Dave Filoni Continues Contributions To 'The Mandalorian'

Dave Filoni has made a name for himself in the Star Wars universe. When the 3D animated The Clone Wars premiered in 2008, very few would have predicted that he would be known as one of the best people working on Star Wars. Some view him as the guy who "gets it" since he has worked with George Lucas. After The Clone Wars got cancelled, he worked on Star Wars Rebels, which sometimes felt like a sequel series since some of the same characters from the previous show carried over. He eventually got the chance to finish The Clone Wars, and he has also become a key player in the first live-action Star Wars series, The Mandalorian.

Back in season 1, Dave Filoni directed "The Gunslinger," the first Tatooine episode on the show (which has since been followed by the season 2 premiere, "The Marshal"). The Disney+ series really does feel like a collaboration between Filoni and the show's creator Jon Favreau, who voiced Pre Viszla on The Clone Wars. Pretty much everything that has come out regarding the work behind the scenes suggests that Filoni is Favreau's go-to guy if he ever has any questions about the Star Wars lore. We have seen stuff from the animated shows make the jump to the live-action series. These include the Loth-cat, the Darksaber, and now the spider-like creatures called krykna.

These creatures made their debut in the penultimate episode of Star Wars Rebels titled "The Mystery of Chopper Base." They are based on Ralph MacQuarrie concept art, where they were envisioned as creatures inhabiting Dagobah which Luke might encounter. In Legends, the designs were repurposed for the knobby white spider in the 1995 novel Darksaber (unrelated to the Darksaber we have seen in the TV shows). And now, they have made their live-action debut in The Mandalorian "Chapter 10: The Passenger." While the episode may feel like a "filler" episode with a not-so-impressive plot to some (myself included), the live-action interpretation of the krykna is stunning in a visual sense. It continues to give this sense that Filoni is working closely with Favreau as they try to figure out what more they can incorporate from other Star Wars media.

Plus, it is kind of nice that Filoni continues to appear as Trapper Wolf, whom he appeared as in a cameo back in season 1. Surely, he must be having fun dressing up as an X-wing pilot. And who could blame him? While "The Passenger" may not have been the best episode, it was somewhat nice that it made the season 1 episode "The Prisoner" relevant again in a way. It no longer feels like a random standalone episode, as great as it was feeling like a horror movie.

Given what we have been hearing about this season, it feels very much like a certainty that Filoni has influenced some of this season in a major way. He directed the upcoming fifth episode of the season, which many are speculating may be the one that includes a live-action portrayal of Ahsoka Tano from the animated content. I am not of the opinion that Dave Filoni can do no wrong, but I am very interested in seeing what more he may add to Star Wars. It all lies in the execution, which can be very tricky at times. Given the mostly positive reception that he has gotten from the fanbase, however, the common wisdom seems to be that Star Wars stories big and small are generally in safe hands whenever he has a hand in them.

Written By Steven Shinder

Syndicated From Culture Slate