Last Updated on August 2, 2021
EPISODE: "Chapter 14: The Tragedy" – Written by Jon Favreau and directed by Robert Rodriguez
SYNOPSIS: The Mandalorian and the Child continue their journey through a dangerous galaxy.
REVIEW (WARNING: CONTAINS SPOILERS FOR THIS EPISODE): After meeting Ahsoka Tano (Rosario Dawson) last week and knowing this episode was one of the shortest of the season, I was not expecting much from "The Tragedy". Maybe that is why it was such a gut-punch of an episode. Opening with Mando and Grogu arriving at the ancient Jedi temple on the planet Tython, we see the companions aboard the Razor Crest. Din tests Grogu's skills a bit more as they descend to the planet. The first thing I noticed is that this was the brightest episode so far of The Mandalorian with everything taking place in broad daylight. Atop the mountain as Ahsoka said, we see a Jedi temple comprised of some pillars and a circular mound. Mando places Grogu on the spot and nothing happens…at first.
After spotting a ship in the sky, Mando heads to check it out and the mound begins to glow. Grogu meditates as a beam of light shoots into the sky. Mando then confronts a hooded stranger who turns out to be Boba Fett (Temeura Morrison). Fett has come to reclaim his father's armor and has brought Fennec Shand (Ming-Na) as a back-up. Shand shows off her new droid abdomen and says she is in debt to Fett for saving her. Mando questions whether a non-Mandalorian can have the armor and Fett says it was gifted to his father by the Mandalorians. Fett then promises in exchange for the armor he and Shand will protect Grogu. Their services are then needed immediately as a transport ship lands at the base of the mountain.
Several stormtroopers exit the craft and a firefight ensues. Shand uses her rifle to pick them off while Fett takes them down brutally with his staff. The fight continues as Mando heads back up to retrieve Grogu but is repelled by the energy field surrounding him. Mando tries multiple times but fails again and again. Meanwhile, a second transport lands full of more stormtroopers. The new group pin down the heroes. Shand and Mando team up to fight back the troopers while Fett heads to the Razor Crest. When all hope seems lost for Shand and Mando, Fett arrives fully armored and takes down most of the troopers. As they run away and board their ships, Fett uses his scope and destroys both ships mid-air with the missile in his jetpack.
Aboard Moff Gideon's light cruiser, the Dark Troopers are dispatched. The droid enhanced soldiers fly down to the planet. By now, the field around Grogu has dissipated and he lay partially unconscious. Mando and Shand watch as the Razor Crest is destroyed by blaster fire and then run to the mountaintop to rescue The Child. As they approach the top, they see the Dark Troopers grab Grogu and fly back to Moff Gideon. Fett flies after them in Slave 1 but pulls back to avoid shooting Grogu. He follows the troopers to their ship which he recognizes as Imperial. Moff Gideon escapes into hyperspace. Mando inspects the wreckage of the Razor Crest, finding only the ball Grogu played with and the Beskar staff.
Boba Fett proves the armor is his and explains that Jango Fett was a foundling like Din Djarin and that he fought in the Mandalorian Civil Wars. Fett then tells Mando his debt is not paid as they promised to protect Grogu, meaning he and Shand will join Mando to rescue the kid. They all head to Navaro where Mando enlists Cara Dune's help to locate sharpshooter Migs Mayfeld (Bill Burr). Mando plans to break him out to help rescue Grogu. On Gideon's ship, we see Grogu in a holding cell using the Force to beat back two stormtroopers. When he stops, Grogu is exhausted. Gideon then approaches him threateningly with the Darksaber. When Grogu passes out, Gideon has him shackled and tells an officer to contact Dr. Pershing so he can prepare to harvest Grogu's blood.
STAR WARS UNIVERSE REFERENCES: The ship Boba Fett arrives in is his iconic Slave 1 from the Original Trilogy. Boba Fett explains how his father, Jango, got his armor directly from The Mandalorians. He also utters his father's line from Episode II: "I'm just a simple man making his way through the galaxy". We see the Dark Troopers in action.
COOLEST SCENE: The entire episode was one cool scene after another, but I have to say that seeing Boba Fett back in action was absolutely awesome. Temeura Morrison may not be a young man anymore, but he fills out his Beskar better than Timothy Olyphant did in the season premiere.
FINAL VERDICT: The title of this episode promised a tragedy and it delivered. I was worried such a short episode would be a filler quest chapter. Instead, director Robert Rodriguez pulled off a thirty-minute action sequence that delivered a ton of emotional moments as well as some of the best fight scenes this series has had. We got to see the true return of Boba Fett, increased stakes for Mando's quest to protect Grogu, more of Moff Gideon's plan, and a lot more Force usage from The Child. This was also the first episode since the first season finale that did not have Mando on a standalone mission which showed this series can operate both episodically and cinematically.
"The Tragedy" is an excellent companion episode to last week's chapter and delivers both on nostalgia for classic Star Wars by showing us Boba Fett but also by raising the stakes higher than ever before as we head into the last two episodes of the season. (10/10)
NEXT ON THE MANDALORIAN: Chapter 15 premieres Friday, December 11th at 3 am EST on Disney+.
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