ZkinandBonez

rocknroll41 said:

Also I think it’s weird that now they’re saying Baby Yoda (Grogu) was on coruscant during the clone wars and we never saw him. I’m kinda getting tired of starwars doing retcons like that, but oh well. It’ll be interesting to see where this all goes.

Well, there were 10 000 Jedi in the galaxy before order 66, with roughly 1/10 of them canonically being on Coruscant so there would have been plenty of Jedi and Younglings that we wouldn’t have seen in either the PT or TCW.

It’s interesting though that Ahsoka only mentions Yoda, however adding Yaddle to the conversation probably would have confused most viewers, and since we as an audience only saw her in TPM its possible she died or moved off Coruscant before Ahsoka was taken to the temple.

Apparently Lucasfilm has pulled a Special Edition on us and removed Jeans Guy from Chapter 12;
https://www.starwarsnewsnet.com/2020/11/the-mandalorian-jeans-guy-blooper-fixed.html

Did anyone else spot Morai right before Ahsoka and Din met? You can also hear it calling in the background several times throughout the episode, including the first scene.

There’s also another Lothcat in this episode. I doubt it has an larger meaning than just being a little nod to Rebels, but it’s interesting that we’ve seen two of them so far in the series.

It’s also interesting how they’ve retconned beskar to be similar to Cortosis from Legends in that it’s lightsaber-proof. It makes a lot of sense as much of Mandalorian culture, especially their weaponry and armor was designed to combat the Jedi of the old Republic, but I think this is the first time we’ve seen beskar straight up block a lightsaber.

I think both Captain Marvel and especially The Irishman has proved that de-aging technology has reached a point where even a streaming series could convincingly de-age Mark Hamill enough to at least give him a short appearance in The Mandalorian. But…if Giancarlo Esposito’s statement about the show being 4 seasons long turns out to be correct then I don’t think anything like this is likely to happen in this season.

Not too sure how I feel about the possibility of Headland’s new show covering Ahsoka, Ezra, etc. I don’t really know anything about her prior work, so I’ll reserve judgment until we get more proper info on what her show is really about. But if we do get some kind of live-action sequel to Rebels then I definitely think it should be done by Filoni, and not anyone else. And at this point I think he has more than proven that he’s capable of doing his own live-action series. It wouldn’t surprise me if having Filoni on The Mandalorian was partially treated as a bit of a test by the higher-ups at Lucasfilm/Disney to see how he would handle the “upgrade” live action.

I know this phrase seems to get thrown about a lot, but the latest episode is already one of my favourites of the whole series. I was initially a little bit skeptical about Dawson playing Ahsoka, but after seeing her in just a few scenes I think she managed to translate Ahsoka’s mannerisms quite perfectly (1st scene shows a slightly different side of the character than we’re used to, so that threw me off a little at first). I also think the character, like Bo-Katan, was handled in such a way that it should work for new fans as well and not just Clone Wars & Rebels fans.

Show far this show has appropriately had a very strong Western vibe to it, which obviously makes sense for the character, and this episode was all Samurai film (which is quite appropriate for Ahsoka) and I loved it. There were several shots taken straight out of Kurosawa’s Yojimbo, which of course inspired the spaghetti westerns, so the combined aesthetic for this episode was just perfect. I’m actually really impressed by how Filoni has grown as a live-action director in just three episodes. I’m somewhat in the minority in that Chapter 1 is one of my lest favourite episodes, now I do it’s good, and did Filoni a great as a debut director, but it felt a bit bland to me. Chapter 5 was better stylistically, though the plot was quite simple. This episode however, was all Filoni, and it shows. It really was like seeing one of the best episodes of Clone Wars or Rebels translated to live action.

SPOILER

The Thrawn reveal was quite surprising. On one hand I’m super excited as Thrawn is quite literally my favourite EU character. On the other hand I’m always a bit skeptical this this show is going to turn into an endless string of EU cameos. However, Favreau/Filoni has handled both Bo-Katan and Ahsoka perfectly so far, so I do believe they can pull it off. Though this could of course simply be a hint of another series, possibly an animated sequel to Rebels. However, if they end up making a live-action Thrawn, I really hope they get Lars Mikkelsen. He’s already voiced the character perfectly, and he has a face that really first the character. With some minor prosthetics I think he’d make a great live-action Thrawn just like Sackhoff made a great live-action Bo-Katan.

I was re-watching Chapter 9, and I noticed that Din is wearing his ep. 1-3 armor in one of the concept art pieces instead of his beskar armor. Makes me wonder if the Krayt Dragon plot was might have been repurposed from a rejected season 1 plot, or maybe, as was the case with TFA, they just commissioned the concept artists to just come up with random SW stuff while Favreau was writing the first few episodes to serve as inspiration.

