"THE MANDALORIAN" EXPLORES HIS FAITH (Season 2)

The incredible Star Wars series continues with Season 2 of The Mandalorian. Din Jarin shows his devotion to his mission as he embarks on a galaxy-wide quest to find a Jedi master to take in the child, Grogu. The more time they spend together, the closer they grow. It makes one wonder how they will stand to separate at the end of the Mando's mission.

While Mando's devotion to the little, potential Jedi remains unfaltering and unyielding, his faith is put to the test, especially without the support of his covert. It meets a tragic end at the end of Season 1. He and Grogu face their tests alone. (See Season 1 review). Without his home. Without his colleagues. How does Mando's faith as a Mandolorian fare? Let's explore his journey episode by episode.

The Mandalorian Creed dictates that only Mandalorians can wear Mandalorian armor. It is a distinct look with maximum protection. It is made of a rare, indestructible metal called beskar. Not even lightsabers can penetrate it. Mandalorians are enormously proud and protective of their armor.

Mando meets Marshall Cobb Vanth of Mos Pelgo, a small Tatooine community. Vanth is rumored to be a Mandalorian because he wears the armor. However, he is no Mandalorian, and he bought the armor from some familiar Jawas. It is the armor of Boba Fett who was last seen getting swallowed by a Sarlacc in "Return of the Jedi".

When Mando discovers the fraud, he is prepared to kill the marshal to take it back. Instead, he settles for diplomacy. Vanth peacefully surrenders the armor in exchange for Mando's help. Mandalorians are trained to shoot first and ask questions later, but the complexities of his mission require a more delicate approach. How much more bloodshed does the child need to witness?

It is one thing to put the child in a dangerous situation, but the steaks rise when he is taken by the people from whom Mando works so hard to protect him: The Empire. They would kill the child in the name of science, especially if it means bringing their beloved Emperor back from the dead. What would Mando do to save his foundling?

Boba Fett's armor seems like a small price to pay for the famous bounty hunter's assistance. He surrenders the armor to this non-Mandalorian. Suddenly, the beliefs for which he is willing to kill are not as important as before.

The notion of promises is barely explored, but it is hinted in Episode 2. Mandalorians are famed for keeping the promises they make. However, Mando easily forgets his obligation to one client in favor of Grogu's safety. His dedication to the child is his top priority, even when his ship is in dire need of repairs and a woman's family is at stake.

The protective covert of Mando's sect keeps him sheltered from other sects of Mandalorians in the galaxy. He is taught to believe that his way is the only way.

Until he meets Bo-Katan Kryze, leader of a liberal sect of Mandalorians and heiress to the throne of Mandalore. Mando's training dictates he write her off as a heretic and walk away. However, he is in no position to turn away a Mandalorians offer to help. His covert is gone. They are the first and only Mandalorians he finds. They are also willing to accept and help him. All he needs to do is ignore their lax helmet rules. It's not unreasonable given the circumstances.

This sect holds the key to the future of all Mandalorians. Their goal is to restore their planet. If Bo-Katan can achieve her goal, all Mandalorians safe to come out of hiding. They would have a home. This shows Mando a future beyond his immediate mission. It is a noble cause to join. He just needs to let go of his extreme beliefs.

Perhaps, we will see that arc unfold in Season 3.

This is another subtle theme, but it is crucial for the end of the season. Mando grows weary of subjecting his foundling to dangerous situations, and he must learn to trust others to care for him. Otherwise, he can never complete his mission.

The first time he leaves Grogu alone. The mission is too dangerous. To take the child along would ensure Grogu's death. The best thing for him is to leave him in safe hands: a teacher. It is a foreshadow of the mission's conclusion.

Mando faces a bigger problem at the temple on Tython. Grogu makes his call to Luke Skywalker while an ambush surrounds them. The call takes time no one can afford. Mando tries to interrupt it, but he is unable. He must resist the urge to hide Grogu from the Empire and allow the child to pursue his future with a new master and protector. Instead, Mando gives Grogu the time he needs by fighting off their Imperial assailants. Even at great costs. His ship is destroyed, and the child is taken.

