The Mandalorian returns as Din Djarin and The Child continue their travels to the latter’s origins. In season two Mando returns to Tatooine to check in on rumors of a surviving Mandalorian taking refuge there. Only the rumors lead him to more than what he bargained for. Someone masquerading as his kind who also happens to possess Mandalorian armor. Meanwhile, Moff Gideon continues his relentless pursuit of the duo.

The Mandalorian is a 2019 space opera web series, it is produced by Lucasfilm & Fairview Entertainment, and distributed by Disney Media Distribution. Season 1 is available now, season 2 is now available in it’s entirety as of December 18, 2020.

Editor’s Note: Near complete to complete spoilers for The Mandalorian season two may be present within this view along with minor spoilers for season one. Slight spoilers for The Mandalorian season one and an overall of current Star Wars canon may be present within this review.

The Mandalorian is back with Din Djarin and The Child whom now has a name (more on that later). Following the supposed ruin of his kind Mando takes on the challenge of bringing The Child to a Jedi; whom have seemingly been wiped out with only a few survivors so that said Jedi can train The Child in mastering the force which it has some power and control over. Having gained the trust of several new allies throughout their journey he’ll need their help to ensure that The Child arrives at the hands of the remaining Jedi safely all while being pursued by the ruthless Moff Gideon.

THE GOOD: The Mandalorian season two kicks off with Djinn continuing his search for a Jedi who can properly train The Child in the ways of the Force. Hearing rumors of a surviving Mandalorian taking post on Tatooine he and the child head over to the planet to investigate. There they find that the supposed Mandalorian is actually being masqueraded by marshal Cobb Vanth whom came into possession of the Mandalorian armor belonging to the legendary Mandalorian Boba Fett. Vanth and Djinn agree on a deal which would see Djinn aide Vanth in killing a krayt dragon that’s been causing trouble for his people. They reluctantly get the help of Tusken Raiders in exchange for a cease fire. After killing the creature Vanth and Djinn part ways with the armor, as an alive Boba Fett watches in the background. As he continues his search for info on surviving Jedi Djinn is tasked with bringing a Frog woman’s eggs from Tatooine to the moon Trask where her husband will be able to ensure the survival of their species. A running gag is The Child eating several of the eggs throughout the mission. While trying to evade Republic fighters they crash land on an ice planet which is inhabited by spider-like creatures.

An enormous version of the creatures attacks, but Mando and the others are saved by the Republic soldiers who reveal that Djinn was wanted for the prison break in season one though they choose to let him go. The frog lady is reunited with her husband safely as Djinn does makeshift repairs on his ship. On Trask his ship Razor Crest begins a full repair process and he is rescued from an ambush by a new generation of Mandalorians led by Bo-Katan Kryze. Bo-Katan convinces Djinn to help her and her allies in boarding an Imperial freighter which is stashed with weaponry to aide her team in taking out Moff Gideon and his forces as she attempts to reclaim planet Mandalore. Successfully taking over the ship, Moff Gideon demands its captain crashes it with Djinn, Bo-Katan, and the others onboard. But they stop him causing him to commit suicide before they could get him to talk about the Dark Saber. Despite not getting much info Bo-Katan considers her and Djinn’s deal complete and informs him of legendary Jedi Ahsoka Tano’s whereabouts on planet Corvus. As the Razor Crest requires further repairs to continue their journey Mando and the Child make a pit stop to Nevarro reuniting with fan favorites Cara Dune & Greef Karga.

The three catch up with Dune and Karga revealing that Nevarro has surprisingly thrived with the two of them in charge. But there seems to be an issue with an Imperial base stationed there and they task Djinn with aiding them in destroying it. Prior to it’s destruction they learn that The Child’s blood had been being tested there under Dr. Pershing & contained a high M-count. Now fully repaired, Djinn and the Child say their goodbyes and part to Corvus while unbeknownst to them being tracked by Moff Gideon due to a tracker being placed on the ship during repairs. They arrive in Calodan on Corvus which is currently being under rule of a ruthless dictator Morgan Elsbeth. Elsbeth and Ahsoka are currently at war with each other & Elsbeth reveals to Djinn she possesses a spear made of Beskar steel material that was unique to the Mandalorians. In exchange for killing Ahsoka, Elsbeth would give Djinn the spear. After entering the forest a high alert Ahsoka attacks Djinn before taking notice of The Child. Ahsoka through mind link has revealed that The Child’s name is Grogu and he had began training in the way of the force as a Jedi. During training his home was attacked by a rising Empire and he was captured. The attack eventually caused him memory loss.

