Star Wars: The Mandalorian

[BentonGrey]

That's a shame, because Pascal is doing a great job, really excellent and subtle work considering the limitations of the character.  I've remarked several times to Lady Grey who pleased I am that they set out to make a show about a character that is always masked and they have actually let him stay masked.  But if they fire Pascal, it's not like there would be any real problem with just replacing him as the character.  Ha, who would know?

My mileage will probably depend on how obnoxious the new stuff is.  So far it's been okay, and with the promise of a decent version of Luke Skywalker showing up, I'm willing to endure much!

[Silver Shocker]

I've heard people gush about the Mandolorian being masked the whole time, going all the way back to the start of S1, and I found it amusing considering the most iconic SW character (Darth Vader) was also a character who wore a mask that covered his face for 99% of his screentime.

One of the rumors is that Pedro will be relegated to a purely voice-over role, but I was unsurprised to learn that it wasn't exclusively him in the suit anyway. I just assumed that it was a stuntman at least some of the time.

But if they fire Pascal, it's not like there would be any real problem with just replacing him as the character.  Ha, who would know?

Not to spoil any specifics, but if you see the end of S2, you may have a better understanding of why I've said what I've said.

In any case, if Lady Grey wants to continue watching the show, by any means, continue. But make sure to wear your Original Trilogy-themed raincoat and goulashes, beware of Dianogas, and be prepared to wade neck deep in prequel and sequel trilogy-adjacent material. 

[BentonGrey]

SS, that's true about Vader, but that was also in 70s and early 80s, and he was a nobody.  These days, heaven forbid someone not see your face every scene!

Well, it would be STUPID not to put in a stuntman for some of those shots, since you literally won't be able to tell.

I just watched the Honest Trailers for it, and it feels pretty much spot-on:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WlxuSILjRl0

As for coping with the new garbage cluttering up my nice Star Wars tale, I am reading some of Zahn's other Star Wars novels right now.  It's a nice palette cleanser.   

[Silver Shocker]

I'm a very slow reader, so I'll have to settle for the comic book adaptations.

Watching the Honest Trailer for Mando S1 right now. It is, of course, really great.

"After the prequels literally ruined his childhood [...]"
It's so true. 

"[...] in this tale of one man's destiny to clear an extremely low bar....BE THE BEST SINGLE DAD IN STAR WARS!!! [Shows Han, Vader and Palpy]" LOL it's so true.

[HT takes shots at Gina Carano's acting] Listen to Rhonda Rousey in Mortal Kombat 11, then come talk to me.

And yet, Honest Trailers couldn't make the show seem bad. I look forward to seeing them attempt to tear it down with S2.

[BentonGrey]

Ha, great, right?  I LOVED the Prequel line, obviously! 

Yeah, Gina Carano is one of the 'off' elements that I mentioned above.  Mostly the acting is good, but there are exceptions that pull you out of things a bit....

So, just watched the episode on Trask with the other Mandalorians.  Apparently, they're from Clone Wars, and it was fine, because they felt like a natural-ish part of the universe and didn't shoehorn in anything that seemed discordant.  I'm not entirely sure what I think about un-helmeting Mandalorians....

[Silver Shocker]

Well, then it sounds like the approach of Mando meeting these characters as he goes is working for you. That is the ideal for someone in your boat here.

The whole taking off the helmet thing...I don't know if this had something to do with the old books and comics, but in the Clone Wars and Rebels cartoons, characters like Bo-Katan (Katee Sackhoff) and Pre Visla (Jon Favereux) took their helmet off all the time. This whole thing with Mando/Din Djarin taking off his helmet seemed to not gel, but here he learn that is something of a traditionalist (one reviewer I watched compared it to how people have their own approach to religious beliefs) Rumor has it that Pascal discovering that these other characters take their helmets off while he doesn't made him quite irritable.

The whole helmet thing gets mocked in the second-to-last episode in a very meta way. 

[Tomato]

TBF, the helmetless thing goes back even beyond that... I don't know about the books, but TOR and KOTOR both feature Mandalorians taking off their helmets (and Benton, I love you, I get hate for prequels/sequels, but TOR is separate from all of that and it's amazing) and it was always one of those things people were questioning even from day one of the series.

That said... I can see him being upset about the Child upstaging him a bit (I don't think anyone realized just HOW big it was going to be) but I have to think Pedro knew going in about the helmet thing going in. Making that less of a thing going into later seasons was clearly part of the game plan (they got the S1 reveal out of it already).

