The best episode of The Book of Boba Fett was directed by Bryce Dallas Howard. In her continued triumphs moving from acting to directing, this episode had it all. The scenery and staging created imagery that lit up the imagination. The camerawork, complete with long tracking shots, grips one’s attention and refuses to let go until the credits roll.
There is a glaring problem, however. This great episode does not belong in this show. Two of the seven episodes of this series, including this one, have little to nothing to do with the plot. Instead, they advance the plot of another Disney+ series. The Mandalorian.
Thus begins a complicated relationship with this series – a series I will readily admit that I enjoy. But as it approached the ending, I began to feel that the premise that sold many on this series was being forgotten fundamentally.
This is a series about Boba Fett. Yet, at a crucial point in its story, it forgets him entirely.
It’s time for a bit of background. First off, my father hates Boba Fett.
More accurately, he dislikes the hype generated around Boba as a character. It’s quite a grand reputation, but one with a shaky foundation. Boba showed up in The Empire Strikes Back and only looked intimidating. Then, in Return of the Jedi, he was killed off.
I can’t grasp what about him connected with audiences back then. All I know is that at a young age, I thought he was really cool too. An intimidating presence and an improbably cool design can accomplish a lot. But he didn’t do a whole lot.
Jango Fett, his father, accomplished more to garner clout in Attack of the Clones on his own. An epic duel against Obi-Wan and a climactic death at the hands of Mace Windu. Yet still, people love Boba quite a bit.
But Boba had lore. He had books written about him. Legends that die-hard fans poured over for years. His younger days were explored in The Clone Wars. This gave the character credence even after decades of an established – if not necessarily earned – reputation.
But I still hear people close to me talk about Boba Fett, and the idea of his own series, being silly. Why do people still try to make him such a cool character when he never did anything. I feel like this complaint is a bit silly. If the complaint is that the character never did anything to earn their reputation, then isn’t the creation of new material a good thing?
Why shouldn’t we make new stories with Boba, to justify his reputation and offer new ways for kids to fall in love with the character? Even if it wasn’t made out of a recognition of the character’s dubious reputation, there are undoubtedly more reasons to appreciate the character now.
Regardless of the creative motive, creating new stories to deepen established characters isn’t something to be shunned in my book. When Robert Rodriquez directed The Mandalorian episode “The Tragedy” and reintroduced the world to Boba Fett, he validated decades of admiration.
The Book of Boba Fett aims not only to build up Boba, but to reflect on his past, and take him on a journey that will mold him into a new man. A man no longer shackled to dogmatic narratives that have been imposed upon him. And that’s what made the beginning of this series so compelling.
While slow at first, The Book of Boba takes its time in painting a grueling portrayal of the titular character’s escape from the Sarlac Pit and his survival thereafter. He falls in with the Tuscan Sand People and learns about their culture, first as a prisoner, then as a friend.
One of the most fascinating things to come from The Mandalorian was the deepening of the Sand People’s culture. They went from – at most – untimely caricatures of middle-eastern culture to fleshed-out individuals with their own customs.
Dialog is sparse because of the language barrier. Visual storytelling is key and Boba is in a much more vulnerable position. Through such vulnerability, he becomes a more approachable and relatable protagonist. And it’s only half of the story.
There are two halves: The first is a present-day quest about Boba and Fennec Shand to assert dominance after having taken over Jaba the Hutt’s palace. The second is the aforementioned flashbacks. The latter actually make up a larger bulk of the story and succeeds more for it.
The present-day A-Plot could be edited together to be about two full episodes, maybe three. In simple terms, Boba has to gather forces, assert authority as the new daimyo, and combat an old drug syndicate that ties into the flashback B-plot.
Every new application of Sengoku Era Japanese terminology in Star Wars makes me giddy. Daimyo refers to a lord, often a vassal of a shogun. Given the Kurosawa influence on Star Wars, this term fits beautifully. Though I wish I could say the hierarchy of Tatooine was explored more.
The other leaders and gangs aren’t fleshed out as much as they could have been. Even the hostess of the cantina in town felt underutilized. It’s a shame because I really dug her character every time she was on screen.
One group of characters that everyone seemed to have hot takes about were the Mods, a rowdy group of anti-establishment youngsters looking for belonging. They are the embodiment of Cyberpunk and from the moment they showed up, I was pretty blown away by how refreshing they were.
