As the Armorer’s words echo over the trailer, reminding us about Din Djarin’s new purpose in life with protecting his young charge, The Child aka Baby Yoda aka The Cutest Thing in the GFFA, a series of damn exciting images and scenarios flash across the screen: A hooded stranger watching Mando and the Baby Yoda, from the shadows (as Jedi are talked about in the voice over); the floating Razor Crest, limping towards an unknown planet; Gamorrean fighting ring fun; snowy cuteness with Baby Yoda; the already amazing music looks to be taken to whole other level; and how the little one knows too well what the glowing Whistling Birds mean, hiding within his pram (might be my favorite part). The galaxy looks to be getting bigger for The Mandalorian’s second season, out October 30, and we couldn’t be more excited! Head below for some more thoughts, screenshots, and who might be playing that mysterious stranger.
Spotted by Johnamarie Macias, the woman in the hood that disappears when they talk about Jedi might be Sasha Banks, rumored to be in the upcoming season of the show UPDATE: Sasha Banks retweeted the trailer, basically confirming her role in the show! My first thought/hope was Ahsoka Tano when they showed a hooded person in the distance, but she’s very clearly not, which I’m glad because it’s nice to have another POC on the show not covered by prosthetics or makeup as an alien. As for any guesses whom Banks might play, I imagine she’s another new character, and while I can understand the hope she’s Sabine Wren, I have a very funny feeling that won’t be the case. I just hope she turns out to be a Jedi or Force-user of some type, though it’s possible seeing her when they talk about Jedi could be a simple misdirect…they did manage to keep Baby Yoda a secret last time around!
I saw some speculation the ice/snow planet might be Ilum, which would be rife with potential if so, considering the era. The Jedi haven’t visited there in a long time, besides maybe Cal Kestis’ visit in Jedi: Fallen Order, and the Imperials have had control there for the intervening years. We also know it becomes Starkiller Base due to the machinations of the First Order, so might they run into the proto-First Order and/or Imperial Remnant still stationed there (Favreau did tease we’d learn about the origins of the First Order in the lead up to season 1)? Will Baby Yoda have a chance to get a kyber crystal before they leave? Considering Djarin is trying to track down the Child’s people, and the Jedi used to use it as a sacred site, this theory feels far more possible to me than Banks playing Sabine. Plus, as Giancarlo Esposito teased in the recent EW article, he potentially has the ability to tempt Mando with something (darksaber? Bo-Katan and the rest of Mandalore’s fate?), so visiting Moff Gideon at a potential secret Imperial base, which would be on Ilum, makes this even more likely. Though I’m trying to figure out if the Imperials on their speeder bikes/the base we see in the trailer happens to be the same planet or not.
Most of the beauty of this trailer lies with how it doesn’t reveal terribly much, beyond a few set pieces and teasing a bigger galaxy for the smallest clan, and since it offers so much potential and possibility in what it shows, one can only wonder what we’re not seeing! Like how we didn’t see Dr. Pershing, who was working on Baby Yoda and connected to Kamino somehow, but I imagine he’d be a good place to start looking for who the Child’s people might be…
There’s only the briefest of glimpses of Greef Karga and Cara Dune of season 1, the return of X-wings (who may be friend or foe this time around), and a glimpse of Tatooine again which I desperately hope includes the return of Fennec Shand, one of the few stains on the show’s solid first season, so it seems we can expect some familiar elements despite the growing season/galaxy.
By mentioning Cara, I unfortunately have to discuss the recent events with the actress who portrays her. What originally started as seemingly misguided views and opinions, as more people reached out to Gina Carano to try to discuss why her comments about the Transgender community, anti-Black Lives Matter sentiments, and mockery of COVID-19 were harmful, the more entrenched she got in those views. Eventually, Carano claimed to speak to co-star Pedro Pascal (Din Djarin himself), while simultaneously mocking pronoun usage, a vital way to include the Trans community that Pedro himself uses in his profiles. And then she teamed up with noted bad faith actor in the ComicsGate group, basically Nazis against diversity in media, despite the person mocking her a year ago, so it seems all hope to have an open dialogue has been lost. It’s a true shame she’s gone so far, as it poisons her character and hype for the show. However, a group of fans found a better way to deal with her actions and words, starting a GoFundMe for the Transgender Legal Center, (join us in donating to it), and watching it continue to expand far beyond its initial goal shows how much stronger love and inclusion are in this fandom, so hopefully those who were harmed by the actress’ terrible comments know fandom has their backs. As for how Lucasfilm responds to the situation, we’ll have to wait and see.
Regardless of all that, my excitement is still sky-high for The Mandalorian’s second season after this great trailer. If they reveal more details and footage in coming weeks, we’ll have coverage here on the site, but for sure check back to the Manor for our reviews after October 30 (I’ll be on my honeymoon, hopefully, but should be back and with a review no later than November 1)!
Ryan is Mynock Manor’s Head Butler. You can follow him on Twitter @BrushYourTeeth. You can follow the website on Twitter @MynockManor and Instagram @mynockmanor.
THE MANDALORIAN REVIEWS
Season Two: Chapter 9 – The Marshal | Chapter 10 – The Passenger | Chapter 11 – The Heiress | Chapter 12 – The Siege | Chapter 13 – The Jedi | Chapter 14 – The Tragedy
Season One: Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 – The Child | Chapter 3 – The Sin | Chapter 4 – The Sanctuary | Chapter 5 – The Gunslinger | Chapter 6 – The Prisoner | Chapter 7 – The Reckoning | Chapter 8 – Redemption