Every time an episode of The Mandalorian lands, Fantha Tracks will be giving their responses, and here are our initial gut feelings, deep dives and thoughts on the eighteenth episode – Chapter 18: The Mines of Mandalore. Beware of spoilerific elements in here.
Eric Onkenhout
The streets of Mos Eisley are alive with the sound of fireworks as a couple of racers make their way around the city track. In one of the hangers, Peli Motto negotiates prices with a Rodian desperate to repair his ship. After they strike a deal, he walks off. Little does he know Peli pulled a fast one by hiring Jawas to dismantle his ship and put it back together after he leaves. Shortly thereafter, Din arrives with Grogu in his refurbished N-1 fighter. It’s Boonta Week, and there’s excitement in the air!
Din wants to know if Peli has a spare memory circuit for an IG unit. A group of Jawas confirms no luck, but Peli offers up R5-D4 as a substitute. Of course, we know R5 as the red astromech owned by Luke Skywalker in A New Hope and the in the short story ‘The Red One‘ by Rae Carson in the From a Certain of View anthology where R5 deliberately loosens his own head to ensure R2 got sold to the Lars family because he knew R2’s mission was more important. Eventually, R5 was able to live out his dream of joining the Rebellion. Not bad for a toy that looked sort of like R2 but wasn’t.
Peli convinces Din to take R5 on their trip to Mandalore to help him determine whether or not the atmosphere is safe to breathe. Din, Grogu, and R5 arrive in the Mandalorian system, and storm clouds and fires bowling down below are visible from space. Din tells Grogu that he is from Concordia, another planet in the system. Din flying through Mandalore’s stormy atmosphere reminded me of Luke trying to land on Dagobah. Even some of the close-ups of R5 are similar. Suddenly the skies clear, and the results of the Empire’s fusion bombs are visible as Mandalore looks crystallized from fires. The magnetic field has also been disrupted.
Mandalore is in absolute shambles. At first, there didn’t appear to be any life forms. In fact, it’s funny how Din didn’t attempt to check for any before leaving his ship to look for R5, who had gone missing. Doing so would’ve indicated there were threats that would later catch him off-guard. A group of Alamites attacks Din, but he is able to fight them off with the Darksaber. This was the first appearance of Alamites, who resembled something out of the original Star Trek series. They were muscular, bipedal cavemen with protruding jaws, sharp teeth, two pairs of green, glowing eyes, long scraggly hair, and grey skin. They also brandished clubs for weapons. Later Bo-Katan reveals that they used to live in the surface wastelands beyond the cities. Din finds R5 knocked over and brings him back. Another thing Din discovers is that Mandalore is not cursed.
Din literally descends deeper and deeper into the mines, which could symbolize the descent into darkness. Similarly, Ezra descends into Malachor, and Luke enters the cave on Dagobah. Din isn’t a Jedi, but Grogu knows the Force. Din finds a Mandalorian helmet but gets captured by a mechanical spider driven by a mech made of tubing and organic connections. This android reminded me of something from Lost in Space more than Star Wars, but it looked very cool.
Grogu leaves to call Bo-Katan for help, and she reluctantly agrees. Grogu’s ability to use the Force is noticeably stronger as he jumps around, Force pushes, and he’s even making more attempts at speaking. Seeing more Bo-Katan was great! There really is no difference between animated and live-action Bo-Katan. They’re both sassy and tough. Bo-Katan rescues Din from the mech creature using the Darksaber. She handled it much better than Din, which means it really does belong to her. This season of The Mandalorian has shown some really cool effects and the mech is one of them.
I’m really enjoying the chemistry between Din and Bo. However, I find Din’s obsession with The Creed tiresome, so I’m siding with Bo on this one. It’s so sad to see Mandalore in this state after seeing how beautiful it looked in The Clone Wars. Din enters the Living Waters only to nearly die. Bo has to jump in and rescue him again as he lies deep below on the floor. As they ascend, we see a mythosaur who, luckily for them, isn’t interested.
This season of The Mandalorian is two for two to start the season. The Mines of Mandalore was such a great episode because Din and Grogu are growing as people together in their own way. Din seeks to redeem himself, and Grogu is becoming more comfortable with his Force abilities. While Bo-Katan wields the Darksaber again and kicks butt!
Daniel Lo
A week ago, I began my review by talking about how a childhood fascination with the Loch Ness monster had since morphed into a borderline irrational phobia. I did so in response to the water-dwelling dinosaur turtle that crashed an initiation ceremony in the opening scene. While the visuals were indeed a bit frightening to me, it wasn’t quite at the level of nightmare fuel either. Little did I know that was about to change.
