The Mandalorian: Chapter 19- The Convert

 "This is the way!"

This is, perhaps, a less obviously crowd-pleasing episode, despite the events at the start and finish, and much of it focuses on unexpected characters, which is brave. It is, nonetheless, compelling. And no doubt much is set up for the rest of the season. Will the devious Elia Kane be the big bad, the cuckoo in the Coruscant nest, a former devotee of Moff Gideon?

We meet Dr Pershing again- reformed, now a successful product of a programme designed to convert former Imperials into loyal citizens of the New Republic. Yet Elia- with much excitement- slowly exploits Pershing's scientific idealism- though his ethics are debatable- into a trap leading ultimately to the mind flayer, the name of which surely deliberately evokes both Dungeons and Dragons and Stranger Things.

We explore Coruscant in a way we never really have before. The Imperial capital is a veritable Trantor of a planet, full of both naive New Republic functionaries and cynical amoral senators- naive idealism coexisting with the potential for corruption. This Eden does not feel secure, and the snakes are there.

Yet Dr Pershing is not the only eponymous convert; almost by accident, so is Bo Katan. The action scenes at the start are fascinating, as well as showing the increasing bond and trust between her and Din. They escape to a refuge of trad Mandalorians who follow the way. Din is redeeemed... yet, as she has taken the waters and not since removed her helmet, so is Bo. By circumstance. How will she react? Is her arc one of acceptance and seizing her inheritance?

Better Call Saul: Bingo

 "Why are you sending her to the cornfield, Howard?"

This episode isn't as good as the last one, but what episode is? This is neveryheless an intriguing little self-contained little story that presumably finishes off the tale of the Kettlemans. Yet, beneath the fun, Jimmy isn't seemingly doing very well, despite his bluster.

Indeed, there's an air of impending tragedy. Chuck has found a sense of purpose and optimism which is bound to be dashed... although what is Jimmy's rather obvious plot to get him to look at those files...? Mike seems to be in legal trouble, but seems to have ways of handing it which Jimmy is clearly not privy to. But I love the vibe between the two of them.

The episode, despite its cleverness, is about two very tough decisions. The decision by the Kettlemans to accept their fate, and what is best; and the decision by Jimmy to do the right thing for Kim. He genuinely loves her, which is heartwarming. Yet, for valid reasons, she has to turn down his business proposal.

I suspect things are not going well for Jimmy at all. And we shall soo see the fallout. Excellent bit of telly.

The Mandalorian: Chapter 3- The Sin

“This is the Way!”

This series is getting deeper and even more interesting. On the surface this is an episode of our (anti-?) hero delivering baby Yoda to his famous German film director employer with his Stormtrooper bodyguards, using his Beskar payment to have a new and swankier suit of armour made, but after a crisis of conscience finally deciding to rescue the child from what seems like potential vivisection- and getting unexpected help for I revealed reasons from loads of other Mandalorians. That’s it. That’s the plot.

Except there’s a lot more to it than that, some of it very subtle character development and some of it equally subtle world building. And, like previous episodes, it’s beautifully shot.

The scene in the armoury drops all sorts of fascinating hints about Mandalorian culture, and "the Way"-  a fastidious code of honour and the need to  provide some (very expensive) Beskar for the needs of "foundlings". There are hints that the Empire, although now very much defunct, is disliked for what it has done to reduce Mandalorian numbers. There are also hints that his Ugnaught friend of recent episodes was unknowingly helping an enemy.

And so our protagonist gets some new armour, equipped with "Whistling birds" and visits Greef Kargo for another job. Time to move on from Baby Yoda, right? After all, he's been paid and it's against the bounty hunter code to enquire further, right?

Except he decides to rescue the child- and his fellow Mandalorians, we know not why, must agree with his reasons as he eventually receives their help in numbers and, as dialogue confirms, risk of unpleasant consequences. Is this linked to their commitment to "foundlings", including baby Yoda now?

Our protagonist fights both his recent employer and Greef, his source of new jobs. He must be pretty damn committed to this kid. And again our central character is fascinating- always helmeted, taciturn, but ethical and conflicted. This is excellent stuff.

The Mandalorian: Chapter 1- The Mandalorian

“Is it true that you guys never take off your helmets?"

It's here, at last. Disney Plus has reached the UK which, aside from a bunch of Star Wars films I need to belatedly blog, means the arrival of a certain acclaimed series, the title of which my inner voice always renders in the tune of The Pixies' "My Veloria(n)". And yes, you're welcome to that earworm.

I recall surprisingly little of Mandalorians. I know Boba Fett well from the original trilogy, and I recall that, at some point in the prequels (which I'll be blogging soon), he gets retconned as a clone with a Kiwi accent. That's it. I'm a Star Wars fan, but not an uber-hardcore one.

But I'm enough of a fan to notice all the many Easter Eggs, from the wipes between scenes taken from Akira Kurosawa via George Lucas to Salacious Crumb in a cage via all the many familiar alien races and tech- and an environment that, despite the preponderance of CGI,  just feels like Star Wars- starting with the hive of scum and villainy in which we first meet our eponymous Mandalorian, acquiring and delivering his quarry to an employer who turns out to be played by none other than Carl Weathers, the first of two legendary septuagenarians to appear in this first episode.

It's both brave and interesting to have an amoral bounty hunter protagonist who isn't particularly talkative, and whose depths as a character will be left to unfold slowly- and that's even before we get to the fact that, like Judge Dredd, he never removes his helmet.

The tone isn't unrelentingly grim and gritty, though- this is Star Wars. So we get the mystery of who is the Mandalorian's new employer and his hired former Imperial Stormtroopers- said employer played, bizarrely by auteur Bavarian director Werner Herzog- and his elliptically discussed target. We get Taika Waititi as IG-11, a superbly animated CGI version of IG-88 from all our Kenner plastic figure childhoods. We get the physical comedy of our protagonist trying to ride a Blurgg- a female one, of course, as he males are always eaten during mating.

Intriguingly, too, we get some back story- our hero is paid in Biskar, a substance which he gives to a Mandalorian woman who seems to be an armourer for unspecified but perhaps ritual purposes that hint at a forgotten history and culture, no doubt to be explored further. We even get teasing flashbacks.

We end with a sadly much-spoiled revelation that the target is a cute baby Yoda. This may be thirty-eight minutes of pure fan service, with the carbonite and the land speeders, but it's bloody good fan service. I'm already hooked.