The big Mandalorian rewatch

Cathy and I started rewatching the Mandalorian series before seeing the film that was released in the summer. After seeing the film we completed the whole story arc so I thought it would be fun to publish a mega-review. The film is now streaming on Disney Plus and we've watched it again.

Spoilers follow - read on at your own risk!

Season 1

Synopsis: The Mandalorian is a bounty hunter named Din Djarin, who is given a commission to find a mysterious child of an unknown species. His client is a former high-ranking officer in the Empire. He discovers the child has special powers when the child saves his life. Feeling indebted to the child, the Mandalorian reneges on the bounty and goes on the run with the child, taking on various jobs while trying to keep ahead of Imperial warlords.

In the finale, another Imperial faction led by a new main antagonist, Moff Gideon, appears and comes after the child, leading to a massive shoot-out. 

(I blogged a detailed review of the first series back when it came out.)

Favourite episode: probably episode 6, 'The Prisoner'. It's a prison break episode with some interesting other characters, with guest stars Bill Burr and Richard Ayoade (voicing a droid), and it adds to the wider narrative of the post-Empire rebuild of the New Republic. There's lots of action and I think it has the best dialogue in the series. 

Least favourite episode: although it's pivotal to the Mandalorian's relationship with the child, the second episode where the Mandalorian's spaceship is stripped for parts by thieving Jawas is probably my least favourite. 

Departure point: The child is identified as a Jedi and the Mandalorian is quested to return him "to his own kind".  So, off they go... 

Meanwhile, in a very end scene, Moff Gideon is shown to be in possession of the darksaber, a potent Mandalorian weapon that imbues authority to rule on any Mandalorian who wields it.

Season 2 

Synopsis: The Mandalorian tries to find a Jedi who will take responsibility for training the child. Moff Gideon intensifies his hunt for the child, needing his Jedi blood for a mysterious cloning project.

There are throwbacks aplenty. The Mandalorian meets former Jedi, Ahsoka Tano, first introduced in the Clone Wars and Rebels cartoon series and now played in live action by Rosario Dawson (who went on to lead the Ahsoka series shortly after). Ahsoka reveals the child's name is Grogu.

Another character making the jump from animation to live film is Bo-Katan Kryze, deposed ruler of Mandalore, played by Katee Sackhoff. And then the last few episodes reintroduce the legendary Boba Fett, who allies with the Mandalorian, and Luke Skywalker, who promises to train the child.

Favourite episode: I think episode 7 of the series, 'The Believer', is the absolute pinnacle of Disney Star Wars. It brings back Bill Burr's character from the first series. It's a dangerous heist plot. There are loads of lore references, like a discussion of Operation Cinder, and there is a philosophical conversation that was so surprising I blogged about it when I first watched the episode.

Least favourite episode: the second episode with the ice spiders, Grogu eating the frog lady's unhatched children and a deus ex machina rescue.

Departure point: with Grogu heading off to become a Jedi with Luke Skywalker, the story arc was kind of done. There was a hanging thread left regarding the darksaber and the restoration of the planet Mandalore, but that could have been left dangling.

The showrunners had also nicely set up the Rangers of the New Republic series with Cara Dune officially a New Republic marshall. However actress Gina Carrano imploded her career and subsequently got fired from the project. (I blogged about it at the time.) The Rangers series never happened. Cara Dune was erased with a passing reference at the start of season 3.

There's also a tiny post-credits scene where Boba Fett returns to Tatooine, as a trailer for the new series: The Book of Boba Fett. 

The Book of Boba Fett (episodes 5-7)

Synopsis: Boba Fett is trying to establish his authority on Tatooine. He needs help and hires the Mandalorian. But actually, the Mandalorian is the sole focus of a full episode and Grogu's Jedi training takes up a good chunk of another episode. There was some discussion at the time about how the series was clunky and the inclusion of the Mandalorian and Grogu was a "rescue mission". (Read my full blog about it.)