Ahsoka attempts to train Grogu, but states he’s afraid of using his full power due to his attachment & father/son relationship with Djinn. This instead leads to Ahsoka guiding Djinn in simple force training for Grogu until he can get to another Jedi, as she has her own mission to complete. As Djinn liberates the people of Calodan, Ahsoka defeats Elsbeth demanding info on the whereabouts of Grand Admiral Thrawn. Ahsoka stays put on Calodan for now as she tells Djinn of a Jedi temple located on planet Tython where the force will guide him in choosing his future. Djinn & Grogu part as Ahsoka gives him the Beskar spear. Arriving at Tython Djinn takes Grogu to a force infused stone which will help him unlock his memories and regain control of his abilities. As Grogu is put into a trance while on the stone. a force enabled shield surrounds him. Djinn decides to give him time and takes a walk but is intercepted by Boba Fett who demands Djinn return his armor. The two argue, but Boba reveals his trump card in Fennec Shand whom Djinn had previously survived a hit attempt from & gravely injured only for her to be saved by and indebted to Boba, Soon Stormtroopers raid Tython threatening Grogu so Djinn & Boba agree to a dal; Grogu’s safety in exchange for the armor. The three take out several Stormtroopers with another wave arriving. Boba recovers his armor and easily kills them. However the Razor Crest is destroyed by Moff Gideon’s ship and sends Dark Troopers to capture Grogu following the completion of his regained memories.

Boba attempts to recover him but fails noticing the massive Imperial ship suggesting that the Empire had been hiding in the shadows the entire time. Returning to Djinn & Fennec, Boba reports back his information and Djinn tells them about Moff Gideon. Boba along with Fennec feel they owe Djinn and want to help him recover Grogu. They return to Nevarro in Boba’s Slave I ship, there they enlist Dune (now a marshal of the New Republic) in helping gain the assistance of Migs Mayfield who’s currently living out his prison sentence. Dune retrieves him and asks for his help in exchange for a re-assigned sentence. The group head to Morak where Migs says a secret Imperial hub & mining facility with information on Grogu’s whereabouts may be located. Djinn & Migs work together to steal a transport & following a pirate attack reach the mining facility. As they hack the data of an Imperial computer Djinn whom along with Migs was disguised as an Imperial soldier is forced to remove his helmet revealing his face. Migs reunites with an old Imperial colleague and following his cold nature towards Operation Cinder in which thousands perished starts a shoot out where he & Djinn kill most of the Imperials before escaping. Migs assures Djinn he’ll keep his identity safe as he destroys the mining facility with explosives. 

Djinn & Dune (who was watching over the two with Fennec & Boba) agree to allow Migs to escape on Morak as a reward for his help. Djinn sends Moff Gideon a warning that he’s coming for Grogu. Djinn enlists Bo-Katan & Koska Reeves for help in exchange for the Dark Saber Moff Gideon possess. After faking a chase using Bo-Katan & Boba’s ships Djinn, Cara, Fennec, Bo-Katan, and Koska invade Moff’s ship. They kill several Imperials and take over the ship before Gideon awakens the Dark Troopers. Djinn fights one on his own barely surviving and killing it having momentarily blocked the others before shooting them into space. Djinn and Moff fight for Grogu with the latter being defeated & captured. Moff instigates conflict between Bo-katan & Djinn after he accidentally possesses the Dark Saber, but the Dark Troopers return and begin breaking down their security door. Moff gloats over their impending deaths suddenly a lone X-Wing appears with a hooded Jedi brandishing a green Lightsaber exiting. The Jedi easily destroys the Dark Troopers and greets Djinn & the others revealing himself as the legendary Luke Skywalker whom Grogu linked with on Tython. Luke says he’s here for Grogu and Djinn knowing it was inevitable allows it. Grogu gives resistance, but Djinn ensures Grogu that he will return to him. Luke & Grogu with R2-D2 appearing depart as Djinn & the others watch on. In a post-credits scene Boba & Fennec take over Jabba’s Palace on Tatooine after killing Bib Fortuna and freeing a slave unveiling a previously unannounced spinoff series entitled “The Book of Boba Fett”.

