How ‘The Mandalorian’ fits into the ‘Star Wars’ timeline
Mark your calendars, because The Mandalorian season 2 premiere is coming in the near future. Ready your Star Wars cosplay & renew that Disney Plus subscription so that you’re ready to rumble when The Mandalorian returns on October 30.
With the nearing release date and the thrilling season 2 trailer, we can’t contain our excitement. Out of the vast collection of Star Wars content, The Mandalorian is unanimously regarded as the must-watch series. However, if The Mandalorian isn’t your first Star Wars love, then you may be wondering what exactly it’s context is in Star Wars lore.
Because the Star Wars compendium is ever-expanding, series & films have frequently jumped around on the Star Wars timeline. Understandably, there is cause for confusion about The Mandalorian when it comes to context. When is Mando’s journey taking place? What happened before and after the series? Here’s what you need to know about the Star Wars timeline before diving into season 2.
Star Wars timeline
To get a good picture of when exactly The Mandalorian takes place, it’s easiest to look at the grand Star Wars timeline. The short answer is that The Mandalorian fits right in between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens. This means The Mandalorian story happens after the original trilogy and before the new trilogy.
To be more precise, The Mandalorian takes place around 9 ABY (after the Battle of Yavin, the attack on the first Death Star) which is five years after Return of the Jedi. The events in The Force Awakens happen in 34 ABY. This puts The Mandalorian much closer to the original trilogy than the new trilogy.
The little window between known events is a gap of thirty years. So, what do we already know about what was happening in this empty space? The most relevant information is that The Mandalorian is in the time period where the New Republic (newly formed by the Rebel Alliance) struggles to tie the galaxy together.
This New Republic struggle is evident from what we’ve already seen in The Mandalorian so far. Remnants of the Empire are seen establishing an impressive presence in the Outer Rim worlds, where The Mandalorian takes place. You may recall Mando himself saying that reporting Empire forces to the New Republic would be “a joke.”
Star Wars lore
When looking at the larger scope of Star Wars lore, it’s easier to see how and why certain things have been happening in The Mandalorian. This unique time period is chaotic in Star Wars lore – building an action-packed setting for the exciting series.
Crime organizations like the Ranch gang-run rampant and even have been seen teaming up with budding allies in the Empire. Looking at the newer Star Wars trilogy, it’s impossible not to think about the Imperial antagonizing force called the First Order. The rise in Imperial power we’ve witnessed in The Mandalorian hints that the formation of the First Order.
The First Order’s presence isn’t established in The Mandalorian yet, but we will likely see it start to unfold in the oncoming seasons. While the Empire’s role starts as just another bounty (which targets the highly sought after Baby Yoda), we end up seeing the foreboding strength of Imperial Officer Moff Gideon & his platoon of stormtroopers in the finale.
Events in The Mandalorian also call for us to dig into Star Wars Jedi lore. The Darksaber reveal prompts many questions. Not to mention, the internet’s favorite called – deemed the beloved Baby Yoda – draws our immediate attention. Pretty much the only sign of a Force user we’ve seen so far, Baby Yoda stands as our insight into the Jedi in this time period.
Considering The Mandalorian takes place after Return of the Jedi, we know that there is a rising presence of Jedi. Luke, for example, is soon to open up a Jedi temple (which is doomed to fail.) Otherwise, those who are force sensitive have largely fallen into the shadows. Baby Yoda, however, has proven to be exceedingly strong with the Force (you know saving the Mandalorian from a space rhino and such.)
In the season 2 trailer, we see that Mando’s new mission is to take Baby Yoda to “reunite it with its own kind.” They also allude to Baby Yoda belonging to an order of sorcerers known as Jedi. Also revealed in the trailer, Mandalorian history labels them “enemy sorcerers” because of battles between them & Mandalore the Great. Will this clash come to the forefront in season 2? We’ll just have to see.
Classic Star Wars characters
A popular theory that has been thrown around with fans has to do with The Mandalorian’s proximity to Return of the Jedi on the timeline. That is – that key characters we’ve known from the original trilogy may make an appearance.
Temuera Morrison, the actor who played Boba Fett in the prequel trilogy, is rumored to return in The Mandalorian. This, of course, hints that the legendary bounty hunter Boba Fett may have a role in season 2. In fact, a leaked CV gives a Showcast listing which includes Temuera Morrison as Boba Fett for The Mandalorian season 2.
However, the last we saw of Boba Fett in Return of the Jedi, he had presumably died after falling into the Sarlacc Pit to be slowly digested over many years. Will Mando be the one to rescue Boba Fett? How did he escape? We absolutely cannot wait to find out.
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If you’re still wondering about The Mandalorian timeline, check out other Film Daily articles covering The Mandalorian.
Are you excited about The Mandalorian season 2? What are your favorite theories about season 2?
Mark your calendars, and make sure that your Internet Service Provider is delivering you with a latency-free bandwidth. The Mandalorian season 2 is about to premier in the near future. So, prepare your Star Wars cosplay & renew that Disney Plus subscription, and be ready to rumble when The Mandalorian returns on October 30.
