"Chapter 1: Stranger in a Strange Land" is the premiere episode of the television series The Book of Boba Fett. The episode was released on December 29, 2021.
Boba Fett holds court.
The episode opens with a landscape shot of the surroundings of the late Jabba's Palace on Tatooine. Several interior shots are captured including the barbican, Jabba's throne room and the empty band stage. In a separate chamber, Boba Fett is submerged inside a bacta tank.
He experiences flashbacks of watery Kamino and Tipoca City, followed by a grieving Boba cradling the helmet of his fallen father Jango Fett at the Petranaki Arena on Geonosis. In another flashback, Fett struggles within the digestive system of the sarlacc. Turning on an inbuilt sensor inside his helmet, he sees the remains of a stormtrooper. Fett retrieves an oxygen unit from the stormtrooper's armor before punching a hole through the sarlacc's gut. He then fires a flamethrower. Fett then climbs out of the sarlacc onto the sands of the Great Pit of Carkoon, which is littered with the wreckage of Jabba's sail barge Khetanna. A weakened Fett climbs out the pit and lies on the desert ground.
Later that night, Fett is discovered by a party of Jawas, who strip the armor from his body. They also take his jetpack. Fett awakes but one of the Jawas knocks him unconscious with a blaster. The Jawas return to their sandcrawler.
The following day, a group of Tusken Raiders stumble upon the unconscious Boba Fett. One of them turns him over with his gaderffii stick. Seeing the burnt and weakened Fett, they bind his hands with a rope. One of the Tuskens gives him a drink from a gourd. The Tuskens ride back to their clan with Fett bound behind a bantha. Fett is forced to walk through desert heat and sand and eventually collapses from exhaustion. They drag him through the sands to their encampment.
Fett is bound to a wooden post and guarded by Tusken sentries. Several adolescent Tuskens beat him with gaderffii sticks, knocking him unconscious again. That night, Fett awakens at his post. Seated nearby is a captive Rodian with red skin. The two watch a nearby fire, where a massiff rests. Fett struggles with his ropes, which draws the attention of the massiff. The massiff lunges at Fett and a fight breaks out. He knocks out the beast and uses its sharp teeth to cut his bonds.
Fett asks the Rodian if he wants him to cut his bonds. A Tusken sentry intervenes but Fett overpowers him, knocking the gaderffii stick from his hands. The Rodian cries, alerting the rest of the Tusken clan. Fett flees into the desert with the massiff in hot pursuit. The creature catches up with him and he fights it with his stolen gaderffii stick. The Tuskens catch up with him and watch. The beast returns to its Tusken masters.
A showdown between the Tuskens and Fett ensues. One of the Tuskens approaches him with a gaderffii stick. After sizing each other, the two break into a duel. The Tusken knocks Fett to the ground but Fett rises to his feet and fights back. The Tusken knocks him down a second time but Fett is still determined to continue the fight. The Tusken beats him repeatedly. The other Tuskens surround him with one kicking him to the ground. Fett slips into unconsciousness.
In the present, Fett is woken up by Fennec Shand. Fett wakes up and suspends his "healing session." The bacta pod's doors open and he climbs out of the machine. As a droid fetches him a towel, Fett tells Shand that the dreams are coming back. Shand reminds him that they are expecting guests who have come to pay their respect. Droids dress Fett in his Mandalorian armor. Fett dons the helmet himself.
In Jabba's former throneroom, an Aqualish delegate speaks in the Aqualish language and presents a box of credit chips. The droid 8D8 retrieves the chips. When Fett asks what the Aqualish said, Shand explains that he said something about friendship. Fett says that they really need a protocol droid. 8D8 presents Dokk Strassi, the leader of the Tatooine Trandoshan family and the protectors of Mos Espa's city center and its business territories. Fett recalls that he used to work for Dokk.
Dokk addresses Fett as the new Daimyo. Fett says that it is a pleasure to be welcomed to Mos Espa by Dokk, who presents 8D8 with a Wookiee pelt. Dokk wishes that Fett may never leave Mos Espa before walking away. Fett confides with Shand that the Trandoshan's compliment sounds like a threat.
The next guest is introduced as Mok Shaiz, the mayor of Mos Espa and its surrounding plateaus. The guest corrects that he is Shaiz's majordomo. Shand recalls that Shaiz was coming to pay tribute. The majordomo apologizes for the "understandable" misunderstanding in Shaiz's correspondence. Fett extends his greetings and appreciation for Shaiz's tribute. The majordomo clarifies that this was another "understandable" misunderstanding and says that the only tribute that he bears is Shaiz's heartfelt welcome, which he expresses in his stead. When Shand asks if he brings no tribute, the majordomo reiterates Shaiz's heartfelt welcome and claims that he has been drawn away by pressing matters.
Shand warns the majordomo that if he had showed the same insolence to the late Jabba, the Hutt would have fed him to his menagerie. The majordomo apologizes. Fett tells the majordomo to inform Shaiz that he is here now. The majordomo replies that he knows and raises the matter of tribute. Shand explains to Fett that the Mayor wants Fett to pay him. Fett replies that he is the crime lord and that the Mayor of Mos Espa is supposed to pay him. Shand wants to kill him but Fett disagrees, saying that the majordomo works for the Mayor.
Shand tells the majordomo that Lord Fett allows him to leave unharmed. The majordomo apologizes and says that he will convey Fett's sentiment to Shaiz. The majordomo warns Fett and Shand that they will receive another delegation in the future. Fett tells Shand to keep an eye on Mok.
