The Mandalorian recap: The Mandalorian's mission hits a snag
After that shocking reveal in the premiere, we’re officially onto our second Mandalorian episode of the week. If it was a surprise that the first episode introduced so few of its highly teased characters, it’ll come as an even bigger shock to learn this episode features just two major cast members.
Having recovered from the discovery that the bounty he’s been charged with collecting is a baby — a 50-year-old infant — of the same unknown species as Yoda, the Mandalorian is on his way to deliver the asset to the Client. But considering this is only episode 2, something tells me it’s not going to be quite so easy. Mando exits the encampment, his young bounty in tow. As the pair navigate the desert territory, they’re followed by a horde of curious space lizards, whose sudden scurry to safety can only mean one thing: ambush. A group Trandoshans pop out and attack Mando, who swiftly defeats them, as baby Yoda inquisitively looks on. They, too, possess a tracking fob, meaning a lot of people are on the hunt for Mando’s young asset.
In the dusk, Mando attempts to mend a crack in his armor as the young bounty repeatedly abandons his floating egg-shaped bassinet in an attempt to reach Mando’s broken armor. Baby Yoda is trying to tell Mando something but the bounty hunter isn’t interested, sealing the asset back in his bassinet. The next day, Mando and baby Yoda reach his Razer Crest, only to see it being looted by Jawas — a fun throwback appearance to the scavenger species first seen in A New Hope. Obviously, this is not an ideal situation for the bounty hunter, who needs his ship to turn over his newly acquired asset ASAP.
From his hidden perch, Mando blasts a handful of Jawas, spooking them into taking off in their massive Sandcrawler — with most of the Razer Crest parts. The bounty hunter goes after them, climbing the outer ledge of the vehicle as Jawas throw small pieces of his ship at him, hoping to shake him off. Baby Yoda, meanwhile, is still zooming on behind them in his little bassinet. There’s a reason the Mandalorian never takes off his helmet, and it’s because it protects him from the metal machinery being lobbed at him as he scales the Sandcrawler. (Well, among other important reasons.) Unfortunately for the bounty hunter, as soon as he reaches the top, he’s shot with bolts of electricity from a dozen Jawas and plummets back into the stand.
As baby Yoda carefully watches Mando, as if trying to gauge whether the bounty hunter is dead at the hands of Jawas (of all beings!), the bounty hunter stirs. Dejected, he and baby Yoda gauge the damage done to his ship. Spoiler alert: It’s looking pretty rough. Baby Yoda, having, once again, escaped his bassinet, checks in on the wallowing bounty hunter (he’s still wearing the helmet, but there’s a lot of broody energy). Stranded on the desert planet, the duo make their way to Kuiil, the Nick Nolte-voiced Ugnaught, for assistance.
Watching baby Yoda play with a couple of space frogs, Kuiil cannot believe this is the source of so much fuss… and death. Mando is still very upset about the whole Razer Crest situation but as the Jawas have only stripped the ship and not destroyed it, Kuiil thinks they can get his parts back. Mando has tried and can’t break into their “crawling fortress” of a vehicle, but the Ugnaught has spoken and he’s going to take Mando to trade for his ship’s parts. Meanwhile, Mando’s parenting skills leave a lot to be desired as baby Yoda straight-up swallows a space frog whole. It’s a wild turn of events from the otherwise adorable infant.
Mando and Kuiil arrive to meet the Jawas, who are preparing for a fight — because Mando, well, blasted a few of them into nothing, like, yesterday. Luckily they’re also ready to negotiate. The scavengers tell him they’ll give back his Razer Crest parts for his Beskar armor. The Mandalorian is still full of mysteries but we’ve learned one thing: Beskar armor is important to Mandalorians, so it’s a hard pass from Mando. Spotting baby Yoda, who is making himself a little too visible watching from the wagon, they have another trade proposition. As the young asset is not anywhere near the offering table, the Jawas have a final proposition: they’ll give Mando his parts if he gets them the egg. We have no idea what this egg is, but it’s clearly a big deal because the Jawas are giddily chanting at the prospect of its retrieval.
Mando, Kuiil, and baby Yoda accompany the Jawa to a different part of the desert territory, and Mando and baby Yoda take off in search of the cave. With the asset lingering outside the ominous cave, Mando enters… and is promptly ejected by an enormous space rhino. Mando may be one of the best bounty hunters out there, but even he is no match for this space rhino, who lays him out over and over again as baby Yoda watches — his already massive eyes somehow even wider. The rhino charges one final time, as Mando weakly staggers to his knees, his small dagger ready. However, before the space rhino can reach him, it’s halted by baby Yoda using the Force. Using the Force takes a lot of energy, so baby Yoda is unable to contain the beast for long. But it’s all a shocked Mando needs to ready himself and take down the space rhino.
Meanwhile, the Jawas assume Mando is dead and are ready to abandon him, but the very loyal Kuiil is determined to stay. Just then, Mando and baby Yoda come strolling up, egg in hand. It was an odd length to go to retrieve it but the egg seems to be just that, as the Jawas go to town on the yolk. During their journey back to the Razer Crest, with Mando’s returned parts, Kuiil and the bounty hunter ponder the sleeping asset’s powers. Of which, neither of them seems to understand.
While Mando gripes about the repair setting his return back a week, Kuiil shadily retorts that things will move faster if the bounty hunter pitches in. Sure enough, the pair pull an all-nighter but complete their task. As a thank you for his help, Mando offers Kuiil half the reward from this bounty but the Ugnaught declines, also turning town the bounty hunter’s offer of a job on his crew. Kuiil wishes Mando a handsome reward for baby Yoda and the two part ways—though hopefully not for long. This series may be The Mandalorian but as far as I’m concerned, Kuiil is the real M.V.P. of episode two, coming through in every way while the titular bounty hunter worked on his helmeted brood.
In the cockpit of the Razer Crest, Mando watches the sleeping bounty, and while we can’t see his eyes, they’re surely filled with at least some doubt. At this point it seems Mando is still planning to turn baby Yoda over to the Client and Pershing. But considering episode one teased a morality to the seemingly stone-cold bounty hunter — not to mention baby Yoda saving him from certain death over an egg — it’s difficult to see him actually following through with the mission.
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