The Mandalorian season three is nearing its release, and fans are excited. It has been almost two years since the season two finale aired in December 2020. The series follows the titular character of The Mandalorian, referred to as Mando or by his real name, Din Djarin. Mando is watching over a small child known as Grogu, or as the internet collectively referred to him for over a year: Baby Yoda. The series is incredibly popular with audiences and is arguably the biggest piece of the wider Star Wars franchise currently airing. To the surprise of many, even two episodes of The Book of Boba Fett were focused on The Mandalorian and Grogu.
Anticipation for season three is high, as season two of the series teased plenty of potential storylines including the live-action debut of the planet Mandalore. The Mandalorian season three is set to premiere in February 2023, following the conclusion of Andor and likely during the animated series Star Wars: The Bad Batch. With the season approaching, these are all 16 episodes of The Mandalorian season one and two, ranked.
16 Chapter 2: The Child
Disney
The second episode of the series aired just three days after The Mandalorian premiered on Disney+, and features the first true adventure of Din Djarrin and the Child. The episode sees Mando making a deal with Jawas to get the parts he needs for his ship to get off the planet. Not bad, but in the scope of the entire series, it is certainly a more expositional episode of setting up and feels like a test run of the fun adventures the two characters will have together.
15 Chapter 5: The Gunslinger
When “The Gunslinger” aired, it was the first time The Mandalorian visited an iconic planet in the Star Wars galaxy, with a stop-off in Tatooine (which is now something the series has spent a bit too much time on) and saw the lead character taking a job hunting down a ruthless assassin. The episode is most notable for introducing many now fan-favorite characters like Ming-Na Wen’s Fennic Shand, Amy Sedaris’ Pelli, and the first hint at Boba Fett’s return. However, the main thrust of “The Gunslinger” feels like just another episodic story that leaves a bit to be desired.
14 Chapter 12: The Seige
At the time of its release, “The Seige” was a frustrating episode in that it came in the middle of the main narrative of Din trying to find a home for Grogu. The main mission to break into an old Imperial facility felt a bit like more of the same, but it was nice to see Din reteam with his old allies from the first season, and the hints at the wider saga and the beginnings of the Emperor’s First Order plans. It is also odd as the episode ends with what appears to be a setup for The Rangers of the New Republic show, yet the series has since been canceled following the firing of Gina Carano.
13 Chapter 1: The Mandalorian
The Mandalorian’s first episode let audiences know exactly what type of show they were in for within the first few minutes while also offering a major curveball by the final minutes. The opening sequence, seeing the title character collecting a bounty in a ruthless fashion and amazing visuals showed how good Star Wars could look on television and seemed to indicate what the series would be, but the final moment that revealed Grogu was the true moment an icon was born, and the show suddenly shifted what its main narrative would be. It did set a mission statement of what the series would be: taking familiar Star Wars iconography and offering a new spin on the material.
12 Chapter 11: The Heiress
“The Heiress” is a really important episode in The Mandalorian, as it saw the live-action debut of Bo Katan (Katee Sackoff) from Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Star Wars: Rebels. The episode sees Din finally come face to face with more Mandalorians, but discovers that there is more to being a Mandalorian than what he has been told. The character discovers that the belief system he has held onto for years is only one of a specific fanatical sect of the culture, laying the foundation for his growth over the season. The episode also features an impressive heist sequence, that ranks among some of the best action in the series.
11 Chapter 4: Sanctuary
“Sanctuary” is the first real episode after the series set up the status quo. The episode established a type of standard episode for The Mandalorian which sees the title character traveling to a new planet and getting into an adventure, very much in the vein of classic “man on the run” television series like The Fugitive, The Incredible Hulk, or Supernatural.
In this episode, audiences are introduced to the former Rebel shock trooper Cara Dune, who would become a major supporting player in the series until star Gina Carano was fired. The episode is also the first one of the series directed by Bryce Dallas Howard, who showed that much like her father Ron Howard, she had a real talent behind the camera.
10 Chapter 6: The Prisoner
“The Prisoner” comes in at an odd place in The Mandalorian season one, as it concludes with a setup for the two-part finale but also acts as another one-off adventure for Mando and Grogu. The episode sees Mando teaming up with an old group of criminals he knew to break a prisoner out of a New Republic base. While at first, it doesn’t appear to advance the overall story (it later comes back into play with the return of Bill Burr as Mayfeld), the episode just works as a great one-off adventure following a great character in the Star Wars universe. Sometimes the simplest episodes are also the best.
9 Chapter 10: The Passenger
Another great one-off adventure, “The Passenger” sees Mando picking up a job transporting an alien Frog Lady and her eggs to a planet to meet her mate. The episode fully embraces the unique weirdness that Star Wars is capable of. The main character is wearing a mask, and the two other major characters are aliens brought to life with practical makeup and puppetry. It is something that a viewer can’t truly get from any other franchise. It has a great horror element, a fun dynamic between Mando and the Frog Lady, and just a classical mythic fairy tale adventure at its core that makes it feel uniquely Star Wars.
