The Book of Boba Fett episode 2: it’s already time to rein in the flashbacks
Huge spoilers ahead
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- Episode 2 (of 7), ‘Chapter 2: The Tribes of Tatooine’- Written by Jon Favreau- Directed by Steph Green★★★
Spoilers for The Book of Boba Fettfollow.
Two weeks into its run, The Book of Boba Fett is already having an identity crisis – and it has little to do with the not-a-bounty hunter’s efforts to reinvent himself as Tatooine’s number one crime boss.
With less than a third of ’The Tribes of Tatooine’ devoted to Boba’s present, an obsession with exploring the character’s backstory in minute detail is starting to unbalance the series. If you were feeling charitable, you could argue the extensive flashback sequence is a deliberate nod to The Godfather Part II – the crime saga is a major influence onThe Mandalorianspin-off series, after all – but that would mean ignoring a fundamental difference.
Because, unlike this episode, Francis Ford Coppola’s gangster classic never lost sight of the fact that the story of the younger Vito Corleone was the support act rather than the main event. And that’s a shame, because the episode’s ‘present day’-set opening act is electrifyingly brilliant and everything we’d hoped for from the latestStar WarsDisney Plus show.
It kicks off more or less where episode 1 left off last week, with Fett’s enforcer, aka Fennec Shand, escorting a highly trained ‘Order of the Night Wind’ assassin (still alive, as ordered) back to Jabba’s Palace, which is surely due a ‘Boba’s Palace’ rebrand in the near future.
Her return kickstarts a 14-minute detective story that takes Fett on a tour of key Mos Espa locations as he tries to work out who ordered the attempt on his life. Intimidation techniques, such as interrogation by knife point and that refreshingly familiar slide into a (now vacant) Rancor pit, prove remarkably effective, and suggest that – despite Fett’s claims to the contrary – he intends to rule by fear as much as respect.
With and without the famous Mandalorian helmet, Temuera Morrison proves that Fett doesn’t need fancy gadgets to be top dog. His performance in the episode’s first act is a tour de force, as he effortlessly conveys a character in total control of his situation – whether he’s meeting the mayor of Mos Espa, the returning Madam Garsa, or The Twins – a pair of Hutts who believe that cousin Jabba’s criminal empire is rightfully theirs. Fett may claim he’s left his bounty hunting days behind him, but it seems that others will take more convincing…
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The brief cameo from The Twins is possibly the standout moment of the episode, althoughthe inclusion of Black Krrsantanmight also foreshadow the Wookiee bounty hunter as a potential adversary inObi-Wan Kenobi’s upcoming TV show, too. Arriving in town carried by an army of servants, The Twins make a hell of an entrance, but it’s the subtle, background touches that stand out most – the female Twin demurely waving a fan, the sight of a man buckling under the Hutts’ combined weight, or the threateningly low-key “sleep lightly, bounty hunter” whispered on their departure.
Unfortunately, just as the episode should be on its way to a top-tier crescendo, Boba’s submerged in his bacta tank once again, and we’re back with the Sand People on the Dune Sea. It’s a flashback that continues until the end credits, and – in an episode 14 minutes longer than its predecessor – it proves to be something of a momentum-sapping slog.
It’s also a symptom of modernStar Wars’ frustrating need to fill as many gaps incanonas it can. George Lucas’s famous galaxy wasn’t always that way, of course, and the episode’s earlier references to the “Death Pits of Duur” and a “gumpta on Mustafar” hark back to the days when bounty hunters on Ord Mantell, or completing the Kessel run in less than 12 parsecs, didn’t need an explanation. These are the sort of casual, unexplained remarks that fire a fan’s imagination as much as finding out how Fett went from Sarlacc snack to hanging out with Mando and Baby Yoda.
But, by prioritizing backstory over all else, ‘The Tribes of Tatooine’ falls into the trap that’s befallen so many prequels into the past: obsessing over a story whose conclusion is already in the public domain.
Go back to the start of a bounty hunter’s second coming withThe Book of Boba Fett episode 1.
That said, this episode does an important job reinventing the Tusken Raiders, a species that hasn’t always been treated kindly by the franchise – in Episode IV: A New Hope, they were simply weird creatures to be avoided. Then, Episode II: Attack of the Clones turned them into “vicious, mindless monsters” waiting to be slaughtered by Anakin Skywalker early on his journey to the Dark Side.
‘The Tribes of Tatooine’ continues a redemption arc started in The Mandalorian episode ‘The Gunslinger’, though, by providing a welcome glimpse of the misunderstood Sand People and their culture. At times, this Tusken Raider storyline feels like a clunky mix between Dances with Wolves, Dune, and a slapstick driving school for Sand People.
But respect for their ways ultimately proves to be paramount, most notably in Fett’s powerful, politically relevant remarks about indigenous people and their claim on ancestral lands. Besides, the beautiful scene where Fett fashions his gaffi stick from the log he finds on a lizard-induced vision quest almost justifies the leisurely pace of what comes before – almost, but not quite.
Our verdict
Effectively a very long-winded origin story for Boba Fett’s Tusken Raider robes and gaffi stick, ‘The Tribes of Tatooine’ gets bogged down in its obsession with the lead character’s past. It’s fantastic as a nostalgia-fest, of course – the numerous Star Wars Easter Eggs never disappoint – but this shouldn’t come at the expense of pushing the title character’s story forward.
Another priority for the series should be finding something meaningful for Fennec Shand to do. Right now, Boba Fett’s right-hand woman is struggling to justify her position at second on the bill and, given she’s shone in the brief scenes she’s been a part of, providing Shand with more screen time is something that we’ll hopefully see in future episodes.
Two episodes in, The Book of Boba Fett has already done enough to show that the criminal underworld of Mos Espa is where the more compelling stories are to be found – even when they’re competing with a fun, Western-tinged train heist. Now it’s time the series turned its attentions to pushing ahead with its gangster action, and maybe establishing a Big Bad – possibly someone even bigger than The Twins.
Force facts
New episodes of The Book of Boba Fett debut on Disney Plus every Wednesday.
Richard is a freelance journalist specialising in movies and TV, primarily of the sci-fi and fantasy variety. An early encounter with a certain galaxy far, far away started a lifelong love affair with outer space, and these days Richard’s happiest geeking out about Star Wars, Star Trek, Marvel and other long-running pop culture franchises. In a previous life he was editor of legendary sci-fi and fantasy magazine SFX, where he got to interview many of the biggest names in the business – though he’ll always have a soft spot for Jeff Goldblum who (somewhat bizarrely) thought Richard’s name was Winter.
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