The Book of Boba Fett (SPOILERS possible)

[Matt_Fury]

Great episode!  Loved the little twists and I have a pretty good idea how the big fight at the end is going to go now.

Lot's of cool old western and some very heave Dune vibes going on.  Love it!

Great all around and I'm ready to discuss more after everyone's seen it.

[Mister Skeezler]

That Tusken Raider with the long strips hanging off his/her head is an early star of the show for me, after last night.

And I want the Twins in action figure form.

I really did love last night's episode. I definitely enjoyed the first episode as well, but I hear some of the criticisms. Some thoughts on Chapter 1 and 2...

That creature was a clear homage to Harryhausen. It wasn't accidental, you can see the obvious nods.

I'm unclear of how long Boba Fett was in the Sarlaac. It could have been a while because the Sail Barge wreckage is pretty settled-looking, and there was a random Stormtrooper in the Pit with him.

I'm curious if Boba Fett is going to go full Muad D'ib with the Tusken Raiders when he has his criminal organization set up. At some point the two timelines need to converge. So right now we're seeing post-Sarlaac, pre-Mandalorian (Tusken Raider time) as well as post-Mandalorian (crime boss)

[Dave]

I did like the Camie and Fixer cameo, but didn't realize that was Tosche Station.  I'll have to go back and look, but I assume that is what Tosche Station looked like in the original ANH cut scenes.

Overall I think this episode was a lot better, but would still prefer a lot less Tusken flashback and a lot more current timeline.  I'm hopeful now that Boba has been fully accepted in to the Tusken clan that we can be done with most of the flashbacks.

A couple of things that were fun:
- Ithorian mayor with translator
- Wookiee bodyguard
- Lizard induced vision quest

Figures I really want made from this show so far:
- Wookiee bodyguard
- Dark robed Tuskens (battlepack)
- Jennifer Beals Twilek

[Qui-Gon Jim]

Was that Snoova?  It was clearly a bounty hunter.

[P-Siddy]

Was that Snoova?  It was clearly a bounty hunter.

Black Krrsantan

[Nicklab]

The western vibes are so strong.  And the one that actually comes to mind quite a bit for me as a parallel to Boba Fett's story is "Dances with Wolves".  I see the Tusken Raiders as very symbolic of Native American tribes, and Boba Fett is becoming a part of their tribe.  When the train came through and the Pykes were shooting the Tuskens and their banthas?  That's a total callback to how people would shoot bison from trains in the 19th century.

Going back to the first episode, did anyone else suspect that the homestead that Boba Fett and the chief's son were watching had once been the Lars homestead?  Because it sure looked a lot like it to me.  And then to have a scene at the Tosche station along with both Cammie and Fixer?  Mind blown on the easter eggs!

You have to give it to the production team on some of the trailer fakeouts - like the trailer scene that had the Nikto gang on the speeder bikes.  I'm amazed that they went to such lengths to put that shot in the trailer when it was actually Boba Fett with the Tusken Raiders riding out to raid the Pyke train!

Robert Rodriguez seems to enjoy voicing some of the characters.  It looks like he voiced the Trandoshan from the first episode, and now the Mayor in the second.  As for the Mayor's majordomo?  I think he is very deliberately being played as smarmy.

Lastly?  Count me as thoroughly shocked about the Hutt twins turning up.  And even moreso about them employing Black Krrsantan as an enforcer.

[P-Siddy]

Yeah, there were a few effects items that stood out for me as well that seemed off.  One was the hole in the sand that Boba climbed out of.  You could see the metallic rim in a few spots.  Another was the Rodian, who had a tear in the side of his outfit that exposed his skin, but it looked like the skin was attached to the outfit... it didn't look natural.  I believe there was something else, but it's slipped my mind.  When it comes to effects, I've always considered LFL as the cutting edge, not cutting corners.

I rewatched the first episode again with my daughter and was reminded what it was... when the Tuskens were dragging Boba on his back, you could see the wires that went down to the sled that Temuera was on.  As I said, I was shocked to see those weren't removed during the S/F and editing process.

Otherwise, I like the 2nd episode nicely.  Can't wait to see where this goes, though I fear for Boba's Tusken clan.

[Muftak]

I really enjoyed the second episode. The narrative was a lot stronger in the flashback section.

I have been watching these with my 12 year old and he Is eating it up with a spoon. When the train showed up I had to pause and take advantage of the teachable moment to discuss Smerican History, so I thank Mr. Favreau for that.

