The Mandalorian Episode 1 Review - 6 Ups And 1 Down

4. The Effects Really Hold Up

One of the biggest challenges that was said to prevent a live action Star Wars show from becoming a reality was the fact that any series would find itself over-budget and under-equipped. Disney have encountered no such issues with The Mandalorian (owing to the fact that, y'know, they're Disney), but it's still a pleasant surprise to see the scale of Star Wars translated almost effortlessly to the small screen.

There's a perfect blend between practical and computer-generated effects, and one thing that's also nice to see is that the show also has plenty of aliens involved too - most, if not all, rendered entirely through makeup and not CG. Given the Sequel Trilogy hasn't featured so many alien faces (at least not in any ancillary roles), it's actually pretty cool to see actors decked out in makeup and adding to Star Wars' roster of unique aliens.

Even the CG, which is only really used to showcase the Mando's ship (the Razor's Crest), Taika Waititi's IG unit, and the totally-not-horses-but-basically-they-are creatures the Mando uses to find their target in the episode's final act.

It's a major success, and illustrates the weight Disney are throwing behind their content going forward.