Book of Boba Fett Chapter 5: Return of the Mandalorian (2022) Review

Spoilers 

When Djarin returns to bounty hunting and searching for for his people, things don’t go as planned and he finds himself back in Mos Eisley, reunited with some old allies.

Directed with gusto, Bryce Dallas Howard’s ‘Chapter 5: Return of the Mandalorian’ is really a Mandalorian episode, which while miss placed nevertheless is a fantastic addition. Written once again by Jon Favreau, he knows how to please long time Star Wars fans while setting new ground. This episode thankfully keeps antics serious, (not including the return of Peli Motto (Amy Sedaris) which is fun in its own way) the with some witty Star Wars infused humour that is on the money.

Mando confesses his helmet removal, which adds plenty of tension and drama. There’s more Darksaber action, Paz Viszla returns demanding a duel with Din Djarin in order to win the blade in combat, which is a highlight. Emily Swallow reprises her role as the Armorer and forges a mysterious gift for Grogu destroying the Beskar Spear. But the icing on the cake is the Naboo starfighter, the type that appears in The Phantom Menace, and Mando’s replacement for his beloved Razor Crest, which travels the old pod-racing course. The special effects, both practical and computer generated are high-end. Chip off the old block Howard’s production is first-rate.

There’s plenty of new visuals and locations, namely a ring-like space station called Glavis. There’s a nod to The Island of Dr. Moreau’s (1996) make-up design in the opening. But synonyms with the series’ there’s loads of callbacks, Gonk droids, Jawas, Rodians, Tatooine, X-Wings, R5, Empire’s probe droids and KX droids similar to K-2SO from Rogue One to name a few. But there’s not only nods to the films but also The Mandalorian, which shows is power of the series cementing it in Star Was live action history. Ultimately, there’s the mention of spice and it finally ends with the inevitable meeting with Fennec Shand .

Overall, while it doesn’t really push The Book of Boba Fett forward, the episode is a handshake to Star Wars and a clever expansion of the Star Wars universe plus The Book of Boba Fett. While expanding both Mando and Fett’s story, it’s also a reminder of how great Pedro Pascal is as and new original character Djarin.