House of R - ‘The Book of Boba Fett’ Chapter 3 Deep Dive

Episode Date: January 15, 2022

Mal and Joanna are insulted on our behalf and will beseech you to listen to their latest deep dive of 'The Book of Boba Fett' Chapter 3 (06:24). They discuss the much discussed gang of cyber youths and their colorful bikes (38:19). Later, Ben Lindbergh brings us a lore lesson on the infamous Pyke Syndicate (85:28) and Jomi is brought in to answer your mailbag questions. Hosts: Mallory Rubin and Joanna Robinson Producer: Steve Ahlman Guest: Ben Lindbergh Social: Jomi Adeniran Additional Production: Steve Ahlman, TD St. Matthew-Daniel, and Arjuna Ramgopal Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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Let them speak. Ever since Lord Fortuna was perished, the streets have... turn to chaos. Oh, this is the first I'm hearing of it. No, it's true. And I am insulted on your behalf at the disrespect these urchards are showing you, especially in light of the, uh, well, you know. And welcome into the ringerverse here on the ringer podcast network.

I'm Mallory Rubin, and it is my absolute pleasure to invite you not only down into the rancor pit, but also to join us on the ringer's nexus podcast. feed for all things fandom. Joining me today to talk about the book of Boba Fett chapter three and eager to learn what's really going on in this murky fin. It's my house of our marketing title, ghost. And my favorite Vespa Rider, Ringer Senior Staff writer, Joanna Robinson. I feel mixed about being called a Vespa writer in this episode.

The streets of most best fun. We'll talk about it. I'm excited to learn what color you would pick over the course of the episode. I was about to ask you what color you would pick. Green is my favorite color, so I'm tempted to stay green. But, you know, yeah, I would go with green. My favorite color, ringer, you know, ringer green, lean in. But I would also be really happy with either orange or purple because of my sports fandom.

You know, I got the orange for the O's and Cuse, purple for the Raven. So any of those three would be fine with me, but I would try for green. How about you? Yeah. Well, Amber is the color of my energy, but I think that I would, no, I'm just kidding. I think that I would pick like a minty, sparkly green. That's a real Vespa color. Do you know what I mean?

The mint green with a little bit of sparkle to it or like a cream school orange. These colors were a little too bold for my taste. I would prefer something more in the pastel. family. You love a pastel. I do. You love a pastel. I love a muted tone.

So. Oh, boy. Well, no muted tones here on the Ringiverse. And as always, we have a few quick programming reminders before we open up the BoktaPod to head into today's episode, The Midnight Boys, Van and Charles. Poo-Pew! We'll be back with you earlier than usual because they have a peacemaker chat coming. At the top of next week, they will be breaking down the three.

episode, Peacemaker premiere. I really liked Peacemaker. Protect Eagley. Excited to talk about Peacemaker and keep watching the rest of the season. Fun show. Of course, we will be back on Wednesday and Friday on the Ring of Verse to break down the Book of Boba Fett chapter four in instant reaction and deep dive form. And then, Joe, you got another programming reminder for people, a programming notice for

people, don't you? It's a little bit of a spin-off. Let's hear it. If this is the Mandalorian, then this is Book of Boba Fet. Over in the Prestige TV podcast feed, where Mel and I have done a few shows ourselves. Seams. From a marriage.

Squid games from a marriage. Van Leitham ever heard of him. Old Man Van himself from the Midnight Boys Pew Pugh will be joining me for three episodes, I believe, to talk about the Netflix series Ozark. We had some folks thrilling. I love Ozark. We had some folks who love, who like Follow the Prestage TV podcast feed. We're like, we're a little blind.

We never know. What are you going to pick? What should we catch up on? So I'm just giving you a little advanced warning, giving you a whole week to get ready for four seasons of television. But Ozark, you know, we're here, Book of Boba Fett talking about crime families, crime stories. Van is a scholar of the crime drama. coming off of his wire rewatch, etc. So we'll be talking about Ozark,

that crazy crime family over the Prestige TV podcast feed. Next week, there will be three episodes dropping on that. Excited to hear how you all think the characters on Ozark would launder the money from the Star Wars universe. You know, what's easier to launder? Imperial credits. Kalimari Flan. Kalamari Flan is what I was going to say.

It's the Flon. Oh, boy. I genuinely cannot wait to listen to that. That is very exciting. Everybody check that out. Follow the Prestige TV pod. If you are not following it yet, that feed is awesome. And follow all of it. Prestige TV, Ringervverse, everything we got cooking here at the Ringer Podcast Network by following the pods on Spotify, wherever you get your podcasts. And of course, by following our social feeds, the Ringer Versus on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook. Bear in mind, as always, our friendly neighborhood spoiler warning. Today's podcast will feature plot details from the book of Boba Fett chapter three, The Streets of Mos Espa, directed by Robert Rodriguez, written by John Favreau, tight 38, 39-ish minutes.

Same length as the premiere. We're going to also be talking, of course, about the wider Star Wars canon. It's all fair game today. So proceed with more caution than the Major Domo did when attempting his escape. Love that guy. Low bar. Put bar all the way on the table. I love that guy. All right, Joe. Yeah. We got a lot to hit today. So let's dive right in to the episode. We are going to run through the present day timeline first. We will hit the flashbackda later. And I should say, once again, we had a slightly different structure in terms of how much time we spent. in each timeline. So the bulk of this episode, after the bulk of chapter two took place in the

past, the bulk of chapter three takes place in the present timeline, that nine ABY timeline, we're only in the past in that five ABY timeline for like a handful of minutes. So we got most of the plot points and deep dive into do here in the old Mandalorian timeline 9 ABY. And let's start at the Palace, where the episode begins. And let's start where the season did not begin, but episode three did begin, which is, in essence, here's the lay of the land. Our Guy 88 is providing an R unit, hollow display aided, download of the state of affairs in Mos Espa, the crime family breakdown, the transdotions, the Aqualish and the Clotunians who are dividing the land. since Java's fall.

We're going to break down some of the specifics that he shares and all of the dynamics at play here. But I broadly to start, have to ask, what did you think about the fact that this is when we got this information? Because on the one hand,

it's really helpful to finally have it, really helpful. We've been wondering about this. On the other hand, it does, I think, exacerbate the effect that exists across this episode where it feels like we're almost starting over

at what is in essence kind of the midway mark of the season. I think the, I mean, glad to have it, of course, is very godfather in its nature, talking about the families and their territories and all that. But my question is why both on the show and in Boba's own strategy are we doing this so late? Why is this not the first thing that Boba? And the problem for me is that it makes Boba look very bad at his job.

as he has been this entire season, looking pretty bad at this job. And this is just basics. Like, this is basics. Like, reading people incorrectly or trusting the wrong people or whatever, that's, you know, that comes down to the person. But I think anyone, if you walk into a job and you've got a droid there from the previous administration, you're like, hey, what's the haps? What do I need to know about what's going on?

You got stored up there in that old neural harness. And it makes even lessons to me, just as a strategy, when, like, the Trandotion leader and I think the Aqualach leader both were there giving their tribute in the first episode. So, you know, why wouldn't this have been information that they talked about before the presentations of the tributes? I don't understand any of that. I'm glad to know it. Glad to know this. Delighted to know it. I would like Boba Fett, who I am deeply rooting for my heart and my soul to start being better at this job. That's what I would like. And listen, like, I understand the idea of putting someone on the back foot in order to show their growth in a role.

So we're going to show if we're going to show Boba getting better at his job. But I think you need to start from a place of more competence than we're starting with Bobafet here. If you think about even with like if you think about the Godfather comp or the wire comp, like if there are crime lawyers we're rooting for, there's something about them where you're like, yes, they seem suited for this job. and I'm excited to see them try to do this. And even when they're kind of bad at the job, like Sonny is in The Godfather before Michael replaces him, he still has some flashes of brilliance that you're like, okay, like maybe he'll get it together.

Boba, I'm waiting, Boba. I am waiting for you to shine. I would like you to shine. Yeah. Yeah, I agree. There's the element of this for us as viewers where we say, oh, okay, we're getting this information that we've been wondering about for a couple episodes

and it's coming at this point in the season, but it is, it's difficult to shake the fact that Boba Fannick, who seems to be the one who is often questioning Boba's decisions, pushing him to a certain line of inquiry, wouldn't have asked for all of the intel that could have possibly been provided.

8D8 says, Bib Fortuna assembled Jabba's mantle, assumed job is mantle. Under Master Bibbs watchful, I, Mos Espo was divided amongst three families, So Trindotians took the city center, the Aqualish, the Workers District. We will be returning to the Workers District soon in this episode. And the Clotunians, the Starport and Upper Sprawl.

We also have a little starport action. Master Bib did not have the power of Jabba, so he relied on uneasy alliances to preserve his tribute and title. So in addition to wondering why Boba wouldn't have been asking for all of this sooner, trying to piece this all together, especially in the wake of the, you know, you haven't heard kind of moments that he's had to this point where people are constantly noting how little awareness and grasp he has of the state of affairs. A couple of things stood asked me about the actual download, the actual information that we get here.

Yeah, yeah. So as you noted, we saw the tributes from the Transdotions and the Aqualish in the first chapter, of course, the wookie pelt from our guy, Doc Strassie. But then we think back to the looks that we were talking about from chapter two, the Transdotians when passing by in the center of the city. It's fascinating to think about what might be on their minds.

Boba is a threat, right? Could be part of an alliance, but could be a threat. Why are the huts not involved in this breakdown? Now, we're going to talk more about the twins who make a once again,

very incestuous appearance in this episode. I mean, just a lot of, a lot of, tail touching and rubbing and groping. It's, it's, it's, it's, you never, concerning. You never go tail to tail is, is how I feel about this. But also, I do want to say really quickly about the twins. I want to retract our Lannister, unless there's some, another level going on,

which they're very well could be. But like, if they're all incest, no ambition, then that's not, that's not Jamie and Searcy, right? Yeah. We need, you know, I don't buy, I don't buy their, uh, their lack of it. ambition? No, I don't buy it at all. I don't buy it at all. But it's a good point. It's a good point. It's a to watch. It's a trap. It's a drop. Notably, in addition to, okay, well, where are the huts? Not only a piece of that, but any direct involvement, what was the arrangement that the twins

had, or did they have any sort of arrangement or understanding with Bibb in those five years between Jabba's death and this current timeline? What about the Pikes, though? You know, the Pikes are going to be a big part of our discussion today, they're present in Keyways in both timelines in this episode, and there's no mention of the Pikes here when citing the families who are central to the power dynamic in most ESPA. Does that mean that they're not actually power players on the ground, and this arrival via Starport at the end signifies a change, or does it mean that they're operating in the shadows in a different sort of capacity? Most Isley is, of course, the place where the flashback sequence occurs, not most ESPA. Maybe they're operating in a different part of Tatooine and are just now going to be

moving to most espo, but I think that's kind of fascinating, too, in terms of, like, tracking all of these syndicates across the episodes. We always like to talk about trailers. While there aren't a ton of clotunian clues in there, we do see in that table gathering where Boba is, you know, presumably making his appeal to forge some sort of alliance. Do you see a clotunian there. So even though we didn't get the tribute in Chapter 1, that's coming. The other thing that 88 says is, although of this while lining the pockets of the mayor. So did the mayor, who has no appointments on his calendar for at least 20 days, Joanna? I mean, this guy, not setting any focus time holds on his Google calendar. I mean, he is booked, okay? And by that, I mean, he is telling Boba, he is

booked. Did he, after Bibbs' death, assassination. I'll say it, even if our guy Stephen Root won't. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Did he immediately look elsewhere for that pocket lining the second Bibb was out of the picture? Or was he working with the Pikes or other factions as well across this timeline? Like, when did all of these changes take effect? How much of this actually did happen? How much of this chaos that the watermonger mentions actually, actually, pop up just in the wake of Bibbs' death and Boba's attempt to take over as Daimyo. And how much of this was cooking in some sort of capacity? We don't know the answer to those questions, but I'm looking forward to finding out because there are a lot of different,

we have a simultaneous occurrence here where we have a lot of different factions who are threats or maybe threats, but also this mounting question of wait, who is the big bad actually going to be? And on the one hand, we're only three episodes in and two of the three have been pretty short. On the other hand, the season's only seven episodes. So we've only got four left to really solidify some of that.