@Benton, below is something for *after you finish S2*, but typing it now for those who have finished the series. Relates to stuff from Rebels to give you context, but it's kinda spoiler heavy.

Spoiler

So in the finale, much is made of Bo Katan and the Darksaber having to be won in combat and yada yada. However, Bo Katan was given the Darksaber originally... her sister flat out gave it to her so she could free Mandalore. Fans got all up in arms about the continuity issue... but IMO it's not an issue.

Bo Katan didn't earn the saber the first time, she was given it. And then, rather than leading Mandalore to freedom, Moff Gideon presumably schooled her and took the blade for himself (none of that happens in Rebels btw, Gideon having it at the end of S1 was a surprise). In her own eyes, and likely the eyes of her people, she's a loser... but winning the weapon from Gideon in combat would have restored her honor. However, Din doing the job instead, and trying to give it to her, AGAIN, would have been an even worse sleight. Essentially, the whole thing is Fate/the Force is beating her on the head with "no, you're not worthy of leading your people, but this dude you think of as a backwards cultist hick *is*"

[BentonGrey]

TOR?  KOTOR?  Yeah, KOTOR is good stuff (though there are some discordant bits), but if I remember the old lore, the Mandalorians didn't remove their helmets.  That's actually something that bothered me on Rebels, but that show had plenty of its own problems, outside of the lore.

Ha, I DEFINITELY can understand him thinking the puppet is upstaging him.  Because it is.  But it's delightful, so he should just get over himself, ha!  He's doing a great job, and people are learning his name.  It's impressive to be memorable and effective when acting through a mask.

I've seen (most?) of Rebels, though I don't remember it super well.  In general, I found a lot of it pretty forgettable. 

[Silver Shocker]

I actually forgot about Knights of the Old Republic, which is surprising, because I'm one of those fans who remembers it well and trumpets it as a "more elegant weapon for a more civilized age".

Tom as for the Mandolorian/Bo-Katan business - yup, that's about the size of it.

I've seen (most?) of Rebels, though I don't remember it super well.  In general, I found a lot of it pretty forgettable.

You actually watched Rebels? Color me impressed. Maybe there's hope for you yet.

On the plus side, this batch of episodes spoils the ending two or three ways over, so this way wouldn't have some of the surprises in Rebels ruined.

Rebels is remembered as a step down from TCW, and IMO that's fair. Other than Kanan and Thrawn (both of which were handled admirably), most of the high points were carried over from TCW. For a better understanding, I recommend the videos on TCW and Rebels by Youtuber The Cosmonaut Variety Hour. 

I always thought TCW would have benefitted from a more central cast (supposedly they considered doing that early on) while Marcus (Cosmonaut) argued the benefits of TCW being an "anthology series". What "hurt" Rebels was 1. It was a bit more of a "kids show" 2. The main cast, outside of Kanan, wasn't even really that interesting. But, in a similar manner to Mando, you can watch it as a continuation, a self-contained show, or BOTH and still have some kind of good time.

Which brings me to....

Now all of that being said, I want to stress - when I say "Mando-verse" and "Filoniverse" I really do mean that - we're getting at least THREE spinoffs (even CGI Clone Wars followup Bad Batch is being thrown into the "batch" with Ming-Na Wen's Fennic Shand being featured in it), with Filoni and Faveraux being involved with pretty much everything, a Arrowverse-style crossover in the works, and some....other very intriguing things that may or may not be in the pipes. Mando's various plots will likely split off into other shows, so it's a bit like Marvel and DC's comics where you go from THIS book to THIS book to THIS book just to find out...for example, where Doctor Light (either one of them) pops up next.

I remember someone I used to follow on YT saying they liked the Flash tv show UNTIL they started adding in characters like Firestorm and The Atom and such. I sometimes wonder what it must be like for those who skip most of the MCU and Arrowverse shows but still show up for the crossovers (I do have some friends who skip some of the MCU installments, but they're stubborn to a fault) and I just managed to get in on the ground floor for Arrow and then again with Supergirl. Mando is being set (and in a way, already was from is inception) to be something similar.

[BentonGrey]

Ohh, there's plenty of hope for me, but clearly we should be worried about you, SS. 

Rebels was ideally positioned for me, set in a period where there was room to tell stories, space to fit into the good continuity, independent from the new dren, and not obviously tied into the Prequels in the beginning.  I just wish it had been better, and of course, there are problems with having other Jedi running around in the Rebellion before Luke.

