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The hit sci-fi series The Mandalorian has Star Wars fans sitting closer to the edge of their seats as ever. In the second season of The Mandalorian, the protagonist Din Djarin, or more commonly called Mando, continues to comb through the galaxy, searching to reunite Baby Yoda with ‘his kind’ while fighting off the Empire’s advances. With original and captivating stories and references to the original movies, season two ended with tears and gasps, making viewers eager for more.
The Mandalorian takes place five years after Episode VI: The Return Of The Jedi. For further context, this storyline falls nine years after Luke destroys the first Death Star and four years after the Battle of Jakku, which was the final battle between the Rebels and the Empire. What does this mean for the show? It means characters from other popular Star Wars sagas could have roles in The Mandalorian series. With all of the crazy twists and turns that this season has introduced, here are some important takeaways to know from The Mandalorian season two.
Groundbreaking Job On Casting
It is near impossible not to love the original Star Wars cast, from the tragic lovers Anakin and Padme to the lovable twins Luke and Leia. As iconic as the original cast is, they are, for the most part, an all-white cast. Every Star Wars fan does not look alike; thus, it should be important that the characters in Star Wars represent fans of all backgrounds. This lack of diversity is less on the fault of Lucas Films and more on the standard of Hollywood casting at the time.
Yet, The Mandalorian breaks traditional castings standards by not only casting diverse actors for the main roles but also casting an array of ethnicities for the extras and child roles. With this in mind, every Star Wars fan can now stare at their screens and see characters that look like themselves.
Season two of The Mandalorian keeps the ball rolling with strong casting. The main protagonist Mando is played by Pedro Pascal, a Chilean-American actor. Supporting character Cara Dune, a former Rebel shock trooper who is all muscle is played by Gina Carano. Greef Karga, the Bounty Hunters Guild leader, is played by Carl Weathers, an African-American actor. And last but not all, the villain Moff Gideon is played by the Danish-American actor, Giancarlo Esposito. Season two does not disappoint fans, as we continue to see Lucas Films break traditional standards and cast diverse actors that make the show more exciting to watch than ever before.
The Fate Of Baby Yoda
At the end of season two, Moff Gideon successfully steals Grogu, also known as Baby Yoda, allowing the empire to abuse him for their evil agenda. Mando gathers a rescue team to save Grogu from the empire’s clutches, and things take a turn for the worse until Luke Skywalker appears to save the Grogu rescue squad from certain death. Tissues are pulled out, as Grogu has an emotional goodbye with Mando and departs with Luke Skywalker to continue his Jedi training.
This has Star Wars fans fearing for the worst, as Luke’s Jedi training school becomes a fatal disaster. Years down the road, shown in The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi, Luke’s Jedi training schools are wiped out, and all the young padawans are murdered by the villains Snoke and Kylo Ren. This chain of events would cause Luke to spiral into a grief so deep that he gives up the Jedi life completely and isolates himself in an unknown place of solitude.
Could there be a chance that Grogu was at Luke’s training school when this catastrophe happened? Possibly. Although fans estimate that during the timeframe of The Mandalorian, Kylo Ren would’ve been a young child and unlikely to have yet turned to the dark side. Furthermore, there is an estimated twenty-five year time period between The Mandalorian and The Force Awakens. It is unclear to say whether Grogu would’ve been present during this day of certain death- he could’ve finished his Jedi training and reunited with Mando long before Kylo Ren rose to power. While there are speculations and theories, fans will have to wait for season three to find out the fate of Grogu.
Grogu’s Training
In season two, Ahsoka Tano refuses to train Grogo because of his attachment to Mando. She states that there could be dangerous consequences of separating Grogu from Mando. From what fans know about the Jedi Order, Jedi deny themselves from worldly attachments. Attachments to a place or person can lead to fear, pain, and anger, all of which can act as fuel to convince someone to join the dark side of the force. By mentioning this, Ahsoka could be referencing Darth Vader, or previously known as Anakin Skywalker.
Before Darth Vader became the evil ruler of The Empire, he was once a powerful and good-hearted Jedi who went by Anakin. Qui-Gon Jinn and Obi-Wan Kenobi accidentally discovered Anakin as a child slave on the planet of Tatooine. When discovered, Qui-Gon Jinn insisted that this child would fulfill a prophecy to bring balance and peace to the galaxy. Many, including The Jedi Council, were against his training and refused to train Anakin because he was “too old” and attached too deeply attached to his mother. Yet promising Qui-Gon Jinn’s dying wish, Obi-Wan would train Anakin to become a Jedi.
The Mandalorian. 2020. Disney+.
Most Star Wars fans would say Anakin’s attachments led to his downfall. We first see the dark side of the force taking over Anakin when his mother dies, and he murders a tribe of Tusken Raiders. In Revenge Of The Sith, Anakin’s fear of losing Padme ultimately engulfs him and causes him to turn completely to the dark side. After turning to the dark side, Anakin would become a ruler that would cause fear and suffering for years to come as Darth Vader.
Although Grogu is too young to join the dark side, it might be notable to watch how he reacts to his Jedi training. Similar to Anakin, Grogu already has attachments when starting his training. Like Anakin, he will be separated from the person he loves to train as a Jedi. The similarities between the two storylines are small but worth paying attention to. Furthermore, Grogu had already suffered trauma when he was kidnapped from the Jedi temple to be tempted by the dark side in the future.
The Child Of The Watch
Many Star Wars fans who watched Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Star Wars: Rebels were confused to see Mando refusing to take off his helmet in front of any living creature. Other popular Mandalorian characters in different spin-offs comfortably took off their helmets. Yet, in this series, the Mandalorians of Nevarro associated with Mando would be removed from the Mandalorian guild if their helmet were to be removed publicly.
In Chapter 11: “The Heiress,” three Mandalorians come to Mando and Grogu’s rescue, but to Mando’s horror, they remove their helmets. The woman in charge, Bo-Katan Kryze, introduces herself as the ruler of Mandalore. In defense of Mando’s suspicion, she insists that the Mandalorian armor she wears has been in her family for three generations. Bo-Katan also comments how Mando is a child of “The Watch,” a cult of religious zealots that broke away from Mandalorian society wanting to re-establish the “ancient way.”
In disbelief, Mando scoffs that they are not real Mandalorians because they removed their helmets, and he flies away with the child. At first, it seems that this encounter has no impact on Mando, but later in the season, he removes his helmet not once but twice in order to save Grogu from the empire. Fans are eager to see if Mando will give up the Mandalorian creed altogether because he removed his helmet or if he will follow a less restrictive lifestyle like Bo-Katan and her followers. With season three anticipated by many, Star Wars fans hope to learn more about “The Watch” and its impact on our beloved protagonist.
What Can Be Expected For Season Three?
The current release date for the third season of The Mandalorian is Christmas 2021. It is speculated that season three will be more plot-driven instead of Mando showing up at a planet and saving the day type beat. While fans anxiously wait for this new season, it is recommended that Star Wars fans watch the latest three movies: The Force Awakens, The Last Jedi, and The Rise Of The Skywalker, as references from these movies, can be expected to appear. But until then, we can all hope that Grogu and Mando are both safe out of harm’s way.