And I'm curious, before we dive into a little more of what we got in this throne room sequence in the rest of the episode, do you have a read or a guess early for how much of this will almost track along like a Marvel Disney Plus show timeline

where some of the big bad reveals are coming really late? And how much of this do you think will start to crystallize for us in this mid-season realm. So, like, you're comparing it to, let's say, our most recent thing, or Loki and Hawkeye being, we get spoilers, I suppose, for Loki and Hawkeye. We get the Kang reveal and the finale of Loki,

and we get Kingpin in the penultimate episode of Hawkeye. I think if we're talking about a bigger, like, Crimson Don Quira reveal, that does feel like something that could come, if, again, we don't know, but if that's coming, that feels like something that could come in the penultimate episode. I think a lot of people, including the Midnight Boys, were sort of coming out of this episode, feeling like the Pikes for the Big Bad. But I have such a fun, and I first was very resistant to that, but I have such a fun theory that was floated to me by a listener, a friend of mine, right before we started recording, that makes me interested again in the possibility of the pikes. Do you want to do it now or do you want to save it for? Theory Corner.

Totally up to you. I'm like, my mind's a buzz with this, so I just kind of want to talk about it now. Is that okay? Yeah. I'm excited. I have no idea what you're going to say. This is a real-time surprise. We both noticed that they've mentioned a couple times this idea that Tattooing used to be a water planet, right?

And it's something that keeps coming up and we're like, why are they mentioning a couple times? So here's my friend Ben, who actually messaged me about the Pikes last week. And last week, and we're going to have our very own Ben on to talk about the Pikes. So, you know, Ben Lambert will be here to talk about the pike. Stay tuned. But my friend Ben messaged me last week saying, last week he said, is this the first time we've seen the faces of the pikes on screen? I feel like they've always been masked in previous shows. And I love finally seeing what they look like or am I missing something.

And for some reason, I've always imagined them to be snake people underneath, but fish people will do. That's what he said. I think this is that correct or have we seen them enmassed in animated before? We have seen them enmast in animated form. But they do look a little bit different. And I think that's one of the things Limburg's going to talk about. Right. And so then this is what he says.

He says, I was chatting with my friend Clinton, and he has a hunch that Tuskins might be aquatic people underneath two. Given all the tidbits dropped about Tatween being an ocean before and them telling the water craving pikes, you can cross the desert just fine. Tatween being ocean, being once an ocean seems like yet another grab from Dune since, if I recall, Iraqis was also a wet planet once, something disclosed in book six, I think. So this idea that the Tuskans might also be fishy underneath the mask. And not only that, are the Pikes and the Tuscans the same species? And were headed towards some sort of war around that. The Pikes coming to reclaim maybe a planet that they abandoned once it became a desert planet or something like that. There's plenty I don't know about the Pikes.

Ben is going to come on and educate us. And maybe there's something he knows that completely discounts this. But this idea of we don't know what the Tuscan Raiders look like underneath their, you know, their masks and their bandages and all that sort of stuff like that. And if they are indigenous to this planet that used to be an ocean planet, are they aquatic and nature? And is that something that deeper that might be running through this show. Wow. My mind is racing and real time. This is, this could be nothing.

We all know that, you know, theories are theories and that sort of stuff. But it has been needling at me. Why do they keep mentioning the water planet history? Yes. I have a lot of questions about why they keep mentioning. You know, and I like. Yeah. Feels like we're building toward a reveal for sure. Yeah.

What three people had was that they were going to show how it happened and maybe. But how is that satisfying and weaving into the story? And this idea that maybe the Tuskins are aquatic, maybe they and the pikes look exactly the same underneath their masks. I think that could be really fun and interesting. I don't know. One sect chose to stay. One chose to leave and they're coming back for their planet. I don't know. So there's, I'm trying to recall everything that I know about their, about the Pikes home planet as far as we know in Canon, which is Obadiah. We hear it mentioned in this episode. We see it. We go there in Clone Wars. That's a fascinating Clone Wars episode. Also just, I know it's Obadi. but Obadiah stain, right?

It makes me think of Obadiastain, yeah. Tony. Felt this in a game. Oh, God. It makes, the theory that you are presenting makes me think of the the Moncala

Quarren war on their planet. These are different species, both aquatic. and there's also actually there's a great clone wars an entire arc actually centered on that conflict. So I think there would definitely be

there's more than one example but like pretty direct precedent for something like that actually. I wonder if it was almost be too much direct precedent. Too close. Yeah, because of that. And I guess

I think that the most compelling part of this is tying in what we keep hearing about Tattoine's history as an oceanic world. I agree with you that that has to end up connecting, whatever reveal we get, to some faction that is playing a pretty direct and relevant role in the story that we're getting this season.

I think that it could maybe be one more way of sort of consistently reinforcing for us, that there's just a lot we don't know about Tatouine and that it's part of the mission of this show. to broaden our understanding of Tatouine, the place, the people, etc. But when you get a moment like our watermonger literally saying, well, Tatooine was once

completely covered with water, it's fascinating, actually. And then he's cut off and we're left like, wait, no, keep talking. Yeah. You know, and that's not even the only mention that we get. We get another one from Bob elsewhere in this episode. But, like, that is there to draw our attention to the intrigue and to that sense of wonder.

So I'll have to keep chewing over that theory. We should, you should, you should float that to Ben and see what he thinks when he comes on later. But I think broadly the idea of some sort of connection. I do still, I just personally can't shake the idea because I think of the of the Pikes with the five syndicate history, Crimson Dawn. I just can't still shake some sort of Kira, Kira, no, no. And connection ultimately and think that's probably where we're heading.

But I don't think that like one. I don't think that one rules out the other. Right. Yeah, they're not mutually exclusive at all. But I just think that the Pikes as like masked fish people, even if they are like one layer below Crimson, On and Kira, are such a boring sort of big, bad idea. You know, even when someone is talented as Phil Lamar voicing one of them, you know. And so I think giving them a more concrete connection to whatever is the story of Tatween and whatever is a story of the Sam people, quote unquote, the the Tuscan Raiders, I think would be really interesting. I don't know. I want to think about it.

I want to hear Ben Lindberg, I don't know, shoot it out of the sky. I, to that last point, I've been thinking about that. Sorry, I mean to, I just think about Kylo Ren. I just, anyway, sorry, go ahead. I'm all, I always personally have Kylo on the mind, so I'm with you. Never need, never need to apologize for thinking about her mentioning Kylo. Jump out of the sky on this podcast or any other. To that point about whether the Pikes would be like interesting or compelling enough if they are in fact the Big Bad, I've been chewing on this for the last couple days, given their prevalence in this episode across both timelines.

And I've yet to make up my mind. I'm going to keep an open mind over the next couple episodes. But I have been coming back to, while it may not feel right now like that would be satisfying, and while I do ultimately think another reveal is still to come, I think I'm open to and actually kind of into the idea of working to it, just establish why new characters. And the Pikes are not new.

You know, we've seen them in solo. we've seen them in Clone Wars, we've seen them in a bad batch. But why other groups should be menacing and should be, like, worthy of our interest in engagement and attention? Because I think in some ways it connects to a lot of what we talked about in our first episode, like widening the set of central players in Star Wars is, like, exciting ultimately. Whether they can do that effectively, we'll see. But I don't know.

I'm not tried. I'd hate it if they tried. So I'm on the fence about it. but maybe the villain will end up being Stephen Rube. You know, Lord the Beal, maybe he'll end up being the big bad. I don't actually think that, but that would be hysterical. I would love it. Let me ask you.

He's very pissed about not getting his full cut, Joe. It didn't come in for vengeance. Again, this did not seem like a smart move from Boba, okay? So like the smart move, I do think, is bringing these teens on without really giving them a job interview, as you mentioned. Like, just they're on. But like, this is what this is what creative crime lords do all the time, right? They're like, hey, you, come work for me, okay? Sherlock Holmes had his, like, Baker Street Irregulars, like Boa Fed has his Mosarespa regulars.

But to piss off Stephen Root like that seems just like diplomacy is not on his mind in all of this. And I'm like, you don't have a strong enough position. to play fast and loose with diplomacy in this way. Well, what's particularly interesting about that, though, is what is his stated creed? What is one of the only things we actually do know about how he thinks about leadership? Yes.

Jabber ruled with fear. I intend to rule with respect. Now, I think there's certainly the case easily to be made that telling this guy who is price gouging for water to fuck off is... man of the people. Good and something that he should do and that the respect then comes

in how he's thinking more broadly about the foul act that Lorth Appeal is committing here. But there's, we don't have too many examples so far of thinking, of seeing how Boba is thinking one move beyond whatever is right in front of him

and what the consequences might be. You know, when we talk about everything that happens in the flashback, whether that was actually the work of the striders, whether that was the work of the Pikes and they used the tag as a misdirect, whether they were in cahoots because they are working together paying protection already, right?

In some way directly stemmed from Boba's actions and decisions, right? And there are many smaller examples already in the present timeline. And that's one of the reasons that Fennick keeps saying, whether it's bringing on the Gimori guards or letting Chrysantan go, hey, are you sure that this was. a good idea. Yeah, and I'm split about it because, you know, we're not going in chronological order. No, we're all over the place.

But like, I think Boba's, yeah, like the death of the Tuscan Raiders, and I have a big problem with that, with that whole flashback, honestly. But like, this stems directly from a similar move from Boba in last week's episode where, like, I was excited by the train heist and all that. But at the end, it seemed like a rash thing to just like,

you know, swing his dick. around the way that he did, you know. And I'm like, you just don't have this position. You have a rag tag. You don't want to swing your dick around out under the binary suns. Yeah. You know. In the desert, sand.

Sand gets everywhere, my friend. I don't like sand. It's rough. It gets everywhere. But like, if you have a rag tag group of Tuscan Raiders and that is your entire team, what gives you the kohones to like, you know, throw, like, everything in the face of an entire crime syndicate? That seems like a bad movie.

And then the immediate repercussions is maybe the entire, if not maybe save to people who might have gotten out, Tuscan Village is wiped out. And that is directly from this thing that Boba did. And to do something so similar again, like, isn't the point of a show with flashbacks and present date to show us lessons learned from the past? So for Boba to do the exact same thing again, even though he is on the right side of justice in both of those instances, I'm like, what's going to happen? You know, Lourth Appeal, you don't hire someone like Stephen Rue. I mean, you might in Star Wars because they do hire these great comedians to just like come and go. But I don't think this is the last we've seen of Lourth Appeal. And it just doesn't seem like a good move from Boba.

Can I ask you a quick Stephen Rout aside? Sure. I asked Stephen Jomey this before we started recording. What is the role you most identify with prolific character actor, Stephen Rute? I mean, I think the answer has to be. be office space. Like Milton is going to be the first thing I think of. But I will say that I could easily give you 15 different answers.

And most recently, the work of Monroe Fuchs on Barry is a personal favorite, very special to me. I love that show. And he is just sensational on it. What about you? Jim, we brought up Barry. And we were also talking about O Brother, Where Art Thou? Great work on O'Brother.

For me, it is iconic business leader Jimmy James on news radio. And I just would not ever want to mess with Jimmy James, which is why I'm scared of Boba trying to mess with Lord of Appeal here. He who controls the water controls the world. And I'm a little worried about it. I think, Joe, we have to say, Steve's going to kill us. Tangents within tangents here. But Stephen Ruer was on justified and there was some justified news today. You know what I was on Justified?

Timothy Olivant, aka Cobb Vand himself. Yeah. What a day. What a day for all of the justified fans. My goodness. Well, we're obviously going to talk more about everything that we saw with the,

with the Tuskins later in today's pod. But with worth appeal. And with this larger question of Boba's style and approach and tactics and strategy, I do want to actually talk about the intro sequence with Lortha appeal a little bit more, but I want to note that in this opening stretch in the throne room, one of the things that 8D8 actually says is everyone is waiting to see what kind of leader you are. So I do like the fact that the show is also asking this question and drawing attention to the fact that this is on people's minds. It would not work at all.

