The Mandalorian & Grogu is now officially less than two months away.
The new Jon Favreau-directed film is the first time Star Wars has been in theaters since 2019’s The Rise of Skywalker, and the first time since 2023 that fans have seen Din Djarin or his adopted son. Before the release of The Mandalorian & Grogu, there’s an episode of Star Wars television that is the perfect prequel to the new movie.
Return Of The Mandalorian Is Everything Star Wars Should Be
Chapter 5 of The Book of Boba Fett is Return of the Mandalorian, which was the first time fans saw Din Djarin after the season 2 finale of The Mandalorian, making it a monumental occasion. This episode is directed by Bryce Dallas Howard, daughter of Solo: A Star Wars Story director Ron Howard.
Although it perhaps would have best as the premiere of The Mandalorian season 3, Return of the Mandalorian has everything fans want in a Star Wars story. Din Djarin himself remains the center of attention throughout the episode. He’s a hero in mourning after giving up his son to go train with Luke Skywalker, making this an incredibly emotional episode.
Grogu doesn’t appear in the episode, yet the bond between Djarin and him remains steadfast, which is exactly what Star Wars should always have at the front and center of a story.
The Mandalorian season 3, for example, is guilty of abandoning that crux of the story at times in exchange for Clone Wars era callbacks and references, proving to be a divisive choice, but Return of the Mandalorian does excellently to keep the focus on Djarin throughout.
The action is another core highlight of this episode. Dallas Howard has proven herself to be an incredibly capable director ever since making her behind-the-scenes debut in season 1 of The Mandalorian. Here, the progress she’s made is clear. Right from the very first scene, the action stands out.
A big part of the action of this episode is Djarin wielding the darksaber, the weapon he acquired in The Mandalorian season 2 finale. The episode doesn’t show traditional lightsaber combat with the darksaber, and instead opts for a much more realistic and grounded approach.
Djarin isn’t a Force user, and therefore doesn’t have the same sort of precision with the saber as characters like Anakin or Luke Skywalker, making the combat in this episode not only grounded, but incredibly unique within the grand scheme of the broader Star Wars galaxy as well.
Return of the Mandalorian also excels visually. Star Wars television has been hit-and-miss in this area, with some shows like Andor proving how great an episode of TV can look. Other series, such as Obi-Wan Kenobi, also showed the limitations of the Volume and highlighted areas of improvement in this regard.
This episode of The Book of Boba Fett, however, is much more in line with Andor than it is Obi-Wan Kenobi. The episode hops from planet to planet, with Djarin going from the Glavis Ringworld to Tatooine. In both locations, especially the Ringworld, Return of the Mandalorian is simply gorgeous to look at.
Tatooine is one of, if not the most important planets in Star Wars, but hasn’t always been done justice on TV. In Obi-Wan Kenobi, for example, Tatooine looks bland and devoid of color. This is as opposed to some of the films, such as The Phantom Menace, which portrayed the planet with a lot more sense of life than the later show did.
Return of the Mandalorian does a lot better with Tatooine in this regard, even superior to The Mandalorian show itself. Here, Tatooine feels more lived-in and real, and also has more layered coloring, meaning that it isn’t bland visually.
All of this is to say that Star Wars should be a visually engaging franchise, yet this hasn’t always been the case in recent years. Return of the Mandalorian is a good example to follow to ensure that the series remains appealing to look at moving forward.
This episode also sets a great example when it comes to fan service. Even in later chapters of The Book of Boba Fett, writer and showrunner Jon Favreau goes a bit overboard, including too much fan service in a show that should be centered on Boba Fett.
The appearance of Ahsoka Tano is a great example of this, as she served little to no place in the story but still showed up anyway. Return of the Mandalorian, however, is different from that.
There are classic Star Wars tropes, such as Tatooine and Din Djarin flying around the same areas of the desert that Anakin did when he was podracing. However, the episode isn’t reliant on these things. It stands up firmly as its own story, and any fan service serves as a bonus rather than something holding the episode up.
The Mandalorian & Grogu Should Take Notes From This Episode
The more notes the upcoming The Mandalorian & Grogu takes from this episode, the better the new film will be. For example, as this is Star Wars’ return to the big screen, this new movie needs to prove that it’s deserving of a feature film as opposed to debuting on Disney+ as part of a series instead.
Return of the Mandalorian is some of the most cinematic Star Wars television ever made, so Favreau and co. can reference this episode to help ensure that The Mandalorian & Grogu has a similar sort of feel to it.
Additionally, The Mandalorian & Grogu should center firmly on the title characters rather than getting bogged down in Mandalorian politics or follow-up plot lines from season 3 of the show. Again, Return of the Mandalorian is a great example to lean on in this regard, as the story feels simultaneously grand and streamlined.
Ultimately, whether or not The Mandalorian & Grogu will follow in the footsteps of this episode of television remains to be seen. However, there are good signs in the latest trailer for the film, which shows some huge visuals and the growing bond between Djarin and his son.
The Mandalorian & Grogu will release in theaters on May 22, 2026.