He’s wearing the old armor in this piece as well, which definitely seems like something an artist would randomly draw/paint to simply establish the vibe of a new SW show. They’re both by the same person as well.

https://www.starwarsnewsnet.com/2020/11/the-mandalorian-new-concept-art-and-character-poster-from-chapter-9-the-marshall.html

What Gideon Wants with the Child in The Mandalorian
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NVZbDBZKqSE - from the Star Wars Explained YouTube channel (9 mins long).

Some interesting ideas about what might be Gideon’s motivation. I really like the idea that he’s a bit like Krennic from RO and that he’s a minor Moff that through unforeseen circumstances has ended up in a position of power and that now he’s basically trying to make himself the new Vader/Palpatine. Which makes a lot of sense for someone who wears dark armor, a dark cape like Vader, and even has a lightsaber…and there’s the theory that the Force experiments are at least partially about him trying to become Force-sensitive.

Also, and alternatively, since there’s been a lot of discussion about what the new canon Darktroopers might be like, they don’t have to be stormtrooper battle droids like the Dark Forces game, there were Force-empowered stormtroopers in Dark Empire that just so happened to have the same name.

Fated-Dualist said:

‘Jeans Guy’ will have a name, origin story, wookieepedia article, and his own book by the end of week 😃

jedi_bendu said:

Rodney-2187 said:

I’m thinking what we see in that tank is definitely meant to be a reference to Snoke. I wouldn’t be surprised if there are more references to the sequels, but I feel like Gideon maybe has his own plan. I think he’d rather become the new Emperor than revive the old one so maybe he wants The Child to transfer Force abilities to himself with a transfusion somehow. He doesn’t seem like a Sith cultist and I don’t think he reports to Exegol. He may just be using whatever cloning tech the Empire left behind, but he seems to be making his own power play. Those troops on the wall look like his own project.

I’m so mixed on this. It looks like Snoke, it sounds like Snoke (i.e. - the track ‘Snoke’ from TFA) but I still feel like it isn’t Snoke. Someone, possibly SW Explained or Eckhartsladder, said that they don’t feel that Gideon is involved with the First Order at all and it feels like this whole operation was his idea. I’m inclined to agree, and it makes him a better villain, too.

Both of them have commented on how unlikely it is that this show will tie excessively into the ST, and that its more likely that it will be a minor connection. Gideon’s experiments will probably only be an early link in the chain that will eventually lead to the creation of Snoke and Palpatine’s return. Eckhartsladder also pointed out that its not Snoke’s theme in the latest episode, but rather just a very similar eerie droning theme that is equally similar to the Plagueis theme from ROTS. I also think its wort pointing out that the scar on one of the test subjects’ head is quite different from Snoke’s. It even curves in the opposite direction.

I personally think this is just another case of fans assuming that everything has to be connected. I actually find it kind of funny how we just can’t seem to escape Snoke theories (though at least this one makes a lot more sense than the previous ones).

Interesting video by EckhartsLadder talking about how unlikely the Snoke/Palpatine theories are.

Why it probably wasn’t [SPOILER] in The Mandalorian (2x04)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YpptYXEtirI - from the EckhartsLadder YouTube channel (9 mins long)

darklordoftech said:

Typos getting canonized.

Such as?

This is the first time I’ve heard of it.

It just occurred to me that the Child probably is a strand-cast despite Kuiil’s doubts in Chapter 7. We’ve kind of just taken it for granted that Yoda’s Species has now been established as aging differently from other species and that a 50 year old baby is normal to them, but then I looked up Yaddle (the female Yoda’s Species from TPM) and noticed that not only does she have very youthful features, but she also has brown hair. The Child on the other hand is somewhat wrinkled and has grey hairs just like Yoda. There might actually be something to the theory that Dr. Pershing’s reference to “the original donor” is the not the Child but whoever it was cloned/engineered from.

Rodney-2187 said:

I just get the feeling we’re in for a serious tragedy at some point. Something that challenges the characters more than they have been. If the first season is like Star Wars, then maybe the second ends on something darker, along the lines of The Empire Strike Back. Maybe Ahsoka sacrifices herself to save The Child. Maybe Gideon actually obtains The Child and gets away and we’re left wondering his fate as a season ending cliffhanger.

There are only 4 episodes left and I think we’ve seen everything from the trailer at this point.

I wonder if the search for Ezra will be animated or live-action? Maybe those plans hinge on how well received a live-action Ahsoka is.

