On the heels of last week’s revelation that Mandalorians were responsible for breaking Moff Gideon (Giancarlo Esposito) out of prison, the sixth episode of The Mandalorian Season 3 leads audiences to the conclusion that a familiar group of Mandos may just be responsible for that heist. Set out among the Mid-Rim, a vessel full of Quarren, led by one Captain Shuggoth (Christine Adams), finds themselves in the path of an Imperial vessel, only its occupants aren’t Imperials they’re Mandalorians.
Axe Woves (Simon Kassianides) and the Nite Owls reveal they have been hired by the Mon Calamari to retrieve a Viceroy’s son (Harry Holland) who has been allegedly taken by the Quarren. While the contentious history between the Qaurren and Mon Calamari may lead some to suspect that this is an act of war, it is swiftly revealed that the Captain and the young nobleman are actually in love, though the Mandalorian privateers care very little about any of this.
From there, “Guns for Hire” swiftly reunites audiences with Bo-Katan (Katee Sackhoff) and Din (Pedro Pascal/Brendan Wayne/Lateef Crowder) who are conveniently looking for the Nite Owls, in hopes that Bo-Katan may be able to regain their favor and unite the two groups of Mandalorians. This journey takes them to the independent planet of Plazir-15, where the Nite Owls have been hired as privateers. Their attempt to go straight to their camp is thwarted by the planet’s automated systems, prompting them to instead head into the ostentatious facilities to meet with Plazir-15’s leadership.
It’s there that they meet Captain Bombardier (Jack Black) and his wife (Lizzo) who are hosting a rather lavish and colorful meal, which looks like something torn from the pages of Alice in Wonderland. After a brief backstory, which reveals that Captain Bombardier was formerly a member of the Empire who found a new life and love through the Amnesty Program, the couple reveals that in order for them to grant Bo-Katan and Din access to the Nite Owls, they need to essentially complete a side quest for them. While Plazir-15 appears to be the picture of tranquility, beneath the surface they have been dealing with a sudden rash of droid attacks, and their democratically elected rules won’t allow for them to handle the situation on their own. The deal is further sweetened for Bo-Katan when Bombardier offers to recognize Mandalore as a sovereign system, should they complete the task for them.
Bo-Katan and Din set out to solve the mystery, which turns “Guns for Hire” into something out of an episode of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, complete with shady government officials, seedy cantinas, and droid morgues. Their first stop is to visit Helgait (Christopher Lloyd) who handles surveillance across the city, and he shows them footage from a handful of the droid attacks, which helps them build a theory about the situation. When Din suggests turning off droid services, Helgait explains that the citizens voted against interrupting services because they don’t want to work—they want to relax and let droids handle everything for them.
Despite Din’s insistence at the top of the season that he wanted to once again employ IG-11 to assist him, he is quick to show his prejudice against droids in this episode. Bo-Katan is convinced that there is something larger afoot, yet Din is quick to assume that it’s just battle droids being battle droids. There’s an interesting dichotomy lurking beneath the surface that is never fully unpacked in the episode, with Captain Bombardier proving himself as a reformed former Imp, while the droids are seemingly deemed unredeemable.
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