Category: Features

Into the Jedi Lands: ‘THE MANDALORIAN’ Finally Embraces its Samurai Roots

The latest episode of The Mandalorian introduced its first Jedi character. Fans of The Clone Wars and Rebels were excited when Ahsoka Tano got teased for the season. It was a long wait, but finally, in this seasons’ fifth episode, she made her live-action debut. Her introduction strongly moved the recent episode’s structure closer to one of the two main inspirations behind the franchise. Star Wars’ is a love letter to classic Western and Japanese Samurai films. Up until this point, the latter was more subtle in its inspiration, but Chapter 13 has switched that up. Ahsoka’s debut pushed the series towards it closer to its samurai inspirations.

There will be minor spoilers for the episode, so only continue at your own risk if you have yet to watch it.

The series’ biggest Japanese inspirations were in the core concept. The journey of Din and the Child, who now has a name, echoes the story of Lone Wolf and Cub. Yet, the samurai aspect was never at the forefront, as it focused more on Mando’s skills with the blaster. This episode introduced a character that changed that. His search for a Jedi has come to an end. After meeting Ahsoka, he asks her to look after the foundling and teach him to control his abilities. Yet, she refuses his inquiry. Mando is forced to make another deal, so he could change her mind. So, together they faced Diana Lee Inosanto‘s Magistrate and Michael Biehn‘s Lang.

The episode ends with two showdowns. Once again, Mando faces Lang in a blaster showdown. Ahsoka was in a fight against the Magistrate, who was elegantly wielding a Beskar steel staff. Their showdown took place on a single path surrounded by a beautiful Koi pond. It wasn’t about who can attack first but a ballad between two skilled warriors. Visually, it was a beautifully done fight. Earlier in the episode, we got the reveal that Beskar armor can withstand lightsabers, so it set the stage for a fair fight. It felt like the perfect balance between the Prequel’s elegant coordination and the Original trilogy’s methodical approach. As the article’s title implies, it felt like an episode of Into the Badlands had mixed with Star Wars and Akira Kurosawa‘s work.

There were some gorgeous shots in this episode, and going by the artwork you can see above, I am glad they decided to go with the exterior outside of the home. The Koi pond was just a great touch to offer a unique visual strongly tied to its inspiration. It also helped to restrict it in a way that they could make every step have weight. They didn’t have an entire room to jump around. All they had was a single path surrounded by water. Yet, they still stayed true to the Western by having these two distinctive fights with different stakes. Switching between them just added more tension and weight to every swing of the saber. The outcome of that fight would echo for those waiting outside. Hopefully, we will see more lightsaber action in future episodes. It would be a waste to introduce Ahsoka and not have her return, especially if someone is out there wielding the Darksaber.

November 27, 2020
‘THE MANDALORIAN’ Chapter 13 Primer

In The Mandalorian Chapter 12, “The Siege”, Mando arrived on Nevarro where he met back up with Cara Dune and Greef. Because Din Djarin rid the land of Gideon’s Imperial remnant at the end of last season, it has become a safe haven for bounty hunters to come to again. Greef told Mando that he needed help with a mission, but the place they are going is not any place for a child, so they drop The Child off at a school. Here the ever-hungry child gets his first look at space macarons in what was my favorite part of the episode. Mando, Greef, Cara and the Mythrol had to fight off a bunch of stormtroopers at an old Imperial base. When they got inside, they found a hologram of Doctor Pershing talking about The Child’s blood and why they want it. He is working with Gideon to create clones that essentially can use the Force; this is why they need The Child’s blood, which is high in midi-chlorians, to make Force-Sensitive clones. Finally, we heard at the end of the episode, Moff Gideon has a tracker on the Razor Crest as Mando heads to Corvus to find Ahsoka.