In terms of the wider Mandalorian story arc, though, these episodes are essential because it acts as a jumping off point to season 3 after reuniting the Mandalorian and Grogu.

Favourite episode: The Return of the Mandalorian (episode 5) includes a stunning city on a ringworld, where the Mandalorian learns more about the darksaber. He also takes possession of a new starship. 

Least favourite episode: all 3 are essential for the ongoing story arc but episode 6 drags a bit. Uncanny CGI Luke Skywalker is a bit boring for a Jedi master.

Departure point: After helping Boba Fett beat the Pyke Syndicate, the Mandalorian and Grogu fly off in their starfighter to their next adventure.

Season 3

Synopsis: The Mandalorian and Grogu are reunited. Seeking absolution for breaking the creed, the Mandalorian visits the devastated planet Mandalore, with Bo-Katan. They work together to reunite the Mandalorian factions to re-colonise their homeworld, only to find it's being used by Moff Gideon as a base for his experiments with clones and 'dark troopers'. 

Favourite episode: possibly episode 5, 'The Pirate', as it features lots of Mandalorians in action against a space pirate who has taken over the planet Nevarro. Although the next episode, 'Guns for Hire' has a very unusual focus - a hitherto unseen droid subculture when they are off the clock - and references to Clone Wars era politics. But it also guest stars Jack Black and a very unconvincing Lizzo as the planetary rulers who hire the guns of the Mandalorian and Bo-Katan. So, a real mixed bag episode. 

Least favourite episode: episode 3 starts and ends with the Mandalorian and Bo-Katan as they shoot their way out of trouble and start their journey together. But most of the episode follows two ex-Imperials on Coruscant in a story that is visually very interesting but isn't particularly relevant to the ongoing story. It ties up a loose end with a side character and adds some depth to the back story of the New Republic, but it's not necessary. (The two bits either side are necessary, though.)

Departure point: after the destruction of Moff Gideon's horrifying project, and the Moff himself, the Mandalorian formally adopts Grogu so the child can become a Mandalorian apprentice. The Armourer tells Din Djarin that he must take Din Grogu on "his journeys". The Mandalorian makes a pitch to the New Republic to work for them as a private contractor. He then heads to his new, gifted dwelling on Nevarro to wait for a commission.

The Mandalorian and Grogu 

Synopsis: The Mandalorian is now working as a freelance contractor for the New Republic. The film works as three episodes. Part 1 shows the Mandalorian hunting down an Imperial warlord and being tasked to find the "missing" son of Jabba the Hutt, Rotta, a character first introduced in the Clone Wars animated series. Rotta's aunt and uncle, known as the twins, want the Mandalorian to find him and bring him back to them. Part 2 is about finding Rotta and making sure he is safe from both his captor and his conniving aunt and uncle. Part 3 pitches the Mandalorian and Grogu against the twins, who are angry at being double-crossed.

(Read more in my review of the film.)

Favourite bit: The opening section with the Mandalorian taking out an Imperial warlord by blasting his way through a column of AT-AT walkers is highly enjoyable. Particularly the bit where Grogu is trying to hurry him up before the AT-AT they are in explodes.

Least favourite bit: The aftermath of the escape from the Hutt twins where Grogu is caring for the wounded Mandalorian is cute but a bit sedate.

Departure point: With their enemies vanquished and all their friends safe, the Mandalorian and Grogu take off from the New Republic base for an unknown destination. Possibly just heading back to their homestead on Nevarro.

My July 2026 round up

It's been a very hot month. However, that meant when we welcomed my sister and our three niblings for a day visit, we had a nice sunny day on Barry Island (it was also windy, as you can see from the picture).

It was so sunny we had to buy hats for niblings!

It was desperately hot earlier in the month when I went to London to attend the Talking About Diabetes (TAD) conference. The night before I went looking for the tribute to the greatest secret agent in the world!

TAD was great. Thought-provoking, inspiring, encouraging, and fun. My friend Ros was on the organising committee. I was able to grab 10 seconds with her for a selfie!

