There’s a lot to love in the gritty world of The Mandalorian. In preparation for Season 2, premiering October 30, Bounty Hunting Highlights will explore our favorite moments, both big and small, from the stunning, Emmy Award-winning, live-action Star Wars series now streaming on Disney+. Watch along, for the first time or as part of your own rewatch, and tell us about your favorite moments in the comments!
If there was any question about our anti-hero’s conscience and compassion, we got our answer in “The Sin,” the thrilling conclusion of the three-part arc that opened Season 1 of the Star Wars live-action series. His voice strained, a departure from his usual even tones, you can hear the emotion growing with the Mandalorian’s concern for the Child, the helpless little alien he’s consigned to an unknown fate in the hands of Imperial scientists. Fortunately, his next move makes him a true hero in the span of a very cool ninja-like infiltration.
Here are seven of our favorite moments.
1. “This is the Way.”
Upon successfully completing his mission and returning to the Armorer with a camtono case brimming with beskar, we learn more about this particular group of Mandalorians’ customs and the tension that’s resulted among these proud warriors forced into hiding after the Great Purge. When the Mandalorian and another warrior come to blows, it’s the calming tones of the Armorer reminding the two of their brotherhood in choosing to walk the “Way of the Mandalore” that finally diffuses the standoff.
2. The Mandalorian’s new armor.
Although he desperately needed the new armor, such a shiny cuirass means all eyes are on the bounty hunter now. Jealous colleagues who failed in the same mission that brought him into such wealth stare Vibrodaggers at him as he enters the public house in search of his next job. But we think this costume change has made the proud warrior look even more the part than his battered old duds.
3. A displaced knob.
Sometimes it’s the little things that have the biggest impact. Earlier, it was a nuisance when the Child was playing with the shiny bauble at the end of one of the Razor Crest’s many control levers. Now it’s a reminder of what the Mandalorian stands to lose if he ignores his conscience and continues on his way, leaving the helpless tot to its fate in the hands of the Imperial remnant goons.
4. A forgotten pram.
A symbol of safety and security, the very object that cradled the Child and shielded it from danger up until this point now sits discarded on a trash heap. The Mandalorian’s tracking fob confirms that he’s not too late — the Child’s still somewhere close. But it’s not hard to imagine that Mando was probably heading into the safe house to destroy the people inside one way or the other, regardless of the Child’s fate shown on the fob.
5. A dark hunt.
Earning his reputation as a mercenary, the Mandalorian stealthily moves through the compound, using everything in his arsenal to indiscriminately kill every stormtrooper in his path as he makes his way to his prize — the Child he almost left behind.
6. A friend in need.
This is some rescue! On the move, the Mandalorian and the Child have inadvertently alerted practically every bounty hunter on Nevarro, and they see a second chance at a massive score if they can capture the newly freed prey. The ensuing blaster fight in the streets, in the style of a classic Wild West shootout among outlaw gunslingers, could have been his end if not for the help of the other Mandalorians. When all other hope is lost, these dedicated warriors show up for one of their own even at great personal cost. For Mandalore!
7. Life-saving beskar.
Even Greef Karga enjoys the blaster-deflecting benefits only pure beskar steel can offer. I wonder if the irony is lost on him?
New season starts streaming Oct. 30. Catch up on Season 1 now.
Associate Editor Kristin Baver is a writer, host of This Week! In Star Wars and The Star Wars Show Book Club, and all-around sci-fi nerd who always has just one more question in an inexhaustible list of curiosities. Sometimes she blurts out “It’s a trap!” even when it’s not. Do you know a fan who’s most impressive? Hop on Twitter and tell @KristinBaver all about them.
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