When should The Mandalorian end?
Disney's confirmed that there is, indeed, more of The Mandalorian in the works – but let's consider for a moment that they do not follow through. Would it be the end of the world? Or would you be satisfied with the characters going their separate ways, appearing only in alternate media like comic books and novels from this point on?
The following contains spoilers for the end of The Mandalorian Season 2, if that weren't already obvious. At this point if you've not already watched and enjoyed the entirety of the series, I suggest you take a peek at this article: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love The Mandalorian.
Now, let's talk about why The Mandalorian should be allowed to die, immediately.
What's happened already
Over the two seasons of The Mandalorian already released, our main character went from a good, but struggling bounty hunter, to a decked-out master of the deadly arts. He's learned to love, thanks to Grogu, he's learned that his life won't just END if he breaks his chosen life code – he can take his helmet off.
He's delivered Grogu to another one of "his kind" and he's got his pick of riches thanks to his assisting the future leaders of Mandalore. What's left to say?
And what's left to see, now that Grogu went elsewhere and we're no longer filling the Mandalorian void in our hearts with Din Djarin – we've got Boba Fett! The Book of Boba Fett begins in December of 2021 – what's left for Din Djarin?
Just the intro please and thank you
The series introduced by Disney for Disney+ over the next few years can be separated into two categories: Character series and Crew series. The Mandalorian was a Character series. Regardless of the number of characters in the series, the title of the series dictates that we focus on the path of the single hero.
SEE TOO: Star Wars Loop Order: Beyond the Machete
A crew series allows more leeway. The Bad Batch is set to premiere in 2021 with a cast of characters first introduced in the final season of The Clone Wars. That's a series that could go on for a very long time.
With The Mandalorian, Disney has the opportunity to utilize the series to introduce the character then... let him free to appear in other series, movies, books, comics, and so forth. Disney could conceivably take part in the trend – the GOOD trend – of television shows stopping when they've run their course, on their own terms, rather than going too long and facing cancellation because they've run out of steam.
TV shows can end on the
Two television shows that executed this "stop when the time is right" strategy are The Kroll Show and Schitts Creek. Both shows COULD have gone on longer, but they stopped at points where their stories made sense to end. They created neat packages that can live on forever.
There may be another season left in The Mandalorian, but beyond that, Disney is going to ram right into a natural point of diminishing returns, especially if they go through with releasing The Book of Boba Fett, The Bat Batch, Star Wars: Visions, Ahsoka, Rangers of the New Republic, Obi-Wan Kenobi, The Acolyte, A Droid Story, Lando, and several more movies in the next few years.
Would you be sad to see The Mandalorian go after another season? Do you think a void left by the ending of The Mandalorian could be filled by the barrage of other Star Wars series coming to Disney+ in the near future?