Chapter 6: From the Desert Comes a Stranger
"Chapter 6: From the Desert Comes a Stranger" is the sixth episode of the American television series The Book of Boba Fett, following Boba Fett and Fennec Shand attempting to gain control of Jabba the Hutt's crime empire after his death in Return of the Jedi (1983). The episode is set in the Star Wars universe, sharing continuity with The Mandalorian and other spin-offs such as Ahsoka, directly setting up the events of the latter series and the third season of the former series. It was written by Dave Filoni and Jon Favreau and directed by Filoni. Pedro Pascal stars in the episode as Din Djarin / The Mandalorian. Series star Temuera Morrison makes a silent cameo appearance as Boba Fett in the closing moments of the episode, while Timothy Olyphant, Rosario Dawson, Mark Hamill, and Corey Burton respectively reprise their roles as Cobb Vanth, Ahsoka Tano, Luke Skywalker, and Cad Bane from previous Star Wars media, and Grogu appears. Filming began in November 2020 and concluded in June 2021. "Chapter 6: From the Desert Comes a Stranger" was released on Disney+ on February 2, 2022, to positive reviews. Plot 
On Tatooine, Cobb Vanth, marshal of Freetown, formerly Mos Pelgo, confronts and shoots Pyke spice runners. Din Djarin flies to a forested world to visit Grogu, and is greeted by R2-D2. As Djarin rests beside a new Jedi temple, Luke Skywalker trains Grogu to use the Force. Skywalker helps the youngling to remember his home, and he recalls fellow Jedi dying during Order 66. Djarin finds Ahsoka Tano, who leads him to Grogu's location. Since Grogu's bond with Djarin may hinder him, Tano elects to hand the Armorer's gift to the youngling, while the Mandalorian returns to Tatooine. With Skywalker and Tano watching, Grogu dodges shots from a training remote. At Boba Fett's palace, the crime family discusses their manpower shortage. Djarin goes to Freetown to enlist Vanth and his people. Promising to help, Vanth sees Djarin off, before Cad Bane, an associate of the Pykes, arrives in town. After a standoff, Bane shoots both the marshal and his deputy. Two Pykes bomb the Sanctuary in Mos Espa. In the temple, Skywalker allows Grogu to either choose Djarin's gift and to stop his training, or Yoda's lightsaber and to be trained as a Jedi. Production

Development 
The episode was directed by Dave Filoni, who had collaborated on previous Star Wars projects. He was also in charge of writing the series with Jon Favreau. Several characters from previous Star Wars projects including from The Mandalorian make a return in the episode. On June 11, 2021, it was rumoured that Cobb Vanth would be returning following his appearance in the second-season premiere of The Mandalorian, following a positive reception of the fans. However, it wasn't confirmed until the release of the episode, alongside the return of Grogu. Other returning characters are Ahsoka Tano and Luke Skywalker. In the case for the latter, Favreau and Filoni elaborated a ruse in order to keep his appearance in the show as a total secret, which was very difficult due to the risks of leaks. The producers also admitted that for the Ahsoka scene with Luke, the former's actress Rosario Dawson did not know that she was speaking to the latter character, and used a false CGI character in order to fool the crew. Cad Bane who was previously in the animated series of Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Star Wars Rebels makes his live-action debut for the series with Filoni explaining that "Boba gives them a direct connection to the Star Wars saga since he was involved in that story. This creates a nice crossover point for both classic characters and new characters. Much of The Mandalorian was new, or had not been seen onscreen. Through Boba Fett, we can weave some of those characters and tales together using a character we know but don't know a lot about." Casting 
Ming-Na Wen and Temuera Morrison briefly reprise their starring roles as Fennec Shand and Boba Fett, respectively. Pedro Pascal stars in the episode as Din Djarin / The Mandalorian. Timothy Olyphant reprises his role as Cobb Vanth, from The Mandalorian. Other guest appearances include Grogu, R2D2, Rosario Dawson as Ahsoka Tano, Mark Hamill as Luke Skywalker, Corey Burton as the voice of Cad Bane, David Pasquesi as the Twi'lek majordomo to Mok Shaiz, Jennifer Beals as Garsa Fwip, and W. Earl Brown as the Weequay bartender. Carey Jones plays Black Krrsantan, a Wookie bounty hunter, who previously appeared in the Marvel Comics series, Star Wars: Darth Vader and Star Wars: Doctor Aphra. Jordan Bolger and Sophie Thatcher return in guest roles, as Skad and Drash, respectively. Music 
Joseph Shirley composed the musical score for the episode, while Ludwig Göransson composed the main theme of the series. The featured tracks were released on February 11, 2022, in the second volume of the season one soundtrack. Reception 
On Rotten Tomatoes the episode has an approval rating of 90% based on reviews from 20 critics, with an average rating of 7.9/10. The website's critics consensus states, ""From the Desert Comes a Stranger" assembles some familiar faces to deliver one of the most exciting Star Wars outings yet, although Boba Fett himself no longer feels like the star of his own show". At the 74th Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards, the episode was nominated for Outstanding Sound Editing for a Comedy or Drama Series (One-Hour). References

External links 
 
 

2022 American television episodes
Television episodes directed by Dave Filoni
Television episodes written by Dave Filoni
Television episodes written by Jon Favreau
The Book of Boba Fett episodes