WOW
That was my impression following that debut episode. It really impressed me. The references to a variety of movies and animated titles was fantastic. And I loved the western aesthetic. Pedro Pascal has clearly listened to some of what Jeremy Bulloch said about playing Boba Fett and the inspiration for how he played the character. I had heard Jeremy say on multiple occasions that he was inspired by Clint Eastwood's 'Man with no name' in the "Fist full of dollars" and "The good, the bad & the ugly". I saw plenty of that in the Mandalorian and how he carried himself.
IG-11 was nothing short of fantastic. I wasn't sure what to expect from Taika Waititi voicing the droid, probably because the voice Korg in Thor Ragnarok was SO distinct. The characterization of IG-11 was very interesting. But then I just marveled at the way the droid moved - the precision of the blaster fire, the spinning of the head sensors and the way he walked were all just riveting. And considering that Dave Filoni directed the episode I was surprised that we would see something new with an IG droid, since Filoni had realized the IG droids in the Clone Wars series ("Downfall of a droid", I think). Anyhow, I don't think IG-11 is gone for good because there was a clip in one of the TV spots where IG-11 was talking with Cara Dune. So you have to think that IG-11 will be repaired.
I genuinely liked Nick Nolte's voice work for Kuill the Ugnaught. The way he spoke was really interesting, especially as he was trying to get the Mandalorian to ride the Blurgg.
The element I'm really interested to see explored more? Those Mandalorian catacombs! It's some kind of enclave where a number of Mandos are holed up. And the story around the armorer and the beskar steel seems like it's going to go in an intriguing direction.