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The Mandalorian

7.08 Behind the Mask of THE MANDALORIAN

December 19, 2020 by Steve Norton Leave a Comment

When the Star Wars universe made the transition to the small screen, no one could have predicted the cultural impact that The Mandalorian would have. Featuring a sympathetic hero in Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal), a wild-west atmosphere and, of course, Baby Yod… er… the Child, Mando has become a pop culture phenomenon, reviving a flagging franchise and rebuilding trust with its fans. This week, we welcome back pastor Jedi Greg Banik and ScreenFish padawan Gary Blaze to talk about the magic of the series and identifying with the man behind the mask.

(NOTE: This episode features spoilers up to episode 5 of Season 2.)

You can stream the episode on podomatic, Alexa (via Stitcher), Spotify or Amazon Podcasts! Or, you can download the ep on Apple Podcasts!

Want to continue to conversation at home?  Click the link below to download ‘Fishing for More’ — some small group questions for you to bring to those in your area.

7.08 The MandalorianDownload

Filed Under: Disney+, Featured, Podcast, SmallFish Tagged With: Baby Yoda, Disney, Disney+, Gina Carano, Pedro Pascal, Star Wars, The Mandalorian

The Mandalorian: This is The Way

November 21, 2019 by Arnaldo Reyes Leave a Comment

Last week, I had the honor and privilege of attending the red carpet premiere of The Mandalorian. It was a fan event that had a Q&A in the beginning, and then a screening of the first three episodes.

First, a little backstory as to how this came about. I love Star Wars, and I also love giving back. Two years ago, I decided to merge those two loves together and started my journey out of my comfort zone into costuming. Fast forward to a year ago, and I became an official member of the Mandalorian Mercs Costume Club. I’ve had the privilege to do many charity works from hospitals, orphanages, charity walks, etc. The smile on the children’s faces is the only reward or perk that I need. Last week, however, the reward was an invitation by Disney/Lucasfilm to attend the premiere. Along with many fellow Mandos, we descended upon Hollywood Blvd at the El Capitan Theatre where we stood along the red carpet as stars and those who worked on the show arrived. It was an experience that can’t be described.

The Mandalorian isn’t like any Star Wars film before it (of course, it’s not a film but a series). Werner Herzog said it best at the premiere when he stated that, “This is the birth of a new mythos within the already established mythology.” As a fan of what the Mandalorian culture has been in Star Wars lore, having a live action series centered around that (and no longer be referred to as Boba Fett, who isn’t even a Mandalorian) had me filled with excitement and fear. Will it be done right? How will a series work? Will there be more and simply focus on just one? Of course, most of those fears were quelled when I heard Jon Favreau was working alongside George Lucas’ padawan himself, Dave Filoni (The Clone Wars, Star Wars: Rebels, Star Wars: Resistance). For Dave to move from animation to live action, taking all he learned from George and pass it on to this show, gave me peace about it.

Of course, this isn’t a rambling fan boy article. So, what about the show itself? Well, all those fears were erased within the first episode. The Mandalorian has arrived and is everything that it should be. Herzog wasn’t wrong in the notion that this is essentially creating a new mythos within the mythology that already exists.

And that’s what makes it even greater.

The Mandalorian (Pedro Pascal) in Lucasfilm’s THE MANDALORIAN. Photograph by Francois Duhamel/Lucasfilm Ltd

There is no question that the fandom can’t come to agreement with how Star Wars should expand (or if it should at all). The reality is that it should expand but it shouldn’t be based on what many fans wanted from it: the expanded universe (now known as ‘legends’). The Mandalorian, though giving fan service, feels fresh and new. The only knock against it that I feel is the run time…. I need more! It’s amazing that, for a character that never takes his “bucket” off, one can really see his emotions through his body language. Pedro Pascal works the camera in a way where you can tell if he’s frustrated, relieved, curious, angry and more. You get a glimpse into Mandalorian culture, how they are the best warriors in the galaxy and the most feared. As one of my favorite Marvel heroes say, ‘they are the best at what they do.’

