LET’S EXAMINE THE OPENING SCENE.

A mysterious person, wearing similar armor to Boba Fett, navigates a mysterious planet through icy, Hoth-like winds. He walks into a bar not unlike the wretched hive of scum and villainy we see in Star Wars- A New Hope. Did I say he walks? More like he saunters in like Clint Eastwood’s Man with No Name does in A Fistful of Dollars or High Plains Drifter. It is clear from the reactions of the people around him that this man is deadly, and he means business. He ignores the potential threat of a couple aggressors before deftly dispatching them with precision after they pressed him about spilling their drink. He then approaches his target and simply offers, “I can bring you in warm, or I can bring you in cold.” We soon learn that this man uses an economy of words much like your typical western anti-hero and thus, we start our opening adventures of The Mandalorian. Audiences were left enthralled by the pilot episode of The Mandalorian, and I, for one, had many questions. Following this fantastic opening, I wondered, “Who is this masked man?” or rather, ‘Who is the Man behind the mask?” As we peer behind the veil while embarking on this perilous quest, we will understand the various factors making the man a true sum of all his parts. We’ll come to understand his dark origin story, his skillset, his heroic ambition and his call to fatherhood. People call him Mando, which seems like a passive form of Star Wars xenophobia. We are later delighted to hear the man’s true name is Din Djarin. Like any good superhero, what makes Din Djarin so appealing (among other factors) is his dark past, which we are given a few snippets of as we progress through the first season. Like Batman, Din Djarin had to witness his parents being slain right in front of him. We see Din Djarin, unlike most of his fellow brethren, is not a native Mandalorian. As an older child, Din Djarin lived with his parents on the planet Aq Vetina. Tragically, the planet fell victim to a devastating separatist attack at the height of The Clone Wars, and the boy could only look on in horror as his parents died protecting him. A super battle droid flushed the boy out and would have ended his life had it not been for the heroic intervention of a Mandalorian Death Watch Warrior. This tragic event would forever be seared in his memory.

Following his rescue, the young boy was quickly adopted as a foundling by a mysterious group of Mandalorians known as The Tribe. The horrific slaying of his parents coming at the hands of a battle droid shouldn’t surprise the audience. It explains his growing mistrust for them, made evident in the first episode of the series.

Upon coming of age following his adoption, Din Djarin would be sworn into the clan, learning The Creed. This would explain his steadfast adherence to their code in the first season of the show. From there, we learn Din Djarin joined a ragtag crew of mercenaries and thieves, enacting various heists alongside characters such as Ran, X’ian and Qin, who we meet in the episode titled “The Prisoner.” After their subsequent falling out, Mando would later join the Bounty Hunters’ Guild and settle on the planet Nevarro, along with the rest of the Mandalorian clan. At this point, we meet the Mandalorian and soon learn of his adventurous life as a bounty hunter. Working under the leadership of Greef Karga, he takes on various jobs to serve the guild while simultaneously helping support The Tribe and their leader, The Armorer.

From here, the audience is all caught up, and after Mando’s successful mission bringing a man in from the cold (no Le Carre puns here), they soon learn it’s slim pickings for the

Bounty Hunters’ Guild. Well, except for one high order mission that Greef Karga convinces Mando to take. This mission leads to Mando meeting the Child, and the rest is history as they say, but we’ll get to that.

In a galaxy inhabited by Jedi, Sith and the power of the force, it is truly remarkable to find someone such a man as Din Djarin who has a low midi-chlorian count but is still very powerful. His encounter with Ahsoka Tano is testament to Din Djarin’s tremendous skill as a warrior, especially in tense close combat situations. So while we have him under the microscope, let’s take a brief look at the man’s skill set:

If his opening encounter isn’t enough, Din Djarin proves himself handy, time and time again, in all forms of combat. He masterfully uses his fists, flamethrowers, tasers and the newly acquired Beskar spear to conquer enemies such as a pesky Dark Trooper and to disarm Moff Gideon, a man armed with the deadly Darksaber.

Extremely competent with various forms of blasters, rifles and space pistols, Din Djarin is also a gifted sniper that can easily pick off an adversary from quite a distance. He puts any stormtrooper, who could not bullseye a womp rat from a yard away, to shame.

He might not be fluent in over 6 million forms of communication, but the man speaks a number of languages at an impressive rate for a human. This versatile skill has come in handy in a number of scenarios. His knowledge of Tusken sign language helped cool down a heated moment between Cobb Vanth and the Tusken raiders, and his knowledge of basic Jawa helped when retrieving his ship parts. He can also speak Mando’a, a form of Mandalorian dialect.

Din Djarin is a gifted pilot that would put Wedge Antilles to shame. He bested a number of pilots in his Razor Crest Assault Ship during Seasons 1 and 2 and outclassed pirates in his Naboo N-1 starfighter in Season 3. These are just a few examples of the Mandalorian’s exceptional piloting skills.

Fast and Furious Mechanic

Due to a setback at the hands of some thieving Jawas, Din Djarin shows off his mechanical skills in Season 1, piecing the Razor Crest together with the assistance of “I have spoken” himself, Kuill. He also reinforces the modified N-1 Starfigher to peak condition in Season 3.

Even before he adopted Grogu in Season 3, we knew it was coming. All he had to do was remove his mask to show everyone how much he loves Grogu, and who could blame him. Once he makes the difficult but moral choice to gun down Imperialists and save Grogu from imminent torture, Din Djarin takes the path less travelled but is ultimately rewarded. As a father to Grogu, he is patient, devoted and takes the time to develop his skills as a wise mentor. What more could any foundling want?

It is this last skill of the man in the beskar mask which probably hits us hardest in the feels. Din Djarin’s devotion to the calling in the Hero’s Journey is captivating. Star Wars aficionados are no strangers to the influence of Joseph Campbell and the Hero’s Journey on the plot of the first movie, and The Mandalorian follows the same pattern. Like others before him, Mando is a reluctant hero until the pivotal moment. In “Chapter 3: The Sin,” Mando must risk his life, limb and career to get Grogu out of harm’s way. Instead of turning a blind eye to be handsomely rewarded, he decides to fight off remnants of the Empire and the entire Bounty Hunters’ Guild. This key moment propels Mando along the Hero’s Journey, and it is through this quest he becomes the man we know: a hero, a father and an ally to important people such as BoKatan and Cara Dune.

As an audience member, we do not have the clairvoyance to know the exact reason why Din Djarin makes this risky decision, but we can make an educated guess. Din Djarin must see reflections of himself in the innocent Grogu: an orphaned (though not entirely helpless) victim in need of rescue. While the bounty hunter in him would suggest to just complete the job, the Mandalorian in him says he must protect the innocent, no matter the cost. This is shown when the coven, under the leadership of Pas Vizsla, rush to save Din Djarin and Grogu from the Bounty Hunters’ Guild on Navarro. This is but a short glimpse of the man behind the mask, played with such passion and vigor by Pedro Pascal. As we continue to follow him and Grogu on their heroic journey, we look forward to seeing how deep we can explore the rabbit hole alongside this truly enigmatic hero of the Star Wars galaxy.

BY SUSHANT ALEXANDER