Din Djarin meeting Ahsoka will kick-start the second half of the season. Every scene from the trailer has been in the first 4 episodes, so that means we never saw anything from the second half of the season. While we are so excited to finally see Ahsoka, she may not be alone on Corvus, as you can read here in Joao’s article. Since Gideon is tracking Mando’s ship, we can assume that the Moff is not far behind him. That means that Ashoka will end up in Gideon’s crosshairs soon. Also, Bo-Katan is chasing Gideon, right? It seems like all of these characters are meant to collide with each other in the second half of the season.

Arlyn’s Assumptions

When Mando meets Ahsoka, she will be stubborn just like Luke stubbornly refused to help Rey in The Last Jedi. Once Ahsoka realizes that Din has The Child, sees what species it is and what it is capable of, she will be curious enough to give him a chance to talk with her. Seeing that she is a former Jedi she might end up training The Child one day in the future.

Chapter 13 of The Mandalorian streams tomorrow!

November 26, 2020
‘THE MANDALORIAN’ Chapter 13 Could Introduce a Surprise Character Alongside Ahsoka

In less than a day Chapter 13 of The Mandalorian will become available, and we will finally get our first look at Ahsoka Tano‘s live-action introduction to the Star Wars universe. Her appearance is welcomed by fans not only because many fell in love with the character through her The Clone Wars years, but also due to her connections to several other characters that also haven’t yet debuted in a live-action Star Wars project. This could then mean that there could be more than one character being introduced on tomorrow’s episode or that there could be at least some type of reference to some familiar name, just as Bo-Katan referenced Ahsoka herself in Chapter 11.

The latter is probably the more likely since we’ve come to notice that even though we’ve been introduced to a number of new characters this season, each had it’s own episode to itself, not allowing for any sort of overshadowing to occur.

So being, here is a list of characters that might get referenced in Chapter 13 “The Jedi.”

Rex

Captain Rex and Ahsoka first met when Anakin Skywalker was both Rex’s General and the then young Togruta’s Jedi Master during The Clone Wars. Throughout the conflict, Ahsoka and Rex grew closer, developing a friendship based on the respect shared between the two. When Emperor Palpatine issued Order 66, killing most of the Jedi, it was Rex that helped Ahsoka escape when her troops turned on her. A few years later they would meet again, before the events of A New Hope, as they both fought beside the Spectres in Star Wars Rebels in the events leading to the Battle of Yavin where the first Death Star was destroyed. Rex would then continue to fight with the Rebel Alliance up until the climactic Battle of Endor, which saw the (first) death of Emperor Palpatine. We know that sometime after the Empire was defeated, Ahsoka went looking for her friend, Ezra Bridger, that had disappeared while fighting Grand Admiral Thrawn a few years earlier. It isn’t clear if this was before or after the events of The Mandalorian (something Chapter 13 could shed a little light on), but either way, it would be fair to think that Rex could still be in contact with the former Jedi.

Sabine Wren

From the events at the end of Star Wars Rebels we know that both Sabine and Ahsoka remained in touch with each other after their adventures throughout the series. We also know for sure that Sabine joined Ahsoka on her search for Ezra. If The Mandalorian is indeed set after the beginning of their journey, and if Ezra is still missing, it would make sense that Sabine would still be with Ahsoka as both kept looking for clues as to where to find their missing friend. The other possibility is that Ahsoka has yet to reach out to Sabine, and the female Mandalorian is not with her but given Din Djarin’s armor Ahsoka could direct him to her, as she is both a Mandalorian and has her own connections to the Jedi. And the Darksaber for that matter.

Thrawn

When Ahsoka left to find Ezra, one of the paths to finding her friend would be to look for the other person that disappeared alongside him. Grand Admiral Thrawn. As we’ve seen in past episodes of The Mandalorian, the Empire is still not vanquished, and there might still be a number of officers left alive that might have played a part in trying to retrieve the missing Grand Admiral, at the request of the Emperor. If they managed to succeed, looking for Thrawn could bring Ahsoka one step closer to find Ezra. If Thrawn was still missing, all the clues gathered by the Empire could prove invaluable in reaching the missing Jedi.

