The loophole parallel you note (between Din rule-lawyering his way out of having to carry the Darksaber and how Captain Bombardier & The Duchess hire the two detectives of Law & Order: SWU) is very well observed. It hadn't occurred to me to see them in tandem, and now I'm wondering if it's possible Din realized how he could use the loophole with the saber only after he heard the plan of the planet leaders.
I enjoyed the weirdness of the main part of the episode -- I found it fun in the same way a wacky Clone Wars episode could be. And I didn't think the Darksaber hand-off was a problem in and of itself -- I think a lot of us immediately saw that Bo-Katan had rightfully won the saber back when the Mines of Mandalore aired, so I don't know why it was such a shock to people.
What's intriguing me (which is a nice way of saying I'm worried a little) is what/where the agency is for the characters. The season seemed to set up a conflict between three main characters (Din, Bo-Katan, and the Armorer); I appreciate that the story has been them learning to see how they have to work together instead of fighting, which has defused tension instead of amping up the dramatic stakes. But...that also means we've lost a lot of chances for drama. I get choosing to work together and I also get them deferring to one of the others to take up the mantle...but it starts to feel like none of them want to lead.
I'll tie that into the other thing that's been gnawing at the back of my mind: their collaboration has all been built around this goal of taking back Mandalore. But...who are they taking it back from? The Morlocks and Spider Tanks? Din found out the planet isn't poison, so there's no inherent natural force keeping them away. Presumably the push to "reclaim" the planet will run headfirst into the conflict with Moff Gideon and his Imperial remnants...but why not make that connection even clearer by having an Imperial base on the planet earlier in the season?
All of this is to say: while I've enjoyed the heck out of each of the episodes this year, there seems to be some shaky foundations to the narrative drive right now. Of course, I also remember thinking the show in its first season had gotten into a fun-but-shallow "planet of the week" structure through episodes four, five, and six; I was surprised that this was all the show was going to do narratively. And then the last two episodes turned that thought on its head and reshaped how the whole season looked in retrospect. I am predicting (slash hoping) the next two episodes do the same for this season.
I’ve been a little surprised about how polarizing this episode has been in the podcasts and things I’ve seen online. But it’s still been a good series so far and I don’t mind the lighter tones, knowing that some dark stuff is still out there to go down.
“I feel safe saying that The Mandalorian may be many things, but a courtroom drama it is not.”
After this week who knows? I didn’t think it would be a beautiful olive procedural! I’m Dowb for the court case episode 😄
The loophole parallel you note (between Din rule-lawyering his way out of having to carry the Darksaber and how Captain Bombardier & The Duchess hire the two detectives of Law & Order: SWU) is very well observed. It hadn't occurred to me to see them in tandem, and now I'm wondering if it's possible Din realized how he could use the loophole with the saber only after he heard the plan of the planet leaders.
I enjoyed the weirdness of the main part of the episode -- I found it fun in the same way a wacky Clone Wars episode could be. And I didn't think the Darksaber hand-off was a problem in and of itself -- I think a lot of us immediately saw that Bo-Katan had rightfully won the saber back when the Mines of Mandalore aired, so I don't know why it was such a shock to people.
What's intriguing me (which is a nice way of saying I'm worried a little) is what/where the agency is for the characters. The season seemed to set up a conflict between three main characters (Din, Bo-Katan, and the Armorer); I appreciate that the story has been them learning to see how they have to work together instead of fighting, which has defused tension instead of amping up the dramatic stakes. But...that also means we've lost a lot of chances for drama. I get choosing to work together and I also get them deferring to one of the others to take up the mantle...but it starts to feel like none of them want to lead.
I'll tie that into the other thing that's been gnawing at the back of my mind: their collaboration has all been built around this goal of taking back Mandalore. But...who are they taking it back from? The Morlocks and Spider Tanks? Din found out the planet isn't poison, so there's no inherent natural force keeping them away. Presumably the push to "reclaim" the planet will run headfirst into the conflict with Moff Gideon and his Imperial remnants...but why not make that connection even clearer by having an Imperial base on the planet earlier in the season?
All of this is to say: while I've enjoyed the heck out of each of the episodes this year, there seems to be some shaky foundations to the narrative drive right now. Of course, I also remember thinking the show in its first season had gotten into a fun-but-shallow "planet of the week" structure through episodes four, five, and six; I was surprised that this was all the show was going to do narratively. And then the last two episodes turned that thought on its head and reshaped how the whole season looked in retrospect. I am predicting (slash hoping) the next two episodes do the same for this season.
I’ve been a little surprised about how polarizing this episode has been in the podcasts and things I’ve seen online. But it’s still been a good series so far and I don’t mind the lighter tones, knowing that some dark stuff is still out there to go down.