#The Mandalorian critical

[kanansdume]

You started these tags with "oof" and I went back to re-read the second part of this post and... yeah, oof is about how I feel, too. Oh how hopeful I was for something good to come out of that show, BOTH shows actually since I was looking at Mandalorian season 3 as well it seems.

This post is already a little long, so I'll put the rest under a cut, but tl;dr is that I think you're giving the people writing in the Mandoverse SO MUCH more credit than they deserve and they'll likely never do anything good or creative with these characters again.

I don't think that making Sabine a Jedi had anything to do with Sabine at all. A lot of people have pointed out that Sabine is acting like a bratty teenager despite being literally 30 years old and that she feels a lot like an ANAKIN stand-in so that Ahsoka can figure out her feelings about Anakin through her relationship to Sabine. We know that the Rebels Search for Ezra storyline got combined with Ahsoka's show and that they weren't originally intended to be the same story. So it makes sense that Ahsoka likely HAD a padawan-figure originally who was probably a new character and that they just replaced that character with Sabine when things got combined, regardless of what that would mean for Sabine's character.

Sabine doesn't even grow or learn anything by the end of the show. I've see people try to argue that when she left Ezra behind in order to save Ahsoka that it showed she'd grown from when she abandoned everything to save Ezra, except... she's literally just making the same choice for a different person. Thrawn is LEAVING and the whole point of jumping onto his ship is to try to STOP HIM or something, and instead of doing that and helping Ezra, she runs back because one person's life is at stake and now Ezra is alone on that ship and Sabine never has to face the consequences of her own actions. Personally, that doesn't feel like any actual growth to me or like she's learned from the mistake she made by going to get Ezra. The narrative itself doesn't even seem to think that it WAS a mistake she needs to learn from, which leaves her character with literally nowhere to go.

If they were going to bring her back to Mandalore as a leader, they probaby would've been EMPHASIZING her connection to Mandalore rather than basically erasing it. It would've made more sense to leave her family ALIVE, even just ONE of them, to give her more of a connection to that cause. But no, aside from her wearing the armor, there's absolutely no indication she gives a flying shit about Mandalore or its people anymore.

So even if they DID start pushing Sabine in the direction of being a leader again, I wouldn't like it. THIS Sabine should never lead anybody ever. THIS Sabine is a selfish piece of shit who is willing to unleash Thrawn upon the galaxy just to get what she wants. REBELS era Sabine was awesome, and had the makings of a great ruler. REBELS era Sabine had learned mercy and patience and selflessness by the end of the show, while THIS fucking Sabine is impatient, impetuous, irresponsible, and selfish. Nobody should EVER allow the Ahsoka show version of Sabine anywhere NEAR a leadership position, and if they try to do it, it'll just be unbelievably bad writing. Perhaps hilariously bad writing, it could be amusing to see them attempt to make that claim, but it'd still be bad.

And, as you mentioned, they've already put Bo-Katan in as the leader of Mandalore for the THIRD TIME and, ostensibly, destroyed the Dark Saber. There doesn't seem to be any real planning around who gets put in as the leader of Mandalore, to be honest, it just kind-of flip flops and goes to whoever they deem most convenient in the moment. Sabine was being set up for it for a minute until they decided it would be problematic with what they wanted to do with her later in Rebels, so they threw it at Bo-Katan with no good reason. Then they took it away from Bo-Katan in The Mandalorian so that they could set Din up to take on leadership of Mandalore except that then they decided they didn't really like that so they abandoned all of that set-up and tossed it back at Bo-Katan because, hell, she's already there isn't she, might as well just give it back to her because THAT'S satisfying to see! So, sure, MAYBE they'll give it back to Sabine and take it away from Bo-Katan AGAIN later on, maybe Bo-Katan will die fighting Thrawn and so Sabine gets put back in as an option, but I don't have a single ounce of belief that it'll make any sense or feel in any way satisfying.

