(SPOILERS from The Mandalorian‘s Season 2 premiere will be found below.)
Timothy Olyphant made his The Mandalorian introduction right away in the Season 2 premiere thanks to his character Cobb Vanth being a central part of the aptly titled debut episode called, “The Marshal.” And, yes, that is Boba Fett’s armor he’s wearing when he first confronts Mando on Tattooine. Although, neither his character nor Mando know that, which could lead to trouble down the road.
Of course, Star Wars fans know this isn’t Cobb Vanth’s first rodeo in a galaxy far, far away. The character first appeared in the Star Wars novel “Aftermath” by Chuck Wendig. Just like his The Mandalorian debut, Vanth had acquired Boba Fett’s armor from Jawas, who had salvaged it after the classic bounty hunter was knocked into the Sarlacc Pit during Luke Skyalker’s rescue of Han Solo in Return of the Jedi. While the armored Vanth does become a sheriff and eventually mayor of a small Tatooine village in the books, that location is known as Freetown instead of Mos Pelgo, but that’s just one of the changes to Vanth’s story.
After perusing the Wookieepedia, it appears that The Mandalorian writers have altered Vanth’s tale, and the official Lucasfilm stance has always been that what happens in the films and TV shows supersede the novels. If the story from the book held, Vanth would have already worked with Tusken Raiders several times and brought down a Krayt dragon long before Mando arrived. However, in the Season 2 episode, it’s clear this is Vanth’s first time doing both, and the events in The Mandalorian are now canon.
In another significant change, Vanth’s time with Boba Fett’s armor is cut short as he hands it over to Mando, and judging by the final minutes of the “The Marshal,” it’s original owner might have plans to take it back. Whether that involves Olyphant popping up again in Season 2 remains to be seen, but we’re definitely not opposed to more Space Raylan.