Book Of Boba Fett: Biggest Unanswered Star Wars Questions After Episode 2
The Book of Boba Fett's second episode raises fascinating questions regarding Fett and Shand's latest enemies and Boba's ties with Tusken Raiders.
Warning: Contains SPOILERS for The Book of Boba Fett, episode 2
The Book of Boba Fett episode 2 continues the story of the fan-favorite former bounty hunter, answering questions and raising new ones in the process. Having survived his fall into the sarlacc pit in Return of the Jedi and made his triumphant canon timeline return in The Mandalorian, Boba Fett’s newfound position of the criminal daimyo of Tatooine is providing him with new challenges that his straightforward career as a bounty hunter might not have prepared him for. Meanwhile, flashbacks continue to fill the gap between Return of the Jedi and The Mandalorian, showing Fett working alongside a tribe of Tusken Raiders and undergoing significant character development, explaining his newfound attitude in The Book of Boba Fett.
In The Book of Boba Fett episode 2, “The Tribes of Tatooine” sees Boba Fett and Fennec Shand return to Mos Espa following an unsuccessful assassination attempt on the pair. There they find new enemies in not only Mos Espa’s leader, Mok Shaiz, but “The Twins,” a pair of Hutt crime lords who seek to commandeer Boba Fett’s fledgling criminal empire on Tatooine. The episode highlights how fragile Fett’s rule could be, with Tatooine’s criminal element not respecting the former bounty hunter quite yet and the deceitful leaders in Mos Espa each potentially conspiring to undermine him. The episode also sees the live-action debut of a bounty hunter that Star Wars comic readers may be familiar with.
Boba Fett’s flashbacks to his training and partnership with a Tusken Raider tribe include some fascinating new developments. Longtime Star Wars fans were treated to Tosche Station, a location infamously referenced by Luke Skywalker in A New Hope and shown in one of the film’s deleted scenes. Skywalker’s childhood friends, Camie and Fixer, were both shown being rescued from a swoop gang by Fett. The flashbacks also reveal that Fett was accepted as a member of the tribe, explaining his new outfit and Tusken Raider weaponry in The Mandalorian season 2. In addition to continuing Fett’s character development, The Book of Boba Fett also humanizes the Tusken Raiders in ways that haven’t been done before, outside of the Star Wars Legends continuity.
During their interrogation of the Order of the Night Wind assassin, Boba Fett and Fennec Shand drop him into the late Jabba’s rancor pit. The thought of being devoured by the beast proved enough to make the assassin talk, but Fett and Shand’s trick might only work so many times. Bib Fortuna didn’t replace Jabba’s beast in the years following his predecessor’s death, but as Fett grows his criminal empire, he may find himself in need of a new monster to execute (or terrorize) his enemies. Pateesa, Jabba’s rancor in Return of the Jedi, died in the film, but perhaps Fett could replace him with Muchi, another rancor of Jabba’s, seen in Star Wars: The Bad Batch.
The Order of the Night Wind assassin wasn’t intimidated by Boba Fett and Fennec Shand, but he quickly claimed that he’d been hired by Mok Shaiz when dropped into the empty rancor pit. The assassin’s confession seemed a bit too easily extracted, even with the false threat of a rancor killing him. The assassin could have falsely accused Mos Espa’s mayor of hiring him, saving himself without betraying his client in the process. Mok Shaiz, rather suspiciously, has the assassin killed shortly after he’s brought before him by Fett and Shand. As the season progresses, the identity of the assassin’s client will likely be revealed.
Mok Shaiz claims that he didn’t hire the assassins who attacked Boba Fett and Fennec Shand in the previous episode, and he implied that their true betrayer is Garsa Fwip, the owner of Mos Espa’s Sanctuary cantina. Fwip’s nervousness upon being confronted by Fett and Shand moments later could be them suspecting her treachery, but it might also be from the sudden arrival of The Twins. Shaiz claimed that the Order of the Night Wind doesn’t operate outside of Hutt space, suggesting that the assassins might have been hired by The Twins, who are working towards undermining Fett’s rule as daimyo. The ambiguity of who hired Fett and Shand’s would-be assassins teases numerous potential betrayals.
The Hutt Clan was featured prominently in Star Wars: The Clone Wars, but their leadership underwent drastic reshaping before the events of Return of the Jedi. Darth Vader kills every member of the Hutt Grand Council, save for Jabba, in Marvel’s Star Wars: War of the Bounty Hunters story arc. Following Jabba’s death in Return of the Jedi, the Hutt Clan seems to have lost a significant amount of power and influence, further evidenced by the Bounty Hunter’s Guild lacking a prescience on Tatooine, according to The Mandalorian. It’s unclear whether the Twins are attempting to acquire Jabba’s territories due to their relation to him or if they’re attempting to restore the Hutt Clan to its former glory.
The Twins threaten Boba Fett and Fennec Shand with their hired enforcer, Black Krrsantan, a Wookiee bounty hunter who some Book of Boba Fett viewers may be unfamiliar with. Star Wars comic readers, however, should be quite familiar with the Wookiee mercenary, given his prominence in Marvel’s Darth Vader and Doctor Aphra comics. Despite his many appearances, Black Krrsantan has few interactions with Boba Fett in the comics, and Fett’s dialogue in The Book of Boba Fett implies a history between the two that the comics haven’t shown yet.
During Boba Fett’s flashbacks to his time with the Tusken Raider tribe, the Chieftain mentions to Fett that Tusken Raiders have lived on Tatooine since before the world’s oceans dried up. This may be referencing Legends-era Tatooine lore, as revealed in Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic. In the Legends continuity, Tatooine was once covered in oceans and jungled, inhabited by the technologically-advanced Kumumgah species. Tatooine became part of the Rakatan Infinite Empire, which the Kumumgah successfully rebelled against. The Rakata responded by orbitally bombarding the planet, permanently altering its terrain and leading the Kumumgah to evolve into Tatooine’s Tusken Raiders and Jawas. While The Book of Boba Fett may follow The Mandalorian and bring portions of Legends lore into the post-2014 canon continuity, the planet may have become a desert world through different means as well.
The Book of Boba Fett streams Wednesdays on Disney+.