The Mandalorian S1 Ep. 4 Thoughts

"Chapter 4: Sanctuary"

With each passing episode of the Mandalorian, I find myself increasingly falling in love with the series in all of its eye popping cinematic flare and wonderful sense of adventure. This week's episode expands on the stakes of the Mandalorian's mission to protect the baby as well as offer him a tease of a better life while being faced with a new side conflict. Filmmaking-wise, and in regards to character development surrounding our titular bounty hunter, this may actually be my favorite episode thus far.

First, let's talk a little about the filmmaking side of things. Chapter 4 displays a wide array of absolutely beautiful shots of the settings explored within the newly introduced planet, Sorgan. The fishing village being the central focus which both the Mandalorian and Cara Dune settles in for a mission was visually breathtaking. From the interesting architectural components of the farms, to the nature centric elements of the grassy landscapes and misty rivers inhabited by glowing krill and frogs, this was by far my favorite location of the series. I loved how genuinely tranquil everything felt through the welcoming visuals and the peaceful inviting nature of the community itself.

This of course gets perfectly contrasted by the brutal and unforgiving raiders that invade the farms during the episode's opening sequence. We're learning more and more each episode how dangerous the galaxy can be despite how things may seem on the surface. There's always something dangerous lurking around on the horizon with or without any ties to the more popular Imperial insignia. This is where our major conflict of the episode takes place as our hero decides to help this village fend off these hostile bandits. Much like the Jawa/Mudhorn episode, it's entertaining seeing our protagonist getting tangled into a highly engaging and entertaining side mission that feels self contained but still leaves enough space for character development and potential future callbacks.

This particular mission to save a random village from random raiders could have easily felt like boring filler in the wrong hands. Instead, we're given some great interaction scenes with some new characters introduced, absolutely charming and heart string tugging moments with "Baby Yoda", praiseworthy cinematic scope, and a chilling action set piece with an AT-ST. In other words, however you decide to label this side storytelling structure, the series is delivering everything that a fan can ask for with its "gritty and fun Western adventure" pitch.

Alright, we have to briefly talk about how illegally adorable "Baby Yoda" is. The scene with him popping up next to Mando after he told him to stay put already set the "Awww" meter on high. There's also the soup sipping scene with the Cara fight scene, the Loth-Cat encounter (which is pretty cool seeing these new to live action creature debuts) and of course his encounter with children at the village. What can I say? I've fully surrendered to the hypnotizing cuteness of this character. Adorableness aside, one of the highlights surrounding the character here was the Mandalorian's desire to give it a good home. It is through his statements to Omera (a human farmer in the village who he makes a bit of a connection with) and Cara Dune (a vet who fought for the Rebellion that he pairs up with) about the baby's happiness and safety on this planet that we see him trying to offer what he himself lost as a child.

We also have the significance of the helmet's removal being highlighted with both Omera and Cara asking about the mentality behind keeping it on and how long it's been since he's actually taken if off in front of someone. I'm really enjoying how each chapter so far has given us bit by bit of both the culture and sensibilities surrounding our mysterious protagonist in a way that satisfies audience curiosity effectively. With just brief conversations and particular behavioral actions, the Mandalorian is becoming more fleshed out and multilayered which is fascinating considering how covered up his identity is. We can easily see his orphaned childhood situation being reflected upon the peace that he feels with leaving the child in a happy tranquil place. This idea of characterization being presented through actions and brief interactions can also be said for his emotional vulnerability being teased when Omera lets him know that he can settle down at the village and be free of his past ties.

But does the Mandalorian deserve to settle down? This is the question shined upon the character twice in this episode (both directly and indirectly) and it's fantastic how we never get a clear cut answer. Instead we get the classic "this place isn't for me" type of response even though he  acknowledges how good it could be theoretically. It's a response that feeds into the previously established mission centric lifestyle that the Mandalorian lives rejecting offers to fully relax and leave the battle focus life behind. But what is the full laid out code of this particular group of warriors? The series hasn't completely told the audience, but we can safely speculate from what's been told and shown so far. During the episode, and one of my favorite scenes of the show so far, is the brief moment that we do see him take off the helmet away from everyone and silently watches everyone outside having fun with the child. No words needed. The imagery beautifully conveys a "what if?" ponder. 