There were some great speakers, including actress Nina Wadia and her son, Aidan, who lives with type 1 diabetes.

My favourite presenter was Samantha Alleyne, a model and actress who answered a casting call for "tall women" and ended up being cast as the first female stormtrooper in the Star Wars universe!

It was the first time Samantha had spoken about her experience of type 1 diabetes and it was very interesting to hear how she managed her blood glucose levels while wearing stormtrooper armour! It was also inspiring to hear how she has engaged with members of the fan community who live with type 1 as well.

Another warm day for the Keep Grangetown Tidy litter pick. They were giving out some nice new t-shirts for committed litter-pickers! 

New t-shirt pose!

We got some respite from the heat in a very air conditioned cinema when Cathy and I went to watch Toy Story 5. I wore a suitable t-shirt - something I have been doing this year if I can.

We also went to watch Minions & Monsters, but I didn't have a Minions t-shirt to wear so no selfie! 

Connor was in town! We had a meal at The Grange and caught up on life and whatnot.

Even though this month has mainly been a heatwave, my one session out doing some political canvassing was on a very damp evening of misty rain. I was in Llantrisant for the community council by-election.

A couple of days later, Ioan, the Plaid Cymru candidate, won.

Also this month, I celebrated my "Plaidaversery" with a piece of art starring a hopeful dragon. 

I continued boycotting the World Cup, but real football was back on the agenda! Paul and I kicked off the season watching a Europa League Qualifying round match at Cardiff City Stadium. Penybont played Santa Columa from Andorra and lost 1-0.

And the domestic season started with some Welsh Cup games. Steve and I went to watch Caldicot Town play Longford FC in the first qualifying round.

Very clear pricing 

And on the very last night of the month, I saw Barry Town win their opening game of the Cymru Premier season. It was live on Sgorio on S4C but I watched it live in the stands!

Post-match Sgorio interview

And in case you missed it:

• Cathy and I went back to Cardiff Castle to see Bowling for Soup and Frank Turner in our third big gig of the summer

• My book of the month was a politics book by Will Hayward

• Bryan debuted a new team in our monthly Blood Bowl match up

• I did a stocktake of my copies of Nineteen Eighty-four

• I was horrified that it's 25 years since The Fast and the Furious was released!

The Mandalorian and Grogu

We all know that May the Fourth is Star Wars Day, but did you know that just like how there are different dates for Easter and Christmas in the Orthodox Church, there is also "Orthodox Star Wars Day" on 25th May, which is the date Star Wars was originally released in cinemas in 1977? Well, if you didn't know that, now you do. 

A couple of nights ago, on Orthodox Star Wars Day, Cathy and I went to the local Odeon to watch the first Star Wars film to be released for seven years, The Mandalorian and Grogu. (Yes, it really has been seven years. That was a whole pandemic ago!)

This latest Star Wars film is about the Mandalorian bounty hunter, Din Djarin, and his foundling trainee, Grogu, continuing their story from the three TV series of The Mandalorian (and the episodes of The Book of Boba Fett that they rather stole the show in).

Very mild spoilers follow below...

If you haven't seen the TV series, then you might struggle getting into this story. It is quite episodic, with three distinct story chapters that could have been episodes in a fourth series. (There are primers available online to bring you up to speed.)

The Mandalorian is now working for the New Republic, as a contractor bringing in former Imperial generals who are operating as war-lords. This makes narrative sense to me, as the surviving Imperial factions pose the most risk to Grogu, the child in the Mandalorian's care. 

His work for the New Republic brings the Mandalorian into the orbit of the Hutt gangsters who first appeared in The Book of Boba Fett. Carnage ensues. 

I enjoyed watching this but there were moments when it felt a bit indulgent. Dave Filoni, current president of Lucasfilm, uses the film to bring back certain characters he created earlier in his career. Notably, this includes Rotta the Hutt, spawn of Jabba the Hutt. 

