I will admit, I am one of the biggest Star Wars fans anyone could ever meet. Ever since my mom introduced me to the Galaxy Far, Far Away, I have been entranced by everything within that world. It is very hard to not satisfy me with any Star Wars content that is put out for the world to see and most of what Disney has created since purchasing Lucasfilm has been no exception.
Having said all of that though, I would be lying if I said I was in love with everything they have done.
Since purchasing the rights to the Star Wars franchise, Disney has released four feature films. The first two in “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” and “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story” were for the most part loved by both critics and fans alike. However, “Star Wars: The Last Jedi” divided Star Wars fans like I have never seen before with “Solo: A Star Wars Story” being a rare financial disappointment.
Point being, Star Wars fans are craving some universally loved content again and quite frankly the franchise needs it. Enter The Mandalorian. Written and produced by Jon Favreau, this Disney+ streaming service exclusive will bring us the first live action Star Wars TV series in existence.
The show follows a bounty hunter outcast played by Pedro Pascal throughout the underworld of Star Wars. This is a story line that has long been loved by fans as bounty hunters have been fan favorites since the introduction of Boba Fett. It also takes place within a decade of Return of the Jedi which is a time period that has not been explored much.
Outside of Pascal, the show’s cast is star studded and should make all fans excited. LookGiancarlo Esposito (Breaking Bad), Emily Swallow (Supernatural), Carl Weathers (Rocky franchise) and Taika Waititi (Thor Ragnorak Director) are just a few of the main cast members that highlight this show. The show also features some epic directors such as Bryce Dallas Howard, Taika Waititi and Dave Filoni to name a few and will be star studded from head to toe with people that are universally liked within the filming community.
If the cast and crew weren’t enough to make fans excited enough though, the budget will surely impress. It has long been rumored that this show’s first season cost 100 Million dollars to make which would make it one of the most expensive shows of all time before anyone has even seen it. This would make it rival that of Game of Thrones final season.
The story, the cast and crew and the movie like quality were put on display when the trailer for the show came out but to me personally none of these reasons are why I am most excited. I am most excited because they are going back to the roots of what made Star Wars great.
Jon Favreau in an interview with the Hollywood Reporter stated that, “George Lucas’ Star Wars movies are “the bedrock that [The Mandalorian] is built on,” He is using green screen’s and CGI to create modern worlds that have not been seen before but is also creating looks that will put us right back into the original trilogy. He created original prop designs and even got the go ahead to film space scenes in the exact manner of the original trilogy using older prop technologist.
Watch the Official Trailer for “The Mandalorian”:
All in all what is not to like? We get a fantastic cast combined with the man who brought us Robert Downey Jr’s Iron Man and was the creator of the recent photo-realistic remake of “The Lion King.” We get a slew of top of the line directors, a story that fans are craving, a budget that is move quality and a time period that has been explored very little.
All I can say is that I am stoked and I only hope this can bring a fan base that is not fully united together again when this get’s released on November 12th on the opening day of Disney+.
Previously: What we learned about The Mandalorian at D23 Expo. and You can now sign up for Disney+.