Score: 7.2/10
Following the gun blazing shenanigans of S1E1, Mando takes Baby Yoda, henceforth known as The Child, back to his starship, which is presently in the process of being pillaged by the most devious little fuckers on all of Tatooine, Jawas. After gunning down a few of them from a ridge, the Jawas flee in their metal chop shop roller fortress while Mando rappels up the side to counterattack. This plan backfires when, to no one’s surprise, Mando surmounts said roller fortress and discovers the 2nd Amendment is alive and well on Tatooine, and the Jawas blast him off the the roof in a hail of electrical shocks. Recovering, Mando consults Kuiil for help, who facilitates a parley with the Jawas.
After some metaphorical size comparisons involving blasters and a literal jet of flamethrower serves to assuage everyone’s self esteem, they get down to business. The Jawas will trade Mando his parts back in exchange for “Suka!” (lit. “The Egg” in Jawa). Initial fears that this is in fact a name for The Child and that the Jawas intend to eat him are proved inaccurate. Suka! is in fact the literal egg of a cave dwelling space rhino which Mando must best in combat after being unceremoniously ejected from its lair on the first attempt.
As the rhino beats Mando down, perversely neglecting to simply impale him with its comically oversized tusk and end the misery, Mando makes a desperate last stand before The Child literally handwaives the problem away in the nick of time. The rhino is levitated then dropped and stunned, giving Mando the precious few seconds needed to settle the contest and possibly run afoul of any local endangered wildlife laws. Fortunately, this is Tatooine, an entire planet with no discernible government and lots of scary things that eat sentient lifeforms, so poaching is for the greater good. The egg retrieved and The Child’s newfound powers food for thought, Mando barters Suka! for his ship parts and Kuiil helps him rebuild in a dramatically scored welding montage. As Mando soars through the depths of the outer rim, The Child slowly awakens from its force-exhausted nap.
This episode was significantly better than the pilot in terms of pacing, and had a memorable line in the phrase “I’m a Mandalorian. Weapons are part of my religion” a quip that would surely make Canderous Ordo of KOTOR fame proud. In general, humor and atmosphere remain The Mandalorian’s strong suit.
The action set pieces remain entertaining, but literally and metaphorically bloodless in regard to the vicious fare available on other streaming services. For someone who prefers his Sci-fi fantasy violence to be both spectacular and when possible, unsettling, this can be a let down at times, and make the stakes of any particular fight feel too low. Good fictional combat is both beautifully choreographed and utterly unsentimental and transparent in regards to the human toll of bloodshed, something Pascal, whose break out television role ended in a public skull-crushing, knows a thing or too about. You can watch that infamous trial by combat here, because its literally too graphic to post a representative photo of: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nqT22PlqnUA
*Shudders*. Disney may remain a grossly unequal and unprincipled mega corporation, but Kathleen Kennedy will be damned if anyone is to take Star Wars beyond its traditional PG-13 realm. Oh well. I suppose not every show needs this:
I’m feeling less innocent by the second just remembering.