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Review: "Star Wars Insider Presents: The Mandalorian Collection"

Published February 18, 2024 • Written by • Filed under Collectibles

When I first heard of this upcoming release, I thought “Star Wars Insider Presents: The Mandalorian Collection” would be more akin to a character encyclopedia, but for Mandalorian characters. Instead, it is a collection of past interviews and articles released in issues of Star Wars Insider magazine. Acquiring the issues where these were originally featured would be no easy task, as there are several and have been out for some time now. Having them all in one spot is very convenient and will save you time — time that could be spent reading these interesting pages.

The material covered has a great range chronologically, going as back as “The Clone Wars” up until “The Mandalorian” Season 3. Of course, it only covers material where Mandalorians have taken front and center, hence the title of this compilation. They also deviate a bit with characters that aren’t necessarily Mandalorian, but play an important role in their stories, such as Luke Skywalker and Ahsoka Tano.

These articles also aren’t very heavy with in-universe lore, but have some of that mixed with a lot of behind-the-scenes information about production and factors that inspired details about the characters and their arcs in Star Wars. The most notable interviews are the ones with the actors themselves.

Other than a blast-from-the-past with a Death Watch article, the first half focuses on “The Mandalorian,” both the show and character Din Djarin himself. However, other Mandalorians such as Bo Katan Kryze and Sabine Wren also have pages dedicated to them. A big part of the pages are essentially recaps of the seasons and their episodes (which the Boba Fett Fan Club has also reviewed at every release). There is also a list of Mando’s top ten moments thus far. This must have been written before Season 3, because moments were only chosen from Season 1 and Season 2. Either that, or the author of that articles agrees with me that Season 3 was laughably bad. (Maybe not completely — the Mythosaur was very cool, as was some of the action.) As you can imagine, the first seasons of The Mandalorian were heavily influenced not only by Westerns, but old samurai movies as well. I can’t detail everything said, because it addresses a lot of things and I don’t want to spoil everything. But I will say this: if there’s anything the first seasons of the show did well, it was mixing old Star Wars tropes, characters and locations with new material. Even though Din Djarin comes from a long legacy of Mandalorians, he is his own character. I will admit there was one thing that was unaddressed in these pages that I would have liked to have learn about: Din Djarin’s original armor. It appeared Mandalorian in design, but was shredded easily by the Mudhorn. Therefore, it was not true beskar. Perhaps that’s why the Covert that Mando came from was so easily slain off-screen in Season 1.

I particularly enjoyed the interview with Emily Swallow, who plays The Armorer. Pedro Pascal, naturally, gets a lot of the attention surrounding “The Mandalorian;” an interview with him is of course included in this collection. I was pleased to read that it is indeed her under the armor of The Armorer in every one of her appearances. I understand that Din Djarin had more screen time than The Armorer, but I am not impressed by the fact that Pedro Pascal usually isn’t underneath the armor of Din Djarin. So getting the perspective of another actor on the show was very refreshing, and it’s cute how she adores her young female fans. Hopefully, this is a by-product of Mandalorian culture in Star Wars doing a good job of reaching out to female fans and making them feel included. The interview with Katie Sackoff (who plays Bo Katan) was similar in this regard. Both she and Emily wanted to be Princess Leia when they were younger. But now, thanks to them, there are Mandalorian female characters that girls and women can look up to.

My favorite section, of course, was the latter half of the book focusing mostly on Boba Fett. In particular, I enjoyed “The Fett Family’s Finest,” a countdown of 10 great appearances from the saga featuring Boba Fett. I slightly disagree with the order, but every entry was well-chosen and well-explained. I was also pleased that all three of the main Fett actors — Jeremy Bulloch, Temuera Morrison, and Daniel Logan — had interviews as well. (Fun fact: the Daniel Logan interview features original photos by Boba Fett Fan Club’s Aaron Proctor.) The Mandalorian characters and culture have expanded exponentially the last few years. But the Fetts, and those who brought them to life, were the ones who started it all and held the line during past eras of Star Wars. “The Mandalorian Collection” does well to remember this and give them their due, so I tip my imaginary Mandalorian helmet to them — like when Boba Fett nodded to Boushh in Jabba’s Palace.

If you’ve been a long-time or die-hard Star Wars fan, you won’t find too much new information. I was hardly surprised by anything that I read. But this Collection would do wonders for fans who are either more casual or new to the franchise. Much of what we’ve learned over the years would be spoon-fed quickly, bringing these fans up to speed.

If you were expecting a meaty tome, with a lot of text to read, this isn’t quite it. There is a lot of artwork and photos — and mind you, they’re fantastic — but it makes “The Mandalorian Collection” a much lighter read. It didn’t take much time for me to go through the whole thing. You will likely also remain unsatisfied if you are exclusively a Boba Fett/Jango Fett fan like I am. I am not invested in Mandalorians as a whole. However, if you are a fan of The Mandalorian (since this collection focuses heavily on it), or Mandalorians in general, this is the book for you.

Rating

4 / 5
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Fett Fact Check

Exclusive Sneak Peek at "Star Wars Insider Presents: The Mandalorian Collection"

Published February 18, 2024 • Written by • Filed under Collectibles

Titan — the publisher behind “Star Wars Insider Presents: The Mandalorian Collection” — has given us an exclusive sneak peek to share before the official release of the souvenir hardcover book on February 20th. It’s a collection of essential yet previously published Star Wars Insider articles in one volume, including this one called “Introducing Boba Fett” from Star Wars Insider #164. They’ve let us publish an excerpt with you, with an approval from Lucasfilm:

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In 1978, Clive Smith was getting worried. Sure, Smith’s animation company, Nelvana Studios, had a nice gig producing stock footage for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, but that wasn’t enough. “There was a point where we were really desperate to get into the entertainment business,” Smith says, “Especially me. I wanted to build the animation studio.”

And then George Lucas called.

Lucas needed someone to produce a ten-minute animated short for Lucasfilm’s upcoming Star Wars Holiday Special, and he thought that Nelvana might be right for the job. The short, titled The Faithful Wookiee, would feature a script co-written by Lucas himself, and would introduce audiences to Boba Fett, the villainous bounty hunter who hunts down Han Solo in The Empire Strikes Back. It was the opportunity that Smith had been waiting for, but it came with a catch: Smith only had two weeks to finish all of the storyboards and character designs, and he would have to travel to California to get George Lucas’ approval in person. “It was pretty stressful,” Smith says. Ultimately, the Star Wars Holiday Special would become one of the most mysterious chapters in the franchise’s storied history.

By reuniting the cast of Star Wars in a two-hour variety show, Lucasfilm hoped to tide fans over until The Empire Strikes Back hit screens. It didn’t work out that way. The Star Wars Holiday Special puzzled viewers and critics alike. And yet, the Star Wars Holiday Special’s legacy lives on, thanks in part to Clive Smith, Nelvana, and Boba Fett.

Smith might’ve had the experience, but getting The Faithful Wookiee ready in time wasn’t easy. Even for experienced animators, two weeks isn’t a lot time to put together storyboards and character designs. The technology made it harder too. “Remember, it was pre-digital,” Smith says. “Today, storyboard artists do a panel, and they can do several different poses within that panel, and it takes very little effort to do it. We were using pencils and paper, and sticking things on the wall and moving things around.”

Lucas sent Smith a script, and Smith got to work. Smith and another animator, Frank Nissen, locked themselves in a boardroom and cranked out hundreds of storyboards.

Meanwhile, Nelvana’s designers plugged away, rendering the Star Wars universe into animation for the very first time. Turning characters like Han Solo, Luke Skywalker, and Princess Leia into cartoons wasn’t too difficult; all the animators had to do was look at the original actors for inspiration.

With Boba Fett, a brand-new character, it was different. “They sent us a black and white film of an actor in a mock-up of Boba Fett’s suit,” Smith remembers, but the design wasn’t final, and the color scheme hadn’t been locked down at that point. As the story goes, Boba Fett’s costume was supposed to sleek and streamlined, like a stormtrooper’s. Smith disagreed. To play up Fett’s warrior past, Nelvana made the bounty hunter’s costume worn and battle-scarred. The rough-hewn nature of the outfit made its way into The Empire Strikes Back’s final Boba Fett costume, and has stuck with the character ever since.

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To learn how Clive Smith and his team brought Boba Fett to the screen for the first time, you can read the full interview in “Star Wars Insider Presents: The Mandalorian Collection” which goes on sale February 20. It also contains select essentials related to “The Mandalorian” Seasons 1 to 3 and “The Book of Boba Fett,” including interviews with Padro Pascal (the Mandalorian), Katee Sackhoff (Bo-Katan Kryze), Jeremy Bulloch (Boba Fett), and much more!

Images courtesy of the publisher.

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Review: "The Psychgeist of Pop Culture: The Mandalorian"

Published February 1, 2024Updated • Written by • Filed under Community

I can read this book warm, (dramatic pause) … or I can read this book cold.

What do I mean? Well, “The Psychgeist of Pop Culture: The Mandalorian” — a collection of essays written by academics and scholars around the world, edited by Dr. Jessica E. Tompkins (BFFC member #16), with series editor Dr. Rachel Kowert — is sure to be enjoyed by many Star Wars fans, but it is unlikely that all will agree with everything presented in the book… but that’s the point. We all have our own thoughts and beliefs, so while we all watch the same show, for each of us it’s unique, because we are likely to have different interpretations That is the charm of a collection of Star Wars essays by different, diverse writers. It is such ‘food for thought’ it might as well be an all-you-can eat buffet – but, can you stomach the food? This review will go through a quick rundown of the essays featured in “The Psychgeist of Pop Culture: The Mandalorian” that deal in the psychology of the characters and narrative themes found in “The Mandalorian” and “The Book of Boba Fett” from different perspectives, angles, and fields of study.

1. “Mando with No Name: The Mandalorian as nostalgic Western cinema” (Nicholas David Bowman, PhD. and Koji Yoshimura, PhD.)

This first essay reads like 2-in-1, with the first half focusing on the history of Western cinema and how its legacy inspired Star Wars’ space western elements, in particular Boba Fett and Din Djarin. Both characters were inspired by the iconic “Man with No Name,” a poncho wearing, stoic gunslinger-with-spurs antihero that Clint Eastwood portrayed in the “Dollars Trilogy” Spaghetti Westerns. Mando with No Name features a thoughtful analysis on the most-Western inspired episodes of The Mandalorian, such as “The Gunslinger” and “The Marshal” featuring Cobb Vanth. The writers also speak of Cad Bane, perhaps the most-Western influenced character of “The Book of Boba Fett” and compares Bane to a character named Liberty Valance, an evildoer from a Western film who arguably inspired Bane’s appearance. However, the writers overlooked mentioning actor Lee Van Cleef, who portrayed an evil henchman in the film “The Man Who Shot Liberty Valence.” Van Cleef was inspiration for Cad Bane’s design. Omitting this detail was a bit disappointing because we know from the behind-the-scenes development that George Lucas insisted on Bane taking inspiration from Lee Van Cleef (as opposed to a more armored design like Durge, another bounty hunter character to whom Cad Bane was spun off from). Overall, this essay provides a good argument on nostalgia’s role in marketing The Mandalorian, but I argue it was not just the nostalgic yearn for more content tied to Boba Fett’s legacy and Western media tropes, but also nostalgia for Attack of the Clones’ Jango Fett too(who was created out of nostalgia for the pre-clone version of Boba Fett, much like Din Djarin was). Nostalgia is a hard thing to measure by any metric, as fans were attracted to The Mandalorian without knowledge of the Fett’s or Western film history. How much nostalgia plays into The Mandalorian’s success has always been a moot point, in my opinion. It is a factor, but to what degree? It’s hard to tell.

