Since “The Book of Boba Fett” started airing on Disney+ in December, there has been a significant amount of online discourse surrounding the show. Much of this discussion has been focused on whether or not this interpretation of the bounty hunter Boba Fett has lived up to the forty-year hype since he was unceremoniously killed in the “Return of the Jedi.” Through comics and other extended materials, he was resurrected and continued on to have many adventures, albeit off the big screen. When Disney took over Star Wars in 2012, they wiped the extended material from the Star Wars canon and started over. Many fans think this show does not do the old material justice, as the show has veered away from its roots deep in the canon. Whether or not this is true, the more important question is if “The Book of Boba Fett” does enough to establish Fett as a character worthy of his own show in Disney’s Star Wars universe. It does not. “The Book of Boba Fett” is, frankly, boring. It too often relies on the formula from its predecessor show, “The Mandalorian,” instead of creating its own. 

“Book of Boba Fett” is about a left-for-dead bounty hunter finding new meaning in a found family through the help of the Sand People of Tatooine, a native tribe to the planet. Then, after a tragic event, Fett decides to pivot from bounty hunting to becoming a crime lord. The concept is heaping with potential, but unfortunately, the show takes the similar slow pacing and small scale found in “The Mandalorian.”

“The Mandalorian” works as a slow-paced show because it simply exists to show cool adventures with the titular character and Grogu, his adorable surrogate child. It doesn’t require much dialogue between the two because their relationship is formed through their experiences rather than words. It’s a very mellow show meant to explore the unexplored areas of the Star Wars universe, bring in quirky side characters and provide easy entertainment. 

However, “The Book of Boba Fett,” is supposed to be an epic about an outsider’s rise to power through a space-crime empire, but it has an apparent lack of energy throughout its episodes and often wastes its viewer’s time with side plots that drag on and lead nowhere. The show also lacks scale. It features a very limited cast of characters and has a tendency to tell the viewers about the intricacies of the crime syndicates on Tatooine instead of showing them. Because of that, the conflicts that spark between the groups feel small and unimportant. 

The characters themselves are a mixed bag. Actress Ming-Na Wen returns as Fennec Shand from “The Mandalorian” as Fett’s right-hand woman and enforcer and is as fun to watch as she always has been. It would be easy to make Shand a very unlikeable character due to her tough nature, but Wen brings a stoic charisma that makes her entertaining to watch on screen. Surprisingly, the Sand People are also great characters in this show. Despite being in Star Wars movies from the very beginning, they were previously portrayed more like animals than people. In “Book of Boba Fett,” however, their culture and tribal bond are finally explored, and the emotional bond between them and Boba Fett in their scenes together is compelling and engaging. However, when the sand people aren’t around, Fett’s lack of distinct character makes him one of the worst characters in his own show. Temuera Morrison is doing his best in the role, he clearly loves the character and is giving it his all, but the writers give him little to work with. Instead of being the honorable but ruthless bounty hunter he was in the original movies and extended material, he is mostly reduced to being an unthreatening punching bag. That isn’t to say that he doesn’t get some cool moments, but it leaves the audience desiring more. 

Like most other Star Wars projects, the music and art direction are incredible. From Ludwig Göransson’s score that takes inspiration from Morrison’s Māori roots to the costume design of Wookie bounty hunter Black Krrsantan, the show oozes the feel of classic Star Wars. It also has a stellar fifth episode that, ironically, has nothing to do with the main conflict and brings back a fan-favorite character from “The Mandalorian.” It’s so good, in fact, that it probably would have made more sense to make another season of “The Mandalorian” instead of trying to copy and paste its formula into something else. 

Overall, “The Book of Boba Fett’” feels half-baked. Fett is a character with hundreds of stories to pick from, so it’s a shame his show is mostly made up of recycled ideas from previous Star Wars properties.