I don't think if that wasn't happening, it is a necessary thing to acknowledge because it is so, it is it is it is so present through the timelines and the decisions that boba is making the audience is waiting to see what kind of leader boba is i think that one of the questions that we're going to have to continue to ask you i mean you've been asking this since the very first episode in terms of looking ahead and theorizing speculating about whether a fenwick he'll turn could come i'm starting to get increasingly interested in whether fenwick is asking that question or how consciously she is assessing that question about what kind of leader Boba is. Because our guy has no idea what's going on, none.

And I say this would love and respect for my dude who has no idea what's happening in the city that he claims to lead and also got absolutely annihilated in his wet underwear in front of his new hires. Very tough stretch for our guy Boba Fett. Incredibly rough stuff for our guy in the wet underwear. True Darth Vader. No. Stuff for our guy Boba Fed right there.

But not in the wet box or dreams. No. Just like a few of the other things that we could run down in terms of people trying to like manipulate or play Boba. And there are a lot of them we can just keep kind of jumping across timelines here. And I think we must talk for a moment about the I'm insulted on your behalf tactic. Yeah. It's instantly iconic, I think.

But when Finnic and Boba have these differing views, which again, we saw initially in that rule with respect, rule with fear, that. dichotomy, right, in the first chapter. There are a couple more moments in this episode when they're having the feast. She says, have some food. And he says, I have to send a message. You already did. Just their inherent approach and view on this is a little bit out of sync.

Now, that can be a good thing, right? You don't just want group think on your counsel. Like, you need people pushing you and challenging you. That's great. But again, when he lets Cresanton go and she says, you sure that was a good idea? It's like echoing exactly that Gimori in exchange. She's not, it's not just that she doesn't agree with the calls that she's making. She's happy to voice that to him, right?

So when Lord Appeal says, ever since Lord Fortuna was perished, the streets have turned to chaos, Boba replies in what I think is fair to call mortifying fashion, well, this is the first I'm hearing of it. First of all, that should not be true. Second of all, you definitely shouldn't say that in front of fucking Lord the Beal.

A person you don't know or trust. Like, don't keep arming your maybe enemies with ammo. Yeah. Now, this idea of chaos is Lothos' perspective. And as we see quite clearly and quite quickly,

he is motivated by his own kind of noxious goals and ends. This is a bad person doing bad things. We shouldn't necessarily trust his read, right? But it's another reminder that A, nobody tells Boba anything. And B, Boba hasn't adjusted and started to find ways to ask, right? So even then when Boba makes his way to the workers district to see our gal Sophie, shouts to yellow jackets,

I can't wait to watch the finale this weekend. I'm all caught up through nine. Tangent within a tangent, within a tangent, within a tangent, you're welcome, Steve. Drash and Boba have this exchange. You live in the workers district. You all should be working. And what does she say? There is no work, Mighty Dimeo. Look around you. Like, they all think he's out of touch and kind of an idiot. Except.

Except Sophie goes, there is no work, Jim, Jim, Turu and a completely baffling English accent on an American actress. I have notes. I have accent notes. Oh, my God. I have no notes on the accent that you just unleashed on us. That was delightful. Can you do the rest of the pod in their voice?

Yeah, that would be wonderful. That's my friend who's an actual real life living, breathing cockney, once told me that when people try to do a British accent, it always sounds like Dick Van Dyke going, Oh, Merry Poppins, Chim, Chiru. So I just like to attack Tim, Jim Chiru on the end of any bad British accent I ever do. I love it. But yeah, I mean, nobody respects you.

That's a true statement. Nobody respects you, Boba Fett. To play him. Like, it's not just, it's not just passive. It's active, right? So whether it's what the twins are doing, what they did last episode, the possibility of a long con they might be running here, whether it was that like quiet but savage, you haven't heard from our gal cars of whip in chapter two, everything that's happened with the

major dome one, the mayor, the pike boss in the flashback or the watermonger here, this, this is, this is the I am insulted on your behalf bit, which was hysterical, but is clearly like a manipulation tactic, right? And also a way to actively dunk on boba as he is making his petition. He's constantly pointing out that nobody takes boba seriously. A street gang of insolent youth has been stealing my inventory. Now, this never happened under the other dimos. And I am insulted on your behalf. You're bad at your job. And I am insulted on your behalf. No one takes. you seriously, and I am insulted on your behalf, does Boba see the fact that Lourtha is trying to manipulate him by using his pride and trying to wield it as a weapon, as a tactic? Does he see

this? Does he recognize that this is what's happening? If he, I mean, like, he quickly go, he quickly is on the side of the street kids, right, when he meets them. Yes. And we like that about him, right? Like, you know, a job. One note, Joe, shut it down. Don't just say charge less. shut it down. The question is like, if Boba was sort of on edge or suspicious of North Appeal from the start,

rather than I'll go take care of this thing that you've asked me. I'll go clean up this mess that you've asked me and clean up. I didn't get it from Thames' performance. If that's what he was going for, I didn't get that.

And all of it just seemed like really, I don't know, one thing after the other. This episode is brought to you by WeatherTech. Everyone knows winter is the MVP and make it a mess. You don't need weather tech floor liners in the summer. unless you hit the beach or go camping,

then you'd want a cargo liner. Or a road trip goes sideways, ketchup goes rogue, ice cream drips. Yeah, you'd be pretty happy about those weather tech seat protectors. So just to be clear as the mud, you're inevitably going to step into the summer. You don't need weather tech unless you plan on doing summer. Visit weathertech.com today. Look, old man. My name is Boba Fett.

We know who you are. Go back to your palace. Watch your tongue. I'm the dimeo of this district and I will bring order. You're a crime boss, just like the rest of them. Are we going to talk about these street kids right now? Is that what we're going to do? Let's go to the workers district.

Let's do it. Take us there. Okay. So we meet these kids. Obviously, much has been said about this. As you pointed out to me, prepod, I think there are some extreme takes on these kids. but you know they look a little

80s punk 60s mods a lot of people have pointed out if you've seen the film Quadrophenia which you should because a young sting is in it and that's all I need to say I think to sell any move me

but Quadrafeita is a great film and it's like this idea of the mods versus the rockers the mods being these 60s biker gang that dressed sharply had brightly colored bikes maybe that's why Sophie's doing an accent. Maybe that's why their clothes look nice and their bikes look nice,

even though they are like, you know, can't afford water. That was maybe that was true of the mods in the 60s in the UK that like they might not have money, but any money they had went into their bikes. Okay. Does it look incorrect to my eyeballs? It does. Many people said that these speeders wouldn't be out of place on like Corrassant or something

like that, but in a dusty, and intentionally dusty, messy place, like Tatooine, and I think especially because Favre and Faloni, when they brought us the Mandalorian, and this exists in the same world as the Mandalorian, right? All of Star Wars exists in the same world, but this more so than any other property is, like, closely connected. Their promise was sort of, we're not going to give you that sort of shiny, prequally look. We're going to give you original trilogy Star Wars, things are going to look old and dusty and crusty, and that's what you liked about Star Wars, and that's what we're going to give you. So to give us this feels like, betrayal is too strong of a word, but just sort of a massive

contradiction of what they were so proud of in the Mandalorian in capturing that original trilogy aesthetic. What do you think about this? I have a few different thoughts. First of all, I want to shout out everybody who tweeted us mailbag questions using the term most Vespas, which is wonderful and I love and I will be using moving forward. Thank you, Susie. Thank you, Jacob. Thank you everyone.

I, the Spy Kids reference, Power Rangers reference, Jomi's got his power Rangers takes out there. A lot of different references and nods, as you already mentioned. And I was catching powerful HP vibes from the one kid wearing the gray robe lined with what appeared to be orange, so not quite a corollary to a house color, but then the yellow, the yellow Vespas. So I got like an overall kind of hufflepuff vibe. I did think right away about American graffiti. And I think maybe that's one of the more charitable and positive reference points that we could note. because, of course, it's a George Lucas film.

It's not just like literally the colorful cars, but this like, you know, seminal coming of age tale with this like hard rock, hot rod kind of sensibility and that George Lucas tie. Here's my feeling broadly. I did not like, we'll talk about the chase later. I did not like the chase sequence. It did not work for me.

I told you this already. I literally wondered if my, if something was wrong with either my internet while I was streaming the episode or my television because it's like looked so slow and glitchy that I thought it was actually wrong like with my technology as I was watching which really took me out of it.

So I did not think that the chase sequence at the end of the episode was successful. In terms of the actual look and vibe of the most VESPA crew, have a couple different thoughts on it. Not my favorite aesthetic that I've ever seen. I'm not like offended by its presence. And I think in general,

the, I think having strong passionate opinions about this stuff is obviously like fine. And actually one of the fun things about talking about it and breaking it down. So many things with Star Wars lately feel like they end up very, very, very quickly boiling down to like a debate over the soul of Star Wars.

And I find that kind of dismaying. I'll be very honest about that. I agree. I agree with you. To me, more than one thing can be true at once. And we could say, this isn't like a thing that we're totally loving. This isn't our favorite thing that we've ever seen. And it doesn't have to be like an indictment of the entire project or one thing I do feel

strongly about is like more broadly, I'm okay with. trying new things, and I like the ambition and intention of trying new things, I don't think this new thing worked. But that doesn't mean I don't want new things in Star Wars in general. And I don't want everything to always just feel like it's rooted so firmly in the original trilogy, because as much as I love the original trilogy, I want to broaden and widen the galaxy. So I have like a little bit of dissonance and conflicting feelings on it. TLDR? Yeah. Didn't think this was like a home run? Not offended by it on like a soul deep level.

That's my feeling on it. I completely agree. I think. And a lot of people are pinning this directly on Robert Rodriguez. And I don't think that's fair. Even though he directed the first episode and this episode, I don't like so many people make so many decisions on this show. So it's not like Robert's like, can we have brightly colored shiny vespas? And John Favro was like napping that day.

Like it's he didn't slip one. Yeah. He did make Spy Kids. Actually, the aesthetic reminds me a lot of Alita Battle Angel, which is a movie that I didn't really care for, but something that Robert Rodriguez worked on recently. But I think between the Vespa Gang and the Nicto game, like the rockers and the mods, like that's what we're going for here. I think what Pings for me is feeling wrong is that it feels too close to something we

recognize from our world. I don't mind different things in the Star Wars world, but I feel like it should feel different and alien versus like, oh, there's a biker gang when we saw the nickname. We were like, oh, there's Hell's Angels, but come to Tatween. You know what I mean? For you, it's like the visual corollary of Han shouting, I'll see you in hell.

Yeah, exactly. And I want to talk about the characters because I want to care about these characters. Love Sophie Thatcher, like on Yellow Jackets. She's so good. so good on that show. I was so excited. She was like the one person we knew was in this show other than the two leads because she was in the trailer. So we've been excited for her to show up. We had a lot of theories about it. This is not, you know, wasn't top of our list, but like excited to see her. But I just don't feel like I know who these kids are at all in this episode. And that's okay because it's their introduction. But like I just, I compare this to chapter six of Mando, which is the prisoner, the, the prison break episode. And I feel that's the one where we first meet Bill Burr's character along with a bunch, you know, a bunch of other characters.

And I feel like I know who all those people are. All those characters feel distinct and interesting to me in that episode. And if we're going to introduce this gang of kids and if they're going to be important going forward, I would like to know them. I feel like I spent more time getting to know a rancor in this episode than I got, you know, spent with these kids. That part. It was great.

We're going to talk about the rancor. I'm so excited for you on your behalf. Thank you. Obviously. I love you and I care about you and I'm so excited for that. But I'm like, I want to know these kids. I want to know her. The character's name is Drash.

Yes. We know two of the names, Drash and Skad. Great. Great names, honestly. I'm, I'm into it. But I would like to know. The cybernetic eye is Skad.

I would like to know who they are. Stad. Drash and Skad. I would like to know them. I definitely agree with that. Yes. I, I,

it seems like they're going to be a big part of the show, given that they're so instantly in the fold that they're sleeping over. I mean, you know, Boba's sleeping lightly, as he was warned to. And they're on the scene when BK attacks because they're just hanging around. And also, right, he has no one else.

