A new clip from The Mandalorian and Grogu drops an exciting hint about the film’s plot, revealing the Empire’s role in the movie. The final trailer for The Mandalorian and Grogu revealed last week, alongside with CinemaCon footage confirmed Pedro Pascal’s Din Djarin and his apprentice Grogu are on the hunt for Jonny Coyne’s mystery warlord. The wider plot remains something of a mystery, but a new clip released by Jon Favreau at Jimmy Kimmel Live drops some major clues.
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The clip is a delightful one, clearly aimed at general audiences rather than the hardcore fanbase. It plays up Grogu’s “cuteness factor,” with Baby Yoda attempting to help Din and Zeb escape Imperial Remnant forces. Crucially, they already have Coyne’s warlord as a prisoner.
“The Empire Will Always Strike Back”
The clip certainly confirms Din and Zeb manage to arrest the Imperial warlord. More intriguingly, though, the planet they’re on corresponds perfectly with Adelphi, a major New Republic base on the Outer Rim. This fits with theories the Empire launches a counter-strike on Adelphi, a pretty major development in the shadow war between the New Republic Rangers and the Imperial Remnant. Until now, the Empire has attempted to operate in the fringes, letting New Republic politicians believe the threat was over and the military was exaggerating. A counter-strike on a major New Republic base changes everything.
That said, it does make sense for the Empire to step up activity now. The Mandalorian and Grogu is designed as a standalone with low barriers to entry for new viewers, but it does still take place after Ahsoka Season 1. There, Imperial strategist Grand Admiral Thrawn – a Chiss warlord Palpatine himself believed could have defeated the Rebel Alliance – returned to the galaxy. We know there’ll be war between the New Republic and the Empire in Ahsoka Season 2, so The Mandalorian and Grogu is presumably the beginning of a new galactic conflict.
Trailers for The Mandalorian and Grogu have deliberately evoked memories of The Empire Strikes Back (not least through a thrilling AT-AT scene). The idea of a counter-attack, though, is reminiscent of a popular line from the 2002 novel Destiny’s Way, by Walter Jon Williams. There, Gilad Pellaeon – leader of the Empire in the Legends timeline – uttered a delightful line: “The Empire will always strike back.” It turns out that principle is true in Star Wars canon as well; Din and Zeb may have captured a warlord, but the Empire want him back.
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