For all that the Mandoverse is focused on Mandalorians in the extreme, I don't feel like they're writing them all that well or care all that much about giving these characters good strong narratives. Sabine is just the latest in a string of terrible writing choices for their Mando characters.

Sabine Wren is not just the true wielder of the Darksaber, but the only one who should’ve been chosen to rule Mandalore and I will die on that hill.

The entire point of Sabine’s whole arc through the show is that she is learning JEDI VALUES, that she’s learning that the Mandalorian way has its place, but it also has so many flaws and that it’s what has led Mandalore to fight itself into dust. She’s impatient and distrustful and learns to listen with Hera about Fulcrum. She’s more inclined to kill someone out of anger until she learns the value of mercy and second chances from Kanan with Fenn Rau. She tries to pretend her problems don’t exist and won’t truly face them until she learns to wield the Darksaber with Kanan and then goes to make amends with her family. The entire episode with her familiy shows how Sabine brings together everything she’s learned: she waits and listens to her family’s grievances, understanding exactly how her actions impacted them, and then she shows mercy to Gar Saxon rather than killing him after her win like a true Mandalorian would.

Having Bo-Katan claim that the Mandalorian way is a way of MERCY, when we’re intentionally told and shown that Sabine’s willingness to show mercy explicitly goes against her Mandalorian upbringing and teachings and was something she learned from Hera, and from Kanan and his Jedi teachings, is really insulting. The Mandalorian way, as shown through Rebels, is NOT one of mercy, that’s the entire point. Sabine recognizes that, recognizes that that’s what’s caused them so much misery, caused them to turn on each other so much that their planet hasn’t ever had the chance to heal and regrow.

Bo-Katan even says IN THIS EPISODE that Sabine represents the best of what they have been in the past as well as the best of what they could someday become. That Sabine is a true leader.

To have Sabine turn around and say that the Darksaber came to her, after she EARNED IT, for the FIRST time since Tarre Viszla she truly EARNED the Darksaber, just so she could pass it on to Bo-Katan, someone who once gleefully helped set a village on fire after the people she was helping subjugate tried to resist?

I’m sorry, but no.

Sabine Wren is Tarre Viszla’s true successor. Not just as the wielder of the Darksaber, but as Mandalore’s uniter, as its truest ruler. Sabine Wren has the patience and mercy and wisdom of a Jedi with the passion and mettle of a Mandalorian warrior. She has learned to listen as well as she fights, and she has learned how to appreciate different points of view and how to bring them together to create a whole greater than the sum of its parts.

The Darksaber came to her because Sabine Wren always had the capacity to use it to fulfill Tarre Viszla’s vision, to unite Mandalore, to save it from itself, to make it more than it is. The Darksaber came to her specifically because Sabine has the greatest ability to lead Mandalore into a peaceful future.

[technoturian]

I miss the Razor Crest. I miss a big ol' ship full of unknown history with lots of dark corners and room for interesting things hidden and forgotten inside of it, rather than a shallow and pretty and impractical thing designed to get you quickly from one point to the other and yes this has turned into an analogy for season three but also I just really liked that ship.

[alliwantistowearcomfypants]

I'm not gonna lie, I think mandalorian should have ended at season 2. It just buttoned up so well, and the message was incredible. It was touching and sad. And then, like a month later, it didn't matter. Season 3 was so disappointing to me, and I think a big reason for that is because it lacked that simplicity the first 2 seasons had. The show was just about a damaged man finding his humanity and helping various people along the way. I know that not everyone loved the simplicity, but I think it was the best thing the show had going for it. Star Wars often suffers from stuffing so much crap in the story that it forgets to add character arcs.