Ezra Bridger

I sincerely doubt we’d find Ezra standing beside Ahsoka in this or any other The Mandalorian episode. Her journey to find her missing friend deserves it’s own series, be it an animated or live-action one. But there is no reason for Ahsoka not to mention the Jedi, as her life would have been somewhat dedicated to finding him after the promise she made. Although, if the events of The Mandalorian are set, not only after Ahsoka and Sabine left to retrieve their friend, but also after they find him, we shouldn’t expect any reference at all since that would be spoiling what is sure to be a great series, when Lucasfilm finally decides to tell the story of The Search for Ezra Bridger.

Luke Skywalker

The Mandalorian is set 9 years after the Battle of Yavin (ABY). We know that Luke’s Jedi academy (the one we saw burning in The Last Jedi) was already open in 15 ABY (when Ben Solo started his training), although it’s not clear when it started operating. But given that five years had passed since the Empire was defeated in the Battle of Endor, it would be fair to think that Luke was already at least welcoming the idea of opening a school to continue the Jedi legacy. Ahsoka is sure to know of the existence of Luke, her former Master’s son, and by being focused on the search for Ezra might ask Din Djarin to deliver The Child to him, so his training could continue/begin.

Cal Kestis

This one is a bit of a stretch. But The Mandalorian has, so far, already introduced a number of characters to the live-action Star Wars universe. We’ve got Cobb Vanth (a character from a novel), Bo-Katan and Ahsoka (from the cartoons), Boba Fett (from the Original Trilogy) as well as Snoke (Sequel Trilogy) and midi-chlorian references (Prequel Trilogy). One thing that could be in the cards is a reference to Cal Kestis, a character introduced in the 2019 videogame Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order. There we followed Cal as he fought the forces of the Empire a mere five years after the events of Revenge of the Sith. By the time of the events of The Mandalorian Cal would still be in his forties, making him a valuable ally in whatever journey a fellow Jedi (or former Jedi) would find herself in.

November 26, 2020
Taking a Closer Look at the ‘Marvel’s Avengers’ Sales and Loss

There have been many discussions surrounding the sales numbers of Marvel’s Avengers. Just recently, we got the report that the game had only managed 60% of its predicted sales with an operating loss of 7 billion yen (which is around $67 million) during that financial quarter for Square-Enix. Now, we do know that this entire quarter was massively hit by the ongoing pandemic, so costs in many ways have probably seen an overall increase. Crystal Dynamics, who are the developers behind Avengers, reported issues massive issues due to home office and relocations due to the wildfires in California.

Now, in a report by IGN, Square-Enix president Yosuke Matsuda clarified a few aspects of what most likely bloated the development costs of that quarter:

In addition to the amortization of that game’s development costs, another significant factor associated with the title was the fact that we undertook a substantial advertising campaign at the time of its launch to make up for delays in our marketing efforts resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. There is a certain amount of development costs still to be amortized in 3Q, but we want to recoup it by growing our sales going forward.

The game undersold, which is very interesting if you consider that the game supposedly is the second best-selling superhero game currently. Hell, it is, as of October, the seventh best-selling game of the year if you exclude the digital sales by Nintendo. It is placed firmly right behind Square-Enix’s other major release, Final Fantasy VII: Remake. That means that the game technically sold well during its launch. Yes, it isn’t anywhere near Insomniac’s Spider-Man, but that game proved the strength of PlayStation exclusives. In October, three games that got an exclusive release on that console are in the top ten of best-selling games of 2020. Still, it is disappointing that a game with Marvel attached to it undersold. But, it also proves that the success of the Marvel Cinematic Universe does not directly translate to another market.

