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The Mandalorian

Authors: Ben <benk@tilde.team>

Dated: 2020-12-18

Just finished watching the end of season two of The Mandalorian. I have to say, they really made it go out on a strong note, where I felt that the second season was a little bit weaker than the first overall, I would say that it's still quite good, and far and away the best Star Wars thing to come out on film in a long time.

Because let's face it; Star Wars movies lately have been disappointing, in spite of the fact that the Star Wars franchise has otherwise been so rich for decades. Yes, it started out with the films in the 1980's, but I would say it ended up drawing much strength from related media including books and video games. However, when it came to the sequel trilogy, it was rather a disappointment.

Now, I'm not a rabid fan. I grew up with Star Wars as a kid and loved it. I was still technically a kid when The Phantom Menace came out, and I loved it. It wasn't even the movie I loved so much as it was the video games, both on PC and console. In the 90's we had classics like X-Wing and Tie Fighter, Rebel Assault, and Dark Forces, and the prequel trilogy also brought a lot of rich experiences like pod racing on the N64 and more. That's just to name a few.

So yes, there was much to delight, but when the movies were not so great, I wasn't upset or anything. I took what enjoyment I could out of them, but obviously it only went so far. There are plenty of other franchises to compete for my attention.

I don't know if I was skeptical going into The Mandalorian or not, but it quickly won me over. It was clear to me that as far as Star Wars goes, the series kicked things up a notch. The story was just more interesting, the characters were much more interesting, there were some fine bits of directing and storytelling... It was able to pull you in a bit more, give you feelings of suspense and emotional investment. Thankfully, it also didn't take itself too seriously, and it was a little bit silly. Just fun all-around.

Whatever flaws are there in the series, or in the second season compared to the first, it's not a big deal. It gave me a good feeling seeing that Star Wars cinema can be genuine. One reason why I'm writing this is that the final episode that aired today was exceptionally good. Something about it just popped, and brought the magic back to life. As the iconic ending unfolded before my eyes, I was just thinking, "Damn, Star Wars is back. They brought it back."

Honestly, bravo to the show and bringing me back some joy from my childhood and young adulthood. I wish everybody would see this, but it seems some people are not aware, or just won't watch it because Disney+. (Also, to be fair, it is hugely popular anyway; some people also avoid things because they're popular.) If you can figure out some way to watch it without Disney+ (I'm sure you can), I would get on it if I were you.

Well, I have to recommend this one. If you don't think Star Wars is for you, it doesn't matter. It's just a good show in its own right. People are probably rightly skeptical about it in light of the recent films, but forget about that. (OK, Rogue One was pretty good.)