Surrounded by Imperial forces, with The Child captured by Biker Scouts, the Mandalorian and his accomplices prepare for the inevitable.

Picking up from Episode 7’s cliffhanger, we watch as two Biker Scouts pause before returning their prey to Grand Moff Gideon. It’s all played for laughs, particularly as they cannot hit an easy target with their poor sharp shooting, but things go dark as they start punching the child through a carrying case, and luckily IG-11 turns up to dispatch them. He’s voiced by Taiki Waititi, the episode also being directed by him, and I can honestly say that I never thought I’d see an assassin droid on a speeder bike, with a Yoda-like being in a bag around his neck!

There is so much to enjoy about this episode, from the heavy artillery action scenes, a flamethrower trooper, an aerial attack on a TIE Fighter and a skirmish between Armorer and Stormtroopers. We even get an astromech-style ferry droid that looks like an R2 unit with arms and legs! Giancarlo Esposito should really be called Giancarlo Exposition this week – as most of the time he’s throwing us (admittedly vital) backstory on Mando and how he became the warrior he is today.

At 45 minutes it’s the longest episode to date, but even then it flies by, set piece after piece. Importantly, we get enough of a setup for Season 2 (filming is already underway) and a satisfying conclusion to this first season. As for that final scene… oh my!

Verdict: This is the way… to make Star Wars, with writer Jon Favreau bringing out all the big guns (literally) for this explosive finale. For my money, far better than anything in Rise of Skywalker, so how exciting that we’ll be getting more next fall. This is the Star Wars TV show you were looking for. 10/10

Nick Joy