Enjoyed the episode overall but it's not without some issues.
The good:
- Solid visual style. Cinematography was so-so but the costumes, effects, color pallette, sets, etc. were all on point.
- Intriguing ending that should delight SW fans of any level.
The bad:
- The main character is bland and uninteresting. They have taken a huge risk in going with a masked main character. I'm sure there will be a dramatic unmasking eventually though.
- 38 minute episode in a $120m budget show is weak. Numerous scenes could have benefited from more context, some additional dialogue, or just some slow burn to provide some sort of emotional depth to our somewhat lifeless hero.
- The riding trainer alien scene felt completely pointless -- did I miss something? I guess he needed to ride one of those creatures to get to the bounty location but the reasoning for this is not given. There is nothing interesting or dangerous feeling about the planet. The terrain they pass over is slightly cracked but looked like it could be jumped over not to mention Mando has a spaceship he can fly to a different part of the planet. Weakest part of the episode.
The desire to link new characters to old ones in some way is the thing I loathe the most about SW.
Yeah this is consistently the biggest problem with new SW productions. It makes the universe feel incredibly small because it is frequently limited to already established characters and ideas. Show us more new shit.