Star Wars lives on in Disney+
Set five years after the Return of the Jedi, the Disney+ original takes the viewer on a journey alongside an unknown character who is addressed as The Mandalorian, referred to as Mando, seemingly being his sole alias. The title character wears a helmet that is eerily similar to Boba Fett’s during the original Star Wars trilogy (1977-1983).
The first episode of the Mandalorian takes us to a cantina, located on Arvala-7, a remote desert planet, where the protagonist walks towards the bar to get a drink. A fight breaks out and Mando takes care of the men in the altercation without much trouble.
The title character is a ruthless, cold loner. There is no explanation nor peek in his backstory, which is quite an enigma, as members of the audience are often offered a flashback to explain why the character acts in a certain way. It is another side of the Star Wars universe, which makes it interesting and fascinating to the viewer – it definitely was for me.
In the usual Star Wars fashion, the protagonists are often good and have a desire to stand up to an evil regime – it is completely different here. It is a lawless and chaotic galaxy, which is unseen and unprecedented. Something that makes Mando different, contrary to Greedo, the bounty hunter we met during A New Hope, is that he doesn’t kill his mark, he only takes them to his employer.
Mando has different motivations as a bounty hunter other than killing or a thrill from power, contrary to those who worked under antagonists, such as Jabba the Hutt or Boba Fett. Although Mando’s morals fall in the grey zone, though he has a human side that few get to see. This side of the limitless universe that we see isn’t only fascinating, but it teaches that what makes someone evil isn’t their circumstances – it is up to the person to decide how to act. Your circumstances do not determine who you are, we always have a choice.
In my opinion, as a lifelong Star Wars fan, Jon Favreau is doing amazing so far with the four episodes that I’ve seen. The cinematography maintains the classic Star Wars movie aesthetic, from the transitions used to the colour scheme. However, the pacing of the episodes is slower, and there are no central Jedis. This is what makes the show so intriguing: it’s different from the movies, all while still being true to the franchise.
Although the main movie saga is going to end on Dec. 20 with its ninth movie, The Rise of Skywalker, with this series, it still feels like Star Wars will live on. There are so many other worlds and characters to explore. Disney+ may just be the perfect medium for that purpose.
Illustration by @joeybruceart