The Star Wars Holiday Special remains among the more infamous chapters of the franchise’s history – so much so that the 1978 TV movie has never been rebroadcast or officially released on home video – but amidst the film’s nightmarish array of Wookie sitcom scenes and painfully awkward variety show segments, the project did serve as the intro for longtime fan favorite Boba Fett. And based on some new pics from the set of The Mandalorian, this oft-ridiculed feature could be serving once more as an unlikely source of inspiration for the space saga.
Posted to the Instagram account of writer Jon Favreau is an image of what appears to be the same weapon that the series’ title character was seen wearing on his back in a previously released image. What we didn’t get to see in that last picture, however, were the two prongs at the shooting end of this rifle. Displayed in full view, this item bears a striking resemblance to the curious tool that Boba is shown carrying in “The Faithful Wookiee” animated section of the Holiday Special.
At the same time, Favreau uploaded an image of a bucket-like object that many have compared to the “ice cream maker” prop carried by Willrow Hood in The Empire Strikes Back. Perhaps we’ll finally find out what this mysterious item is used for so that the jokes at poor Willrow’s expense can finally stop.
But going back to that fork-like weapon, this reveal certainly lends a little more credence to the popular theory that the main character of The Mandalorian isn’t just wearing armor that looks like Boba’s but is actually wearing the late bounty hunter’s outfit. That’s just a theory for now, but at the rate that these set photos are coming our way, there could well be more clues to come.