The Mandalorian’s second season continues it’s goodwill quality for Star Wars fans. For a series to be virtually absent of Jedi the amount of love poured into expanding the overall franchise mythos throughout it aspires an endless growth in fandom and franchise lifecycle. Everyone involved from production to casting loves this show and it’s expressed nearly every moment of screen time that passes by. Industrial Light & Magic’s stagecraft tech beautiful work while certainly limited compared to season one never fails to impress by breathing life into this ever growing world of characters. Acting performances are as powerful as ever with each actor knowing their roles and performing them flawlessly. Gina Carano, Rosario Dawson, and Ming-Na Wen are all believable bad asses as Cara Dune, Ahsoka Tano, and Fennec Shand respectively. Carl Weathers as the now reformed Greef Karga just wants to do right by the people he’s chosen to protect. Katee Sackoff flawlessly transitions her voice role as Bo-Katan Kryze into live-action. Timothy Olyphant while not there for long is excellent as no nonsense Marshal Cobb Vanth. Temuera Morrison brought about every bit of energy needed for the long-awaited return of Boba Fett to feel like a special event. Giancarlo Esposito makes you despise Moff Gideon with ease, and Pedro Pascal is as brilliant as ever as the titular hero, Katy O’Brian has a small role as an Imperial Soldier who’s so smug you just want to kick her out a window. WWE’s Sasha Banks while not with much action & dialogue has some fun moments as Bo-Katan’s second hand. And finally Mark Hamill seemingly regained his love for the franchise during the short time we had him for as Luke Skywalker (with deaging tech) in the finale.

Action sequences are what you’d come to expect from Star Wars which is good again with the lack of use of Jedis and what not. The story is a great odd couple/father-son bonding mix that continues into it’s emotional climax with said father having to do what’s best for his son to see them thrive as an individual. Djinn & Grogu’s depart from one another is powerful writing and Djinn allowing Grogu to touch his face in a loving embrace of sorts  as a parting gift was just icing on the cake. That and the promise of the two reuniting upon the completion of his training. The decision to further expand the world experienced through the lives of Djinn & Grogu through spinoffs based on the several characters they encounter puts a lot of pressure on Dave Filoni & Jon Favreau. But if anyone can not only match but beat expectations it’s definitely those two.

THE BAD: While just as beautiful as it’s pilot season The Mandalorian’s second season has a bit of a creature issue. Don’t get me wrong when present the creature designs are still incredible thanks to the great CG technology used for the series, it just feels a bit limited compared to the original season Season two is more about expanding Djinn & Grogu’s journey and relationship more so than world building so it’s ok. I just really wish they had more opportunity to show off the tech. There’s a bit of confusion in regards to the overarching story development of Star Wars on the surface it appears that major changes are on the way including some which may retcon certain events of the sequel trilogy especially with Luke returning and getting his own series. As an admitted Star Wars casual who has a fair bit of story & lore knowledge compared to most I can only imagine how confusing this could be for those more casual than myself. That being said I think the changes are probably for the best as there was a number of unnecessary & confusing changes due to the sequel trilogy as is. While I love the near complete focus on other characters for their announced & potentially future spinoff shows it at times did seem as if Djinn & Grogu were taking a bit of a backseat. This is fine for the reasons why they did so, but you can’t lose the importance of the main characters for the sake of building a universe. While this was avoided in season two. it’s abundantly clear that Disney have big plans for this universe’s expansion so I worry about the series’ future. This is even more terrifying when you take Grogu’s departure into account. Doesn’t help that people were worried that Boba Fett & Fennec Shand was taking over as series leads prior to clarification from Dave Filoni. 

OVERALL THOUGHTS: Now with it’s initial arc complete The Mandalorian is about to become something Disney & the fandom itself may have never realized was possible. All the pieces are moving in a positive direction and it may not be possible to stop it’s upturn with the teas involved. While it’s future as a film franchise as far as the proper canon is on ice that doesn’t mean that Star Wars has become a soulless form of itself and it’s as good a time now to be a fan big or small as it was in the late 80s. Otaku Dome gives The Mandalorian season two a 100 out of 100.