The first episode of the newest Star Wars series, The Book of Boba Fett, has finally premiered, and with it have come some long-awaited answers about how Boba Fett survived what was thought to be a gruesome fate by way of a Sarlacc.
During season 2 of The Mandalorian, Star Wars fans were shocked to see the return of the infamous bounty hunter Boba Fett, who had accidentally fallen into the treacherous pit of a hungry Sarlacc and died in the 1983 film Return of the Jedi. While he did survive in the Expanded Universe, those stories were wiped from canon in 2014 in preparation for The Force Awakens and subsequently referred to as Legends. So for all intents and purposes, Boba Fett was still canonically dead up until his reappearance in 2020.
Temuera Morrison, who has a lengthy history with Lucasfilm that dates back to his 2002 appearance as Jango Fett in Attack of the Clones, suited up as Boba Fett for The Mandalorian. Despite Fett’s minimal screen time in the original trilogy, the bounty hunter has been a fan favorite character for decades, so his epic revival was a truly a cause for celebration. But one question still remained — how exactly did Boba Fett escape the Sarlacc pit? The first episode of The Book of Boba Fett has come bearing answers.
The episode opens with a sleeping Boba Fett. The bounty hunter was shown as being heavily scarred in The Mandalorian, but given his new status as the crime lord of Tatooine, he now has the luxury of sleeping in a bacta pod to heal. But his time asleep seems to be fraught with nightmares. Following a flashback to a very young Boba Fett mourning the death of Jango Fett in Attack of the Clones, we then see what happened when he woke up in the belly of the Sarlacc. Coughing and gasping for air, he turns on the light on his helmet and quickly takes stock of his surroundings. Spotting a seemingly lifeless stormtrooper, he makes his way over and steals some air from their breathing tube. Then, he engages his flamethrower, burns his way through the creature, and eventually digs his way up to the surface of the sand.
Exhausted, Fett passes out. A pack of Jawas later shows up on a sandcrawler and pilfers all of his armor, which would later fall into the hands of Cobb Vanth (as seen in The Mandalorian). As for Boba Fett? He was found by Tusken Raiders who decided to take him hostage. While his attempts to escape were futile, and he was unable to best them in battle, it was shown at the end of the episode that Fett had perhaps begun to prove himself to their leader after defeating a monstrous sand creature in battle with nothing but his chains.
It remains to be seen what other flashbacks are in store from The Book of Boba Fett, but it’s safe to assume that Boba Fett likely went on to gain the respect of the Tuskens. This would explain Fett’s fighting style and use of a gaderffii as a melee weapon, as first shown in The Mandalorian episode “The Tragedy.”
The next episode of The Book of Boba Fett will premiere exclusively on Disney+ on Wednesday, January 5. Stay tuned for our weekly coverage, including episodic recaps and more!