Killing the Child seems completely out of the question to me. That would pretty much kill the entire series for a lot of viewers. However, the idea that Gideon steals the child back as a cliff-hanger is very possible. I also get the idea of Ahsoka sacrificing herself, but I doubt it for two reasons; She doesn’t matter enough to casual fans for her death to mean anything (unless it happens later in the series and she gets a lot of screen-time), and it would be a waste of her potential future animated appearances and I doubt Filoni would approve of it. If she’s going to die it has to really matter and killing her off just shortly after introducing her to a new audience just seems like an odd creative decision.

Also, as neat as a live-action version of Ezra, Thrawn, etc. would be, I don’t think there’s a sufficient market in just the animated series fans to justify an expensive live-action spin off. The Mandalorian has worked so far because characters like Bo-Katan and Cobb Vanth were re-introduced in a way that casual/live-action fans can understand, and they were used in a way that served Din’s arc. I think Ezra’s arc so far would be pretty difficult to incorporate into something new like The Mandalorian. At the very least it would have to a miniseries. More likely I think it will be part of a new animated spin-off/sequel series.

Ed Slushie said:

ZkinandBonez said:

Rodney-2187 said:

I don’t see The Child and Ahsoka both being alive at the end of this series.

I can see them killing off Ahsoka, though I don’t think its necessarily guaranteed. However, I definitely do not think they’ll kill of the child. Considering how popular it is, and how upset people got from it simply being punched by a stormtrooper, I highly doubt they’ll be that bold. I think they’ll find some excuse to keep it away from the main events of the galaxy, probably reuniting it with Yoda’s Species which has stayed hidden so far in SW canon, or something similar.

I hadn’t thought about that, but now that I think about it, Filoni kind of already did that with the Lasats in Rebels. So it wouldn’t be unprecedented.
Plus, it would be pretty hard to kill off Ahsoka, considering that she’s now Death Proof.

“Death Proof”? Not quite sure what you’re referring to? She’s cheated death once, but that doesn’t mean she can’t die. I personally don’t think she’ll die in the Mandalorian. I think Filoni is saving that for whatever potential series will cover Ezra’s return, though it’s not out of the question.

As for the Child; it wouldn’t surprise me if at the end of the series they meet some members of Yoda’s Species that have a hidden planet like the Lasats, or maybe even from outside the SW galaxy, or…since Filoni has already explored other “Force-dimensions” like Mortis, the World Between Worlds, etc., it wouldn’t surprise me if the Child is taken to another “realm” entirely. And as already discussed here it’s also completely possible that Yoda’s Species will be revealed as the Whills or something similar.

Rodney-2187 said:

I don’t see The Child and Ahsoka both being alive at the end of this series.

I can see them killing off Ahsoka, though I don’t think its necessarily guaranteed. However, I definitely do not think they’ll kill of the child. Considering how popular it is, and how upset people got from it simply being punched by a stormtrooper, I highly doubt they’ll be that bold. I think they’ll find some excuse to keep it away from the main events of the galaxy, probably reuniting it with Yoda’s Species which has stayed hidden so far in SW canon, or something similar.

Rodney-2187 said:

I wonder how long after RotJ does Sabine go with Ahsoka to search fro Ezra. Was it before or after 9 ABY, the time period of this series.

There isn’t a new Jedi order yet, so The Chid can’t be turned over to them. Would Ahsoka want to take him? Would she know about Yoda’s species? Would she know how to find out? I think the Jedi archives are gone. So is the temple on Jeddah.

We know Snoke and Palpatine both have Force abilities, so they were successful in their experiment. This doesn’t sound very good for the fate of either The Child or Ahsoka. I feel a great disturbance in the Force.

I think the epilogue of the last episode of Rebels is meant to be shortly after ROTJ, so technically it should be before this series, but it was vague enough that they could easily retcon it. It will be fun to see if live-action Ahsoka will be in her “Ahsoka-the-white” as some fans nicknamed her last appearance.

I haven’t played the new Battlefront games, but canonically I think Luke at this point in canon is travelling the galaxy searching for remnants of the Jedi order. As for the Jedi archives; in Charles Soule’s Darth Vader Luke does discover the remains of the archives that Jocasta Nu (the librarian from ep. 2) hid in a cave. Judging by him wearing the yellow flight-jacket in that comic I’d say it was between ANH and ESB, so Luke should at least have some of the Jedi archives at his disposal. All other major Jedi temples we’ve seen in canon so far has pretty much been obliterated, but they could of course just invent new ones for this series.

If the child ends up with Luke then canonically it doesn’t bode well for it, though its not impossible that it ends up with Ahsoka at some later point and that some kind of Grey Jedi order or something like that is established. Then again I think Ahsoka’s voice was one of the many heard at the end of ep. 9, so I guess that means she’s at least dead at that point in the series. It’s hard to say as I think Fevreau & Filoni might have their hands tied somewhat since the decades prior to and post ST haven’t been fleshed out yet.

