The Mandalorian: The Complete First Season 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		0.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		4.5

The Mandalorian: The Complete First Season 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman December 13, 2023

W.C. Fields imparted the timeless wisdom "never work with animals or children", but he didn't live long enough to see things like a CGI baby yoda creature, or else he would have no doubt expanded his list. "Real" Yoda is one of the more patently lovable creatures in the entire Star Wars universe (and/or far, far away galaxy, as the case may be), but that Yoda was an adult, however diminutive he might have been. The Mandalorian's first season involves a bounty hunter known only as that title for the bulk of the season, who is initially tasked with finding and retrieving a "baby yoda" for a sketchy seeming character (played with sinister gusto by the inimitable Werner Herzog). Much like the title character himself, this "baby yoda" is not identified by name for a while, but is ultimately revealed to be Grogu, and, to utilize a sentence structure favored by Yoda himself, adorable he is. This little "tyke" offers an unusual emotional anchor to a series that often is understandably filled with big, booming action set pieces, but the relationship between Grogu and the Mandalorian is both figuratively and literally at the heart of this enterprise.

There are already potential hints and even at least mentions in various outings that might suffice as some kind of "crossover" event involving the Marvel Cinematic Universe and Star Wars, something that's perhaps inevitable given their interlinked corporate relationships which of course includes Disney, a company which, as I joked in a recent review about their perceived "woke" sensibilities, likes to recycle. But much like the Marvel Cinematic Universe in and of itself (without any "outside" referents), the Star Wars "galaxy" is becoming increasingly crowded and potentially hard to follow, at least in terms of being able to place every character and plot strand in some kind of order. The Mandalorian purportedly takes place in the wake of the events of Return of the Jedi, but the good news is, you really don't even have to have that contextual anchor to at least generally understand the plot mechanics, which, in that good old fashioned Star Wars way, boils down to Good vs. Evil. Now in that regard this first season seemed to me to have one glaring plot hole and logical hiccup in terms of the Mandalorians themselves, but we'll deal with that in a moment.

Speaking of "external referents", The Mandalorian will or course be a treasure trove to devoted fans of the early Star Wars outings in particular. The basic plotline here is actually rather simple, with the Mandalorian (Pedro Pascal) tasked by bounty hunter guild guru Greef Karga (Carl Weathers) with a potentially extremely lucrative gig to track down someone (or something), though even Karga doesn't have a ton of details. That brings the Mandalorian into contact with the obviously nefarious Client (Werner Herzog), who, just to make his villainy clear, utilizes Imperial stormtroopers as his private "SS". The upshot of all this intrigue finally leads the Mandalorian to the baby Yoda character, while also introducing an aide of sorts to the Mandalorian, Kuiil (voiced by Nick Nolte).

The rest of the first season revolves around the Mandalorian first reclaiming the little tyke from the Client, after first dropping him off and collecting his outsized reward monies, and then trying to get the little creature to safety. That brings the pair into contact with a number of other characters, notably Cara Dune (Gina Carano), an erstwhile rebel alliance fighter who has sequestered herself away on a "rural" planet where the Mandalorian and his charge also end up. That planet is also home to a widowed mother named Omera (Julia Jones), just to give the Mandalorian his pick of potential romantic interests.

There are any number of fun "callbacks" to the original Star Wars trilogy, including a variety of supporting characters (or at least "species"), and even lines of dialogue, as when Greef Karga tells the Mandalorian, "I'm your only hope". Vis a vis Karga and the Mandalorians, it's here where the first season may have made a minor stumble, since an early episode clearly shows other Mandalorians showing up to help the title character escape a firefight when he's surrounded by stormtroopers and is trying to protect the baby Yoda, but then later a whole subplot hinges of the fact that the Mandalorian has supposedly betrayed his cohort and is therefore being sought as a bounty himself. It's a minor quibble in an otherwise often incredibly exciting and beautifully produced series that manages to expand the Star Wars universe (and/or galaxy) rather artfully.

The Mandalorian: The Complete First Season 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Note: Screenshots are sourced from Disney's standalone 1080 The Mandalorian - The Complete First Season release. Per Disney's standard operating procedure vis a vis television outings in particular, this release does not include 1080 discs.

The Mandalorian: Season One is presented in 4K UHD courtesy of Disney / Buena Vista with an HEVC / H.265 encoded 2160p transfer in 2.39:1. This is a stunning presentation virtually every step of the way, with some noticeable upticks in fine detail from an already superb 1080 version. The detail levels improve markedly on practical items like sets, props and costumes, but I'd also argue some of the ubiquitous CGI also attains new precision in this version. There are so many excellent examples of detail precision in this version that it's almost hard to know where to begin, but everything from the countless grains of sand to detritus after an explosion in the vast expanses of space have noticeable improvements in clarity, which is really kind of unbelievable, considering how excellent the 1080 version is to begin with. Admittedly "minor" items like the, well, adorable little hairs on the baby Yoda's face also have at least some increase in sharpness and detail here. The palette may not be materially changed courtesy of HDR, but there is certainly new energy, one that can be seen as early as in the blues and reds that dot the Star Wars mastheads at the start of episodes. But a number of low light sequences offer better shadow detail here, and I'd argue even some of the "outer space" elements have better delineation and tonal variations within the overall blackness. Considering the often seamless blend of CGI and practical sets, the homogeneity of the presentation is remarkable. I consider this reference quality material for a 4K UHD setup.

The Mandalorian: The Complete First Season 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Mandalorian: Season One offers a clear uptick (in more ways than one) in the audio department when compared to Disney's 1080 release, since these discs are graced with a really effective Dolby Atmos track (the 1080 release has DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 audio). Sometimes I frankly tell prospective consumers that the difference between a "standard" surround track (either 5.1 or 7.1) and a simultaneously released Atmos version is not that different, but in this particular instance, I can't imagine anyone with the proper equipment not wanting to opt for these 4K UHD discs with Atmos audio. The fantastic immersion offered on the DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 tracks on the 1080 discs is all here, and then some, and virtually all of the space battle material or even just flying sequences attain noticeable verticality in the Atmos version. Again, examples are numerous, but the brief firefight at the head of "The Gunslinger" episode is just one place where the addition of the Atmos speakers definitely adds to an enveloping immersive listening experience. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout, and the score is nicely nuanced and has a good deal of dynamic range. English, French and Spanish subtitles are available.

The Mandalorian: The Complete First Season 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Remnants of the Empire (HD; 5:46) offers a brief look at the context of the story in terms of the "demise" of the Empire.


• Forging the Covert: Part One (HD; 10:35) features Jon Favreau discussing his original "pitch" for the series, along with his fascination with Mandalorians.

Note: Both of the above supplements are found on Disc Two of this two disc set.

Additionally, Disney is packaging these releases in SteelBooks. Season One offers a cover largely in gold tones featuring the Mandalorian and Child on the front panel and Kuiil on the back panel. The interior image is a silhouette of the Mandalorian with the "baby buggy". The SteelBook also houses concept art cards.

The Mandalorian: The Complete First Season 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The Mandalorian: Season One is a veritable cornucopia of "original Star Wars trilogy" referents, but what's so interesting about the series is how it offers something new as well. The relationship between the Mandalorian and the tyke known chiefly as the Child gives this effort an unabashedly sweet underpinning, but that doesn't mean this series shirks at all in the action department. Both practical production design and CGI are off the charts, and performances are winning throughout. Technical merits are first rate, and the two supplements very enjoyable. Highly recommended.