2. “Like Father, Like Clone? Boba Fett’s Nature and Nurture” (Jessica E. Tompkins, Ph.D.)

This essay gets in depth with Boba Fett, even providing an overview of his history, including some great references to the Boba Fett of the EU (e.g., being a Journeyman Protector, gladly hunting a Spice dealer for Jabba) prior to him being retconned as a clone. For those to truly understand Boba Fett and his legacy, one must understand his history, because by understanding that, you’d know there were already multiple versions of Boba Fett way before “The Book of Boba Fett” aired. Critics who didn’t know this made it seem like the character had changed for the first time in his show. But this essay understands that and provides a thoughtful analysis of his character, like the symbolism of Jango Fett not physically appearing in Boba Fett’s flashbacks about Kamino and Geonosis, the spiritual rebirth he went through after emerging from the womb-like hell of the Sarlacc’s insides, and the symbolism of snapping the wortwood tree’s branch and severing his bounty hunter ties for good.. This chapters also explores his bond with Fennec, how it differs from the relationship Jango had with Zam Wesell (of Attack of the Clones), whom Jango was quick to kill in order to protect himself. The role of Cad Bane in his development is similarly explored. The author argues thatCad Bane is symbolic of Boba Fett’s former ‘predisposed’ nature (due to genetic inheritance) who put ruthlessness and self-interest above community and compassion. Based off the arguments presented one could additionally say that Boba Fett killed not just a version of himself by killing Bane, but a version of his father, Jango. Even the sad way Boba seems to walk away from Bane’s dying/dead body signifies a deep loss, rather than a victory against a rival old enough to be his uncle. Overall, this is a good study on how genetics and environment play into how Boba Fett is characterized, and how he has evolved, while challenging the notion of him being soft.

3. “Wonderful (Non-)Human Beings: Seeing Human in a Galaxy Far, Far Away” (Kevin Koban, PhD)

This essay delves into Anthropomorphism in The Mandalorian, categorizing them in several groups: The Near-Humans, Zoomorphs, Enigmas andDroids. This is an intriguing analysis on the differences between alien species that are sometimes very human-like but sometimes not at all. The near-humans are so human-like that they might as well be seen that way by the audience, such as the Tortuga Ahsoka, the Twi’Lek characters (which there are several of within the Mandoverse), the leathery skinned Weequays, or the blue-faced Thrawn; they are alien species that are human enough to be seen as familiar to the audience. Then there are enigmatic species, such as the Jawas, Tuskens, and the mysterious “Frog” people who speak enigmatic languages. The author also discusses the Zoomorphic type species like Grogu, the Ugnaughts and Mon Cala species who do not resemble humans but have some animalistic traits.. Lastly, this essay goes into the Mechanical entities, the Droids, such as R2/R5/Chopper, IG droids, C-3PO and many others, making mention of The Mandalorian Season 3’s sixth episode featuring Existential droids. The author also explores the Star Wars vision in general, how it mixes serial storytelling and Sci-Fi with the use of anthropomorphic characters, and how the Mandoverse pays tribute to that vision. This chapter is more of a cool read, since one of the first things people observe of Star Wars is the Anthropomorphism in varying forms. It is arguably one of the aspects that draws people into Star Wars, although the series ‘Andor’ also proves that when it’s done in a more minimal way it can be just as effective as when it is done in excess.

4. “The Psychology of Ownership: Boba Fett’s Armor and the Darksaber as Cultural Heritage” (Stephanie Orme, PhD)

This chapter draws an interesting parallel about ownership using Boba Fett’s armor and the Darksaber. Both have their own history, have had several owners, and both resonate with the fans of Star Wars for their significance, albeit in different ways. However, one criticism I had was about the idea that Cobb Vanth felt he had the right to wear Mandalorian armor. This is because he was quick to understand, without being told, that a real Mando would not be happy with him wearing it. To me, while watching the series, it seemed Vanth’s need to protect his territory and people is what made him feel he had the right to keep it, rather than a case of valid ownership. His forthright acknowledgement that he got it from Jawas is basically admitting that the armor was stolen goods. Also, the writer mentions that Din Djarin agreed to return Boba Fett’s armor. –While it is true that Din did acknowledge Boba’s ownership of the armor (after proving his father Jango was a Mandalorian foundling), once he lost his Razor Crest ship on Tython, Din was no longer in any position of telling Boba Fett what he could or couldn’t wear(seeing as Boba was his only way off that planet and Boba already secured his armor). In my opinion, the fact that Boba went out of his way to assure Din about the authenticity of his ownership shows he respected Din’s views on Mando armor ownership, even if he didn’t like how Din had declined to give it back when Boba demanded it in a hostile manner.

Otherwise, this essay does a good job in analyzing both the armor and the Darksaber. Here, the author presents the background and history of the Darksaber, where it came from (Tarre Vizsla) and those who owned it (Pre Vizsla, Bo-Katan, Moff Gideon). Fans of The Clone Wars and Rebels will appreciate the level of depth regarding the Darksaber’s history and how Bo-Katan ended up with the Darksaber to begin with (through Sabine Wren, but there’s more to the story, of course).Fans of Season 3 of The Mandalorian will likewise appreciate this essay, as S3 went into the later history of the Darksaber, how it ended up with Moff Gideon for a time, and why Bo-Katan felt too much shame to accept the Darksaber from Din Djarin after he defeated Gideon.

5. “Is this The Way? The Mandalorian’s Moral Journey” (Rowan Daneels, Ph.D.)

This essay goes into the subject morality in The Mandalorian using Moral Foundations Theory (MFT), applying these sets foundations to the Mandalorian Creed of caring for foundlings and showing loyalty and solidarity to other Mandalorians. Now, this essay I found interesting because I never really thought about the morals of the Creed;I just saw the Creed more as guidelines to live by that serve to create future generations of Mandalorians loyal to the ancient ways.As such, I previously did not consider thinking about the bounty hunting profession as something contradictory to the Mandalorian Creed. Bounty hunters, being free to select the missions they pursued could simply avoid missions that they thought would be in conflict with their morals. The problem is that sometimes missions are not what they are expected to be – like taking a job from a seemingly harmless “Imperial warlord” to hunt for a “50 year old” bounty to gain beskar that was stolen from Mandalore. The morality of bounty hunting aside, this essay shows Din Djarin’s moral journey with Grogu and how it ended up transcending the Mandalorian Creed, in a way that was problematic to his version of morality. This chapter demonstrates how he is able to reconcile things in the end, redeeming himself as a (Children of the Watch) Mandalorian and as a father to Grogu who becomes an official Mandalorian foundling by the end of Season 3, hinting that Grogu will develop the same Mandalorian morals and values as his father over time.

6. “He’s one of Them: Social Identity and the Mandalorian” (James D. Ivory, Michael Senters, Virginia Tech)

This is an enjoyable essay about social identity applied to The Mandalorian, including some mentions to themes and characters beyond the series. For example, there is a great reference to the series Rebels involving the Mandalorian-Jedi Sabine Wren and Jedi Ezra Bridger that gets tied into the idea of Mandalorian armor as a condensation symbol.This chapter demonstrates how Mandalorian armor is more than just armor to the owner, because it can signify emotions, memories, family as well as Mandalorian history. Furthermore, the author makes a parallel between the Stormtroopers of the Empire, who are victims of de-individuation(lacking individuality) and the Mandalorian people, who reject de-individuation, and embrace individuality as evident by the different armor designs. However, despite that, Mandalorian factions still bickered and fought on issues of identity, especially after the Great Purge, as noted by the writer, which is some spot-on analysis. An interesting read.

7. “A clan of two: Attachment & Connection” (Kelly E. Pelzel, PhD and Brugundy J. Johnson, DO)

This chapter discusses Attachment Theory as applied the attachment needs of both Din Djarin and Grogu. It goes into depth about how Din Djarin, despite having a traumatic past, connects with Grogu and secures a bond as his caretaker. This offers an interesting analysis of the caretaker role as applied to Djarin, and shows the influence that his allies had on his parenting. For examplePeli Motto and Greef Karga played a role in leaning Din Djarin toward being a parent, pushing him towards that direction at times, whereas Ahsoka Tano and The Armorer offered Grogu a pathway to be reunited with a Jedi that could train him, as opposed to pushing Din to fully embrace his role as the father of Grogu. This is not a slight on either Ahsoka or The Armorer, of course, they were simply leaving it to Din to make those decisions even if Din was indecisive beyond his need to protect “the child” (as he used to affectionately call Grogu). Peli Motto, in contrast, even considered Grogu as Din’s son. For example, she presented Din with the Naboo starfighter that was customized for Din and Grogu in mind. This essay leads up the moment of the secure attachment being solidified (in season two) when Din Djarin unmasks for Grogu before he sends him off to train with Luke Skywalker as his first student. The authors analyze the moment through attachment theory, arguing that Din says goodbye to Grogu using facial emotions and physical touch that were previously missing from their father-son relationship because of his adherence to the Creed. A Good read about the Mudhorn Clan.

8. “Wherever I go, he goes: Fatherhood and male emotion” (Keely Diebold and Meghan Sanders, Ph.D.)

This chapter contrasts Din Djarin and Anakin Skywalker, so fans of the Prequel Trilogy (“The Phantom Menace,” “Attack of the Clones,” and “Revenge of the Sith”) will want to read this one. I found this fascinating because when I watched Attack of the Clones I could not help but compare young Boba Fett with the young Anakin Skywalker and the similar dark trajectories that followed after they lost the family they were attached to.Yet, I never thought to do the same with Din and Anakin, who really do come off as opposites when it comes to male emotion.

This essay explores their traumatic pasts as well as Djarin’s shift from having an avoidant and insecure attachment style (attributed to being raised by authoritarian Mandalorians and associating with underworld contacts like Greef Karga), to possessing a secure attachment style, as a solitary figure with a traumatic past who is able to make a secure bond with a loved one like Grogu. Comparatively, Anakin Skywalker loses Qui-Gon so fast, followed by his mother Schmi on Tatooine, that he developed an anxious, ambivalent attachment style that led to his downfall. Not only because Palpatine had manipulated him, but because Anakin was skeptical of the Jedi way that he perceived as an obstacle to protecting his loved ones, leading to his anger and ambivalence.

