The Book of Boba Fett episode 4 review: "Flashback fan service"

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Boba Fett loves Banthas. He loves Rancors. He simply loves animals. The feared bounty hunter’s soft spot for creatures big and small is not a Star Wars revelation I needed, but I am loving every second he spends with his pets. Best of all, just because we’re seeing a new side to Boba doesn’t mean that he’s gone soft. Once Boba has his ship back, he’s on a revenge mission, killing an entire biker gang and the Sarlacc that once tried to devour him. For anyone who has ever played with a Boba Fett action figure, seeing the beast eat a seismic charge is as spine-tingling as it gets.

The Book of Boba Fett essentially goes all-out on the fan service this week. We did not need to know the specifics of how Boba saved Fennec Shand. We did not need to see Boba recapture his ship. And we certainly did not need to see Boba riding back and forth over the desert another half-dozen times. Yet, the bulk of the episode revolves around answering any lingering questions we had about Boba’s post-Sarlacc, pre-Mandalorian life. 

Thank the Jedi that Boba’s bacta tank healing is over. There are some great flashback moments – the revenge on the Sarlacc pit, the kitchen droids, the Bantha love – but other scenes are tedious, filling story gaps that didn’t necessarily need filling. The invasion of Bib Fortuna’s palace should have been tense, yet it raises more questions about how the pig-like Gamorrean guards keep getting work when they are so useless. Maybe that’s why they offer their services free of charge? Either way, the action lacks any bite.

Ming-Na Wen’s Shand and Temuera Morrison’s Boba have some solid moments together. However, those only so many times they can give each other a knowing nod before it becomes almost comical. The controversial Mods also show up again in a scene that felt more indebted to The Matrix than Star Wars. The music is pumping and Thundercat’s there, but, again, it’s just a detour from where we really want to be: in Boba’s present.

Things are heating up in Mos Espa. First, Boba goes to the cantina, where Black Krrsantan’s beating on some lucky gamblers. Jennifer Beals' Twi'lek – a character bound to be cosplayed around the cosmos – gets things almost under control. Krrsantan still rips someone’s arm off. It’s a fantastic scene that uses the pieces that the show has put into play. When Boba walks outside and hires Krrsantan, it feels like an inevitable team-up that should have happened a few episodes back.

Boba then brings the heads of Tatooine’s varying factions together, forging an alliance against the Pyke Syndicate. The showrunners promised this series would be Star Wars meets The Godfather and this scene – teased through the trailers – delivers on that promise. Boba’s a powerful force who, like Shand, has brains and brawn. They are a formidable pair that have simply not been given enough screentime to politic and maneuver in Mos Espa. Now, finally, they are at war and have to assemble a squad, and that musical motif hints at a certain beskar-cladded warrior showing up soon.

With the bacta tank flashbacks over and a clearly defined fight between Boba and Pykes incoming, The Book of Boba Fett’s last three episodes look set to deliver something special. A shame it has taken so long to get here.

The Book of Boba Fett is released weekly on Disney Plus. Check out our full The Book of Boba Fett release schedule for more details. And if you want to know even more about what's coming to that galaxy far, far away, then read our guide to all the upcoming Star Wars movies and show heading your way soon.