‘The Mandalorian’ Just Gave Us The Worst Episode Of The Entire Show

I’ll just come right out and say it: The last thing The Mandalorian needed right now was an episode devoted almost entirely to the minor character and former Imperial scientist, Dr. Penn Pershing (Omid Abtahi). That it has drawn comparisons to Andor only makes matters worse, as everything Andor-like about it just reminds us how vastly better that show is—especially at handling intricate politics and spycraft.

Basically, we learn that Pershing has entered a New Republic rehabilitation program designed to help former Imperials integrate back into society. He meets up with a former colleague—Imperial officer Elia Kane (cool name!)—and she tricks him into setting up a mobile research lab despite being explicitly told not to by his new bosses. When he gets the gear, she turns on him and he’s given a happy brain treatment straight out of A Clockwork Orange, while she’s rewarded for her service to the New Republic.

This is all telegraphed way ahead of time. It’s obvious that Kane (Katy M. O’Brian) is an Imperial spy still working for the bad guys. Pershing, despite being a smart guy, is easily duped. What might have been a three-episode arc, carefully woven into a delicate spy game in Andor was rushed out in just one episode here. Handled this way, it’s hard to imagine why the show’s creators felt it needed an entire episode. It did not. This would have worked better as a handful of scenes interspersed with more Mando (Pedro Pascal) and Bo-Katan (Katee Sackhoff) adventures.

Speaking of our Mandalorian duo, everything in that part of the episode—two segments bookending the rest of ‘The Convert’—was delightful. The dogfight at the beginning was great. The return to Mando’s covert was even better, as Bo-Katan is also welcomed to walk The Way alongside them, much to her surprise (and conflicted feelings).

I do like that the title of the episode worked both to describe Bo-Katan, whose encounter with the mythosaur last week has rattled her, and Pershing, who was more than willing to change teams and work for the good guys. But my goodness the entire Coruscant plotline was badly handled, right down to the even-more-stilted-than-usual dialogue, especially from side characters. There’s a scene after Pershing’s speech where he’s greeted by various socialites that’s so awkward and cringey I’m not sure what to think. Did they hire actors for this scene or just pull people off the street?

All told, while this may indeed be a setup for Moff Gideon’s return or for other stories in a galaxy far, far away, I was not impressed, especially after last week’s excellent Dark Souls episode. I often watch these more than once but not this time. Indeed, this may be the first episode of The Mandalorian that I have no intention of watching a second time.

What did you think? Let me know on Twitter or Facebook.

MORE FROM FORBES‘The Mandalorian’ Season 3, Episode 2 Review: ‘Star Wars’ Goes Full ‘Dark Souls’By Erik Kain

In other Lucasfilm and Disney news, the Willow series on Disney Plus has been cancelled. I have a few things to say about that—and the many dire mistakes the show made—right here as well as in the below video:

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