 4.5/5

With the explosive rejoice of fans that was brought about by the premiere of The Mandalorian, in November 2019, the heavily anticipated season two of the Star Wars spin-off was met with high expectations to maintain the greatness that season one achieved. After all, the show—stemming from the lore-rich world of Star Wars—managed to make quite the cultural splash with the introduction of the adored Baby Yoda and the classic action-packed, pace-Western style of the original Star Wars series.

Additionally, with the quite lackluster nature of the most recent Star Wars trilogy, fans could only hope for The Mandalorian to maintain its quality throughout the second season and not fall into the trend of mediocrity that plagues modern Star Wars. So when the second season of The Mandalorian premiered in October, I was hesitant to pick it up.

To my relief, The Mandalorian season two is quick to resume the fast-paced action of the previous season, throwing us viewers back into Mandalorian Din Djarin’s quest to find a settling place for his cute companion Baby Yoda named Grogu. For Grogu to completely manifest its full potential of the force, it would need to find a Jedi to train it.

The show does an excellent job at character development, as fans are quick to sympathise with the Frog Lady—who needs to get to a distant planet with the Mandalorian to revitalize their species—and cheer at the reintroduction of Boba Fett from the main Star Wars series, even after he poses as an initial threat to the Mandalorian. The extravagant change of heart in Migs Mayfeld, a character who betrayed the Mandalorian on a mission in season one, as he turns on his old commander Hess of the Empire, opens the audience to an entire world of hidden personal conflict behind his abrasively humorous facade. With characters such as these, and the addition of more renowned Star Wars characters such as Bo-Katan and Ahsoka, the second season of the show involves a nice blend of personalities for the Star Wars newbie while allowing seasoned fans of the franchise to see old favorites on screen once again.

Of course, the visuals in the second season are as stunning as ever, with the arid dunes of Tatooine, to the cold, gray halls of the Empire Light Cruiser, the ambience throughout the show is thoroughly developed. With especially jarring visuals presenting themselves near the end of the series, namely the humanity-devoid stare of Valin Hess as he vividly describes sending his troops to their death without remorse to Mayfeld, and the deployment of the dark troopers giving off Terminator vibes, I found myself developing chills through striking imagery alone.

The second season of The Mandalorian polishes the original season’s charm while tying in more aspects of Star Wars lore in, leaving fans that finish it with nothing other than satisfaction and the desire for more shows to extend the plot. From well-choreographed battles, quarrels over political and personal agendas, and cuteness equitable to dog movies, this show has something to offer to everyone who views it, no matter one’s familiarity with the franchise.

Watch ‘The Mandalorian’ on Disney+