Side Quest Given :- Find The Egg
After being graced with hour-long dramas, The Mandalorian’s 30 minute run-time is both a blessing and a curse. On the one hand, Disney+’s flagship show never really outstays its welcome and leaves you hanging on for more while it also doesn’t quite feel like enough time to flesh everything out. With half the episode chock full of action, little time is used to flesh out Mando’s backstory but instead, introduces us to more familiar characters as we dive deeper into another subplot, this time involving Mando’s ship. We begin episode 2 with The Mnadalorian silently walking with the baby Yoda. Sensing they’re not alone, a group of bounty hunters ambush them, prompting Mando to fight them all off. In the aftermath of this, he begins patching himself up as the baby looks set to exhibit the force…until Mando picks it up and puts it back in its crib. The next day Mando snipes down a group of Jawas stripping his ship of parts before chasing after their sandcrawler. A breathtaking action sequence then ensues, as he manages to hop on-board and get to the top but unfortunately the jawas lay waiting for him, ambushing him with their stun guns. Awakening in the desert some time later, he looks on to see the baby Yodaling watching over him as he returns to the wreckage of his ship. Seemingly unsalvageable, Mando regrettably learns he needs to trade with the jawas in order to get the parts back. After some negotiation, they agree to hand over the machinery in exchange for him bringing them “The Egg”. Leading him to a desolate area in their sandcrawler, the jawas watch on from afar while Mando heads out alone. Eventually he stumbles upon the nest of a monstrous rhino. Partway through fighting, the baby Yoda uses the force and lifts the monster up, allowing enough time for Mando to regain his composure and stab the creature, killing it. Mando returns to the jawas and hands the egg over, watching in disbelief as they hungrily gulp down the sticky yolk. Handing over the stolen parts, Mando heads back to his ship, realizing it’ll take days to fix. As he sets to work patching up the broken parts, a montage kicks in as Mando finally gets the engines running. With the baby Yoda onboard, he leaves the planet behind and flies off into the distance. In essence, The Mandalorian’s second episode actually feels like a side mission in a video game. That’s not to discredit the show of course, given the gorgeous visuals and genuine Star Wars feel, but in terms of the overarching plot line and characterisation, the second episode misses that human element to help us connect with Mando. The brief flashes last episode are frustratingly absent here but hopefully given the ending we receive, we may learn more about his past going forward. For now though, The Mandalorian does well to show off some great practical effects and blending of the original trilogy with the new, but in terms of plot development I hope Disney+’s new show delivers some deeper character and story elements going forward.
