'The Mandalorian' Episode 3 Review: 'Mando' shows his true colors in full Beskan Steel and takes a turn for the heroic
Despite its dependance on tropes of older fiction, it’s hard to know what to expect from ‘The Mandalorian.’ Unlike most media out there today that contains familiar characters, tons of interviews with the cast and crew, and rich, readily available source material, ‘The Mandalorian’ gives us very little to work on apart from what we’re given, one episode at a time.
With one episode out a week (roughly speaking), ‘The Mandalorian’ is a throwback to the older days of television, when all you knew about a show was what you found out every week it aired. This week, “Mando” (as enough people on the show have called him by now) disappoints us, upgrades his armour, and gains our trust once again as the morally gray character takes a turn towards the heroic.
Baby Yoda has won the hearts of fans throughout the galaxy, as has the caretaker-ward relationship that has slowly been developing between the child and Mando (Pedro Pascal). That makes it all the more disappointing when the first thing Mando does on returning to his base of operations is hand the child over to the insidious client (Werner Herzog) and Dr. Pershing (Omid Abtahi). It gets him a caseload of Beskar Steel - a metal sacred to him and his tribe.
We learn a lot more about the Mandalorians, their culture, and their situation this episode, as events from the larger ‘Star Wars’ universe are referenced. The Armourer (Emily Swallow) is a powerful figure, acting as a keeper of the Mandalorian way of life. The Mandalorians are, it would appear, a people in hiding, in exile from Mandalore thanks to the Empire and the “Great Purge.” Interestingly, it’s also hinted that Mando might not be a born and raised Mandalorian. To be Mandalorian is more than just where you’re from - it’s a way of life, and it’s one that can be adopted.
It’s made obvious how much being a Mandalorian means to our protagonist. He refuses a personal signet for his armour, not having truly earned it, and he puts his varied skills to service for the hidden Mandalorians. His own personal sense of honour comes into direct conflict to the code of the bounty hunters, in regards to the child, but it’s honour that wins out in the end. Mando’s rescue of the child really showcases what a formidable warrior he is, and just how useful the tools in his arsenal are.
The action scenes are really the stars of this episode. We see Mando use stealth, arsenal of handy tools and deadly weapons, and quick thinking on his feet. With his armour now fully upgraded with the bounty payment of Beskar Steel, Mando is more dangerous than ever - even without a jetpack. The music itself swells to a more heroic turn as Mando and Baby Yoda make their escape, and it would appear that Mando is more than just a morally ambiguous bounty hunter.
Chapters 1 and 2 made ‘The Mandalorian’ seem like it would be an anthology show, with different kinds of stories being told each week lightly bound by a narrative thread. Chapter 3, however, moves the story forward in a big way, and shows that there’s a lot more to the Mandalorian’s story than it initially appeared.
The next episode of 'The Mandalorian' airs November 29, on Disney+