Monday 3 January 2022

Boba Fett escapes the Sarlacc Pit



The Book of Boba Fett on Disney+ finally showed Star Wars fans (myself included) how the titular bounty hunter, played by Temuera Morrison (Star Wars: Attack of the Clones), escaped from the Sarlacc pit in Star Wars: Return of the Jedi.

Some hot takes on social media suggested he should have stayed in there! Oof!

Whereas The Mandalorian was an unknown quantity and the first live-action Star Wars spin-off series on Disney+. Boba Fett has been a fan-favourite since his appearance in Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back.

Yes, the enigmatic and morally-ambiguous mercernary was first introduced in an animated segment during the infamous Star Wars Holiday Special. However, most fans (outside the US) wouldn't have known about him until Kenner's mail-away action figure promotion.

The bounty hunter's apparent demise in Star Wars: Return of the Jedi was less than satisfactory and used mostly for comedic effect. A school friend and I were left non-plussed and, wrongly, assumed he'd escape moments after the Rebels had destroyed Jabba's Sail Barge as creator George Lucas rushed to tie-up loose ends leftover from the best Star Wars sequel and sell more toys.

Well, in flashback, as the bounty hunter healed from his injuries in a bacta tank, Boba Fett managed to singlehandedly escape using his flamethrower before having his Mandalorian armour stolen by Jawas, Tatooine's omnipresent scavengers, after he passes out.

Personally, this made sense as he was a brutal and inventive bounty hunter.

Later Boba Fett's captured by marauding Tusken Raiders and embarks on adventures lifted from the pages of classic Star Wars comics with knowing nods to the franchise's storied history and stop motion pioneer Ray Harryhausen.

Overall, I really enjoyed the first fleeting episode. It pulls from Star Wars Legends' Tales of the Bounty Hunters. The episodic format of the Disney+ series lends itself to richer storytelling, and I'm glad the planned Boba Fett movie spin-off was shelved after Solo: A Star Wars Story.

UK tabloid newspaper The Sun alleges Harrison Ford took a break from filming Lucasfilm stablemate Indiana Jones 5 to record a scene for The Book of Boba Fett. Make of that what you will. A de-aged Mark Hamill appeared in the second season finale of The Mandalorian. So, anything is possible.

George Lucas asked Joe Johnston (The Rocketeer) to create a cool character for Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back, which he did and then some. I'm sure Robert Rodriguez, Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni won't let Boba Fett or his fans down. A flashback featuring Darth Vader would be a welcome early birthday present.

New episodes of The Book of Boba Fett premiere every Wednesday exclusively on Disney+.

What did you think of The Book of Boba Fett? Let me know in the comments below.

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