The Book of Boba Fett: TV Review

Stranger in a Strange Land starts a new chapter for Boba Fett, albeit one that feels muted and of its time, rather than vibrant and exciting given the Star Wars fan fervour for the helmeted bounty hunter.

It's fair to say that Fett's strength as a character is more one of an enigmatic soul who rarely said much in the original Star Wars trilogy and whose demise at the bowels of the Sarlacc Pit seemed a fitting end for a franchise that provided plenty of fodder for imaginations and potential spin-offs.

But, based on its opening salvo (one of seven), The Book of Boba Fett is more interested in filling in backstory where there was no need, and in creating filler in gaps that were left fertile by imaginations of fans. 

Jon Favreau's opener, helmed by Robert Rodriguez, is certainly solid, but it doesn't fully feel like it's essential viewing to start a new 7 part series. 

In the opening episode, Temuera Morrison's Fett and his accomplice Fennec Shand (Ming-Na Wen) have installed themselves on the throne previously occupied by Bib Fortuna and Jabba the Hutt. Determined to rule via respect rather than Jabba's previous fear outings, Fett finds his time taken up with dealing with the tedium of tributes coming to the crime syndicate, showing leniency where cruelty would have been the norm and fighting off a group of parkour-laden assassins determined to end Fett as he walks the streets.

In between all that, flashbacks to Tattooine show how Morrison's Fett escaped the Sarlacc Pit, got mistreated by Jawa, and hauled through the dunes by Sandpeople. 

It's all fairly formulaic stuff, that's keen more to fill out some story, and build on the notion of ruling in a lawless land as embodied by many a Western before it. Morrison gets to hold court and show the foundations of Fett, as well as bring some of the infamous Maori rage he holds within during the fighting sequences.

If anything, Morrison's multi-dimensional approach to Boba Fett as he leans more toward leniency in a new world gives the character change of heart a depth the script doesn't fully afford at times. But it's a solid rather than spectacular start to this new character arc.

But in parts, The Book of Boba Fett feels tired.

And it's yet another sign of Disney's continuing desire to give maligned baddies a heroic backstory and decency that they didn't need initially, nor should they be afforded in current incarnations. There's no need to soften bad guys' auras - they're beloved because they're simply bad, not just because someone stole their teddy when they were younger and it shaped their formative years.

The assassination attempt seems swallowed up by a desire to indulge in rooftop parkour that fell out of fashion a decade or so ago. It dates the action, rather than bringing it up to date and while it's hard to say where the series is going, or why anyone should care about who was behind the assassination attempt this early on, there's enough of a premise to keep diehard Star Wars fans engaged and intrigued enough to see if their fan theories on how Fett survived have become canon.

For everyone else, though, it's questionable - a bridge too far in Star Wars spinoffs.

The Book of Boba Fett's opening chapter may lack the dazzle and sparkle of The Mandalorian's previous outings, but with fan service aplenty (Gamorrean guards, the cantina et al) there's enough for the Star Wars universe full of fans to see it through - even if others are left scratching their heads about the reason for its existence.

The Book of Boba Fett is streaming now on Disney+, with episodes released weekly.