8 Chapter 14: The Tragedy
“The Tragedy” saw the grand return of Boba Fett to the Star Wars universe, and the episode certainly did not disappoint. Thanks to wonderful action from director Robert Rodriguez, “The Tragedy” showcased a Boba Fett that fans always imagined in their heads but never quite got to see in the original trilogy. With an episode that is basically one extended action sequence, it has the youthful energy of a young kid playing with his action figures (made all the more real with that being how Robert Rodriguez devised the fight scenes) and the episode ends on a cliffhanger that left audiences worried about the fate of Grogu.
7 Chapter 3: The Sin
Essentially the conclusion of the three-part season premiere, episode three of The Mandalorian puts the pieces in place for the rest of the series. Mando gets his new armor, takes the child, and finds himself on the run from various factions. The episode concludes with an epic action sequence showcasing a group of Mandalorians fighting was a dream come true, an image that was only seen in the animated series brought to life with the massive scope one expects from a movie. The episode was an impressive showcase from Deborah Chow, that cemented her as a fan favorite for her eventual job directing the series Obi-Wan Kenobi.
6 Chapter 9: The Marshall
The season two premiere of The Mandalorian had a lot to live up to, considering how positively received the first season was, how disappointing the reaction to The Rise of Skywalker was, and also the fact that the series was airing during the COVID-19 pandemic and audiences were looking for something comforting to watch.
“The Marshall” has a massive scope that shows Disney’s full investment in the series, and features a climactic fight against a Krayt Dragon that felt cinematic. Combine that with Timothy Olyphant making the live-action debut of Cobb Vanth, who originated in the Star Wars: Aftermath book series, this is where The Mandalorian truly begins to become the face of the Star Wars brand in the new decade.
5 Chapter 7: The Reckoning
In the build-up to the epic season one finale, Chapter 7 sees the Mandalorian recruit various supporting players from across season one. The episode’s cliffhanger ending, with Grogu captured and the heroes pinned down in a bar under heavy Imperial fire with the introduction of the villainous Moff Gideon felt like a true setup for the epic finale. This episode also premiered the day before Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker opened in theaters and showed Grogu displaying force healing, an ability that would become important in the final chapter in the Skywalker Saga.
4 Chapter 13: The Jedi
The Jedi felt like a massive event episode when it aired, and not only because it was timed to air over Thanksgiving weekend when families were gathered together. It marked the live-action debut of the character Ahsoka Tano, who had become a fan favorite thanks to her appearances on Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Star Wars: Rebels.
It also was the first confirmation of The Child’s name as Grogu. The episode is incredibly shot and heavily influenced by the films of Akira Kurosawa (whose film The Hidden Fortress is considered the major influence for Star Wars to begin with). The episode’s tease of the live-action introduction of Grand Admiral Thrawn made “The Jedi” one of the most important episodes in the series in addition to being a great episode of television.
3 Chapter 8: The Redemption
The season finale of The Mandalorian’s first season concludes with an epic showdown between heroes and villains in traditional Star Wars fashion and adds some much-needed emotional growth for the lead character. The season began with Din shooting the droid IG-11 in the head, but the now reprogrammed droid now sacrifices his life to save those he is sworn to protect.
Din, who has spent the whole season showing distrust of droids finally has a connection to one he does not want to see die. An emotionally rousing and action-packed finale, combined with the reveal of the Darksaber at the end solidified The Mandalorian as a vital part of the Star Wars franchise and audiences began counting down the days before season two.
2 Chapter 16: The Rescue
The gripping season two finale of The Mandalorian seemed to offer something for everyone. It was a massive team-up between various characters introduced on The Mandalorian over the course of the series, making for a rescue mission to save Grogu from the clutches of Moff Gideon. The episodes most talked about moment though was the return of Luke Skywalker, with a digitally de-aged Mark Hamill to look like himself from Return of the Jedi. The moment feels in keeping with his characterization in Return of the Jedi and where he will eventually go in The Last Jedi.
Yet the best moment was the heartfelt emotional scene between Din and Grogu where the two say goodbye. Audiences had grown attached to these two characters over the course of two seasons, and while this was the moment it had been building to it spoke to how well the series had been about establishing its own characters that even the arrival of the most popular hero in the series could not take away from the tender goodbye.
1 Chapter 15: The Believer
The penultimate episode of season two, “The Believer” is a stand-out episode of The Mandalorian and one of the best pieces of Star Wars television to air. A homage to William Friedkin’s 1977 film Sorcerer, the episode sees the return of Mayfeld as he is broken out of prison by Mando, Cara Dune, Fennic Shand, and Boba Fett to gain access to an Imperial facility.
The episode manages to have everything: a strong political undertone with the conversations between Mando and Mayfeld, major character growth for both characters, plenty of easter eggs for fans, and incredibly directed action. This is one of two episodes not written by Jon Favreau, with director Rick Famuyiwa penning the script. With the episode’s great direction and sharp script that embraces all the elements that make Star Wars great, it is no wonder Famuyiwa got promoted to executive producer for season three.