The first 2 seasons are super character focused. The plot is so intertwined with Dins' character growth that it doesn't focus on the big picture. But in s3, Din barely has any growth as a character. There's stuff happening left and right, but Din doesn't really have any emotional stakes in it. Him trying to get his mandalorian status back feels hallow because we literally just watched 2 whole seasons of him breaking away from it. One of the biggest character moments for him was taking off his helmet for grogu. He's telling grogu that he matters more. That he would give it all up for him. It's so touching and feels like his character's natural progression. And then we're supposed to care when all of a sudden he wants back into the morally questionable pseudo cult he broke away from for his baby? I don't care! That plot point also resolves itself in like 3 episodes with little to no confluct, so now what. He wants to help Bo Katan. Ok. Why. No idea. He's kinda just there, watching things happen around him. There's no inner conflict or tough decisions he needs to make. His character arc is over, and you can tell the writers didn't know what to do with him.

The show is honestly focused more on bo katan than din. Which, no hate to her, but I'm not here for her. She's treated like a wronged princess, not like a deeply flawed terrorist who saw the error of her ways way too late. She literally aided in getting her planet overrun by crime leaders and sith. And the show just brushes past that. They don't even mention Satine, which could have been a great way to humanize Bo. Have her struggle with the fact that she got her sister killed. Have her wanting to restore mandalor for her sister, who died trying to protect it. It would have been so much more impactful if Bo Katan's motivation was out of guilt for getting her sister killed and planet overrun. She could have slowly opened up about her complicated relationship with her sister. She could have had an obi wan kenobi type arc. Learning the only thing she can do is move forward. Try to right her wrongs. Restore Mandalore in the name of her flawed but deeply devoted sister. I do not understand why they didn't at least touch on Bo's personal ties to the planet. She feels so one dimensional, and they could have easily made her more interesting. Or at least motivating.

My biggest problem with the show is that I didn't really care. I didn't care about Bo Katan's goals or Din's. And I think the biggest reason is because the show forgot to add character moments that tied them to the things they want in a personal way. Also, Din's baptism thing was stupid. Just cut that out entirely. No one wanted that.

[short-wooloo]

Genuinely I am terrified of the idea of din djarin showing up in Skeleton Crew

1. Noooooo! Skeleton Crew is so good because it stands on its own! You don't need to do homework to know what's going ok, all you need to understand this show is this show!

2. The last time din djatin appeared in someone else's show he completely hijacked it, we all remember that right? How he stole two entire episodes of Boba Fett's show? How we all agreed that was terrible and stupid (and also rendered the mando s2 finale completely pointless)

3. What does Skeleton Crew gain by having him here? What does that do for the story? What does din djarin-a guy who's fight record and competence are frankly not that impressive-offer?

[corellianhounds]

Though I love “The Tragedy” episode in Season 2 of The Mandalorian, one element that’s always bugged me is Mando not retrieving his jetpack and flying up after the Dark Troopers to save the kid

They establish in that season that Mando is able to control the jetpack from his vambrace and call it back to him, so even if he removed it in the standoff with Boba Fett, they’ve already set up his ability to retrieve it. Him not doing so makes it look like he didn’t do absolutely everything he could have to get the kid back, even though we as the audience know that’s what that character should/would do

Have Mando recall the jetpack to him and take a running leap off of the closest ledge, jetting up after the Dark Troopers as fast as he possibly can. We see him catch up to the droids before they get to the Star Destroyer, but then one of the Dark Troopers not holding the kid falls back to halt his ascent midair. The two of them start to fight, grappling with one another as the child sees Mando falling behind, desperately trying to fight this terrifying, impersonal machine in an effort to save him

And then the Dark Trooper grabs the Mandalorian by the throat with one hand and tears the jetpack off his back.

The next thing we see is the Mandalorian in free fall, looking upwards at the retreating figures of the Dark Troopers in silhouette against the Star Destroyer as he plummets towards the ground, the child he’s protected for so long in their grasp with him unable to do a single thing to save him

Though Boba Fett will manage to save the Mandalorian as he falls, either with his ship or with the use of his own jet pack, the child is still lost and those on Tython can see the clear evidence of the Empire’s continued existence hovering a mile above them, tangible and menacing. As the Mandalorians return to the surface, the Star Destroy shoots the Razor Crest, destroying it completely.