One thing I think we also need to keep in mind is Square-Enix’s strange history with terrible predictions. Even in 2006, the same year highly successful games Kingdom Hearts II and Final Fantasy XII released, they slashed their income figures from 17.5 billion to 10 billion yen. They had the same issue in 2012, where the underperformance of Sleeping Dogs led to sales and profit expectation cuts. Just in 2013 alone, Tomb Raider, Hitman Absolution, and Sleeping Dogs continued to underperform. In total, they sold 8.75M which was a far cry from their expected 14.9M. Tomb Raider especially, another entry by Crystal Dynamics, had a reported production budget of 100M, so it also had to reach at least five to ten million units sold, which it certainly wasn’t able to do at the time.

So, what we are seeing with Avengers is history repeating itself, only this time with an IP that many assume will make money due to its film counterpart. Just to give a comparison, let us look at another recent release on a console surrounding the brand. The Switch’s exclusive Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 was considered a success with surpassing one million sales by early 2020. Yet, many are claiming that the success of the MCU would technically have to catapult game adaptation sales like with Marvel’s Avengers. The IP is at the peak of its success, so it just makes sense on a surface level. Yet, MUA3 sold less than the brand new IP Astral Chain. Both games still enjoy a successful release, but it highlights that it is difficult to translate the success between markets. Games are more expensive investments, and the different gaming genres have unique audiences. This fact especially is very evident with the release of the Avengers. The Switch has sold more than 40 million units, so there is a large market here. We have no idea about the production budget that is a comparison point for the Crystal Dynamics game, which could also determine its success.

The year has seen an overall increase in the market, but it certainly hasn’t been a cakewalk either. Square-Enix’s financial results showcase that the higher production costs and diminished demand due to a global economic slump are still affecting companies heavily in an industry that, on-paper, is booming. There are a lot of factors at play here. The pandemic did boost digital sales, which would mean they have much higher margins in profit, something that was hinted at by EA five years ago. Avengers is their second best-selling digital release, which also is an interesting factor to consider.

For now, the game has yet to make up its production costs. HD section of Square-Enix only seems to cover the actual sales of the game, which means that it also depends on MTX to cover some of the losses with current Black Friday sales-boosting those numbers. We also still have the holidays coming that could play an integral role. As Matsuda points out, upcoming character additions also can strengthen sales, especially fan-favorite characters like Black Panther and Spider-Man, who are going to join the game in 2021. Also, we have to keep in mind this is a Games-as-a-Service model. It is a long-term investment early on with future content covered by microtransactions. So, these numbers right now don’t say anything about its actual success, only where it is starting. Unlike Tomb Raider, they can cover the loss throughout the next quarter through microtransactions. Plus, Black Friday and holiday sales are great boosters. If they are smart, Crystal Dynamics and Square-Enix will reveal future character additions before the holidays to get more attention to the game.

Ben Kuchera from Polygon probably made the best assessment when he discussed Destiny‘s extravagant $500 million budget. GaaS are long-term investments with massive marketing and pre-production costs for an entire year of content. These costs cover a large quantity of post-launch content. These numbers only confirm that they invested a lot of money early on that couldn’t be covered directly by costs in that quarter. In a best-case scenario, the game would have covered its production costs, but it would not have turned much of an actual profit in its release. Also, Square-Enix’s quarter ends in September, so it makes sense that a lot of the game’s performance is also indicative of the third quarter and not just one of its release. Square-Enix most likely will not drop this game anytime soon. As long as they can make money off of the microtransactions and cover future additions, we’ll see this game grow.

Plus, they made a multi-game deal with Marvel that adds more pressure to keep the first game running. There are a lot of factors influencing this, may it be the additional costs due to the pandemic and the overall reception of a faulty release. It is too early to call it a failure, but it most likely is a disappointment from Square-Enix’s point of view for now. If their long-term investment turns a profit, all this that we are discussing, at the end of the day, will be meaningless. The biggest concern will most likely be the continued negative press coverage that affects its word-of-mouth. Sandra Saad did win a Golden Joystick Award for her performance as Kamala Khan, which could help WOM for now. Time will tell if Avengers manages to regain players, be forced to do a soft launch, or even take the 2.0 route. For now, we can only see how Square-Enix and Crystal Dynamics handle the situation and turn the game into what it can be.

