Mando and his team embark on a daring rescue mission to release Grogu from the clutches of the Empire.

For those disappointed that there’s no new Star Wars film at the cinema this Christmas, take comfort in knowing that this season finale Is better any of the Lucasfilm movies released over the last few years. Pulling together all the tantalising teases and threads from the preceding weeks, it delivers everything that you want as a Star Wars fan, and much more.

I am going to steer clear of a particular spoiler that I really hope you manage to avoid before experiencing it first hand. It’s a cracker, which pretty much sums up this whole second season. The introduction of legacy characters Boba Fett, Ahsoka and Bo-Katan has bolstered an already strong set of regulars, with action sequences and visual effects to rival mainstream movies.

In this final instalment, Peyton Reed (Ant-Man) gets to direct his second episode of the year after the earlier The Passenger, a fun but ultimately inconsequential side story. This time round he has Stormtroopers, Dark Troopers, TIE Fighters, Moff Gideon and a crack female rescue squad to play with. And that’s before you throw in Boba Fett, Mando and Grogu. The infiltration of the Imperial cruiser feels refreshingly familiar, with grace notes harking back to Leia’s rescue from the Death Star, but it’s never hollow nostalgia, just an amplification of what we love about this world.

The ending does highlight a number of unsolved matters that will surely power the third season. And if you’re concerned that some of the big characters populating the show don’t get enough to do, a post-credits scene makes it clear that things are going to be very different late 2021.

Verdict: Just perfect. This is the show that we needed  in 2020, proving that in the correct hands Star Wars can be a real Force to be reckoned with. Is there a risk that there are too many planned trips to the well? Time will tell, but when it’s of this quality, who cares. 10/10