Mando has little to nothing of his own left that will help him save his child. This is the point where he should be at his absolute lowest because it’s that desperation that will force him to break a tenet of his own Creed just for the possibility of getting his child back.

[fis-paprikas]

they've fully put din to the sidelines after he went through one of the most spiritually significant moments of his entire life -- So they can start explaining how palpatine returned. Am i having a stroke. do none of these people give a shit about the show they're making.

[oatm1lkdr1nker]

reject modernity (live action sw) embrace tradition (animated sw)

[thebusylilbee]

"Bo Katan walks both worlds she can bring all tribes together" is genuinely such a fucking joke !

they had everything to make this journey significant to Din's character ! him TAKING OFF his helmet TO SAVE A FOUNDLING after a lifetime of keeping it on, out of faith in his people and their culture, is SO MUCH MORE poignant than Bo-Katan keeping the helmet on for like two days after being a little shocked to see a mythosaur... and he did it to save his jedi foundling no less ! him being the one "who walks both worlds" would have been a perfect parallel to Grogu being tied between Jedi and Mandalorian cultures, and could have been nourished by Luke Skywalker also changing the jedi way from what was done to Anakin ! cultures evolving for the good of their people !!! people being attached to traditions but also open to change !!! but fuck it, CGI Luke was too expensive and we're tired of Din being the main character I guess ?

not to mention the whole deal of Din being someone who prefers to stay in the shadows suddenly being shoved under the spotlights by fate alone ! like actually if you think about it : 1) his need for companionship, 2) his need for fatherhood that he doesn't even dare admit, 3) and his willingness to become "A Hero" because of his care for others, despite him actually hating being at the center of Significant Historical Events, all these things are all like.. his entire character !!! that's the whole core of this guy !!! What the fuck is left if there's 1) no conflict with the need for companionship (he's back to not having doubts and deep feelings about the helmet thing), 2) no conflict in fatherhood (the kid is no longer a jedi in the blink of an eye in a fucking spin off episode), and 3) no conflict with his willingness to become A Hero to save his son and his friends even if he doesn't like it (fate gave him that darksaber but actually he can remain Just A Guy it's fine, Bo Katan can take the lead) like ???

what's left is pure nothingness, this show means nothing and says nothing and that's why it doesn't bother with giving important moments that would have felt fully earned to its actual main character

[lunarspiral1127]

*The Mandalorian season three SPOILERS*

Okay, I need to point this out. I don't if it's just me, but has Din and Grogu not have been using their full arsenal like they used to?

Think about it. Not counting the N1, Din only uses his pistol, sometimes his vibro blade and the darksaber twice. Not once do we see him train to wield it or improve on it. You'd only see it once if you watched The Book of Boba Fett. But, Din has other weapons. Remember his flamethrower? Remember the Whistling Birds? Apparently, the writers forgot about those cause he never uses them at all in this season. It's only the Ragnar rescue mission that he does other things.

As for Grogu, I still love the little guy. But, ever since The Book of Boba Fett where he learned to force jump from Luke, that's all he does most of the time. Just force jump, force jump, force jump. He used the force on some occasions, but we've seen Grogu in previous seasons use it in different ways. He couldn't open Din's metal cage with the force when he got captured by the cyborg thing, yet back in season one, he was able to stop and slightly levitate a Mudhorn with the force. He calmed down a Rancor and put him to sleep, he force healed Greef when he was injured and poisoned, force choked Cara Dune, tossed around stormtroopers, he did many things way before he was taken in by Luke. But, in season three, he doesn't do much anymore. Just force jump.

[rexxdjarin]

Been rewatching the Mandalorian and it sucks so bad that season 3 is such a steep drop off in quality from how awesome season 2 was.

Im gonna list a myriad of reasons why I believe the show really tanked by season 3.

The main one in my opinion is that the incoming writers strike probably had a big effect on writing that season. It reads like they had to completely change their plans for some unforeseen circumstances and so much of it is just weak compared to the ones before it.

