Fangirl Friday: Pedro Pascal

 Today is a very special Fangirl Friday, as it falls on Pedro Pascal's birthday! Let's get into why I love and appreciate this man and why he deserves his own post.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, PEDRO!

Let's start at the beginning. My first introduction to Pedro was his role as Oberyn Martell in Game of Thrones. I was watching GOT when it first was coming out, but I never got to finish. I did not get to when his character was introduced, but my mom did and the first scene I ever saw of Pedro was when Oberyn was killed. Yup. I didn't really know who nor care for Pedro at that time. I was in high school and I'm pretty sure my Paul McCartney fixation was in full swing.

My next "run-in" with him was when he and Oscar Isaac - who I am also a big fan of and will get his own Fangirl Friday soon - were doing press for their film Triple Frontier. Again, I just shrugged and didn't follow him. 

THEN I saw him in Kingsman The Golden Circle without even realizing he was in the movie. This time Taron Egerton, Colin Firth, and Halle Berry overshadowed him for me.

Fast forward to when I got Disney+ and started watching The Mandalorian. Not for him but for Grogu. However, his portrayal of Din Djarin made me fall in love with him as an actor FINALLY! I kept him on my radar after that, but it wasn't until season 2 of The Mandalorian that I actually started going through his filmography.

Based on what I have seen of his filmography, he has already become one of my favorite actors to watch. It also helps that he's easy on the eyes and he gets cast as dad types frequently, which if you're new here is my type.

NOW let me explain why this man is important to me. As you may or may not know, I am Puerto Rican and I very much appreciate Latinx representation and the fact that this man has become so in demand means that there is A LOT more representation.

I mean he's leading the first live-action Star Wars show. Star Wars was previously a predominately white-led franchise. No, he wasn't the first Latinx actor in the franchise, but he is playing a huge role. 

In Kingsman The Golden Circle, he and Halle Berry are the only people of color in the cast who get a bigger role than supporting.

I feel very lucky to exist at the same time as him. I know that sounds lame, but it's true. He is an actor who is opening the door for more Latinx roles and stories.

And it's not like he's just a pretty face in Hollywood. The man is a phenomenal actor! I mean the way he can convey so much saying nothing. Part of the reason I actually wanted to go through his filmography is that I just love watching him. I am going to go over a scene in The Mandalorian season 2 finale which I feel very much illustrates why I admire Pedro as an actor. If you've seen the show, you know what scene I'm talking about.

If you haven't seen the episode just skip until the next photo of Pedro.

THE MANDALORIAN SEASON 2 FINALE SPOILERS AHEAD!!!

The scene in the S2 finale of The Mandalorian when Din is saying goodbye to Grogu is so powerful. When Din tells Luke "He doesn't want to go with you" he's got a bit of defensiveness in his voice because it's not what Grogu actually wants. It's what he wants. He doesn't want to let go of his son. After Luke tells him, "He wants your permission, " Din walks over and picks up Grogu. The way he is so gentle with the child and the way he looks at him so tenderly like a father would. Din says "hey, go on" and takes a breath "that's who you belong with; he's one of your kind". That breath, I didn't notice until I rewatched this scene for this post.

It's hard for Din to let go of Grogu. That breath was an emotional thing. I don't know how to explain it. I just use it a lot in my own writing when characters are having hard decisions. When Din says, "I'll see you again, I promise" he nods. Obviously, it's a physical sign to try to assure Grogu, but it is such a slight nod, that maybe he's trying to assure himself.

Then when Grogu reaches out to touch his face and coos, Din takes his helmet off. Not gonna lie, I am crying as I write this. This scene never fails to get to me. He carefully watches Grogu's hand as the child touches his face and as soon as contact hits, he closes his eyes. Keep in mind no living person or thing has seen Din's face in years which means he probably hasn't had anyone touch his face in forever. Probably not since he left his parents as a child.

Din gives a little bit of a bittersweet smile. He loves Grogu. That is his son. The child has been his responsibility for so long and even if he'll never admit to seeing Grogu as his son, he is his kin. While all this is going on, you can see the love and heartbreak in his eyes, because he knows. He knows no matter how he feels, he has to let Grogu go.

When he puts Grogu down, he gives Luke a look and another slight nod, as if giving Luke his blessing or his permission to take Grogu. Then Luke gives him a full nod as if to say "I'll take care of him" and Din responds with another nod. He is a man of few words, but he can nod. As Luke takes Grogu and turns to leave, we see a shot of Din and his heartbreak is very apparent. He doesn't say anything. He doesn't make a single movement. He just watches them leave, but you can see in his face that his heart is breaking.

He gives Grogu a final little assuring nod. You see Din's eyes tear up. The only time we've ever seen this man emote in this show was over Grogu. My heart hurts.

This entire scene is in my opinion *chef's kiss* one of the best scenes of anything I've ever watched minus that Luke CGI. That was a bit of a mess. Pedro's acting is what makes the scene so damn powerful. Every little thing he did, conveyed so much emotion. That's why the scene hurts so much. If he showed no emotion, I doubt the scene would make me cry as much as it does.

I just wanted to write something to celebrate him as an actor not just another one of my fixations. I genuinely watch his films for his talent. I can only say that about very few actors. Most of the time, I'll admit it, I go through actor's filmographies just because I find them attractive.

But with Pedro, it's more than he's a handsome actor. The man is perhaps one of the most talented actors of our era and dare I say maybe of all time.

So, thank you, sir for your talent. I hope you have a wonderful birthday. Forty-six never looked so good!