The Mandalorian: Ranking Every Episode From Worst To Best
6. Chapter 5: The Gunslinger
Filoni's second turn in the director's chair of the season is a vast improvement over the first.
He's clearly worked through the kinks of translating his vision into live-action and the resulting product is a much more confident and nuanced episode. The opening dogfight sequence immediately puts any doubts to rest, Filoni is the real deal, whether he be dealing with animation or live-action. Later setpieces such as Mando and Calican's nighttime ambush of Fennec Shand are also handled with incredible precision and care, hitting all the right beats.
It's also worth noting that this episode is the only one written by Filoni and it shows; what could have easily been simply nostalgia-fodder becomes a subversive and intriguing examination of the post-Empire galaxy. Mos Eisley is no longer the hive of scum and villainy it once was. Droids bartend, the booths are empty, and the only bounty hunter insight is a wanna-be who's just trying to make a name for himself.
An interesting and unique episode.