Carl Weathers takes the helm of “the siege”, and packs it full of action and mostly satisfying storytelling

We’re four episodes in and this season keeps getting better by the minute. Chapter 12 is now here, called “The Siege”, and it’s another great one after last week’s excellence. Absolutely jam-packed with action, thrills with guest stars Cara Dune and Greef Karga showing up for a mission with Mando, we may not see Rosario Dawson gear up as Ahsoka Tano, but this is most likely the best alternative. In terms of narrative momentum, which was the show’s biggest issue, director Carl Weathers (who also portrays Karga) has given more life in the storytelling. Audiences can tell that the plot here will have an effect on later episodes, and is a solid continuation from previous ones. And although it may not reach the heights of Chapter 11, Weathers proves himself to be a capable director, and he pumps this one full of fun.

When Mando’s Razor Crest starts to stutter in space, and Baby Yoda fails to fix it (we do get an adorable Groot reference, though), he decides to land in Navarro, where Cara and Greef can help with repairs. We cut to Navarro, and we see everyone’s favorite butt-faced aliens having a Friday night party session, but it’s crashed by the town’s new marshal: Cara (Gina Carano), who beats them up one by one just like she did many times in the first season. Now listen, I love Dune as a character, her screen presence is badass, and I feel the series needs to develop her more, but due to Carano’s transphobic actions, the denial of the basic science behind the spread of COVID-19, and her recent tweet demanding to end voter fraud in the US when there was no proof of any have kind of ruined the character for me. Seeing Dune back was a blast nonetheless, I’m just feeling a little less charitable to the character, that’s all. Then, the Razor Crest arrives on Navarro to meet Dune, and Baby Yoda’s proud grandpa Greef Karga (Carl Weathers).

However, despite Karga making the small town the cleanest he could, there’s still an Imperial Base run by a skeleton crew, and packed with weapons that would attract the scum of the Black Market. He wants Mando’s help to blow up the base, this heist pretty much takes up the remaining 25 minutes of the episode. The action sequences in Chapter 12 are a complete knockout, filled with beautifully crafted aerial battles, good old fashioned blaster duels, and dazzling CGI overall. Say what you want about Disney and their Star Wars, but we can all agree that the studio juices their installments with the flat-out best action in the franchise. Not only does Carl Weathers know how to stage exciting scenes, but he also adresses some of the criticism this series received for its procedural storytelling. I felt his episode had a better grasp on how to tell a cleaner, more thought-out continuation that brings back old characters, and throws a new twist at us that’ll be with us in future episodes.

Again, I can’t really confirm that because of the disappointments on keeping promises in the new season. They revealed Boba Fett to us at the end of the premiere, and then mentioned Tano in last week’s episode, but never even showed her! In may turn out that we won’t see more of Moff Gideon for a little while, which is both good and bad. Negative because the character is awesome, and positive because I want Jon Favreau to save all the epic showdowns for the last episode. Still, we need at least a glimpse at Rosario Dawson’s Ahsoka, and more of Fett. Otherwise, despite doing far better on the narrative approach than earlier episodes, where the hell did Bo-Katan go? We didn’t get anything resolved in Chapter 11, which led me to think that they would show up once more here, and that didn’t seem to happen. However, I’m guessing both Katan and her Mandalorian crew will show up for an epic showdown near the end, which will definitely satisfy my Katee Sackhoff needs.

The final opinion is: Although flawed, The Mandalorian’s “The Siege” recalls the fun adventure of the original Star Wars films, and fills this episode to the brim with dazzling action galore that’s enough to send chills down spines and make jaws drop. I would say…BINGE IT

Rated: TV-14

Genre: Sci-Fi/Action/Adventure

Runtime: 36 minutes

Directed By: Carl Weathers