With the recent debut of Disney’s brand new streaming service Disney+, there are a ton of brand new movies and TV shows available to subscribers for $6.99 a month. One of the most highly anticipated new releases on this service is The Mandalorian, Star Wars’ first live action television show. With the first episode premiering on November 12th, reviews have been overwhelmingly positive. Since then, episodes have been steadily released on a weekly basis. This strategy of slowly delivering episodes is employed by another popular streaming service, HBO. Both use this strategy to generate anticipation and excitement for each episode.
From episode one, The Mandalorian has drawn heavy influence from the spaghetti westerns of the 1950s and 60s, and this helps give the show its own authentic and unique feel that is unlike most things seen in the Star Wars universe.
Furthermore, the soundtrack is another aspect of production that contributes to the shows distinct nature. Scored by Ludwig Göransson, the man behind the music of Black Panther, The Mandalorian takes a different approach to its score than other movies and television shows in the Star Wars franchise.
Overall, I have been relatively satisfied with both the content and quality of The Mandolorian‘s episodes. The episodes are well paced and balanced overall. However, there are some notable flaws.
Most notably, some of the episodes, particularly episodes 4, 5, and 6, which feel more like side quests than means of developing the plot. They do nothing to advance the larger story of the show and instead work to develop the characters in somewhat less exciting ways. Additionally, the episodes are just too short. It always feels like there should be more. With each episode capping off at about half an hour, there is little time for any kind of overarching plots that span multiple episodes.
Nonetheless, my hopes for Season 2 are extremely high, especially after tonight’s episode.