Rotta is presented as a complex character trying to emerge from the bloated shadow of his father, but it feels a bit worthy and preachy the way its done. Rotta first appeared in the Clone Wars cartoon series that had a 'moral' for every episode and his story arc feels very Saturday-morning-cartoon.

There are some niche references as well. The INT-4 mini-rig vehicle produced as a toy by Kenner in the early 1980s makes a live action debut. It's the latest in a line of appearances in modern Star Wars media of those early toys that were the product of a toy designer's imagination way back when. 

Another returning character is Zeb, the darkly comedic Lasat from Star Wars Rebels. He was my favourite character in Rebels and it's nice to see he has survived the war against the Empire. He's still serving in the military, though. The war isn't quite over everywhere. 

My favourite callbacks were when the film-makers leaned into the "baby Yoda" idea and had Grogu picking up little Yoda-isms. He spends some time living in a swamp, with a mud hut and a walking stick. Cathy pointed out, there is also a crashed spaceship in the swamp - another Dagobah reference.

There has been some criticism of modern Star Wars - particularly the Mandalorian series - being geared towards 'fan service' (I thought BOBF had too much). But really why not provide some service to the fans? After all, it's the fans that turned this franchise into the behemoth it is. 

Next year it will be a whole half century since the first instalment of Star Wars was released in cinemas. I doubt The Mandalorian and Grogu will have the same cultural resonance, but as a small continuation of what has turned into a cultural movement, it ticks the right boxes. It was a fun movie and made me, a self-confessed fan, happy. 

More reviews

The Mandalorian Season 1

The Mandalorian Season 2 

A conversation about religion in The Mandalorian Season 2

The Book of Boba Fett review 

On "Separatism" - a post for Star Wars Day 2026

Happy Star Wars Day. May the force be with you this May the Fourth.

I often blog about Star Wars on Star Wars Day, and this year I'm linking my post to the very current Senedd election (happening on Thursday!) 

I've decided to write about a trending word in politics here in Cymru, that always makes me think of Star Wars. Recently some politicians have started using the word "separatists" to describe people who support Welsh independence. 

Which, of course, makes me think of the conflict in the Galactic Republic in a galaxy far, far away....

CIS ("Separatist") flag

Brief recap: in the original Star Wars film, there was a passing reference to Luke Skywalker's dead father fighting in "the clone wars". Very little was explained about that but 20 years later, when George Lucas wanted to write the Star Wars prequel films, he decided it would be about the 'clone wars'.

If you're going to write about a war, you need to have two sides. In 'star wars' the combatants were the Empire and the Rebels. But something different was needed for the prequels, so we had the Republic and, um, the Rebels Separatists.

In the prequel films, the Separatists were either conniving warmongers looking to make money from galactic upheaval, or were being manipulated by the Sith Lord, Darth Sidious, who was using the war as a way of gaining total power for himself. However, in later media, like the Clone Wars cartoon, Separatist characters were introduced who had nobler reasons for wanting to be independent from the Republic.

But initially we were meant to regard the Separatists as bad guys. The offical name for the Separatists was the "Confederacy of Independent Systems" (CIS). 'Confederate' is a loaded word in US-centric cultural media. So the narrative dice were loaded against the Separatists from the start.

However, like I said, later Star Wars product has introduced some ambiguity. Can there be noble reasons for wanting to be independent? In other words, is separatism automatically bad?

Well, it seems the answer to that depends on what you are separating from and why.

We see in the first prequel, The Phantom Menace, that the Galactic Republic, is ineffectual at responding to an urgent threat to the planet Naboo. Decisions are being made at a distance from the flashpoint and there are multiple competing priorities. The reported suffering of the Naboo population doesn't speed up the decision-making process.

Additionally, there are wider issues. Slavery still exists on several planets. Large areas of the galaxy are under the dominion of crime lords and gangsters. The Republic has not used its strength and power to liberate people from lawlessness or to lift up people living in poverty. 

Certainly, within the Star Wars galaxy, "separatism" can spring from noble aims. 