I agreed with this essay’s arguments, although it could have gone more in depth on the history of hyper-masculinity in cinema in relation to Star Wars.There’s no mention of George Lucas wanting to make a Flash Gordon serial prior to creating Star Wars. The character Flash Gordon (dubbed the “King of the Impossible”) is, from what I understand, an athletic, intelligent, and brave Sci-Fi hero who would go on adventures on different planets with other characters. Sowhen George Lucas made Star Wars, his male heroes like Luke Skywalker and Han Solo similarly shared those traits. The essay makes a thoughtful point regardless.

9. “We’re All Equal Here: Women of the Mandalorian” (Gina Marcello, Ph.D.)

This essay offers a feminist perspective that analyzes the main female characters from “The Mandalorian” and “The Book of Boba Fett” such as Bo-Katan Kryze, Fennec Shand, The Armorer, and Cara Dune. It’s unfortunate this essay does not get into any other female characters (bad news for Frog Lady fans) but that’s okay, the point was to look at the most popular characters. The author argues these women are portrayed with masculine traits, but yet unlike the male heroes, they lack the moral agency that characters like Din Djarin have. Additionally, the author notes that these heroines lack a feminine voice, with the exception of season three of The Mandalorian where both Bo-Katan and the Armorer enact moral agency and a feminine voice to bridge divides in the Mandalorian community. The essay also argues that Jon Favreau (being influenced by Western cinema that portrayed women as either damsels in distress of femme fatales) struggled to do justice to characters like The Armorer, Bo-Katan, and Fennec Shand until they underwent moral transformations post-season two, and that Cara Dune remained the one female character (with masculine traits) that was portrayed with moral agency from the start and did not need to undergo a moral transformation.(Although, it should be noted that being from Alderaan, , the implication might be that her moral transformation began during the events of A New Hope, and that’s what led her to fight for a greater cause in the war). The essay also considers that season three would likely have been written differently had Cara Dune’s actress not been removed from the show, and makes a case for the need for a character like her to return. On Fennec Shand, she is described as a “right hand man” to Boba Fett, but this felt a bit like a cheap shot, since being a right-hand man/woman is honorable; it implies skill, strength, loyalty, and trust. Considering Boba Fett saved her from certain death did not turn her into the law (as there was a bounty on her), offered her freedom after she helped him get his ship back, and then offered her equal status as his partner, I think they have a great relationship going on. Fennec has shown some softer moments; for example, hanging with Cara Dune in ‘The Believer’ episode, bonding with Drash after saving her life in TBOBF finale, so I felt this essay was a bit harsh in the description of Fennec. However, the analysis of The Armorer, Bo-Katan and Cara Dune make for a good read.

10. “Scars on the Inside: Trauma and Recovery” (Blake Pellman, PhD)

‘Scars on the Inside’ might have been my favorite chapter of this book. It is very well written, and intense as it goes in depth with trauma, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in “The Mandalorian” and “The Book of Boba Fett.” It explores the traumatic events of Din Djarin, Boba Fett, and Grogu, who’s PTSD is most exemplified in season three’s “The Foundling” . This essay details the Neurobiology of Stress, Fear, and Memory, and the Social Impact of trauma for these characters. There is some fascinating insight on why Din Djarin, in the first chapter of The Mandalorian, decided to Grogu from IG-11 out of fear stemming from his own childhood trauma. It’s an interesting notion that his attack on IG-11 was the result of a PTSD trigger, as Din was once a child hunted by droids before being saved by the Mandalorians, leading to his intense droid phobia. The essay also discusses trauma and recovery in “The Book of Boba Fett,” the healing power of relationships and community within the context of post-Sarlacc Boba Fett and the Tusken Tribe that not only saved him from dying, but helped him resolve the trauma he carried for so long after witnessing Jango Fett’s beheading in battle with the Jedi. I would have liked a bit more detail on Boba Fett, but it’s probably better to present these arguments concisely.

11. “These people lay ancestral claim to the Dune Sea: Racialization & the Problematic Portrayal of the Tusken Peoples” (Carlina de la Cova, PhD)

The Tusken Raiders … also known as the “Sand People.” Yeah, the portrayal of the Tuskens was problematic, but how and why? This chapter goes into all of that. The author discusses how Tuksens were racialized caricatures rooted in Western and Scientific Racism (a form of bad science that negatively impacted non-white people) pioneered by European White Scientists (of the past),For this reason, Tusken portrayals became problematic as Star Wars grew in popularity overtime. Tuskens, being the native and indigenous people of Tatooine were originally presented as savage, unintelligent, barbaric beings, but the more we learn about them,we came to understand that were not uncivilized, and in fact have their own complex culture, traditions and values (even though that includes crossing lines, like the way they kidnapped Shmi Skywalker, which led Anakin to destroy an entire Tusken tribe, hinting Anakin may have grown up believing them to be subhuman because he showed no mercy in his slaughter of innocent Tusken children). However, this essay notes many in the Star Wars universe hold a negative view of Tuskens, like Toro Calican in The Mandalorian who mentions that Tatooine locals saw Tuskens as filth. This aligns with the original Star Wars film where both “Ben” Kenobi and Luke look at them as mindless monsters. The author even mentions that neither Obi-Wan nor Luke attempted to learn the Tusken language as the Mandalorian Din Djarin did, but this opens up a problem I have with the show; how did Din Djarin learn to speak the enigmatic Tusken language? Even Boba Fett, who lived with Tuskens, did not learn their verbal language (opting for Tusken sign language).Din Djarin used sign language in his first interaction with Tuskens in ‘The Gunslinger’. It’s not until season two that Din suddenly shows he can speak Tusken, too. I found this incredibly odd. Did The Mandalorians who raised him teach him? Did he learn in between season one and two? Honestly, I’d love an answer to that – but now I am way off my review.

One criticism I did have was the idea of “The Book of Boba Fett” being a “White Savior Story” in regards to the whole sequence where Boba and the Tuskens stop the Pyke’s Train that smuggled Spice and shot at Tuskens indiscriminately. Sure, they couldn’t stop the train without Boba acquiring the technology they needed (speeder bikes), as well as him teaching them how to operate thev speeder, but the Tuskens are portrayed as quick learners. And really, Boba’s plan would have failed were it not for one particular Tusken who killed as many Pykes as he did and opened up a path for him to advance to the front of the train. I think a much better example of a “White Savior Story” would have been Season two’s opening chapter where a Greater Krayt Dragon is too much for the Tuskens that they need assistance from those they perceive as colonists (Cobb Vanth and his people) as well as Mandalorian Din Djarin, who ends up being their ‘knight in shining armor’ as he alone (and a Bantha armed with explosives) takes down the Greater Krayt Dragon. Even though the Tuskens have far more experience against such creatures than someone who isn’t a local, they needed Din in order to kill the creature. I think that fits the description better of a “White Savior Story” than “The Book of Boba Fett” where Jon Favreau included better writing and highlighted what the Tuskens were capable of, rather than their ineffective and expendable portrayal from “The Marshal.” But that’s the kind of food for thought this essay offers.

12. “Memories of Mandalore: Memory and Recollection” (Michael J. Serra, Dept. of Psych. Sciences, Texas Tech U.)

This final essay goes into flashbacks. Flashbacks of all kind, from the traditional flashbacks of Rogue One and Andor, to the trauma-based flashbacks of The Mandalorian, the flash-forwards of The Sequel Trilogy, the Force-induced flashbacks of Grogu and Ahsoka, the amnesia-related flashbacks in the case of Darth Revan, the explanatory flashbacks (Cobb Vanth’s story of how he got Boba Fett’s armor, and Kuiil’s IG-11 story) and of course, the Boba Fett bacta-pod flashbacks. Boba’s flashbacks served two purposes; as a plot device to explain the unexplained gaps in his history that tied to his appearance in The Mandalorian, and also as a way to explain how and why Boba Fett feels the ways he does in the present timeline of the show. This essay also makes mention that George Lucas’ Star Wars (the first-six live-action films) did not use flashbacks, and had more of a serialized sequential storytelling approach as events outside of what was shown were left to the imagination (or mentioned in the opening text crawl of the film).

When Disney acquired Star Wars sequential storytelling ended and flashbacks have been the norm ever since in major Star Wars media projects, which then leads to the question, “Does Star Wars need flashbacks?” That’s a great Star Wars question indeed, and one the writer answers eloquently.

I will close up by saying that this book is not just for the “Mandoverse” fans, but for all fans of Star Wars, and not just one type of fan, but for all fans from all backgrounds and points of view. People do not simply become Star Wars fans for silly reasons, as some may think. They take it seriously because it is rich in history; it has a legacy and a story with limitless potential in the right hands. These are fun stories made by intelligent people, for other intelligent people who want fun stories. This book shows that intelligent side that is often overshadowed by negative talk of a toxic Star Wars community. A book like this a good reminder that Star Wars is not meant for antagonistic internet trolls; that many smart people are investing their time analyzing it’s characters and themes as if they were in Star Wars College, studying the Mandalorian and Jedi Sciences. So I highly recommend this book, but if you aren’t interested in psychoanalyzing Star Wars and would rather see it as mindless entertainment, maybe this won’t be for you. In sum, I would say this book is up the alley of most Star Wars fans, as well as something people into pop culture psychology would similarly enjoy.

Rating

5 / 5

More Info

  • Title: “The Psychgeist of Pop Culture: The Mandalorian”
  • Formats: Paperback, ePub, Downloadable PDF
  • Language: English
  • Website: https://press.etc.cmu.edu/books/psychgeist-pop-culture/mandalorian
  • Price: PDF: Free; Ebook: USD 3.99 USD; Paperback: USD 18.00
  • Synopsis: The Psychgeist of Pop Culture: The Mandalorian is an interpretative collection of essays that unpack the narrative themes and characters belonging to the beloved Disney+ series, offering new insights and psychological perspectives about characters like Din Djarin, Grogu, Boba Fett, and many more. Using examples from the series, readers will walk away with a deeper understanding of psychological frameworks that may shape ourselves as well as beings in a galaxy far, far away.
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What It's Like To Be Boba Fett's Makeup Artist

Published January 26, 2024Updated • Written by • Filed under Film & TV

We spoke with Jamie Kelman, an Emmy Award-winning makeup and special makeup effects artist, about his experiences doing Temuera Morrison’s Boba Fett makeup for “The Mandalorian” and “The Book of Boba Fett.”

