The 3rd chapter in The Book of Boba Fett features some of the best moments of the series and unfortunately some of the worst. The Streets of Mos Espa has some incredibly harrowing scenes and introduces some cool new characters.
In a nice reversible from chapter 2, the bulk of Boba Fett’s story takes place in the present. The few flashback scenes in The Streets of Mos Espa pack an emotional, albeit abrupt punch to the Tusken Raiders story.
The Streets of Mos Espa introduces some new characters to the Star Wars universe. These characters are essentially a teenage street gang who have augmented their human anatomy with droid parts. The performances by all of these characters are great and fit the world of Star Wars. Their looks and vehicle choices are a different story. The outfits and speeder bikes they use are far too shiny for Tatooine.
Temuera Morrison and Ming-Na Wen continue to have great chemistry in this series. The writing and performance do a great job of setting the seed for a possible turn for Fennec Shand, but she could also stay loyal. The balance necessary for this to work is tricky but Wen continues to shine. As The Book of Boba Fett continues, Boba continues to appear as less of a menacing Daimyo and more like an honorable man, which seems a bit opposed to the manner in which he unseated Bib Fortuna.
Phenomenal character actor Stephen Root pops up in this episode as a squirrely Mos Espa business owner. Robert Rodriguez‘s connection to this show leads to the wonderful appearance of Danny Trejo in a role that I’ll address after the overview to avoid any spoilers.
The main issue with this episode is how Boba is conducting his business. He offers these teenagers jobs for their courage to disrespect him. Boba’s simply not exuding the kind of power that Jabba seemed to possess Perhaps, there’s a reckoning coming for Boba that will change his approach, but that’s not evident up to this point.
Despite those couple of issues, Black Krrsantan has an outstanding action scene and I simply love how The Twins were used in this episode. Overall, this episode is still a step below chapters 1 and 2.
With the overview out of the way, let’s dive deeper into the elements that stood out in The Streets of Mos Espa. There may be some minor spoilers. The Book of Boba Fett is available to stream on Disney Plus.
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Teenagers with Attitude
Boba Fett is simply not a great leader. Slowly over the course of the series, Fett’s edge continues to soften. The Boba who killed Bib Fortuna at point-blank range is simply not this character.
Everybody, even the business owner played by Root, tells him as much. Everyone is waiting to see what type of leader Boba is and at every opportunity to show strength, he relents. Boba approaches a group of teens who the business owner accuses of stealing from him. The teens don’t show him any respect at all and complain about the lack of work. Boba responds by offering them jobs on the spot.
The teens are actually pretty awesome from a personality aspect. The style of the clothing and the brightly colored speeder bikes feel completely out of place. Each member’s bike is a different primary color. There’s a great chase sequence featuring them and the Mayor’s Majordomo. It’s not a high-speed chase, but the narrow confines of Mos Espa don’t really lend themselves to a fast-paced pursuit.
Brink of War on The Streets of Mos Espa
A nightmarish memory in the Bacta tank is interrupted by Black Krrsantan. Never has a Wookie seemed more powerful. He runs roughshod over Boba until the teens, Shand and the Gamorrean guards are able to trap him in the Rancor pit.
The next morning a conversation between Shand and Fett about the next moves is interrupted by the arrival of The Twins. They offer an apology in the form of a Rancor and accept responsibility for hiring Black Krrsantan. The Twins are leaving since the territory has been awarded to the Pykes. Boba offers to trade Black Krrsantan back to The Twins, they decline. Boba decided to release Black Krrsantan instead of hiring him to exert Fett’s new authority. Considering how easy it was for Black Krrsantan to break into Fett’s castle, he could use as many skilled fighters as possible.
The Rancor is trained by Trejo’s Rancor Keeper. He teaches Boba about the history of beasts. Boba is quite taken by the beast and the feelings appear to be mutual.
Morrison continues to do an outstanding job as this character, but the writing is starting to make Boba look out of his depth. If a comeuppance is in store, then this could work out fine, but that’s not clear at this point. We also still don’t know who the big bad is in this series, which is a crucial element of telling an effective Star Wars story.
Flashback to Tragedy
The flashback sequence is short, but packs on the emotion.
Boba leaves the Tusken Raiders to collect payment from the Pykes (not to be confused with the present-day story). His meeting with the Pykes is seemingly cordial but does not end with Boba receiving money. The biker gang from Chapter 2 already accepted payment for protection in the dune sea. They’re willing to pay for protection, but only to one party. Boba promises to address the problem.
Boba returns to the village to find them all seemingly massacred by the biker gang. The score during the entire sequence by Joseph Shirley is hauntingly beautiful. Boba heads off seemingly after the biker gang, but that’s not clear. I’m a little confused as to how the bike gang killed every single member of this Tusken Raider village. There were skilled warriors here. One of them was even more skilled than Boba. In the last episode, Boba had no problem getting the better of them. Now, this gang killed all of them. I’m wondering if Bib Fortuna was involved here, but that is pure speculation at this point.
The Streets of Mos Espa Final Thoughts
A pretty uneven episode with some strong highs and plenty of low moments. There’s still plenty of intriguing story threads to tug on. Here’s hoping Chapter 4 moves the story forward considerably.
The Review
The Streets of Mos Espa
PROS
- Great guest performances by Stephen Root and Danny Trejo.
- Creative action scenes.
- The flashback sequence was tremendous.
CONS
- Honor is important to Boba, yet nobody seems to respect him.
- The look of the teenage biker gang and their speeder bikes is out of place.
- Questionable security.
