Mando season 3

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

For whatever reasons people seem to look down on animated Star Wars.

I think folks who are into the animated Star Wars no longer notice that there are times when the writing and acting is more stylized -- much like anime is -- and that it's a speed bump for some of those who don't watch it.

I have anime fans livid with me when I said I find the style of a beloved show to not work for me, when it wasn't a judgement call on them or the form.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Wait - the Jedi is played by Ahmed Best, who also played - are we going to get a hero moment for Senator Binks???!?

Of all the things that Lucas didn't rework, leaving Jar-Jar as a clown is the most baffling. If he had just opened the cart full of bombs on purpose at the end of The Phantom Menace, the character would have been largely redeemed in his very first movie.

 

[pukunui]

And the hunting and feeding techniques of this giant bird seems to make not much sense, nor the tactics of the Mandalorian cultists. I guess we have to believe they are incompetent, but I kinda feel that even incompetent people would start holding watch, they'd just be bad at it. Or maybe they are so isolated that they never heard of the concept?

Yes, the fact that the raptor thing waited until the moment the Mandalorians entered its nest to appear and feed its babies was odd. Clearly written to be a dramatic moment but one that doesn't make any sense.

As for the cultists' tactics, I still think we are looking at incompetence due to both their cult practices and inexperience. These are not the same Children of the Watch who rescued Din during the Clone Wars. This is a hastily cobbled together group, mostly consisting of foundlings who did not grow up in the Mandalorian culture. Yes, some of their armor is old and scratched and dented, but I wouldn't be surprised if it is simply used armor given to newbs rather than, as in Bo-Katan's case, armor that's been passed down through the generations - or an indication that its current wearer is an experienced warrior. It's also possible that some of the older members have been part of the cult for quite a while but were hiding out on their own for most of the past years and have only recently been brought back into the fold.

As far as we know, virtually none of the cultists hiding on Nevarro survived the Imperial attack. We know that the Armorer and Paz Vizsla did, and they both traveled to that ringworld place. The Armorer makes some comment about there possibly being others who escaped. Perhaps some of them are there on the hostile desert world, but I suspect that the vast majority of the group we've seen so far are newbies recruited during the time jump.

And the fact that someone from Naboo - someone senior given the royal guards and executive spaceship - was helping him. Who was in a position to do that? Certainly not Padme, the attack on the temple took her by surprise as much as anyone, and she didn't really know what had happened until Anakin told her afterwards.

Wait - the Jedi is played by Ahmed Best, who also played - are we going to get a hero moment for Senator Binks???!?

Maybe! It would be fun to see Ahmed's Jedi master again at least. He's way more bad ass than many of the other Jedi, let alone Jar Jar.

Maybe the difference does just come down to Filoni vs Favreau. Was Filoni still more involved in the past seasons of Mando? That might explain it.

You might be right. After the mess that the Boba Fett show was and now this season, I'm beginning to think Favreau hasn't got the writing chops for this material.

 

[Zaukrie]

I'm entertained, I just struggle with their level of aptitude.....

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

After the mess that the Boba Fett show was and now this season, I'm beginning to think Favreau hasn't got the writing chops for this material.

At least after the Book of Boba Fett, we know who will be teaching all the foundlings how to drive a speeder bike.

 

[Enevhar Aldarion]

And the fact that someone from Naboo - someone senior given the royal guards and executive spaceship - was helping him. Who was in a position to do that? Certainly not Padme, the attack on the temple took her by surprise as much as anyone, and she didn't really know what had happened until Anakin told her afterwards.

Wait - the Jedi is played by Ahmed Best, who also played - are we going to get a hero moment for Senator Binks???!?

Is it canon that Jar Jar survived the prequel trilogy? If not, then maybe we finally get his death scene in a flashback. Though alive or dead, Jar Jar would be pretty traumatizing for little Grogu. lol

 

[Zardnaar]

Is it canon that Jar Jar survived the prequel trilogy? If not, then maybe we finally get his death scene in a flashback. Though alive or dead, Jar Jar would be pretty traumatizing for little Grogu. lol

Yes he became a street clown.

Jar Jar Binks

Jar Jar Binks was a male Otolla Gungan military commander and politician who played a key role during the Invasion of Naboo and the Clone Wars that culminated in the fall of the Galactic Republic and the rise of the Galactic Empire. Once an outcast from Gungan society due to his clumsy behavior...

starwars.fandom.com

 

[Ruin Explorer]

Yes he became a street clown.

Jar Jar Binks

Jar Jar Binks was a male Otolla Gungan military commander and politician who played a key role during the Invasion of Naboo and the Clone Wars that culminated in the fall of the Galactic Republic and the rise of the Galactic Empire. Once an outcast from Gungan society due to his clumsy behavior...

starwars.fandom.com

I have to say, reading the paragraph, I get that it's supposed to be cute, but it really sounds like Jar Jar has just run off with an orphan (given I think it's unlikely a Republic orphanage is going to let a small child be trained as a clown) and is about to possibly transport him across state lines, and that's the last known thing about Jar Jar. Somehow fitting.

 

[Ruin Explorer]

I think folks who are into the animated Star Wars no longer notice that there are times when the writing and acting is more stylized -- much like anime is -- and that it's a speed bump for some of those who don't watch it.

I have anime fans livid with me when I said I find the style of a beloved show to not work for me, when it wasn't a judgement call on them or the form.

Yeah there's a lot of anime out there that's particularly stylized, and often in a way that's not for everyone. The stylization is not always visual, either - sometimes it can be in terms of behaviour, the way people talk, and so on.

I wouldn't say Clone Wars/Bad Batch (which are very similar) and especially not the more naturalistic (from S2 anyway) Rebels are that stylized, but they're at more than zero stylization for sure.

My family and I just finished the latest episode of the Bad Batch, and that show has way more depth, character, and story integrity than this one currently does. And it’s an animated show.

Right?

I also don't think the whole "everyone wears helmets all the time" deal is really the smart move that I suspect Favreau thinks it is, either - especially when they're wearing armour, and he's not writing/shooting the shows in such a way as to show off their body language particularly well (i.e. not any better than you would in a show when you could see their face). All it does is rob the show of humanity and energy, and the sooner it's over, the better. If we have to deal with all the characters having their helmets on AND they're the focus of the entire season, that's really going to be a massive drag on already-weak writing and plotting.

 

[Reef]

I also don't think the whole "everyone wears helmets all the time" deal is really the smart move that I suspect Favreau thinks it is, either - especially when they're wearing armour, and he's not writing/shooting the shows in such a way as to show off their body language particularly well (i.e. not any better than you would in a show when you could see their face). All it does is rob the show of humanity and energy, and the sooner it's over, the better. If we have to deal with all the characters having their helmets on AND they're the focus of the entire season, that's really going to be a massive drag on already-weak writing and plotting.

I think I agree on the helmets…it’s hampering the acting. My wife was commenting on that specifically this week…that part of the reason the dialogue was falling flat for her was that without seeing the actor’s faces was handicapping the performances.

You know, they could have probably had the best of both worlds if they had just gone with “no helmet removal amongst outsiders” instead of a total ban. If they could take it off when with the Covert, you could get actors emoting with each other, developing personal connections, and yet still maintain the mystique with outsider’s. The ‘helmet redemption’ arc would have been unchanged, and you’d also avoid all the questions about how do they eat/shower/sleep/procreate in helmets all the time.

Heck, the whole campfire scene almost felt like the writers were saying “There! That’s how they eat! Will you stop asking now?!?” .