'The Mandalorian' Episode 8 Review: A powerful finale that's a little too focused on Season 2
Spoiler alert for Episode 8 of 'The Mandalorian'
With Episode 8, the wildly popular first season of 'The Mandalorian' comes to a close. The Mandalorian is, in many ways, unmasked, comes into his own, and flies off into the sunset with a new sense of purpose.
It may not be as satisfying an ending as some would hope for, but it was an exciting episode nonetheless that's sure to have fans eagerly awaiting Season 2.
Moff Gideon (Giancarlo Esposito) makes for a wonderful villain, confident in his position of power, calmly gleeful in his ruthlessness.
He radiates the confidence of a man who knows that it’s only a matter of time before he burns down your town, your family, your planet, but if you give him what he wants right now, he may consider at least not torturing you first. He is a formidable villain and is sure to make quite the antagonist in Season 2.
Speaking of Season 2, one of the episode's main weaknesses is how much it sets up a second season. Not only are some of the season's biggest questions left unresolved, but more are brought up.
Enough setup is done in this one episode alone that it almost feels like the end of a prequel series about how 'The Mandalorian' came to be. Everything will doubtless fall into place once Season 2 comes around, but until then, it's a little unsatisfying.
With that out of the way, the episode is brilliant. It has humor, action, great character moments and some of the cutest Baby Yoda moments in the entire series — everything fans come to 'The Mandalorian' to see.
Directed by Taika Waititi and written by Jon Favreau, the episode delivers some of the best moments of the entire series, from the return of the Armourer (Emily Swallow) to the heroics of IG-11 (Taika Waititi).
While it might not resolve some of the bigger questions — such as why Moff Gideon is so focused on procuring the child — it does answer others, such as the Mandalorian's name.
Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal) is even unmasked, for a few moments, to save his life, and the seemingly unflappable warrior is given a moment of humanity, shared ironically with a droid.
The flashback that has been teased all season long is exactly what fans expected — the Mandalorian's family was shot by Imperial Droids when Din was a child before he was rescued and then adopted by Mandalorians.
The Armourer finishes off Din Djarin's final armor components just in time for his boss battle with Moff Gideon, supplying Din with a jetpack and, more importantly, a signet, the last thing Din needed before becoming a full Mandalorian warrior.
He's now a father to Baby Yoda too, by Mandalorian creed — although Din has apparently gone long enough without a name that he's forgotten to give the child one.
The Mandalorian, aided by Cara Dune (Gina Carano), IG-11 and Greef Karga (Carl Weathers), managed to get themselves out of a very dire situation, and clear Navarro of Stormtroopers, and while that ends the story of Din Djarin the bounty hunter, it's just the start of Din Djarin, the father.
For a series that did so much with self-contained episodes, the season as a whole feels somewhat disappointingly incomplete, what with unanswered questions surrounding Baby Yoda and Moff Gideon.
Even the appearance of the Darksaber, while wildly exciting for fans of the series, is a bit of a let down in terms of how well 'The Mandalorian' has otherwise managed to make a 'Star Wars' show that doesn't require new fans to head straight to google just to understand why what they've just seen on screen is significant.
'The Mandalorian' is not a show that ought to depend on twists, secrets and reveals. It can be exceedingly good television on its own, managing to make the most out of even the most predictable stories.
It is some of the best live-action 'Star Wars' storytelling out there. Hopefully, we can expect Season 2 to focus less on frustrating TV gimmicks and instead on the stellar action and less-is-more storytelling that makes it such a compelling watch.