6 minutes ago, Vondy said:

Lastly, I found the assertion that Baby Yoda picked this job fun, interesting, and completely inexplicable all at once. How did that work?

Yeah, that one's thrown me for a loop too. I've been wondering what I missed.

7 minutes ago, Vondy said:

The rebel soldier's uniform fit really badly and was a shade of blue I would expect in carpet, curtains, or upholstery.

I think that was intentional, though. I thought it gave a nice effect.

I've actually been delaying rewatching it somewhat, because if I'm gonna have to wait 2 weeks, I want to drag out my enjoyment of this one as much as possible. Well, out of curiosity (and the desire not to look like an idiot, but that kinda went out the window) I looked it up. I was confused. Apparently it comes out early. Yay! I'll go rewatch it now! *phew* I was afraid I might not make it two weeks...

3 minutes ago, P-47 Thunderbolt said:

Yeah, that one's thrown me for a loop too. I've been wondering what I missed.

I think that was intentional, though. I thought it gave a nice effect.

I've actually been delaying rewatching it somewhat, because if I'm gonna have to wait 2 weeks, I want to drag out my enjoyment of this one as much as possible. Well, out of curiosity (and the desire not to look like an idiot, but that kinda went out the window) I looked it up. I was confused. Apparently it comes out early. Yay! I'll go rewatch it now! *phew* I was afraid I might not make it two weeks...

Haha, yeah, I had the same thought, before I realized Chapter 7 is on Wednesday - with an Episode VII sneak peak - then Chapter 8 on the 27th.

1 hour ago, HappyDaze said:

I've had far more IRL professional exposure to criminal types than you seem to think, and from what I've seen, you're totally wrong. Of course, these are cinematic criminals, so they are not likely to imitate RL closely. Still, the overuse of tired tropes in this series is bothersome.

Well, I've grown up around criminals, and I've worked with incarcerated criminals as part of my professional education, but I'm sure I'm completely wrong and know nothing of this.

I guess it's just anecdote vs anecdote here, but I can only speak for my own experiences.

47 minutes ago, Vondy said:

Also, Twi'Leks have pronounced incisors? It may just be my own ignorance or obliviousness, but I found that a little jarring.

I'm not sure whether Dave Filoni was trying to sound nonplussed or simply can't act, but his delivery fell flat for me. His "their launching a gunship" was practically somnolent.

Well, Bib fortuna had "nothing but" incisors, so... there's that... (ok, he just had pointy teeth, but you get what I mean)

As for Filoni... he's not an actor... so, I wouldn't expect great acting.

52 minutes ago, Vondy said:

Lastly, I found the assertion that Baby Yoda picked this job fun, interesting, and completely inexplicable all at once. How did that work?

While the consensus here was Yobaby picked it, my first thought was Mando was sarcastically being funny trying to place the blame elsewhere. Perhaps it was like someone talking to his dog after he did something stupid. "Yeah Rosco I told ya we shouldn't have gone out there".

43 minutes ago, OddballE8 said:

I'm sure I'm completely wrong and know nothing of this.

I'm glad we can agree on something.

2 hours ago, OddballE8 said:

Well, Bib fortuna had "nothing but" incisors, so... there's that... (ok, he just had pointy teeth, but you get what I mean)

As for Filoni... he's not an actor... so, I wouldn't expect great acting.

Yeah, and I didn't expect a lot, but man, "Dave, you only get ONE line, please!"

My in universe explanation is that this rebel pilot saw so much action during the Galactic Civil War that he's "been there, done that."

A single re-build fighter trying to launch... YAWN!

1 hour ago, Sturn said:

While the consensus here was Yobaby picked it, my first thought was Mando was sarcastically being funny trying to place the blame elsewhere. Perhaps it was like someone talking to his dog after he did something stupid. "Yeah Rosco I told ya we shouldn't have gone out there".

Plausible.

4 hours ago, baldwookiee said:

They should have realized how outclassed they were when he took out those droids. There they were pinned down and not able to do anything against their opponents, while he sneaks around, and behind them, and takes them all down on his own.

They likely figured once they got into the cell, the Mando would be helpless and they could escape without further incident without having to confront him in a straight-up fight. Sadly for them, the Mando was far more resourceful than they gave him credit for and was able to affect an escape from the cell.

Of which, only the Devaronian really put up that much of a fight, with the rest being taken down pretty quickly; Baldie figured he was hosed (especially once the Mando got into close quarters without ever presenting a viable target), the Twi'gal was psycho enough to take the Mando on in a straight-up fight with weapons that she had to have some understanding were largely useless against beskar, and the Twi'guy was at least clever enough to talk his way out of getting his butt handed to him on a platter.