I mean, when he heads into the Workers District in the first place, you know, it's him, it's Fenwick, and it's the Tugamorian guards. I mean, this is the contingent. This is the group. And so he's adding, right away, pretty key numbers here. And so I think it's reasonable to assume

we will learn more about them soon. Not the most effective intro. I'm intrigued and excited to learn more. I'm holding on to like, if we think back to, now, I want to be clear. I am not saying that these characters are going to turn into Asoka. That is not what I think, nor what I want to imply.

However, I just want to cite a moment from Star Wars viewing past, which was like the initial response to young Snips didn't go over well right away, right? And then we need some patience and some time and we can learn to love characters and a lot of that is about how they're deployed inside of the movie or episode that we're watching, of course.

So I'm curious to see more. Really excited for Juliette Lewis to play an older dash in a future live action. Let's do it. Let's bring cocaine to Star Wars. Spice. Just spice. Everyone. Yeah, exactly, right.

Just a snorting spice from the fibers of a carpet. No problems. No problems. Genuinely, one of my favorite, like, sequences in recent TV history. That was incredible. Can I ask you a cybernetic question? Oh, please. Of course. I lashed so hard. I aggravated one of my many muscle pulls.

Okay. Yeah. So Lortha says, well they're half man half machine they modify their bodies with droid parts to make themselves even more deadly i beseech you lord fett rid the streets of mosespo of the scourge and i will double my tribute to you is stephen root here like uncanny on candy mallory all right what's your question all right so here's my question yeah he's saying that to boba and he's he's saying that to boba and to Fenwick.

Yeah, who, of course, in her tummy. Exactly. Pistons in her tummy has the cybernetic enhancement that resulted from the Toro abdomen shot, and then we see the reveal when she joins the story again in Mando season two, the innards. We get a little glimpse. Boba, of course, is directly connected to that plot line. So I'm curious, just like, do you think that matters in terms of what Fennox read on this guy might be in what dynamic this might be setting up. And also, is there any chance that Fennick

and the street gang could have any sort of shared tie that will emerge because of these augmentations, which all presumably occurred on Tatooine? From the same anatomy tinkerer. Again, that's very, that's very elite of battle angel, by the way, all this like modification adding stuff. And of course, like, cybernetics are not new to Star Wars, right? We have like the kind of standard cybernetic, prosthetic, in the wake of injury, Luke's hand, exactly. Or like a more extreme version, like a full-on cyborg, a character like General Grievous,

who is augmenting, augmenting, augmenting, right? That's not what we got with these kids. General Canooby. But I think that maybe the distinction is a life-saving enhancement, right? The tummy pistons exist so that Fennickshank can live. versus like, I just want a foot with a spike on it, which maybe is what's going on with these kids.

So, like, I don't, I think there might be a distinction there, but what is Fenwick, how is Fenwick taking this? Yeah, like, what was her read on that kind of? That is not a critique, but a wish that I have for the show, which is I just need more. To be able to do that answer. And more, like, Minowen is an incredible actress. We know this from a million things that she's done.

I like the stoicism of Fenwick Shan in general. I still think we could get more. And we're going to talk about this a little bit more in theory corner about when we might and how and stuff like that. But I would like to see it is my point. But let's go to the attack that happens when Fenwick and the Gimorians are all snoozing, I guess. Sleep lightly indeed. Boba pulled out cruelly from his.

Oh, I guess it wasn't really a peasant. peaceful slumber. I mean, those were shitty, shitty, dark memories. Yeah. Cresantin. Formitable foe. Boba. Is this what we wanted, though?

When we met him last week, well, here's what I'll say. Yeah. This is a bigger, it goes back to what you're saying about, like, all the wrong moves that Boba's making. And how Fenwick thinks that him letting Black Cresantin go is a wrong move. I'm going to pull out a text you might. have heard of. It's called the Lord of the Rings. I'm familiar. And Gandalf

says about Gollum, pity stayed Bilbo's hand. The pity of Bilbo may rule the fate of many yours, not the least. And I think about that all the time whenever a character like let's someone go. You know, so like this idea that

Black Cassington. Do you know what other line I always think of? I always think of that. This is a great, this is a beautiful hive mind moment. I always think of that and I always think of the madness of mercy. Ned. Yes. Yeah. So, like, I think that BK coming back into the fold because of this act of mercy. Now, it could be he trotted off into the desert never to return. I think there's a chance of that this is ultimately setting up a partnership. That's what I think. Like, pity stayed bill. Like, he let BK go. Beek is like, oh, well, I'd come back and work for Boba. And so, like,

all these ways in which Boba is showing mercy or kindness or respect to, you know, to, you know, To the teens, to BK. We'll prove to be to his benefit in the end. To Danny Trejo. We hope so, right? Like, we hope that this is all building to a coalition of kindness under the banner of Boba Fed. It's interesting, too, to think about, like, we keep seeing that flashback of Boba alone on Camino, looking out through the rain-soaked glass at Django, at his father as he's flying away. and I'm wondering like a lot of things about that.

Is that a specific key moment that Django exit, where he might be heading, what might happen next? Is it more about the thematic resonance and reminders of these different planes of existence for Boba, the different parts and times in his life, the ocean world, the desert planet? But also I keep thinking,

we talked about this a bit last week, but I just keep thinking about Boba's life as this unaltered clone, who is a part of this clone world but never felt like he was a part of it and actually actively rebelled against being a part of it and how for so many of those clones, us coming to understand the way that they forge

those relationships and friendships with each other was such a meaningful part of the Clone Wars story. And Boba works to find and build that family in other ways, you know, whether it's with ORA or Basque or the bounty hunter contingents that he forges. And those are fraught, fraught, fraught, that often lead him to question the decisions he's made, right? We see some of that earlier in his clone wars arc in particular.

So I like the idea of decisions that other people don't understand or agree with, whether it's Fennick or anybody else, that stem from his desire to ultimately forge a connection with somebody else or give somebody a chance that maybe someone else wouldn't have given them. I love what you're saying. I love the idea of that bearing fruit in a meaningful way. I wonder how many things it will cost you. him on the road to that, though. But I do think that that's part of why I still... So far, an entire Tuscan Village.

Well, hopefully, I don't think it was the entire one. We'll get into that. Hopefully not the entire one. But I think that that's why, even though, like, this was not my favorite episode of the Boba season so far, I think that's why I'm still so intrigued ultimately by what the show might be about, because I think that could be a really thematically rich journey. My theory for why we keep seeing that Camino, I mean, we might get that scene, given all that they can do with de-aging, et cetera. We might get Tem playing a younger Django Fet. You know, there might be a big moment there using Daniel Logan's face, etc.

The reason that I feel like they keep returning to it is I feel like we're going to get a flashback of Fenwick and Boba grabbing the ship. Like, we need to know what that ship means to him because we see that he has in a Mandalorian. He doesn't have it yet. It's at Java's Palace. And so we're going to have. presumably get a flashback of Fenwick and Boba grabbing the ship would be my guess, right? So, yes, we're seeing the ship for a reason, clearly.

I'm trying to remember everything we know about the ship's canon. So in the Clone Wars, we see the ship crash. Asoka slices off a wing or a sing. Piece of work. Let me tell you something. Piece of fucking work crashes. Okay. Now, this ultimately means nothing because we know that later in the timeline, much like the Django helmet, the ship is back, as you noted. But Honda, one of my favorite, truly one of my favorite Star Wars characters, Hondo, takes the ship for a bit. Eventually, it gets back to Boba. Obviously, Boba has it during the OG trilogy. So where is it across this part of the timeline post-return of the Jedi? When exactly will he get it back? Because as you said, we know he has it in Mando. How much of what we see and ensuing flashbacks will be centered around him pursuing the armor,

leading us perhaps to our guy, Timmy Cobb Vant, and tracking the armor there. How quickly will we get back to the ship? Will he do with it? If he has it on Tatween, will we start heading off world at some point? I mean, I think that's like, will we start heading off world? Will we start going to places other than Tatooine in either timeline? You're right.

This is going to be something that we need to learn probably soon. Yeah. I mean, four more episodes to go. and I think, you know, a reason to go off world might be to continue to build the coalition of kindness if he, if he has other allies around that he can draw on. Like, you know, would we see Mando? I don't know. But like, there might be other people that he or Phenic could grab to help them in all of this. But in terms of like all the forces that he's up against, you know, we have questions about the twins. We have questions about everyone. Everyone could be lying to him. And I mentioned this last week that the big part of the Godfather is this shell game. of who is actually behind everything. And it's up to Vito or Michael or Sunny Corleone to figure out who is pulling the strings behind all of this.

And everyone is constantly lying and misdirecting and taking credit for things. And that is exactly what we're seeing play out here is like the twins saying one thing, saying the territory was promised to another syndicate, we presume the Pikes. Do we believe this? I don't know. You know, I think it's, I think it's

fair to be suspicious of what everyone says all the time. Another suspicion that a bunch of people have and we want to talk about is this idea is like the, you know, why are they giving, why would the twins give Boba anything at all, let alone a rancor, let alone cherished Robert Rodriguez's character actor Danny Trejo? I mean, it's a precious gift. Yes. It's not given lightly. So why, why is he there? Is he a plant? Is there a spy in the house of Boba? Like, we don't, we don't know. I don't believe anything that the twins are saying. Yeah. And I think there are many clues and signs that we shouldn't.

And of course, we should note, Boba doesn't believe what they're saying, right? Like, he and Phenic have an exchange about how there's no reason to accept at face value what information they have provided. So when they say we are going back to Hutto, we don't want war, that's the brother and the sister says bad for business, they said basically exactly that in chapter two. In chapter two, they said bloodshed is bad for business.

This can be dealt with later. Sleep lightly bounty hunter. And then after that, bloodshed is bad for business. We don't want a part of this. Sent Grasantin to kill Boba. So we only need to look back one episode ago to see where this exact statement does not actually mean they're abandoning the quest, right? And then when they say, here's your prisoner, I offer him back if you renounce all claims to job as legacy on Tatuina.

I mean, they very specifically do not concede to that point. You know, they do not agree to that. They say, we are leaving and suggests you do the same. That is not agreeing to the term that Boba just said. Are they playing this long game? I think so. I mean, regrouping, plotting their next move. Is the rancor, my darling rancor, a long con?

It did seem like the rancor imprinted on Boba. That part seemed genuine. But could this be some sort of trick where they are. waiting for Boa but to think that he has gained some sort of edge and trust in a meaningful relationship and then have that have that fall apart on him. I'll just say, I thought the rancour sequence was an absolute, absolute delight. Just a wonderful, wonderful moment in Star Wars history. I let you know, and it's nice that it informs, you know, molecule and like everything that we know about shedding tears over a rancor. That's right. What happened to the

Rancor and Return of the Jedi. I like to, you know, I have, I do not have your same, like, incredible, like, incredible passion for all critters great and small in the Star Wars universe. But this was, this is a great sequence. It was so nice. And it was just like, it was heartbreaking when Boba asks, you know, why does it just lie there? And Danny Shreyo says, it's depressed. This beast can feel such things.

Rancor are emotionally complex creatures. I really love learning more about this. And I loved seeing Boba in this. element. Like, we get some Easter eggs in this exchange, which we'll talk about later in the Easter egg section that were fun. But he's like petting him and the rancor's purring and he's like talking to him in a baby voice. It's like, oh, do you like that? Oh, do you like that? Is real John Snow pets a dragon moment? Well, and of course we get the intention to ride, which yeah, of course makes us think of dragon riding. We get some again, very fun.

Death of Mary and Easter eggs and connections here and some holiday special ones too. But I don't trust anything that the twins are up to. And nor should Boba. And this will be a test of his instinct, but also hopefully of his ingenuity. Because finding a way to make sure that that Rancourt bond is real and a thing that does ultimately work for him while also sussing out whatever the twins are trying to work, that would be the right next step for our guy, Boba Fett. I hope that's what happens. And I think that Cresanton will return and he's, you know, he saved his life. Boba didn't have to let him go.