Source: IGN, Square-Enix Report, IGN (Launch), Games Industry (2006), PlayStationLifestyle, Game Informer, Games Industry (Tomb Raider), EuroGamer, EpicStream, NintendoLife, NPD, Business Insider, Marvel, Golden Joystick

November 25, 2020
Could ‘SPIDER-MAN’ PS4 Star John Bubinak Be Part of the Multiverse of Madness?

Worlds Colliding.

From street-level stories like The Falcon and the Winter Soldier and Shang-Chi, to world-threatening events like Thor: Love and Thunder and WandaVision, Marvel Studios seems to be shaping up to expand the four corners of its cinematic universe (and beyond). And today, we’re going to be looking at one of the most anticipated MCU films of Phase 4, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. Starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Elizabeth Olsen, from what we know so far, it’s possible that the film will have something to do with the theme of the multiverse. This theme is something we expect will be explored first in the upcoming series WandaVision, with possible rumors of the untitled Spider-Man sequel possibly delving into a plotline revolving around that plot device as well, which leads us to today’s rumor.

Some fans may recognize John Bubniak as the face model for the PS4 version of the “Marvel’s Spider-Man” game. His face model was eventually replaced by Ben Jordan for the remastered version of the game and Spider-Man: Miles Morales. Fans of the game, however, had gotten used to John’s face after years of playing the game and had taken to social media to make their voices heard, and Bubniak respond with a thread of interesting replies.

A few weeks ago, Bubniak replied to Twitter users @SimplyPalm and @LiamParker2141, appreciating their praise and teasing that “good things are coming”, while at the same time hinting that it’s a secret. Then, just a few days ago, Bubniak posted the following on his social media;

https://twitter.com/JohnBubniak/status/1329163854098558976?s=20

https://www.instagram.com/p/CH0iwegJ1g8/

We can deduce from the images that Bubniak is indeed headed to London and in the comments of the Instagram post, he indicated that he was in London for filming, but he did not indicate what exactly. Along with those comments, fans once again asked him if Bubniak would return to the role of Peter Parker one day, to which Bubniak responded;

We know that right now, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is scheduled to film some time next month in the UK, as confirmed by Elizabeth Olsen in an interview last week. Right now, Bubniak tagged his location on Instagram as Shoreditch, a residential district just about 90 minutes away from Longcross Studios, where filming for the sequel of Doctor Strange is expected to take place. Bubniak’s arrival in the UK to film something secret at the same time Doctor Strange 2 is due to start production in the same place seem like a circumstance of pure coincidence, which makes it even more suspicious.

Could Bubniak reprise his role as Spider-Man for “Multiverse of Madness”?

With the untitled Spider-Man sequel seeing Benedict Cumberbatch reprise his role as Doctor Strange in the film and the rumors of a multiverse plot growing louder by the day, it is possible that the film could in some way have a connection to the Doctor Strange sequel. And if indeed the Doctor Strange film explores the vast multiverse of Marvel in general, that leaves a glimmer of the possibility of seeing Bubniak donning the red and blues once again for a short cameo in this film. But for now, all we can do is wait and see.

Source: Twitter, Instagram

November 24, 2020
How Kate Bishop Sets Up ‘Marvel’s Avengers’ True Villains

After a long wait, we finally got our first look at the future content of Marvel’s Avengers. Kate Bishop took center stage to showcase her abilities and tease the story she is going to set-up for the first season of DLC. The event ends with the reveal that Clint will face a future version of the Hulk known to many fans as Maestro. Here, we see the world is just an empty desert, and all the Avengers we love are long gone. Maestro sits upon a throne with spoils of wars at his feet, and it seems an elderly Clint is the only one left. I was sad we didn’t get any references to the Old Man Logan run. It even made me hope we could get a Symbiote Tyrannosaurus Rex at some point in the DLC. Still, I believe this trailer alone showcases the importance of Bishop’s story and what it may mean for the game’s first season. So, without further ado, let’s jump into the hints that it provides.

