The Mandalorian is not only one of the best shows featuring Pedro Pascal right now, but it has turned into a sci-fi TV show classic. Qualities like pristine special effects, intimate father-son dynamics, and jaw-dropping adventures across the galaxy have combined to create one of Disney Plus’s ultimate hits. As we reach the end of the third season of The Mandalorian, fans all around the world are going to be wondering what they can watch to fill the spacious void in their hearts for Din Djarin and Grogu.
Fortunately, we have just the list for that craving. These 10 shows have similar themes, plot threads, and character tropes as the Star Wars show. You’re sure to find something that will tide you over until the fourth season. From Netflix dramas to retro space operas, you’ll find that The Mandalorian has a lot of similarities to shows that came before it.
Stranger Things (2016)
Not many shows have garnered as much success in the last decade as Netflix’s Stranger Things. This retro-inspired 1980s science fiction spectacle is unlike anything ever put on TV. Genre elements include family, love, fantasy, action, romance, thriller, and horror. Examining the ways that an alternate dimension affects the lives of people living in fictional Hawkins, Indiana, folks are eagerly awaiting to see if the villain Vecna is defeated in the fifth and final season. Much like The Mandalorian, the children are the true stars of the small screen rather than the adult actors. Millie Bobby Brown, Finn Wolfhard, and Noah Schnapp are three of the standout young performers who bring unmatched maturity to roles that are typically botched by pre-teen actors.
Battlestar Galactica (2004)
Firefly (2002)
One of the ultimate “canceled too soon” shows and a true sci-fi cult classic, Joss Whedon’s space western will have fans of The Mandalorian glued to the TV for a myriad of reasons. Firefly was arguably too exploratory for network television, imagining a vast post-civil war outer space where humans will struggle with the identical issues to what currently plagues them. Lawlessness and the ambiguous feeling of “what happens next” are prominent in both of these shows.
The Last of Us (2023)
The Expanse (2015)
The Expanse is similar to a lot of other shows on our list in that it focuses on diverse intergalactic characters who struggle to find their places in a contentious future among the planets. A focus on alien tech and its place in the solar system is a nice contrasting feature from other shows listed here. The series is one of the most acclaimed on Amazon Prime Video in recent years and has won immense praise from sci-fi TV critics.
The Book of Boba Fett (2021)
It’s pretty clear that if you like The Mandalorian, you’re probably going to enjoy other stories set in the Star Wars universe. The Book of Boba Fett is a direct spinoff that helps fill in some of the gaps between the second and third seasons of the parent show. Some fans felt this decision was a little misguided because it forces people to watch both shows to know the full story of what happened to Grogu while he was training, but it was actually a smart marketing decision. This show also helps shed some more light on one of the galaxy’s coolest bounty hunters, Boba Fett!
Pokémon (1997)
Cowboy Bebop (1998)
Killjoys (2015)
Justified (2010)
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