4 hours ago, Vondy said:

Lastly, I found the assertion that Baby Yoda picked this job fun, interesting, and completely inexplicable all at once. How did that work?

I took that bit to be more of the Mando making a joke and sarcastically passing the blame for the job not at all going as he'd anticipated onto the Child.

5 hours ago, P-47 Thunderbolt said:

Yeah, that one's thrown me for a loop too. I've been wondering what I missed.

I think that was intentional, though. I thought it gave a nice effect.

I've actually been delaying rewatching it somewhat, because if I'm gonna have to wait 2 weeks, I want to drag out my enjoyment of this one as much as possible. Well, out of curiosity (and the desire not to look like an idiot, but that kinda went out the window) I looked it up. I was confused. Apparently it comes out early. Yay! I'll go rewatch it now! *phew* I was afraid I might not make it two weeks...

At the end Mando tells baby yoda he told him it was a bad idea...Im guessing however he got the request baby yoda communicated he should do it.

12 hours ago, HappyDaze said:

And unlike most of those jobs, these people deal with others that can and will kill them for jackhole behavior, so part of being a profession criminal is not acting like a jackhole towards other professional criminals that you're working alongside.

This doesn't add up.

You've hung out with people that kill people for being jackholes... and you're still here?

I call bantha poodoo.

7 hours ago, HappyDaze said:

I'm glad we can agree on something.

🙄

7 hours ago, HappyDaze said:

I'm glad we can agree on something.

Laughable at best.

OddballE8 is totally correct. Over a decade working in Corrections and I have seen this behavior from "professional" criminals day in and day out. All the posturing (for something as simple as "I want deserve the blue chair") to the soap opera melodrama (OK, not meaning to insult soap opera's, but it's the closest analogy, LOL). Heck, I started to watch CW shows just to get away from it all.....

If "your" criminal friends are like you say, I applaud the director and would like to know which show they are on. 😜

48 minutes ago, Jareth Valar said:

Laughable at best.

OddballE8 is totally correct. Over a decade working in Corrections and I have seen this behavior from "professional" criminals day in and day out. All the posturing (for something as simple as "I want deserve the blue chair") to the soap opera melodrama (OK, not meaning to insult soap opera's, but it's the closest analogy, LOL). Heck, I started to watch CW shows just to get away from it all.....

If "your" criminal friends are like you say, I applaud the director and would like to know which show they are on. 😜

I never said the criminals I knew were friends. I too worked in corrections and as a probation officer before I changed careers. I rarely saw the behaviors you mention except among the youngest and most foolish, and they either outgrow it pretty quickly or they go out (one way or another).

Great... another pissing contest.

1 hour ago, HappyDaze said:

I never said the criminals I knew were friends. I too worked in corrections and as a probation officer before I changed careers. I rarely saw the behaviors you mention except among the youngest and most foolish, and they either outgrow it pretty quickly or they go out (one way or another).

Just like plants then I guess. Different areas breed different deviations. LOL

17 minutes ago, DanteRotterdam said:

Great... another pissing contest.

Nah, Happy can be a grognard from time to time, but rarely in need of contest, much less of the pissing kind.

I wasn’t referring to Happy personally but to the general discussions that are part and parcel of this thread.

Overall I liked the recent episode.

Issues for me were the costumes. The Devaronian looked a bit off to me. Those Twi'leks even topped that. Strong fanfilm vibes here. Not great, not terrible.

The Twi'lek girls attitude was a bit overacted and kinda cringy. I don't know anything sfw, where a tongue gets so much screen time.

I'm glad though, that they didn't cast a generic hot girl for her. I'm fed up with books and comics, where you constantly find your nothing but beautiful Twi'leks.

7 hours ago, Jareth Valar said:

Just like plants then I guess. Different areas breed different deviations. LOL

It's more akin to watching animals raised in a zoo (i.e. a highly controlled environment) as opposed to watching the same animals that were born and raised in their natural habitats. Animals in a zoo will behave differently than animals that have never been in captivity. They're still animals of the same breed, but the environment they exist in (caged/penned in or allowed to roam free) has a substantial influence on their behavior.

HappyDaze has (by his own admission) a fairly narrow window by which to view a particular segment of society, seeing it through a fairly specific lens. If you were to ask a beat cop or detective that routinely works in a high-crime area where law enforcement isn't nearly as strong a presence as a penal facility, they'd probably tell you a very different story about criminal behavior.