Sounds like they're biting off more than they can chew.  We'll see, I suppose.

[Silver Shocker]

Ohh, there's plenty of hope for me, but clearly we should be worried about you, SS. 

Touche.

Sounds like they're biting off more than they can chew.  We'll see, I suppose.

Perhaps, if as long as they're more like the MCU and the Arrowverse and less like DC's movie stuff, things might turn out pretty swell.

Then again, I remember the discussion back in the day. The Avengers (and Infinity War, AND Endgame) was looking to be a big movie, and BvS and Justice League were looking to be a hot mess. Sometimes you really can see these things coming.

[BentonGrey]

I mean, the MCU is a rarity, if not a freaking miracle.  Something that is about 90% high quality, driven by a clear purpose, and faithful to the spirit of the material, created by people who both love and understand their subject....that clearly is a hard thing to do in Hollywood, much less on TV.  I'm looking at you, Arrowverse and Agents of Shield....That level of dedication and good judgment is just not common in this world.

I'm fine with them telling more stories in the parts of the SW universe that aren't tainted by modern trash.  I might watch such if they're good, but I've yet to see anything in the Mandalorian that is worth spinning off.  Although, I would watch the HECK out of an animated show centered around the hijinks of a crew of Jawas, something like the Jawas Adventures comic pitch:
https://www.otisframpton.com/jawa-adventures

[Tomato]

https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Canderous_Ordo

From everything I can tell, the helmet thing is just a Mandalorian conceit, it's not a thing in any other SW media. It may have been a thing in some book in Legends, but that can be hand waved as either the old ways, or from a tribe similar to Din's. In either case, mainstream Mandalorians haven't apparently cared since the Kotor days, if you still consider that canon (which, frankly, even Disney still basically does despite saying otherwise. They still sell figures and merch from it, they reference the lore of it, etc).

I look at it as the equivalent of, say, a baptism. There's factions of Christianity in which you aren't Christian if you're not baptised, others where it's important because it's symbolic but not necessary, and still more that don't practice it at all.

[HarryTrotter]

They tried to do their own version- High Republic. But its basically DOA despite all the hype. Marvel ofc blames Mandalorian and "toxic fans."

[BentonGrey]

I can't be sure, but I seem to remember the always covered thing from the old days.  I thought it was in my old Star Wars Encyclopedia, but apparently not.  It's possible I imagined it, but it feels right.  It fits with the portrayals I do remember.

KOTOR is good, but I've never thought of it as terribly important, continuity-wise.  I suppose it did give us a maskless Mandlorian, but that also would have been a long time ago (longer than the original long time ago!). 

I don't necessarily hate the maskless Mando thing, especially since I'm not certain that was originally a thing, but I like the central premise of the 'people apart' that we get with the masked tradition.  And I understand your point about factions, 'Mato. 

[Silver Shocker]

I mean, the MCU is a rarity, if not a freaking miracle.  Something that is about 90% high quality, driven by a clear purpose, and faithful to the spirit of the material, created by people who both love and understand their subject....that clearly is a hard thing to do in Hollywood, much less on TV.  I'm looking at you, Arrowverse and Agents of Shield....That level of dedication and good judgment is just not common in this world.

*Obligatory snarky comment about Thor*

I mentioned this earlier in this thread, but the success story and immediate spinoff plan here is similar to the first Iron Man or Arrow (even Man of Steel; fair is fair). You start out with ONE thing that's solid to lay the groundwork, and THEN you start spinning off all over the place.

Star Wars, and I've been thinking about this a lot in recent years - there's no "multiverse". No animated canon, live action tv canon, no movie canon, no video game canon. Outside of the "Legends" stuff, it's functionally one universe, making more things in it feel like "required" watching/reading/playing to follow the story.

Going forward, it looks like there will largely be one world - Filoni's world.

I'm fine with them telling more stories in the parts of the SW universe that aren't tainted by modern trash.  I might watch such if they're good, but I've yet to see anything in the Mandalorian that is worth spinning off.  Although, I would watch the HECK out of an animated show centered around the hijinks of a crew of Jawas, something like the Jawas Adventures comic pitch:
https://www.otisframpton.com/jawa-adventures

1. We're getting a new Droids series for the "younglings". Also when Last Jedi came out we got a series of animated shorts starring BB-8, R-2 and the Porgs, so animated shorts starring "The Child" aka Baby Yoda, should be a no brainer.