But speaking of visuals first, chapter 18 of The Mandalorian felt like a gateway between a TV show and a movie. On one hand, it’s gotten increasingly difficult to unsee the use of StageCraft in some scenes such as Peli Motto’s hangar, exterior closeups of the starfighter cockpit, and especially Din Djarin’s landing spot on Mandalore (ouch). Even the initial entrance to the cave felt a bit constrained. However, once we arrived at the underground civic center the scale of the environment increased exponentially. Toto, we’re not in The Volume anymore.
Whatever filming techniques were used during and after Mando and Grogu’s descent into the mines, they were absolutely top notch. It’s quite possible that certain scenes in the last 25 minutes may have employed StageCraft, but it sure wasn’t obvious. By far my favorite was the duel between Bo Katan and Mando’s General Grievous-looking captor. It was a great showdown that played out like a high octane holochess match starting with a twin blaster attack, met with an energy staff defense and counterattack, grappling line to Darksaber retrieval and activation, another electric bolt attack, Darksaber blade absorption defense, more staff attacks met with plasma shield defense, and finally a Darksaber stab to the torso. The involuntary gambit forced the one-eyed critter to eject its head module and crawl back into the giant arachnid mech that was initially used to capture Mando. Despite facing a considerable hardware upgrade, Bo Katan made quick work of this final assault, faintly echoing how Starkiller destroyed the Terror Walker in The Force Unleashed II trailer. Outstanding.
Looping back to the nightmare fuel, the entire underwater sequence was extremely difficult to watch, even well before Bo Katan’s helmet light illuminated the Mythosaur’s giant horn and eyeball. I admit I was sunk low in my seat and only occasionally dared to glance at the screen. By no means was it the first time Star Wars has taken us deep underwater, of course. Nearly a quarter century ago, The Phantom Menace boasted a fairly long underwater sequence on Naboo that involved some large sea monsters, but for whatever reason it didn’t come across quite as scary or sinister. I was also barely 21 years old when Episode I was released, so maybe my phobia hadn’t fully kicked in yet either. Of course, the amount of terror it provoked was a testament to the high end visual effects and direction. While the aforementioned obvious uses of StageCraft were definitely not ideal in a final product, the positive side is that boundaries have clearly been pushed. Sometimes it falls off the wrong edge, which is fine as long as the shortcomings also lead to newer and better techniques, which this episode very much appeared to showcase.
Ending with some random thoughts: Boonta Eve! Why couldn’t R5-D4 take a quick sample reading of the atmosphere while still docked in the starfighter? The Darksaber still felt heavy to Mando, but wasn’t made so obvious that it required watching The Book of Boba Fett. Where is Grogu’s pram stored and how did it get inside the starfighter during such a hasty escape? Why did Bo Katan start talking to a closed cockpit while still 20 feet away? Super cool to see a live action Gauntlet starfighter in flight. Why must all Alamite fights start from above? It was a bit odd for Bo Katan to pause for a speech in the middle of an urgent rescue mission. We now know that Mandalorian jetpacks can work underwater. Is Mando redeemed now?
Ross Hollebon
“Being a Mandalorian’s not just learning about how to fight, you also have to know how to navigate the galaxy, because you never know where you might be headed next.”
A brooding Bo-Katan Kryze didn’t expect this lesson from Din Djarin to Grogu to pluck her from the Kryze throne of the Kalevala castle—but it seems “children’s stories” and Mandalorian myth is now the way for the former leader of Mandalore.
Grogu did his part in navigating, with some help from R5-D4, and now the Force-user and Mandalorian royal worked together to rescue their shiny beskar-clad companion from a robotic monster beneath the Civic Center of Sundari.
The irony of the rescue is Bo-Katan’s recovery of the Darksaber, and her adept usage of the weapon, to cut down the threat and rescue the current true owner of the historic Mandalorian blade and symbol. She moves forward from this sequence without any apparent thirst for keeping the Darksaber and instead serves the injured Din pog soup, shocked he had never had the meal most of their kind had grown up on. The myths and trivialities of Mandalore continue to merge, enlightening both Din and Grogu about culture and history as their journey escalates. Now we have Bo-Katan agreeing to take them to the Living Waters beneath the city—not realizing the most eye-opening event she might ever encounter is imminent.
The reveal of a massive, gasp-worthy mythosaur in the Living Waters, is the biggest moment of this week’s tense show. It is the cliffhanger we end with after the two Mandalorians shoot out from the water and draw breath on land. It is the second time during this episode Bo-Katan saves Din’s life, but this specific event might just be the thing that invigorates a hero who had lost her way but may have accidentally found her true guide. After the initial rescue, she states to Din that she found him thanks to “his kid,” who she praises in assessing that “…he’s quite the navigator.”
