The Mandalorian: "The Jedi"

 

This episode has been hyped up for quite some time, due to the expected appearance of Ahsoka Tano. The problem with this episode is how your enjoyment of this storyline will largely fall on your knowledge of Ahsoka and her journey in the Clone Wars and Rebels cartoons (I personally haven't watched a lot of either show but I know enough of Ahsoka  to be interested). Rosario Dawson's performance is extraordinary and her scenes with Mando and Baba Yoda are electrifying, but certain lines of dialogue will fall flat for those that don't know her relationship with Anakin Skywalker or conflict with Grand Admiral Thrawn.

This issue aside, this was easily the best episode of the season since the premiere. Written and directed by Dave Filoni of Rebels fame, "The Jedi" is a stunning marvel of writing and directing, placing enough focus on Ahsoka yet never letting us forget that Mando is the true protagonist of this episode. We also get some nicely handled exposition on Baby Yoda's true name Grogu a well as a reflection on the bond that has grown between both characters. Filoni directs the climatic action sequence with the air of Kurosawa as well as a hint of spaghetti Western (bolstered by a great performance by Michael Biehn of Terminator fame).

Common complaints with the past few episodes were how they mostly seemed like filler. While I admit I have had issues with this as well (despite the acting and production values being as good as they ever were), it's important to remember that Season 1 also had filler episodes. A few weeks ago, Jonathan Lack on Twitter brought up how The Mandalorian breaks traditional TV norms by having each episode focus on a completely different thing with no care for what viewers of traditional serialized television expect. That's an extremely smart observation but as we head into the season's final stretch I'm hoping for more plot movement and a decent payoff to the story threads thus far.