2. "I'm fine with them telling more stories in the parts of the SW universe that aren't tainted by modern trash" One reason I'm....let's say cautiously optimistic about a "High Republic" movie trilogy if that ever actually got made (even though my nostalgic little heart kinda dreads it because I don't really trust Disney with it) is because they won't be free to coast on nostalgia, returning characters, and "Remember-berries". They'll have to survive on strong stories and characters and that alone.

And yes, I'm aware of the irony of me saying that while I gush about Mando. But hey, to quote the Maple Leaf meats slogan "You can taste the difference quality makes."

It seems like interest in the sequel saga has dropped to almost nothing after that trilogy ended, especially with Resistance being a complete flop, and I can't blame any of that, thus Lucasfilm looks elsewhere for more content.

3. "I might watch such if they're good, but I've yet to see anything in the Mandalorian that is worth spinning off." That comes in later episodes mainly. Though, again, I would say it is unlikely you'll have as much enthusiasm as myself and others, and you know what, that's fine. I'm one of those folks who watches just about EVERYTHING (Marvel, DC, TMNT, TF, SW) but I can hardly expect everyone else to follow suit. But their current game plan may alienated less than dedicated Jedi.

That being said Disney's (and DC's and Star Trek's, and Walking Dead) current game plan to spread everything out so there's always ONE thing to watch at a time, so you "HAVE" to watch it. It's a great market tactic, and may work out for the "Mandoverse", but those unwilling to take the plunge may feel alienated. Not to spoil too much, but one of the plot points you may enjoy in S2 of Mando....likely WON'T be continued in Mando, sorry to say.

It may have been a thing in some book in Legends, but that can be hand waved as either the old ways, or from a tribe similar to Din's.

"There's always a bit of truth in those old Legends." Dave Filoni.

[BentonGrey]

You're mischaracterizing the process that began with Iron Man, I'm afraid.  There was much of a plan there than there was for the others.  Nonetheless, the other model, the DC model, is much more common.  After all, it doesn't require any particular skill or forethought.

I don't have high hopes for any new Star Wars movies, but moving back in time will give them a better chance to do something worthwhile, at least.  Though, unless they go far enough before the Prequels that the films radically reimagine the setting of the Old Republic, I can't imagine being interested.  Give me something based on Tales of the Jedi, and I will be all over it, though.

Well, whatever they end up doing probably won't really apply to me anyway, as I'm not going to keep Disney+ for long.  I hate the splintering of the streaming services, and I'll be hanged if I'm going to pay for a dozen different ones.  So, if they try to split everything up, it won't matter much for me.  I'll check-in for a month here and there, at best, and watch the stuff that has accumulated.  After Wanda-Vision, we're out for the year, I imagine.  I'll come back when the Marvel content is all finished, ha.

:EDIT: This makes me so happy:
https://comicbook.com/tv-shows/news/luke-skywalker-mandalorian-star-wars-mark-hamill-hope-optimism/?fbclid=IwAR2xwtq4ObjoB4d3NcT0uh46-1H-W8zwvEYBuTo-NjkvvvXEc-Vebz70-wU

Mark Hamill gets it.    I would love the chance to meet him again as an adult and thank him for the joy and wonder his character gave me in my youth.

[BentonGrey]

So, we just watched the episode where:

Spoiler

Boba Fett returns and gets his armor back

It was a fun and interesting episode, and it was definitely cool to see that character return.  Even if the Prequels are awful, he's a solid actor, and you could more or less ignore the earlier stuff in his portrayal here.

Spoiler

I went and dug out my old Boba Fett comics from back in the day, a fun set of stories with him as the unstoppable anti-hero.  This portrayal seems a bit more noble than what he should be, but then again, I imagine getting eaten by a Sarlacc might change a man.

However, this whole Beskar thing is getting sort of ridiculous!  It's one thing if it is really awesome armor and can deflect a blaster bolt.  It's something else when it can stop a lightsaber cold, or just stand up to sustained fire with no ill effects.  There's been a lot of power creep with this stuff in just one season!

[HarryTrotter]

A lot of people noticed that. There isn't much tension if the hero is invulnerable.

[BentonGrey]

Indeed.

[Silver Shocker]

That also kinda gets mocked in the next two episodes.

The funny thing is/was, one of the things I liked about Mando up to this point was how much of a struggle Mando/Din Djarin had in many of his fights, that kept things interesting. He would win basically every fight he was in, but he still would get thrown around quite a bit and have to use his wits and skills and tactics to get out of situations. In this batch of episodes he can shrug off pretty much anything.

