SPOILER TBoBF ep.1 - A Stranger in a Strange Land

Ok I must admit I am a little “worried”. I am worried that this series will underwhelm. Or is that because Mando was so freaking awesome? And Boba’s theme is by no means as compelling for me as Goranssons work on the Mandalorian. I will keep watching but I am worried….

 

Ok sort of. That first scene in Mando when he comes into the bar, with his theme playing , was absolutely outstanding and far beyond anything I got in BOBF ep 1

 

I liked this first episode a lot but enjoyed the first Mandalorian episode more and that doesn't include the ending

 

Not sold - YET!!!

 

Agreed. This was so disappointing for me.

Anyone else think this episode looks a bit...cheap?

 

Show does look cheaper or lower budget at times compared to Mandalorian or the marvel shows but it doesn't bother me much. Some shots are very cool and the special effects are good and so it doesn't stand out that bad.

Episode was fun and still feel/look like star wars

 

Enjoyed the first episode more than I expected. Found it surprisingly enjoyable just to spend time in Tatooine and learn more about the sand people, the criminal underworld, etc. The visual design was great, just a feast of Star Warsy-ness.

I agree with those who say the flashbacks are the best part. I enjoyed the present day scenes, but I think they still lack a compelling conflict. As yet, the stuff with the mayor isn't enough to grab me.
Hope it quickly evolves into something with more personal meaning for Boba.

 

I'm noticing a lot of "looks cheap" criticism lately when it comes to TV series that look great and I'm wonder if it's TV setting related? It's a challenge has TV pictures get better and better make sure everything is set correctly, but this episode looked very much like Mando.

 

Not as visually appealing as The Mandalorian but close. Looks "cheaper"in comparison but it's still damn good and certainly better than many sci-fi shows. Far better than a scyfy network show like a few have said as that's just hyperbole to me

 

The creature at the end. I didn't like the design and somehow it felt un-Star Warsy. Other than that I like it. Liked the references to the older movies (the shots of Kamino were awesome). I wouldn't say that I loved it. It didn't blow me away like The Mandalorian did, but I enjoyed it. It entertained me and kept me watching and that's a start for the first episode.
I'm intrigued to see what episode 2 has to show us.

 

This first episode reminded me of the first 30 minutes or so of A New Hope, not much dialogue but great visual storytelling. I have read a lot of people saying it's really slow and boring but to me that's a far better way and a more star warsy way to start a story off than any other. I bet if a new hope was released in cinemas today people would say the first half of the film was slow and boring... anyway I digress.

It was a very solid start for me and although the sarlaac escape was short it was more than satisfactory.
The comments about vintage stormtrooper figure I think is for a reason.. acid! he'd basically been moulded into a vintage figure and for them to say yeah they would probably look like a vintage figure because the helmet has melted into the torso is quite frankly another stroke of genius on the creators part.

The flashback scenes were great at telling us not just more about Boba but also the intricate workings of a Tusken Raider tribe or clan. fighting is their way of life, the way the leader chose a fighter, possibly his son, but felt like a rite of passage that all tusked raiders must face, same as the youngling having to collect water. I really want to see more interaction with the leader and Boba.. fascinating stuff.

The few interactions in the present has already set up that taking the throne from Bib isn't going to be as easy as he maybe expected and that there are bigger fish out there who will want a say in the matter, from what I've read, events in TBOBF crossover with Mandalorian and Ahsoka and will build up to a cinematic event, so will be very interesting to see how they cross, will Thrawn come into this at some point? Will he call up help from Mando or his other old bounty hunter mates?

What I do love is that I have absolutely no idea what we are going to get in the next episode, very similar to Mando and how each week it would completely throw us off track, but I can already feel we are in for one hell of a ride.. again

 

Witwer did the voice? I assumed it was just sound effects.

 

I enjoyed it immensely. Good choice to detail Boba's ordeal during and after his encounter with Sarlacc. It smooths out the transition from ruthless hunter happy to serve our heroes up to the empire to the somewhat "softer" ally character we've come to know on Mando.

 

I think it also explains why he doesn't do torture.

 

For me TBOBF and in parts both Mando seasons look cheap mainly because of two reasons:
1) The imagery looks too clean and too sharp. It looks way too digital. This makes it feel unrealistic and cheap. There is a reason why filmmakers like to use grain after all.
2) Boring cinematography makes it feel cheap as well. There is nothing unique about the visuals. Sure, you don't need to invent something new, shows like True Detective are shot quite ordinary as well-

But's it's done in such a perfection. From blocking to scaling- it looks fantastic yet familiar.

Or we go into the complete opposite direction and try to do something new and unique. For example the show Mr Robot is beautiful to look at because of 'lower quadrant framing':


Am I expecting this from Star Wars? No, but some kind of uniqueness and challenge visually wise would be nice.


The Mandalorian and TBOBF are looking way too similar. Some may like this, personally I don't. I'm hoping Andor and Kenobi have a different feel and have their unique visuals.

 

You're right about The Mando, a good example is Tython looking like a generic rocky planet. Its like they put loads of the budget into some settings and other episodes suffer because of it. It's frustrating because so many of the designs are on point.

 

I'm not sure I get the title. What makes Boba a stranger? He's been to Tatoonine before.