‘Book of Boba Fett’ finale, like the series, is messy but fun
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It’s tough to reconcile how I feel about “The Book of Boba Fett.” On one hand, it was a series full of great moments, bridging a lot of the current “Star Wars” properties in a way that feels really great, especially as it takes place in the dustier, grittier universe that invokes the original films.
On the other hand, its intergalactic-mafia-movie storyline was kind of a mess, and practically abandoned its title character during the series’ high points.
And while occasionally thrilling, this week’s series finale was very much a mess, with some poorly paced action sequences and moments that just didn’t make a lot of sense.
Starting a couple of episodes ago with the return of Din Djarin, “Book of Boba Fett” basically transformed into a “Mandalorian” mini-series, bringing back nearly every main character that survived its second season.
And while I wasn’t expecting this show to be a “Godfather”-style mob saga with aliens and knee rockets, I thought it had more potential than serving as a snack before the next “Mandalorian” meal.
That said, let’s get to the positives — the appearance of take-no-prisoners bounty hunter Cad Bane added an old-Western element that fit right in with the tone and tenor of the show. Watching Bane taunt Boba with Cobb Vanth’s death, to goad him into a lopsided shoot-out, was a fantastic scene.
Also, rancor rampage!
Ever since Danny Trejo brought his little baby to Jabba’s palace, you knew it would be coming back. Watching Boba’s new pet throwing a toddler tantrum, first on the robots and then on all of Mos Espa was great (speaking of “Rampage,” for old video game heads). Watching Grogu calm it down and snuggle in beside it was even better.
That’s about the best thing I can say for the big battle that ended this series.
Put plain and simply, everyone in Mos Espa should’ve been laser-blasted into the dirt when the scorpion droids showed up.
Knowing this finale was directed by action legend Robert Rodriguez makes it sting all the more. There are just too many moments when these droids had not just the townspeople, but all the main characters in their sights — and then didn’t perform their primary function of vaporizing everything that moves.
Am I going to argue with Mando and Boba flying around and capping Pykes, including just the greatest shot ever, a circular sweep around the two of them as they spin and fire in every direction? No, I am not. Am I going to be mad about my new favorite Wookiee’s “Platoon”-style limp to safety during a heroic rescue by Boba Fett? Nope.
But the introduction of the scorpion droids should’ve been the end of things for our heroes. For some reason, they didn’t retreat into the building that was right behind them. They didn’t try to use their mobile shield to escape.
And look, I don’t know Tattooine geography, but it sure seemed like Boba Fett came back really quickly riding the rancor.
According to a map I found on a random Reddit thread showing Tattoine’s geography (Are we gonna split hairs here? We’re talking about a fictional map of a fictional place), it appears to be a good 15 miles from Jabba’s palace back to Mos Espa. And I don’t think Boba was gonna jet-pack the two of them all that way.
So maybe let’s look at this through a different lens. Quibbles about the battle aside, the final showdown with Cad Bane was a thing of beauty, as was Fennec Shand (Pittsburgh’s own Ming-Na Wen) assassinating the turncoat Tattoine crime bosses and the Pyke Syndicate’s representative.
As a bridge to the new season of “The Mandalorian?” This was great. We got to see Din’s emotional growth, watching Ahsoka convince him that Grogu needs to make his own choice about joining the Jedi or returning to his adoptive dad.
We got to see Grogu make that choice in this episode, with another great turn by Amy Sedaris, who brought some much-needed levity just as I was really starting to get frustrated with the battle sequence. We got a great emotional moment as Grogu jumps into Dad’s arms and shows him the beskar chain mail shirt.
I mean look, the final scene of a series named after Boba Fett was the Mandalorian (not Boba Fett) flying off into space with Grogu (a.k.a. Also Not Boba Fett).
In the end, I think the show squandered the really great exploration of Boba’s time with the Tusken raiders, and did the same with a stab at a mafia-style space story. Its best moments were barely connected to its title character.
But I still liked it. They were able to bring Luke Skywalker back and made him look very convincing as a CGI character. They went back to Tattooine for the umpteenth time and found a story that didn’t make it seem like a derivative return trip.
With the Obi Wan Kenobi and Ahsoka shows, and a new season of “Mandalorian” on the way, it’s hard not to be excited at what’s coming with the “Star Wars” universe.
“Book of Boba Fett” is available on Disney+.