I was reminded the other night of something I learned while playing some of the later Resident Evil games when fighting heavily armored foes: aim at the feet. Or to quote Transformers: Beast Wars: "When battling bots, aim at the hinges". The point being all you'd have to do is aim for a part that isn't armored, if you last long enough in a fight to get a chance to do that (you'll see arguably the most over-the-top instance of this in the season finale).

[BentonGrey]

Yeah, I actually said to Lady Grey while we were watching the first season that he gets his backside kicked a fair amount for an elite warrior, ha.  Quite the switch.

[BentonGrey]

Okay, we've finished the show.  That was....fine.  It definitely faded as it went.  The first season was very strong, but this one was more uneven, and the power creep got rather ridiculous, plus the supporting cast had little personality beyond 'bad-A warrior 1' and 'bad-A warrior 2'.  I was really expecting more from this finale.  It gave us some good moments, but I wasn't super impressed.  It's a reasonably good show, but it is probably only a solid B overall.

Not particularly spoiler-y, but I'll tag it in an abundance of caution:

Spoiler

I really wanted more out of the Luke cameo.  And I don't just mean narrative space.  I mean I would have liked for him to display any personality at all.  What a waste to have Mark Hamill show up for, like two extremely bland lines, ha.  It was great to see him playing the role in a none-terrible fashion, though.  The de-aging looked good in isolation, but in motion it was pretty uncanny valley.  As for his dramatic arrival, it was fun, but the attempt to create tension with people watching the screens made it drag.  Ironically, I saw it recut to sync up with "I Need a Hero," and the video was way more exciting and satisfying, ha.  While the action of that scene was pretty much fine, the main cast action has been getting too casual and over-the-top this season, and this episode really brought that to a head.  I really wanted one of them to at least get wounded to give the thing some stakes, instead of having them casually jog through the ship.  And I see what SS was saying about the magic armor reaching new highs here.

They gave us a nice farewell between Mando and the Child.  That was a good moment, though they should have had Luke be more comforting and reassuring.  Heck, he should have at least introduced himself.  As Lady Grey said, "Luke is being really rude!"  But I liked the payoff of Mando removing his helmet for the kid.  We could have had that built up to a bit more, but it was reasonably well prepared.

So, all-in-all, this is a fine ending, and I am content.  I'm glad I watched the show, and I certainly enjoyed the journey.  Yet, I don't know that I need to watch any more of this show or of their other shows.  I feel like this story is done and there isn't a ton more that needs to happen with it, as I just couldn't care less about Bo-Whatever-Her-Face or Marshal Can't-Act-Her-Way-Out-of-A-Paper-Bag.  If they come back with more fun adventures in the SW universe and keep it relatively free of the dead weight, I might come back, but I'm not going to be holding my breath or paying extra for the privilege.

After credits scene:

Spoiler

So, this was mildly interesting.  In isolation, this could be really cool, but it just had very little weight because Boba got basically no development, and what we saw of him was more 'honorable warrior' than 'ruthless criminal', so this didn't really make a ton of sense.  Obviously, the latter is much more akin to the Boba in the lore, but it's still a fairly sharp tonal shift.  In general, I'd be all over a Boba Fett show, except that they're bringing in his modern origins, which I have zero interest in.  In fact, the whole 'you're a clone' thing from this episode was one of the only actively discordant elements for me.  Took me right out of the story by reminding me inescapably of the Prequels.

"I Need a Hero" video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UHgY7LIiaSM

I made the mistake of watching this first.  The original paled in comparison, ha!

So, that's my take, guys. 

[Silver Shocker]

Fair enough. Glad you enjoyed at least a little of it.

I made the mistake of watching this first.  The original paled in comparison, ha!

Yeah, you really gotta watch that scene proper the first time. I recently heard someone on Youtube I follow say "If you really want to test how good your story is, spoil it. If people already have it spoiled and it's still good, it passes the test" and I'm *raises finger, thinks for a second* Yeah, kinda. But suspense is my ally, and a powerful ally it is (yes, I do indeed love to speak in SW quotes. They're oh so applicable) The finale, directed by Ant-Man director Peyton Reed, is definitely going for suspense (it's the only way I can forgive how slow and incompetent our opposition in that episode is) Part of the fun of Mando is the different directors they bring in (Robert Rodriguez did the episode with our old buddy with the Ghadaffi stick, and he's coming back to do the spin-off) Filoni naturally worked on the more Clone Wars-specific material (fun fact, Ep 8's Rian Johnston taught him to direct live action on the set of the Last Jedi).

