It's odd seeing some people call this a "filler" episode. Yeah, plot-wise it's teeing up the finale. Pretty standard for a show. Character-wise and just in terms of telling a nice, compact story with great action? Probably one of the best episodes to date IMO
Sorry to even go here-- but I don't think it really would've fit Finn. We already knew Finn hated The First Order in TFA. He never really exhibited any "both sides!"-ism. He just thought The New Republic didn't realize what they were up against and wanted to get the hell out of dodge. Mayfield's arc was more like a version of DJ's arc, had he gone the other way in the end. Him doing what he did was that much more powerful precisely because of him playing devil's advocate earlier in the episode and Bill Burr's performance. The foundation for this kind of thing was never laid in the first place with Finn. Mayfield comes off like a guy who's done what he needed to do to survive, and has become very hardened and cynical from his experiences. Finn was a fish out of water who only ever knew life in The First Order due to being taken as a child, but clearly had the heart of one of the good guys. Apples and oranges to me, even though similar on the surface.
Oh, I’m not referring to the general layout - Finn’s a better person than Mayfield, no doubt, and the chemistry of the scene is different then what Finn would have.
I’m just pointing out that The Mandalorian had more ambition and respect for Bill Burr’s guest star role in an infiltration story than Rian Johnson’s pathetic stab at the idea - where maybe the best way to put it is that Johnson left Phasma even more disappointing that in TFA, and his take on the similar idea of Finn meeting someone from before his exile was to have Tom Hardy slap Boyega’s butt in a deleted scene.
It’s not about the set-up. It’s about treating the characters seriously and actually exploiting their backstory instead of allowing apathy to sweep them under the rug as you misalign and misinterpret their role into a juvenile side story.
Burr’s a guest star. Brake’s a one scene cameo, for all intents and purposes.
Both are better than dragging the black male lead actor around so he can be condescended to and lectured in ways incongruent with his previous work and his character’s writing, or giving the massively overqualified actress a sloppily composed but empty action scene with G.I.Joe dialogue (and *bad* G.I.Joe dialogue at that, not Larry Hama goodness.)
Barr wasn’t a Star Wars fan, and Mayfield wasn’t a popular character (fun, but not popular). Boyega is a Star Wars fan, and Finn was a surprisingly popular lead behind Rey, if reports are to be beloved. Barr clearly enjoys his work here and Mayfield is now getting some modest popularity. Boyega openly talks about being disrespectfully ignored and Finn’s popularity never got capitalized on.
One’s something TLJ deserves to be criticized for, the other is something The Mandalorian deserves to be commended for. And the only real difference in how they were both done is investment, awareness, and ambition in one the other lacked,