Let’s start with the biggest hint of the overarching storyline from the game’s campaign, Reassemble. In the final confrontation with M.O.D.O.K., he throws a Kree Sentry after them. Kamala finally masters her abilities and can take down the giant mech. They were able to finish the fight and move on with their lives. Little did they know, the sentry used the last of its energy to shoot out a beacon into space. Anyone who knows the comics will realize that this means we can expect a Kree Invasion soon.

Most of us assumed this would take some time, as they also showcased Monica Rappuccini taking over. Well, she plays an integral part in a sequence that may confirm how to Reassemble, Kate’s Taking AIM, and Clint’s Future Imperfect all fit together. We briefly get the return of the Kree Sentinel, where it seems to confront Monica and her robots. She is standing on a platform that is very similar to Maestro’s throne room. If you look closely, you can recognize the second sentry in the background devastating a building. This moment right here, which may be a vision from Kate’s short stint with the Tachyon Rifts, maybe the moment the Kree invasion and would turn the entire world into a desert.

Kate and Clint’s missions are confirmed to build on each other. We know that Clint will end up facing Maestro in the future, which he calls the end of the world. Their story sets up what will happen if the Avengers fail. Clint may be trying to uncover how the Avengers weren’t able to protect the earth. Once back in the original timeline, they realize what may lead to their defeat and what they have to do to avoid it. We always believed their war against AIM would be the focus of the Avengers Initiative, but in reality, it is their actions that create the actual evil the Avengers must face, the Kree Empire. They recruit the people that are necessary to avoid the future that was witnessed by Clint. I believe that the first season’s arc will end with the addition of Captain Marvel, who will help them push the invading force back. Their victory may be short-lived, as a new evil may be lurking in the shadows just waiting for their chance to take down Earth’s Mightiest Heroes.

November 24, 2020
What To Expect From the Future of ‘Marvel’s Avengers’ And When To Expect It

Marvel’s Avengers released in September with quite a bumpy start. Yet, it isn’t the end, as the Games-as-a-Service concept will see it grow over time. They confirmed that we will get free additional characters in the future that will round out the cast and continue the story. We are still waiting for an official roadmap, so here is a makeshift one based on the little information we have gotten so far. Later on, you can also find further details on the various confirmed and leaked characters, as well as a closer look at the various operations.

Marvel’s Avengers released with a core roster of six heroes. As the game is based on the Games-as-a-Service concept, we will slowly be introduced to new heroes throughout the game’s life. Crystal Dynamics teased a five-year plan of continuous content that would make up their Avengers Initiative. Since we have also gotten our hands on a variety of leaks that teased who may be joining the game in the near future. Here is an overview of what characters have been confirmed so far.

The leaks early on have also confirmed around 12 additional characters are in some stage of development. Keep in mind, this is just based on data available in the game, which doesn’t mean that any of these characters would release within the first year.

You can click on the operation icons to get more details on the story, cast, and promotional material:

Here a shoutout to some from the Avengers community

that helped me out with some of the research, so here is a thank you to @woffen, @CalexStreams @SonicPhoto, and TonyStank13.

November 23, 2020
‘THE MANDALORIAN’ CHAPTER 12: A Lowkey Essential Installment

One of the fundamental components of what makes Star Wars… well, Star Wars, is its Jedi mythology, the lightsabers, the whole Force component. This is what many people want to see in a Star Wars property. Yet, in late 2018 when Jon Favreau revealed the first details on The Mandalorian, this facet of the Star Wars universe wasn’t alluded to at all, focusing more on how the show would “follow the travails of a lone gunfighter in the outer reaches of the galaxy far from the authority of the New Republic”.