Anyway...

Marshal Can't-Act-Her-Way-Out-of-A-Paper-Bag

I take it you won't be watching Republic Rangers, then?

I can't blame you for checking out after this season, to be honest, giving your personal preferences and the fact that so much here exists to create spin-offs that there's very little "Mandalorian" plot left IN the Mandalorian.

That being said, now that you're caught the heck up, I do have a hot take to share with you. It concerns parts of the season you didn't seem to comment on.

Spoiler

So, yeah, Thrawn's being namedropped, with the implication he's going to show up (in the Ahsoka show, quite possibly) was for many, including myself, one of the most surprising things in the whole season, likely because it didn't leak AFAIK, likely due to him never appearing onscreen. It will no doubt be used to tie into Rebels material but fans are naturally tantalized by the notion of Thrawn in live action in a show more aimed at the older set. But wait, there's more!

As you may have caught in an episode or two of this season, the Imperial Remnant is hard at work using harvested Jedi DNA to grow Snoke or something similar to him/it at this point in time. While this is tying into a very quick and dirty moment in Ep9, this plot raises a lot of enticing possibilities. There's speculation as to what the upcoming Thrawn-related material will entail, but my personal hot take is this will be Filoni's way of doing the new Disney/Filoni canon version of......Jorus C'Boath. Oh yes. (Fun fact, my name in the Clone Wars Adventures MMO was Jorus Skydreamer, which was made up of two default/placeholder suggestion names.)

As for the after credits scene:

Spoiler

So, this was mildly interesting.  In isolation, this could be really cool, but it just had very little weight because Boba got basically no development, and what we saw of him was more 'honorable warrior' than 'ruthless criminal', so this didn't really make a ton of sense.  Obviously, the latter is much more akin to the Boba in the lore, but it's still a fairly sharp tonal shift.  In general, I'd be all over a Boba Fett show, except that they're bringing in his modern origins, which I have zero interest in.  In fact, the whole 'you're a clone' thing from this episode was one of the only actively discordant elements for me.  Took me right out of the story by reminding me inescapably of the Prequels.

I actually agree with most of this, except being turned off by the inclusion of Prequel references of course. You certainly like the word "discordant". I think you and I would have interesting things to say about how inconsistent they Jedi's skill levels are in this franchise across the board, to say nothing of the Mandoralorians themselves. Anyway, I really enjoyed the post-credit scene in the moment, it was neat and rather amusing to see Bib Fortuna as a now-obese successor to Jabba only to be immediately shot by Fett (decidedly not his fate in the old pre-Disney canon), but the problem is it's not a particularly exciting tease for a Boba Fett show. What would have been more enticing would be to set a goal for Boba and have him attain it over the course of The Book of Boba Fett (akin to Samurai Jack or Afro Samurai) and have him attain his version of the "Number One Headband" at the END of season 1 of BoBF and have usurpers to the throne (like say, Bosck) challenge him in S2.

This....it's cool in the moment for sure, but making a followup to it kinda feels like making an Ep9 after you've already put out The Last Jedi. So I assume BoBF will be about a decayed clone of Jabba then. Actually, Jabba's son was a big part of the plot of the opening storyline of The Clone Wars, so knowing Filoni, a now adult version of that character may indeed show up (and we GOTTA get Cad Bane in here).

Speaking of which, sorry to say, but Boba's modern characterization, though I imagine partly a reference to Temura Morrison in general, in fact comes from the Clone Wars animated show, where he showed up several times, and gradually learns what kind of man he wants to be, culminating in this kind of characterization surfacing in an as-yet-unfished arc where he goes to a wild west-themed town to have a showdown with Cad Bane and some other bounty hunters to protect some innocent people Cad was using as hostages. You can even see people in the comments section of the clip on Youtube saying "See? Fett wasn't out-of-character in Mando!" I wouldn't be surprised if this arc gets properly canonized as an extended flashback in The Book of Boba Fett (which would be a great way to get Cad Bane into here) as it would give Boba some of that much needed character development and bridge the gap between the unsullied and those who have taken the plunge. In a similar vein, Darth Maul: Son of Dathamir (which got made into a comic book miniseries) got relegated to one line of dialogue in the final season of The Clone Wars, which I was hoping for and honestly was fairly satisfied by.

I also wouldn't be surprised to see The Book of Boba Fett make hefty use of a digitally de-aged Temuera Morrison.