Being in the belly of a Sarlacc isn’t great for the skin, so being a makeup artist responsible for actor Temuera Morrison’s transformation into “Post-Sarlacc” Boba Fett was more complicated than just applying some foundation and calling it a day. Emmy Award-winning makeup and special makeup effects artist Jamie Kelman took on that important task for “The Book of Boba Fett.” Kelman told us what it was like to spend time with Morrison in the makeup chair every morning, plus helping design and sculpt the makeup for a species of aliens, and seeing iconic characters and vehicles at work every day.

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Just like “The Book of Boba Fett,” we have to go back in time to Kelman’s childhood to get the full story.

Kelman was almost four when “A New Hope” was released in 1977, and counts seeing the film as one of his “earliest movie memories.” Like many kids who grew up around that time, the three Star Wars films were a huge part of his life.

Among all of the toys and bed sheets in his Star Wars collection was a 1980 book that may have sparked his interest in makeup and special effects called “Star Wars: The Making of the Movie” by Larry Weinberg.

“It was about the special effects, but for a child,” he said. “And this is like a peek behind the curtain.”

He still has the book, although it’s looking a little worse for wear these days.

It also helps that the 80s were a boom time for Hollywood practical and makeup effects, with magazines like Fangoria, Cinefantastique and Cinefex showing off the work of big players like Dick Smith (“The Exorcist”), Rick Baker (the cantina aliens in “A New Hope”) and Rob Bottin (“The Thing”) serving as inspiration.

“I guess some other kids would have baseball players on baseball cards or something. And I was into these guys,” Kelman said.

In high school, Kelman took a correspondence course with the legendary Smith, and at 16, worked on stop motion animation for the TV series “Monsters” under John Dods (“The Deadly Spawn”) at Laurel Entertainment, the production studio of George Romero (“Night of the Living Dead”).

After graduating from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts film school, Kelman headed to Los Angeles in 1995.

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Kelman’s film and TV credits since then are numerous, but he got his first opportunity to work in the Star Wars universe as a makeup artist on “The Mandalorian” Season 2. Kelman had been working on various projects in the famed Creature Shop when Brian Sipe, the Lead Makeup Designer and Makeup Department head for the first two seasons of “The Mandalorian” and “The Book of Boba Fett,” asked him for his help on a project.

“He asked me to assist him with a makeup that he had done, and I show up, and there’s Temuera Morrison, and it’s the big Boba Fett reveal,” Kelman said.

Sipe and key makeup artist/co-makeup designer Alexei Dmitriew designed the Fett makeup for his first Mandalorian appearance, but Kelman was tagged in when Dmitriew was drawn away to do Mark Hamill’s Luke Skywalker makeup. Kelman’s work appears in the “close up shots of [Fett] and him bashing the stormtroopers’ heads” on Tython.

As “The Mandalorian” Season 2 headed into post-production, Hollywood and the whole world shut down during the first COVID-19 lockdown in March 2020. Behind the scenes, Sipe was looking for someone to design makeup for the dog-like Klatoonian species that was originally designed by Dave Carson for “Return of the Jedi.”

Sipe knew Kelman had worked as a makeup artist on “Planet of the Apes” (2001) under Rick Baker, the special makeup effects designer and creator for the Tim Burton-helmed reboot. Baker used an innovative method to create the characteristic “muzzle” for each ape. Each actor was fitted with special dentures that pushed out their lips, a face cast was taken, and then makeup was sculpted onto the face cast from there.

Because Kelman had experience creating those innovative muzzles, Sipe chose him to work on the Klatooinian sculpt for “The Book of Boba Fett.”

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“I got to do that Planet-of-the-Apes style, pushed-out teeth… What started as my basic sculpture, which was so that we could do all the masks before they’d even cast the actor that would play the Klatooinian. This way we were able to jump forward, get work done, and then I had to reverse engineer it to fit the face of who they eventually cast, actor/stuntman Ardeshir Radpour, and we needed to turn the mask into a custom prosthetic makeup to specifically fit him, which was fascinating,” Kelman said.

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While Klatooinians had appeared in Season 1 of “The Mandalorian” courtesy of Legacy FX Studio, design-wise they went off into more imaginative directions of various types of dog-alien mixtures, no longer looking like skiff guard Barada (or Kithaba) from “Return of the Jedi.” Lead Star Wars Designer Doug Chiang became involved in course-correcting and re-re-creating them, working directly with Brian Sipe and Kelman so that they were once again recognizable as the characters seen in the Original Trilogy. As Kelman sculpted the new Klatooinian remotely during COVID from his home studio, Chiang and Sipe provided feedback and notes which were incorporated into the final sculpture.

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His sculpt was used to create prosthetics and masks for a large number of Klatooinians, including the Don of the Klatooinian family in Mos Espa and Kaba Baiz, the head of the meat packing plant on the Glavis Ringworld.

“To create a species of aliens for me, as a monster maker and an alien creature creator, I couldn’t have asked for something more special,” Kelman said. “I mean, now you go to StarWars.com and type in ‘Klatooinian‘ and my makeup is the picture that shows up. That’s cool!”

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Work continued on for Kelman and the rest of the Creature Shop building many of the amazing non-human characters in “The Book of Boba Fett,” including the aliens at Garsa Fwip’s Sanctuary, a full-size rancor head, neck and back mounted to a flight simulator, and the giant mechanical sand beast, just to name a few. Strict COVID-19 protocols meant that Sipe and Dmitriew were unavailable to do Morrison’s Boba Fett makeup maintenance on-set for filming each day, as they needed to oversee the Creature Shop and not be stuck on-set far from the build of aliens with tight deadlines to meet.

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“So Brian Sipe spearheaded the build of those scars, and he and I sat down and he said to me, ‘I’m going to be overseeing the shop. You’re going to be the guy on set every day doing Boba Fett’s makeup. Is that cool?’ And I said, ‘Yeah, that’s cool,'” Kelman said with a laugh.

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Every morning, Brian Sipe and Jamie Kelman would double-team the application of Boba Fett’s makeup. Once the daily Boba Fett makeup was applied, Brian Sipe would go back to the Creature Shop, overseeing designs and builds for all the other new aliens we were creating from the Manhattan Beach Studio on-site alien workshop.

Kelman would go to set with Temuera Morrison for filming all the scenes. As Boba Fett’s makeup artist, Kelman would keep the makeup looking good all day in front of the cameras with lots of maintenance required from all the action and sweating that happens, especially when the iconic helmet would go on and off of his head which did plenty of rubbing and scraping off the makeup, and Kelman would make any quick changes as might be needed as per the scripts and story, whether it be applying sweat to enhance a fight, or applying Sarlacc goop as Boba Fett quested into that pit in his search, or putting sand on his face when Sandpeople had dragged Boba as a prisoner, or taking sand off his face and out of his eyes — whatever the needs of the script and story called for.

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Kelman became Boba Fett’s makeup artist for ten months over the filming of “The Book of Boba Fett.” Continuity was a big deal when it came to the placement and severity of Fett’s Sarlacc scars, so the team came up with eight stages of looks starting with his “The Mandalorian” Season 2 look. Kelman is grateful to Brian Sipe for sharing this part of the design creation of the make-up for Boba Fett. Sipe and Kelman figured the eight looks out, both technically and artistically, testing makeup looks and getting feedback from the show’s creators (Favreau, Filoni, and Rodriguez), mapping and charting the stages of transition, severe burns to healed and and handsome, in the transformation of Boba Fett’s look over the course of all the episodes.

Going backward, stages one and two required the designers to imagine what Fett would look like right out of the Sarlacc and after being held captive by the Tusken tribe.

“Jon Favreau had an idea in his mind that he wanted the look to be kind of like Keanu Reeves in ‘The Matrix’ when he was first birthed from his pod, like, alabaster, pale and slimy,” Kelman said.

Favreau didn’t want the scarring to “look like Freddy Krueger,” though, so they had to be innovative and careful not to go too far. They used materials called Opsite tape and Pros-Aide acrylic adhesive to create a multilayered look that was “still fast enough to do on a daily basis so that Tem could get to work and not be stuck in the makeup chair for too many hours,” Kelman explained.

Kelman said Morrison had a “warrior mindset” when it came to getting through the makeup process.

“It’s uncomfortable, it’s really early. Maybe it’s cold. And now I’m going to put something wet on you that’s also cold, that’s glue. And now you’re going to be sticky… And he never complained about all this stuff that we did to his face and body,” Kelman said.

When Morrison needed a boost on set, Kelman said he drew from his Maori culture.

“When he’s low energy, he would start stamping his foot or hitting his hand and doing a Maori chant. And he actually says that’s how he draws energy out of the Earth and into himself,” Kelman said. “Temuera Morrison is the coolest, coolest guy. I love that guy.”

It’s been a few years since “The Book of Boba Fett” wrapped and Kelman has worked on a number of projects since then, including “Oppenheimer” and “Rebel Moon,” but he still looks back at his time in a galaxy far, far away fondly.

“To get to go to Star Wars land, to get to work on Tatooine every day in the Mos Espa set with actual buildings built and these vehicles and land speeders… For a Star Wars kid like me, who was three when Star Wars initially came out, to now be filming in Jabba the Hutt’s palace… I’m very grateful it happened.”

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Review: "Star Wars: Bounty Hunters #42"

Published January 18, 2024Updated • Written by • Filed under Collectibles

All good things come to an end.

That may be how fans of Ethan Sacks’ “Bounty Hunters” series for Marvel may be feeling. But rest assured, this is not the end of Beilert Valance, human cyborg bounty hunter. He has gone through many adventures in 42 issues — or 43 when you count the little story that teased the series (* Two Sides to Every Sortie, from Empire Ascendant #1).

In “Bounty Hunters” we got to see Valance really develop into a special character. While he was an interesting, obscure character from the “Legends” Star Wars Marvel comics, his bounty hunting side was not explored so much by Archie Goodwin, the character’s creator. What Goodwin did establish that carried over was that Valance was an ex-Imperial who turned into a Cyborg after suffering a serious injury in battle. He left the Empire to become a bounty hunter and he struggled with issues of identity being half human and droid, leading him to dislike droids. He eventually crossing paths with classic Star Wars characters, like Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader, an experience that left him both enlightened, burned, and later remade.

Those core story ideas from “Legends” are still present in canon but remade. In canon, Han Solo and Valance were friends who met as Imperial Cadets. Valance had a rivalry with Boba Fett, plus complicated relationships with hunters like Dengar and Bossk. Valance had a mentor, a hunter named Nakano Lash who saved Valance from Stormtroopers after his cybernetic transformation. She mentored him as a bounty hunter, making Valance part of Nakano Lash’s crew — which included Bossk, T’onga and T’ongor, and for one job, Boba Fett.