He did. And teaming up, you know, these twins were like sell him back. Sell him back to the former gladiator life, right? He doesn't owe them any loyalty. He doesn't have any sort of affection for them. So the Trondotion, Wookie history is worth keeping in mind. Because if Boba does end up in this three family dynamic, having to go to war with the Transdotions, that could be one of the ways where BK and Boba form an alliance, because as a

wookie, BK hates the transdotions. A lot of questions. Oh, my God. We already talked about the street race, so that was what ended the episode. Should we go to the flashback? Yeah, I think the less said about the street race, the better. One comment I saw on Reddit was like, no more chase scenes in the volume. And that might be part of it.

You know, they film a lot of Boba Fed in what? called the volume, which is, you know, the big innovation of the Mandalorian, this very, pretty small space. And so if they film this in the volume, I can understand why it felt maybe a little like herky jerky. Why would the train scene, the train heights last week, have been so like crackling and thrilling and this has not? That makes it feel like more of like a creative, deliberate distinction and decision. Very possible. We do have to shout out, I mean, many people have already, but I just want to say that the Biff reference at the end of the race where the major domo gets fruit piled on him as opposed to manure was a fantastic moment.

But yeah, let's let's. Harrah's favorite fruit. Shouts to the rebels hive. I love it. Love this. More pikes show up, but let's go. Yeah, let's go to the flesh back to let's talk. Okay, I need to talk to you about Banffas for a second.

Oh, okay. Sure. Yeah, let's do it. Here's a key Star Wars. bit of information that I didn't know that most people probably know, but I didn't know just in case other people listening don't know, that in the original trilogy, the way that they created the bantas is they put the costume on elephants and had them walk backwards. And that's what a bampa is in the original trilogy. I know. Doesn't feel super humane. But that's something,

that's something that they did. The bantas are originally elephants walking backwards with like rugs on them. I found out that in this show, they built one massive Bantha puppet, and then the rest are like C.G. Bantha. So they've got no elephants are involved in this. But I thought that was a really interesting bit of trivia that a friend of mine let me know about. I have a lot of questions, comments, and concerns about this flashback. But I do want to shout out what I think is one of the most beautiful shots we've ever gotten in a Star Wars show, which is Boba on the Banta with the binary sunset behind him. That was gorgeous. That really was cool.

I thought you were going to say the shot of Boba's big toe sticking straight up into the air during the fight with Equally gorgeous. Which I know is Steve. Steve, that's your favorite shot in Star Wars history, right? Boba's Big toe. Yeah, that was. We've seen a few screenshots from Steve of the toe. Steve is hung up on the toe. Steve is really disturbed and distressed by the toe. It was a lot. The toe was a lot. We should say though, it's it is notable in the in the, in the. the Boba chrysanth and duel that he's trying to reach for his gadgets, can't get him on,

can't do it in time. What does he grab? He grabs the gaffy stick. And that's what he's able to finally make a mark with. So if the kids don't show up, it's a wrap on boba. I mean, he's about to have his spine broken.

Yeah. I can't remember, yeah, a real Bain moment, right? I can't remember. I can't remember where I read this, probably read it. But I really liked this idea. Someone was asking like why he has to go

in the back to tank so often when we don't, he doesn't need it as much in the flashback, even though he's more freshly out of the Sarlac in the flashback. So why is he constantly in the back to tank? Is it just a flashback trigger, etc.? Someone said something really interesting about this idea that like he's being poisoned, not literally, but sort of like mentally by trying to put the armor back on, like putting the armor back on his dad's armor and trying to be this thing that he was before is, like, poisoning him and, like, that he just needs to embrace this, like, Tuscan identity, this different person he is with the Tuscan ropes. Like, that's who he really is.

There's no, like, clear evidence for this. This is just, like, a big brain theory of someone's. But I kind of like that idea that, like, in trying to be his father, in trying to be, you know, this other thing, that that's not his identity. And that whole, this whole question of, like, what weapon? does he reach for in this moment, I think maybe underlines that. But it's important to him to get his father's armor back. But is that ultimately going to be what he's wearing going forward?

I like, now I'm concerned about the chemical content of the fresh coat of paints he put on the armor after taking it back. But I like the idea ultimately of him wearing the blend. Him wearing the blend. Exactly. And embracing all of these different facets of his. his identity and all of the different phases of his life. Okay, so we've talked about the most of Espa kids as what most people identify as the part of the episode that they didn't like. Here's the part that I don't like, which is we've praised the show and Mando for spending so much time giving us like this rich, richer look at the Tuscan Raiders and their culture.

We want to see them as fully formed humans or fully formed creatures and all this sort of thing. I mentioned last week it was a little concerning that we haven't learned any names of any of these characters if we're trying to humanize them

to have them wiped out and now definitely you and I are on the same page as our number of people that we haven't seen the Tuscan Warriors corpse

we don't know for sure that the kid went on the pirate even though we saw a small stick but we don't I don't think we definitively see the kid's corpse he piles up

a handful of bodies to burn. We've seen like 15 or so and other shots. We can kind of... Maybe some of escaped. Maybe they're being held captive. Like, we don't know. Yes. I think that those characters will return and that this definitely is not the end of this tribe. But that's also really what I hope, because that would be really awful

if that's what ended up happening. The decimated village sequence is classic of like Conan the Barbarian. It's a classic of Beastmaster. Like this is a thing you come home. Your village is destroyed. Luke finding

Owen and brew. Absolutely. This is a staple. This is a staple. But if our whole drive is to better understand the Tuscans, to wipe them out

just to motivate Boba is awful. Terrible. So there better be, there better be, I know that there are other Tuscan tribes. So there better be

other members of this tribe out there somewhere. And I still don't like it, even if, even if there aren't, I'm just not. not a fan of it. And it all happened like really quickly. We have the, and again, it all feels like Boba's fault. We have the misdirect or the possible direct of the graffiti. This would work

for me because, I mean, when we first saw the NICDO gang in the first episode and they stopped in their like crime to tag the building, that felt very awkward to me. I'm like, why are we pausing for graffiti? This is very strange. And so, yeah, what? Because we paused. Yeah. And because of the camera then in Chapter 2 lingers on the symbol on the bikes, let me tell you what we did not need.

A flashback inside of the flashback to the tags. We remember. We remember. They got it. Who do you think really did this? Do you think it was the Nicto striders on their own to get back at Boba for attacking them and taking the bikes? Do you think it was the Pikes using the NICDOS as cover

because they want revenge from the train heist? Do you think it was the Pikes and the Nictos who, again, have this alliance already, this working relationship already because of, I shouldn't say alliance, but a working relationship already because of the protection money teeming up to take him out. Does any of the answer to that question matter, though, if this is just such a dissatisfying storytelling move? I think it's the Pikes doing a let them fight sort of move. You know, me pitting, that's very godfather. Pit two family, pit two entities against each other. Much like the twins and the huts might be doing in the, in the, in the, in the, present timeline, right?

Well, we're going to step back and let you all take each other out. Then we'll come back, see how it's going. Something we really, like, I don't want to speak for you. Something I really loved in episode two was how much time we got in the flashback. And something I think Tom Hora Morrison is so good at is a lot of this wordless acting. I think he's very good at it. And something that I thought was really interesting as I read an interview this week where he wanted Boba to have fewer lines.

And in fact, he tried to get one of the story editors on set to come. his lines and John Favro kept interceding and saying, no, we're going to keep the lines I wrote for you in the script. But that he wanted Bobo to be a more laconic character as he's been in the original trilogy, et cetera. And I do think that the performance is better. And I'm not saying it's a bad performance when he has more dialogue in the present. But I think the performance is better in the flashbacks. And that doesn't make him not a great actor. I just think he excels at this other thing in a way that not every actor could. So I'm kind of on his team that I think Boba should have fewer lines.

It was, it was like, I think we're on the same page about feeling kind of shocked and really dismayed that this happened to the Tuskins at all, let alone that kind of suddenly. It was just something just really jarring about it. But it was, I will say, like quite sad, of course, and affecting to watch Boba. walk through this scene and the look on the look on his face as the fire is glinting in his eyes and you can see the emotion in his eyes. I mean, that was, that was, that was really sad to watch. I, we'll, we'll hit the mailbag later, but Jomey, do you want to, you want to, you want to hop on for a second and read our actually our first mailbag question? Because that's, this is,

this is very contextual relevant to what we're talking about. Maybe we should just hit this here. Love getting called in off the bench, you know. I was, I was sitting there, you know, You know when you're a bench warmer, you know, and you don't expect to get called on. Coach is like, hey, hey, we need you. Like, excuse me up to the big show. Is that sports link? No, did I do it? That was it.

That was it. Nailed it. All right. Oh, my God. Incredible. Special bail bag question from Tinder. The fate of the Tuscans was something we saw coming, but hoped it wasn't. Does this extermination seem as necessary to you as it does for me?

He's got his dad dying. He's got the Sarlack Pit rebirth. Did we need to see this third layer of trauma? These Tuskans can't catch a break. Yeah, I think so unnecessary, I think, is sort of what Tinda is saying here, that this, like, we didn't need this, we didn't need this trauma motivator for Boba. I agree. Yeah.

Mostly I just don't like that the Tuskans. are gone, and hopefully they're not. Yes. But I think this is a, this is a really good question because I feel strongly that we will see members of this Tuscan tribe again. I don't think, though, that if that's the case, and even if it's the case as soon as next episode, that it diminishes this point, right? Because still, ultimately, this will be something that is fueling Booba.

And for two reasons, one, you know, the nubesians. The kind of storytelling compulsion, this is not specific to the show, this is not specific to Star Wars. This is something we talk about all the time across the stories that we cover. This compulsion to constantly have these characters overcome some sort of trauma is, of course,

on the one hand, in some ways innate to the storytelling tradition. And in other hands, we do hit these moments where it's like, do we need more of this to continue this character's journey? Aren't we at a different phase of the character's journey now? And I think even more germainly,

one of the things that was so compelling about this show to this point was that we were learning so much more about the Tuskins and really fleshing out their characters, their traditions, their culture, their way of life. And so to go from that to this would really be a bummer. So I hope we learn quickly. I think I would still feel sad that this happened at all, but I hope we learn quickly that Boba is back with the other members. of this tribe who have become quickly this found family. This is really a bummer. And on that cheerful note, Easter eggs? Go side everything. Yeah. Okay, let me say a phrase to you.

Witches of Dathamere. Joe, I jumped off my couch. As said by Danny Trejo. Talking about, and I love that we're just calling him Danny Trejo. You know, what else? Rancourt trainer. It's Danny Trejo. It's Danny freaking Trejo.

Machete himself. But like, he was talking about the Witches of Dathamere writing Rancors. And like, we're probably going to see Boba write a Ritechore. That feels like something we probably wouldn't accept anything other than that now that it's been introduced as a possibility. So we fucking better. I'm going to shout this out. A friend of the pod, Eric Voss, his big theory is that we're going to see the Witches of Dathimir and the Acolyte series is coming up. And I love that as like that feels very like a seed planted to be paid off later, not in this series necessarily, but in the future. I love that.

That's a great call from Eric. The Witches of Dathamere shout out was so energizing. I can't like barely convey why, even though literally the job is to convey why things are interesting here on this very podcast. Can't really do it. But the 30 second attempt is, I mean, first of all, which is the Dathema? That specific language choice and phrasing. Right.

That calls back to like legends canon, right? inside of current canon. I mean, I'm sorry, there aren't too many things you can say to get me more excited than making me think of the Knight Sisters or the Knight Brothers. All of the Dathamere canon, particularly in Clon Wars. This podcast is almost called The Night Sisters. As we did. Maybe we should consider it again. Who knows?

Working title. Clone Wars. There's some fascinating comics canon around the, you know, magic wielders. Mother, Talzin, Maul's mother. A fascinating character. Of course,

thinking of the Night Sisters thinking of Dathir makes us think of Arangel, Assange, Ventris. I mean,

we're all over the timeline with this stuff, but this was just an absolute delight. And it was not the only Easter egg we got in that

Rancor training sequence because we got the line about how Boba's ridden larger creatures. Holiday special,

Joe. I love a holiday special. joke. Even I got that one. Because I watched Under the Helmet documentary on Disney Plus. I'm like, I get this. I understood that reference.

