The Mandalorian 2.1 Review - 5 Ups And 2 Downs

4. Cobb Vanth Makes His Live Action Debut

Okay, so, for Expanded Universe fans, this was ridiculously brilliant.

As Mando reaches the settlement of Mos Pelgo in search of a particular Mandalorian, he's confronted by Cobb Vanth (Timothy Olyphant), the sheriff of Freetown. Vanth had previously made his debut in the Aftermath series of novels, where it was revealed he had retrieved some damaged Mandalorian armour and was wearing it to protect the local area. It had long been presumed that Vanth's armour was actually Boba's, but to see it confirmed in Friday's Season 2 opener is still pretty cool.

Olyphant - himself no stranger to Westerns, having previously portrayed Seth Bullock on HBO's critically acclaimed Deadwood - portrays Vanth brilliantly. He's a classic Western archetype (the season opener leans into the Western genre with particular gusto), but you can just tell he's having a blast on screen. A highlight for those already familiar with the character I'm sure.

The episode reveals how Vanth found Boba's armour scavenged by Jawas and used it to liberate his town from a terrible mining company in the wake of the Empire's collapse. Din Djarin isn't too pleased that he's wearing the armour though (ironic, given Boba wasn't a "true" Mandalorian either), and demands to see it returned. Vanth is happy to oblige, so long as Mando assists him by slaying a Krayt Dragon that's terrorising the town, which then becomes the main focus of the episode.

It remains to be seen if we'll see Vanth again, but his appearance was a highlight nonetheless.