Disney Plus launched today and with it, the new streaming series, The Mandalorian. As a member of Generation X’s Star Wars fan corps, I had to watch. My first impressions are mostly positive and I’m feeling mostly optimistic about future episodes. Like Rogue One and The Clone Wars, The Mandalorian seems to be a real Star Wars effort.

The Mandalorian is slower moving than Star Wars fans are used to, but there’s a pulse of Star Wars life here. After the lousy The Last Jedi and so-so Solo, I wondered what would become of my favorite imaginative universe. Well, The Mandalorian is an excellent start. The series evokes a galactic spaghetti Western, complete with dusty frontier towns and the unsteady truce of lawless characters. Some may or may not know, but A New Hope had deeps roots in the American Western. Han Solo was designed after a gunslinger (complete with holster and cowboy vest); Tatooine was a desert frontier planet, and the Cantina was a nod to the rowdy saloons, where the music only stops for shootouts or barfights. In my opinion, zeroing in on the Western was a good idea by Jon Favreau.

Secondly, the use of Star Wars aliens, droids, and backgrounds played well here too. I particularly enjoyed the effective use of carbon freezing as a means for transporting captured bounties. It made sense and looked damn good on screen. The Mandalorian, himself, has a significant screen presence, but the show made it clear that the helmet is supposed to stay on. Hopefully, the writers won’t follow this rule because Pablo Pascal’s star power would give the show the “human” touch that’s lacking so far.

The dialogue was passable, but a bit tame. Carl Weathers was a welcome face to the Star Wars universe, and he looked very comfortable in his role. However, there weren’t any notable female characters in episode 1, but I assume that will change soon. Plot points were a bit thin, but the show has the capital to allow for a slow pace in the early goings. I’ll want more character development in episode 2.

The high budget art direction and set designs are excellent. I loved the shots of space travel with 4K planets nestled amongst the powdery starfield. I look forward to more spacefaring among a post-Galactic Empire universe.

The soundtrack stood out as particularly good. New sounds and compelling melodies made for an extra level of mood and feel to The Mandalorian. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find the album on iTunes for further comment, but I plan on downloading a couple of tracks when available.

As far as a first start, episode 1 of The Mandalorian played it safe. The show served as more of a glimpse of what is to come—it showcased characters, showed respect to the Star Wars universe, and will no doubt keep the launch of Disney Plus in the happy column.

There seem to be two factions over at LucasFilm. One, the elitist Empire led by Kathleen Kennedy and Rian Johnson, who don’t like the Star Wars franchise, reject criticism, and attack fans—and then there’s the Rebel Alliance of worldwide fans who recognize the leadership of Dave Filoni, Jon Favreau, and Gareth Edwards to name a few. The Mandalorian appears to be in the tradition of Star Wars. I think the show will succeed because the right people are at the helm, and the first episode plays to the strength of Star Wars as well as the fan base.

It’s a good start. Let’s keep it going.