Like it or not - season 3 really reads like Pedro being less involved hurt the show. I am well aware he was busy doing other projects (mainly TLOU) but it really really hurt that this show we loved so much seemingly suffered because he didn’t really have the time to dedicate to it like he had in the past. I’ve been feeling like this about mando s3 for quite some time but haven’t felt ok to really say this up until now.

The whole season reads like them pivoting to make it the Bo-Katan show because Pedro couldn’t be as involved as they originally planned. And that really really sucks. We didn’t watch the show for Bo-Katan. We watched it for Din and Grogu.

Those scenes in TBOBF could’ve easily been put in the beginning of mando s3. They could’ve still had mando and grogu show up on Tatooine and then given the explanation for how they got there in THEIR show. Same goes for making boba show up in s3 to save their asses. They could’ve ended TBOBF with a post credit scene that’s like 6 months later and had him receiving an urgent distress call from Din right before the end of mando s3 that has boba come into save the day and have him declare to all the Mandalorian factions once and for all that there are many different ways to be Mandalorian and you choose what that means to you. Boba could’ve been a bad ass and it could’ve been a seamless tie in from one show to the next.

The cameos from random celebs got ridiculous in this season and they didn’t need most of them. The one with Bill Burr worked so well because he was immersed in the SW universe so well. The celeb cameos in s3 took you out of the universe. They weren’t good.

I could go on and on and on. But ultimately rewatching season 3 in the coming days is going to leave me feeling really really disappointed and I’m not ready.

[ooops-i-arted]

Hot off the press, a bingo card for the upcoming Mandalorian movie!

Feel free to use, use as a base to make your own, and to share what other squares you think belong on Feloni Bullshit Bingo!

[canonicallysoulmates]

The fact that Temuera Morrison was supposed to be in s3 of The Mandalorian but he never got the call and was left waiting.....he deserves better, the character of Boba Fett deserves better, and we the fans deserve better. And here I thought my anger at the show would lessen now that the season is over.

[ireallyamabear]

i am not like "how is andor and the mandalorian in the same franchise" in the way that i think they should be aesthetically or tonally the same or even go for the same audience. they should be different! but i am like "how is andor and the mandalorian esp. s3 so far in the same franchise", as in, how is one the story of how the empire subjugates and cruelly sanitizes local culture and forces people into terrible life choices were they ultimately might not come out as redeemable people; and the other one is like: yeah the empire was bad and kind of subjugated this place, but the problem with this was that it made this place so unpleasant and not digestible; but when a guy, who might or might not be democratically elected just cleans up everything, then it's just what nevarro needs bc the people who lived here before where so filthy and immoral. even though he was one of them. But what the citizens need is one of his vasals lording over them.

[sabines-wrens]

“the mandalorian is a blanket term, it doesn’t have to be about din!!” 

okay cool totally get that by the way the book of boba fett would like to talk 

[short-wooloo]

Pedro Pascal isn't actually playing the character in person, Greef Karga's actor died, season 2's beautiful ending was made pointless, Gina carano got herself fired, the main villain was killed off, the darksaber plot amounted to nothing and it's increasingly obvious that fauvroni have no idea what to do with the show/plot/characters going forward

And they want to make a movie

[corellianhounds]

Analyzing The Mandalorian’s Motivations — “The Heiress” Criticism

Part I / Part II

Word Count: 2k

I have several issues with how Mando is characterized in Season 2 of the show, and some of the most concise examples come from actions in “The Heiress” and “The Rescue,” which have parallels in their ending fights and character takeaways. In Season 2 it often felt like the end result the writers wanted dictated how certain plot points had to be accomplished without taking into consideration what the characters logically should have done in the situations that came up based on their prior scenes and established characterization. It didn’t feel like Mando’s reasoning, choices, or personal motivations were explored or exemplified, so his agency as a character was put to the side in favor of meeting certain plot beats (though he wasn’t the only one).