WARNING SPOILERS

By now, the first two episodes have aired and, as I said, I saw the first three. I won’t focus too much on the first two episodes but be warned. This is about Episode 3 and how it eclipsed all of my expectations by signifying what makes Mandalorians the best. In Episode 1, we see The Mandalorian get an advance payment of Beskar, the metal that Mandalorians forge their armor from. It is unique to them and is part of a war-filled history. Some can be centuries old as it is past down form generation to generation. When the Great Purge took place, the Empire stole the Beskar. So, it makes sense for a former Imperial to have some in his possession after the fall of the Empire. Beskar is as rare as the Mandalorians themselves in this time period. It’s what made the first episode so significant to me. Yes, the rescue and the baby Yoda (no, it’s not Yoda) sequence was amazing and the Jawas in Episode 2 were hilarious. But it’s the moment after The Mandalorian gets the Beskar that really drew my attention. It took me three times watching it to realize, as The Mandalorian makes his way to The Armorer, that this hidden alley is filled with other Mandalorians.

That brief viewing and brief encounter brings us to Episode 3. The one thing about Star Wars is that it reveals the heart of a character. With Han, we see a scoundrel and smuggler who’s heart was good, noble, hero and a friend. We see that the good can be tempted and sometimes fall to the dark side, but they can be redeemed. The Mandalorian captures just that in this third episode. You see the real heart of a man who’s face you never see. You see how much the tribe means to him. Most importantly though, we learn how much his past makes his present and future important. Mandalorians are in hiding because the tribe is more important than the individual. But, sometimes, you have to make a choice that risks that very thing. For The Mandalorian, he could have easily went about his business. But that is neither his way, nor his tribe’s way. To do good, and to protect the foundlings (I have my own theories on that but won’t get into it now) stands above all. To him, a foundling isn’t just those around him, hidden from view. Knowing that they would be willing to kill the child for whatever devious plot they had, he saw himself and his fellow foundlings in the child that he brought in. His decision to go back and (quite awesomely) rescue him put all he had accomplished at risk. In fact, through his actions, he basically threw it all away.

But here’s what family is really about. What sets Mandalorians apart and has always appealed to me, is that it isn’t just the warrior spirit. It is that sense of community and family. When all hope seemed to be fading and effort lost, his family arrived, throwing all they had worked to protect away. Jetpacks, missile launchers, and a Heavy Weapons Gatling gun firing while hovering in the air warrior showed off all that is amazing about Mandalorians.

This episode felt like a season finale, yet we still have 5 more episodes to go. I’m not sure how they are going to top it but one thing is for certain: The Mandalorian is proving to be worth all the hype that it was made out to be. To see that pay off in theatre with some of my Aliit (family in Mando’a) is an experience one can never forget. The Mandalorian isn’t just about a lone warrior making his way through the galaxy with a youngling in tow (some of the great old Samurai film tropes). It is about family, loyalty, duty, and fighting evil even if it costs everything. This is the way!

The Mandalorian airs on Disney+ and releases new episodes every Friday.

Filed Under: Disney+, Reviews, SmallFish Tagged With: Baby Yoda, Disney, Pedro Pascal, Star Wars, The Mandalorian

Has Disney Killed Star Wars? Episode II

August 29, 2019 by Arnaldo Reyes Leave a Comment

Somewhere, in a galaxy far far away, in an outpost called Anaheim, there is a disturbance in the force. Well, maybe it was just convention food for some people. D23 Expo has come and gone and with it a whole slew of breaking news and announcements and unsurprisingly their two big franchises really made an impact. Star Wars and Marvel left the weekend in a buzz, tho it is the franchise that many loud social media folks claim Disney has killed that really came out on top.

In Part One of my “Disney hasn’t killed Star Wars” take, we focused more on the misconception of Galaxy’s Edge and this past summer at Disneyland. To do a quick follow up, I have now been to Batuu two more times. Last week, blackouts were lifted on the many annual passholders with “lower tier” passes. I was there Sunday night. It wasn’t my first time going late in the day and in the parking garage I normally park in the third level. This time around, parking was only available at the very top level. Disneyland was jammed pack, thanks in part to no more blackouts and the swarm of tourists that made their way to D23 Expo. At Galaxy’s Edge, it was swarming with guests, the most I’ve seen all summer (again thanks to the above). And tho a small sample size, it helps reinforce my earlier take, that Galaxy’s Edge isn’t a bust but rather Disneyland is as it always has been, an annual passholders park. Meanwhile, Disney World has opened it’s platforms and begun transport to Batuu as of 5 AM Thursday 8/29/19. Within an hour, the area was filled to capacity and the wait time for the Falcon ride was at 5 hours. Of course, the detractors will say give it time. But at least for now, the rumors of Star Wars demise under Disney have been greatly exaggerated.

