[Disney+] The Book of Boba Fett

[pr0ner]

I'm barely a Star Wars fan and I was absolutely blown away by the episode this week (#6). That was seriously impressive work. Both this current episode and the last one really elevated this for me. The first four weren't bad, but they really changed the energy with these last two. Which is weird (as others have noted) because it's a series about Boba Fett. I am quite curious to see where this is all going.

+1

[hepcat]

It was pretty amazing. There seemed to be something just a tiny bit off about the appearance, but overall it was still utterly astounding.

..but my previous comment still stands. Jedis are dicks.

[$iljanus]

It was pretty amazing. There seemed to be something just a tiny bit off about the appearance, but overall it was still utterly astounding.

..but my previous comment still stands. Jedis are dicks.

And that’s why things ultimately didn’t work out so well in the future for Master Luke’s Finishing School for Promising Jedi…

I’m hoping that

Spoiler:

Groku sneaks into the principal’s office and steals the chain mail and takes both that and Yoda’s saber on his own quest to reunite with The Mandalorian.

[El Guapo]

I'm barely a Star Wars fan and I was absolutely blown away by the episode this week (#6). That was seriously impressive work. Both this current episode and the last one really elevated this for me. The first four weren't bad, but they really changed the energy with these last two. Which is weird (as others have noted) because it's a series about Boba Fett. I am quite curious to see where this is all going.

+1

Yup. After bailing on the show during episode 4, I wound up coming back to watch episodes 5 and 6 after reading that they weren't about Boba Fett anymore. These episodes are still a little weird because the show's now spending so much time in its Boba Fett show on everything other than Boba Fett, but at the same time I definitely have enjoyed these past two episodes. But that makes sense since my main gripe with the show really from before it started was that I don't really care all that much about Boba Fett.

[Sudy]

Spoiler:

Chainmail ain't going to save you from an energy blast. If there's one thing I don't need to see, it's foundling Grogu bouncing around his six-foot bounty target wielding a tiny melee weapon.

Spoiler:

One made from beskar steel most certainly will.

Spoiler:

Plate maybe. Chain has holes.

[hepcat]

It's still better than nothing.

...but jedis are still dicks.

[Blackhawk]

Star Wars is science fantasy. It works the same way lightsabers work:

Because they do.

[TheMix]

...but jedis are still dicks.

So agree. That scene pissed me off a little. It makes zero sense. You'd think that Luke would be more forgiving. Also, Grogu is a freaking kid still!!! Maybe lighten up a bit? Sheesh.

[pr0ner]

I'm barely a Star Wars fan and I was absolutely blown away by the episode this week (#6). That was seriously impressive work. Both this current episode and the last one really elevated this for me. The first four weren't bad, but they really changed the energy with these last two. Which is weird (as others have noted) because it's a series about Boba Fett. I am quite curious to see where this is all going.

+1

Yup. After bailing on the show during episode 4, I wound up coming back to watch episodes 5 and 6 after reading that they weren't about Boba Fett anymore. These episodes are still a little weird because the show's now spending so much time in its Boba Fett show on everything other than Boba Fett, but at the same time I definitely have enjoyed these past two episodes. But that makes sense since my main gripe with the show really from before it started was that I don't really care all that much about Boba Fett.

It's definitely morphed more into Mandalorian Season 2.5 at this point.

[Blackhawk]

I'm starting to look at it like a single novel with different chapters focusing on different characters.

[Sudy]

Is this show a geezer teaser?

Spoiler:

OH NO I JUST REALIZED IS MAX REBO SAFE?! WAS HE ON STAGE??

[Daveman]

Is this show a geezer teaser?

Spoiler:

OH NO I JUST REALIZED IS MAX REBO SAFE?! WAS HE ON STAGE??

Spoiler:

He survived the sail barge, odds are good he's still alive.

[Max Peck]

Also I was irritated by:

Spoiler:

Skywalker forcing Grogu to make a choice. Why can't a Jedi wear chainmail? Yeah, I know it was symbolic and all, but fuck that.

Spoiler:

The Jedi have a rule against emotional attachment. Luke needs to know that Grogu can let go of his emotional attachment to Mando if he is to be trained as a Jedi. He would be particularly sensitive to that rule given that it was his father's emotional attachment to Padme that led him to fall to the Dark Side.

Attachment leads to jealousy. The shadow of greed that is.

[IceBear]

Is this show a geezer teaser?

Spoiler:

OH NO I JUST REALIZED IS MAX REBO SAFE?! WAS HE ON STAGE??

