CHAPTER 6
The Prisoner: The Mandalorian joins a crew of mercenaries on a dangerous mission.
Written by: Jon Favreau | Directed by: Rick Famuyiwa
I realized something. I truly love the character of the Mandalorian, the Child and a few other secondary characters we've met so far but I don't feel like I love the show. I do "like" it and I've enjoyed having a new episode to look forward to every week but that's all, and that's ok. I feel lucky that I love so much of the Star Wars content that is put out there for use to enjoy. With that said, let's take a look at what happened in Chapter 6.
This episode starts off with the Mandalorian meeting up with a group of bounty hunters for a job put together by the leader Ranzar Malk (Mark Boone Jr.), Mayfeld (Bill Burr), a Devaron named Burg (Clancy Brown), a Twi’lek named Xi’an (Natalia Tena), and the only one I liked out of the entire group, a spunky droid called Q9-0, aka Zero (Richard Ayoade). While introductions were being made, I worried about the Child as he was no where in sight. I figured the Mando just left him sleeping inside the Razor Crest again *sigh*. We also find out that the Mando has a past with Ranzar and Xi'an, and that Ranzar really only wanted to work with him again because of the Razor Crest. The fact that the Razor Crest was off of the grid would make the job of rescuing their comrade easier. I knew instantly these guys were up to no good.
Sure enough. The individual that they planned on rescuing is a convict and he is aboard a maximum-security New Republic Prison Ship. The Mando isn't too keen on this idea until he is informed that it is mostly run by droids. Still, things aren't going exactly as he thought they would and to make it worse, Ranzar instructed that Zero would be flying the Crest. A DROID flying HIS ship. I don't know why he isn't more cautious about the jobs he takes especially considering now that he is responsible for the Child. Speaking of being cautious...
As they're making their way to the New Republic Prison Ship, the crew taunts the Mandalorian about his previous dealings with the group and they take it a bit too far. They mock his ways as a Mandalorian and tease him about taking his helmet off. Burg attempts to remove his helmet but the Mando quickly defends hmself which results in them hitting a switch that opens up the hatch the Child is in. The bounty hunters are all amazed and curious about the creature. Mayfeld picks the Child up and the Mando watches closely but doesn't do anything about it. I don't believe for once second the Mando would've allowed him to lay a finger on him. Then again, many of the choices he makes that involve the Child I don't agree with.
Most of the excitement started in this Chapter when they finally arrive on the ship. They walk past several prisoners and finally make their way to the control room where they run into an officer with a familiar face. I immediately exclaimed, "That's Matt Lanter!" (voice of Anakin Skywalker in The Clone Wars). Xi'an unfortunately kills him but not before he was able to send out a distress signal using a homing beacon to the New Republic. This gave them exactly twenty minutes to grab their man and get out of there. We find out that the prisoner is Xi'an's brother, a Twi'lek named Quin, who happens to be there because of the Mando which called for an awkward situation. Just when I thought they were all going to get out in one piece, the crew turns on the Mando and traps him in the same sell Quin was locked up in. I didn't see that one coming!
Obviously, the Mandalorian escapes and now he's in "destroy mode"! The way the rest of the episode played out was intense and really explored more of what I've been wanting to see from the Mando. We really get to see his expertise in planning things out out and just how skilled he is in a fight. Even though he does get kicked and thrown around quite a bit, he almost always outsmarts his opponent! While he is busy taking down each of the crew members (besides Quin) and throwing them into the cells, the Child had his own nemesis to deal with. Zero! Now, I could be wrong about this but as soon as Zero and the bounty hunters lost communication with each other, the camera pans over to the Child. He is standing right behind Zero who is still in the pilot seat. I'd like to think that it was the Child who disrupted their communications with the Force in an effort to help his friend, the Mando. Either way, Zero is highly distracted by the Child especially after discovering an old transmission from Greef Karga instructing the Mando to return the asset. The Child basically plays hide and seek with Zero and it was quite amusing though very nerve-wracking. I'm constantly worried about that little guy!
When the Mando returns to the Razor Crest with Quin in hand, he finds Zero armed standing right in front of the Child. He blasts him away just before the Child could use the Force on him. Darn it! The Mando and the Child finally make it back to Ranzar. Before paying the Mando for the job, Ranzar inquires about the rest of the bounty hunters to which the Mando replies "No questions. That's the policy, right?". The Mando takes off in the Crest and Ranzar immediately orders that he be killed. A starfighter emerges from beneath them but just then Quin notices that the Mando placed a homing beacon on him which was the same one used to send the distress signal. We suddenly see three X-wings jump out of hyperspace coming straight towards Ranzar and Quin! The pilots were all directors on the show including Dave Filoni, Rick Famuyiwa, and Deborah Chow and they blew that starfighter to smithereens. It was a very unexpected but welcome scenario.
Overall, I felt this chapter was better than the previous one even though the Mando and Child are, once again, in the same place that they were before. We did meet several new characters but I'm not entirely sure how much of them we'll see in the future. We seem to meet and part with characters a lot in this show so it makes it difficult to determine who will make a comeback. If anything, this episode developed the Mando's character a bit more which I appreciate. After all, this show is about him.
There are only two episodes left of this season and I can't even imagine how it will end! Don't forget, Chapter 7 will air on Disney+ on Wednesday, December 18th. What did you think of the episode? Let me know in a comment below or send me a DM on Twitter or Instagram! I am NOT openly discussing spoilers about The Mandalorian on social media.
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