Jake Cannavale is Toro Calican and Pedro Pascal is The Mandalorian in THE MANDALORIAN, exclusively on Disney+
The Mandalorian: “Chapter Five: The Gunslinger”
“The Gunslinger” opens predictably, with Mando dodging in his spaceship while under fire; life isn’t easy when every bounty hunter in the Galaxy has you on speed-dial on their tracking fob. With his vessel badly damaged, Mando slams on the brakes — Maverick’s trademark dogfighting move in Top Gun — allowing his pursuer to overshoot him and be dispatched with an easy potshot. And the closest out-of-the-way spaceport available for Mando to land and make repairs is … Mos Eisley, on Tatooine.
Mando lands his ship at a repair dock, exchanges a bit of dialogue with the feisty mechanic Peli Motto (Amy Sedaris) and heads off to explore the “wretched hive of scum and villany.” From that point on, the Star Wars: A New Hope throwback fastballs come fast and furious, so you’d better love that nostalgic kinda thing. Mando arrives at the famous Cantina where Obi-Wan lopped off a guy’s arm and meets Toro Calican (Jake Cannavale), who just happens to be sitting with his feet up in what looks like the same booth where Han Solo shot Greedo (first or second, depending on who you ask).
Jake Cannavale is Toro Calican and Ming-Na Wen is Fennec Shand in THE MANDALORIAN, exclusively on Disney+
Being a rookie in the bounty-hunting business, Calican engages Mando to join him in his mission to hunt down Fennec Shand (Ming-Na Wen), an elite mercenary. A New Hope references erupt everywhere — the Dune Sea, the Hutt, Banthas, Tusken raiders, Beggar’s Canyon, etc. — as the duo travels across the desert wastes. A few scraps and weapon blasts later, Mando and Baby Yoda are on their way again.
If The Mandalorian was doing some heavy toe-dipping in the New Hope throwback pool before now, it dove in headfirst with “The Gunslinger.” The nostalgia surely provides a blast for some viewers but may verge on tedious for others; its fun, but leaning so much on the old pillars of the mythos prevents the show from erecting its own. And The Mandalorian is absolutely dripping with fresh potential, so far as mythology goes.
Should we be concerned? Naw. Showrunner Jon Favreau and company are just playing in the old sandbox for a bit. They’ll venture into the wild unknown soon enough.
Peli Motto (Amy Sedaris), The Child and the Mandalorian in THE MANDALORIAN, exclusively on Disney+
However, of the five The Mandalorian episodes thus far, “The Gunslinger” is the weakest. Beyond providing us with a trip down memory lane, the episode’s Mando/Calican buddy storyline felt a little stale and uninspired. Sedaris was fun as Peli Motto. My interest went up as soon as Fennec Shand appeared, played with devilish salt by the always-delightful Ming-Na Wen, but she was given way too little to do and gone way too soon; I’d have vastly preferred her character survive to fight another day (and she might have, depending on what was going on in that mysterious final shot).
In fact, “The Gunslinger” illuminated a story problem every episode will have to deal with: Baby Yoda. Mando can’t cart the little green dude around on dangerous missions, so in many episodes he’ll have to find a babysitter (the function provided by Motto here). Perhaps Mando will eventually find a suitable permanent sanctuary for the child so he can leave it in capable hands when he’s called into action; otherwise it becomes a constant bump in the plotting road.