And the Galactic Republic's response to the separatist movement reinforces the doubt about the Republic's legitimacy. They go to war. They take control of an army of clones - disposable humans - and fight against the Separatists. Now, sometimes this is justified because the Separatists are attacking planets loyal to the Republic, but as the war rolls on, any planet in the CIS becomes de facto an enemy. 

The other thing the Republic does is centralise power. The Chancellor becomes a proto-Emperor with emergency powers that become difficult and then impossible to revoke, and the Republic becomes an Empire.

And then, ironically the 'good guys' flip. What had been the good Republic against the bad Separatists becomes the bad Empire against the heroic Rebel Alliance.

And so to the discussion of Welsh Independence or Welsh Separatism...

I don't think 'separatist' is the terrible slur that people using it seem to think it is. Because, as I've said, that depends on what people want to separate from. It's fair to say the UK has problems and part of that is weak leadership both domestically and in a volatile international setting. 

It feels like Labour's hegemony has been broken in Cymru. While canvassing I have met loads of former Labour voters, including ex-members, who say they are done with Labour. The promise of change that many people hoped for when the Westminster government changed in 2024 hasn't been delivered.

And Westminster has had decades to make life here in Cymru better. Successive governments - Labour and Tory - haven't dealt with root issues, especially poverty in both rural and post-industrial areas. Poverty is always a political choice, whether it was David Cameron's cabinet of millionaires introducing 'austerity' or Keir Starmer's Labour Party taking away financial support for disabled people.

There are structutal and societal issues behind this too. Supporters of annibyniaeth (independence) are always told Cymru is too weak and too poor to go its own way - and when we ask why Cymru is so weak and so poor, we don't get an answer.

If we always do what we have always done then we will always get what we have always got. There is no plan in any party manifesto for parties that support the status quo to bring in any structural or constitutional changes to make life better in Cymru. It's more of the same, or slightly less.

Star Wars presents the warning that overarching political structures seek to protect themselves first and foremost. They respond to threats by centralising more and punishing those they think are an enemy. That natural sense of protectiveness is easy to manipulate by people who seek personal gain. They might not be Sith Lords, but they don't have to be.

In that context, if the government feels far away and seems more interested in it's own ends, that feels dominated by the wealthy and has permitted poverty to persist, is being a Separatist so bad?

A drove of dragons

It's Appreciate a Dragon Day according to one of the calendars we have up. So here's a drove of dragons to celebrate.

Gradually I've gathered up quite a collection of pics of dragons. Like this selfie taken in the fanzone at the 2025 Welsh Cup Final.

Here he is in action at a Wales game.

Barry Town also have a dragon occasionally in attendance. 

Channeling Edvard Munch,
or having trouble with the costumes head?

There are lots of dragons on flags at football matches, of course.

Although sometimes other animals replace them.

There's a dragon on the flag on my Plaid Cymru membership card.

And in April last year, at the March for Independence in Barry, I got this fridge magnet from Rebel Dragon Designs, which combines the Welsh Dragon with the Rebel Alliance logo from Star Wars.

I like the way artists put their own spin on the Welsh dragon. The artist Revealist has created this "dragon in a bally" which can be seen in a few places around Cardiff. The best one is in Grangetown, though.

Meanwhile this print caught my eye at an art fair in Canton last year.

When the new Lego Shop opened in Cardiff in September they had a massive, very impressive, Lego dragon installed outside.

It feels like dragons are spottable any and everywhere!

And if you're very lucky, maybe you can grow your own pair of dragon wings!

Happy Appreciate a Dragon Day! I hope you enjoyed seeing this drove of dragons!

Trying something new - an unboxing video

Watch me unwrap and open a Disney Doorables Death Star on the tube of you! (I was looking for an "ultra rare" figure of Boba Fett.)

The Lighter Side of Star Wars

Happy Star Wars Day. I started the celebrations early this year, by collecting the free build of baby Grogu (not Baby Yoda!) from the Lego Store. I had to queue but was entertained by members of the Saber Guild and the Rebel Legion - people who clearly love Star Wars.