Eventually, Valance learned from Dengar about Captain Han Solo’s fate, being captured by Boba Fett and frozen in carbonite by Darth Vader (* The Empire Strikes Back). Valance attempts to save Han Solo (* War of the Bounty Hunters) only for Boba Fett to get the best of him, leaving Valance for dead, allowing for Darth Vader to take in Valance as an asset to the Empire against the Crimson Dawn syndicate. Valance is eventually saved from that life by bounty hunter T’onga, a bounty hunter with a crew including Zuckuss, 4-LOM, Bossk and her lover Losha.

After an encounter with the Empire’s Inferno Squad (* Battlefront II) more members join the crew (outside of Valance) such as Deathstick, Durge, Khel Tanna, and Boba Fett (who they all had to fight in order to recruit). Valance finds himself in trouble once again, being victimized by cyborg fixer Tarr Kligson (who Jango Fett once knew) and The Scourge (* Dark Droids), being experimented on as a hybroid/cyborg void of any humanity, that came with a cruel memory wipe, erasing Valance’s past memories of past loves and making him act violently towards his allies. Luckily, Losha and Vukorah (leader of The Unbroken Clan, * but don’t tell IG-88 that) rescue him and Valance was able to recover most of his memory back. Unfortunately T’onga’s crew also dissolves when betrayed by Bossk (who says it’s in his nature as Trandoshan to backstab others) with Deathstick, Durge, and Khel Tanna. When Valance recovers his memories he remembers his friend Han Solo frozen in carbonite in Jabba the Hutt’s palace, which is what sets up the grand finale of the Bounty Hunter series with issue #42.

In Star Wars: Bounty Hunters #42 we see Jabba the Hutt conducting some business at his Palace, entertaining a sit-down between a merchant and a member of the Trandoshan clan. Jabba goes about business in the unfair way we would come to expect from the giant slug, before Valance barges in, fighting off Gamorrean guards and the mercenaries / bounty hunters in the room. Dengar is in the room, which is appropriate, as he is seen in Jabba’s Palace in “Return of the Jedi,” and Dengar is eager to get payback for the time when Valance had left him stranded on an ice floe on Jekara (after the “Auction for Han Solo” event). Unfortunately Dengar wastes so much time talking trash that Valance has no problem knocking him out with a brutal punch to the face (which Dengar’s girlfriend Manaroo expected). Valance then beats up some of the others there to protect Jabba before Valance noticed Han Solo in frozen carbonite. However, Valance is not at the Palace to save Han Solo at all (not directly, but I’ll get back to that), as he says to himself “you better do your part, Chewbacca” (referencing Chewbacca’s role in “Return of the Jedi”).

Valance tells Jabba the Hutt he wants to see Jabba’s Secret Droid — to which Jabba misunderstands as a form of job insecurity for Valance. It’s at this point where Boba Fett makes his attack, with a brutal jetpack-boosted punch and flamethrower attack, before finishing Valance off with a ZZZAAP to the head, which looked painful for sure, but it’s a bit unclear what this attack was. It looks like a normal punch but the sound effect text and the effect implies a strong weapon, yet it’s hard to tell if it’s a blaster shot from Boba’s gauntlet or what. While unclear, it does not diminish how cool the fight was. While Boba Fett has bested Valance multiple times in the series, Valance is a good opponent for Fett and it’s sad that they will likely not fight again. It’s like watching a famous one-sided wrestling rivalry come to a close.

After Fett succeeds in knocking out Valance, Jabba ponders what to do with Valance, wondering to feed him to the Rancor. Bib Fortuna mentions that the Rancor’s digestive system would not agree with eating a cyborg, to which Jabba the Hutt responds with a violent slap to the face. Boba Fett offers Jabba the idea of giving Valance what he wants: a confrontation with the secret droid. Jabba agrees and sets up an event around it at a Mos Espa arena.

The secret droid turns out to be a Megadroid, a Separatist army creation made of impenetrable durasteel that never officially came into use in the Clone Wars, although Jabba salvaged one that wasn’t destroyed in a factory for personal use. Valance basically wants to eliminate this Megadroid to give Han Solo’s allies (Luke, Leia, Chewie, Lando, R2 and C-3PO) a chance to save him without having to face an obstacle they could not overcome. Jabba saw the opportunity of doing a livestreaming of the Megadroid demonstration against Valance for rival syndicates such as the Pyke Syndicate (who we see on “The Book of Boba Fett” with their own giant Separatist-era droids) in order to intimidate them into doubling their payments to Jabba the Hutt, since the Megadroid would prove to be a menacing force in the underworld.

I found the livestream element interesting, kind of reminiscent of how in the “Star Wars: Demolition” video game where Jabba would televise his competitions for an audience. However things backfire for Jabba as Valance, despite losing an arm in the fight, manages to win the battle against the Megadroid, with some help from 4-LOM, Zuckuss, T’onga and Losha. Jabba ends up enraged that his demonstration fails. Both T’onga and Zuckuss acknowledge Boba Fett’s role in things: Boba’s suggestion to Jabba was meant as a win-win for Boba, as by Valance destroying the Megadroid it kept Boba as Jabba’s favorite bounty hunter. But if Valance and his allies died from fighting the giant droid, then Boba Fett has less rivals to deal with in bounty hunting — a moot point as Boba retires not long afterwards.

After the battle Valance contacts Chewbacca, Luke Skywalker, and Leia Organa with an update on the situation, giving them the clear to advance with their plan to save Solo. The epilogue then advances a week later and shows that life goes on for the many bounty hunters of the series, demonstrating that it’s more than just credits that motivate a bounty hunter, it’s about finding a crew, and an understanding community. Unfortunately for Bossk, he seems to show regret in his decision, not feeling much community with his crew of drunks. (Durge being an alcoholic is amusing.) For those like 4-LOM and Zuckuss, they have each other. Likewise, T’onga, Losha, & Nakano Lash’s niece Cadeliah are sticking together with plans of opening up a Cantina.

In the last scene we see what becomes of Valance, as he saves the ex-Imperial Lieutenant Jyala Haydenn who was Valance’s lover for a short time. Like him she has a cybernetic eye as well. She was about to be murdered by the Empire in the final scene before he shows up, saves her, and offers her a new life to make new memories. So in the end, Valance does not die. After all the pain he suffered through he has a happy ending with the new love of his life.

I thought this was an appropriate ending. Had Valance died or became evil in the end, I think that would have been an unsatisfactory ending. His rival Boba Fett was well portrayed in this finale. This might be one of the last times we see Boba Fett as more of a bad guy (to a degree), very much following Cad Bane’s philosophy of “look out for yourself — anything else is weakness.”

Throughout the series any time Boba Fett appeared it had an impact on the story in a great way and his characterization was very much in line with George Lucas’ vision of the character. Ethan Sacks had no intention of making Boba Fett deeper or more likeable, but it makes sense, this series very much works as a story that bridges “The Empire Strikes Back” and “Return of the Jedi,” so even if you only ever watched those films, you could follow along the story of “Bounty Hunters.”

Although the series does not do more than the necessary with guys like Boba Fett, Bossk, IG-88, and Dengar, it does add an extra dimension to characters such as 4-LOM and Zuckuss, making them seem a bit more heroic than one would have initially perceived from their first appearance in “The Empire Strikes Back.” The “Empire” bounty hunters are well represented in this series, although Dengar is made to look like a joke at times. (Apparently Ethan Sacks would have killed him off were Dengar not established to live beyond that point.) The finale getting to Jabba’s Palace not long before the start of “Return of the Jedi” was such a perfect way to end “Star Wars: Bounty Hunters” though.

While many had argued that the “War of the Bounty Hunters” crossover event as the canon replacement to the legendary “Shadows of the Empire” multimedia story arc, it’s really all of “Bounty Hunters” that is. The finale will make you want to watch “The Empire Strikes Back” and “Return of the Jedi” again, which is definitely a good thing. The art by Jethro Morales and Paolo Villanelli is very nice. Boba Fett especially looks good, although Luke Skywalker could have been drawn a bit better. The Megadroid was neat too, which was kind of a fitting final boss for Valance, so no complaints there, plus it made Jabba seem all the more powerful. Had Jabba had a Megadroid in Return of the Jedi it would have been a very different picture for sure.

Rating

5 / 5
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Best of 2023

Published December 31, 2023Updated • Written by • Filed under About BFFC

After the huge spike from “The Mandalorian” Season 2 and then a smaller rise from “The Book of Boba Fett” in recent years past, we’ve now reached 186.5k followers this year when counting our website’s memberships alongside our Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, Tumblr, and newcomer Threads. (We’ve also continued test driving Mastodon plus now Bluesky and TikTok.)

Here’s a recap of our most popular content from January 1 to today, December 31.

Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | BFFC News | YouTube

If all social platforms were awesome, we could compare all things on the same metric, but unfortunately some stats we can get with ease are based on impressions/views and others are based on likes, the latter of which of course are harder to earn. We’ve noted that alongside each data set below.

Facebook

Here are our top 10 posts based on total likes (on our page which raked in 602k likes on posts) in 2023 Facebook, where we currently have over 78k fans:


#10: “Great to see #TheMandalorian aka Pedro Pascal in the crowd at the Oscars tonight”
10k likes since 3/12


#9: Happy birthday Danny Trejo!
10k likes since 5/16


#8: “#LAComicCon: Snowba Fett by Amber Arden”
12k likes since 12/2


#7: “#LAComicCon: #CadBane by David Neth”
14k likes since 12/2


#6: “#LifeDay is also #BobaFett day!”
14k likes since 11/17


#5: “Pedro Pascal as The Mandalorian”
17k likes since 2/4


#4: “Exactly 45 days until #TheMandalorian Season 3”
18k likes since 1/15


#3: “The Book of Boba Fetch” by Kg07
20k likes since 6/3


#2: “Temuera Morrison alongside Sam Neill and Karl Urban…”
26k likes since 4/18


#1: “Jon Favreau got his own star today on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.”
58k likes since 2/13

Stats pulled from Meta Business Suite (aka business.facebook.com) > Content > Export (button at the top) > Facebook > pull every 3 months (the max they allow) and merge the data in a spreadsheet…

Instagram

Out of 227.4k likes on our 2023 posts, here were our top 10 posts based on likes in 2023 on Instagram, which now has 39k followers, a hair down from last year oddly enough:


#10: “It’s quite a dynamic feeling to be in that armor. …”
1.7K likes since 1/6


#9: Don’t miss the new #StarWars fan film “Sands of Fate” by Escape Velocity Content
1.8k likes since 12/16


#8: On this day in 1979 was the 2nd unit production for the Slave I interior in “The Empire Strikes Back”
1.9k likes since 8/23


#7: Slip away in your favorite ship
1.9k likes since 1/11


#6: The GameStop exclusive #BobaFett gaming accessories by Geeknet include a keyboard, mouse, headset, and pad
2k likes since 1/16


#5: May the Force be with award-winning #TheMandalorian and #TheBookOfBobaFett costume designer Shawna Trpcic who passed away suddenly
2.3k likes since 10/7


#4: What’s your favorite #BobaFett line?
2.5k likes since 5/26


#3: Happy Valentine’s Day!
2.6k likes since 2/14


#2: #SpoilerAlert: Over two weeks ago, the new #StarWars Jedi: Survivor video game dropped – with our favorite bounty hunter making a cameo
3.2k likes since 5/13


#1: #LifeDay is also #BobaFett day!
3.4k likes since 11/17

Stats pulled from topnine.co for the top 9 and/or use this to get the 10th or more: Meta Business Suite (aka business.facebook.com) > Content > Export (button at the top) > Instagram > pull every 3 months (the max they allow) and merge the data in a spreadsheet…

Twitter *

Clocking in at 35.7K followers on our Twitter as of today.


