2019 was an up and down year for Star Wars. While the Rise of Skywalker became the most disappointing Star Wars movie since the Star Wars Holiday Special, The Mandalorian gave fans new hope again for the franchise. The show’s first season was reminiscent of an older time in television with its more western, adventure of the week pacing with the underlying plotline guiding the course of the show. The Mandalorian has attracted audiences by recapturing the Star Wars’ atmosphere better than that made the franchise feel special through its characters, score, and world building. Oh, and a cute, marketable icon like Baby Yoda doesn’t hurt either. Now that season two is underway, the show will soon be reintroducing us to the character that inspired The Mandalorian’s concept, Boba Fett. But will this be the moment that The Mandalorian jumps the Rancor?
Spoilers for The Mandalorian seasons one and two ahead.
Before we get into how The Mandalorian can avoid inundating audiences with an over reliance of older franchise characters, let’s focus on how recurring characters have been integrated throughout the Star Wars franchise. The Prequels naturally had plenty of characters who had appeared in the original trilogy since it served as an origin story for Darth Vader, but some of these characters created several continuity issues the two trilogies, most notably C3P0 and R2D2. In the Phantom Menace, we learn that C3PO was originally created by Anakin, which creates a problem with familiarity that Darth Vader should have recognized his old droid even if C3PO could not recognize his creator’s new form. This piece of lore can be forgiven I suppose, since it is rarely acknowledged ever again that Anakin had built the robotic annoyance, perhaps to ashamed of his creation to bring it up in conversation. The Clone Wars TV show even has multiple episodes where C3PO goes missing without any of the other characters noticing his absence. With R2D2 however, the droid had gone on countless adventures with Obi-Wan and Anakin, serving as Anakin’s astromech throughout the war and fighting alongside the Jedi. So the Prequels retroactively created a problem in A New Hope when old man Ben Kenobi fails to recognize a droid he had spent many years with. While Obi-Wan never had the connection to R2D2 that Anakin did, who went through a whole “no droid left behind” arc in The Clone Wars with his robotic friend, Obi-Wan looks a little foolish in hindsight for his absentmindedness within the universe. Fans have created their own theories throughout the years as to why Obi-Wan did not acknowledge his connection to R2D2, including not wanting to let on how much he knew to Luke and to simply not telling the full truth. Besides the continuity issues by including the two droids in the Prequels, and by extension The Clone Wars TV show, the real issue at hand is that the neither the story nor the characters benefit from being present in this time period. Sure, they serve as almost literal vehicles to drive the plot through at times, and, sure, they are better and more reliable comedic relief than new comedian on the block, Jar Jar Binks, but any two droids in the galaxy could have been placed in these roles without creating any problems. C3PO and R2D2 don’t grow as characters during the Prequels because they are just tertiary, comedic characters that help flavor the world a bit more with no real purpose outside of that. In fairness, The Clone Wars does help develop the two droids more, especially R2D2 and Anakin’s relationship, but this was more done out of necessity because of their existence in the Prequels.
Now look at Obi-Wan and Yoda’s roles as returning characters to the franchise. Obi-Wan’s brother to mentor to friend relationship with Anakin helped to build the tragedy of Darth Vader’s fall, establishing more gravitas to their duel in A New Hope. Through the Prequels and The Clone Wars, the audience learns more about the deep, implied sadness of Ben Kenobi from the trials of war and the fall of the Jedi, adding context that he was always more than just another old hermit character meant to die to give the protagonist more stakes. That was his character as intended but the Prequels breathed new lift into him. Yoda, in a similar way, is also present throughout the Prequels by serving as one of the leaders of the Jedi Council, adding a legitimacy to the Jedi Order and their teachings. His musings often help to guide the characters throughout the Prequel generation, much like he did with Luke in the Original trilogy, helping cement Yoda as a constant presence throughout Star Wars, a character synonymous with the Light Side of the Force. The Prequels also had an impact on Yoda’s journey because Yoda ultimately blames himself for the fall of the Jedi. He should have read the signs better, been more involved in the ongoing conflict of the Clone Wars and in the fight against the Sith. From the very beginning in Phantom Menace, Yoda sensed the growing power of the Dark Side, yet his inaction proved costly. Because of the events of the Prequels, Yoda’s commitment to teaching Luke makes more sense in the grand Star Wars scheme of things. Yoda could have remained in his isolation throughout the Original trilogy, dwelling in his self-pity, but his own regrets is what also drove his sense of duty. Yoda was largely removed from Anakin’s training, which may have led him further to the Dark Side, even though he knew how strong he was and of his potential destiny. So when he had a second chance with Luke, Yoda made sure he taught the boy well so that he may be better prepared for his destiny than his father was for his own. Of course, he manages to do this all in his own Yoda fashion of patience and mystery, entrusting the future of the franchise to the younger heroes that are following his path, just like all returning characters to the franchise should.
Using these examples of how to and how not to incorporate returning characters to the franchise, how does the Mandalorian best utilize Boba Fett? Well, obviously Boba Fett and the Mandalorian will have a scuffle over some misunderstanding or shared objective that turns into them teaming up to fight villain/monster of the week for an episode. Then, the older bounty hunter will give Mando some advice on the old ways that won’t work for him, that he will need to find his own way if he wants to find inner peace or whatever. In the finale, Boba Fett will go down fighting so that the Mandalorian and Baby Yoda can escape from season two villain, sacrificing himself in order to raise the stakes for the new franchise character’s that have taken up the mantle (Wait, this is just Han Solo’s role in the Sequels). Jokes aside, Boba Fett serving in some kind of surrogate father/mentor role for the Mandalorian will be a great way for the character to leave a mark on the popular show, helping to add more layers and depth to the protagonist’s character. Sometimes, predictable writing is still good writing. His presence also adds more legitimacy to the show that he clearly inspired, in a similar vein to how the Jedi Council was created around Yoda. With The Mandalorian being the spiritual successor to the Underworld concept that George Lucas pitched, it would feel like something were missing if they never explored Boba Fett’s on and off screen connections to the show. However, The Mandalorian also needs to give something back to Boba Fett’s story to make his inclusion feel special. While he is sure to get memorable action sequences and moments, he needs content that will truly add to his legacy and lore. The Clone Wars gave audiences a look into how Boba started out as a bounty hunter, including his failed assassination attempt on his father’s murderer, Mace Windu. These episodes helped to bridge the gap between Attack of the Clones and the original trilogy, showcasing the emotions and moments that led to the universe’s coolest looking bounty hunter. Have Boba Fett explain how he survived the Sarlacc Pit. Give audiences insight into how his perspective has changed since losing to Luke and friends and the fall of the Empire. Explore Boba’s own complicated history with Mandalorian culture in ways that no other Star Wars medium really has before. By giving Boba Fett some true historical and emotional importance and purpose for being in the show, his inclusion will feel truly earned within the show. While we are bound to get more returning and easter egg characters throughout season two, likely including Rosario Dawson as Ahsoka Tano, if the show can nail Boba Fett’s reintroduction, then The Mandalorian will have built upon its successes to become the saving grace of Disney era Star Wars.
How have you liked The Mandalorian so far? Let us know in the comments below.