Leo pointing at the screen GIF. There were a lot of good newsagnes on this episode. Another favorite of mine is the sail barge disaster language. I think that's fantastic. The history is written by the victors, but sometimes the losers

as well. It's called the sail bar's disaster rather than, you know, the heroic rescue of Luke and Han and Leah. Part of what was so rich about that, though, not only is 88 speaking from the perspective of, you know, someone inside of Jabba's Palace, as you're noting, he's saying this to Boba. Like, that's where Boa, the bit of cartoonists. Remember when you flew into him, the sailbarsh and that just fell into the Sarlacket. Pretty seminal moment in our guy, Boba, Fett's life here. So this was a, remember? This was a big one.

I also loved, God, there were, oh, there were so many. We see the Stormtrooper helmets on the spikes, which is, of course, that same bundle of Stormtrooper helmet collections that we see five years later. And the Mandalorian. And behind those helmets, we see Pelly and the pit droids walking by. So another Mando connection there in that moment. That was really, really fun. The way that that happened, they didn't even need to get Amy Sederis. could have just had like a, you know, a production assistant in the wig and the costume

walk by. But I like to think that Amy Sedaris is filming Mando season three. And they're like, can you just do one shot where you're walking quickly? We're pasted into the background of this other show. I hope so. That's incredible. How about some of the droid Easter eggs? I mean, there were so many.

Obviously, like, spider droid is the best one. Brains and jars. Maybe. The more months. Okay. I just have a question about this. Like, We sit the window.

The one in the face. The cheek. keeps in a jar by the door. Wow. Who is it for? I forget what you said, like, intention to ride is what you said earlier, and I almost started singing ticket to ride.

So just so you know we're on the same brain in a jar level, this episode. But I think that the spider droid, the way it was shot, an intentional, like, stop motion, herky, jerky kind of thing. I loved it. Very freaky. Which reminds me of, like, the monster

in the first episode, and it feels like this intent of, like, let's give Robert Rodriguez credit here, since he's the director of both those episodes, to give us a sort of like old-timey effects thing. For me, it seems a little weird to blend that with, like, effects that are meant to look more current like the huts or something like that. Yeah, that like blend of like, sometimes we're going to do herky-jurkey old school effects and sometimes we're going to do new effects. Like, then I'm like, why does the spider look like this? That being said, brain a jar, spider is very creepy. I think maybe it didn't throw me off the distinction.

That's, it's an astute thing to know. Maybe it didn't throw me off because it felt so isolated and almost like this contained Easter egg in a vacuum. Like if it had been kind of a more direct adjacency with something else, maybe I would have felt that more. But it is a good point. Can we just say like the, the Bar Munks, this is like one of the freakiest things in Star Wars canon, this religious sect, this order that is so intent on.

separating from physical sensation and really just it's all about the mind Joe it's all about the mind to the point where we're going to take out our brains and put them in jars and let spider droids carry them around normal stuff is down this time is that where this pandemic is heading we're all just going to be brains in a jar eventually um this is really grim uh let's let's a lot of droid cameos in this episode so many droids in the in the chase we pass so many different i always love to see a mouse droid always love to see a mouse droid the like rickshaw Droid, all of that stuff. That guy was like, the RIC. He was like, I'm going to just scoot forward so that you hit my passengers and I'm safe. I'm fine. Really, just self-preservation at the forefront there. A lot of food Easter eggs.

We see Anuna and Spachka at the feast. When Boba says to what his instruction for feeding, the beautiful little Bubba, the rancourt is a Ronto carcass from the larder. Ronto, the creature famously added. to the edited version of Newhouse. Not my fave. It looks like a bronto. The,

all the fruit, all the fruit, piling up on the major domo, the meal rooms. I mean, this back's up what we were saying last week about how, like, they obviously watched every scrap of footage of Tatumina and we're like,

can we fit every single creature we've ever seen in the corner of a frame into this? And they're about in a thousand so far. So I challenge listeners, if you want to rewatch, Return of the Jedi, or a New Hope. and like shout out some other critters that we haven't seen yet.

Who might we see in a future episode of Bovas? A return of the wart this week. And a return sadly of the sweat rag. It's a question wrapped inside an enigma. I would like to see it resolved. Speaking of questions and enigmas, should we bring on our expert to talk to us about the concept of our Easter egg? This is your favorite one, isn't it?

Ralph McQuarrie. Yeah, run us through it. Oh, so you know how in old-time Easterer. street races. There would always be two people with like a paint of glass walking across that someone would crash through. That was like an old-timey loony tunes-esque thing. Instead we get two guys with a portrait of Jabba in his palace. And this is repurposed Ralph Macquarie art again. We got a Ralph Macquarie art reference last week. A hyper-colorized version of his concept art of Jabba's palace. They've removed Luke.

They erased Luke Skywalker from the art. Unbelievable. This is not the Jedi you're looking for. He's just mind wipe from there. There you go. Amazing. I think, I think Boba's still in it, though. So that's fun.

Anyway, yeah, the art is great. Incredible. Okay. Yeah, that was a fun Easter egg episode. It really was. All right. Ben time. Ben time.

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at Whole Foods Market. The Kenton Striders have already collected protection money for the same territory you lay claim to. You don't have to pay that speed of my gang. We far outnumber them. The sands have belonged to the Tuscan since the oceans dried. All right. It's time for all credit to Joe for the name of this week's segment. Pikes on Bikes with Ben Lindberg. We're here to talk about the Pikes. We're here to talk about the Pikes Syndicate. We got Pikes in both timelines in this episode.

And so it is time to discuss the Pike canon, the history across Star Wars. We're going to speculate for a hot second or two about their new sigil and theorize about whether we think they're really going to end up being the big bads of this season. So, Ben, as our Pike Syndicate expert, walk us through some of the canon. Happy to. I feel like last week's lore segment is a pretty tough act to follow here. Where can you go but down from a giant wookie with brass knuckles?

I can't top that. Well, they electrified those knuckles this week. That too. We always build. But I'll do my best here. I will try to make the pikes more compelling than I think Bookaboba has so far. So I praised Fabro last week for the introduction of Crescent because it was cool for comics fans, but also accessible for everyone else.

You didn't really need to know anything except that this was a scary wookie, whereas the Pikes require more context. And so far, the series has only just started to supply it. They're not even named until episode three, and even then there's not a ton of info, but that's what I'm here for. So some behind-the-scenes background about the Pikes,

they were originally designed to be part of Star Wars 1313, which is sort of the one that got away among fans of Star Wars video games. It was going to be about the underworld. It was supposed to star Boba Fett. But tragically, LucasArts canceled it. So in a way, Book of Boba is giving us a TV version of what that game could have looked like, but on Tatween instead of Corrassant. So instead of debuting in 1313, the Pikes first showed up on the fifth season of the Clone Wars. They have also prominently appeared in books and comics, the Bad Batch, and a bit of Of course, Solo, which was their live action debut.

Hashtag make Solo 2 happen. Please do. I think that ship has sailed, but you know what? Maybe Bookaboba is Solo 2. We will get to that. Your spiciest take. Solo's great. I don't know what people are missing something.

Solo's phenomenal. Side note. Anyway, the Pike's appearance can be kind of confusing, I think. Even if you have seen them in other iterations, you might not have recognized them because they're a lot taller and they have smaller and less fishy heads in the animated series, which probably would have been tough to translate to live action. So I understand that. And even in live action, they've had different looks. In Solo, we only see them wearing breathing masks because the atmosphere on Kessel is toxic to them. And even those masks are different from the ones that they sometimes wear in

Bukuboffet, but it's still the same pikes. So I don't know for a fact that their name is a pun on pikes as in the species of fish, but they do look like fish, and George Lucas did develop them. So I would not put him past them. So yes. George the benefit of doubt on unnamed puns in Star Wars. Yeah, we've got clattos and nictos running around here. Yeah, that's a whole episode. So the pike representative on Tatween that Boba goes to see is also wearing a different crest

than the established one. Yes. And it looks a little like a Death Star, like a fractured Death Star coming apart in the middle. I'm not sure why that would be or what it signifies, if anything, because... I'm going to hate you with my theory in real time, Ben. You have a theory? It's not a very good one. Okay.

Joanna and I have been talking a lot about Kira. I can't shake it. And so I'm trying to think of what the tie and what the eventual introduction could be. Now, of course, we see the fractured Death Star-esque sigil in the... flashback in the post-return of the Jedi timeline, not in the current timeline. But I wonder if that actually adds some credence to it because, of course, right on the heels of the fall of the empire, what if the Pike Syndicate is making a move? Oh, the Death Star, Palpi, fuck that guy. They're out in the mix. It's our time. We're making our move. Okay. And our, our sigil is a reminder of how

somebody else failed and where we can thrive? What did Kira? What was Kira was like, Palpatine, Vader, I'm going to kill those guys because that's what Mall wanted me to do, right? So what if... Kira wants to take down the empire? Yes. What if

Kira is connected to the Pikes in some sort of desire to come in and fill the power vacuum? Power vacuums and power voids are definitely part of the theme at the center of Boba and Mando alike, right? And so I think this would actually track pretty cleanly. What do you think? I can see it. Yeah, I'm going to get to Kira, but I think you may be onto something there. I don't know that we've seen them affiliated with Kira in quite that way, but it could be heading there.

Can I ask a follow-up question? And I want to hear everything you have to say, so I'm not trying to interrupt your flow. But how did, you know the answer to this. How did Tatooine become a desert planet? We don't exactly know. Global warming, possibly. I don't know exactly how it happened. And it's something that's been alluded to in the past, in legends, and in some canon sources. And of course, it's cut up a couple times in Book of Oblo so far. And each time whoever's saying it kind of gets cut off, Stephen Root was about to tell us how it happened. So, yeah. But we didn't get the full story.

Is the attack? That's legends, right? Like, there's nothing in current canon about an attack changing the topography. But that's, that is something in legends, right? Mm-hmm. Yes. Can I quickly float a Pike theory to you that we. have been talking about on this episode that my friend, another bet and floated to me,

which is the idea that like since Tatooine once was an aquatic planet, were the Pikes ever original residence of Tatouin when it was an aquatic planet? And or do the Tuskins actually look the same as the pikes underneath their mask? And if we don't know what exactly happened in the desert to make this planet a desert planet, I know it predates the Death Star, the desert planet of Tatween, obviously. But like, is there sigil somehow representative of like what happened to the planet and why they left? Because I love this idea of the Pikes and the Tuscans originally being the same and one half stayed and one half left. This is a wild theory with no hardcore basis in reality.

But it's just something that makes the Pikes a little more interesting to me than they are so far. Maybe they were just misinformed. We were told this was a watery planet. up. It's all desert. We've got some out-of-date info here. I like the idea. I like also Mal's theory about the Death Star and the Kira connection and maybe redesigning the insignia to dance on Palpatine's temporary grace. Arjuna's not here with us today, but we just have to share on his behalf that he would say here without question, this is just to sell new merch with a new look. Just to sell more toys. I have to throw that out there is the theory. It'll probably end up being correct.

It's about the most. Do you think the pike plushies, are they flying off the shelves, do you think? Never roll it. Maybe the bath toys. You know what I mean? So more backgrounds on the pikes here. They hail from the homeworld of Obadiah, right? Obadiah and I are calling it Obadiah Stain to connect to marble.

Well, that's the third Beatles reference that we made on this podcast. I'm all in favor of those. Obadiah is close to Kessel. and the Pikes' main claim to criminal fame is that they largely control the spice trade. That is their thing. As we learned in episode two, they are running some spice. So because they came to control Kessel and its notorious spice mines during the Clone Wars, they kind of have a corner on that market and really did even before that.