#10: “In just 7 days, #BobaFett returns in Star Wars: Bounty Hunters #35 …”
17k impressions since 6/14


#9: “Happy birthday Emily Swallow! …”
18k impressions since 12/18


#8: “The new Funko Pop #660 “Disney 100 Retro Reimagined” #BobaFett (Target Exclusive) was revealed this morning … “
18k impressions since 10/3


#7: “What’s your favorite Star Wars GIF? This one we made is ours.”
19k impressions since 11/24


#6: “Up for pre-order tomorrow 12/13 at 10am Pacific / 1pm Eastern, Hasbro just revealed this new “The Vintage Collection” Deluxe #JangoFett! …”
20k impressions since 12/12


#5: “It’s confirmed: #BobaFett is in #LEGO #Fortnite!”
20.2k impressions since 12/7


#4: “Besides #BobaFett, which other bounty hunter across all of #StarWars lore is your fav?”
21k impressions since 10/27


#3: “Congrats to Dave Filoni, who was just promoted to chief creative officer at Lucasfilm …”
23k impressions since 11/21


#2: “Today is the 45th anniversary of #BobaFett’s first public appearance – at the 1978 San Anselmo Country Fair Day and Parade … “
30k impressions since 9/24


#1: “.@Swarovski has a new #BobaFett on their website … “
66k impressions since 6/9

* Stats pulled from analytics.twitter.com, although it’s quite broken since Elon took over and missing several months of stats. In fact, prior to June 2023 is missing. #Facepalm

BFFC News

We take a lot of pride and joy in writing the News section year after year. From the 31 articles we published in 2023, our guides, reviews, and exclusives are our greatest hits.


#10: Review: Chapter 24 of “The Mandalorian”
299 unique views since 4/20, written by Chelsey B. Coombs


#9: Review: Boba Fett’s Starship and Jango Fett’s Starship by Jazwares
342 unique views since 1/24, written by Chelsey B. Coombs


#8: The Psychology of “The Book of Boba Fett”
417 unique views since 12/9, written by Mosh Babilonia


#7: Star Wars Celebration Europe 2023: Guide for Boba Fett Fans
513 unique views since 3/28, written by Aaron Proctor


#6: Review: Chapter 23 of “The Mandalorian”
526 unique views since 4/14, written by Gustavo Perez


#5: Boba Fett in “The Mandalorian” Season 3, Notes Official Star Wars Facebook Page for Hong Kong
632 unique views since 2/25, written by Aaron Proctor


#4: Exclusive Sneak Peek at “The Book of Boba Fett – Collector’s Edition”
688 unique views since 7/20, written by Aaron Proctor


#3: 2023 Black Friday / Cyber Monday Star Wars Sales Featuring Boba Fett
799 unique views since 11/21, written by Aaron Proctor


#2: SDCC 2023: Guide for Boba Fett Fans
817 unique views since 7/7, written by Aaron Proctor


#1: Star Wars Day 2023: Guide for Boba Fett Fans
1.6k unique views since 5/3, written by Aaron Proctor

Stats pulled from our Google Analytics. (For the stat nerds, we use Behavior > Site Content > All Pages and filtering by /news/, then hand picking out non-2023 matches.)

YouTube

7.67K subscribers now on our YouTube, which has 179 videos.

#10: Review: “The Book of Boba Fett” Collection by Enso Rings
298 unique views since 6/25, shot by Chelsey B. Coombs

#9: Los Angeles Comic Con 2023: Miggs Fett
311 unique views since 12/2, shot by Aaron Proctor

#8: FIRST LOOK: Regal Robot’s Boba Fett Prototype Armor Skull
440 unique views since 3/6, shot by Aaron Proctor

#7: Review: Boba Fett’s Starship and Jango Fett’s Starship by Jazwares
570 unique views since 1/24, shot by Chelsey B. Coombs

#6: Unboxing the “Mando Mania” Gift Box from Hasbro
582 unique views since 3/22, shot by Chelsey B. Coombs

#5: Review: Denuo Novo’s Boba Fett / Jango Fett Jetpack Kit with Assembly Step-by-Step
621 unique views since 8/25, shot by Aaron Proctor feat. Miggs Fett

#4: Hasbro’s Star Wars Brand Team Interview Roundtable (December 12, 2023)
699 unique views since 12/12, recorded by Hasbro feat. Chelsey B. Coombs

#3: Hasbro’s Star Wars Brand Team Interview Roundtable (January 10, 2023)
711 unique views since 1/10, recorded by Hasbro feat. Chelsey B. Coombs

#2: Hasbro’s Star Wars Brand Team Interview Roundtable (August 24, 2023)
813 unique views since 8/24, recorded by Hasbro feat. Chelsey B. Coombs

#1: Review: “The Vintage Collection” Boba Fett’s Throne Room by Hasbro
1.6k unique views since 11/5, shot by Chelsey B. Coombs

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What were your highlights in BFFC coverage this year? Let us know in the comments so we can do more of that — as you wish.

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The Psychology of "The Book of Boba Fett"

Published December 9, 2023 • Written by • Filed under Film & TV

“The Book of Boba Fett” offers a lot to think about beyond the surface. Fans were divided on it, which is fine; fans should be allowed to protest if they are truly passionate about the Fett and not simply being toxic for the sake of attention. “Speak freely,” as Boba said.

It would be ignorance not to cede that Jon Favreau’s Boba Fett vision is different than that of George Lucas, or the Expanded Universe/Legends that included multiple novels/short stories/comic books, and video game appearances that showed Boba Fett, and also Jango Fett, as star characters with more developed stories and personalities, rather than cool side villain portrayal of George Lucas’ original “Star Wars” trilogy and vintage animations like “The Story of A Faithful Wookiee” and “Droids” that kept him a more mysterious presence. However, falling into the Sarlacc pit nearly ended it for Boba Fett, as that became an obstacle when Disney acquired “Star Wars” from Lucas. His fate was left in question once again in the “Aftermath” trilogy that invented Cobb Vanth, who wore Boba’s armor for some time on Tatooine to protect Freetown, after acquiring the armor from the opportunistic Jawas who stole it near the Sarlacc pit.

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It wasn’t until “The Mandalorian” series premiered that fans began thinking there could be a chance that Boba Fett could return, as he did in Legends, as the protagonist (Din Djarin) was, personality-wise, more based off Boba and Jango Fett than he was the Mandalorians of Mandalore/Concordia, yet he was also unique enough to be his own character. It was refreshing to see a Fett-like character, and even better when Fett got teased at in Season 1 Chapter 5 and Season 2 Chapter 9 of “The Mandalorian,” before returning in Chapter 14 in his armor, but it made us wonder what Fett had been doing for the past five or so years, and when “The Book of Boba Fett” showed us the transformation he went through, people were split on the characterization. It creates for a fascinating psychological study on the character. Did Jon Favreau’s vision make sense? Was it misunderstood from a psychological point of view?

Falling into the Sarlacc pit would ultimately re-make him, to a degree, but this isn’t a simple Disney-fied version of Boba Fett. A Disney character is not typically complex. This isn’t the simple case of a bad guy who turned good. Boba Fett was a victim and survivor of War, who survived and thrived as a hunter and did jobs for both the governing Empire and the gangsters outside the law. It is ironic a clone would work for the Empire after they abused and disposed of the clone troopers, but like a young Boba angrily said, he was not like them. Boba Fett would have reason to keep his helmet on all the time during the Age of Empire when you consider what the clones went through; it was a way of disassociating himself from that. After all, he had his own personal tragedies; there was no reason to conflate that with the tragedy of the clones he had no allegiance to.

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However, as he stated to Fennec Shand and Krrsantan, he saw many of those he worked for in a negative light (“Don’t work for Scugholes” and “I’m tired of working for idiots who are going to get me killed”). Boba only really trusted himself, and in his career only cared about bounties. He acted professionally but deep down had no respect for the cruel individuals employing him. Boba is also very much the image of his father, the one person he had trusted in his young life, so why wouldn’t he only trust himself? And like Hondo Ohnaka told Boba Fett, Jango Fett was an honorable man.

The only Mandalorian -ish traditions Boba inherited were the armor, a love of weapons (“Weapons are part of my religion” as Din Djarin put it), and bounty hunting. He was never raised in a Mandalorian tribe outside of having a father who had been part of a faction that got killed off in a war involving both Death Watch and the Jedi. Jango trained Boba briefly however as a hunter, and saw potential in his son to carry on his legacy. The armor to Boba represented more of a love for his father than tradition, because that was the only true family he had outside of part-time mentors and hunters he worked with, like his “Krayt’s Claw” group during The Clone Wars. His sister Omega (revealed in “The Bad Batch”) was not known, as she was raised separately, so Boba’s time at his birth home Kamino was fairly solitary, especially when his father left for jobs. “The Book of Boba Fett” shows his past loneliness through flashbacks, with a young Boba leaping out of his bed to watch the Slave I firespray ship take off into the stormy and dark Kamino clouds raging over a surface of violent waves.

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“I grew up surrounded by water” is how Boba Fett put it when talking with the water monger of Mos Espa who sought Fett’s help over a matter of stolen water in Chapter 3 of “The Book of Boba Fett.” It’s true, Boba Fett for the most part, grew up surrounded by water. On the surface it’s a simple reference to “Attack of the Clones,” but it also shows the kind of upbringing Boba had. As good a father Jango was he could do little about the loneliness Boba would experience on his own. Sure, he could talk to a Kaminoan, a droid, or watch the clones train, but it was a lonely life on a dark, watery planet with very little to mentally stimulate Boba.

It works that Boba Fett said very little during the events of Original Trilogy films, as he was not raised with many opportunities to be social. While being silent was originally a trait he had been given because it made him an intimidating, stoic presence like the Man with No Name who Clint Eastwood portrayed in film, the flashbacks of “The Book of Boba Fett” show it was more than just about looking cool. Most of Boba Fett’s socialization came after Jango Fett passed when he met associates of his father (Aurra Sing and Bossk), and then within a Republic prison (where he meets Cad Bane whom he knew of from his father), before expanding to exploring the rest of the universe. The Mandalorian Din Djarin was similarly a “Man with No Name” archetype character, but within his actual story you see that Din was living underground with a Mandalorian tribe that practiced old Mandalorian rules, and thus his socialization was completely limited.

