The Mandalorian Finale is finally here and it’s time to break down everything that you need to know about the ending of the Season.
Throughout this, we’ll be breaking down everything that you need to know about the new releases’ overall plot, big death, mindblowing moments and Easter Eggs.
So back, strap yourself in and get ready because we’re going lightspeed to a long time ago in a galaxy far far away.
There will be heavy spoilers here so if you haven’t had a chance to watch episode eight yet and don’t want to know what happens then I highly suggest that you turn off now. Make sure you subscribe to the channel for breakdowns like this every day and weekly coverage on The Mandalorian.
With that out the way I just wanna give a huge thank you for clicking this, now let’s get into our breakdown of The Mandalorian.
The Mandalorian Episode 8 Breakdown
Episode 8 picks up on the huge cliffhanger at the end of Episode 7. The Speederbikes have Baby Yoda and Mando, Cara and Greef Karga are in an impossible situation.
Where Episode 8 differs slightly though is that the introduction actually starts off with a dark sense of humor, referencing how Imperial Warlords like to kill their own men as acts of aggression and this is something that we’ve seen throughout Star Wars history, most namely Darth Vader who had no problem offing his own troops.
They practice shooting at some scrap and miss which is a nice call back to the old Star Wars joke that Storm Troopers can’t aim.
The Troopers kinda bumble back and forth and it’s a comedic moment until they cross the line and hit Baby Yoda. You don’t hit Baby Yoda and here to make sure that they pay for it is IG-11.
There were a lot of theories last time that IG-11 had turned bad and cemented the Mandalorians prejudice against droids, showing that you can’t really reprogramme them but the bot is back to prove him wrong and we do know that he did not kill his master. I did theorise this last week as the concept art did show the Speederbikes firing at the character so we could assume that it is these two that killed him.
IG-11 takes them out with no effort and it’s an awesome rescue scene that I loved watching. But, this is no time to celebrate.
Moff Gideon
Moff Gideon is still at the village with a squadron of Stormtroopers and Death Troopers that are ready to take Mando and co down.
Death Troopers were originally introduced in Rogue One and these elite troopers are the best of the best of the best sir. They primarily work as bodyguards for high ranking Imperial Officers and are also masters of Stealth and, marksmanship and hand to hand combat which they demonstrate in the episode. Death Troopers are trained to be exceptional and specialise in heavy weapons, demolitions, and guerilla warfare.
The Moff is also described as an ISB Officer during the purge which stands for Imperial Security Bureau. This class of soldier was sort of like Internal Affairs for the Empire, watching the ins and outs of the day to day for dissenters.
So yeah, not the type of people that you want to trifle with.
The Stormtroopers begin to set up an EWeb Heavy Repeating Blaster, thank god he said it cos I didn’t know, whilst the group try and escape the situation, aiming to get to the sewers.
This is very similar looks wise to the one on the Death Star that we saw in a New Hope but they must have re-enforced them since then because this one isn’t opening with a couple of blaster bolts.
The Mandalorian’s Real Name
Unable to escape, The Moff taunts the group, revealing their pasts and so on. This is the first time we hear the Mando’s named dropped in an episode. Though Pedro Pascal did reveal that it was Dynjarring in an interview after the first episode, it’s never been said on screen and it shows that The Moff must be watching the behind the scenes stuff as he provides a better breakdown for the characters than Youtube ever could.
He also divulges that Cara’s full name which is Cara Cynthia Dune and that she is from Alderaan which was famously destroyed by the Empire in A New Hope. This adds a lot of motive for why she joined the Rebellion and tattooed their symbol on her face.
We learn that Dynjarring wasn’t born on Mandalore and then see more of his back story in which Clone Troopers ravaged his home.
Gideon talks about The Night Of A Thousand Tears as well which is directly tied to Dynjarrings’ back story.
We finally get the entirety of the death of Dyn’s parents and how he was able to escape the Super Battle Droid that discovered him hiding. There are separatist ships and these were under the orders of Count Dooku during the conflict. Dyn was saved by a character that looks extremely like Jango Fett uniform wise from his aerial to his backpack but there are several other troopers wearing the same thing and of course, Jango was dead by the time that the Clone Wars started.
According to Star Wars lore the Jedi were fighting to free Mandalore during the Clone Wars and during this seige Order 66 took place though whether we will see this actually play out in the show is unclear.
Dynjarring
Later in the episode there is reference to The Mandalorians, most notably their leader: Mandalore The Great, who fought an army of sorcerers named the Jedi.
Dyn became so attached to The Mandalorians because they saved him. He was raised in the Fighting Core and became the man that we know and love. Gideon would only know his true name if he had access to information seized during the Purge and thus he’s clearly been keeping tabs on the characters.
Gideon makes a massive impact and the dialogue is awesome here, painting the character out as one of the most intimidating villains we’ve seen for a long time.
He gives them till nightfall to co-operate though this doesn’t go down too well with most of the group.
Cara wants to shoot her way out as she won’t be subjected to A Mind-Flayer which is a call back to Dungeons and Dragons and also Stranger Things.
It could also be a reference to the Bohgallet from Rogue One and The Mind-Flayer could be a slang term for it.
They realise that Baby Yoda must be safe or they’d be dead and IG-11 rides towards the village murdering many whilst Baby Yoda giggles in an adorable moment. Yaaaaay kill more!!!
