Max Nocerino 
“The Mandalorian Season 3 is off to a very good start with this episode. It’s packed with oodles and oodles of Star Wars goodness!”
It’s finally here! The Mandalorian Season 3 has debuted and my version of March madness has erupted. I have been waiting patiently for over a year for this new season to drop and our Editor recently interviewed the big man himself – Jon Favreau so be sure to check it out! Anyway, The Mandalorian is entering its junior year and at this point from the first 2 seasons (and Season 2.5 aka The Book of Boba Fett), the series has become Star Wars royalty. Rivaling that of the Thrawn trilogy in the early ’90s.
THIS IS THE WAY!
The premiere episode begins with a group of Mandalorians on an unknown world about to confirm a young human into the Children of the Watch clan. The Armorer has returned and she has forged a small helmet for this new Foundling. The episode gets all religious by having the boy stand in some water and then have him repeat the Mando creed. Star Wars is much unlike other sci-fi series as it is full to the brim with religion. And if you want yet MORE of a taste of that, I highly recommend the book The Battle of Jedha which takes place over 300 years before this story. In classic Star Wars fashion, the ceremony is interrupted by a giant dinosaur. A plesiosaurus turtle monster that even the hardened Mandalorian warriors cannot defeat.
At first, I thought it was the Mythosaur from Mando legends but Jon Favreau is no novice storyteller and would not roll out the big guns in the first 5 minutes! Mando arrives with Grogu in his N1 and dispatches the creature.
NEW RIDE!
I originally agreed with Mando’s first impression that his new ship was a piece of junk. But now I am seeing how wrong I was. The ship is SO sleek and fast and has a cute bubble sky roof type thing that Grogu can sit in and safely stare at the mesmerizing blue swirls of hyperspace. Mando has returned to request that he bathe in the waters under Mandalore to redeem himself because the Armorer says he is no longer a Mandalorian. Why? He has removed his helmet and that is forbidden.
The Armorer also states that his desire is impossible as Mandalore is no more. But Din Djarin knows otherwise. I never really understood why the Armorer is so severe with this helmet-enforcement rule. Yes, he removed it, but she never saw it. He removed it in the presence of non-Mandalorians and it only makes sense as a plotline.
RETURN TO NEVARRO
Din Djarin returns to Nevarro which has been completely urbanized since Season 1. And Greef Karga is back, sporting a new beard and ruling as the Grand Magistrate. This is certainly a nod to Lando going legit and becoming Baron Administrator of Bespin and I am very much liking the parallel. Greef wants Din to be his new Marshal and Cara Dune is namedropped. Gina Carrano was axed by Disney after delivering a torrent of offensive tweets on Twitter. And it was quickly a big stir when she was pushed out of the airlock. Should she have been fired? I covered this a while back and it’s really up to you to make a decision.
I like that Jon honored her though by mentioning the character and giving an acceptable in-universe reason as to why she cannot be the Marshal. She has other important duties to attend to. Anyway, Mando came to Nevarro to try and “rekindle” an old friend for his journey. And there is an altercation and some awesome Mandalorion that really fills the body of this episode. I also want to express how visually stimulating it was to see certain things in the Nevarro town. Kowakian-monkey lizards chattering in a tree. Little Babu Frik droid smiths. A COO-series cook droid. A classic Mon Calamari. Protocol droids. Pirates. Just oodles and oodles of Star Wars goodness.
VERDICT
The season is off to a very good start with this episode. I wasn’t super-blown away like the other premieres but it is setting the stage for something I KNOW will be epic. The final scenes with Bo-Katan are a little confusing as to what their overall purpose was. But I’m sure it will be explained as the season progresses. Great work Jon! Solid B
The Mandalorian Season 3 is now streaming on Disney Plus.
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Max Nocerino is a regular Staff Writer for The Future of the Force. He is a passionate Star Wars fan and loves the literature of the galaxy far, far away. Follow him on Twitter where he shares his love of the Force frequently!