Another character whose socialization was limited was Grogu. Much like Boba Fett, Grogu was a victim and survivor of The Clone Wars who did not have a normal social life after. At one point the Nikto gang/syndicate had held Grogu captive where he presumably was locked up in extreme isolation for a long time, until being saved by Din Djarin. Much like Boba Fett and Din Djarin, Grogu similarly suffers from traumatic flashbacks as well. “The Book of Boba Fett” finds a way to connect these three stories. Each character had a dark past, and they were able to overcome it and eventually find family. Grogu found Din Djarin who adopts him, and eventually Din Djarin learns to socialize with Mandalorians that are different from himself, be it Boba Fett who does not identify as one, or Bo-Katan Kryze who once associated with Death Watch and whose sister Satine was the leader of Mandalore, during the New Mandalorian era that rejected the old warrior ways. Grogu himself becomes a Mandalorian as a result of the support he shows his surrogate father. It reminds me of how a young Jango Fett on Concord Dawn found himself becoming Mandalorian by helping Jaster Mereel and his faction. Grogu, Jango Fett, and Din Djarin became Mandalorian Foundlings not just because they suffered through traumatic events and were lucky to get saved by Mandalorians, but it came about through loyalty. Jango was loyal to Jaster and fought with him against many dangers willingly. Grogu has been loyal to Din, and faced many dangers as well, such as the mighty Mudhorn.

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Din Djarin, in a more unique case, shows his loyalty through abiding a strict Mandalorian code that he learned from the Armorer, to whom is a teacher to him, and as well Paz Vizsla, a Heavy Infantry Mandalorian. When you feel you owe your life to a cause, you do your best to play by the rules, and the Armorer has many rules. It was fortunate that Boba Fett was not raised this way. Jango Fett’s faction of Mandalorians believed in honorable mercenary work, and encouraged bounty hunting. They did not agree with extremism, be it in the pacifistic way of New Mandalore that exiled warriors for political reasons and looked down on bounty hunting, be it the savage barbarity of Death Watch who gladly backstabbed their own kind, and most likely the ‘True Mandalorians’ did not agree with the outdated ancient methods that the Children of the Watch decided to revive. As tragic as Boba Fett’s beginnings were he was spared the Mandalorian politics and religious customs. Din Djarin’s tribe of the Armorer and Paz Vizsla were problematic for him. “The Way” was above all in the aftermath of the Purge of Mandalore and those who did not walk the way were not just seen as Apostates, they were also seen as cursed.

It was very important for Din Djarin to meet Boba Fett again, even if by chance, when Din Djarin was ex-communicated from his tribe because he admitted to removing his helmet. While this may sound ridiculous to most, the shame and guilt Din felt was overwhelming. He knew he couldn’t just go get Grogu from Luke Skywalker, but he had a need to see him. Visiting his lost son made him only feel worse however, as he could not get close without interfering with his training, and thus getting a job from Fennec Shand and Boba Fett was the very thing Din needed psychologically. He even said he would do it for free, which no doubt was something Boba Fett did not expect. How many jobs did Boba Fett ever do for free as a bounty hunter? Not many, and if he did, it was probably a payback mission — but to Din Djarin, he was returning the favor to Boba Fett who had assisted him in rescuing the child from Moff Gideon. This was loyalty, something key to Mandalorian culture (“Loyalty and solidarity are the way” as said in Season 3 of “The Mandalorian”). Din Djarin needed to feel like a real Mandalorian again, and Boba Fett who saw the Mandalorian traditions as “bantha fodder” suddenly saw why his father Jango had become a Mandalorian — because it was honorable.

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And it’s that Mandalorian moment with Boba Fett in the finale that is so crucial to both character’s trajectory. Boba Fett could have given up against his former mentor and rival Cad Bane. Cad Bane was not convinced Boba had changed, referring to him as a cold-blooded killer when negotiating with Cobb Vanth of Freetown. He figured Boba did try to change and become a better person, in a naïve attempt at redemption, but that he was still the cold-blooded person he used to be. “You’re getting soft in your old age”, said Cad Bane, mocking Boba’s attempt to change. When Cad Bane heard his employers at the Pyke Syndicate had killed the Tusken Tribe that Boba Fett had associated with, he was able to connect the dots in his mind. Given Fennec Shand had thought Boba Fett was dead, it’s safe to assume Cad Bane thought the same before hearing Boba Fett killed Bib Fortuna to become Daimyo of the Mos Espa territories. “What’s your angle?” is what Cad Bane wondered when speaking with Fett in the finale of “The Book of Boba Fett.” Indeed, to Cad Bane a bounty hunter retiring to take a piece of Tatooine and make it free of the Spice trade did not make a whole lot of sense. However once he heard there was a Tusken tribe in Boba’s story Cad Bane was able to make the connection that Boba saw the Tuskens as family.

It’s true, Boba Fett was very much family to the Tuskens. To Tusken Kid he was a surrogate father who saved his life. To Female Tusken Warrior, Boba Fett was a great friend with whom she could spar with in gaffi stick combat training, and to the Tusken Chief Boba was a great guide, someone capable of special things, be it slaying a behemoth sand creature, acquiring speeder bikes, finding the wood of a tree in the middle of the dune sea needed to make a gaffi stick, or stopping a long train that carried spice, water, and snipers who would indiscriminately shoot down the native Tuskens, simply for existing on their drug route. Boba valued them equally, feeling that they treated him as an equal, and grateful for being saved from death near the Sarlacc pit despite the abuse he suffered from the young Tuskens hitting him to weaken his strength more. Boba knew not to take that personally though.

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Boba Fett knows the difference between right and wrong. He felt bad for the moisture farmer getting beat to death by the Nikto gang of Tatooine for example. He showed sympathy to the animals of Tatooine, especially the Banthas. Sometimes, Boba made the mistake of feeling bad for the wrong people, like the Rodian he offered to free from his bonds only for the Rodian to alert the Tuskens to Boba’s escape attempt. To me the choice of a Rodian was intentional in the story — a reminder of Greedo, the first bounty hunter of “Star Wars,” who didn’t last long, just like the Rodian in “The Book of Boba Fett.”

Boba Fett does have a righteous side, despite his reputation for being “cold blooded”. Even in his past with his experience with Han Solo — catching a smuggler like Han was seen as a righteous thing; he was a smuggler not paying his debts and was also an outlaw, so Han’s screams of pain did not bother Boba one bit on Cloud City. We see righteous anger with Boba Fett and the Nikto gang on “The Book of Boba Fett.” Boba Fett was deceived to think the Nikto were guilty of killing the Tuskens so he took it personally. I think because he already disliked the gang for their violent thieving ways he was quick to assume they were guilty without direct proof. So Boba wiping out the Nikto gang with the Slave I’s weapons was a righteous act of vengeance, albeit unknowingly misdirected. Likewise in the Tosche Station, Boba did not hesitate to brutalize the Nikto gang members, knowing their nature. In doing so he saves two of Luke Skywalker’s past friends, whom Boba ignores. It’s interesting to note his indifference to Camie and Fixer in this situation. Boba Fett does not see himself as a hero.

To go back on the Pyke Syndicate’s act of evil, it may have seemed Boba Fett was foolish to think the Pyke Syndicate would not have resorted to such tactics like eliminating an entire tribe out of greed. Many critics of “The Book of Boba Fett” pointed this out as being uncharacteristic of Boba to be deceived and manipulated easily, however it should be noted that Cad Bane was also surprised by the Pyke’s strategy. “I didn’t realize the Pyke Syndicate were so ruthless?” Indeed, the Pyke Syndicate are ruthless enough, even enough to also bomb “The Sanctuary”.

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The Sanctuary in many ways was like a clean, city version of the Cantina of Mos Eisley. It’s the place where people went to gamble, drink, and listen to music played by Max Rebo and others. Generally it’s more of a social club rather than a spot where any real crime took place. The type of place a retired bounty hunter would enjoy… or hate, as in the case with Krrsantan who much prefers fighting. When the hostess of the Sanctuary Garsa Fwip bravely interrupted Krrsantan fighting a group of Trandoshans, who are a species Wookiees dislike, it became clear to Boba Fett who was there, that he could make use of Krrsantan. “Looks like you could use a job?” Boba similarly employed the Modders, a colorful gang of bikers who modify their body parts with the help of Modifiers who operate almost like the tattoo artists of Tatooine, giving the youth a way to modify themselves, but they also serve a medical purpose, being able to modify the disabled and the dying (in the case of Fennec Shand who Boba Fett saved from a gut shot from a blaster). Boba perhaps saw a bit of his young self when dealing with the Modders, as they showed guts and they reminded him of his troubled youth. He recruits them recognizing their need for work opportunity, while also scolding the water monger for his unfair water prices. Once again, Boba is righteous in his assessment of the situation.

When dealing with the Gamorrean Guards that were once loyal to Bib Fortuna, Boba is once again fair. He could have not taken the chance on employing them but Boba Fett, who got a second chance from the Tuskens, has become a firm believer of fairness. How he dealt with Jabba’s cousins as well shows this. He could have rejected the responsibility of taking care of a dangerous creature like the Rancor after being gifted it. But instead he accepts the responsibility and even takes on learning to ride the creature, which the Rancor Keeper states required a lot of discipline, which did not discourage Boba in the slightest. After all, Boba climbed out of the Sarlacc pit with just armor, a flamethrower, his rangerfinder’s flashlight, and little oxygen to work with. He broke through stomach walls and climbing a nightmarish amount of sand only to be greeted by two unforgiving suns before losing consciousness. After that, riding a Rancor into war would be a worthy challenge. And really that is what “The Book of Boba Fett” is about — overcoming the past, learning from it, and looking to the future.

The Rancor itself went from a period of darkness, with its eyes covered, blinded until he saw Boba Fett. When the Rancor lost control it took the presence of another kindred spirit, Grogu, to calm him down (albeit using The Force), because maybe despite his size, Grogu can relate to the Rancor on some level, having had a rough past as well. Likewise, Boba Fett was once a raging spirit, angered by what he saw as an injustice when Mace Windu killed Jango Fett in battle; a friendless hunter who fell on hard times when Han Solo got lucky,

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But Boba Fett’s dreams were no longer just flashbacks of pain, now they also included good memories too, sitting by a campfire with a relatable spirit like Fennec Shand, becoming part of a Tribe, making his Gaffi stick, dancing with the tribe, and talking to his loyal Bantha. Maybe this is not the vision of a Boba Fett show that people wanted, and if he were Mr. Action Man all the time a lot of us probably would not complain, but “The Book of Boba Fett” gives us a continuation of his story arc that at least ends on a high note, although leaves much mystery to what his future will be; if Boba helps Din Djarin hunt down Imperial remnants under the leadership of Grand Admiral Thrawn who recently evaded Ahsoka’s attempt to stop him, or if Boba and Fennec have to fight off other Syndicates who see Boba Fett as a threat, …or what if the power of being Daimyo corrupts Boba? What if he becomes much like Jabba the Hutt, quick to the trigger, and fast to put a bounty on whoever does not pay tribute? It will be interesting to see what Boba Fett’s palace looks like after a few years.