Spoiler:

He survived the sail barge, odds are good he's still alive.

Spoiler:

He wasn't playing so I think he's on the Pykes' payroll and was tipped off

[Jaymann]

Also I was irritated by:

Spoiler:

Skywalker forcing Grogu to make a choice. Why can't a Jedi wear chainmail? Yeah, I know it was symbolic and all, but fuck that.

Spoiler:

The Jedi have a rule against emotional attachment. Luke needs to know that Grogu can let go of his emotional attachment to Mando if he is to be trained as a Jedi. He would be particularly sensitive to that rule given that it was his father's emotional attachment to Padme that led him to fall to the Dark Side.

Attachment leads to jealousy. The shadow of greed that is.

I get all that, but...

Spoiler:

Luke is attached to his M-F lightsaber. The chain mail was a gift and I don't think Dick Skyfucker has the right to deny giving it to Grogu. True non-attachment would be to accept the gift but not become attached to it. Luke took that away from Grogu.

[hepcat]

Spoiler:

Because Jedis are dicks

[Max Peck]

Ah, OK, I misunderstood your original observation.

[Holman]

On Episode 6 (where maybe I disagree with most):

Spoiler:

I was really put off by spending so much time with CGI Luke and CGI puppet Grogu.

I've been re-watching the Peter Jackson LOTR movies (where the limits of previous-generation CGI are now becoming very apparent), and I just kept noticing where Luke's skin didn't move right and his eyes didn't match his voice. I don't think this tech treatment will hold up for very long.

Plus, the contrast between an obviously digital human character and a more puppet-modeled one (even with digital enhancement) just made everyone look more fake. And it somehow made me notice Asoka's head tails all the more. I found myself kind of distracted when an actually un-enhanced human actor appeared.

Finally, if they had planned a series that was only about half Boba Fett, why did they name it what they did?

[Blackhawk]

Regarding the choice...

Spoiler:

I feel like they went out of their way to set that up. They reminded us that Jedi have rules against attachment. They told Mando that him going to Grogu would compromise his training. They showed us Grogu staring at the ship flying away. They set up the idea that Mando wasn't going to let go of the connection, which would keep reminding Grogu, which would be a problem. The armor isn't just a snazzy outfit. It's symbolic of being a Mandalorian foundling. And, again, they reminded us (and then showed us in the recap) that the Mandalorian code is the opposite of the Jedi code.

So Luke didn't deny him that aspect of himself. He recognized it as incompatible with what he was teaching and presented it as a choice. Grogu has to commit to one or the other.

And it can't be forgotten (no matter how much they tend to gloss over it ) that the Jedi aren't a law enforcement, military, or government representatives. They're a religious order. There's gonna be some weight given to dogma and tradition, for good or ill (which is a point in the subtext of the Rise of Skywalker - the light side of the force as the only one left isn't truly balance.)

[Max Peck]

More on the choice, and possibly whether [REDACTED] are dicks.

Spoiler:

I am amused that they spoiled their own redacted title with the URL...

'The Book of Boba Fett': Why What {SPOILER} Did Makes Total Sense For His Character

Chapter 6 of The Book of Boba Fett, “From the Desert Comes a Stranger,” has Star Wars fans buzzing for a variety of reasons. The return of Grogu and a beautifully deep-faked Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) are certainly at the top of the list. But some viewers were left with a bad taste in their mouth at the end when Luke presents Grogu with a heartbreaking ultimatum: Continue to train as a Jedi or return to Din Djarin, the Mandalorian (Pedro Pascal).

How could Luke, who famously refused to give up on his own father, be so rigid in his following of the Jedi code? Wouldn’t he be more sympathetic to Grogu in regard to his obvious connection with his surrogate father? Given what we know about where Luke is in his character development, the main sources for his belief system, and how his story concludes, it actually makes a lot of sense.

[The Meal]

This is a more complex decision than what we're typically presented with in the Star Wars media. I like this sort of thing and look forward to the resolution.

[Blackhawk]

It also emphasizes the premise that...

Spoiler:

Jedi are fallible, not the all-wise, all-knowing perfect beings fans tend to treat them as. They themselves are part of the imbalance, something we saw resolved in the Rey trilogy.

[Sudy]

Spoiler:

Honestly I can't keep straight what "the balance" is supposed to be with so many writers and fan theories. 50% light/50% dark? The extermination of the dark? (The dark itself being the imbalance?) The integration of the dark into the light?