And as we all know, he controls the spice, controls the universe. Not quite in this case, but they have been a powerful syndicate. So the Pikes were way back when were the leaders. of the Spice Cartel that supplied Spice to Corrassant, and they hire smugglers and freighters to purify it and distribute it around the galaxy, although in episode two, they're evidently taking a more direct role in that trade on Tatouin. And almost 30 years before the Book of Boba, they allied with Darth Maul, joined his Shadow Collective of criminal syndicates, along with Black Sun. They helped Maul and Black Sun and the Mandalorian Death Watch try to force the huts to join

the Shadow Collective 2. And when the Huts fled to Jabba's Palace. Don't forget. Yeah. Yes. The huts flee to Jabba's Palace, the future Boba's Palace. And the Pike successfully attacked them there. So they are proven performers on Tatween.

They've been there before and they have warred with the huts at times. Then they staged a fake attack on Mandelor. That was what allowed the Death Watch to come in and supposedly save the planet and take control. They've also had some dealing with the Sith and the Jedi. They killed the Jedi master Sypho Diaz, the one who commissioned the clone army. They did that for Count Duku, but then they fought with the Jedi against Duku later. So they have been on all sides of every conflict at some point. They had some beef with Black Sun, which had wanted to merge with them.

Then both they and Black Sun left and then rejoined the Shadow Collective. So it's a tangled web that they have weaved here. Real wishy-washy, fishy folk is what you're saying. Yes. I am saying exactly that. So we're asking, you know, who are they aligned with? It's like it doesn't matter. They're just going to.

Anyway, the way it was. Everyone. Anyway, the current flows. Yes. When are you asking about is the answer? Because they have allied with everyone and ward with everyone at some point, including Asoka and the Bad Batch, they had some run-ins with them. In Solo, of course, we see them go up against Han and Chui and Lando and Kira.

And the legend, Tobias Beckett, has Beckett's, the least Star Wars name that has ever been Star Wars probably. But Beckett's gang is trying to steal that starship fuel called Coaxium, which is also mined on Kessel, to pay their debt to Crimson Don. And as you recall, they have to make that kind of a covert mission because Crimson Don doesn't want to openly antagonize the Pikes because at that time they are loosely allied. They're part of the five syndicates, right? So one interesting little tidbit is that in the comics that take place after the Empire strikes back, Kira and Crimson Don steal carbonite frozen Han from Boba Fett and auction him off, which is kind of cold of Kira.

This is her ex-boyfriend we're talking about. I love that. I love it. She cares about the cause more than Han at that point. The Pikes bid on carbonite Han, but Jabba bids more. And then the empire shows up and crashes the party. And that's really the last that's known of the Pikes before Book of Boba-Fet. Not much is known of what becomes of them after.

We know that they have their own Pike starships. Evidently, they're flying commercial to Tatouin, which could be to try to take Bobo by surprise. But I imagine there is more to come here, as you were alluding to there. And I'm not someone who needs every single Star Wars story to be about the fate of the galaxy or to have someone like Luke Skywalker show up to save the day. It's okay to have a smaller scale standalone Star Wars story. I don't know if Lucasfilm thinks it's okay. But if the Pike Syndicate is the big bad of Buccahoba, it would be a bit of a wet town for me, I think, for most people.

So when I was on a few weeks ago to suggest things to watch to prep for Bukubo, I suggested solo. And I watched it. I stand by that. Because you said so. And you loved it because it's a wonderful movie that deserves a sequel. And at that time, I said, Pira was a good crossover candidate, right? And that still seems like the likeliest solution to me. When's it going to happen?

Here's the thing. I hope it happens soon because I don't know how much longer a leash everyone is going to give Book of Popa. But here's the thing. Back in 2019, there was a Solo 2 hashtag campaign, which now probably started. And John Kazden, who co-wrote Solo with his dad, tweeted in response to that sequel hashtag campaign, that there was a war story yet. to be told involving the huts, the pikes, and Crimson Don. He had the three insignia there. And it's possible that Boba is using some material that was meant for solo too. We already have the huts and the pikes. So now we just need Crimson Don. And we know from the comics that Kira

took control of Crimson Dawn after Darth Mal died. Yes. Pretty much all of the old criminal syndicates are out of power by the time the sequel trilogy rolls around. And we don't know exactly how that happens. So maybe Boba plays some part in that. He has the spy kids on his side now. It could be a powerful ally if they could be turned, which they were in a couple minutes. The, and Lucasholm was done as before has recycled material that was meant. Like, I'm pretty sure that plots from the Mandalorian are from the original concept for the Boba Fett film that they were going to make.

So, like, they've done this before where they've been like, well, we went to all this trouble to map out Solo 2 that we're never going to make. because that movie wasn't very good, despite very smart people like Mallory and Ben Lindbergh liking it. So it's not anyone's fault. It's just you can't recapture Harrison Ford. You can't. It's not Alden-Aren-Rick. Would that it were so simple, but it's not Alden's fault. I just need to say that because you guys are, I speak for the people when I say solo two.

No, thank you. Oh, man. Tough crowd. Tough crowd, Ben. Anyway. Tough crowd. But Kira, yes. Kira yes.

So Kira and Krims and Don, maybe they come in to contest the Pikes claim. Right. I mean, that's the question. And are they on the other side? Is it a tandem deal? Is she in both? Do we get Amelia with like a little bit of gray in her hair and a little bit of that? Yeah, exactly.

Right. Right. I mean, bloodshed is bad for business, right, as we've heard. But you could get a three-way war between syndicates with Boba in the middle of it. And for what it's worth, Amelia Clark seems pretty invested in Kira's story. She apparently wrote her own version of what she thought would happen to her next, which I don't think is considered canon, but she did. And she was excited that the character showed up in the comics. And obviously she's still in the Disney orbit with Secret Invasion.

So as Joe is just saying, it's been almost 20 years in the Star Wars timeline since solo. So we'd need some Station 11 style wigwork, presumably. Wow. That's a real Joe sentence right there. Station 11 wigwork. Those are all of Joanna's favorite things. Yeah. I feel like she would get the Caitlin Fitzgerald treatment, which is like barely, barely different.

Yeah, yeah. She looks fantastic. So last clue, if you listen to Ludwig's main book of boba themes all the way to the end. Yeah. It seems to pretty clearly incorporate the Crimson Dawn theme from solo. Can't imagine that's a complete coincidence. We've been on Kira Watch and honestly thanks to you. You are the one who put me on Kira Watch in the first place.

It's why I rewatch Solo. And we are we are into it. It is our Mephisto of this series. She's not here. This one will actually happen, I think, probably. Jomi, there was a Mephisto mention. A lipsies from Jomey in the chat. I'm a thought leader.

I'm a trendsetter. I'm a taste maker when it comes to Kira. And solo, too. All right, Ben. A delight as always. And for me. Thank you. Rancor are emotionally complex creatures.

Why does it wear blinders? This one is the calf. It was bred from champions for fighting. I saved this one for myself to train. It imprints on the first human it sees. Now that we arrived, I will begin his training. All right, this is not a spoiler warning because we don't know anything for certain that's happening. But the Reddit detectives have been quickly putting together clues to figure out which directors remaining that we do know are directing episodes and which episodes they're directing.

And I think it's a fun game to guess what those episodes might be about based on which directors we have. Okay. Intriguing. Yeah. Okay. Okay. So Dave Faloni is the only co-wrote. John Febvre was the credited screenwriter on all seven episodes, and only one co-writing credit goes to Dave Faluny for episode six. Faloni often directs the episodes that he co-writes, so we can guess that episode six, which be the penultimate episode, would be a Faloni episode.

Okay. Exciting. Tamara Morrison has teased colorful individual. This is in the series. He might be talking about the Vespa kids who are technically colorful because of their bikes. Or is he talking about your favorite blue character, Cad Bain? I mean, I would lose my mind. I would be so excited.

Do you feel like if Faloni were to direct an episode, he would want to direct the Cad Bain episode? Or is there another character that you think Faluny? Because Faluny usually wants to have a hand in on something from Clone Wars or Rebels. Yeah. I mean, I think there are any number of possibilities, again, given the connection to the Mandalorian timeline, could we get some, you know, something in the Asoka or Boca Tan, like, realm that we already got a little taste of in Mando? Could we get any of that action or any of those connections here?

I won't even allow myself to consider the possibility that we could see Grogu, because then it's the only thing I'll be able to think about. But if there's some, I think there are any number of possibilities from Clone Wars, Rebels, or the Mandalorian, honestly, and the parts of the Mandalorian that Faloni is involved with that could bear fruit here. The Cad Bain possibility is thrilling

and I think really logical because of Bain's direct ties in the canon, obviously to Boba, to bounty hunters. They have direct connections and interactions. Boba's, like, one of the moments that I really like to honestly, like make fun of with Boba

is that he's sort of like Cad Bain's lackey in prison. It's part of his ploys and all of his cons. But Cadd-Bain also has a thrilling sequence with Fennick in The Bad Batch where she bests him in the pursuit of Omega. And of course, Omega is Boba's sister

because they are both Django's clones. So CAD fits together with all of these characters, and that would be incredible. How to bring Cad Bain to life in live action is a fascinating thing to think about because he's a character who just like homes at this perfect frequency in animation. But I would love to see it. I'm always delighted to see Cadbury.

And he's such a badass. This would thrill me. All right. Episode five is the Bryce Dallas Howard episode. Bryce, we know from her work on the Mandalorian. Bryce is often brought in for like really emotional episodes. I find she is like considered sort of one of the more. sensitive and like actor-focused emotional.

So you wouldn't expect a huge action episode from her necessarily. You would expect something that would tug at the heartstring. She also tends to be brought in for some of the female-centric storylines as well. Meina one has promised that Fenwick Shan is getting, like we're going to get some sort of fenic-centric episode, at least to find out more about how, you know, who she is, where she is from, like, why she ticks. Would this be a fennic episode or another possibility? Episode 4 is directed by Kevin, and please forgive me if I mispronounced his last name.

Tantron, who is related to, it's Marissa Tantron, right, who did Agents of Shield. I think that's her brother. He directed a bunch of Agents of Shield episodes. And Sto mentions and Agents of Shields mentions a real emotional swing here for Jeremy in the last few minutes of the pod. Including some of the iconic Melinda May episodes, that's Mignowen's character from Agents of Shield. So would they bring Kevin in because he's worked with her before to direct a Fenic-centric episode?

That would be as early as next week. So when we get a Fenic episode next week, is that immediately what Boba does after the Tuskins are decimated? That seems like a contraction of the timeline. Or do we get in episode five? what else will we want to see Bryce do? I think this is fun, this is fun for me to think about. I don't know. Do you have any thoughts or feelings about it?

I'm intrigued so many possibilities. I would love a Fenwick episode sooner rather than later, though now, given everything we discussed earlier about what happened with the Tuskins, I don't want to have to wait too long for clarity there. That would have a bum me out. But there's so much more to learn about Fenwick, as you said, across the timeline.

I mean, we have Fenwick and the Mandalorian. We have Fenwick here. we have Fenwick in the Bad Bad Bad Batch, and that spans, you know, nearly three decades in in total, but there are chasms of open canon timeline there to fill in and start filling in. I think that if we are in any way heading, I don't know actually still where I land on the heel turn theorizing impossibility, but if we are heading there, we must get more time with Fenwick soon in order for that to really, really, really land. So the idea of either a fully like focused Fennick episode in four or five or, or

or just much more of Fenwick in those episodes is really cool. I'm into it. I want to throw out a Fenwick question to you that I don't personally believe or want to be true, but I'm curious if you think there's any possibility that this could be true. Do you think that Fenwick could be working for the huts still?

Is there any chance that Fenick is involved in a long con? Because we know that Fenick used to work for the huts, but of course so did Boba, so that doesn't have to mean anything, right? But if we think back to the Mando intro in the Gunslinger episode and what Dinn says to Toro, it's Fenik Shand is an elite mercenary, She made her name killing for all the top crime syndicates, including the huts.

If you go after, you won't make it past sunrise. Now, we know how much of that fell apart and how much changed. Could that connection in any way and that history in any way still be an active part of Fennick's life or no? I mean, I think anything is possible. And I think, I mean, where was Fennek when Black Cresantin attacked? She joined it at the end to dump him in the rancorp pit. And, of course, she has to sleep sometime. That dagger throw to the hand, you know?