The beauty of “The Book of Boba Fett” is that it still keeps the character a little mysterious, which was so signature to the original version of Boba Fett, it just accomplishes it in a very different way. Now the mystery is what he will do next.

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2023 Black Friday / Cyber Monday Star Wars Sales Featuring Boba Fett

Published November 21, 2023Updated • Written by • Filed under Collectibles

Here’s our 10th annual Black Friday / Cyber Monday sale breakdown, focusing on Boba Fett and friends.

Shopping for yourself or a friend/fan/lover? This round-up can help. We also have a separate holiday guide and holiday ornaments list.

Updated: Regal Robot, Target, Acme Archives, Things From Another World, Sideshow Collectibles


Toys and Figures

Amazon

Get 40% off on select Star Wars holiday gifts from November 17 to November 27 on Amazon.com. We also spotted the Hasbro “Prototype” Boba Fett (6″ scale) on sale for 15% off. Amazon’s picture shows the 2014 packaging, but it may be the 2022 re-pack.

The Hasbro Boba Fett mask (not full helmet) sized for kids is also 52% off. (Sometimes it shows up as 42% off.)

The NERF Boba Fett toy blaster is 28% for Black Friday right now on Amazon.com. (Update: deal ended.)

Tamashii Nation’s latest Boba Fett is currently 25% off on Amazon.com.

That’s not all. See all Black Friday sales for Boba Fett merch on Amazon.com.

Entertainment Earth

The shop is doing buy one get one 50% off for all of their in-stock Star Wars action figures until November 21 at EntertainmentEarth.com. Jump right to the Boba Fett figures with this link.

Gentle Giant

If you’re a Premier Guild Member, you can start getting discounts November 20 at 12am Eastern. The general public can start on November 24 at 12am Eastern. Sale ends November 27 at 11:59pm Eastern at GentleGiantLTD.com, which includes their convention exclusive “The Empire Strikes Back” Boba Fett Premier Collection Statue.

While their Gentle Giant Boba Fett on Throne Premier Collection 1/7 Scale Statue is $40 off on their site (making it $310), it’s much cheaper on Amazon.com ($255), sold through Gentle Giant’s parent company, Diamond Select.

Funko / Loungefly

Get a discount on Funko Pops at Funko.com and accessories at Loungefly.com from November 23 to November 26. Initially it was noted as 50% off but that’s not the case.

Note that the Funko Boba Fett ornament is currently cheaper at Amazon.com — 37% off. Even with Funko’s sale starting on November 23, Amazon has the better deal.

Sideshow Collectibles

20% to 45% select in stock items, using a range of different codes and dates at Sideshow.com. The sales include the Sixth Scale “Repaint Armor” Boba Fett with or without the Throne, plus the 1:10 scale Boba Fett on the throne with or without Fennec Shand.

  • 20% off select in stock items with code EARLYBF (ends 11/24)
  • 25% off select in stock items with code BLACKFRI25 (ends 11/24)
  • 35% off select in stock items with code BLACKFRI35 (ends 11/24)
  • 45% off select in stock items with code BLACKFRI45 (ends 11/24)
  • 20% off select in stock items with code BLACKFRI20 (11/25-11/26 only)
  • 20% off select in stock items with code CYBER20 (11/25-11/26 only)
  • 25% off select in stock items with code CYBER25 (11/27 only)
  • 35% off select in stock items with code CYBER35 (11/27 only)
  • 45% off select in stock items with code CYBER45 (11/27 only)

There’s also a 50% off one, but only when you also “purchase at least $250 of other eligible in-stock collectibles.” It includes the Deluxe Version of the Hot Toys Boba Fett (The Mandalorian) and also the Mythos Boba Fett at Sideshow.com.

Target

Several Fett items are on sale at Target.com including the Jazwares Jango Fett’s Starship (Target Exclusive) for $8 (originally $30). Deal ends November 23 at 11:59pm Pacific. As of November 26, another deal is in place making it $10.24 until Cyber Monday.


Print

Acme Archives

Take 25% off — which shows up in the cart at checkout — beginning November 22 at 12:01am Pacific and ending November 27 at 11:59pm Pacific at AcmeArchivesDirect.com. This includes the brand-new Boba Fett piece called “Boba Fett: Ambush” by Vincent Hie.

Displate

They have a Black Friday sale (ending on Black Friday) that’s 33% off on 1-2, 37% off on 3-4 or 41% off on 5+ Displates with code BLACK at Displate.com. This includes their “The Book of Boba Fett” poster “displate.”

Star Wars Insider Magazine

You can get up to 40% off 6 issues, which ends up being $34.99 USD with code SWIBF23 at Titan’s subscription signup form. They have a separate page for UK subscribers.

Thomas Kinkade Studios

Take 25% off with code FORCE25 between November 24 and November 29 at ThomasKinkade.com, which includes “Brothers in Arms” featuring Din Djarin and Boba Fett.


Apparel and Accessories

BoxLunch

They’re doing a buy one get one 50% off deal on select Star Wars merchandise at BoxLunch.com. It includes an RSVLTS Boba Fett shirt.

Citizen

The watch shop is doing 15% off from November 21 to November 26 at CitizenWatch.com, which includes their Boba Fett watch (JG2110-51W).

Cotton Bureau

Our BFFC t-shirts have a sale from the makers — spend $99 to get free shipping with code FREE99 at checkout on CottonBureau.com.

Like we’ve done every year with BFFC merch, on Giving Tuesday, we’ll be donating all of the year’s proceeds to the late Jeremy Bulloch’s favorite charity, GOSH. Jeremy was the inaugural member of BFFC, encouraging and supporting our start in 1996. Learn more about the fundraiser.

Cufflinks

Apparently they’re doing 20% off from November 20 to November 25, but we’re seeing 15% off with code DAPPER, at Cufflinks.com.

Denuo Novo

They’re doing 15% off with free domestic shipping, or 50% off international shipping, on select Star Wars collectibles, starting November 21 and ending November 27 at DenuoNovo.com. No time or timezone noted. This includes their Boba Fett / Jango Fett jetpack kit which comes unassembled. See our video review about assembly plus their instructions PDF.

DIFF

They’re doing 50% off on all Star Wars styles from November 19 to December 26 at DiffEyewear.com, which includes their Boba Fett RX (2022 release) and original Boba Fett glasses (2020 release).

Enso Rings

On Black Friday, you can get 25% off their Star Wars rings at EnsoRings.com. The site itself says up to 50% off plus free domestic shipping.

Fifth Sun

Get 30% off with code BFCM30, starting November 21 and ending November 29 at FifthSun.com. No time or timezone noted in their announcement so plan accordingly. This includes their Jango Fett “Best Dad Ever” tee.

Fossil

The watch and watch accessory company has an up to 70% off sale, which includes two (or three, if you don’t mind Fenn Shysha being mislabeled as Boba Fett) items on Fossil.com.

That’s right, their “Special Edition Star Wars™ Boba Fett™ Three-Hand Green Silicone Watch” watch shows the wrong character from the vintage Marvel comic.

Her Universe

Get up to 70% off on select Star Wars styles from November 20 to November 27 at HerUniverse.com

RockLove

They have 30% off on all in-stock Star Wars items, but just on November 27. We’re also seeing up to 50% off with code BTBF2023-50%OFF at RockLove.com.

RSVLTS

They have up to 60% off on select apparel until November 27 at RSVLTS.com. They’re also throwing in free wrapping paper while supplies last.

Ruggable

You can take 20% off on their Star Wars rugs and doormats from November 22 to November 29 at Ruggable.com. Boba Fett is included on the Sage Delft Blue Sage White & Black rug, which also have thicker “tufted” versions.

Star Wars Fine Jewelry

60% off from November 22 to November 27 at StarWarsFineJewelry.com.

Books

Insight Editions

They’re doing 40% off from November 22 to November 29 at InsightEditions.com.

Things From Another World

The online comic shop has deals through November 27 at 11:59pm Pacific. You can get 30% off site-wide, 40% off all graphic novels, and 70% off variants at TFAW.com.

Other

JoyJolt

They have a buy one get one 50% off sale until November 28 at JoyJolt.com, which includes their newest Boba Fett glass plus their set of four drinking glasses.

Regal Robot

Starting on Black Friday, Regal Robot has a handful of sales, including 50% off their Boba Fett Prototype Armor Skull Mini Sculpture at RegalRobot.com. One of their wood art plaques also includes Boba Fett.

shopDisney

From apparel to statues, shopDisney.com has multiple Black Friday sales going on. The markdown / sale includes two of their Boba Fett costumes for kids.

XBOX

Select Star Wars games are 75% off until November 30 at Microsoft.com.


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LEGO

Several Star Wars sets are included on their Black Friday page, although no discounts are noted as of the time of publication.

mc chris

The rapper who did the famous “Fett’s Vette” song has a sale going until November 27 at mcchris.com.

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Review: "The Vintage Collection" Boba Fett's Throne Room by Hasbro

Published November 5, 2023 • Written by • Filed under Collectibles

BFFC’s Chelsey B. Coombs reviews the Boba Fett’s Throne Room set from Hasbro, plus suggests a couple of inexpensive lighting add-ons.

Rating

4 / 5
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Tribute to Shawna Trpcic

Published October 6, 2023Updated • Written by • Filed under Fettpedia

May the Force be with award-winning “The Mandalorian” and “The Book of Boba Fett” costume designer Shawna Trpcic who passed away suddenly. We thank her for bringing Boba Fett and Mandalorians to life in new ways.

A memorial fund has been set up.

Coming from a background in fashion, educated at Otis, before moving into the film industry as a fashion illustrator and assistant designer, Shawna made a name for herself with the Firefly show.

“[Boba Fett] has always been my favorite,” Shawna Trpcic said in her interview with Designing Hollywood (December 5, 2020). For Boba Fett, she worked off concept art by Doug Chiang. She loved the idea of the samurai skirt and integrate black from his time in the desert. Filoni was concerned it’s too dark, too Darth Vader, but once they saw the sketch work, they loved it. “It was important to me to show a journey – from the acid burns on the armor and his choices.”

According to a post on her Instagram, “The Book of Boba Fett” belt buckle for Boba Fett was designed by her son.

Born on October 18th, 1966, she was 56 years old. According to her obituary in The Hollywood Reporter, she passed away of an unknown illness this last Wednesday, October 4th.

Other statements:

Her work on display:

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