I've been thinking recently about the many send ups and spoofs of Star Wars that I've enjoyed over the years. This was prompted by seeing the  Star Wars episodes of Phineas and Ferb as part of our watch through of the show on Disney Plus. I hadn't seen them before this year and they have quickly become some of my favourite Star Wars homages. 

What makes Phineas and Ferb different, to say, the Family Guy retelling of Star Wars, is that instead of the main characters in the TV show assuming the roles of key characters in the films, they set Phineas and Ferb along with their friends and associates in roles around the original story. So Phineas and Ferb live on the next farm to Luke Skywalker, they meet Isabella the star ship captain in the same cantina where Ben and Luke meet Han Solo and Chewbacca, Perry the Platypus is a rebel agent and so on. In this version of the story, Phineas and Ferb are returning the Death Star plans that R2-D2 accidentally dropped in their landspeeder. 

There were several funny knowing gags in the film. Darth Doofenschmirtz 'flushing' after going to the bathroom setting off the trash compactor is one that made me chuckle. The jump scare Tusken Raider made me laugh out loud. A discussion over who started shooting in the cantina prompted knowing nods. There are also some great songs, full of nerd-level jokes. 

I think it was one of the best, and most enjoyable, retellings of Star Wars, and I'm delighted to have discovered it. It was much better than some of the Lego Star Wars shorts that have been made more recently. Those seemed to have been written for kids rather than old fans like me. 

I've already mentioned the Family Guy trilogy of special episodes. I'm not a fan of Family Guy but they had some clever bits. Half the jokes relate to the Family Guy characters so I felt I was missing some of the humour. It's been years since I watched them, though, and I don't really feel any desire to watch them again. 

When I watched the Family Guy Star Wars, I  was making a direct comparison with the Robot Chicken Star Wars series that came out around the same time. Robot Chicken was a lot funnier; a series of short sketches and gags that jumped around the Star Wars universe, sending up particular scenes from the movies and exploring what was happening off-screen. 

The most widely shared Robot Chicken sketch is probably 'Darth Calls the Emperor', showing the phone call that Vader makes to tell the Emperor that the Death Star has been blown up. "What the hell is an aluminum falcon?!?" still makes me laugh despite seeing it numerous times. Other favourite bits include Admiral Ackbar on a game show, the tragic story of Ponda Baba's ruined career as an architect, Max Rebo's greatest hits album, and Admiral Ackbar (again) out for brunch with Mon Mothma. 

Robot Chicken came out before the Disney sequels and TV series and I'd love to see the team have a go at mocking the Disney era. There would be ample material in just The Mandalorian.

But the grandaddy spoof of them all is the film, Spaceballs. Written and directed by Mel Brooks, it's an older film now, but it still checks out. It's very loosely based on Star Wars, sending up the look of the franchise and its impact more than anything else. The main villain wears an outsized black helmet and is known as Lord Dark Helmet. The wise old master of the Schwartz is a small green character (played by Brooks walking on his knees) called Yogurt. There is a whole sequence making fun of merchandising and how the name of the film gets slapped onto everything - then later in the film characters are using Spaceballs-branded merchandise. Lord Dark Helmet plays with Spaceballs action figures at one point.

My brother and I watched Spaceballs multiple times when we were kids. Recently we introduced by eldest niece and nephew to it as well. They found it hilarious too - a real test of how well made it is considering it's a spoof movie. It helps that the special effects were done by the same people who made Star Wars, with George Lucas's blessing. 

I've said before that the escapism of Star Wars, with its simple good v evil plotting, really helped me when I was a child and adjusting to a very big life change. One reason why some of the newer Disney Star Wars projects leave me cold is they deliberately pursue ambiguity, with characters being morally grey and storylines exploring more complicated approaches to the old good guys versus bad guys trope. (Even if, from a certain point of view, that has always been there.)

Star Wars, to me, was always meant to be a bit simple and silly, and I think that's why I enjoy watching silly spoofs of it. My dad would often sum up a film by saying 'It's not to be taken too seriously'. He was right, and the comedy versions of Star Wars help me do that. 