All that said, it is still glaring to me that Boba Fett got paid by Jabba and Vader for capturing Han Solo, and it's not like he was carrying the credits on him when he fell in the Sarlaac. He has a ton of money in the bank and a personal Starship parked where he left it, he could leave Tatooine any time he wants, until this show gets around to telling me why that isn't the case. The only clue on that front has been how happy he was to show Mando his chain code ID from the armor's gauntlet, like pulling out his driver's license. But he had to leave Tatooine to do that. Something just doesn't add up yet.

[JediJman]

I really enjoyed this one.  I'm actually liking the Tusken backstory more than the current timeline with Fett.  Nice to explore their culture more the train battle was awesome.  Also really enjoyed seeing the pykes in live action!  My only complaint on the show thus far is the way its edited.  The "flashbacks" aren't really back and forth - its more like watching two separate stories that have little to do with each other.  Instead of the whole "the dreams are back" setup, I'd rather they just started with Fett escaping the pit, joining the Tuskens, etc. and then build that up to the current timeline.  We still get the same story - I just feel like I'm watching two different shows the way they're doing this.

[Nicklab]

I just read an article that might venture into some spoiler territory, so beware!

There's some reasonably well thought out speculation about the underworld of Tatooine.  Boba Fett has seized control of the organization that had been led by Bib Fortuna up until his untimely death.  And now the Hutt twins are also in the mix, trying to claim control over that organization.

There's also the matter of the Mayor of Mos Espa, Mok Shaiz.  He seems like he might be more of a player than he let on during his brief meeting with Boba Fett - especially after having his guards quickly gun down the surviving Night Wind assassin.  He then tried to shift Boba Fett's attention to Madam Garsa.  And based on the way she has been played so far, it seems like she might also be a more significant underworld figure than she's letting on.  There's also the matter of the Pykes who are running spice across the Dune Sea, as seen in the flashback.

So where might this all be going?


The speculation I read pertains to another criminal syndicate - Crimson Dawn!  Evidently Ludwig Goransson worked some of the Crimson Dawn theme music into this week's credits.  Historically there had been an alliance between Crimson Dawn and the Pykes - Dryden Vos referenced that in SOLO.  There was also a shot in one of the trailers of a young girl on a speeder bike who bears a little bit of a resemblance to Qi'ra when we saw her on Correllia in SOLO.

[Qui-Gon Jim]

I think that is definitely where this is heading.

[Matt_Fury]

I've heard the same rumor Nick and it is plausible.

Just from what I've seen in the show, I think that Bib Fortuna took over Jabba's Empire after what happened at the Sarlaac and his weak leadership caused a fracture in Jabbas' crime syndicate.  It allowed players like the Mayor of Mos Espa to gain power as well as others.  A lot of the scenes in the remaining episodes for BOBF will be Boba retaking the criminal empire from these other players...with his message of cooperation.

Hell, even if I'm completely wrong, I am enjoying the ride!   

[P-Siddy]

If it goes that direction, it will close an open thread in the SW Universe.

[Diddly]

Welp, this week's episode sucked. Started off decently but just collapsed after a certain point. The common denominator there seems to be Robert Rodriguez, as he didn't direct last week's episode and it was pretty good.

We're at 1 good episode out of 3, and only have what, 4 episodes left? And the plot is all over the place and moving at a snail's pace. That does not bode well! Especially when episode runtimes are 38 minutes, including 2 minute recaps and 6 minutes of credits...

Spoiler specific thoughts and gripes:

Good lord was that swoop gang awful! They came off like some corporate suits read a report indicating that Lucas liked to put 1950s vehicle references in his movies, and decided to do the same. They just went about it in the wrong way. Those hot rod swoop bikes are completely out of place in Star Wars, especially on Tatooine. The outfits were awful too... too much like what normal people would wear in the modern day. Pretty sure I saw Cyborg Eye Guy wearing a blazer/hoodie combo at one point. They're so lame that I'm expecting a Disney+ spinoff show announcement any day now.

The "chase" through Mos Espa was bad too. It felt like they were going about 5mph tops.

Stephen Root as the guy who overcharges for water! And a Danny Trejo Rancor Keeper figure is not something I knew I needed.

BMF Wookiee gets the jump on Boba and... tries to kill him with his bare hands?

If the Pyke Syndicate is so powerful, why do they come to Tatooine on the public transportation that Anakin and Padme used to hide in in AOTC?

Boba Fett isn't respected and is called an old man at one point. Far cry from the guy who stares down Lando while he cringes at his friend screaming during a torture session.

8D8's presentation on the gangs feels like something we should have seen in the first episode.

[Matt_Fury]

Not my favorite episode but it wasn't the worst thing I've seen.