However, when the series finally premiered it didn’t take long before unveiling how the Force would actually take center stage in the story they would be telling. After that Chapter 2 reveal, it took another six episodes for the Jedi to be mentioned by name by The Armorer, making their presence in the show was all but assured by having Din Djarin’s search for them a central part of the plot. Chapter 11 brought Din almost within striking distance of his goal when Bo-Katan disclosed the location of Ahsoka Tano, finally setting the stage for a reunion that a year ago no one knew they wanted but that now everyone seems to need.

As we’ve written before, The Mandalorian isn’t about instant gratification and Djarin’s journey would get sidetracked one more time, delaying that Ahsoka Tano live-action debut for one more week. But as the show has proven to us time and time again, there’s always something deeply relevant to the plot hiding in plain sight in these apparent sidequests Djarin and The Child find themselves in every other week. Speaking of this season alone, Chapter 10 “The Passenger” also seemed a bit unnecessary, but that was until we realize that it was that episode that, in the end, made the Razor Crest have to go back to Nevarro for repair work, thus setting the stage for Chapter 12. And it was in this last episode that, even though we didn’t see Din getting any closer to his end goal, we got what is sure to be regarded as one of the most plot-heavy episodes of the entire series when it’s all said and done, adding to the overarching storyline that few have done before. And ironically, the Force was a huge part of that. Again, we got what we needed, even though we didn’t even know we wanted it in the first place.

By veering away from the main storyline, by not immediately giving us the elements Star Wars is mostly known for, by delaying an appearance by the Jedi that will bring together (at least) two force-sensitive characters, by giving us what is easy to refer to as a simple “filler episode”, the future of the series became all the more clear, the stakes in the inevitable clash between characters were enhanced and the following episode, probably the most anticipated chapter yet, is now seemingly even more crucial as the show seems to be getting into its stride, with a more clear endgame. The tables are now most definitively set, the chess pieces are in place, and the second half of the season promises to become more than we expected, more than we wanted, but perhaps just what Star Wars needed.

November 23, 2020
‘THE MANDALORIAN’ Chapter 12: Gideon’s Grand Gambit

Moff Gideon is playing chess. By the time Chapter 12 of The Mandalorian, “The Seige“, comes to an end, Din Djarin looks like less of a worthy opponent to Gideon and more like one of his pawns. In the wake of yesterday’s episode, the internet was full of complaints about the pace of Chapter 12 and the fact that the Mando returned to Nevarro so soon. What was overlooked in those complaints was not only how this episode clarifies Gideon’s interest in the Child, essentially solving the series’ biggest ongoing mystery, but also simultaneously creates a new one…or two…or three.

Despite being the main antagonist of The Mandalorian, Moff Gideon’s intentions for The Child were about as clear as swamp water. Season One theories ranged from Gideon hoping to clone the kid to wanting to train him himself (there’s a theory that Gideon is force-sensitive). It turns out that Gideon’s true intentions seem to be more horrific than anything I’ve read to this point: he’s harvesting The Child’s blood. Courtesy of Doctor Pershing’s holographic report, we find out that Gideon’s plan involves transfusing The Child’s midichlorian-rich blood into test subjects in an attempt to create what we can only assume to be a Strand-Cast.

Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni are all about fine details, so if you find yourself asking what a Strand-Cast is, don’t feel bad. The concept, as far as I can tell, was introduced in what might easily have been a conversation you missed in last season’s penultimate episode, Chapter 7, “The Reckoning.” As Din Djarin and the debonaire Ughnauht Kuill (RIP) debate the nature of The Child, Djarin posits that “it might be a Strand-Cast”, a suggestion Kuill dismisses while joking that Cara Dune looks like she may have been farmed herself. Strand-Casts are bioengineered beings and both the Empire and the Sith have cornered the market on creating them. So while The Child isn’t a Strand-Cast, Gideon’s interest in him is related to creating them. Of note to both the time period in which the story is set and a connection to the sequel trilogy, both Supreme Leader Snoke and Rey’s father are resultant of the work done with Strand-Casts. Alternatively, Gideon could be looking to create an army of force-wielding Clone Troopers that may or may not be related to the episode’s final reveal: the Dark Troopers.

