‘The Mandalorian’ recap: Episode 3 gets interesting

Chapter 3: The Sin has a few choices in it that were easy to predict and a few that I didn't see coming. By the end of it, I'd been on a satisfying emotional journey and I'm genuinely curious about where the series will go next.

Before we get started, though, let's talk about Ludwig Göransson's music for a minute. That drumbeat is so bitchin' I'm ready to add it to my workout mix. It's suspenseful with a bit of levity, which is the tone that series creator Jon Favreau (Iron Man, Chef) captures really well in his work. It's no surprise that Göransson also scored films like Black Panther and Creed.

Alright. Let's get to it. Spoilers for the third episode of The Mandalorian ahead:

I'm gonna say what is on everyone's mind: that Yoda Baby is so goddamn cute. Like, I don't know if I want kids, but I will take that little guy. Every scene where our Mandalorian isn't cuddling that baby makes me anxious. HOLD THE BABY AND TELL HIM EVERYTHING IS GOING TO BE OKAY, YOU MONSTER.

Instead, "Mando" (I still...hate that nickname, okay? I hate it) surprises me and actually takes the Yoda Baby to The Client. He's got a guilty conscience about it, though. AS WELL HE SHOULD.

But then again, he's being paid a lot of beskar steel (like, a lot), so I get it. Still, zero part of me believes that our Mandalorian isn't going back for the baby...after he suits up with a nice new cuirass that is.

I totally get why he wanted that new armor. My DND rogue just got a Mithril breastplate and, well, it's thrilling.

The Mandalorian, Disney+

Our Mandalorian heads to The Armorer so we can get a female with a speaking role some more information about Mandalorian lore. The importance of keeping his helmet on is repeated here (I have so many questions: can he take it off when he's alone? How does he brush his teeth?), as is the protection of foundlings, who "are the future."

As other Mandalorians follow our Mandalorian and his ice cream maker of beskar steel, we learn how much they revile the fallen Empire and, presumably, its attacks against their people. "When one chooses to walk the way of the Mandalore, one becomes the hunter and the prey," intones The Armorer.

In addition to his new armor, she gives our Mandalorian "whistling birds" which have just become the new Star Wars version of Chekhov's Gun.

Is that beskar steel in your pocket or...

The Mandalorian, Disney+

Our Mandalorian heads back to Greef Karga (Carl Weathers) to accept another assignment (a Mon Calamari — fun easter egg or foreshadowing?) and we get a heavy-handed reveal that every bounty hunter in the room has a tracking fob for the Yoda Baby. Neither talk of the bounty hunter guild's code about what happens to assets when they're delivered (it's basically a don't ask, don't tell policy) nor our Mandalorian's boarding of his ship make me think for a second he's leaving that baby.

Where does he store the fuel?

The Mandalorian, Disney+

Sure enough, he heads back and makes quick work of the shoddy Stormtroopers with his marksmanship, flame throwers, and whistling birds (remember the Jericho Missile in Iron Man? They're that, but pocket-sized). The creepy clone guy begs for his life and claims that he saved the life of the Yoda Baby, who is asleep and hooked up to machines.

Personally, I think we could have gotten some intelligence from this cowering dude, but I guess our Mandalorian wanted to get the hell out of dodge. Luckily I got what I've been waiting for: Pedro Pascal cradling the Yoda Baby in his arms.

Don't judge my biological responses and I won't judge yours.

Speaking of Disney+, how great is The Rocketeer?

The Mandalorian, Disney+

Just when you think the showdown is over, our Mandalorian exits The Client's stronghold and is confronted by dozens of bounty hunters and their tracking fobs, lead by Karga. They want the baby, our Mandalorian wants the baby, I want the baby, we all want the baby.

A firefight commences.

Our Mandalorian does a pretty stellar job, considering he's outnumbered. We also get to see the impressive capabilities of his rifle, which disintegrates enemies much like the Tesseract weapons from Marvel. Still, he's in a bind...and then, a fun surprising-yet-inevitable deus-ex-machina arrives in the form of a tribe of Mandalorian, who fly in with their rocket packs and take on the bounty hunters so our Mandalorian can escape with the cutest little bounty in the universe.

After outing themselves, the Mandalorian will be forced to relocate. With a salute, our Mandalorian is waved off by one of his wingmen. He makes a mental note to get himself a rocket pack, hands the Yoda Baby a toggle from his ship (which is definitely a choking hazard, but whatever, they're bonding), and he shoots off into the stars.

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