Warning! SPOILERS for The Book of Boba Fett episode 5.
Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal) returns to Star Wars, reuniting with the remaining Mandalorians and learning he needs to atone for removing his helmet. During the episode, Mando also travels to Tatooine for a new ship and acquires an N-1 starfighter from Peli Motto (Amy Sedaris). Unfortunately, the ship needs a lot of work, but in the end, it's untouchable even at sublight speed.
A garbage compactor is the star of a memorable scene in the original Star Wars. In the scene, Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill), Han Solo (Harrison Ford), Leia Organa (Carrie Fisher), and Chewbacca (Peter Mayhew) avoid stormtroopers by diving down a chute that leads to a garbage compactor. In the compactor, the characters battle against a large dianoga that lives in the Death Star until the beast seemingly disappears for no reason. Then, the walls start to close in, revealing why the monster escaped. The group tries to stop the walls, but Han Solo's attempt to brace them with a large metal object is no use. At the last moment, R2-D2 takes over the controls and saves the group from being crushed.
In The Book of Boba Fett episode 5, the series surprisingly answers a Star Wars mystery. Mando tells Jawas that he needs "bolt-on aftermarket speed mods" for the N-1 starfighter during the episode. The small and furry aliens quickly bring back a cryogenic density combustion booster, and Mando is impressed. However, in a weird Star Wars twist, the combustion booster they get is seemingly the same metal object Harrison Ford's Han Solo once used to try to stop the garbage masher. The moment unexpectedly reveals more about the garbage mashing scene aboard the Death Star.
Though Han Solo didn't mention the item's name in A New Hope, the Jawas' density combustion booster looks exactly the same. Interestingly, the Jawas claim to get the combustion booster off of a Pyke spice runner, snatching it while the Pykes were refueling. The info seemingly ends questions of whether or not the item was the same combustion booster Han Solo used. However, even if the Jawas didn't reveal where the part came from, the original combustion booster was slightly bigger than the one in Book of Boba Fett. It also broke in the trash compactor and likely was obliterated when the Death Star blew up. Though they aren't the exact same parts, the moment is a subtle callback to A New Hope.
The Book of Boba Fett has answered several minor Star Wars mysteries throughout the series. For instance, episode 3 reveals why the rancor trainer from Return of the Jedi cried after the beast died. According to The Book of Boba Fett, a rancor imprints on the first person they see. So the trainer likely raised the Return of the Jedi monster from when it was a baby. The cryogenic density combustion booster continues the Book of Boba Fett trend. Now, Mando just needs to hope it lasts longer than Han Solo's did.
The Book of Boba Fett streams Wednesdays on Disney+.