Side Note: Here's another question to toss into the hat. How does the Mandalorian actually feel about being a part of this warrior culture? Does he feel pressured due to the clan taking him in as a child or is he genuinely 100% devoted to the cause? Just a thought...

Chapter 4 essentially teases us with a dream scenario of our Mandalorian finding a place to retire, settling down with someone, and giving the force sensitive child a nice home to grow happily and securely...and then effectively yanks it away. This yanking of the paradise all started off with the villagers having to fight off against these raiders which is where Mando and Cara encountered them in the first place. One of the cool details that I admire about this whole mission is how the discovery of an AT-ST in the enemy's hands (which was brilliantly teased during the opening invasion scene) almost completely turned the tables on the mission for our heroes. It shows that even the most badass soldiers and bounty hunters have limits. Sometimes its a giant furry rhino-like alien in a desert cave and sometimes it's an operational Imperial mech walker.

The way in which the AT-ST gets presented in this episode as a legitimately imposing threat through its sheer size and arsenal advantage was fantastic. There's a strong sci-fi/horror aesthetic to the walker scenes that very much appealed to me making me realize just how terrifying these machines could actually be depending on the circumstance. That's the beauty of the Mandalorian series so far. We're getting to see a different and unique perspective on the Star Wars galaxy that would've otherwise been skipped over in the films. As for the big action set piece of the episode, the shootout between the villagers and the raiders was solid, but it's getting to see Cara Dune strategically take down an AT-ST with the Mandolorian's help that won me over. Such an awesome show of skillset and teamwork at play here emphasizing on how difficult these thing can actually be to take down in addition to the competence of our heroes.

Speaking of teamwork, I very much enjoyed Cara and Mando's relationship during the episode as these dangerous warriors with scarred pasts both respectfully seeing each other as equals in a sense. Their interaction scenes were entertaining from the moment they clocked each other as potential threats, to them ambushing and fighting each other, to then immediately bonding as warriors openly discussing traditions and retirement plans. You know when a side character has already won you over when you hate saying goodbye to them which is what the Mandalorian does at the end of this episode. With Kuiil, IG-11, and now Cara, this show continues to introduce great side characters that I'd love to see return.

Actually, the entire goodbye sequence after the village was saved was a bit of a tear jerker for me. It ties into what I mentioned earlier about Chapter 4 teasing the perfect happy place for Mando and the child to live and then yanking it away. First was the raiders situation being an issue that can quite possibly turn back around (even after this victory) and finally was the assassin who popped up out of nowhere to kill the child. My heart honestly sunk into my chest when I saw the sniper perspective aiming at the baby which lead to one giant sigh of relief once Cara is revealed to have killed the assassin. The idea that the baby isn't safe even in such a peaceful place speaks volumes of Mando's high risk life and mission. This makes the goodbye scene feel genuinely weighted as not only is Mando saying goodbye to a potential place of freedom and peace, but the baby having to say bye to a place that happily welcomed it with loving arms.

Overall, Chapter 4 of The Mandalorian was a very strong entry that perfectly solidifies the stakes of Mando's decision to take the force sensitive child under his protection as well as expanding on where his thoughts and feelings lie with potentially leaving the warrior culture behind for a peaceful life. I simply can't wait to see where the show takes us considering the fact that bounty hunters from all corners of the world as well as Imperial entities can show up at any given moment to take him out. There's also the Mandalorians having to move their establishment which can open up the doors for future reunions and more culture/mythology deep dives with his covert. The sky is the limit for where our space Western tale can lead.

Bonus Content

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Episode Rating: 9/10