SPOILER REVIEW: Season 2, Chapter 11 of The Mandalorian: The Heiress

The Mandalorian Season 2 Episode 11 Recap

I'M WARNING YOU RIGHT NOW, SPOILERS FOR THE LATEST EPISODE OF THE MANDALORIAN ARE BELOW. I SHIELD YOU FROM NOTHING! 

OK, YOU'RE WARNED!

IF YOU HAVEN'T WATCHED THE EPISODE YET, STOP HERE, GO WATCH IT AND COME BACK FOR MY REVIEW.

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OK, those are the formalities officially out of the way. Each week, I'll be posting a quick recap/review of each new episode of The Mandalorian. I'll give a basic play-by-play with some thoughts and speculation about how each episode could figure into the larger picture of this season, and Star Wars as a whole.

So let's get after it.

SEASON 2: CHAPTER 11: "THE HEIRESS"

EPISODE PREMIERS ON NOVEMBER 13, 2020

DIRECTOR: BRYCE DALLAS HOWARD

EPISODE LENGTH: 35 MINUTES 

This was by far, the shortest episode of the second season but it sure didn't feel that way watching it. This episode was packed from start to finish, a testament to the skillful directing of Bryce Dallas Howard, returning to the show after directing the fourth episode of season one.

We pick up right where we left off last week, with Din Djarin delivering Frog Lady to her home planet of Trask. We land in a seaport area of the planet very reminiscent of Corellia in Solo: A Star Wars Story. Here, Frog Lady is reunited with her husband, who expresses his gratitude to Djarin and directs him to a nearby inn, where he can find individuals who can guide him to other Mandalorians.

Djarin mingles with two semi-related species: the Mon Calamari (of Admiral Ackbar fame) and the Quarren. These two races have been known in Star Wars lore to be at odds with one another through the years, highlighted by a four-episode arc at the open of season four (2011-12) of The Clone Wars. After getting The Child his all-important food (man this kid is ALWAYS hungry!) a Quarren promises passage for Djarin on his boat to others of his kind.

It turns out to be a double-cross, as the Quarren crew on the boat shove The Child (protected by his pram) into a pit containing an aquatic beast. Djarin dives in after The Child, when the episode, and indeed the entire series, takes a serious turn.

Three Mandalorian warriors land on the ship and quickly dispatch the Quarren crew and rescue Djarin and The Child. Here, we are reunited with Bo-Katan, a major character from The Clone Wars as well as Star Wars: Rebels. She's joined by fellow Mandos Koska Reeves (female) and Axe Woves (male). This is the first live-action appearance for Bo-Katan, who is played by Katee Sackhoff, who also voiced the character in her animated form. 

We quickly see a philosophical split between Djarin and the three Mandos. It appears Djarin was taken in by a splinter cell of Mandalorians who are more traditional, while Bo-Katan and others are taking a more practical approach.

Bo-Katan promises to direct Djarin to the Jedi, but needs his help on their own, separate mission. The four Mandos, after taking out another gang of Quarren, hijacks a Gozanti freighter, an Imperial gun-running ship. The Mandos wish to arm themselves in an attempt to re-take their planet. 

A couple of old-fashioned gun fights erupt on the ship as the Mandos take out the typically inept stormtroopers and gain access to the weapons. Just before taking the ship on a suicide mission, the unnamed Imperial captain communicates with Moff Gideon, making his first appearance in season two. Gideon's brief appearance is a welcome sight, after he left the first season on such a cliffhanger, wielding the Darksaber as he emerged from a crashed TIE Fighter.

Bo-Katan demands to know there whereabouts of the Darksaber, making the tangible link between her and Moff Gideon, one I was certain would be explored in this season. Bo-Katan possessed the Darksaber at the end of Rebels, so it's another solid, direct link between these two shows. In her final conversation with Djarin, Bo-Katan directs him to the city of Calodan on the forest planet of Corvus, where he will find none other than Ahsoka Tano.

And there it is. Verbal confirmation that one of the most popular non-movie characters in Star Wars will have a role in The Mandalorian. Ahsoka's appearance in this season has been speculated upon since last spring, with Rosario Dawson rumored to play the part. 

If last week's episode was a transitional one, this week's delivers on all levels while also opening up many possibilities for the future. Howard does a fabulous job as director, balancing the episode with quiet moments like The Child cooing and longing for food with top-notch Star Wars shootouts and earnest world-building. 

This was one of those special episodes of television that gives you so much to chew on while making the viewer excited for what is to come. And a word here for musical composer Ludwig Göransson, who put together in my view, the best single episode of music he's ever done for The Mandalorian. Here's hoping a season two soundtrack is on the way soon.

This was The Mandalorian, and indeed Star Wars as a whole, at its finest.

Brad Monastiere

I live in Michigan and worked in athletics. Been an unconditional fan of Star Wars and Indiana Jones for decades. Follow me on twitter @bmonastiere

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