Quippy exchanges and unexpected finesse

An enigma for so long to UK audiences, Disney+ has finally arrived on our shores. Huzzah, and happy Disney+ Day to all.

Of course, the arrival of the groundbreaking streaming service means that The Mandalorian is finally available for Britain’s viewing pleasure. Well, at least the opening two episodes, with the remainder of the series set to be rolled out in the coming weeks a la the initial US launch.

And as someone who rarely – in fact, never – binge watches TV shows, I can more than live with this. As someone who likes to chew the fat from episode to episode, it allows the series time to breathe. Time for us to digest every single morsel. And judging from episode one, there’ll be plenty to chew on.

Episode one sets the scene of a lived in Star Wars world. The cantinas feel like the original trilogy, the aliens and diverse languages transport you to a galaxy far, far away. And from the very opening scene, I was 100 percent convinced that these events are happening in the same universe as the one in which our Tatooine moisture farmer lives.

The Mandalorian himself is delightfully intriguing. The Beskar armour is perfectly imperfect, as is his cape. Ruthless bounty hunter to anyone who asks, but even in the first 40 minutes of the series, we’re seeing signs that this character is layered.

His quippy exchanges with IG-11 demonstrated a surprising wit, which actually caught me by surprise and abated my fears that the show would lack some well-placed humour. And a more subtle, blink and you’ll miss it, example of finesse comes in the very last frame of the episode, as he holds a hand out to The Child – NOT BABY YODA, OK INTERNET – and our little green friend reaches to grab it.

That’s not to mention the flashbacks that Mando experiences while a shoulder plate of Beskar is forged. We see a young boy being hidden from a battle – no doubt a young Mando but what’s the story here?

One character whose story has seemingly come to a sharp end is IG-11, but it was certainly fun while it lasted. Taika Waititi voicing a bounty hunting IG unit shouldn’t work but somehow does; and spectacularly, too.

IG-11 forms an impromptu alliance with The Mandalorian in a thrilling action sequence towards the end of the episode, as the two look to break into the building housing “the asset,” which they realised they were mutually in pursuit of. IG-11’s frequent belief that their situation is doomed and that self-destruct protocol is the only option is laugh-out-loud comedy as he keeps getting shut down by Mando.

After the battle is won, that shot of the two of them standing in the doorway, their silhouettes illuminated by the sunlight in the background, in a superb piece of cinematography. I need a print of that still – it is perfection.

What I’m trying to say is, I love The Mandalorian. Episode one exceeded my expectations and has sowed the seeds for a strong narrative to come, while also delivering plenty of highlights of it’s own. And now to watch episode two…