8D8 then has UK2-B bring in two Gamorrean prisoners, who had served Jabba and then transferred their allegiance to the late Bib Fortuna. They did not surrender even after their patron was killed. 8D8 says that they were captured alive as a tribute to Fett and says that their tortured squeals will send a message to potential challengers to his throne. Fett says he does not torture. 8D8 counsels his master to show strength in order to win acceptance as a Daimyo. Complimenting their loyalty to their previous bosses, Fett offers to spare the lives of the Gamorreans if they were to serve him. The Gamorreans bend the knee and submit to Fett. Shand warns him that this is a "bad idea."
Fett and Shand later travel with their two new Gamorrean bodyguards to Mos Espa. Shand chides Fett for not letting them carry him on a litter. Fett says that he does not want to be carried around like a "useless" noble. Shand explains that is is a sign of power and that people in Mos Espa are used to seeing the Hutts being paraded around the streets. Shand says that things would have gone a lot smoother if he had accepted their ways.
At a cantina, Max Rebo and a Bith musician perform. Fett and Shand enter the bar with their Gamorrean bodyguards. An astromech droid asks if they are here for drinks. Shand replies that they are here for business with Madam Garsa Fwip. Two Twi'leks ask if they would like their helmets cleaned while they wait for Garsa. Shand declines but Fett allows them to take both their helmets in order to accept their ways.
Madam Garsa Fwip turns out to be a female Twi'lek with olive skin. She welcomes them to the Sanctuary and asks if they would like any of their sundry offerings. Fett says maybe another time and gets down to business. Garsa asks if he would like his Gamorrean guards to be given refreshments while they are sequestered. Fett replies that it won't take long and offers to do it here. Fett introduces his Master Assassin Fennec Shand and explains that he has replaced Bib Fortuna.
Garsa apologizes that she did not see his litter, prompting Fett to say that he prefers to walk on his own two feet. Fett explains that he is here to introduce himself and reassures her that her business will continue under his watchful eye. Garsa thanks him for traveling to The Sanctuary and says that he is always welcome, granting Fett ownership. The Twi'lek attendants return their helmets, with Shand remarking that Fett's helmet looks "shinier" than hers, being full of credits.
While departing The Sanctuary, Fett tells Shand that Jabba had many vassals and that they have a lot of ground to cover to keep his empire intact. Shand offers to cover the rounds on her own, saying that Jabba rarely left his chambers. Fett replies that Jabba ruled by fear while he intends to rule by respect. Shand counters that in difficult times, fear is a surer bet.
The two are then ambushed by six crimson-clad figures armed with plasma pikes and projected energy shields, who surround them. Fett instinctively fires a rocket, whose blast is deflected back by an energy shield, knocking both helmets loose—the credits in Fett's helmet fly everywhere to be picked up by bystanders. A fight ensues, with Fett and Shand barely holding their own before the Gamorreans come to their aid, breaking the circle created by the ambushers and providing the respite Fett and Shand needed to regain their balance and the upper hand.
Together they dispatch three of the attackers, leading the other three to attempt to escape. Fett fires a at one, disintegrating and partially blowing up a rooftop. The other two who had climbed to the rooftops ahead of their disintegrated compatriot are chased by Shand, who retrieves her helmet on the way to the wall. As she reaches the rooftop, Fett tells her to capture them alive, before telling the Gamorreans to get him back to the bacta pod.
Shand chases the two survivors across the rooftops, all performing feats of acrobatics and athleticism. She finally reaches them but is forced to dive off a rooftop to escape a counterattack, allowing the two to continue their escape. As they round a corner, they come face to face with Shand, who has gained the lead. She disarms the two, before knocking one off the rooftop to his death and capturing the other.
Following the assassination attempt, Fett is put into the bacta pod by one of the Gamorreans, where he experiences another flashback into his past following the rescue of Han Solo. Following his unsucccessful escape attempt, Fett is woken up by a young Tusken and led away by his bound hands, with his feet chained to the captive Rodian who follows. Together with a domesticated massif, they trek across the desert and make a slight detour after seeing smoke.
They peer over a sand dune to see a homestead, with several Kajain'sa'Niktos beating a man, painting a symbol on the walls of their homestead before getting on speeder bikes and riding off.
Moving on, the trio come to a stop, where the Tusken gestures for the two captives to dig, searching for a gourd filled with liquid; a source of water. The Rodian finds one before Fett, who takes a drink. Fett soon finds one for himself. Before he can drink, the Tusken child takes the gourd from Fett, pouring it out for the massiff to drink with some spilling onto the dry sands of Tatooine.
Continuing to dig for the gourds, Fett tells the Rodian that they could have both escaped had he kept his snout closed. Fett says that if he can get to Anchorhead, he can get them offworld. Fett grumbles about strangling the Rodian and feeding him to the watchdog. The Rodian returns an insult in Rodian, which Fett can understand.
While continuing their dig, the Rodian discovers a large scaly mass under the sands. Excavating the mass reveals it is a large three-clawed hand, which grabs the Rodian. More arms come out of the sand before the entire beast reveals itself as a sand beast capable of standing on its hind legs. Grabbing the captives, the creature starts attacking, with the massiff counterattacking before being thrown away by the creature, which then kills the Rodian. Fett is held up and the Tusken stabs the creature's foot, resulting in the creature throwing Fett and hitting the Tusken, causing him to hurtle onto the sands.
The creature turns from Fett and goes after the Tusken adolescent. However, Fett runs up the creature's back and wraps the chains around its neck and asphyxiates the creature. Fett's actions earns him the respect of the adolescent Tusken. The Tusken, Fett and the massiff return to the Tusken camp with the creature's head as a trophy. Their return sparks a celebration among the Tusken clan, with the adolescent Tusken regaling his people with stories of the battle with the reptilian creature. The leader of the camp wordlessly hands Fett a gourd out of gratitude, which he drinks.