Some select members of the press got to see over 27 minutes of footage from Disney and Lucasfilm's The Mandalorian, the first ever live-action Star Wars TV show. And the overwhelming consensus is that this truly 'feels like Star Wars'. It has been called a throwback to the original trilogy, with a story that takes place just after the events seen in Return of the Jedi. While an episode was not screened in its entirety, it appears that enough was shown to win over some very critical minds.

The Mandalorian has been described as an American space Western. The first episode will hit Disney+ when it launches on November 12, 2019. The entirety of the first season will take place just a short while after the destruction of the second Death Star, five years after the events of Return of the Jedi. It follows a Mandalorian bounty hunter beyond the reaches of the New Republic.

RELATED: The Mandalorian Season 2 Premiere Recap & Review: The Action Returns to a Familiar Location

Perhaps one of the biggest take aways from the first press reactions is that Jon Favreau, who is overseeing the show, is utilizing some of the same technology he used to create his animals in The Jungle Book and Disney's The Lion King to recreate some classic Star Wars aliens and cantina dwellers. A surprised Peter Sciretta notes this about the show.

"There is some up close interactions with Star Wars creatures fully realized in a photo real way (I'm guessing using some of the same technology that @Jon_Favreau used on Jungle Book and Lion King) that can only be described as INTENSE. Apparently the footage we saw went beyond the pilot episode. Unclear on how many episodes it spanned. It was selected scenes."

One thing echoed by pretty much all those who saw the footage is how much it looks and feels like the original Star Wars movies, an element some believe is missing from the new trilogy kicked off by J.J. Abrams with The Force Awakens. Sciretta goes onto say this about watching this first look footage.

"It feels like a thrilling return to the original trilogy era of Star Wars. It feels like a big scale movie, not a tv series. They are still keeping a lot of mystery with deliberate cuts in the footage. The score is awesome. Seeing @dave_filoni do live action Star Wars is everything I've wanted. I can't wait to see more. November 12 is my birthday and Disney+'s launch of this show will be my celebration."

While fans don't have very long to wait now until The Mandalorian hits TV screens worldwide, they'll have to be patient with the release strategy. Disney+ subscribers won't get to binge the show in its entirety right away. This first season consists of 8 episodes. The first of which hits Tuesday, November 12. The next episode won't be long in the waiting, with it set to hit three days later on Friday, November 15.

The next four episodes will debut on subsequent Fridays. The 7th episode will get a Wednesday debut on December 18, avoiding a clash with The Rise of Skywalker, which will be in theaters that Friday. The season finale will then drop 9 days later on December 27. At that time, the entire first season will have been released, and those that want to watch all in one go have a pretty fun New Years Day awaiting them. You can check out some of the first reactions for The Mandalorian including Peter Sciretta from /film.

Topics: The Mandalorian, Star Wars, Disney, Streaming

B. Alan Orange at TVweb
B. Alan Orange