Jon Favreau’s “The Mandalorian and Grogu” arrives like three breezy “Mandalorian” episodes stitched together—bright, family-friendly, and frequently adorable—yet capped by a generic feel that leaves it feeling small. With Pedro Pascal returning as Mando and Ba
When “The Mandalorian and Grogu” opens. it wastes no time dropping Mando and his tiny companion into a familiar kind of mission—only this time. the stakes and geography feel stretched for the big screen. Mando (Pedro Pascal) and Grogu are hunting the last vestiges of the Empire. and the film makes it clear fairly early on—without a crawl—that even if you’re not caught up. you’ll get the gist.
What follows has the breezy logic of a show episode with upgraded scale. The latest assignment sends Mando to Nal Hutta. home of the Hutts. where Colonel Ward (Sigourney Weaver) has dispatched Mando. Zeb (Steve Blum). and Grogu to make nice with the current Hutt leadership. Ward frames it like a transaction—“I’m an independent contractor”—while offering Mando a reward described as a sleek refurbished ship and the respect of Colonel Ward.
The New Republic’s intelligence, after years of finessing the Hutts, has finally lined up a deal. The terms are straightforward: retrieve the Hutts’ nephew and Jabba’s only son, Rotta (Jeremy Allen White), from kidnappers. In return, the Hutts will offer key information about an Empire heavyweight that “no one else can identify.”.
From there, the movie hits the franchise’s favorite rhythm—Point A to Point B to Point A to Point C—while keeping the destination changes feeling like promised treats. There’s Nal Hutta (“lush, squishy”) and Shakari, a neon cityscape that leans hard on Ludwig Göransson’s techno-leaning score.
Rotta, though, is not exactly thrilled to be found. When the film reveals the reason for the young Hutt’s more athletic. UFC-fighter look—he’s basically a fighter now. and a star on Shakari. stepping out from Jabba the Hutt’s shadow—it lands as motivation the franchise has always used: generational trauma. framed as a desire not to become your father. Rotta’s understandable refusal—“Don’t worry. I’m not my father”—comes with the cost of the story’s darker turn. In the middle of the matches and the aftermath. there’s a debt hanging over him. held by a character identified in the film as Jonathan Coyne. who plans to off Rotta in his last match.
Once Mando, Grogu, and Rotta are forced toward the same team, the trio becomes, in the reviewer’s words, an absolutely brain-breaking mix. Even so, the movie makes its case quickly: the visuals can swing wildly, but the idea is that the group must survive long enough to make the mission work.
The film keeps layering in “Star Wars” references and popular-culture nods—everything from the trash compactor sequence in “A New Hope” to modern favorites such as “Top Gun” and “Blade Runner. ” plus a touch of “Streets of Fire.” These touches might land for fans looking for recognition. but they also come off as expected rather than surprising.
Then comes the part that ultimately shapes the review’s bottom line: the story often feels like “three good-enough TV episodes smushed together.” At two hours and 12 minutes. “The Mandalorian and Grogu” is built like it’s trying to justify the big-screen move—action sequences included—but the pacing still reads episodic. One moment the Rotta mission is complete (or so it seems). and the next Mando and Grogu are home handling housekeeping. including a visit that brings four adorable Anzellan mechanics into the mix.
Creature design and character presence vary wildly from moment to moment. Aside from Grogu and the Anzellans. many of the new beings are reptilian—from Hutt security teams to a whimsical bayou crocodile character who has homemade medicines and slingshot gags. Still, the movie’s reliance on CGI is described as a drag on many non-Mando characters, leaving them feeling lifeless. Grogu stays undeniably cute, but the reviewer says he remains “puppet-y,” and that it works only sometimes.
Later-act scripting choices also rearrange the cast at will. A scene in which Rotta and Grogu frolic on the beach is singled out as one of the weirdest moments in a “Star Wars” entry. and therefore memorable—precisely because the film doesn’t always give viewers many other “sticky” scenes to hold onto. Actual character development shows up more in the waning minutes. but it’s framed as something that could have been stronger if it had been rounded out more fully earlier.
What’s left, when the credits roll, is a story that the review calls charming in the moment and almost instantly forgettable. The conclusion is blunt: it feels disposable—like content—and it leaves the reviewer wanting something bigger.
The reviewer’s grade is C+.
Disney will release “The Mandalorian and Grogu” in theaters on Friday, May 22.
The Mandalorian and Grogu review Jon Favreau Pedro Pascal Grogu Baby Yoda Sigourney Weaver Martin Scorsese Jeremy Allen White Ludwig Göransson Nal Hutta Shakari Rotta Zeb Anzellan mechanics Disney theaters May 22