The Book of Boba Fett Chapter 6 Review: ‘From the Desert Comes a Stranger’ and Star Wars satisfaction

Chapter 5 in The Book of Boba Fett was an outstanding accomplishment. Dave Filoni takes the setup by Bryce Dallas Howard in the preceding chapter and delivers the best piece of Star Wars content since The Last Jedi with From the Desert Comes a Stranger.

From the Desert Comes a Stranger is a love letter to every era of Star Wars. Do you love Din Djarin and Grogu? How about returning characters like Cobb Vanth? Did you fall in love with the prequel era because of Clone Wars? There’s something here for everyone.

Chapter 5 was a stellar episode that connected the characters, themes and events in The Mandalorian and The Book of Boba Fett to the past. From the Desert Comes a Stranger succeeds in this area too but goes one step further. Chapter 6 is a fantastic setup for the new trilogy of Star Wars films and series that are set to take place during this timeline.

The only problem with the episode is Boba Fett. The title character of the show is relegated to a glorified cameo in From the Desert Comes a Stranger. Part of me wonders if The Book of Boba Fett should have been 4 episodes and the 3rd season of The Mandalorian into 4 episodes.

However, that’s a small gripe in an episode that delves into Jedis, bounty hunters and western themes with loving enthusiasm on display by Filoni and Favreau. Everything crucial to this episode is laden with spoilers, so I’ll delve into the characters and events in more detail after the overview.

With the overview out of the way, let’s dive deeper into the elements that stood out in From the Desert Comes a Stranger. There may be some minor spoilers. The Book of Boba Fett is available to stream on Disney Plus.

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From the Desert Comes a Stranger with Spice

Based on the opening, you’d probably expect this episode to revolve around Tatooine and Boba Fett with just a bit of Mando thrown in. From the Desert Comes a Stranger is bookended with the charm of Timothy Olyphant as Cobb Vanth.

He stops a group of Pykes trying to transport “spice” through Mos Pelgo. He gives these Pykes an opportunity to leave with their lives. They don’t oblige. He obliterates the group, but leaves one alive. The opening scene ends with Cobb kicking over a chest of “spice”illustrating his moral code.

Later, Din pays Cobb a visit. He recruits Cobb to join Boba’s fight against the Pykes. Din puts on quite the show. Cobb doesn’t immediately agree. However, after Din leaves, he tells the bartender to gather up all the capable fighters in Freetown.

The episode ends with a solitary figure slowly approaching Mos Pelgo. Making his live-action debut is bounty hunter Cad Bane. The tension in the scene is well-played by Olyphant and Corey Burton (as Cad Bane) as the two men square off in a western-style standoff. Cad implores Cobb to join the Pykes. Cobb stares back with a steely resolve. Three blasters are fired. Cobb is wounded, perhaps mortally, his deputy is dead and Cad is perfectly fine.

From voice, makeup to the staging of the scenes, this was the best way to debut Cad Bane.

The Sacred Art of Detachment

After the opening, From the Desert Comes a Stanger is a direct continuation of chapter 5 of The Book of Boba Fett. Din is in space heading to an unknown planet to deliver his gift to Grogu.

He finds the planet with little effort. Upon reaching the planet’s surface, he comes face-to-face with R2-D2. Din wants to see Grogu and R2-D2 appears to be showing him the way to Grogu. The mischievous droid suddenly shuts down leaving Din to wait on a makeshift bench. After this scene, I thought we might see Grogu at the end of the episode, but based on the waiting room approach, I thought Favreau and Filoni were trying to quell expectations. I was wrong.

Pretty quickly we are reintroduced to deepfake Luke Skywalker and Grogu. Luke is training Grogu using some of the same lessons he learned from Yoda. Grogu is struggling to maintain his focus. Eventually, Luke unlocks Grogu’s painful past, which seems to help with his training.

Luke isn’t the only Jedi on this plant. Ahsoka Tano is also on the planet. She meets with Din. He tries to mask his love with a simple decree of wanting to make sure the foundling is ok. She knows better. If this is really about what’s best for Grogu, then he will let Ahsoka take the gift to Grogu. Din accepts and hands it to her. Grogu senses Din’s presence just as the former Mandalorian flies back to Tatooine.

Luke and Ahsoka share a brief scene. He’s uncertain whether he’s really teaching Grogu anything and asks Ahsoka’s advice. She points out that Luke is like his father and needs to trust his gut.

He gives Grogu a choice. Grogu can accept Din’s gift and rejoin his pseudo father or he can pick up the lightsaber originally belonging to Yoda and continue his training with Luke.

The deep fake version of Luke works much better in From the Desert comes a Stranger than in the season two finale. Everything about this section was fantastic and I never wanted it to end. Whether it was Luke using the force to lift Grogu or him flipping around the Planet with Grogu strapped to his back, these sequences were executed with pure love and affection for Luke. The sequence also sets up the fatal flaws that will come to destroy Luke’s Jedi academy.

Missing in Action

Boba has one scene in this episode. He essentially provides a recap on the threat the Pykes represent. Din offers to talk to Cobb, which ends the episode for Boba.

My one critique is that Boba should have joined Din in his conversation with Cobb. Boba’s seen what the Pykes are capable and could have provided a more compelling argument than the comradery Din and Cobb share.

Final Thoughs on From the Desert Comes a Stranger

From the Desert Comes a Stranger is a fascinating chapter in the Skywalker saga of Star Wars. There’s not much action in the episode. Just the two shootouts at the beginning and end of the episode.

However, the lack of action allows the character interactions and fantastic storytelling to shine without having to contest with the noise. I’m not sure if this is the last we’ve seen of Luke or Grogu in this series. The conflict with the Pykes seems to be escalating. One can hope that Luke may be forced to join the fray.

The inclusion of Cab Bane adds some much-needed muscle and character to The Pykes. Cad’s introduction confirms he’s every bit Din and Boba’s equal. I also wonder if it was Cad who killed the Tusken Raiders instead of the biker gang Boba slaughtered.

Unlike the last episode, there were actual story beats in From the Desert Comes a Stranger that could have included Boba. There’s so much to love about this episode, it’s difficult to fault Favreau and Filoni for sidelining Fennec Shand and Boba.

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