So apparently Orbit Showtime Network who have accurately reported the episode names so far has leaked that the next episode will be called The Jedi. Not a big surprise since we pretty much know the next episode will be the Ahsoka one, though she isn’t technically a Jedi, but I think most people assumed she would prove to be a dead end for Din “quest” overall.

https://www.starwarsnewsnet.com/2020/11/the-mandalorian-chapter-13-title.html

canofhumdingers said:

So what the heck is “strand cast” and why is everyone talking about it like it’s something we should all be familiar with already?

They talked about it in Chapter 7 when Kuiil theorized about what the child was.

It’s basically the SW equivalent of a test-tube baby or just generically engineered people/creatures in general. It was also recently canonized that Snoke and Palpatine’s “son” (Rey’s father) were strand-casts.

So apparently the descriptive audio of chapter 12 directly refer to the armor at the end as “Darktroopers”. It’s probably going to differ from the Legends version a fair bit, but its quite an interesting development either way. The original Darktroopers were a combination of droids and cyborgs, so it will be interesting to see how or if this will tie in to Gideon’s cloning/strand-cast/Force experimentation. I suggested Shadowtroopers earlier, but maybe we’ll get some kind of combination.

EckhartsLadder video on the subject:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HIlJbWD6nQA

screams in the void said:

ZkinandBonez said:

I don’t know why I’ve never seen this before now, but McQuarrie’s Wampa design was way creepier than any of the live action versions they actually built.

^ I think that came from a book called The Illustrated Star Wars Universe from 1995 . It featured concepts for the films as well as many new paintings and Illustrations by McQuarrie and others . I think this is one of his new paintings at the time and not actual concept art from the time of ESB production …https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/758653.The_Illustrated_Star_Wars_Universe

Ah, that makes sense. I’ve seen other Wampa sketches (by Joe Johnston I think) which is much closer to the one they filmed but didn’t use. Either way though, its a really cool and creepy design, and since the face was barely shown originally its fun to see McQuarrie reimagine it.

Interesting theory by StarWarsExplained that maybe Gideon is trying to make himself force-sensitive. Might explain why he took the Darksaber. Perhaps he wishes to become the next Vader or Palpatine?

I find this a little bit strange though because why would artificial force-sensitivity create the mangled bodies in the tanks? A lot of people seem to think that the last shot shows some kind of battle-droids kinda like the Darktroopers from Legends, but I feel that some kind of genetically engineered stormtroopers makes more sense since they showed the lab in the same episode. Of course they don’t have to be directly related to each other, but that’s my guess anyhow.

Ed Slushie said:

Did anyone else think the mysterious “alien worker” who tipped off Moff Gideon looked a lot like Ochi of Bestoon?

I think it was a repurposed Mimbanese mask from Solo.

I personally wouldn’t necessarily mind if it tied into it indirectly, but if they just directly end up cloning/growing Snoke in this show then that would be pretty frustrating.

The moment they confirmed that Snoke was a strand-cast shortly after they’d brought it up in chapter 7 I figured they connect the two in the EU somehow, but I really do hope they won’t make any blatant connections between this show and the ST. I hope they understand that the Mandalorian fans aren’t necessarily ST fans, as especially since there’s so much time between the two canonically that they’ll only do a loose connection and focus on their own story instead. They can always just have a failed clone/strand-cast of the child and end it at that for this show, and then later in some novel or comic make Snoke a later attempt based on the same experiments…or something like that.

EDIT:

Come to think of it, the clones/strand-casts seen in this episode are probably meant to fill those dark armors we saw in the last few shots. If not, then that last shot with wide shot with Gideon wouldn’t make much sense.

They probably will add some kind of loose connection to Snoke and Exegol in the EU, but I think this show is currently doing its own independent thing.

Maybe my Jedi Outcast vibe wasn’t that far off and Gideon wants to create force-sensitive stormtroopers kind of like the shadowtroopers in Legends.

Probably my least favourite episode of this season so far, but still a really solid episode and it was a lot of fun seeing how Navarro has changed since season 1. I am curious though about how much time this series is supposed to cover as Greef is starting to show some grey hairs. The last three episodes seems to only have covered a week or so, a month at best, yet now Greef has visibly aged and Navarro has had quite a significant change. I suppose this only means that the time between seasons is ripe for books, comics, etc. to expand.

The last scene of this episode s certainly going to spark a lot of debate among the fans. The whole shot of the mystery troopers gave me a shadowtroopers from Jedi Outcast vibe.

I don’t know why I’ve never seen this before now, but McQuarrie’s Wampa design was way creepier than any of the live action versions they actually built.