“The Mandalorian,” a galactic reunion between Din Djarin, Baby Yoda

By Guillermo Azabal

Los Angeles, Mar 2 (EFE).- “The Mandalorian,” the most successful television series within the Star Wars universe, is returning for its third season more than two years after the moving scene in which Din Djarin, played by Pedro Pascal, removed his helmet – thus violating Mandalorian doctrine – so that he could say goodbye to Grogu (otherwise known as Baby Yoda).

The production, which on Wednesday screened the first episode of the third season on the Disney+ platform, now returns with a galactic reunion between the former lone bounty hunter Djarin – also called The Mandalorian, or Mando – and Grogu, who now embark on a journey that will see them meet up with old allies but also with new enemies.

Filmed amid total secrecy, the executive producers of “The Mandalorian,” Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni, before the launch date had revealed only that to understand the beginning sequence of this new adventure it would be necessary to have seen the spinoff series “The Book of Boba Fett,” the episodes of which were released during 2022.

The group of Mandalorians to which Djarin belongs is very “traditional,” said Favreau in an interview with EFE prior to the airing of the first third-season episode, adding that the character had to struggle with this and choose whether to be with other Mandalorians who do not wear their helmets or redeem himself within his own group by returning to Mandalore, where he can be forgiven for his transgression of removing his own helmet.

Nevertheless, the fifth and sixth episodes of “The Book of Boba Fett” had already suggested Mando’s new goal, including where, how and accompanied by whom he was to tackle this objective.

Before that, at the end of Season 2 of “The Mandalorian,” Djarin had defeated Moff Gideon (Giancarlo Esposito) in combat and had gotten hold of his Darksaber, but he proved to be so inept at using it that he injured himself.

Then, he met up with the armourer of Glavis Ringworld, played by Emily Swallow, who told him about the curse that had been placed on the weapon and why he had to purify himself if he wanted to lead Mandalore after having removed his helmet.

The plot continues with the scene with Grogu in “The Book of Boba Fett” in which he abandons his training with Luke Skywalker to found the “beskar” armoury and return to Mandalore with Djarin.

Although Favreau warned that the reunion will be “a little different” because Grogu is no longer a defenseless Baby Yoda but rather someone who has been schooled by the galaxy’s most powerful Jedi training master.

In addition, this new journey will not be easy because, among other problems, Mando will have to adapt himself to his new spaceship after the Razor Crest was destroyed and mechanic Peli Motto (Amy Sedaris) helped him to build another one with more cargo space.

In any case, the acclaimed Chilean actor Pascal will return to play Djarin and to let viewers continue to enjoy his relationship with the super-cute Grogu.

It is a pairing that Filoni called a “parental relationship” between two characters with “completely different views on life,” opining that the “odd-couple” bond between the “armored strong Mandalorian and one quite small ‘child,’ but who’s gifted” is one where their “father-son relationship is (something) that we see in ourselves.”

The creators of “The Mandalorian” have – in assorted public statements – said that in the third season they wanted to do something “different and dynamic,” returning to the war-ruined planet Mandalore to explore the feelings of the people there and their yearing for some kind of “hope.”

The background of the series is rooted in transcendental matters like how one’s birthplace can mark one’s development and system of values, as well as the strength with which a person confronts later challenges.

“The Mandalorian” will air each new episode on Wednesdays in the coming weeks and, as Filoni told EFE, the producers will be analyzing how the story unfolds and whether there will be more seasons because, although they have thought about different kinds of final endings for the saga, they don’t want to commit to anything at this time because it would be “incredibly sad to think about not continuing on these adventures with these characters.”

EFE

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