Fennec Shand

In The Mandalorian, Fennec Shand is presented as an elite mercenary and assassin who developed a significant reputation committing murders for the galaxy's top crime syndicates,[1][2] including the Hutts,[3][4] before their leaders were imprisoned by the New Republic.[1][5] Little else about her backstory is revealed.[2] She appears in the Mandalorian episode "Chapter 5: The Gunslinger",[1][6][7] starting the episode in hiding on the desert planet Tatooine,[1] because a large bounty has been placed upon her. Toro Calican, an aspiring bounty hunter, takes the bounty on Fennec as his first assignment, believing capturing such a notorious target would bring him prestige and allow him to join the Bounty Hunters' Guild.[8][9] Toro recruits the show's protagonist, a bounty hunter known as "The Mandalorian", to help him find and capture her.[10]

They track Fennec to a part of the planet known as the Dune Sea,[11][12][13] where they discover the dead body of another bounty hunter she had previously killed.[3] While they investigate, Fennec opens fire on them with a long-ranged blaster rifle, keeping them pinned down from a high vantage point.[10][11][14] The Mandalorian and Toro eventually charge toward her position on speeder bikes and use flash charges to temporarily blind and distract her.[10] After a brief fight, they are able to incapacitate Fennec,[8] and restrain her with handcuffs.[1] When the Mandalorian temporarily departs to secure them transportation,[10] Fennec informs Toro that the Mandalorian is wanted by the Bounty Hunters Guild, and that capturing him would bring Toro a legendary reputation.[10][15] Fennec offered to work with Toro to subdue the Mandalorian and turn him over to Guild. Instead, Toro fatally shot Fennec in the stomach,[1][3][15] believing she would have killed him if he had released her.[10] Toro decides to attempt to capture the Mandalorian himself, and leaves Fennec's body in the desert.[1][13] "Chapter 5: The Gunslinger" ends with an unidentified person wearing boots and a cape walking up to Fennec's body to investigate.[16][17][18]

Fennec Shand is portrayed as an elite assassin,[19][20] one who is mysterious[6] and very dangerous.[4][11][15] She is a highly skilled fighter at both firearms and hand-to-hand combat,[2][15] and displays a sharpshooter's ability with a sniper rifle.[1][15] She is very graceful and agile,[2][21] and stealthy,[2][21][22] demonstrating an ability to maneuver and survive.[2][21][22] Ming-Na Wen, the actress who portrays Fennec, felt the character has a moral ambiguity similar to that of popular Star Wars character Han Solo.[2][23] She is also very tricky,[2][22] playing mind games with her victims, as demonstrated by her attempts to manipulate Toro Calican once captured.[24][25] Anthony Breznican of Vanity Fair has noted that the character is rather talkative in this way, in contrast to the usually stoic and silent title character, the Mandalorian.[24] Wen feels the character "has a good sense of humor about it all as well".[2][26] Nevertheless, she also at times demonstrates a gruff and reserved personality.[6] Fennec is ruthless,[15] independent,[19] unpredictable,[2][26] and is loyal to herself first and foremost.[2][27] She occasionally shows errors in judgement, however, like when she fatally underestimates the ruthlessness of Toro Calican.[25]

Fennec Shand is portrayed by Ming-Na Wen.[28][29][30] It marks one of several notable performances by Wen in Walt Disney Company projects, including voicing Mulan in the animated films Mulan (1998) and Mulan II (2004), and portraying Melinda May on the Marvel series Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Patrick Hipes of Deadline Hollywood called this a "Disney franchise trifecta".[31] Wen has jokingly said of Disney: "Please just keep acquiring all these different franchises, because I just keep getting employed by them. I have hit every bucket list thanks to Disney."[31]

Wen was a fan of the original Star Wars trilogy,[2][32] and as one of the few Asian girls growing up in Mt. Lebanon, Pennsylvania during her childhood, she could relate in particular to the character Luke Skywalker and his dreams of a more meaningful life. She said: "Just that image of him looking at the binary suns and wishing for more, it always stays with me."[2][33] She has described Star Wars as her "favorite all-time genre".[34] Wen grew up in the same town as The Mandalorian executive producer Dave Filoni, who also directed the episode in which she appears.[2]

Fennec Shand is the first major Star Wars villain character portrayed by an Asian actress.[2] Wen said she is pleased there has been more representation of Asians among the casts of Star Wars projects in recent years,[2][35] citing Kelly Marie Tran's character Rose Tico in Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017) as another example.[36] She noted that the Star Wars franchise has often been influenced by Asian culture in its costumes and set design elements, despite an earlier lack of Asian actors. Wen said: "There was all this incredible imagery, but yet there were very few Asians in the films. Any sort of representation is important and necessary. And I’m just happy that I got chosen."[2][36]

