You Guys Always Act Like You're Better Than Me - Better than the sequel trilogy

I think it's more reverse Japanese influence. The Mandalorian is basically a space western in the truest sense; Mando is a grittier Lone Ranger or Matt Dillon figure.

It fits super well with the very Japanese inspired overall setting largely because Japanese cinema was originally influenced by westerns.

Cyclical inspiration is neat when it crops up.

I know that The Mandalorian isn't an original concept, being what is essentially Lone Wolf and Cub….. In Space! but it's nice to see something interesting being done in the Star Wars universe under the Disney umbrella, with some actually good characters and scenarios this time around. Besides Star Wars always wore its Japanese influence on its sleeve so in a sense The Mandalorian is more of a return to form than a lot of the other more recent star wars media.