In the long run, it is the right thing to do because he allows his foundling to find a place where he can belong. Mando does not understand the Force. He cannot reason with it. He cannot stop it. He must learn to accept it and the Jedi he encounters.

Mandalorians consider the Jedi Order to be enemies. They stand for different causes, and their history is filled with bloodshed. To Mando, they are "enemy sorcerers". Again, his mission with Grogu blurs the lines. Grogu is both youngling and foundling. In his case, the Jedis mark the completion of his mission.

"I like firsts. Good or bad, they're always memorable."

This is where Mando and Grogu meet their first Jedi, Ahsoka Tano, and they find themselves with a common goal. Common enemies, Jedi and Mandalorian, forge a union against an Emperial tyrant whose defeat would benefit both of them. It is the first pairing of its kind - different religions working together.

Tradition be damned here. Instead, we see good people working with good people for good causes. They fight the remnants of Imperial influence in the galaxy. Despite their differences, Mando learns it's better to trust others, even his supposed enemies and especially when fighting the Empire. It is the Empire that poses the greatest danger to his foundling.

Mando needs that trust in the Jedi for the intimidating moment when Luke Skywalker enters the scene. The Master Jedi does save their lives, but he does the task too well by leaving Mando's entire team of kick-ass woman warriors shaking in their boots. Even the confident and arrogant Moff Gideon becomes so shaken at the sight of Skywalker that he attempts a murder-suicide before the Jedi reaches the door to their holdup.

Only Mando and Grogu understand the reason for Skywalker's appearance. He comes for the child. He doesn't want to pick a fight, kill Gideon, or take the Dark Saber. All he wants is to provide help to the youngling that called for him. Everything else is not his business. Mando trusts him to do exactly that. Because he learns that these "enemy sorcerers" are hardly enemies. They're just different.

So, he opens the door to the most fearsome being on the ship.

The ultimate doubt regards the holy grail of Mandalorian Law. They may never show their faces to another living being. However, the liberal sect plants a serious seed of doubt in him. Yet, they are not punished. They are allowed to continue to wear their helmets even though they throw off their helmet at every opportune moment. Eventually, their bad influence affects him until he too removes his helmet with ease.

"Seems to me like your rules start to change when you get desperate."

Here, he bends the rules. He changes into the armor of a stormtrooper. This way, he can infiltrate an Imperial base without showing his face. Circumstances change as the mission gets more complicated. He must show his face to a computer. Again, technicality wins.

A computer is not alive, much like the droid that saves him in Season 1. He doesn't expect to get caught unaware by a particularly infuriating Imperial officer. This time, luck is on his side. No Imperials lives after they see his face. No harm done, right? Not exactly. That computer keeps a record of his facial scan. By the end, the entire galaxy would know his face through that image. Because of this infraction, he should never again wear his helmet... but who would be there to enforce the rule. The only Mandalorians he knows are just as guilty as he.

Here, we must consider the deeper meaning. He breaks this rule for the love of his child and to preserve a far greater belief. He would break one rule to preserve another. In the end, what makes him a Mandalorian: his helmet or his mission? Remove the helmet, save the child. That's exactly what he does.

The last time he removes his helmet is to say goodbye. Grogu wants to see the face of his surrogate father, and Mando obliges him in front of everyone in the room. It is a tear-jerking moment because we can see on his face that Mando is a changed man. He is a man who loves his child, regardless of his Mandalorian faith.

With every passing episode, Mando's religious resolve fades. And all that's left is the love. What is religion without love?

The season ends with the child surrendered to a Jedi, returned to its "own kind". With Mando no longer responsible for him, what will his next adventure be? Many questions are left unanswered.

Who claims the Dark Saber?
What becomes of the unconscious Moth Gideon?
Will Mando officially convert to the new sect?
Will the Mandalorians see their planet restored?
What will become of Grogu at Luke's doomed temple?

Let us see how many of these questions are answered in Season 3, now in filming.