2024 telly round up

Here is a round up of very short reviews of the more memorable telly I watched in 2024.

Bluey - The Sign / minisodes

I love Bluey. It's one of my favourite TV shows. The big thing this year was the release of a half hour episode called 'The Sign'. The big plot point is the impending sale of Bluey's family's house and the family moving to another city. Meanwhile Bluey and Bingo and their cousins Muffin and Socks are preparing to be flower girls at their uncle's wedding. Things go slightly awry and the four flower girls become part of a last ditch attempt to make sure the wedding goes ahead. 

There is a big emotional ending that I'm willing to admit made me cry, and the overall message - that you don't know how things will work out in the end until you reach the end - was positive without being wishfully optimistic. There was also an interesting sub-theme of parents trying to do what is best for their children, but not really knowing the best way forward and reconsidering decisions.

This year there have also been several 'minisodes', very short tales from the Blueniverse. I've found them very entertaining. 'Burger Dog' is probably my favourite. (The way Bandit's eye twitches as he is forced to listen to a terrible song makes me laugh every time.)

Wallace & Gromit ~ Vengeance Most Fowl

We watched this on Christmas Day and laughed a lot. It was packed full of jokes, saw the return of the evil penguin, Feathers McGraw, and managed to find a suitable replacement for the vocal talents of the late Peter Sallis, the original voice of Wallace. I think this is the best one off programme I saw in 2024. 

Ludwig

David Mitchell stars as a puzzle-setter who takes on his twin brother's identity as a police officer when his brother goes missing. Of course, he soon proves himself rather good at solving murders. I found this highly enjoyable and some of Mitchell's lines really made me laugh.

A Man on the Inside

This Netflix comedy starring Ted Danson was written by Michael Schur, whose previous credits include Parks & Recreation, Brooklyn Nine Nine and The Good Place. Those are all shows I enjoyed and I enjoyed this too. Ted Danson is a retired college professors hired by a private detective to go undercover in an elderly care community to try and solve a theft. Stephanie Beatriz, one of my favourite actresses, is the manager of said care home who suspects something is up. There is a deeper theme about loss and continuing to love those we have lost, and learning to live without them, that elevated this above other comedies. 

Nobody Wants This

Another Netflix comedy, this time starring Kristin Bell (who was in The Good Place) and Adam Brody. She's a sex and relationships podcaster, he's a rabbi. They meet. They fall in love. Worlds collide. There are some very funny moments, particularly from their supporting cast. One thing I noticed was the cinematic way of filming, especially in some scenes set at a youth camp. The series ended on a cliffhanger and there was a reassurance that a second season was coming. 

Star Wars: The Acolyte

This was supposed to be the big 2024 reboot of Star Wars. I found it boring. Some Jedi are being held to account for something they did by someone who feels wronged. I found it hard to care. I gave up watching. 

Star Wars: Skeleton Crew

This has been dubbed 'The Goonies in space' and so far it has been brill! (Half the episodes were released in 2024, there are still a couple yet to drop.) A bunch of kids find a crashed starship and accidentally fire it up. They end up on the run from murderous pirates searching for lost treasure. It's silly and goofy and fun and what Star Wars is meant to be! (In my opinion as someone who has been a fan for over 40 years now!)

Doctor Who

I watched the series with Ncuti Gatwa as the Doctor. It was okay. I feel like I say that a lot about Doctor Who these days. 'Dot and Bubble' was the most interesting episode. The overall story arc for the series seemed to be a whole lot of nothing. Literally. The Doctor's companion, Ruby, was 'special' because she was so ordinary, seemed to be the big reveal. It felt like a cop out. I suspect the showrunner Russell T Davies wrote himself into a corner and then couldn't come up with a satisfactory way out. I haven't watched the Christmas special but haven't heard much positive about it. 

Old stuff...

