The Book of Boba Fest: a Disney disappointment
Olivia Hupfauer, Staff Writer
Ever since Boba Fett’s supposed death beneath the sands of Tatooine in 1983, Star Wars fans have been patiently waiting for the on-screen return of one of their favorite characters. Many fans were excited for the legendary bounty hunters come back in Disney Plus’ original Star Wars series, “The Mandalorian.” And after making a few appearances in that show, Fett has acquired his own tv show, “The Book of Boba Fett.”
The Disney Plus original series follows Boba Fett, who survived the sarlacc pit in “Return of the Jedi” and returns to the inhabited parts of Tatooine to replace his former employer Jabba the Hutt as a new crime boss. Season 1 tells the story of Fett (played by Temuera Morrison) and his side kick Fennec Shand (played by Ming-Na Wen) as they navigate this new and unfamiliar role in familiar territory.
“The Book of Boba Fett” has multiple directors, each being in control of an episode (or more) in this first season: Robert Rodriguez (episodes one, three and seven), Steph Green (episode two), Kevin Tancharoen (episode four), Bryce Dallas Howard (episode 5), and Dave Filoni (chapter 6.)
Although many expected this show to be very good, many, like myself, are extremely dissatisfied. The show doesn’t feel like Star Wars, and this Boba Fett is not “the” Boba Fett. The Boba Fett Star Wars fans are familiar with is a cold-blooded, ruthless bounty hunter who was smart, cunning and got the job done no matter what; the most important thing to him was getting paid. However, Disney Plus Boba Fett is a soft, unintelligent comic relief character who is no longer respected or feared. Many might call this “character development,” but I call it inconsistent writing. A cold-blooded, ruthless bounty hunter doesn’t turn into a soft, foolish nobody over a few months with a group of Tusken Raiders.
Another big flaw is how unimportant and incapable Boba Fett is. Two out of the seven episodes of this season are not even about Fett; he doesn’t even make an appearance. But when he does make an appearance, he stands in the background in nearly every scene – and that’s it. Shand does the planning, most of the talking, and appears to be the one in charge. And when it comes to fight scenes, Fett is incompetent. He can’t hold his own, despite his healing from bacta tank sessions. Boba Fett is a side character in his own show.
Not only that, the story overall lacks substance. When you take away the nostalgia bait, fan service and special but unnecessary character cameos, “The Book of Boba Fett” is a jumbled mess that doesn’t know what it wants to do.
The cinematography is nothing special. Many shots are repeated, and there is nothing too creative happening on screen. The special effects were adequate, especially the CGI Luke Skywalker. Skywalker’s appearance in the BoBF is a drastic improvement from when fans last saw him in “The Mandalorian.” However, appearances only go so far. When Luke interacts with other characters, he is very robotic, lacking every aspect of human nature other than looks.
The performances were somewhat alright. The actors and actresses did the best they could with the script they had. Unfortunately, there is only so much the actors and actresses can do within the bounds of their role and the show they are part of.
Overall, the Book of Boba Fett was not that good of a show. Hopefully this will change, however no one can be sure. Season two has not been confirmed, so fans will have to wait and see what is in store for Boba Fett.
*Featured Image: “The Book of Boba Fett” offical logo found here.