With so much of Star Wars storytelling polluted by holding onto the past, it’s nice to see more depictions of youth in these worlds. In this case, the Mods are rowdy punks who augment themselves with cybernetics and display them proudly.
Everything about them, especially the ways they theoretically clash with their surroundings, feels natural to their characters. They don’t fit the molds that they’re expected to fit into. Filmspeak on YouTube made a point in their video on this series, that this might very well be why Boba takes them under his wing.
Boba Fett is an enigma. It’s part of why he’s loved. It’s the mystique. But this story is all about telling who he is. Partly because he finds his identity through the show.
Mandalorians don’t consider him one of them. He’s known as a bounty hunter, but he’s tired of that profession too. So instead he dedicates himself to a new purpose. A leader instead of a wanderer. A man of loyalty and devotion instead of someone used and all-to-often abandoned.
The Book of Boba Fett is a damn good read. But something weird happens near the third act. You turn the page and while the number at the bottom keeps counting up, you could swear you’re reading a different book. Episodes five and six aren’t about Boba Fett.
They are the season three premiere of The Mandalorian.
This series betrays Boba Fett. It betrays the promise of the opening episodes. It betrays the themes. It betrays the viewers too, but not everyone is gonna feel that way. Because after all, CGI Luke Skywalker shows up again, arguably “improved” but no less fake.
Mark Hamill did not do any voice work. He wasn’t even there. They cobbled together voice lines and created a Deep-Fake that mirrored the beloved actor, only with stilted, awkward, robotic line deliveries. There isn’t a performance to appreciate. Just a corpse. Of a man that’s still alive.
It isn’t as though a younger actor couldn’t have been cast. It’s not as if the outfit alone wouldn’t have tipped people off that it was Luke. If you enjoyed this episode, I’m not gonna rag on you personally. But try to understand why stuff like this is so damn unsettling.
Acting is an act of transformation. Performance is judged based on the work of an actor that can be directed and can interpret direction to create something that brings a character to life. It’s a translation but it’s also a statement. You can’t get that from a computer.
When I watched episodes five and six, the circumstances were… unique. I hadn’t watched the fourth episode yet. I was two weeks behind. My roommate told me I didn’t need to watch the fourth episode. At least, not right away. The new episode was “basically a Mandalorian episode.”
It’s as I said at the start. It was awesome. And as a one-off, I was more or less okay with this. But then the next week came along. I still hadn’t caught up. My roommate told me the same god damn thing. I looked at him in utter disbelief.
They did it again. An entire episode that was completely cut off from the main journey. Even as I enjoyed what was happening, I was getting angry. And then as time passed I realized I didn’t really enjoy it all. I spent the majority of the episode wondering who the fuck these writers thought they were.
They crammed two non-sequitur standalone episodes into a seven-episode original series and then had the nerve to make the next episode the finale. That means less time to develop characters like Fennec or the Mods, or anyone else. It means that the main antagonist who’s introduced in the SECOND-TO-LAST-EPISODE is undercooked.
Speaking of undercooked, plenty has been said about the action in this series. I think it’s competently done, but by no means the best to come from these directors. I adore Robert Rodriquez. Part of why I love the Mods is how they feel like characters from Alita: Battle Angel, a film of his that I love.
But the lacking cinematography, inconsistent action quality, and overall feeling of staleness in the visual department really nerf what could have been even better. I say “even better” because despite what I just said, I still think this is a pretty bitchin’ show from beginning to end.
Star Wars has had a rough go of it. Lack of planning, toxic fandom, and a fundamental disconnect regarding the franchise’s capacity for artful expression. When The Mandalorian happened, it felt like the franchise was beginning to live again. Projects like Start Wars Visions made me believe it could be creative without fear.
But now, I’m skeptical. The Book of Boba Fett compromised its quality and its integrity to push along a larger narrative. That narrative will be expanded through more and more Disney+ shows that will no doubt be meticulously planned out. The people who wanted Star Wars to be produced like the MCU might just get their wish.
It doesn’t have to be this way. This isn’t a certain fate or a premonition. But if you want to keep getting better and more interesting character stories, you have to ask for more. Don’t be content with a factory line production.
For what it’s worth, Boba Fett – and his actor Temeura Morrison – have received their well-deserved time in the spotlight. For those who’ve been waiting, it would be a lie to say it doesn’t live up to the legend to some degree.
Sakura/Shuffle 