And here we find ourselves right back where we started: with no idea what Gideon is truly up to. In almost the same moment we can finally exhale as we find out why Gideon is after The Child, we are struck with the realization that the implications of his intentions much greater than we had originally anticipated. Is Gideon the bridge to the First Order? I don’t think so because he doesn’t seem to be a part of The Contingency that worked to “destroy” the remnants of the Empire in order to prepare the way for the First Order and, I thought, all the cloning/Strand-Casting took place on Exegol and members of the First Order were uninformed. Why does he have the Darksaber? What good does a relic that only matters to the Mandalorians do this man? What’s he planning to do with these Dark Troopers?

It seems obvious that Gideon is headed for a showdown with Ahsoka Tano and Bo-Katan Kryze but what seems less and less obvious is the true scope of his plans. We still know shockingly little about the man and yet he knows everything about everyone he comes into contact with but at the moment, he’s poised as the Grandmaster of the game of chess being played in The Mandalorian and, until the second half of Chapter 12, Din Djarin didn’t even know he was still in the game and now, he finds himself a pawn. While Chapter 12 may have seemed like a speed bump, the realization that Gideon’s need of The Child was little more than a small piece of a plan far greater than anything I’d previously conceived them to be has leveled him up. This man has grand plans and we’ve only seen the opening move.

November 21, 2020
How Deadpool Could Enter the Marvel Cinematic Universe

After many rumors circulated on the web, we finally got the official word that Marvel Studios is moving forward with Deadpool 3. Now, the news hit that they have hired the Molyneux Sisters to write the upcoming threequel. Wendy Molyneux and Lizzie Molyneux-Loeglin are well-known for their work on Bob’s Burgers, as well as the Fox series The Great North. The great thing is, Marvel Studios is involved in the project, and it isn’t by 20th Century. So, the gates have opened for the iconic Merc with a Mouth to enter the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Now, the question remains: how will he be introduced into the MCU?

It doesn’t look like this will be a reboot. The film is called Deadpool 3, so it will take place shortly after the second. Wade Wilson has played around with continuity in his films, such as the X-Men showing up that shouldn’t be around during his time. He even references that the whole timeline makes no sense, especially after X-Men: Days of Future Past. So, in a way, Wilson is quite flexible and doesn’t care how or where he shows up. I mean, he is known for breaking the fourth wall frequently, so he might be the easiest to add to the franchise’s roster. He probably would only allow it if his beloved Colossus joins, so that may be a sticking point.

The ending of the second film could handwave away how Deadpool lands in the MCU. The last time we saw him, he used Cable’s time travel technology to save Vanessa. Yet, he went a few steps too far and kept alternating history. At one point, he lands in the real world and kills Ryan Reynolds before he can read the Green Lantern script. Hell, he even kills off the terrible Deadpool version that we saw during X-Men Origins: Wolverine. So, he has been breaking the barriers between dimensions throughout this small trip. Of course, it was mainly for comedic effect, but at the time it opened up a lot of questions of how it would tie into the third film. Now that the character might be joining the Marvel Cinematic Universe, they have the best way to introduce his transition.

WandaVision will end up opening up the MCU to the multiverse, which will be the main focus of the Doctor Strange sequel. So, Deadpool ended up screwing up his timeline so badly that Strange pulls him out, and he ends up destroying the device. He briefly is stuck with the chatty mercenary, who might even add a few jabs at Benedict Cumberbatch‘s past roles, such as asking if he should call him Sherlock. At one point, their paths cross. At the end of the film, if Strange has fixed the multiverse tear, he fuses aspects of other dimensions into our own. He takes it easy in the Sanctum Sanctorum before suddenly hearing a familiar voice calling out to him. Yes, in his work to finally fix the multiverse, he also brought Deadpool and his gang into the mainline Marvel Cinematic Universe. Hopefully, we get a short cameo by Kevin Feige at some point regretting the addition.

November 20, 2020