It wouldn’t be unfair to say the third season of The Mandalorian has proven to be the weakest run of episodes by far, with many old and new Star Wars supporters alike questioning whether or not the series even continues to justify its existence.
Whereas the first two intergalactic adventures were roundly praised for taking the franchise back to its space Western roots and balancing forward-thinking storytelling with plenty of nostalgia, the balance felt more than a little off during Din Djarin and Grogu’s latest back-and-forth trip across the galaxy.
As a result, The Mandalorian experienced backlash the likes of which it had never seen before, but Disney and Lucasfilm obviously don’t care what people think after submitting virtually all of season 3’s most divisive elements for consideration at the upcoming Primetime Emmys, which is the cosmic equivalent of blowing a raspberry should it secure a handful of nods.
The respective cameos by Jack Black and Lizzo lit a fire under the furious fandom, but they’ve each been shortlisted in the Guest Actor/Actress in a Drama Series stakes. Meanwhile, “The Convert” ended up as the show’s lowest-rated episode ever in terms of its IMDb user rating, before it found itself being replaced almost immediately afterwards by “Guns for Hire.”
Wouldn’t you know it, director Lee Isaac Chung and writer Noah Kloor are among the early nominees in their respective categories having orchestrated the former, while the latter’s helmer Bryce Dallas Howard is also among the behond-the-camera candidates.
The Mandalorian may be wobbling on the tracks, but the Mouse House is still going to put its most divisive elements forth for awards season glory, so make of that what you will.