The biggest conflict of this show is the fact that being a Mandalorian makes Din susceptible to danger at every turn, which he feels is no life for a kid to be a part of, and the longer the things he holds dear are in proximity to each other (him being a devout Mandalorian vs. keeping a mostly helpless Force-sensitive child), the more he’s in danger of losing one for the sake of the other. Both are at the core of Mando’s internal conflict, which sets up the biggest question of the series: “If forced to choose, which will be more important to the Mandalorian in the end?”

That gives us an overall objective of Mando needing to give the child to somebody else so the kid will be safe and he can continue to be the kind of Mandalorian he aspires to, even if it means he and the kid will be separated as a result. That internal struggle should dictate each of his smaller choices within the individual episodes because at this point in their story he doesn’t see any other way for him to have both.

For some reason, Season 2 felt like the writers missed the obvious reason Grogu needs a Jedi teacher. Mando needs to find a Jedi to train the boy so that not only will Grogu be safe (and presumably happy) with a person who better understands him as a Force-sensitive child, but so Grogu will be able to defend himself when he is alone. It’s important to remember that the Jedi code wasn’t just a belief system and way of life, it was also a martial art.

Even if Din were to keep the child and protect him to the best of his ability, he knows his own past as a hunter and his reputation as a Mandalorian make the child a target by association (to say nothing of the Empire and whoever they send after them, though he won’t know those are still a threat until later). The child does not age at the same rate humans do, and Mando knows there’s no guarantee he’ll always be around to save him. Even if he survives to old age with the child by his side, he doesn’t know if the child will be mature or capable enough of even caring for himself, especially if he doesn’t grow to be much bigger than he is now. Grogu needs to learn self defense and strengthen his skills if he is to ever have a chance at surviving those he outlives. Din has to reckon with the fact being the best Mandalorian he could be isn’t enough to keep the child safe on his own (which is another inner conflict we don’t get to hear about from him).

We never hear Din’s perspective on his quest outside of “This is what I was told to do,” which makes him a character the story is happening to instead of him driving his own narrative. The external goal is good because it means we get to see him struggling to keep the child at arm’s length, knowing he’ll have to give him up and not wanting either of them to be hurt by that separation, but Mando needed to have that internal motivation because it ties directly back to his main objective. Yes, the Armorer tasked him with returning the child to his own kind, but it was not only because she understood the importance of him being raised with his own culture, it was because the child is virtually helpless if his strength and control over the Force is inconsistent like Din has seen.

Without that internal motivation, Mando ends up not having much choice in where the story goes, making his character in the second season weaker as a result.

So now we’ve clarified his overarching goal and given him a more driven role and perspective in the story. Everything that follows should be a result of his active ambition in achieving it, which brings me back to his choices in “The Heiress.”

This episode introduces the idea of different Mandalorians having different customs/placing importance on different aspects of the code, but has Din choose to set those thoughts regarding ritual aside in order for him to receive information now that he realizes he’s so close to getting it (showing us him prioritizing the child over himself). What we didn’t get and what we should have gotten to see was Mando more visually desperate to achieve the episode’s tasks in exchange for the connection Bo-Katan has directly to a Jedi. The internal conflict of the episode now comes down to “What is Mando willing to compromise on to achieve his goals, and how far is he willing to deviate from his own code to get it?”

The main external conflict the writers/show-runners initiate but don’t resolve is Mando’s problem with Bo-Katan not sticking to the terms of their contract. Bo-Katan changes the terms of the deal midway through the heist, having kept her real motive from him the whole time. His character has no reason in these circumstances to honor the deal that she broke first, and I think his willingness to continue with the heist in order to get the information deviates too far from another seldom-explored, nuanced character trait of Mando’s: while he does give everybody at least one chance, if they prove to be a continued threat or refuse to back down, he reacts with swift, decisive justice.

This should have been the point in the episode where her actions were the last straw; she put him in a much more dangerous position and proved by her deception that she was using him. This should have been the point he said “No.”

