TV review
Disney series
“The Book of Boba Fett” – unfortunately no, unfortunately not at all
A large format advertisement for ‘The Book of Boba Fett’ in Dublin, Ireland
© Niall Carson / Picture Alliance
The “Star Wars” spin-off “The Mandalorian” was great fun – the expectations for the second series penned by Jon Favreau were high. fatally.
“The Book of Boba Fett” probably wouldn’t seem so bad if “The Mandalorian” wasn’t so good. If the two seasons of the previous series from the Star Wars cosmos had not existed, then this new project from Disney might have been viewed with mild interest and just as mild amazement, or perhaps not, nodded mildly and hoped for a second one Season didn’t even germinate because there probably wouldn’t have been any. The hype that the “Mandalorian” triggered and on whose bow wave colleague Boba Fett wants to sail towards success, has also raised expectations of the new spin-off series. And these expectations were not met in the seven episodes.
There are several reasons for this. One of them is the apparent lack of an overall concept, a big idea. During the first few episodes, the viewer follows the worn-out ex-bounty hunter Boba Fett through excruciatingly long flashbacks and uninteresting present-day scenes in which we learn absolutely nothing about him other than that he’s a fine character. The Tusken Raiders he is a prisoner of treat him badly? He still saves their lives. Two green-faced security guards won’t renounce their former master? He praises her loyalty and thus convinces her to enter his service. The gigantic dinosaur monster Rancor scares even the toughest warriors? Boba Fett makes friends by stroking his nose.
Boba Fett, a man without qualities
This pattern is understood after the second time at the latest, but it is repeated much more often. But what you haven’t figured out is something else entirely: Why should you care what Boba Fett wants or doesn’t want? Somehow the character doesn’t manage to emotionally pull the viewer to his side until the end. That’s not due to actor Temuera Morrison, it must be said, who does his job very solidly. That’s just because of amazingly badly written role. It’s just part one amazingly badly written series is, whose dramaturgy and story arc, perhaps after drinking a few tequilas, must have been rolled.
Nothing really fits together. What are the tough flashbacks in far too many of the opening episodes? Why does main character Boba Fett only explain to us in the last third of the season why he is interested in filling the vacant position of local mafia boss Jabba The Hutt? (Even then, his motivation is unconvincing.) Why doesn’t he have any character traits other than being “a fine guy”? Who is the poorly animated Voldemort-style villain who suddenly appears out of nowhere, and why should he be of any interest to the inclined viewer? You get the idea that it might have helped if you had read all those animated series, comics and fan fiction from the Star Wars universe that still exist. But if that’s the requirement for enjoying The Book of Boba Fett, that sucks. Series like “The Mandalorian” and even “Wandavision” worked perfectly without any background knowledge.
Was there a concept for this series at all?
Why, towards the end of the season, the titular hero Boba Fett suddenly disappeared from the scene for almost two whole episodes and instead we followed our old friend “Mando” and Baby Yoda again, remains a mystery. Presumably the series makers realized that these two indeed have a story to tell that grabs us emotionally – even though it’s about a little green doll and an actor with a bucket helmet on his head. There is also a reunion with the wonderful mechanic Peli Motto (Amy Sedaris). In contrast to Boba Fett’s helpful but unfortunately also heartily uninteresting right hand Fennec Shand (Ming-Na Wen) an extremely refreshing female character.
And, goodness gracious, there are the Cyberpunk Mods – a group of young people who zip through the sandy lanes of Tatooine on brightly colored, flying Vespa scooters, speak with a British accent and dress like the nieces and nephews of The Cure. They seem to be the only ones in the universe to have figured out where to buy colorful fishnet tights. They rebel because there are supposedly no jobs in their neighborhood. Boba Fett says: “You want jobs? Work for me!” And the cyberpunk mods say, “Okay.” Where’s the punk spirit in that, please?
The creators can actually do it
If you haven’t seen the series yet and are wondering, “What?!”, then you pretty much see the problem with The Book of Boba Fett. It’s a series that might please die-hard fans of the eponymous Star Wars hero, but not one that just wants to watch an entertaining show. Where “The Mandalorian” inspired with its very own aesthetics – from the set design to the soundtrack – with a story that is as simple as it is gripping, a sympathetic protagonist and an almost revolutionary format (“Xena” meets “Better Call Saul”), there ” Boba Fett” half-baked, loveless, chopped up and almost ridiculous in parts. Worse, it’s often just plain boring. Gags that are obviously wanted fizzle out in a vacuum, as do cool sayings or action moments.
A second season of the series isn’t currently planned, and if we’re allowed to speculate, it won’t be. Instead, a third season of “The Mandalorian” would be most welcome, in which Boba Fett is also welcome to appear, perhaps to reveal an interesting side of his personality after all. After all, you know that the makers – Jon Favreau, Dave Filoni, Robert Rodriguez – can actually do better.