The Book of Boba Fett brings back a relic from the prequel era

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Now this is podracing!

Star Wars The Phantom Menace
(Image credit: Lucasfilm)

The Book of Boba Fett includes a Phantom Menace-shaped surprise in this week’s episode.

Spoilers for The Book of Boba Fett episode 5 follow. You have been warned!

Goodbye Razor Crest, hello to Mando’s new ship. Upon Din Djarin’s arrival on Tatooine, Amy Sedaris’ Peli Motto tries to convince the Mandalorian to take a beaten-down starfighter she’s been working on. There’s a reason why it looks so familiar: it’s an N-1 Starfighter ripped straight from the prequels.

N1 starfighter in The Book of Boba Fett

(Image credit: Lucasfilm)

Its most prominent appearance previously was in The Phantom Menace. There, a young Anakin Skywalker took one of the Starfighters – which, as Motto mentioned, were "handmade for the royal guard and commissioned personally by the Queen of Naboo" – and helped during the Invasion of Naboo. It even entered meme folklore as Anakin uttered the line "Now this is podracing!" while in the N-1 cockpit.

Now, one of the ships is in the hands of Mando – who took it for a spin and was able to use the craft’s pre-Empire technology to give a pair of New Republic Rangers the slip.

It’s a pleasing move for those watching on Disney Plus, too. "The way they are using one of my all-time [favorite] ships for Mando makes me so happy," one The Book of Boba Fett viewer said after seeing the N-1.

Mando’s new ship wasn’t the only fun Easter egg pulled from Star Wars history. One of Peli Motto’s helper droids, BD, is in the same model as Cal Kestis’ robotic companion in the video game Jedi: Fallen Order. From prequels to PlayStation – it’s a Star Wars celebration all around this week on Tatooine.

For more on Mando’s future, check out our guide to The Mandalorian season 3.

Bradley Russell
Bradley Russell

I'm the Senior Entertainment Writer here at GamesRadar+, focusing on news, features, and interviews with some of the biggest names in film and TV. On-site, you'll find me marveling at Marvel and providing analysis and room temperature takes on the newest films, Star Wars and, of course, anime. Outside of GR, I love getting lost in a good 100-hour JRPG, Warzone, and kicking back on the (virtual) field with Football Manager. My work has also been featured in OPM, FourFourTwo, and Game Revolution.