In addition to the series released this year, I've watched a lot of older stuff. This included:

Both seasons of Gravity Falls - a cartoon about two kids who go to stay with their great uncle (grunkle) who runs a 'Mystery Shack' roadside attraction in Oregon. Started out very funny, then became a story about averting an apocalypse.

All three seasons of Amphibia - a cartoon about some tweens who accidentally get transported to a world of talking frogs, called Amphibia. Again very funny, but the final season was about a war to free Amphibia from an evil hive mind.

The four seasons of Never Have I Ever - a Netflix series set in high school about a girl who is terrified she might never lose her virginity. This actually became quite a sweet story of finding love and growing up. 

All 6 seasons of Spin City - a comedy from the 90s that hasn't aged well and had to go through a hard re-casting when the star, Michael J Fox, had to leave due to health reasons. He was replaced by Charlie Sheen and the show went rapidly downhill. 

All 8 seasons of Psych - a comedy-drama about a guy who pretends to be psychic and help his local police force solve crimes. The pilot for this played it fairly straight, but it quickly became very silly indeed. 

Several seasons of vintage Doctor Who. These are now all available on iPlayer. I started watching them semi-accidentally, and watched a series with the Daleks in the era when Jon Pertwee was the doctor. I then carried on watching Pertwee's final season, then into the Tom Baker era. It's actually great fun seeing actors and trying to work out where I know them from. I spotted Camp Freddy from The Italian Job, but I had to look up the guy who played Chief Bast in Star Wars. (I could have kicked myself for not working out who he was before I googled him.)

Star Wars Droid Factory Advent Calendar

For the second year in a row I was a very lucky boy and had a Star Wars Droid Factory advent calendar. The basic premise is every day you get pieces to build a festive-themed droid and you end up with a collection of droids by the time Christmas comes.

The advent calendar is designed to look like a sandcrawler - the iconic vehicle full of salvaged (ie stolen) droids in Star Wars: A New Hope.

The first piece out was a leg for an R2 unit, sporting a gingerbread-themed paint finish.

The complete R2 unit has already featured on my blog, but here he is again. He is carrying a tray of drinks like R2-D2 does on Jabba's sail barge in Return of the Jedi. 

I hope he's mixing egg nog, but surely in the Star Wars galaxy they would use blue milk so the nog is the wrong colour.

Gingerbread R2 was soon joined by a mate - a snowman version of BB-8 from The Force Awakens. 

I was highly amused one day to just get a pair of feet.

The feet belonged to a Gonk Droid, who was both wrapped up as a gift and sported a Santa hat.

Now, that's a possible Star Wars Christmas song. "Santa Gonky, slip a laser under the tree, for me, I've been an awful good droid, so hurry to the crawler tonight!"

Well, maybe not. 

I don't know the identity of this droid. It's large and stripey like a candy cane.

However, I did recognise the holidayfied version of B2EMO, who first appeared in the series Andor.

I'm not sure if he be too emo, but he does seem to have a fringe.

One day there was a complete droid - D-0 from one of the newer Disney-era films. If you didn't know it's name, don't feel bad. I had to look it up too.

I think they missed a trick with this. Painted brown with a red nose it would make a cute little Rudolph.

The final droid was a mystery. Literally. This is what was printed on the back of the calendar.

Well, I say a mystery but the little wheel on the middle leg and arms coming out of the head gave it away. I guessed it would be Chopper from Star Wars Rebels.

And it was!

The wreath doesn't sit easily and it interferes with the droid's little arms. But eventually I got it to pose for a photo. I think it's meant to be decorated as a penguin. I'm not certain though.

I added the droids from last year's advent calendar to the display as well. The final line up of 13 droids looks great.

Comparing this year to last year, there is more variety. The selection peaked with the first droid, gingerbread R2, but this year's Gonk droid had a much better pattern (and a Santa hat!) It was also cool to get BB-8 after getting his nemesis droid (BB-9E) last year.

I really enjoyed building these droids from the Droid Factory and with any luck a new sandcrawler will wend its way from the depths of the deserts of Tatooine in time for Christmas next year.