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What is the first episode of the series on Boba Fett worth?

After a year of absence from our screens, the Star Wars license is making a big comeback on Disney +. Is the Boba Fett Book series a success?

The announcement was made in December 2020, when The Mandalorian delivered the conclusion of his second round of episodes. After an unexpected return to Jon Favreau’s series, Boba Fett was officially offered a solo adventure, still on Disney +. A year later, it is now time to find the legendary bounty hunter for the first episode of The Book of Boba Fett, The Book of Boba Fett in the language of Molière. A production that promises to raise some gray areas on the fate of the protagonist, well known to fans from the start.

After making Han Solo and his friends go crazy, Boba Fett finally sank into the bowels of a Sarlacc in Star Wars: Return of the Jedi. A fall that we imagined fatal in one of these immense sand worms which are not unlike those presented in Dune. The character had offered himself a redemption in the prelogy, where he was this time camped by Temuera Morrison. The antagonist now stands out as an anti-hero, battered by life and plagued by a dark past.

In The Mandalorian, we find him 5 years after the fall of the Empire while he is in search of his armor. Helped by Fennec Shand, he chases Mando and Baby Yoda, before joining forces with them to confront Moff Gideon. He will eventually return to Tatooine to seize Jabba’s Palace and assassinate Bib Fortuna. He then becomes the lord of crime on the planet.

disney + boba fett
Credit: Disney +

Game of throne

It is at this pivotal moment, when he must decide how he is going to reign over the underworld and impose his law, that we find him in The Book of Boba Fett. However, the series also stages his resurrection through flashback scenes for the less enticing. Because yes, the plot of the series will obviously be cut into two distinct parts. A way for the writers to give rhythm to this seizure of power, and to reveal to us more about its past.

This first episode is particularly successful in its endeavor, constantly oscillating between the past and the present. This narration is rather unusual for the license, which until now adopted a certain linearity on the small as the big screen. Still, the pace is rather slow in this first chapter, despite its short duration of 30 minutes. We will put this down to the introduction, especially since the next part already promises many twists.

Boba Fett Fennec Shand
Credit: Disney +

Silence is golden

As for The Mandalorian, the first episode of this series is rather stingy in dialogue. To stick to the silent personality of the bounty hunter, the writers avoid incessant babbling, preferring to focus on the directing to get their point across. Robert Rodriguez, already the work on a few episodes of The Mandalorian, is doing particularly well and manages to pay homage to the desert expanses of Tatooine and the more atypical interiors of the local bouis-bouis. Craig Fraiser’s absence from photography is nevertheless felt, especially in the darkness where the scenes are sorely lacking in dimension.

Finally, the rare action sequences of this first episode lack punch. If the choreographies are rather well executed, the editing does not pay them particular homage. Over-cut, they fail to transcribe the brutality and violence of the bounty hunter and his second Ming-Na Wen.

Behind the armor …

We will end with the casting, rather inspired, of the new Disney series. Temuera Morrison knows her score inside out, but adds a few colors to the bounty hunter’s palette. A burst of humanity that allows a more certain attachment to the protagonist, who is definitely not so invincible without his armor. Ming-Na Wen gives us a performance close to what she usually does, namely an unfailing seriousness and a certain predisposition to bitter aftershocks.

Jennifer Beals in Star Wars
Credit: Disney +

Ludwig Göransson as a bonus

The composer knows how to make himself indispensable in Hollywood. After having worked his magic on The Mandalorian, he comes back with an equally effective score. After drawing inspiration from westerns, he adopts a more mystical positioning and mixes percussions with almost Celtic voices which aptly underline the takeover of power that is being played out at Tatooine.

A series promised to great success?

The Book of Boba Fett is arguably not the most anticipated series in the Star Wars universe. On this niche, it is Obi-wan kenobi which proudly sits in the first place and which already promises to be emulated when it comes out in 2022. However, early fans will no doubt enjoy these new adventures of Boba Fett without displeasure, on condition that the narration continues to that train.

Discover The Book of Boba Fett on Disney +

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