I made a post before talking about Gor Koresh that puts Mando’s actions into perspective, but there are plenty of examples in every episode to back up the fact Mando has a tipping point. That’s a good thing. Yes, it’s admirable how much Mando shows restraint, but there has to come a point where your characters refuse to do something because otherwise they’re just a pushover and a doormat. Characters shouldn’t have to say yes to everything, and they should be able to make decisions that result in the story becoming more difficult for them. His choice here, outside of saving his own skin so he can guarantee being able to get back to the kid he is responsible for, should be to let Bo-Katan experience the consequences of her actions. He should have refused to let her be rewarded for her deception. He doesn’t have to shoot her to prove a point, but he certainly doesn’t have to help her.

If he’s willing to let their dishonorable actions slide, what else would he be willing to let others do at the expense of himself without holding them accountable or without them receiving the consequences they deserve? What aspects of himself will he compromise? I’m not even talking about compromise in the choice to take the helmet off in “The Believer,” I’m talking about who he is as a person.

Bo-Katan changing the terms of the deal reveals to the audience that she knew he wouldn’t have agreed to do the job in the first place because otherwise she would have told him at the beginning. Hijacking the entire Empire ship is intensely riskier and poses a danger to himself and by extension the kid if he doesn’t make it back. She gets him onto the ship and only reveals her intentions midway through, thinking she’ll be able to coerce him because they’re both Mandalorians.

That should have been the moment Mando decided the cost of this job outweighed the reward because if she was willing to deceive him about this, what reason does he have to trust her at all? She could have simply lied about having any information about a Jedi to begin with, or could withhold the information once the job’s done. Season 2 has several episodes with the theme of honoring one’s word being what marks somebody as a good Mandalorian, or at least as an ally Din can trust. Cobb Vanth, the Tuskens, the Frog Lady, later Boba and Fennec all have story elements that relate to the idea of honoring one’s word.

What Mando should have logically done based on what we’ve seen of him up to this point was tell Bo-Katan “No deal. I’m done. I’ll find the information I need elsewhere.” And then we see him jump off ship.

This has two major consequences to the show’s story moving forward.

• One: Mando doesn’t receive information about the Jedi and will have to find it somewhere else, a cost he is willing to take because staying with Bo-Katan would have meant putting himself at undue risk, with the possibility of her having lied about ever having the information at all. As it stands in canon, he’s forced to allow somebody he thinks SHOULD be honorable to reap the benefits of their dishonor, and what does that say about his character’s sense of justice in the end?

• And two: Bo-Katan’s heist fails, losing her the shipment (and potentially, in her eyes, the information about Moff Gideon she could have gotten if Mando had continued to the cockpit with them to interrogate the Imperials), meaning Bo-Katan’s already established antagonism would have pushed her into open animosity, pitting her against Mando as an enemy. That makes for a much more interesting and compelling narrative conflict Mando has to overcome in the finale when he has to convince her to join him, which would heighten interpersonal tensions and have the audience truly not know whether or not Mando is going to succeed in the end.

It also sets up a stronger villain for Mando after Moff Gideon is defeated. The show already presented Bo-Katan as an antagonist, and it would have made more sense to lean into that especially with the conflict over the Darksaber coming up at the end.

When Mando goes to her in the finale to recruit her for the ambush, Bo-Katan initially refuses anyway. I don’t have reason to think she entirely cares about Mando’s kid because her actions in the heist put him at risk. He is the sole caretaker and provider for the kid, and being willing to risk his life as collateral shows she only cares about Mando insofar as he’s willing to do what she says. With that change to “The Heiress,” each of them becomes a more strongly written character and he now has to make a more compelling argument to get her in the finale. It’s still the fact he knows exactly where Moff Gideon is that wins her over.

Their interpersonal conflict comes to its Act III at the end of the finale when it’s revealed Mando won the Darksaber in combat, and to add insult to injury Mando offers it up in forfeit in front of witnesses, so now she can’t even challenge him to a duel; people will know he never wanted it in the first place, meaning they’ll assume he’d throw any fight the two of them have. It’s the perfect setup for Mando’s next primary antagonist.