With regards to the criminal crew in episode 6, if they've pretty much been allowed to operate as they pleased without facing repercussions for their crimes, then it makes sense that they'd be such a rowdy and undisciplined bunch. The Mandalorian stands out because his background with the clan is one of discipline and responsibility; he may do questionable things as a bounty hunter, but he's aware that his actions can have consequences, and generally measures those actions accordingly.

Of course, this also a discussion about the "realistic" behavior of career criminals in a setting where realism is more of a happy accident and the laws of physics are usually just ignored.

54 minutes ago, Vader is Love said:

Issues for me were the costumes. The Devaronian looked a bit off to me. Those Twi'leks even topped that. Strong fanfilm vibes here. Not great, not terrible.

The Twi'lek girls attitude was a bit overacted and kinda cringy. I don't know anything sfw, where a tongue gets so much screen time.

I'm glad though, that they didn't cast a generic hot girl for her. I'm fed up with books and comics, where you constantly find your nothing but beautiful Twi'leks.

With the Devaronian, I wrote that off more to it being Clancy Brown, who has a fairly distinctive look and generally looks "off" even in productions where he's not some over-the-top creepy bad guy.

I did like that the Twi'gal very much went against the established grain of being, as you put it, the "generic hot girl" and I think her over-the-top and frankly creepy attitude helped solidify that she wasn't just there to be eye candy, which sadly is more than can be said of Twi'leks in the films thus far; Hera Syndulla of Rebels really being the only prominent female Twi'lek that wasn't portrayed in a fan-servicey way, but a large part of that might be that the character was conceived of and thought before they decided to make her a Twi'lek.

Granted, it's not like Natalia Tena is exactly unattractive in her own right. But it wasn't played up, and instead they went for kind of a Harley Quinn-esque "giddy violent psycho" for her personality.

It's interesting in that the four criminals + Rand were sort of the "what everyone thinks badass outlaws should be in a sci-fi setting", complete with over-the-top personalities and the costumes and general dynamics, complete with backstabbing and the like.

Contrasted with Mando seeming to be that at a first glance, until you get into the depth of his character and realize he's NOT that, it's sort of an interesting commentary on it. Not sure if it was intended, but something I caught on a second viewing.

1 hour ago, StarkJunior said:

It's interesting in that the four criminals + Rand were sort of the "what everyone thinks badass outlaws should be in a sci-fi setting", complete with over-the-top personalities and the costumes and general dynamics, complete with backstabbing and the like.

Contrasted with Mando seeming to be that at a first glance, until you get into the depth of his character and realize he's NOT that, it's sort of an interesting commentary on it. Not sure if it was intended, but something I caught on a second viewing.

I think that was kind what they were going for. Showing the contrast. showing the kind of people he used to be with. showing that they had a falling out. and by not killing them it also sets up future complications. As they can impede future jobs.

I think I agree that this show needs to up its game in the story department. The acting is great, they get all the details right except the score, but they need to tell a good story, not just go with lazy by-the-numbers tropes.

28 minutes ago, DaverWattra said:

I think I agree that this show needs to up its game in the story department. The acting is great, they get all the details right except the score, but they need to tell a good story, not just go with lazy by-the-numbers tropes.

That may just boil down to what Jon Favreau's aim is. Thus far, it seems he's trying to capture the "adventure of the week" feel of the old west TV shows and serials, of which the only thing really connecting them was the main character, and with no greater myth arc connecting the fairly formulaic adventures of those old shows.

I've not been overly impressed with the storytelling either, but then I had very low expectations for this show from the start. It does feel like they're spending more time establishing who the Mandalorian is as a character in addition to world-building, giving us a look at the state of the galactic fringe several years after the Empire's fall. It's also the first season, and I've come to never expect great storytelling from the first season of any TV show. Avatar: The Last Airbender was all over the place in terms of story quality (apart perhaps from the insights into Zuko's character and history), but by the end of the second season had compiled a very compelling story. Babylon 5 had a very spotty first season, but up through the fourth season the storytelling there was overall pretty amazing (fifth season suffered from being largely made up on short notice). Farscape is another show where the first season was pretty weak (it relied on the characters to carry it through), but got progressively better as time went on (and Chrichton lost more and more of his marbles). Agents of SHIELD was another show that suffered a weak initial first season, at least up until the HYDRA reveal from Captain America: Winter Soldier, and got generally better afterwards.