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Originally Posted by Chris
It tells straightforward, easy to follow stories in a universe that is both familiar
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Correct, and it is the easy to follow stories which are shallow. It is a very Airwolf/A-team style series where you just hop from planet to planet every week for the weekly scrap. It would be believable if the series was just about his bounty hunter adventures but it isn't. There is supposed to be this big important story of how he is trying to reunite baby Yoda with his people and keep him safe and that doesn't gel with visiting every planet you come across and leaving him with random people. Imho they have got the balance wrong in storytelling and haven't put enough emphasis on the saving Yoda storyline and it is all revolving justifying and establishing the weekly punch ups. The last couple of episodes though look like they are changing direction and give me hope.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Chris
They did nothing fundamentally different than any other week. The difference that’s got you peeing your pants is a decision to reference a couple of extended universe characters, plus Yoda. You’re claiming this is somehow all pure and meaningful but I’m sorry I find that reaction a bit shallow.
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Incorrect. I know nothing of the extended universe so referencing Admiral thingy at the end and anyone else I might have missed didn't mean anything to me. You made the important point that the series exists in a universe that we know and when that happens efforts have to be made to keep the universe alive and make you believe that what you are seeing and experiencing is in keeping and part of that universe. There are two things that did it for me in that episode. The first one was seeing the Jedi, seeing her in action and listening to her talk about the force and interacting with baby Yoda. The purity and meaning I mentioned is how this is done. It isn't enough to say it or do some cheesy trick with the force. It is how it is executed from the tone of the dialogue (the Jedi believes what she is saying) and the manner in which it is executed. You believed every word she was saying and that she was a real Jedi, she lived the life and was determined to uphold her beliefs and values no matter the cost. That all comes across and is why these insignificant subtleties you don't care about matter. It all adds to the realism factor. They could have showed you somebody dancing around the forest with a lightsaber, waving their arm around and throwing some trees with the Force and saying they are a Jedi and you would have been happy with that but it would have been a disservice to the Jedi and Star Wars. You can slap all the locations and characters in a series you want but they are just cardboard unless they behave and interact the way you know they should do in a given situation and the experience is believable and realistic.
The second was (finally) getting some back story on baby Yoda, where he came from and why he is in his current predicament and what needs to happen going forward, These kind of things add depth to the character and story, give the story structure and make everything more realistic. If understanding Yoda's backstory isn't significant and doesn't hold any value then it doesn't matter whether he is in it or not. Kill him off in the next episode and Mando can continue to be on the run plodding from one planet to the next and all is good.
What is shallow is that you seem content for them to throw anything and everything into the series and say "it's ok, I know it is in Star Wars and I don't need to know anything else". Maybe when Mando lands on the next planet we have Jabba the Hut and the Millenium Falcon in the background. Everyone can get excited about seeing them but we don't need to know how or why they are there.