The Mandalorian - Chapter Two - The Child

[ctg]

Well I invested the half hour into the video and my head is spinning. But I do think I have a bit of a better sense of the backstory of the Mandalorian.

Yeah, he packed a lot of history in that video and if you not aware most of it, your head will definitely be spinning.

 

[Brian G Turner]

Watched this episode but wasn't so impressed - it seemed like a pointless filler much of the time, in which the Mandalorian constantly shows off his martial skills in a way that's all brawn and no brains.

For example, rather than approach and confront the Jawas, he simply acts as a sniper, murdering them from a distance. He later jokes that he disintegrated a few of them.

Then against the woolly rhino, rather than show skill in stealth and wits, it's simply a primal Man vs Nature encounter that ends in the pointless slaughter of a mother animal.

All the time I was horrified by what moral lessons the baby Yoda was learning.

It was well filmed, but I was left feeling that it might have been better to skip this episode. I also hope the writing becomes less macho and more intelligent - someone in a costume simply killing for 40 mins isn't my kind of entertainment.

 

[Phyrebrat]

Watched this episode but wasn't so impressed - it seemed like a pointless filler much of the time, in which the Mandalorian constantly shows off his martial skills in a way that's all brawn and no brains.

For example, rather than approach and confront the Jawas, he simply acts as a sniper, murdering them from a distance. He later jokes that he disintegrated a few of them.

Then against the woolly rhino, rather than show skill in stealth and wits, it's simply a primal Man vs Nature encounter that ends in the pointless slaughter of a mother animal.

All the time I was horrified by what moral lessons the baby Yoda was learning.

It was well filmed, but I was left feeling that it might have been better to skip this episode. I also hope the writing becomes less macho and more intelligent - someone in a costume simply killing for 40 mins isn't my kind of entertainment.

One thing the Mandalorian does very well as a series is the embedding of existing canon and really giving examples of stuff we've heard ove the last 4 decades but never seen. When 3PO et al denigrate Jawas, from what we see in EP4, is kinda unwarranted. I mean R2 in the Jundland Wastes...it's not like he was stolen from Luke, and they rescued 3PO. I recall a much darker version of Jawas in the magazines of the 70s and early 80s along the lines of 'what are they? machines? rodents? a mix?' etc but they've never had that shown explicitly on screen and this really differentiates them from the scavengers on Jakku and other sequel/prequel planets.

Not promoting violence, but when someone takes what very little you have, it's a big deal... I certainly wouldn't bother to approach them. I'd shoot those <beepers> to kingdom come.

The mudhorn he fights has Star Wars Rabies and has been terrorising the locals - I think that may have been mentioned early in the episode(?).

After the setup of getting baby in EP 1, I agree it was a monster-of-the-week episode, but it all fits in with the overarching story - and Mando fights much better than he does in this episode...

It did seem a very odd push that they would slaughter an unborn mudhorn like that (Disney, I mean) because as you say, it's not a good message. I suppose it's there to underline the code of honour; if you agree to a deal, you have to see it through. Also the last scene with them eating it grossed me out.

TM doesn't rush its storylines, which, when you think about it is quite basic at the series start. But all episodes add up...

So nice to watch you watching this (I feel miz that I have 12 months till S3) and pray no one does any spoilers before you've finished S2.

 

[Brian G Turner]

Ok, I can see on reflection that the importance of this episode was about setting up a rapport between Mando and the Yodaling. Mando couldn't simply grab the child and go - he needed time to struggle to protect it. Plus the Yodaling Force-use appears to have been a key moment. Also, I did like the sequence with the frog.

 

[Brian G Turner]

Okay, re-watching this series at the request of the youngest. I still don't like this episode for the killing of the mother animal, but I appreciate now that the amoral nature of the Mandalorian is being underlined here: he's a killer, a bounty hunter, and he's going to drop that baby yoda into the hands of the empire. This episode both underlines that, while also beginning to tug on what conscience Mando does have, especially with Grogu helping with the mudhorn fight.

 

[Phyrebrat]

Agree. The slaying is germane to the story logic as you say re Mando’s logic but it’s always bothered me.

Didn’t they try to temper the issue by saying it had space rabies? I forget. I’ve only seen this episode twice (because I hate the killing) so I can’t remember.