The Mandalorian Season 1 Review

The Mandalorian (2019-)
Season 1 - 8 episodes (2019)

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Created by: Jon Favreau
Starring: Pedro Pascal, Carl Weathers, Rio Hackford, Gina Carrano, Werner Herzog, Nick Nolte, Taika Waititi
Rated: TV-14
Watch the trailer

Plot
The travels of a lone bounty hunter in the outer reaches of the galaxy, far from the authority of the New Republic.

Verdict
Excellent series. It's a space western with impressive production values and a great mood. The episodes are short, but this series avoids filler because of it. The Mandalorian is a mysterious and engrossing character, partly because we never see his face. This is less of an action movie, though it has a fair share of shoot outs, and more of a crisis of conscious. The plot is really good, driven by a fateful decision.
Watch it.

Review
I had my doubts about a Star Wars series, but this excels. It's a space western. By avoiding the typical Star Wars tropes, this  becomes something very different. The Mandalorian is a cowboy. He isn't much different from the Clint Eastwood cowboy type. The Mandalorian rides in on a space ship, not a horse.

Pedro Pascal plays the Mandalorian.

We don't even see the main character's face, but the show manages to develop him anyway. We know him by his actions, and it's effective. Part of the draw is that you wonder about this person's appearance.

Mandolorians generally are orphans that take up the creed to never show their face. Mandalorian isn't a race, but a belief. The Mandalorian was an orphan taken in, so he has compassion for foundlings. This is what drives the main plot. The Mandalorian breaks a contract to help an orphan.

The first episode is great, firmly planting this in the space western sub-genre. We've got the laconic bounty hunter and crazy shoot outs. The show looks great, from the shots to the sequences. It looks like a movie. There's a lot to like about the show. It's got a great mood, and the lack of dialog makes the production values even more important. I love the Mandalorian's armor. It's similar to the iconic Boba Fett armor, but this show makes the armor part of the story.

It's a focused experience that feels too short, but would feel too long otherwise. This isn't a show with padding to add time or episodes.

I love the conclusion. I was hoping the show would avoid the cliffhanger trope. What it does is conclude this chapter with a hint of what's to come.