They really don’t matter, but since some people seem to care, there are spoilers in what follows.
Boba Fett has always been one of the most disappointing characters for me. He was hyped like crazy when The Empire Strikes Back came out. The action figure and his ship were some of the biggest toys. Then, he was barely in the movie. And he had virtually no action scenes. There’s that little hallway shootout, but that’s it.
When Return of the Jedi came out, they had a chance to redeem him, but didn’t. Almost as soon as his opportunity arises, he gets jabbed in the back and winds up in the sarlacc. That’s all he does. He was billed as the most feared bounty-hunter in the galaxy, then he gets all of two lines of dialogue and dies, looking pretty inept as he does.
Ever since, Star Wars has been trying to fix their Boba problem. He got a cameo in the special edition reissue of A New Hope. He was introduced as a child in Attack of the Clones. And we got to see his early career as a bounty hunter in The Clone Wars TV show. He’s not exactly memorable in any of those appearances.
Now, The Mandalorian has brought him back yet again, even though it is set after Return of the Jedi and he clearly died in Jedi. I mean, the sarlacc even burped after it swallowed him. I can get over that. It is a fantasy after all. They brought Maul back after he got cut in half. But, I can’t help but wonder why they keep bringing Boba Fett back.
There’s no story reason for Boba to be in anything other than the end of Empire. He’s got virtually no personality. The Mandalorian did, finally, show him to be a skilled fighter, but he could have been anyone and filled the same role. I actually think it would have been better, story-wise, if he had been an old clone trooper instead of Boba Fett.
I know it all comes down to fan service. I just wonder what fans they’re servicing. It’s hard to believe that I’m the only one who has seen Boba Fett as a big disappointment for the last forty years. Just let it go already.
