Main cast: Temuera Morrison (Boba Fett), Ming-Na Wen (Fennec Shand), Matt Berry (8D8), and Jennifer Beals (Garsa Fwip)
Director: Robert Rodriguez
Well, Stranger in a Strange Land wastes little time confirming that this Boba Fett is the same one that was consumed by the Sarlacc in Star Wars: Return of the Jedi. After surviving the worst case of vagina dentata known to the universe, he was last seen pretending to be useful while not so-discreetly advertising his upcoming show, all in the second season of The Mandalorian.
To those that didn’t stay to watch the post-credit scenes of the final episode of that season because they had to use the toilet after all the excitement of, you know, that scene, let me just recap: Bobo and Fennec showed up at Jabba’s place in Tatooine, slew the upstart in charge, and struck a dramatic pose as the show announces that The Book of Boba Fett is coming up next, so watch out for it.
Well, the show is here. Bobo is now in charge, with Fennec as his second in command. While doing their boss rounds in town, they get ambushed, and Bobo gets injured. Fennec’s more than fine, as Mickey Mouse has declared that it is illegal since 2019 for any female character in a Disney show to exhibit any sign of weakness. So, while Boba’s down for the count, he flashes back to an earlier memory of his time escaping the Sarlacc dentata, then getting enslaved by Tusken raiders, and so forth until he bonded with some child that is certainly not put in to be the Baby Yoda of this show. I mean, that kid’s nowhere as cute.
Will anyone be surprised if I say that Ming-Na Wen’s Fennec has a far stronger presence here? Not that this is a bad thing, as Fennec is a cool character, but Bobo tends to fade into the background each time she shares a scene with him. It doesn’t help that he doesn’t have many memorable lines in this episode, while Mina-Na kicks ass just from giving the camera her haughty, sexy be-beating-the-crap-out-of-you look.
For the most part, though, this is a flashback episode, to fill me in on the events between Sarlacc dentata and his appearance on The Mandalorian. There are still many pages missing from this book, so to speak, so it’s hard to judge from this episode how good it is as a standalone episode. It isn’t one, after all.
Do I want to watch the next episode? Well, here’s a lukewarm yes from me. I like Fennec, but I wish Bobo makes more of an impact in the first episode of his own show—at this point, I’d be far more enthusiastic about watching The Book of Fennec Shand, that’s for sure.
So, here’s a lukewarm three-oogie score from me. Let’s just wait and see what the next episode has in store for Bobo.
