The Book of Boba Fett (2021–2022)
7/10
Great fan service, but uneven at times
9 February 2022
Boba Fett fights to consolidate his position of power within the underworld of Tatooine while reflecting on past events.

This is a hit and miss Star Wars show that has some strong moments, but struggles to develop a compelling narrative overall.

I'll start positive and say that as a member generation X who grew up on Star Wars, the fan service is exquisite. There are episodes that include great time with beloved characters and quite detailed Easter egg type moments that are equally as cool. This even extends to non Star Wars tributes to movies such as 'Lawrence of Arabia', 'The Godfather', 'King Kong', and numerous Spaghetti Westerns.

Contrary to some, I like the Bacta Tank flashback sequences, particularly the scenes set on the Dune Sea involving the Tuskens. Chapter 2 is a solid episode and has the best of these moments.

Unfortunately, one problem I find with the character of Boba Fett is that two seasons of 'The Mandalorian' effectively stole his thunder as a cool, armour-clad bounty hunter. As a result 'The Book of Boba Fett' as full series is not necessary and it shows in the fact that he only stars in 5 of the 7 episodes.

Another problem is that the writing is quite flat in some episodes and it fails to build any real momentum towards the concluding chapter. Some characters, like the Mods, feel tacked on for marketing reasons and they do not give enough screen time to key antagonists in the early episodes.

When the plot deviates for two episodes away from the main events it hurts the overarching narrative, but it's hard not to love where it takes us, particularly for fans of the original movies and Mandalorian. As great as it is, this has an impact on the final episode, which for me is a mess of spectacle and characters.

Temuera Morrison is a solid action hero, but is given very little to do other than act like a tough guy with a heart. Other characters like Fennec Shand have good moments, but there are a lot of diversions that don't really allow them to shine.

The production values are fantastic in most episodes. There are some exceptional CGI, especially the deepfake effects that design young versions of certain characters.
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