From traveling amongst the stars to space whales, and then Mandalorian myths and politics, the navigation by the Clan of Two continues to set up a greater impact than finding the right path for only themselves.
Brad Boutilier
I’ve gotta give the show props – what I thought was going to take this full season to play out happened over the course of an episode instead. Assuming this is going to be another 8 episode season, I thought arriving on Mandalore, exploring the planet, and bathing in the waters would happen around episode 6 and take 2-3 episodes in total to play out. Instead, it happened all in episode 2.
So, where do we go from here? I think the things I mentioned at the end of my last review will be explored over the rest of the season- Bo coming around a bit to Din’s ideology, Din coming around a bit to Bo’s. The 2 of them teaming up to reunite their people or at least begin plastering some cracks. With things moving so fast this episode, I think we’re going to explore the threat in the outer rim a bit more indepth and delve deeper into the Imperial Remnant. Maybe we’ll even get our first glimpse of Thrawn? I’m also hoping we’ll learn more about the Armorer, I reckon she has an interesting story.
I thought the episode was fairly good on the whole, but I’m more excited at how much happened and the possibilities that opens up for the rest of the season. Let’s see what they have in store.
Becca Benjamin
Season 3 of The Mandalorian is definitely coming out of the gate hot! In George Lucas fashion, Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni, with their whole creative team, seem to be moving the story along “faster and more intense.” Specifically in Chapter 18, ‘The Mines of Mandalore.’ But first, we go back to Tatooine and learn that locals still celebrate the Boonta Eve races, and it seems to be quite the holiday after all these years and quite profitable for someone like Peli Motto.
Din and Grogu visit Peli to inquire about some parts for IG-11. Sadly, she informs him that those parts are scarce because IG models are no longer in commission. But, Peli offers up her trusty astromech, R5-D4. Neither Din nor the droid is amused. Still, the twosome becomes a threesome and heads out on their new adventure. Along the way, Din gives Grogu a crash course on the navigational systems, and before long, they are on Mandalore. Upon landing, Grogu is just as, if not more, skeptical than R5 when Din instructs the astromech to check if the planet’s air is breathable. Still, the droid, apprehensively, goes out to survey the land. And, before long, R5 finds himself in a pickle. Grogu shrills in worry over the missing droid on the navigational scope, so Din has no choice but to rescue the little astromech. But first, Din orders Grogu to stay with the ship and seal himself in his pram.
Once Din returns with R5 and discovers the air is indeed breathable, Din and Grogu set off to explore the mines of Mandalore. It doesn’t take long for things to go awry. And as soon as things go from bad to worse, Din has no other recourse but to send Grogu for help. Grogu heads back to the ship, tapping into his Jedi-tingling senses along the way, and instructs R5 (frantically pointing at the navigational screens and babbling incessantly) to set the course for Bo-Katan’s home world.
Bo-Katan reluctantly greets an empty N1-starfighter, only to find Grogu alone in the cockpit. Alarmed, she accompanies the foundling and heads back to Mandalore to rescue Din. Throughout their journey beneath the depths of what’s left of Mandalore, Bo-Katan tells Grogu about her knowledge of the Jedi and how his Daddy is not the only Mandalorian.
Once they find Din, Bo-Katan springs into action and saves the day! She wields the Darksaber with ease and holds her own, owning it and proving that she is indeed a leader in her own right. She then nurses a weakened Din back to health without asking for anything in return but for him to rethink the ways of the “creed.” But there is no changing Din’s mind. He’s come too far to give up now.
As the threesome regroups and heads further below Mandalore, Bo-Katan tells tales of her family’s legacy. And while she never mentions her sister Satine by name, we feel the pain of her loss as she talks about her proud father watching over the “Princess of Mandalore” taking her “rite of passage” by reciting the creed as she bathes in the waters of Mandalore.
Upon their arrival, Bo-Katan reads the inscription below the crest of Mandalore (Mythosaur Sigil), and Din makes his way into the dark waters of Mandalore. As Din submerges into the water, something pulls him under with great force, and almost instinctively, Bo-Katan dives in after him! She gasps, letting out a barrage of air bubbles as she spots what looks to be a Mythosaur. This sighting only heightens the suspense as the pair reach the safety of the lair’s steps.
All in all, the episode was exciting from start to finish! The Mines of Mandalore seemed to capture a lot of mystique and lore of Mandalore and its culture, leaving us hungry for more!
Paul Naylor
There is an old saying, revenge is a dish best served cold. For one character, this episode proved to be just that. Of course, I am referring to the marvellous astromech R5-D4. Cruelly robbed of a starring role in the original Star Wars by a ‘bad motivator’, the plucky droid has been hanging out with Pelli Moto for some time now. So, after waiting patiently in the wings for 46 years, R5 gets to carry out a significant role alongside Mando and Grogu.
