The Mandalorian and Grogu, a free of all but the smallest of spoilers reviews.

Before I can go any further, look at the poster above you. Look deep, drink it in, absorb it deep into your soul. That’s some gorgeous work there and really makes me hope for a renaissance in film posters. The 30’s pulp styling warms my heart, and if I was going to put up any art from the film on my wall, this would be the one. I’m reminded of legendary poster artist Drew Struzan, and in particular a line of Guillermo Del Toro’s that boiled down to “If Struzan painted the poster, then it made you want to see the movie.” Alas, it’s not Struzan’s work, as he died in late 2025 after battling Alzheimer’s, but if it wasn’t at least partially inspired by his work and/or style, I’ll say something nice about the cover art of Iron Maiden’s Dance of Death.

Now, the film. To get it out of the way, it could be one of the following:
1: A very long episode of the show.
2: A very short season of the show.
3: Both.

That’s both a plus and a minus in my book. To be harsh, I’d say part of the reason for this film is simply Disney realising that we haven’t had a Star Wars film in cinemas since The Rise of Skywalker, and that was… divisive, to be polite. The ever increasing number of film projects either cancelled or in development hell continues to grow (The GoT guys had a film trilogy announced at one point, Rey and Lando projects have been announced, there was talk of a film helmed by Taika Waititi, Patty Jenkin’s Rogue Squadron, etc) while the TV slate has relatively less casualties, the most high profile being Rangers of the New Republic, that was cancelled after Gina Carano went alt-right. As for recent TV offerings. Skeleton Crew was a delight, I really enjoyed The Acolyte and have a lot of sympathy for it’s cast and crew given the torrent of abuse they seemed to receive on social media. Taking an episode of The Book of Boba Fett to basically be a stealth episode of The Mandalorian was a bold strategy, but we aren’t here to debate that series.

As for the film, as I said, it feels like a long episode of the show. That’s not a bad thing, as it’s a good episode, but I guess I’m more used to the films being a bit more high stakes. It doesn’t outstay it’s welcome, yet zips along nicely, even the stretches without dialogue of which there’s a fair few. As previously mentioned, it’s essentially a feature length story, and it’s welcome in the sense that not everything has to be full blast fate of the galaxy stakes. Doctor Who, I’m looking in your direction. Some of the casting is surprising, Martin Scorcese as an alien voice I did not expect, while seeing Sigourney Weaver at the controls of an X-Wing resulted in me desperately trying to keep my emotions in check as my wife was sitting next to me. It’s also lovely to see the increased profile given to the suit performers, as I get the impression that Pedro Pascal is rarely in the suit unless he’s needed to show his face. I could be wrong though, and am happy to be corrected. I have nothing against Pascal and his current status of ‘the Internet’s Boyfriend’, he seems lovely and his openly pro trans rights status is very welcome. I can only hope he doesn’t get overexposed (So to speak, ooh-err) and winds up with an entry similair to Tom Hiddleston and Benadryl Thundersnatch have in my book, in a chapter headlined ‘Lovely actors that don’t need to be in everything.’

Turning to the effects, there’s a gorgeous blend between CG and practical work. The Grogu puppeteering continues to be stunning and seeing Zeb (From Star Wars: Rebels) smacking stormtroopers in live action was fantastic, after his brief cameo in S3 of the show. It’s not a perfect translation from his animated look, but with Steve Blum’s distinctive voice overlaying the performance, I didn’t mind a bit. It’s a Star Wars film, so the effects work continues to be jaw dropping as always, with it continuing to look like the universe we know and love. The little sounds of vehicles and switches hits some ASMR jackpot in my brain and I continue to be irritated I can’t get light switches resembling something from a starfighter cockpit. I’ll say nothing, but there was one one scene in particular that managed to blend CG and stop motion in a way that had me incredibly close to screaming with joy in the cinema. Thankfully for my fellow patrons, I am restrained inside cinema screenings, and aware that me standing, pointing at the screen and yelling at people to appreciate that work as I do would win me no friends. I’m very much in the school of ‘You can laugh, cry and gasp at appropriate moments, but you shut the hell up otherwise’ and favour ushers smacking patrons with foam swords who are using mobile phones. On that note, Ludwig Goransson’s score is a joy to hear through cinema speakers, though I’d have loved some more bass. That’s my taste, rather than cinema speakers though. And yes, I’d love to visit the alternate universe where Ennio Morricone scored the film, but there are few films that wouldn’t benefit from that. DISAGREE WITH ME, IF YOU DARE. It’s the same way I feel there is no film that couldn’t be improved by having Bill and Ted cameo halfway through, though I would add there are films that don’t require it.

How do I sum this up? It’s as close to stand alone as a Star Wars film gets these days. Yes, there’s continuity nods but they’re explained or it doesn’t matter if you don’t know. Sensible choice that. It’s a fun adventure film that doesn’t tax the mind, has regular thrills and explosions and the two things that everyone seems to love from modern Star Wars, that being our helmeted friend and the cutest alien baby in the galaxy. My wife may disagree on the second part, given her reaction to the Tharklings in John Carter, but that’s for another discussion. It won’t blow your mind like the Star Destroyer rumbling overhead in A New Hope, but neither will it make you shudder with second hand embarrassment as when you heard “Somehow, Palpatine returned”. It’s good escapist fun that wraps up neatly at the end, and it’ll hopefully take your mind away from the horrors of the real world for a couple of hours, a high mark in these troubled and chaotic times.

3 and a half stars out of 5.