The Big Battle
During this ride, we also spot a Jawa and they are laced throughout the episode acting as Scavengers that take parts from the damaged items that appear.
The action scene is incredible and probably the high point of the season with Mando and co-taking down Storm Troopers like a Rambo it’s a Rambo movie. There’s even a moment that reminded me a bit of the 50. Cal.
Unfortunately, they’re difficult to hold off and Death Troopers storm Cara and Gideon gets a huge shot on Mando that reminded me of when you shoot exploding barrels in Video Games. Nice work Gideon.
Gideon also commands a Flame Trooper to burn them out and the group retreat, able to make it to the sewers with the help of IG-11. Mando is badly wounded and refusing to take his helmet off he decides to stay behind and buy them time. This is the way.
It’s a massively tense moment and watching the flame trooper slowly walk towards them is nailbiting. Luckily Baby Yoda is on deck and using his force powers he kills the trooper though this takes a lot out of him so yeah…no force healing this time. This ain’t the Rise Of Skywalker.
The Man Under The Mask
Cara, Greef and Baby Yoda leave and IG-11 watches over him and removes his helmet, healing him so that he can recover. It’s the first time that we’ve actually seen Pedro Pascal in the show and it’s a real high point that I’m glad they held off on. As he’s not a living thing, IG-11 can technically see his face and thus he’s able to save him and it doesn’t take long before Mando is leading the way to his guild.
He discovers a pile of Mandalorian Helmets which are obviously the result of The Mandalorian’s being made almost extinct which has been dropped throughout the season. The Armorer reveals that after their uprising they were pretty much all but wiped. Some made it off-world but she has remained behind in order to salvage their armor.
She discusses the Jedi and how Baby Yoda seems to be able to wield the power of them. She tells Mando to reunite Baby Yoda with its own kind in order for it to be trained.
Neither character knows of the creature’s homeworld and this is in keeping with Star Wars lore in which we have never actually learned the true name of species home or what they are even called. This sort of sets up season 2 in which they will likely go looking for a place for the child. Their attachment in some ways mirrors how Dyn was found and then taken under the wing of The Mandalorians. The rescue has clearly had an influence him and this is why he decided to do the same for Baby Yoda as he probably saw a lot of himself in the character.
As rules go, Baby Yoda is a foundling and is now Baby Yoda’s father…maybe we should start calling this Star Wars: A Solo Dad Story.
He is given a jetpack, made a clan of two and told to get ready for the battle ahead.
The Lava Pit
It really gets you invested in the finale of the episode and I loved watching the group prepping for the Storm that was coming. They discover a barge operated by an R2 unit that’s seen better days and begin making their way up stream up the lava pit.
The R2 has been modified with arms and legs and it sails them towards the Lava Flats. Unfortunately, a Stormtrooper ambush is waiting for them and there’s no way to stop the incoming storm.
IG-11 decides to sacrifice himself and it feels like the most impactful droid death that we’ve ever seen in Star Wars…cough… He’s worked out all of the odds and knows that this is the only way. IG-11 has a safety protocol in place that dictates that he cannot be captured and will self destruct if ever it looks like he will be compromised.
This happens here and IG-11 wipes out the Squadron but Gideon arrives in his Tie, making for an almost North by Northwest kinda standoff. Maybe that’s a reach. Baby Yoda, unable to do the magic hand thing forces Mando to Jetpack up and take the ship on head to head.
The Mandalorian Ending Explained
It really feels like pure fan service and what a way to end the season, making for one of the most memorable standoffs we’ve seen in years. Mando straps a detonator to the hull and this sends it crashing to the ground. Mando can expect a pay rise, Cara decides to stay on Navarro and we look forward to a brighter future there with the Empire cleared out. Greef offers Mando a future in which he can come back to the Guild with open arms and pick any job he wants to but Mando decides that being a Father is more important and he decides to go off into the Galaxy with his clan of two.
Kuiil is buried a hero and Baby Yoda begins chewing the Mando necklace. Mando gives it to the lad and everything looks chirpy as they leave Navarro into parts unknown giving us a happy ending…or so we think. We cut to Moff Gideons Tie and see him cutting his way out of the craft with a black lightsaber.
There’s actually a lot of subtext to this as it’s actually a Darksaber which is a ceremonial weapong that the leader of The Mandalorian planet used to carry. The Darkseber was built by the first Mandalorian to ever be inducted into the Jedi order in the Old Republic.
Since then the Dark Saber has been passed down by generation to generation and the fact that Gideon is carrying it shows that he was instrumental in the fall of them.
Gideon will likely have his sights set on The Pair now after this crushing defeat and it’s unlikely that they will have it easy out there in the cold reaches of space with the character constantly on their back.
Personally I think that they will set out to find Baby Yoda’s home planet and this will finally be set in stone in the Star Wars lore. We will also likely get the Baby Yoda developing his training and who knows, next time he may even be on his way to his teenage years. A Jedi and Mandalorian combo aren’t to be trifled with but Gideon has his sights set on the character even more so now so it’s unlikely that they’ll have an easy ride.
Your Thoughts
Now obviously I’d love to hear your thoughts on The Mandalorian Episode Eight as well as what your theories for the future are. Make sure you leave them in the comments section below!
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