So now for part two, and in comes the aforementioned D23 Expo. We went into the weekend expecting announcements, trailers, timelines, etc. We were greeted with that and the buzz is going to last a while.  There were two trailers released, and as of this writing, one of them has generated 15 million views in 3 days while the other 12 million views within 24 hours. A week ago, the trailer for season two of Star Wars Resistance was dropped and it has nearly 500k views. Not bad for a dead franchise. A Canon timeline was released that also splits into three sections, Age of Republic, Age of Rebellion, and Age of Resistance. But all the hype from D23 is surrounded within three things.

The Mandalorian

The first official trailer for The Mandalorian dropped and the buzz around the Disney+ series is high. The first ever live action series follows the exploits of a bounty hunter in a time period after Episode 6 and before Episode 7. It brings the grittiness of Rogue One in an old western type of feel series that from the trailer looks to be drama filled and action packed. The stunning action sequences in this trailer leaves one wanting more. Having seen more footage at Star Wars Celebration in Chicago back in April, I can tell you that this series alone is worth the Disney+ subscription. As Mandalorian fan, I gladly speak for all of us Mando’s that finally, the time has come. This will be like nothing ever seen or done in Star Wars, and we can’t wait. Starring Pedro Pascal, Gina Carrano, Carl Weathers and Taika Waititi with show runners Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni, The Mandalorian comes at launch with Disney+ November 12.

Hello There

Rumors started swirling in the past few weeks that Ewan McGregor was in talks to reprise his role as Obi-Wan Kenobi for a new Disney+ series. With no confirmation from Lucasfilm or Disney, or Ewan himself; these were taken with a grain of Crait salt. But Ewan didn’t disappoint, and in a kind of dramatic fashion, showed up at D23 and was asked live on stage if he would reprise his role, to which was an emphatic yet. Obi-Wan series will take place after Episode III and focus on Obi-Wan’s time on Tattooine. It is before the Star Wars Rebels animated timeline, so unfortunately no Darth Maul. It will be interesting how they put this together considering the Empire was never aware of his whereabouts.

Dark Rey

After news broke of the trailer shown at D23, the interwebs were abuzz anticipating the public release the following Monday. And it didn’t take long after it released for it to be the #1 trending (and still is on YouTube over 24 hours later). The trailer was a nice tribute to the entire Skywalker saga. Starting with scenes from the original trilogy, to the prequels to then the new. Of course, a few things stood out. C3PO with red glowing eyes? Were those Imperial and not First Order Star Destroyers? Rey vs Kylo on what looks to be broken pieces of the RoTJ Deathstar. And of course, Dark Rey! Most likely a dream sequence, but it leaves plenty for imagination (be careful with that).

Star Wars is certainly not dead. Toy sales may be down, but the hype is still real. The dangers as mentioned in part one lies in social media. Already theory pages and videos have millions of views just because of the recent trailer. These all lay the mental trap of setting oneself up for failure. I’ll stick to my two go to, The Star Wars Show (from Lucasfilm themselves) and The Rexin Around Show. I’ll even throw in the Rogue Rebels Podcast, a fun family that just love Star Wars. But like before, enjoy what you enjoy, look forward to what’s coming. Star Wars will never die as long as it continues to reach different generations of fans.

And for those that were looking for Clone Wars Season 7 news, not much was given, except that it will premiere in February (that is the collective sadness of fans like me who were hoping it would be back at Disney+ launch).

Bright Suns and May The Force Be With You!

Filed Under: Reviews Tagged With: Clone Wars, Disney, Disneyland, Ewan McGregor, Obi Wan Kenobi, Star Wars, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, The Mandalorian

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