For a while I thought Luke was supposed to be the unification of the Force and in rebuilding the Jedi Order, would teach a different path than that fleshed out in the prequels. This was how Luke could justify falling in love in the expanded universe (if it indeed was justified; I don't remember... I only read a few of the books). But of course, Disney zapped all that and we were left with The Last Jedi which I rather liked, but it sure shut the door on a lot of things. I found it personally comforting to know Luke could screw up so badly and then find purpose and illumination late in his life, but it sure didn't pay off anyone's expectations.

But returning to Grogu: The Decision, as I think someone alluded to here, this doesn't mean that Luke is necessarily 100% devoted to the old philosophies, but that he rightfully recognizes the deep division in Grogu specifically and is using this as a means to address it. But I also feel like the show is inconsistent regarding Grogu's mental age/capabilities, and for someone who behaves like a toddler half the time it may be unreasonable to have such high expectations of him. The actual, responsible thing to do is for Din not to have brought Grogu the gift in the first place (you fought so long to make him safe, or at least "Jedi safe"), and for Luke possibly not to have offered Grogu the gift or the choice until he's more mature. I mean, how long has he even been there? And we're considering giving up on him because the literal child fell asleep on some rocks after an intense training session?

The more I think about it the more defensive I get. RoTJ Luke should have stayed in the past. Or at least, leave it at the cameo. I'm not sure which group of fans this serves other than the casual ones, the ones who write same-night blog posts, and create Youtube reaction videos. Mark Hamill is still alive, why don't we find a way to do something with the real thing?

[Blackhawk]

I don't think they want to drag the story out a couple of hundred more years.

[Sudy]

Spoiler:

https://www.denofgeek.com/tv/star-wars- ... rogu-jedi/

Maybe not a wholly original take, but an interesting one. Luke is a bad teacher because canon requires it. Are the writers operating on that level? I don't know. I suspect not, because this isn't Luke's story.

[naednek]

On Episode 6 (where maybe I disagree with most):

Spoiler:

I was really put off by spending so much time with CGI Luke and CGI puppet Grogu.

I've been re-watching the Peter Jackson LOTR movies (where the limits of previous-generation CGI are now becoming very apparent), and I just kept noticing where Luke's skin didn't move right and his eyes didn't match his voice. I don't think this tech treatment will hold up for very long.

Plus, the contrast between an obviously digital human character and a more puppet-modeled one (even with digital enhancement) just made everyone look more fake. And it somehow made me notice Asoka's head tails all the more. I found myself kind of distracted when an actually un-enhanced human actor appeared.

Finally, if they had planned a series that was only about half Boba Fett, why did they name it what they did?

Spoiler:

I didn't realize that was CGI. I thought they hired the actor who played winter soldier to take on the role of Luke Skywalker.

[naednek]

And is it just me but does Timothy Olyphant seems excessively skinny, like sick skinny?

[naednek]

On Episode 6 (where maybe I disagree with most):

Spoiler:

I was really put off by spending so much time with CGI Luke and CGI puppet Grogu.

I've been re-watching the Peter Jackson LOTR movies (where the limits of previous-generation CGI are now becoming very apparent), and I just kept noticing where Luke's skin didn't move right and his eyes didn't match his voice. I don't think this tech treatment will hold up for very long.

Plus, the contrast between an obviously digital human character and a more puppet-modeled one (even with digital enhancement) just made everyone look more fake. And it somehow made me notice Asoka's head tails all the more. I found myself kind of distracted when an actually un-enhanced human actor appeared.

Finally, if they had planned a series that was only about half Boba Fett, why did they name it what they did?

Spoiler:

I didn't realize that was CGI. I thought they hired the actor who played winter soldier to take on the role of Luke Skywalker.

I guess that was a rumor.

[El Guapo]

On Episode 6 (where maybe I disagree with most):

Spoiler:

I was really put off by spending so much time with CGI Luke and CGI puppet Grogu.

I've been re-watching the Peter Jackson LOTR movies (where the limits of previous-generation CGI are now becoming very apparent), and I just kept noticing where Luke's skin didn't move right and his eyes didn't match his voice. I don't think this tech treatment will hold up for very long.

Plus, the contrast between an obviously digital human character and a more puppet-modeled one (even with digital enhancement) just made everyone look more fake. And it somehow made me notice Asoka's head tails all the more. I found myself kind of distracted when an actually un-enhanced human actor appeared.

Finally, if they had planned a series that was only about half Boba Fett, why did they name it what they did?

Spoiler:

I didn't realize that was CGI. I thought they hired the actor who played winter soldier to take on the role of Luke Skywalker.

I guess that was a rumor.

I don't think that was a rumor as much as a fan request / petition.

