The Disney era of Star Wars has given audiences a different look at the galaxy far, far away. In both Solo: A Star Wars Story and The Mandalorian, the criminal underworld is the primary focus, rather than the epic struggle between good and evil.
That lower-scale approach has treated fans to two very different crews of criminals. But which is the more capable band of outlaws? Is it the gang fronted by Han Solo's mentor, Tobias Beckett, or the ragtag group led by Bill Burr's Mayfeld in the sixth episode of The Mandalorian?
Beckett's Gang
The gang of thieves led by Woody Harrelson's Tobias Beckett in Solo: A Star Wars Story had already made quite a name for themselves, and a few enemies, by the time Han Solo joined up with them. At that time Beckett was running a small team consisting of himself, a four-armed Ardennian pilot named Rio Durant, and Val, a human woman who was romantically involved with Beckett. The three of them were undercover as Imperial soldiers when they met Han Solo on Mimban.
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Durant, voiced by The Mandalorian creator Jon Favreau, joined up with Beckett and Val when he tried and failed to steal their speeder sometime before the events of the film. Before that, he was a member of Freedom's Sons, an independent army that fought on the side of the Republic during the Clone Wars. His skills impressed Beckett and Val and he was recruited for their team. His four arms and acrobatic abilities more than made up for his small stature, and he was a more than a capable pilot on numerous missions.
Less is canonically known about Val, who was already in league with Beckett by the time the Empire came into power. She was a no-nonsense woman who was very skilled with a blaster rifle. She displayed impressive athletic ability during the gang's failed heist on Vandor in Solo: A Star Wars Story, and immense bravery and selflessness when she sacrificed herself for the mission. She was portrayed by Westworld star Thandie Newton.
The last two members of Beckett's crew were Han Solo and Chewbacca. Star Wars fans are already well aware of these two but it's worth noting that Chewbacca provided much-needed muscle to the team. Unfortunately, the failed mission on Vandor meant the end of Beckett's gang and Solo and Chewbacca's brief involvement with them. Although, they continued to travel with Beckett for the rest of the film.
Mayfeld's Crew
In The Mandalorian episode "The Prisoner," the titular hero took a job from an old associate named Ranzar Malk, or Ran. He introduced the Mandalorian to Mayfeld, a former imperial sharpshooter who took lead on the mission. Mayfeld is a tough and experienced fighter, who wasn't impressed with the Mandalorian or his ship, the Razor Crest. He's a more ruthless leader than Tobias Beckett and didn't show much respect to anyone on his team. While he begrudgingly agreed to work with the Mandalorian, he did so intending to betray him once they completed their mission. He introduced the bounty hunter to the rest of the crew: a Devaronian named Burg, a Twi'lek named Xi'an, who has a romantic history with the Mandalorian, and a droid called Zero.
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The Devaronian species first appeared in Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope. One is shown as a patron of the cantina Tatooine. They are a demon-like species with red skin and a pair of horns on the top of their heads. The one portrayed by Clancy Brown in The Mandalorian, Burg, is the crew's muscle. He's shown during the mission to be able to dispatch two large New Republic security droids by lifting and tossing one into the other. He even caught and lifted a motorized door of the ship, similar to a door that is shown to be able to cut someone in half in a previous episode. While the Mandalorian can best him in combat, Burg gave the legendary bounty hunter a serious challenge and got more than a few good knocks in before he was ultimately dispatched.
Xi'an is a violent, knife-wielding Twi'lek who had a closer relationship with the Mandalorian than most other characters in the series. The two had a romantic and sexual past, indicating that Xi'an may be one of the few people to ever see the Mandalorian without his helmet. She was an asset to the crew as a capable and aggressive fighter but also had a personal stake in the mission. The goal of Mayfeld's crew was to rescue their former associate and Xi'an's brother, Qin. Qin is equally as violent as his sister and held a grudge against the Mandalorian, who left him to be captured on a past mission. The two Twi'lek embraced when they reunited, but Qin showed his true colors when he was willing to leave his sister behind to escape with his safety.
The last member of the crew was Q9-0 or just Zero. He was a droid who served as the pilot during the mission to rescue Qin. By plugging directly into the Razor Crest, Zero was able to blast out of hyperspace and pull off a difficult maneuver to land the ship on the prison transport and remain undetected. He remained on the ship during the mission and accessed a message on the Razor Crest that informed him about the significance of the innocent "Baby Yoda." He began hunting down the child during the crew's betrayal but was gunned down by The Mandalorian at the last second.
Which was the better criminal crew?
Other than Zero, the rest of Mayfeld's crew survived their rescue mission with the Mandalorian. Granted, their betrayal of the titular hero led them to be trapped on the prison ship. This is except for Qin, who was brought back to Ran by the Mandalorian. Both of the final betrayers were killed by three New Republic X-Wings, led to them by a tracking beacon that the Mandalorian hid on Qin.
While Beckett's crew experienced similar losses during their train heist on Vandor, they were up against insurmountable odds. Not only did they have to fight off viper droids while navigating atop a speeding train, but they were also ambushed by the Cloud-Riders, led by Enfys Nest. Prior to the ambush, the gang was leading a fairly successful mission.
Compare that to Mayfeld's crew, who could barely get along and were up against only a handful of security droids. While individually skilled, they were not cohesive as a unit and spent more time fighting each other than focusing on the mission. Beckett's gang had a genuine respect and affection for one another, even including the new additions of Solo and Chewbacca.
Both criminal groups were capable in their own right, but Beckett's gang was truly a team, whereas Mayfeld's crew all had their own self-interests which ultimately was their undoing.
The Mandalorian stars Pedro Pascal, Mark Boone Junior, Bill Burr, Clancy Brown, Natalia Tena, Richard Ayoade, and Carl Weathers. The Season 1 finale arrives Friday on Disney+.