The Mandalorian Double Take: Chapter 12

Welcome to The Mandalorian Double Take—where we give some quick thoughts regarding the latest episodes of The Mandalorian on Disney+. In this article we will cover The Mandalorian Chapter 12.

The old gang is back for The Siege—the latest chapter of The Mandalorian. Greef Karga, Cara Dune, and Mando team up to take down the last Imperial facility on Nevarro, which contains one of the Empire’s darkest secrets. Carl Weathers’ directorial debut on the show is brilliant—full of action and fun moments. Here are the highlights for this memorable chapter:

• Red & Blue Wires: The Siege begins with one of the funniest moments from the Clan of Two. Mando tasks The Child with some rewiring, which quickly turns into yet another Baby Yoda gag that is somewhat reminiscent of the Death Button scene from Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. Luckily, the result is only a little electrocution and a bit of smoke. Helpless, Mando decides to make a stop to Nevarro for repairs and to say hi to some old friends. While waiting to arrive at the new destination, we finally get to see how Mando eats! The motion of him slightly lifting his helmet to sip on a bowl of soup is amusing to The Child (and indeed to the viewers, including me!)
• Nevarro’s Marshal: Looks like every planet now is getting a Marshal. This time it’s Cara Dune, who took on the tough role to restore order and peace to Nevarro. Her entrance as a band of Aqualish tries to loot The Armorer’s former smithy is proof of the constant challenges of a Marshal—showcasing once again Dune’s fighting skills. Her encounter with the little meerkat-like creature is a nice contrast to her hardcore personality, this time showing a more sensitive side.
• Thriving Nevarro: In the last season of The Mandalorian, Nevarro was portrayed as a wretched hive of scum and villainy, haven to bounty hunters and partially occupied by the Imperial remnant. In Chapter 12, the planet is almost unrecognizable—thriving with merchants and providing galactic education in a school. The school scene is delightful to say the least! I loved the protocol droid teaching the younglings about galactic routes and the Old and New Republic capitals while The Child mischievously steals a student’s blue milk (?) cookies with the help of the Force! I am predicting these cookies are going to eventually be served at Galaxy’s Edge.
• Mythrol is Back: Mythrol’s return was an unexpected one since the last time we saw him was in Chapter 1 as Mando’s first bounty, delivered to the Guild frozen in carbonite. In Chapter 12 we learn about Mythrol’s role as Karga’s bookkeeper—working off his debt for disappearing after a bit of “creative accounting”. His character takes over the comedic side of the chapter when The Child is not on screen—although he is not as effectively funny as our beloved little green friend (Weather’s obsession with him is noticeable in and off screen).
• The Lab: The siege on the Imperial base was not as exciting as the hijacking of the Imperial Gozanti freighter from the previous chapter, but it gave us probably the most intriguing and open to speculation moment in the entire season so far. The old Imperial base turned out to be a facility for clone experimentation! Seeing bacta tanks with specimens brought me right back to the Dark Empire comics and also to The Rise of Skywalker. What is Dr. Pershing and Moff Gideon working on? A clone of Snoke? Or of Emperor Palpatine? In the holo recording Pershing mentioned “volunteers” and a need for special blood with “higher M-count” (I literally screamed when I heard that, although he didn’t say “Midi-chlorians”, but still!) Apparently, The Child’s blood is not enough for the experiment, and I have a feeling Ahsoka might be the next donor they seek.
• The Chase: Soon after sabotaging the Imperial facility, Karga, Dune, and Mythrol begin their escape onboard a stolen troop transport while Mando jets back to the town to pick up The Child. The chase sequence is classic Star Wars, and I can’t give enough credit to Weathers for directing such a fun chapter. The action in this scene (and overall the whole episode) feels realistic, mostly from Karga’s shooting challenges as he is attempting to take down Outland TIE fighters. The Razor Crest coming to the rescue is a nice mirror moment from A New Hope as the Millennium Falcon takes out the fighters tailing Luke moments before he blows up the Death Star—this time instead of getting a “YAHOOOOO!” from Han Solo we get a happy Child, arms up like he’s riding a rollercoaster.
• New Republic Recruitment: Seeing Captain Carson Teva once again on screen was a pleasant surprise. His New Republic recruitment pitch was made special by the subtle Resistance theme notes by Ludwig Göransson, accompanied by a New Republic medallion, which I now desperately want!
• Moff Gideon is Ready: Speaking of Göransson, his character theme tracks are starting to solidify into each new episode, first with Mando’s and The Child’s, but now it’s evident Moff Gideon’s is taking its well deserved spot next to the Imperial March. Moff Gideon is in many ways the Darth Vader of the show—where we see very little of him, every appearance is a showstopper. I can’t wait to see him in action against our heroes and to find out what his master plan entails. Also, what are those things displayed on the walls at the end of the episode? A new model of Imperial battle droids, similar to the dark trooper from Dark Forces?

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