The Mandalorian season 3 finale review: What we've been waiting for

Season 3 has largely lacked the structure that brought seasons 1 and 2 together so nicely. At times, we've been dawdling, with Jon Favreau's admission that he doesn't know how the show is going to ultimately end certainly not helping matters.

But, while some will argue that the finale to season 3 was too safe, it was a satisfying end to a rocky season. It brought (some) threads together nicely, with a villain return that didn't rely on fan service.

We saw our heroes at their best: Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal) fighting Moff Gideon (Giancarlo Esposito) and his clones in a tense battle, Bo-Katan (Katee Sackhoff) being as badass as ever, and Grogu at his most powerful using the force – and finally becoming a Mandalorian.

While many may have been expecting it, a shock appearance from a new character was never the way to go for the season 3 finale. It worked well in season 2 and made complete sense for the story, but any more random cameos in season 3 could have come across as lazy.

Although some threads have still not really been tied up (we would have liked to see more from Dr Pershing after episode 3's refreshing new story), episode 8 feels like a return to form that we've been missing throughout the whole season.

Where do we go from here, then? It seems likely that there will be less of a focus on Mando and Grogu. While we're sure we'll see some of their adventures for the New Republic, we'll flit back and forth between them and Mandalore. At this point, it does seem like we need a change, with some fans getting a little bored of the premise 24 episodes in.

Regardless, wasn't it a nice change to have a happy ending? Maybe that's letting the show off too easily but, at the heart of it, Mando and Grogu's bond was where we started and a great way to see out their story for now.

The Mandalorian season 3 finale recap

Episode 8 kicked off at the heart of the action, with the Mandalorians fighting the returning Moff Gideon.

Despite fears that Djarin could die this episode, he expertly wards off his captors with some help from Grogu in the IG-12 suit. Djarin decides that Gideon needs to be dealt with once and for all, while Gideon decides to fight Djarin himself.

R5 helps Djarin with his plot, hacking into the schematics and gaining control of the shields, while Djarin and Grogu head to the Command Center, where they expect Gideon to be. However, they only find Gideon's clones, making it clear why he was so interested in Dr Pershing's research. However, the clones are short-lived, with Djarin flooding the room.

Bo-Katan leads her troops to safety in the surface caves, before urging them: "Let's take back our planet."

Djarin and Grogu finally find Gideon (well, he finds them), and he's not too happy. It seems he had high hopes for his clones – hopes that have been dashed by Djarin.

"My clones were finally going to be perfect,” he explains. “The best parts of me, but improved by adding the one thing I never had: The Force. I was isolating the potential to wield The Force, and incorporating it into an unstoppable army. And you smothered them before they could take their first breath.”

He sets the Praetorian Guards on Grogu while fighting Djarin himself, and Bo-Katan rocks up in the nick of time. Bo-Katan fights Gideon with the Darksaber, before he manages to crush the age-old weapon in the palm of his hand.

At this point, the world is quite literally falling apart around our heroes and, while Grogu manages to protect them with The Force, the flames engulf Gideon, making it rather unlikely that he'll survive a second time (although never say never! We're not convinced we've seen the last of those clones).

Cut to little Ragnar (remember him? Paz Viszla's son, who almost got killed by a giant bird), saying the Creed, as we come full circle to revisit the beginning of the season.

Djarin argues that, although he can't speak the Creed, Grogu should become his apprentice. In order to give permission, he adopts him as his own.

The final scenes of the season show Djarin reuniting with Greef Karga (Carl Weathers) to tell him that he'll now be taking on select missions for the New Republic. He also reveals that he was able to find the missing parts to bring back IG-11, who will now be Marshal of Nevarro.

We end with Djarin watching over Grogu as he practices using The Force, with the pair seemingly at peace – for now.

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