'The Mandalorian' Season 3, Episode 3: 'The Convert' Recap and Review
After an exciting second episode, the series slows it down with a look into the pitfalls and CHALLENGES of repentance
WARNING: Contains Spoilers
It is always an uphill battle when trying to rehabilitate a character after presenting them as the one who led the torturous research on America’s favorite little green force wielder. But it seems the formula has been cracked by the showrunners and seems to be, feed them to someone worse. Aside from a very impressive dogfight sequence at the very beginning and a great character progression moment at the end, there was very little Mandalorian in this episode. But his absence has been earned after the stellar episode to predicate this one. Instead we follow a character whose importance has been minute up to this point. His story, although intriguing, is dragged down by his inherent likeability. This has been done before in the Star Wars Series', see Kyle Soller in Andor, but where the other character was brewed with simmering obsession and unpredictability, this character is, to put it simply, meek. What saves the episode from loosing the audience completely is the aforementioned wolf that he is fed to. It takes a minute for her to shed her sheepskin but when she does, her fangs are long and sharp.
Our episode begins with Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal) and Bo-Katan Kryze (Katee Sackhoff) and Grogu still in the mines of Mandalore as they recover from Din’s near death experience. Bo-Katan probes Din to see if remembers anything, which he does not, but curiously does not mention the Mythosaur. All is quiet as they travel back to her planet within the Mandalore system until a squadron of Tie Interceptors attacks. During the attack Din is able to board his own ship and the two manage to take out the squadron. But in the distance there are a series of explosions and it becomes clear that there was a bombing run and Bo-Katan’s home was destroyed. Another squad approaches, forcing the two Mandalorians to flee for somewhere Din deems safe. Across the Galaxy on Coruscant, there is a gathering in progress, in the center of the packed hall is Dr. Penn Pershing (Omid Abtahi) telling his story. Attending the talk is another former Imperial officer, Elia Kane (Katy M. O’Brian). After the talk, where Dr. Pershing talks about his research, he endures the questions from the republic socialites before going home to a complex dedicated to housing for Imperials who sought Amnesty. In the courtyard he is called over by a group of reformed Imperials but is taken aback when he recognizes Kane from Moff Gideon’s ship. Reluctantly, he joins them for a drink and they reminisce about little things about the time they spent as Imperials, including some travel biscuits. At night, there is a ring at Dr. Pershing’s door, he goes to investigate but finds no one, only a box of travel biscuits. During the day Dr. Pershing has to endure typical office small talk before continuing with his mundane work. In the evening, he and Kane enjoy frozen treats in the city square and he reveals that he misses his research. Kane encourages him to not give up before the two leave. The next day, Dr. Pershing attends an interview gauging his acclimation to republic life. He takes the chance and asks about continuing his research but the nature of the research is now illegal. He returns to the complex and finds Kane in the courtyard. He tells her about his research being denied but she continues to encourage him, offering him a chance to continue but he is reluctant. The next day Dr. Pershing once again continues his mundane work, but this time he comes across imperial tech that he believes could benefit the republic and brings it to his superiors attention but again is discouraged. After another interview, he visits Kane, and the two plan to retrieve the equipment he needs to continue his research. The two dress in inconspicuous clothing and travel across the city. They sneak onto a train but it is not long before security droids come looking for their tickets. They make a daring escape and head to a refuse yard to raid a decommissioned Imperial Cruiser. Once aboard, they begin to gather the equipment needed but are interrupted by a strange noise, they hurry and run out of the ship but are caught by Republic Officers. They both look caught, until Kane calmly picks up the equipment and moves to the side of the Officers, she had betrayed Pershing. The Doctor wakes up strapped to a gurnie where a health officer prepares him for a treatment. He begs and pleads with them, saying that she set him up, but it is no use. He recognizes the machine they are using as a Mind Flayer, but they say it is safe at low doses. Kane watches on as another republic officer commends her on her work. Everyone else leaves, leaving Kane and Dr. Pershing. Alone, Kane cranks up the dial, causing Dr. Pershing immense pain. We return to Din and Bo-Katan as they arrive at the hiding place of Din’s group. They are greeted by the Mandalorians and almost turned away by Paz Vizsla (Tait Fletcher), but Din claims redemption and is allowed in and a chance to prove it. Inside, the Armorer (Emily Swallow) is waiting for them. The Armorer confirms that the proof is real and welcomes Din back, but does not stop there. She deems Bo-Katan to be redeemed as well which surprises her. One by one they Mandalorians congratulate Bo-Katan as she looks at the symbol of the Mythosaur hanging on the wall.
She almost had us fooled. As Dr. Pershing slowly leaves his shell and opens up to Kane there was an underlying question of why this was all happening? Fans of the series are led to speculate about the two forming a bond and it leading to their involvement in the new republic or possibly the First Order. But at the very end of their story the rug was pulled out from underneath Pershing and it was clear that Kane simply wanted revenge. This betrayal was both impressive and intimidating as it honestly seemed like the two were on their way to forming some sort of bond that would lead to the two progressing in the story together. Her future looks 100% leading back to Mof Gideon and possibly the First Order. As forMado’s story, the opening dogfight with the Imperial Interceptors brought back memories of Top Gun: Maverick i the best way and also saved the episode from being completely devoid of action. But the scene was really a ploy to give Bo-Katan a reason to continue her journey with Din by destroying her home in a bombing run. This leads to a real path altering moment for Bo-Katan. Before this episode she was dejected and lethargic to the point of concern. She had no one left to help her in the fight for her home, she lost all interest in the Darksaber, and saw the Din and his group as cultists or religious extremists. But after exiling Mando and labeling him as an apostate they welcome him back with open arms with very little hesitation upon learning of his redemption. Without it being her goal, Bo-Katan is also redeemed in the eyes of the group giving her community, acceptance, and a fiercely loyal group to help her accomplish her goals that she had given up on completely. So far this seems to be more of a season about Bo-Katan than it is Din, which is perfectly fine considering the series is called The Mandalorian and not The Adventures of Din and Grogu.
Overall the episode was not bad by any means, just a tad slower than fans of the series are used to. Suddenly we have sympathy for the man who was ready to dissect Grogu, fear of a person that was featured so lightly in the previous seasons it was hard to even remember her, and a new Mandalorian poised to start a massive journey that could lead to the re-establishment of one of the most storied planets and peoples in the history of Star Wars. Big things are coming for the characters in this series and it should be very interesting to see what this leads to overall in the Galaxy far far away.