The Mandalorian Episode 1.2 Recap: Adventures in Babysitting

The Mandalorian learns that babysitting can be a difficult job. Chapter Two, aptly titled “The Child”, has our bounty hunter hero taking Baby Yoda back to the Razor Crest. He deals with multiple travails along the way. Getting more than a few lumps for his troubles, he gets a helpful assist from Kuiil the Ugnaught (Nick Nolte). The Mandalorian makes another startling discovery. His little green bundle wields a strange, mystical power.

“The Child” opens with The Mandalorian escorting Baby Yoda through a canyon. The little green alien floats alongside the bounty hunter in his white orb carrier. Curious lizard creatures are drawn to the orb. The Mandalorian stops and puts his hand on his blaster. Three mercenaries attack from all sides. They are trandoshan bounty hunters, from teh same species as Bossk. He fights them with his rifle, shooting the last one who charged toward the infant.

MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY

At dusk, The Mandalorian sits by a fire treating his wounds. Baby Yoda jumps from his carrier and ambles towards the bounty hunter’s wounded arm. A little green hand reaches out, but The Mandalorian picks the baby up and puts him back in the carrier. The next morning they reach the Razor Crest. As he looks down from a cliff, Jawas have stripped the ship and are loading parts into their Sandcrawler.

The Mandalorian disintegrates several Jawas with his rifle. The Sandcrawler takes off with surprising speed. He runs quickly and latches on to the right side of the vehicle. Jawas pop out from various hatches hurling objects at him. The Sandcrawler veers into a rock to crush him. The Mandalorian leaps on a ledge to safety. He fires his harpoon rope to the top, then shoots a Jawa trying to dislodge him. He reaches the roof of the Sandcrawler, but the Jawas band together and shock him with an electrical charge. The Mandalorian falls with a thud to the ground as the Sandcrawler escapes.

Baby Yoda looks at him with curious eyes as he gets up. They go back to the Razor Crest. The ship has been decimated and cannot fly. The Jawas even raided his weapons locker. They walk towards the horizon. The Mandalorian arrives later at Kuiil’s moisture farm. Kuiil reminds him that Jawas steal. They never destroy. They can negotiate to get his ship’s parts back. Baby Yoda jumps from the carrier and slurps down a frog-like critter.

Kuiil escorts “Mando” and the baby to the Sandcrawler. The Jawas become aggressive at the sight of their attacker, but calm down when Kuiil has him put away his weapons. He’s furious to trade for his stolen equipment, but has no choice. The Jawas will give him back his gear if he brings them “the egg.”

They ride in the Sandcrawler to a cliff with a hole in the base. The Mandalorian leaves the infant in his orb as he explores the cave. The dark hole is illuminated by his helmet light. He fixates on an eye. Baby Yoda watches as the bounty hunter is flung out of the cave into the dirt. A mud horn, think huge hairy rhino, tramples him, smashing his chest plate. The Mandalorian is knocked over and tossed like a rag doll. Just as the mud horn is about to spear him, Baby Yoda raises his little green hand. The Mandalorian watches as the mud horn floats in the air. He stabs it in the side of the head, killing the creature.

Baby Yoda passes out from the strain of lifting the mud horn. The Mandalorian looks at the baby in awe. He goes back into the cave and finds a hairy, mud covered egg. Kuiil is waiting with the Jawas. The bounty hunter returns with the egg. The Jawas crack it open and gorge on the yellow yolk. Kuiil drags the returned equipment away with his Blurrg.

That night back at the Razor Crest, The Mandalorian asks Kuiil for a maintenance facility, “This will take days to fix.” The Ugnaught sets up lights and says “only if you get in my way.” A montage follows of Kuiil and the bounty hunter working feverishly to repair the ship. Kuiil doesn’t understand what happened with the mud horn. Neither does The Mandalorian. Baby Yoda continues to sleep in his orb.

When the light breaks, Kuiil has the ship working again. The Mandalorian offers Kuiil employment. He can use someone with Kuiil’s tremendous technical skills. Kuiil refuses, he will no longer be anyone’s slave. He thanks The Mandalorian for bringing peace to his valley. The Mandalorian ignites the ship’s engines and takes off. Kuiil watches as the Razor Crest soars into the sky. The Mandalorian gently rocks the orb. Baby Yoda gurgles awake and looks out of the cockpit into space.

Directed by Rick Famuyiwa (Our Family Wedding, Dope), The Mandalorian has an all killer, no filler methodology. The first two episodes have been short and sweet. “The Child” raced by in a brisk thirty minutes. The series is clearly about the bounty hunter protecting Baby Yoda, who can wield The Force. Lifting the mud horn tuckered out the little guy, but was an impressive display of strength. It’s implied that Baby Yoda could have healed The Mandalorian’s wounds as well. Baby Yoda is immensely powerful. It makes sense that the other bounty hunters wanted the baby destroyed, and why Dr. Pershing wants it alive. The Mandalorian returns with Chapter Three, Friday November 22nd on Disney+ streaming.

About The Author

Julian Roman
(1458 Articles Published)

Film critic, raconteur, praying for dolphins to grow thumbs and do better.

More
From Julian Roman

You can view the original article HERE.