Wrapping up a hiatus since 2020, Disney+’s “Star Wars” spin off, “The Mandalorian,” has returned for its third season. The show follows masked bounty hunter Din Dijarin (Pedro Pascal) as he takes on the galaxy with his companion Grogu. The third season resumes slightly after the end of the second, as the Mandalorian was featured in Disney’s “The Book of Boba Fett” to pick up some of the loose ends of the second season’s finale. 

While “The Mandalorian” originally rose to popularity during the pandemic, it has remained one of Disney+’s most popular shows. To no surprise, the hype is deserved as “The Mandalorian” has continued to be a major success. 

The strength of “The Mandalorian” really is in its runtime and plot structure. In an age of television where many current shows have over 45 minute runtimes with plotlines extending the length of entire seasons, episodes of “The Mandalorian” stand out, usually airing around 35 minutes. Each episode feels like its own individual adventure for Din, whether it be fixing a ship or exploring a new planet, which resolve by the end of the episode. This contributes to the overall enjoyment of the show, as you don’t have to commit to an intense viewing experience each episode.

As someone who binged the first two seasons and is watching the third season each week as episodes release, I find that binging the series creates a more complete viewing experience. The contained plotlines cause the real overarching mission of Din Dijarin to become forgettable, especially for those not interested in binging the season. Watching the episodes in quick succession helps put the pieces together for the end of the season. 

While many die-hard “Star Wars” fans love “The Mandalorian,” it continuously proves to be equally enjoyable to first time “Star Wars” universe viewers, or in my case, those who haven’t freshened up on the movies since first watch. For optimal viewing experience, wait until all episodes are released on April 19 before beginning to watch the show.

This piece was originally published in Zephyrus’ print edition on April 20.