Something else I should mention is that in addition to stuff from the prequels and the CGI cartoons being used here, we're also getting stuff from the video games being thrown into the mix. I have been told an HK droid (from Kotor) made a cameo in one of the episodes this season, the campaign to the modern-day Battlefront II got directly referenced in the second-to-last episode this season, and it's both speculated and rumored that a character from Jedi Fallen Order will be showing up in live action next season (naturally, I installed the game to my PS4 and downloaded and installed the update just the other night, and hope to start playing the game shortly). So yeah, to quote Princess Leia, "It's not over yet." (to which Benton replies "It is for ME, Sister."  )

[BentonGrey]

"Look, I ain't in this for your Prequels, and I'm not in it for your new movies.  I'm in this for good Star Wars stories."  Ha, two can play at this game, SS. 

As I said, I enjoyed the show, in fact, the vast majority of it.  I just wish it was a bit better.  I think the multi-director thing wore out its welcome.  That's got to be a significant part of its unevenness; how could it not be?  At the least, the show needed a bit more quality control at the top level (and an editor for scripts and shot, ha!).  Nonetheless, it's definitely better than anything made after RotJ, other than Rogue One, and it's on a pretty similar level with that movie.

Republic Rangers: Interesting.  I didn't actually know what was getting spun off.  If it is going to be starring her, that's really a shame, because that's a title that has potential to interest me.  Ha, but I don't think I could handle her as the lead.  She was bad enough in supporting cast. 

Spoiler

So, Thrawn.  I had forgotten about that.  In other circumstances, I would be super interested in something involving him, but knowing we're never going to get the Thrawn Trilogy, I don't know that I really want to see something lesser plucked from the corpse of the old canon.  Thrawn is a great villain, but I don't know if there is enough space in the world they've created to use him well.  My hesitation would be much greater if he's going to be in the Ashoka show.  That's probably why I forgot about his being mentioned, because it happened in connection with her, and I found both her and her episode underwhelming and forgettable.  I have zero interest in that character and her Prequel baggage. 

After credits:
Ha, discordant is a useful term.

Spoiler

Well, I can't comment on those stories, not having seen any of them, but it sounds like they've sorta' botched the character if they've taken him in the direction you described.  Don't get me wrong.  I love a redemption story, and I think Boba could be used to great effect in such, but the place for such stories is after Star Wars, not before.  When we see him in the movies, he's a cold and ruthless hunter.  We don't see much of him, but there's definitely nothing to suggest that the guy who happily works for Vader and Jabba has any positive qualities or altruism.  The old lore made a lot more sense out of his portrayal, even leaving aside my preference for it.

Games: Yeah, I noticed the Dark Troopers, from one of my favorite games of my youth, Dark Forces.  I quite enjoyed those kinds of things.

[Silver Shocker]

"You will pay for your lack of vision."

Well, you already acknowledged that Mando itself was better than anything else after RotJ other than Rogue One, so I'm not going to argue there. Though I have to roll my eyes now that Alan Tudyk has said that K-2SO won't be in S1 of Andor (THEN WHY ARE YOU MAKING THE SHOW, DISNEY? WHY ARE YOU MAKING THE SHOW?) Ahem.

Republic Rangers: Interesting.  I didn't actually know what was getting spun off.  If it is going to be starring her, that's really a shame, because that's a title that has potential to interest me.  Ha, but I don't think I could handle her as the lead.  She was bad enough in supporting cast.

Well, if it makes you feel better, Gina Carano is apparently just the worst in real life, so there is a section of the fandom who would like to see her rubbed out of this whole enterprise. Time will tell I suppose.

Spoiler

I don't know that I really want to see something lesser plucked from the corpse of the old canon.

Well considering a good chunk of Ep 9's plot was very much that, and a lot of fans thought it was garbage, I can't blame you. 

Thrawn is a great villain, but I don't know if there is enough space in the world they've created to use him well. 

The version of Thrawn in Rebels was a great villain in a less than great show. But a big part of why he was so cool (other than the excellent casting of Lars Mikkleson - the fan pick is Cumberbatch, but I figure they should just have him play him in live action) was because they hewed so closely to the original characterization to please the fans. This is a new canon - in many other instances, it'd be the easiest thing in the world to make him a completely different character (like, say, Lex Luthor), and he did have a different role - but because of the immense love for the character, they opted to try to get him as faithful as possible.

My hesitation would be much greater if he's going to be in the Ashoka show.  That's probably why I forgot about his being mentioned, because it happened in connection with her, and I found both her and her episode underwhelming and forgettable.  I have zero interest in that character and her Prequel baggage.

