The Mandalorian season one recap: All the action so far in the Star Wars spin-off

Anakin Skywalker's former padawan Ashoka Tano is making the leap to live-action for the first time, now played by Daredevil star Rosario Dawson, while Temuera Morrison is also returning to Star Wars - possibly as the legendary Boba Fett.

But before we can dive into all this brand new action, let's make sure we're thoroughly debriefed on all that came before; here's your full recap of The Mandalorian season one.

The Mandalorian season one recap

The opening chapter of season one introduces us to a mysterious Mandalorian bounty hunter, nicknamed Mando by his associates, as he takes in a no-good target with ruthless efficiency.

We learn that he's a member of a bounty hunting guild led by Greef Karga (Carl Weathers), who supplies him with the information necessary to complete each mission and handles payments.

Wishing for a big score, Mando is tipped off about a man on Nevarro known as The Client (Werner Herzog), who has ties to the now-collapsed Galactic Empire and is offering a huge sum of money for a special acquisition.

Mando accepts and heads to his new target's last known location, but isn't sure what exactly he's looking for; upon arrival on the remote planet, he meets a humble alien farmer named Kuiil who points him in the right direction.

The path leads him to a heavily guarded camp where he encounters a bounty hunting droid called IG-11, who is attempting to capture the same elusive target.

The two form a short-lived alliance to defeat the camp guards, but that quickly falls apart when Mando sets his eyes on what he has been sent to retrieve: an adorable green alien that fans commonly refer to as Baby Yoda.

Having little knowledge of the Jedi order, The Child is a complete mystery to Mando and unlike anything else he has ever seen, prompting him to destroy IG-11 when it attempts to kill the infant creature.

Mando heads back to his ship with The Child beside him in a levitating space crib, only to find his craft stripped of its essential parts by a pesky group of Jawas.

He agrees to fetch a coveted item for the Jawas in exchange for his ship parts back and during the mission discovers that his pint-sized sidekick has considerable force powers, lifting a huge alien beast called a Mudhorn (previously seen in Attack of the Clones).

Kuiil helps Mando repair his ship and the two form a friendship, but the charismatic farmer refuses an invitation to join the bounty hunter on his journey back to Nevarro.

Mando returns to The Client and hands over The Child, a decision he instantly regrets as he wonders what terrible fate awaits the abandoned infant.

After visiting his underground Mandalorian tribe for an armour upgrade, he returns to The Client's hideout and stages a daring rescue that puts him at odds with a former ally, Greef Karga.

With help from his fellow Mandalorians, Mando is able to escape Nevarro with The Child in tow, fleeing to a quiet forest planet called Sorgan.

While there, he meets former Rebel Alliance fighter Cara Dune (Gina Carano) and is soon hired by members of a peaceful tribe who have been suffering terrible attacks from a group of brutal raiders.

Mando and Cara teach the villagers how to defend themselves and help them to defeat their foes, while The Child becomes very popular among the children of the tribe.

In fact, Mando briefly considers leaving the infant in their care, until a rival bounty hunter finds them and almost mounts a successful attack, making it clear that The Child's presence would only endanger the kind people.

The next stop on Mando's whistle-stop galaxy tour is the familiar Mos Eisley, Tatooine, first seen in the original Star Wars film back in 1977.

He leaves The Child in the care of a friendly mechanic named Peli Motto and teams up with a young bounty hunter Toro Calican (Jake Cannavale), who wants to prove his worth by capturing fugitive Fennec Shand (Ming-Na Wen).

After tracking her down in the desert, Shand explains to Calican that Mando is also a fugitive, and the price on his head is worth far more than the one on hers.

Calican shoots her before racing back to kidnap The Child from Motto, but Mando is able to catch up and kill his inexperienced rival. Later, an unidentified person approaches Shand's body, suggesting her story may not be over.

In the hope of earning some money while an enemy of the bounty hunter guild, Mando gets in touch with some criminals from his chequered past.

Predictably, they betray him and attempt to trap him on a maximum security prison ship, only to find the tables turned on them when The Mandalorian stages his own devious double cross - leaving those bridges well and truly burned.

In the two-part finale, Mando returns to Nevarro after receiving word from Karga that his town is overrun with ex-Empire troops, in the employ of The Client.

Not wishing to go in without backup, Mando recruits his allies Kuiil and Cara Dune to join him on the trip, in addition to a reprogrammed IG-11 focused on protecting The Child.

They meet Karga and begin the long journey back to town, but on their way are attacked by a vicious flying creatures called Mynocks, who leave Karga grievously wounded.

It is at this point that The Child demonstrates his most incredible force power to date, healing Karga's injuries and winning him back to their side.

Karga tells them of a planned ambush and works with them on a plan to defeat The Client and his associates; Dune and Karga escort Mando into the town under the pretence that he has been captured, while Kuiil returns The Child to the ship.

We then finally meet the real big bad of The Mandalorian: Giancarlo Esposito's Moff Gideon, formerly a high-ranking Imperial officer and now pursuing The Child for reasons unknown.

He opens fire on Mando, Karga and Dune, while two of his troops chase down Kuiil, ultimately killing him and abducting The Child to return to Gideon.

Fortunately, the galaxy's toughest babysitter IG-11 is able to rescue the infant before they can and rushes to the aid of his trapped comrades.

The group flees underground where they encounter the armourer of Mando's tribe, a senior figure tasked with enforcing tradition and crafting vital equipment.

She tasks him with protecting The Child and tracking down the rest of its species, before awarding him with a jetpack akin to those previously worn by Jango and Boba Fett.

The armourer stays behind while the rest of the group continue with their escape; IG-11 makes the ultimate sacrifice, self-destructing to save his allies from a group of stormtroopers.

Gideon attacks in a TIE fighter, but Mando is able to use his snazzy new gadget to take the craft down leaving Gideon presumed dead. It would have been wise to check.

In the closing moments of the season, Gideon emerges from his crashed ship wielding none other than the Darksaber, a mythical weapon in the Star Wars universe which is particularly precious to Mandalorians.

Mando bids farewell to Karga and Dune, who choose to stay on Nevarro, taking The Child on a journey to find its true origins - which have never been explored in the history of this franchise.

That means we can expect some big revelations to come in season two. And now you're ready to watch!

Fancy some more Mando content? Check out Disney's very own recap video below, or read more about The Mandalorian release schedule, the Darksaber, Moff Gideon, Ahsoka Tano and more.

The Mandalorian season two premieres on Disney Plus on Friday 30th October. Looking for something else to watch? Check out our guide to the best movies on Disney Plus and best shows on Disney Plus, or visit our TV Guide to see what's on tonight.