Since its debut in 2019, The Mandalorian has consistently received rave reviews from fans and critics alike.
But lately, the show has fallen out of favor with viewers.
The final third season premiered with a well-received episode, but judging by current Rotten Tomato ratings, audiences are increasingly frustrated with the show.
Compared to the past two seasons, both of which had solid ratings in the 90s, the latest episode currently has a disappointing 50% Audience Score and 87% Tomatometer.
“I really liked the Mandalorian, when it came to the Mandalorian. Now it’s about making guest appearances, setting up spin-offs for other shows and movies, and plot lines that replace the main character with other characters that aren’t as interesting. The Mandalorian has lost its way and I’ve given up on season three,” one viewer commented.
‘The Mandalorian has lost its way’: Fans and critics alike have declared season three of The Mandalorian a ‘massive drop in quality’
Another, who gave the current season only half a star out of five, wrote, “I used to love Mandalorian. I accepted Grogu’s return, I haven’t seen Book of Boba Fett (I can’t, it’s too boring), I was willing to see the rest of this season, but I can’t even finish the third episode.
“It was so boring, so lazy, so tired. Plot holes, lazy writing, I won’t see six episodes to receive two mediocre episodes and everyone praises. I’m done with the Mandalorian and I’m done with Star Wars. Star Wars is really dead.’
One reviewer noted that Pedro Pascal’s character was “sidelined and humiliated,” but that they were slightly more generous in their rating, giving it two stars out of five.
They referenced a shift in focus in season three, with the series now largely focusing on Bo-Katan Kryze (Katee Sackhoff) rather than Pedro’s Din Djarin.
“It was a good two-season storyline, with Season 3 where the writing quality dropped massively and the main character was sidelined and humiliated,” the viewer wrote.
The drop in ratings is evident on IMDb, where the April 5 episode, Chapter 22: Guns for Hire, received a 6.4 out of 10. In previous seasons of the show, episodes never went below 7.
Critics have also taken notice of the changes, with a March 16 review of from CNN Brian Lowry headlined, “The Mandalorian is experiencing an identity crisis in more ways than one.”
“The Mandalorian” is experiencing an identity crisis, and it goes beyond the semi-religious issue of taking off his helmet. Rather, the third season seemed to falter a bit in terms of focus, as underlined by the third episode – an extended, if enticing, detour into the story of a peripheral character,” he wrote.
MovieWeb didn’t hold back his analysis, noting that the aimless series “had no justification for its continued existence.”
New star: Season three largely focuses on Bo-Katan Kryze (Katee Sackhoff) rather than Pedro’s Din Djarin
Ouch: Collider was blunt, headlined an April 1 review, ‘Here’s What’s Killing The Mandalorian Season 3’
Disney’s most successful weapon in the streaming wars fails miserably as more than halfway through season three of The Mandalorian, the beloved Star Wars series still struggles to gain a foothold after too many poorly developed plot threads with no clear overarching goal and no justification for continued existence, resulting in increasingly dissatisfied viewers and a drastic drop in viewership as the season progresses.”
It cited The Book of Boba Fett as one of the major contributors to season three’s downfall, as The Mandalorian’s storyline continued on that show, confusing viewers who hadn’t seen it when season three returned.
Not many people watched The Book of Boba Fett in the first place, and when they returned to The Mandalorian, many fans were left confused to see the iconic duo reunited without any explanation.
“It smacks of lazy writing, undoing all the progression of the past two seasons, exposing that the show made the same mistake as the sequels, having no plan,” they wrote.
Collider didn’t mince words and headlined an April 1 review, “Here’s What’s Killing The Mandalorian Season 3.”
Confusing: Cameos made by big stars like Lizzo, Jack Black and Christopher Lloyd “gave off a campy Star Wars Holiday Special vibe,” The Hollywood Reporter noted
Uh-oh: The falling ratings are evident on IMDb, where the April 5 episode, Chapter 22: Guns for Hire, got a 6.4 out of 10
In addition, cameos made by big stars like Lizzo, Jack Black and Christopher Lloyd gave off “campy Star Wars Holiday Special vibes,” noted The Hollywood Reporter.
Earlier this month, The Mandalorian’s executive producer Rick Famuyiwa spoke about the changing dynamics of the show’s lead roles, with the focus now on multiple Mandalorians instead of Din and Grogu.
“I think now that Bo owns the Darksaber, I know there were a lot of expectations that could have changed, both in terms of what it meant for Din Djarin, but also for Bo and what does it mean?” he told IGN.
‘Who is the Mandalorian at this point? And so I think it could be anyone. And I think that’s what they try to define in many ways, what does it mean to be Mandalorian?”
There is still time for things to shift.
The penultimate episode, Chapter 23: The Spies, which was released on April 12, received an impressive 9.2 on IMDb. Space. com praised the episode as “the show at its best” in their article.
After last week’s disappointing and rushed Chapter 22, Season 3 of The Mandalorian had a lot to think about and deliver on in its two remaining episodes. Fortunately, Chapter 23 is the show at its best, with spectacle, emotion and surprises over a meatier runtime, while also looking great.”
The Mandalorian is arguably the Disney streaming service’s signature program.
The first season received widespread critical acclaim and commercial success upon its debut.
The second batch of episodes received a similarly positive response from reviewers and fans of the series.
The third season of The Mandalorian, which is expected to run for a total of eight episodes, debuted March 1 on the Disney+ streaming service.
Favreau previously confirmed that he was working on the program’s fourth season in May last year.
The show’s creator then revealed that he finished working on the new season in February.
Could change: Space.com called the latest episode ‘the show at its best’