[Sudy]

Well. That was a very confusing and disappointing commercial for toys.

I still enjoyed it, but I thought the series could have been much more. They really didn't have much of a story to tell. Though when seen as just one part in the larger Star Wars Disney+ narrative, maybe it's acceptable.

Spoiler:

It was cool to see a rancor in action! I think it's an accomplishment they put just the right amount of jank in it so that it reminds you of the classic creature model without seeming outdated.

So I guess Grogu's power is "whatever the story needs it to be"....

I guess Danny Trejo's not coming back then. Which makes sense, as it seemed like more of a cameo role. But too bad his appearance wasn't more.

[JCC]

Final episode was awesome. Loved the show.

[Hamlet3145]

Final episode was awesome. Loved the show.

I got a kick out of it too. The best Boba-centric episode of the bunch.

Thoughts:

Spoiler:

That must be the longest ongoing battle scene in Star Wars.

Really wanted to see Din slide the dark saber though the droid shield slowly like a knife fighter in Dune.

That one guy who did a little spin before firing his blaster made me roll my eyes so much they nearly fell out of my head.

I doubt either Cobb Vanth or Cad Bane are dead.

All in all, the episode was pretty much what I expected it to be though I was surprised by Grogu showing up in the X-Wing. Any The Mandalorian fans who skipped The Book of Boba Fett are going to very confused at the beginning of Season 3.

[Sudy]

Spoiler:

That one guy who did a little spin before firing his blaster made me roll my eyes so much they nearly fell out of my head. [+1]

I doubt either Cobb Vanth or Cad Bane are dead.

There's a post-credits scene with Cobb in Boba's bacta tank.

[Jaymann]

Final? I thought they were just getting started. At least:

Spoiler:

Grogu made the right choice. And I was encouraged to see the merchants continue to tend their stalls when the rancor arrived. Score one for Capitalism.

[Max Peck]

Spoiler:

That one guy who did a little spin before firing his blaster made me roll my eyes so much they nearly fell out of my head. [+1]

I doubt either Cobb Vanth or Cad Bane are dead.

There's a post-credits scene with Cobb in Boba's bacta tank.

Spoiler:

Yup. That was the same mod surgeon that Boba Fett used to save Fennec Shand, so I'd guess that Cobb Vanth is getting some upgrades. Maybe a nice mechanical arm. However, Vanth was shot once in the right shoulder and left in the street among friends, so it isn't super surprising that he survived. Cad Bane was stabbed through the chest and left in the street among his mortal enemies. It would be a bigger stretch to have him survive, but if Boba Fett can crawl out of a sarlacc, then anything is possible.

I loved the rancor scenes. It took me back to Star Wars Galaxies, where I raised and trained more than one rancor back in the day. Actually, SWG is probably why I'm apparently one of the few people who liked having so much happen on Tatooine. It feels like my old stomping ground.

I also had a good laugh when the rancor struck a classic King Kong pose when it climbed up on that tower.

[hepcat]

Spoiler:

Boba Fett, a Strong Leader

Boba Fett: Let’s return to the heavily fortified palace to get ready.
Cyber Newsies: No, we’re staying here in a burnt out hovel!
Boba Fett: Okay, we’ll stay.


Boba Fett, Master Tactician

Boba Fett: No one can sneak up on us here.
<looks outside, sees 27 people have snuck up on them>

Boba Fett, Ruthless Mercenary

Boba Fett: God bless us all <hoists Tiny Tim up onto his shoulders>

Christ, this show is a mess. Still, I get a chuckle out of it from time to time. And the final battle was definitely fun.

In thinking about it, I’ve come to the conclusion that it suffers heavily from what I’ve always viewed as Star Wars biggest weakness: it often feels like it’s designed for kids, but wants to make adults like it too. Unfortunately, they have trouble pulling that off and it can become tonally confused. It worked though with IV and V, parts of VI. But none of I, II or III and was jettisoned for VII, VIII and IV in favor of nostalgia being the main draw. Granted, it’s tough to get that tone right, but Boba Fett seems to really be incapable of doing so.

[Blackhawk]

I get that it's science fantasy, but that is just stretching credibility too far.

Spoiler:

That rancor had WAY too many hit dice for Sleep to work.

[Unagi]

Did you all catch the post-credits scene?

Spoiler:

Sheriff Cobb Vanth, of Freetown, is still alive...

[hepcat]

Spoiler:

I thought that was Draco Malfoy in the tank?

[Blackhawk]

I did...

Spoiler:

Timothy OIyphant as a cyborg cowboy...

Spinoff, please!