It was a bit of an odd episode, with Mando desperately trying to find the living waters of Mandalore and encountering a General Grievous wannabe, and as Din enters the waters, seeking atonement, he instead encounters The Mythosaur.
Following a rescue by Bo Katarn, the episode ended rather abruptly. I guess it was more of a ‘setting up future episodes’ kinda episode. And you know what that means? Yay. R5 gets to meet R2 and that’s when the real adventure begins 😉
Jonathan Hipkiss
Jen Sopchockchai
After last week, which ended with Din and Grogu setting out to find a part to repair IG-11 before heading to Mandalore, I was bracing myself for all the ensuing “discourse” around filler episodes and side quests. I definitely thought that the trajectory of the season was that we would gradually work our way to the Mines of Mandalore and Din’s absolution. How wrong I was! Instead of an extended detour, we got a quick pitstop with the ever delightful Pelli Motto. This feels like a deliberate trolling of the audience. A clever fake-out that preys upon and lovingly mocks our impatience for the main storyline. I love it when I’m happy to be wrong.
We learn so much about the planet’s history through Din and Bo-Katan telling Grogu. We learn about various customs and traditions. And, most poignantly for me, the interactions of these three characters interrogate what it means to be a Mandalorian. I love that we get three Mandalorians that have three very different relationships with Mandalore: Grogu is just learning about being a Mandalorian and has never even been to the system. Din has never been to Mandalore, but spent some time as a child on Concordia, a nearby moon. And Bo was part of the royal family on Mandalore and grew up during the golden age of Mandalorian civilization. She’s the only one of the trio who knows what it was like before the Empire desecrated it.
Din has a deep reverence for Mandalore and the sacred power it may hold for him. He says to Grogu: “It’s Mandalore. The homeworld of our people. Every Mandalorian can trace their roots back to this planet and the beskar mines deep within.” But then, immediately after that, he says, “And you know what? I’ve never been there either.” This is an endearing dad moment because he’s trying to make Grogu feel a sense of belonging. But it also highlights how he can have such strong feelings about a place he’s never even seen.
The scene in which Bo-Katan makes “pog soup” over a makeshift fire, and, for example, was so indicative of how the Mandalorian diaspora has made many kinds of Mandalorians. Din confesses that he’s never had pog soup, and Bo, shocked, says that every child on Mandalore grew up on it since they were Grogu’s size. And now, Grogu, the newest Mandalorian is having pog soup, on Mandalore, as a child. So the cultural practice has the potential come back around to him and his generation of Mandalorians. Cultural practices that Din grew up with and that Bo-Katan grew up with might be totally different, but they’re both equally Mandalorian.
As they approach the Mines, Bo-Katan tells Din about when she was a child and had to go to the living waters to recite the Mandalorian Creed in front of her father and his subjects. This harkens back to the scene that opened the entire season: a young child stepping into unknown waters on another planet because the remaining Children of the Watch have been displaced from their homeland and need to recreate this ritual elsewhere. Later in this episode, of course, we see Din, in this episode, recite the same Creed as he steps into the living waters.
I swear on my name and the names of the ancestors.
That I shall walk the Way of the Mand’alor.
And the words of the Creed shall be forever forged in my heart.
This is the Way.
The Mandalorians we meet throughout the galaxy may diverge in many ways, but this one recitation has somehow transcended place, history, and generational divides. The phrase “This is the Way” has become a fun catchphrase for fans, but here, in this episode, we see the power its utterance can have. When Bo-Katan regales Din with the last time she went to the living waters, she mentions her father, Adonai Kryze. When Din says that he sounds like an interesting man, she corrects him and says, “He was a great man. He died defending Mandalore.” Din stops in his tracks, turns to look at Bo-Katan, and says “This is the Way.” Bo-Katan looks astonished and taken aback by his reverence. This one phrase moves her in a way that is critical to what I’m hoping is her restoration of hope and faith in Mandalorian civilization. I was moved as well.
I acknowledge that The Children of the Watch are more orthodox and, as some would say, fundamentalists or zealots, but here we see how that Bo has maybe gone too long without that sense of belonging, community, wonder, and majesty towards Mandalore as not necessarily a place but an idea.
(This is condensed and edited – with permission – from Jen’s The Long Take review, which you can subscribe to here)
Sander de Lange looks at all the reveals and easter eggs in The Mandalorian – The Guide: Chapter 18: The Mines of Mandalore
Brian Cameron, Matt Booker and Mark Newbold discuss The Mines of Mandalore on Good Morning Tatooine
Mark Mulcaster and Mark Newbold discuss The Mines of Mandalore on Making Tracks Reaction Chat: The Mandalorian S3 Ep2 – The Mines of Mandalore
