The Mandalorian Season 2: Review

Ever since Star Wars was purchased by Disney in 2012, the franchise under the House of Mouse has been rather hit and miss lately. The last film, The Rise of Skywalker, gained a very divisive reaction among critics and the general public. However, one of the feel pieces of Star Wars media that have been consistently good is The Mandalorian with its first season gaining massive success and critical acclaim even winning seven Emmys at the 2021 Emmy awards.

This left Season 2 with some very big shoes to fill, but I think it managed to succeed and almost surpassed its predecessor. Season 2 follows the titular Mandalorian (Pedro Pascal) as he tries to find a home for The Child, a force-sensitive infant that is the same species as Yoda. Along his journey, he encounters other characters in the Star Wars Universe and must clash with the remnants of the Galactic Empire. 

In terms of its story, Season 2 has more of an overarching goal of trying to find The Child it’s home. As such, this makes the series much more plot-heavy than the first season which was more self-contained. Not that this season doesn’t have the self-contained episodes of Mando traveling to a planet to have an adventure, it’s just that it’s much more connected to the plot. It definitely makes this season much more engaging as there is a genuine goal to achieve and the story does take some big risks near the end.

This season also features a lot of characters from other Star Wars Media such as Bo-Katan, Ahsoka Tano, and Boba Fett. However, this does serve as a blessing and a curse. On the one hand, it does make the Star Wars universe seem a little larger and it’s great seeing Bo-Katan and Ahsoka make their live-action debut as well as Temeura Morrison playing Boba Fett. On the other hand, I feel that it relies a little too much on fanservice. What made the first season great was that it was very self-contained from the films and focused more on the grittier aspect of that universe. At the same time, it is somewhat necessary because the Star Wars Fanbase and Disney have had a very discordant relationship. 

Despite this, Season 2 of The Mandalorian still provides a lot of entertainment and is a worthy successor to its predecessor.