Boba Fett is missing from The Mandalorian season 2, episode 2 after his appearance at the end of the first episode. The Mandalorian season 2 premiere brought Boba Fett and his armor back to the forefront in a major way. Jon Favreau cast Timothy Olyphant to play Cobb Vanth, a sheriff on Tatooine with Boba Fett's armor, and told the story of how he acquired it from Jawas. But, the very end of the episode left fans with Temuera Morrison appearing as a scarred and unmasked Boba Fett.
The possibility of Morrison playing Boba Fett was reported ahead of The Mandalorian season 2. The news left fans wondering how big of a role he would have in the new episodes, and expectations only grew after his appearance in the first one. Many were quick to point to how the reveal of Baby Yoda at the end of The Mandalorian season 1, episode 1 set The Child up to be a major character in the show. And with Boba Fett finally escaping the Sarlacc pit after all these years, Star Wars fans hoped his reveal would similarly make him a recurring character in season 2.
When The Mandalorian season 2, episode 2 starts, it first appeared that this could be the case. Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal) and Baby Yoda are still on Tatooine, and Din isn't hiding the fact he has Boba Fett's armor (even though he doesn't know that's who it belongs to). A group of scavengers attempts to steal all of Din's belongings at the beginning of the episode. This happening shortly after Boba saw him could make viewers think he's behind this attack in an attempt to reclaim his armor. However, Boba Fett doesn't appear during the skirmish or at any other point in the episode. This will likely be disappointing for many viewers, but it does make sense for The Mandalorian.
Even though Boba Fett is now back, he isn't going to be the main focus of The Mandalorian season 2. Din's primary goal is to find other Mandalorians who can help him return Baby Yoda to his kind, whether that means the Jedi or his unknown alien race. Instead, the new season 2 can follow the blueprint of the first by slowly introducing the characters that will be major players in the story by the end. After all, the The Mandalorian season 2 hasn't yet featured characters like Cara Dune (Gina Carano), Greef Karga (Carl Weathers), Moff Gideon (Giancarlo Esposito), or rumored characters like Ahsoka Tano (Rosario Dawson) and Bo-Katan Kryze (Katee Sackhoff).
There are sure to be some fans upset with the lack of Boba Fett in The Mandalorian season 2, episode 2, but it could be a few more episodes before he's back. This will allow anticipation for more Boba Fett to increase even more and make the eventual payoff that The Mandalorian season 2 provides even sweeter. Even without his return, Boba Fett's future with the show and what happened to him in the past will continue to be a major talking point in the fandom. There's no reason to rush the big role Boba Fett is sure to have in The Mandalorian, and after waiting almost 40 years to see the bounty hunter again, a few extra weeks is manageable.