One of the hallmarks of the live-action Star Wars shows is there is no real required consumption of other media outside of the films. However, this does not stop showrunners from dropping in a plethora of little details that connect them to other material whether it be books, animation, or comics. The little nuggets of callbacks can really enhance the show’s biggest moments. So, while not required reading or watching, here are three The Mandalorian Chapter 18 easter eggs and where they come from.
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R5-D4
If the R5 unit looked familiar you would be right. Arfive has made multiple appearances throughout the Star War canon including the two previous seasons of The Mandalorian. Typically just a background droid after his first appearance in A New Hope, Arfive finally got some time to shine!
R5-D4 is honestly one of the most important characters in Star Wars, but many are unaware. In A New Hope, fans just see a broken-down droid who malfunctioned before being sold to the Lars family. In The Mandalorian, he is seen as just a scared astromech, too afraid to help Motto with a womp rat. However, without R5-D4, the Rebellion would have never defeated the Empire.
When Luke urged Red to come with him in A New Hope, R2-D2 let out a bunch of frantic beeps. His beeps weren’t a cry for attention but a full conversation R2 and R5 had. It would be 40 years until this conversation would be brought to light in From A Certain Point of View, a collection of anthology stories for A New Hope. As far as The Mandalorian Chapter 18 easter eggs go, it is a deep one but one that is very important.
In the story “The Red One”, fans learn that Artoo told Arfive that he was working with the Rebellion at that moment in front of the Sandcrawler. Despite waiting to be selected for sale for a long time, R5 listened to R2 and purposely sabotaged himself so Owen Lars would choose R2. Without his sacrifice, R2-D2 would have been discovered by the Empire when they raided the Jawa Sandcrawler, dooming the Empire. While I wish the IG-11 storyline eventually brought us a reunion between Din, Grogu, and the former bounty hunter droid, I would be lying if I said I wasn’t grinning ear to ear seeing the savior of the galaxy again.
Bo-Katan’s Past
Bo-Katan makes numerous references to her past life on Mandalore during The Mandalorian Chapter 18. For those who have only seen this series, you may be trying to rack your head around the grandiose memory she has of her home planet. While it’s not necessary watching for the show, Bo-Katan’s story is explored in a variety of other Star Wars properties.
Bo-Katan drops plenty of references that could fill a video for The Mandalorian Chapter 18 easter eggs. For the lore junkies, the Kyrze family legacy is known. For the uninitiated, you can experience all of the moments she mentions to Din and Grogu in Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Star Wars: Rebels.
Despite Bo-Katan’s constant takedown of Din Djarin’s sect of Mandolarians, Kyrza herself was part of her own splinter group at one time. She was a member of Death Watch, a group that looked to revive the warring heritage of the Mandalorians. Consequently, Death Watch was part of the group that rescued Din Djarin as a child. While it is currently uncertain how the Children of the Watch splintered off, both groups’ connections to the old ways are much more similar than Kyrze leads on in The Mandalorian.
This isn’t the only shady organization Bo-Katan was a part of. Kyrze was also through her helmet in the ring with Darth Maul and the Shadow Collective. Despite her motivations stemming from wanting to retake Mandalore, she was largely caught in the grander schemes of the former Sith Lord. She would eventually be named regent of Mandalore following Maul’s capture in The Clone Wars.
Even after reclaiming Mandalore, Rebels provides for more of the context that Kyrze mentions throughout The Mandalorian. It is here that Bo-Katan deals with the Imperial occupation, obtaining the Darksaber, as well as meeting many members of the cast of the upcoming live show Ahsoka. This is the basis for the cautionary tale that the Armorer mentions in season 2 of The Mandalorian. It’s also the reason she is able to wield the Darksaber so well compared to Din.
These are moments that I hope to get covered in season 3, but it is very well possible that they don’t. Having viewers learn about Bo-Katan’s involvement with other sects and nefarious dealings would go a long way. At their cores, Din and Bo-Katan aren’t that different. Their dedication to Mandalorian tradition just manifests itself in different ways. Hopefully seeing the Mythosaur can begin to bridge that gap.
Mythosaur
By the biggest of The Mandalorian Chapter 18 easter eggs is without the sighting of the legendary Mythosaur. Prior to this week’s episode, the mythical beasts were thought to be long extinct. Even Bo-Katan who had lived on Mandalore her whole life had chastised Din for believing in such folktales. Boy was she wrong!
Mythosaurs were first introduced into the current Star Wars canon in the magazine Star Wars: Build the Millennium Falcon. Outside of the brief mentions in canon, little is actually known about the Mythosaur outside its skull for being the icon symbol for the Mandalorian people and folktales. For The Mandalorian Chapter 18 easter eggs, we have to turn to Legends material.
While the current Mandalorians have pride for the ancient beasts, it wasn’t always so in Legends. The Taung, the original species who inhabited Mandalore, hunted the Mythosaur to extinction. When the Taung first landed on Mandalore, they almost immediately launched a campaign to hunt the giant creatures. Even then, Mandalorians were connected to honor and tradition. So much so that the Taung adopted the Mythosaur skull as their symbol which is in line with canon.
It’s too early to tell if the Mythosaur sighting will be anything major for the rest of the season. Perhaps all it needs to be is the catalyst for Bo-Katan’s passion to restore Mandalore. I doubt we will see Din or any of the other Mandalorians ride the fantastical beast into battle, but how cool would it be?