After attending the premiere for The Mandalorian on November 13, 2019, Wen posted photos from the event on Twitter and wrote: "What a night! If you told my 13 yr old self that I’d be on the red carpet celebrating being IN a @starwars project, she’d think you were nuts! Well, that little girl inside me still think it’s nuts!"[22]

Elements of Fennec Shand's personality and development were inspired by the character's name, which Wen said brought to mind the idea of the namesake fennec fox.[2][21] Anthony Breznican of Vanity Fair noted the fennec fox is a particularly appropriate model for the character because, like Fennec Shand, it is both predator and prey. Wen felt the character shared common attributes with the fox, including trickiness, stealthiness, maneuverability, and the ability to survive.[2][21][37]

The character of Fennec Shan and casting of Wen were first announced at the D23 Expo in Anaheim, California on August 23, 2019. Bob Iger, CEO of The Walt Disney Company, announced the news on the same day that Wen was named one of the Disney Legends for her past work in Disney works.[31] Footage of Fennec Shand was first publicly shown in a 30-second teaser trailer for The Mandalorian released on November 4, 2019.[38][39] The teaser concluded with a shot of Fennec delivering the line: "Your name will be legendary."[2][38][40] Abbey White said the character was "eagerly anticipated" by the time The Mandalorian premiered.[6]

Fennec Shand's costume was created by Joseph Porro, the costume designer for The Mandalorian. A black, leather outfit of armor with broad shoulders and accents of orange, it was inspired by the fennec fox referenced in the character's name. Wen referred to it as an "amazing outfit that I fell in love with right away".[2][41]

Original plans for Fennec's hair called for it to be loose and unkempt, but Wen suggested her hairstyle include some of "the fennec fox architecture", similar to the costume.[2][42] She also felt the original plan was too similar to the long, flowing hair of her Melinda May character on Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., and she wanted the two characters to be more differentiated.[2][43] Wen brought these ideas to Dave Filoni and The Mandalorian creator and showrunner Jon Favreau, and they responded enthusiastically.[42] As a result, the hairstylist on The Mandalorian conceived a braiding system with triangular points, similar to the ears of a fennec fox. The braids are pulled back tight against her head and threaded with orange, which was also influenced by the fennec fox animal. Wen said felt the hairstyle "gives her such a strong, unique look".[2][42]

Fennec Shand has been received positively by reviewers and fans alike. Izak Bulten of Screen Rant wrote: "Despite appearing in just one episode, she had a clear, well-realized character and has quickly become a favorite amongst fans of the series."[19] Men's Health writer Evan Romano said "In only a few lines, this character has already had some very impressive lore built around her".[15] Vanity Fair writer Anthony Breznican felt the character continued a positive and significant trend of greater diversity in Star Wars casting, citing other examples of Asian actors in recent projects such as Kelly Marie Tran in The Last Jedi and Christopher Sean in Star Wars Resistance.[35] Joanna Robinson, also of Vanity Fair, praised the character, saying she had a "coiled power in her", and complimented the casting of Wen.[44] Jackson McHenry of Vulture praised Wen's performance, and called the character "one of the badder-ass badasses in the world of The Mandalorian".[45] Fennec Shand was included on Vulture's list of the show's 15 best cameo appearances from season one.[45]

Several reviewers felt the character was eliminated too quickly and did not get the chance to live up to her potential. Joanna Robinson said she would have preferred a full episode of word play between Fennec and the Mandalorian,[44] and said of Fennec's role in the episode: "There's a real potential there, and it was over too quickly for my taste. I would've loved more of it."[46] Dirk Libbey of CinemaBlend called the character "criminally underused",[47] and Allie Gemmill of Inverse called her death "hasty".[1] Breznican said, "There's way too much potential for that character to just vanish like this."[48] Keith Phipps of Vulture wrote that she "seemed too clever to be taken out so easily by a rookie".[3] Kerr Lordygan of TV Fanatic wrote that "Fennec's demise was too easily obtained, though the possibility of her return was left open".[20]

Several reviewers have speculated the character could still be alive,[1][8][49][50][51] with some arguing this is foreshadowed by the final scene of "Chapter 5: The Gunslinger", during which a mysterious stranger investigates her body. Allie Gemmill called that scene "one of the most tantalizing closings to a Mandalorian episode since the series premiere revealed Baby Yoda".[1] Dirk Libbey called the mysterious character's identity and his interest in Fennec "one of our bigger cliffhanger moments" from the series.[47] Evan Romano said he would not be surprised to see Fennec Shand turn up again in a future Star Wars film or series, writing: "This character seems just a little too capable, and a little too cool to be disarmed and killed after just a single brief appearance".[15] Stephanie Dube Dwilson of Heavy.com said she so enjoyed Wen's acting that she hopes the character returns.[52]

• Fennec Shand on Wookieepedia, a Star Wars wiki