Sounds about right. Her fans loved it though (and I do include myself among them). Star Wars is supposed to be for all of us, and Mando managed to do what a year or so ago seemed impossible - unite the fandom and get them to stop arguing and enjoy their darn Star Wars, and I'll always love it for that.

Ahsoka's not really that hard to wrap your head around. "Imagine Rey - but they remembered to include the character development." A scrappy young female lead added into the mix who develops enough over time to be embraced by the fandom. Or, to use the OT, I like to think most SW fans understand and appreciate that Luke in "Star Wars" is not the same character as Luke in "Return of the Jedi". Basically the same thing for Ahsoka.

Here's a question for you - would the sequel trilogy and "Old Man Luke" have displeased you as much if it was the first Star Wars material you ever watched, read or played? I would imagine the answer to that is "No."

My expectations for the Ahsoka series are that it will largely bring back stuff from TCW and Rebels and tie at little bit into the sequel trilogy, so there likely will be nothing to interest you anyways. If you want to see how they handle Thawn in live action, there's always Youtube clips when it comes out.

After credits:

Spoiler

Well, I can't comment on those stories, not having seen any of them, but it sounds like they've sorta' botched the character if they've taken him in the direction you described.  Don't get me wrong.  I love a redemption story, and I think Boba could be used to great effect in such, but the place for such stories is after Star Wars, not before.  When we see him in the movies, he's a cold and ruthless hunter.  We don't see much of him, but there's definitely nothing to suggest that the guy who happily works for Vader and Jabba has any positive qualities or altruism.  The old lore made a lot more sense out of his portrayal, even leaving aside my preference for it.

Originally he wants revenge on Mace Windu for chopping his father's head off, and he falls in with some other bounty hunters, and then later on he seems to realize that his life is going nowhere this way.

The fan joke for years was that Boba Fett was Clint Eastwood (which is why Cad Bane was Lee Van Cleef) so making him a cowboy anti-hero made some amount of sense, but again, doesn't necessarily gel with the new canon.

Indeed, I only read a few SW novels and comics that actually featured the cast of the OT, but the ones I read with Boba did feature him as having some kind of moral code, a sort of "honor among thieves" (in a similar vein to The Transporter, I suppose) that may have played a role in making him the best and making others seem like petty losers in comparison.

They're definitely getting into a position to just throw a lot of fanservice at fans at this point, and potentially sacrifice the story, but at the very least, I'm enjoying it right now. But I kinda view Mando as a kind of world tour of the SW expanded universe, a kind of SW theme park in its own right. Which in itself doesn't necessarily lend itself to a solid standalone narrative, I'll concede.

[HarryTrotter]

Season 2 was a bit of a testing ground for new directors. New to SW,that is. One of the theories being that higher-ups at Disney are not happy with Kathleen Kennedy and are casting people to replace her.
So yeah,while still good,season 2 is a victim of its own success.

[Silver Shocker]

Not a bad way to phrase it, and similar to what I said above.
As Marcus of Cosmonaut Variety Hour said in his Rebels video, Clone Wars was at its best when it was teetering on the verge of cancellation and was taking risks, while Rebels had that sweet, sweet Disney money and could afford to play it safe.
Note that I don't actually agree with ANY of that in regards to those two shows, but it does kinda apply to Mando. It did turn into the "Now you're just showing off" show, in a similar vein to the tv version of Crisis on Infinite Earths. I've also heard the final act of "The Avengers" described as an endzone dance celebrating its own existence, which I pretty much agree with. Same thing here, in a way.

One of the theories being that higher-ups at Disney are not happy with Kathleen Kennedy and are casting people to replace her.

Kathleen Kennedy is a businessperson, not a storyteller. Filoni, Faveraux and the rest are the ones fighting in the trenches, doing the nitty-gritty work like the cast of Rogue One. As the song goes, "And the general sat, and the lines on the map moved from side to side."

[HarryTrotter]

To do a bit of mindreading,I don't think shes happy that 5 min of

Spoiler

CGI Luke

generated more hype and goodwill then 9+ hours of movies.

[Silver Shocker]

Possibly, but she also got on stage and announced ten new Star Wars projects and the return of Hayden as Anakin/Darth Vader, something that the collective fandom somehow, against all odds, got to the point that they decided they really wanted.
And most of that will streamed directly to our TVs and electronic devices.

I think she may just be a shrewd businessperson. Insane, but shrewd.