I think they were both ambivalent about Grogu going with Luke.  Ever since the Armorer had told Din Grogu should be with his own kind he thought this was his duty.  And Grogu while not speaking (yet) understands a lot more of what's going on than we may assume.  He may have gone with Luke partially because he knew his father figure wanted him to, and also because he knew he needed some Jedi booster training.  And like we saw the stay with Luke did boost his confidence in his abilities. Then Din left the shirt for Grogu and Grogu, who was missing his daddy terribly, saw this as a sign that the clan of two should be back together.   Whatever Luke could teach Grogu in the long run may be rather limited because it is my belief that Grogu may be a stronger force user than Luke. We were told that many Jedi masters taught Grogu over the years and Luke himself said it was more like Grogu remembered instead of learning. Look at the amazing things we have seen Grogu do -  can Luke heal someone who is dying? levitate an animal many times his size? Calm an animal many times his size?

The child would probably benefit from Jedi summer camp once a year.  It's a pity the Jedi rules are so rigid. Grogu would enjoy training much more if Din could be near by. Children usually don't mind going to school as long as they have the security knowing they are going home to their parents after schooling.

[magdalene]

I want a plushie combo of Grogu cuddling up with the Rancor. Get on it Disney!

[aemom]

I figured that Grogu would choose Mando because:

1. I believe canon states that the first Jedi that Luke trained was Ben Solo, so this keeps the canon intact.

2. Grogu is a serious cash cow for Disney, and Mando and Grogu are such an awesome combo together - great chemistry.  My God, that little guy is just too cute for words.

3. Because Grogu is so popular, if he stayed with Luke, they would have to at least check in on him from time to time and de-aging Mark Hamill is expensive and time consuming.

 

Overall, I think that the series was rather underwhelming.  I think that it would work better if they loop Boba Fett and Fennec into the Mandalorian for a few episodes each season - there's just not enough here for a stand-alone series here.

I loved when Grogu kept tapping his ball on the glass to get Mando to fly faster.  So hilarious.  I absolutely love the two of them together.

Edited March 13, 2022 by aemom
Typo

[WatchrTina]

I finally got around to binge-watching the second half of this season and boy howdy did I have a good time!  This finale, in particular, was loads of fun.  There was a LOT of cheering and whooping and hugging myself with glee during this final episode.  Your milage may vary but *I* had a good time.

[Kel Varnsen]

Finally watched the last few episodes with my Star Wars loving daughter. Even she wasn't super motivated to watch the whole thing. Overall I honestly don't know why they just didn't use this story for Mandalorian season 2 instead of just making a whole new show. Just have Mando get pulled into this mess from the start rather on his way to dealing with that Mandalore drama (because while I have never been interested in Boba Fett, I think I am less interested in cartoon drama of the Mandalorian people). Plus if you did it that way you could eliminate all boring Boba Rise to power flash backs and have more Pedro Pascal who is a way better actor than Temuera Morrison, especially when it comes to carrying a show.

The end fight was cool and the Rancor was a fun surprise. But when those Freedom town villagers showed up, why the hell did everyone take cover behind that busted speeder. It seems like one rocket or bomb would have taken out everyone.

[Camera One]

I was hoping the Boba Fett stuff would come together in this final episode but it completely failed.  I'm a little worried about future Mandalorian seasons if the people in charge can put out such a mess with questionable planning.  

I felt angry on behalf of all those who were loyal to Boba Fett because they basically got to be cannon fodder.  Poor green guards who fell off the cliff.  Fennec is awesome but why did they have to make Boba so stupid?  Fennec went to find "muscle" and basically got Mando, who got one measly town to contribute their services (no matter how great their sheriff).  The whole setup was ridiculous.  

Mando and Grogu were fun to watch, of course.  So Grogu still falls asleep after using the Force?  Though even Mando got major clunker lines like when he spotted the killer robots coming. 

Talk about a waste of bullets and firepower shooting at the blue bubble around the robot.  Mando used the dark sabre to get inside the bubble of the first killer robot.  So did he get the hang of using it?  How?  That should have been a bigger moment.  I didn't understand how the second killer robot's bubble got destroyed.  Meanwhile, Fennec was off-camera for half of it and we only saw her stuff near the end.  The episode was disjointed at best.  The Wookie got shot in the legs and a few scenes later, he was running around like it was nothing.  

I guess I will rewatch the prequel trilogy after all, so I can try out the animated series.  Considering this franchise keeps bringing in characters from that without their backstory.

Edited July 31, 2022 by Camera One

[anna0852]

On 2/9/2022 at 9:34 PM, callmebetty said:

See Luke if you wanted Baby to jump then you needed to give him motivation.  Seeing Dad was all he needed to leap.

Mando and Baby's reunion was everything.  I teared up. They really are stronger together. And I really want to know how many times Mando had hit hyperdrive for his little speed junkie? That tapping on the window killed me.

So glad Vanth is going to be ok and am very interested where they are going with his character. 

Poor Rancor,  I'm glad Baby got him to sleep and then snuggled up for his own nap. 

All of this! And the Rancor is a baby too! Space Danny Trejo said it was a calf. I kept yelling to stop hurting him.

Grogu is a total adrenaline junkie. I could practically hear the ‘Daddy’ when he jumped on Mando.