When it was announced shortly after the end of season one of The Mandalorian that Ahsoka Tano would be appearing in season two, I wondered if I should watch The Clone Wars to be fully prepared for her appearance. And then 2020 happened, priorities changed, and I never got around to it. Which means that, outside of a basic knowledge of that character from a quick read of a wiki, I’m not someone who knows a whole heck of a lot about characters from the extended Star Wars universe. Why does this matter? Well, if you’re looking for a deep dive into how The Mandalorian connects with anything outside of the films, I’m not your gal. Rather, my reviews are going to spend time reading into the story as it is told in this particular series and I likely won’t be getting into some of the Easter Eggs others have found. Ok, now that that disclaimer is out of the way, on to the review.
I genuinely enjoyed “The Heiress,” although most of that enjoyment stemmed from having several of my favorite TV actors pop up throughout the episode*, shouldering most of the weight of the story. It also didn’t hurt that the episode gave us another, more interesting, arc to follow with regards to Moff Gideon: Bo-Katan is on a personal mission to retrieve the Darksaber back from his clutches so that she can rule Mandalore. I assume, for fans of Clone Wars and Rebels, that’s not a huge shock (thanks to some googling, I got myself up-to-date on Bo-Katan’s past with the saber), but it’s a brilliant addition to The Mandalorian, a series that can often feel like its lacking real forward momentum in terms of tying the various characters together. Giving Moff Gideon a foe of his own helps to flesh out the presumed Big Bad of the series. We know a bit more about him – he stole that saber (or at least took it from Bo-Katan in some way) – which had been assumed, but getting the official confirmation along with a call for revenge was a nice touch. We knew he wasn’t someone who played by the rules, but we now know he has someone breathing down his neck, making his life difficult, while he is hunting Mando and the Child. Although, my main takeaway after this episode was that I would LOVE to watch a series about Bo-Katan tracking Moff Gideon while destroying all Imperial remnants she finds along the way. Yet another character who could anchor a story that sounds more fun than the one we’re currently watching.
*When you get an episode of television with Katee Sackoff (Bo-Katan), Titus Welliver (the doomed Imperial ship captain, and the third alum of the great Deadwood to appear on the series this season), and Giancarlo Esposito (reprising his role as Moff Gideon), you expect great things. After all, these are some truly great actors. What it really did for me was make it clear just how pedestrian the dialogue on the show is. If this lot can’t make it sing, well, perhaps my complaints about Mando being uninspired should have been complaints about the writing just being blah.
Now, as for Bo-Katan, her appearance also filled in a key piece of information regarding the Mandalorians that had been left open up until now. It turns out that Mandalorians can absolutely remove their helmets. It turns out that Mando was just raised by a bunch of religious zealots who instructed him that it wasn’t allowed. I’ll absolutely buy into that reasoning, especially because it marks the first instance where Mando was actually thrown for a loop. In fact, I would have enjoyed the series letting that revelation sink in a bit longer for our lead character. This is a man who has built his entire identity upon the belief that The Way means he must always shield his face from view, and now he is told that this is not a requirement of his people, but merely the belief of a small subset. That’s a pretty big thing to learn and we were allowed precious little time to see it play out. I would love to see this ripple out over the rest of the season – what else is there for Mando to learn? Giving him something to search for outside of a place to leave the Child would provide additional facets to his character that remain sorely lacking.
Perhaps the upcoming meeting with Ahsoka Tano will help give Mando some spark and a sense of purpose beyond his mission to save the Child. Or perhaps the addition of such a key character of past Star Wars stories will serve as a way to continue opening up the world of The Mandalorian to include a wider array of interesting characters. I assume we haven’t seen the last of Bo-Katan – and as Moff Gideon’s path curves to once again meet Mando’s, I’d bet money her’s will as well. One thing is certain: Mando, a loner by nature, now has a number of key powerful allies who will likely be called upon down the line. And for a guy in his position, that’s not such a bad thing to have.
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Writing
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Acting