Yeah, of course she has to sleep sometime, but like, where was security? Why was it the street kids? You know, like, isn't she his body man? Like, you know, like, let's get a few more people in the, in the rotation here. Yeah, I agree. But she showed up not looking like she came from napping. She was bright-eyed, bushy-tailed, and her braid was nary a strand of hair out of place. So, like, you know, where was, where was Fennick during the attack?

I don't know. Definitely a possibility. Hair watch. It's always on with Joe. Always. It's true. It's true. Speaking of watches.

Yeah. You got for your secret skull. I'm going to go with GoGo Gadget Foot Kid from the Vespagay. Okay. That's my pick. I'm going with Danny Trejo. Have to. Secret Scroll, Danny Trejo.

Wow. Talk about crossover possibilities. I mean, that would just be. I love that for us. That would be an incredible. An incredible thing for Disney Plus and all of us. Danny Trejo, who's made an entire career just being Danny Trejo in every movie

that he's in. Incredible stuff. Incredible stuff. All right. Mail bag. Mail bag. Let's do it. All right. It's mailback time. Jomey and Denaron. What do we got? I'm back. I am strengthened by the Ais of Shield Love on this show. It's big for you.

You took that Mephisto hit just mere moments prior. You know, it's like, you know, it's a setback waiting for a comeback. You know what I mean? You got to take the L's to see the Ws. That's how life rolls sometimes. Our first question comes from Aaron, and Aaron asks,

is Boba the easiest job interview ever? I mean, exactly. He's like, do kids want to come fight for me? I'm not going to ask you any questions. Do you Gomorians want to come fight for me? I'm not going to ask you any questions. Boba needs to work on his process a little bit. He really does.

Can I actually ask you an Agents of Shield question, Jeremy? Yes, please. What do you think is the best? Because I am not the scholar that you are, but one came to mind. What do you think is the best Melinda May episode? I think, I don't know if I could say like episode, but my favorite Melinda May moment that like comes to mind immediately is when, spoiler alert, she's fighting Ward, Grant Ward.

Yeah, yeah, yeah. And he's, you know, and they have. had a sexual relationship in the past and he makes the comment like oh you're on top and she's like you were never on top and it's great and it's great this is on avcc prime time jeez i'm telling you positively peacemaker-esque with uh the first thing that came to mind for me is the season two episode where she has to fight herself like there's another person like her so it's like 34. Yeah. So it's, it's Migno-N versus Migno-N

and Kevin did direct that episode. So I think he's been on the on the Migna beat for a while. So I would be excited to see what he can do with her. Anyway, sorry, just a quick a age as a shield aside for you. I mean, got to. Listen, the Boba, I wish

Boba interviewed me when I was getting my job at the ringer. I had like three interviews. You know, it was like a whole thing. I wish, you know, someone would have been like, hey, can you tweet? Yeah, come on in. You're hired. That would have been nice. Can you shank a wookie with a switchblade? Yes. Great. You're on my team. Come on in. It's a little bit easy. All right, next question comes from Mario. And Mario wants to know,

is it odd or noteworthy that Boba doesn't seem consumed at all with any kind of desire for revenge against Luke or Han? He spent so much of his life seeking revenge for the death of his father. But when he escapes the Sarlek Pit, he has no desire to seek out the people who sent him there. Not saying it would be a good story, but it seems odd that someone with his emotional background wouldn't be scheming revenge. Maybe we're meant to believe older Boba is just a different dude than young Boba? Or maybe he was so focused on survival, he didn't have time to think about retribution. But it struck me.

So I like this as a progression for Boba to move beyond revenge that that might be a preoccupation of a younger Boba. I think I wish I understood. If he immediately swings back into revenge mode, though, for Tuskins, yeah. But like, two things. Number one, I wish I understood what changed him. If it's crawling out of the Sarlac, is it the time of the Tuskins? Like, I don't know, is it getting a lizard up his nose?

I don't know. But like something changed his nature inherently and all of that. That being said, if he is consumed with the idea of revenge for what happened with the Tuskins, he's playing it very close to the vest. That's why I was questioning whether or not we would see the Tuskins wiped out in the flashback because he didn't seem like a man who's here on Tatouin to get revenge for his family. That just didn't seem to be how he was playing it. But again, that might just be a virtue of them trying to keep a lot of things back from us.

So we still don't understand. I mean, I just want to back up Charles on the Midnight Boys because Charles was just yes, and what we've been talking about, which is that we don't understand exactly what Bobo wants in all of this. I'm excited to know, but for right now, we don't understand. I think that the Luke Han thing, like, to me, it makes sense that he wouldn't be thinking about that given this stated kind of, like this mission statement for his character, which, to be fair, is uttered in the Mandalorian, not in his own show, but that, you know, fate

sometimes steps in to rescue the wretched line. Like, I think that that is how he's viewing his rebirth after emerging from the Sarlock Pit, and so being guided by the thirst for Vennelieu. the way he was when he was younger and hunting Mayes Windu because of what happened with Django, like not doing that here would represent progress. Also, that progress doesn't have to mean that there's not some sort of really rich possibility in the future if he does come across Luke or Han, you know, or anything for, again, we got the sail barge disaster mentioned here. Like, I don't think we need to see an active pursuit, but it still might be a tense moment if they

end up on the same screen at the same time in the future. So it's, it's interesting. But it feels right to me that his character evolution tracks with him not just going off to like hunt Han for knocking into his jetpack, you know? Ah, the jetpack. By the way, we should say. Blindly. Does just land in front.

I know we didn't want to talk about the chase more, but he just lands in front of the major domo with the jet pack. Rendering the entire chase. Exactly. Unnecessary. Exactly. But you don't get the power rangers, guys. Listen

Listen Oh boy The Mighty Moped Power Rangers Mighty Morphor and Tattooing Rangers Listen We get some morphers You know what I mean We get some guys in rubber suits

We've got a stew cooking Lucasfilm right here Talk to your boy You know We can do this on We call Jamie he's ready We can do Disney plus Mighty Morphent Tattooee Rangers

I'm here We can get 10 episodes Real quick All right before they're going to block me. They're going to be like, Jomey, don't tweet at us ever again. Have you been tweeting at Lucasoff? No, God, no.

I know Kathleen Kennedy, she's listening. Catherine Kennedy, big fan of the podcast. Right? She's listening. She's like, I might stop listening right now because Jomey, he's making too much sense. Kathleen, like everyone else, if they made it to the two-hour mark, they're going to see it through. You know, you know, um. how people who like love the midnight boys are called midnight writers like that that's a thing.

Yeah. Did you know that people are calling like our fans house guests? Mm. Oh. Yeah. Come on in. I love it. I'm welcome.

Welcome. How sweet. It's like positively charming. That's very sweet. Come in. Take your shoes off at the door. Yeah. There's tea and water.

We're just wrapping up in our back to pots. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. We'll do it. Down in a minute. visit with the rancor in the meantime. Speaking of the rancor,

our next question comes from Nick, and Nick wants to know, what would you name your rancor? What a wonderful question. I don't know the answer. I don't have one. So, you know, the rancor we lost in Return of the Jedi,

poor Mal, you know, mourning. That's Ptisa. Of course, we've spoken of, of dear sweet Mucci, wondering what happened to Mucci. Do we find any inspiration in those names? I'm not so sure. You know, I'll just say,

I never would have come up with Grogo. And at first I was like, are we sure? But now I love it. Now I love it. And it feels like he's always been Grogo to me. So I'll accept any name the rancor gets. What, what suggestion do you both have for what to name the rancor? I'm so close to it.

How about, like, when, I was going to say like something like, I don't know, like a, like a, when, no, we can't have anything that sounds too much like Mace Windu because Boba hates. him. Okay, I would have, so Boba, Boba makes me think of tapioca balls and tea, right? And Moochi makes me think of mochi. Okay. So I'm going to go with Shabu Shabu and like keep it in the Japanese, in the Asian food family. That's right. I think Shabu Shabu is a great name for a rancor. Okay. Jomi agrees. It's, it's a choice. It's a great choice. It's a great choice. Jomey, do you have a competing nomination? No, no. If I was going to name my own Rancourt,

I think I would steal from, like, I don't have any pets. I'm not a pet owner, but if I had a pet, it would probably be a cat because, you know, me and cats would just be chilling, you know? Absolutely.

And if I had to steal a name, the name I would name my cat would be Izumi, which is if Legend of Corey fans, no, that's Zucco. daughter, the fire, the fire lord in Legend of Cora. So I would just steal that name and name my rancor, Izumi. Should we name the rank for Pavu?

I have a Pablo plush, as I think, as I think you know. I love Pablo. Pabu. And I have a Pabu T-shirt. My friend named her kitchen aid mixer, Pabu. That's incredible. I love Pabu. I love Molo. I love Appa. I mean, anything connected to those would be wonderful. For, you know, I like human names for pets, like my childhood cat,

my best friend, Jeremy. You know, Halo was Halo's name when we adopted him, right? Like, so... You would have called him... I mean, and it's perfect. Tom. It's the only thing that fits right now. But yeah, we probably would have gone with like, you know, Ronald or something.

I don't know. Jimothy, the rancor? Timothy. Yeah. How about... Oh, okay. We've mentioned Cobbant. We've mentioned Timothy.

It's a justified day. How about Ollie? Or Oli? No? Oli. Burley Fent. No. How about Raylan?

All right. Raylon the Reinhore. I think that's my final answer. Raylan is phenomenal. Co-signed. That's a great name. Let's do it. Raylan the Rancor.

Raylan the Rancor. No matter what they call him in the show, that's what we'll call him. Yeah, yeah. That's what we're calling. Last question comes from when. When wants to know is Boba Fett? the Ted Lassau of Tatooeen.

Think about it. Incredible question. I think it goes with our discussion of the Coalition of Kindness, right? I mean, Joe, it's the hope that kills you, you know? Oh, my God. Oh, my God. I might need Steve to tap in for this. Do you think there's any chance that this question is about, like,

beast culture and sneakers? Ted Lassow, big sneaker head. He's got some amazing Jordans. It is What if Boba just breaks out a new pair of AJ Wands midway through the season? No? Is this about his toe again?

AJ Wands would be tough with a toe sticking straight up. You need a looser shoe for that. Yeah, you need a boot. I think you need a roomy boot for that or a sandal. We need like a fly knit. We're going with like an epic react, I think, for that, you know. Some flexible material. If Bob was anything, you know, he's curious, not judgmental, right?

So, you know, he's, you know, just trying to do the right thing by being a crime boss. That's really what, because like, we don't even know what, this is the whole question of Boba Fett. What do you mean by crime boss? Like, because he's not been like, well, we're going to run the spice here. Like, this is what the brothels are going to look like. Like, he's, he's bossing no crime. bossing zero crime on tattooing right now. Boa.

Just wants to receive tribute and tell people that he's not interested in riding on a litter. I really think he should run for mayor. If he's Ted Lasso, then who is his mate? Who is his beard? Fenwick. Who's Roy? Who are all the other characters? I guess Fenwick right now is beard, but as, you know, we talked about she could be Nate, maybe.

Who knows? Oh, boy. Garza Fipe as Rebecca. I need more Garcifip, like a stat. Yeah, I missed flip time in this episode. I did. I really did. I mean, like, the episodes get a little repetitive when he's like back of the mayors, back

of whatever, but like, I'm never mad to be back to the sanctuary and have Garcith say something suggestive again. Bring it on. That's a heaping spoon full of truth soup right there. Wow, Jomey, you were really ready for this question. Yeah. ready. We're ready. Barbecue sauce.

A wonderful mailbag. As always, Boba said, we better fight as good as we talk dank, but Boba Fett has never recorded a podcast as far as I know. And so, what does he really know?

We have reached the end of today's episode. Thank you to our crime lord, Steve Allman, for producing today's episode. Thank you to our podmongers, Arjuna-Ramgapal and TD St. Matthew Daniel for their additional production work on this episode. And thank you to our strider.

Make it his way across the social feeds. Jomi Adon for his work on the social for this episode. Be sure to head back into the ringerverse at the top of next week for the Midnight Boys Peacemaker Premier Breakdown and head back Wednesday and Friday for our Boba Chapter 4 pods. Until then, gather up your gag. Follow me. All.

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