So You Skipped The Book Of Boba Fett: Everything To Remember Before The Mandalorian Season 3

The world's favorite "Star Wars" duo is set to return for round three of adventures in a galaxy far, far away, as "The Mandalorian" season 3 is upon us. Mando and Grogu will be returning to Disney+ after a pretty long hiatus, given that the show's second season aired its finale well over two years ago at this point. Fans may be in need of a little refresher ahead of Mando's return, and we're here to help with precisely that.

For those who perhaps don't have time to watch two (technically three) full seasons of television again in just a few days' time, we're going to go over absolutely everything you need to know and/or remember ahead of "The Mandalorian" season 3. On the off chance you're not fully caught up, now would be the time to turn back as we are going to get into heavy spoilers here so you, dear reader, can be ready to reunite with Din Djarin and his little green companion. Let's dig in, shall we?

It is unlikely that much of what happened in the first season of "The Mandalorian" is going to impact the upcoming third season. The absolute essentials of it boil down to the fact that Pedro Pascal's Din Djarin had originally been tasked with carrying out a mysterious bounty, and that bounty led him to the then-nameless "The Child," fondly referred to by the internet as Baby Yoda. Unable to hand the kid away to the Empire, our bounty hunter took the adorable little alien himself, setting them off on a series of adventures that has, more or less, established the template for the entire show up to this point. Rather importantly, the Mandalorian creed dictated that he had to reunite the alien with its own kind, which set them up to spend more time together, creating their unbreakable bond. 

The truly key stuff comes in the finale, which is where we meet Moff Gideon (Giancarlo Esposito), the ruthless leader of the remnants of the Empire who is tasked with hunting down Din and Baby Yoda. Through the heroic sacrifice of a droid named IG-11 and the help of friends like Greef Karga (Carl Weathers), Din and The Child were actually able to escape the Imperial forces and leave Moff Gideon for dead in his Tie Fighter. That left Greef in charge of the planet Nevarro, more or less, giving Mando a friend he would need later on. Crucially, though, Gideon survived his crash, and when he emerged from the cockpit, he cut himself out with the Darksaber, a very important weapon from "Star Wars" history tied to Mandalore. 

As mentioned, it's been well over two years since "The Mandalorian" season 2 finale aired, bringing us one of the most memorable "Star Wars" moments of the Disney era to date. But there is much to remember from the season that will impact the events ahead. For one, Din met up with more of his Mandalorian pals, most notably Bo-Katan Kryze (Katee Sackhoff), who fans of "The Clone Wars" and "Star Wars Rebels" will surely be familiar with. But that's not the only important person he meets!

The idea was to connect The Child with one of his own kind, and that leads him to none other than fan-favorite Jedi Ahsoka Tano (Rosario Dawson). This episode, titled "The Jedi," is incredibly crucial, as it brings the world of the Jedi to this corner of the universe. More importantly, Ahsoka is the one who reveals Baby Yoda's real name, which we now know to be Grogu. The other hugely important thing that happens is that Ahsoka asks at one point, "Where is Thrawn?" This indicates that the Chiss villain who we last saw in the "Rebels" finale is still very much alive, and this almost certainly is setting the stage for the "Ahsoka" show.

Speaking of important people, "The Mandalorian" season 2 also finally brought Boba Fett (Temuera Morrison) back to "Star Wars" after decades away. Not to mention Fennec Shand (Ming Na-Wen), who Mando previously left for dead. Boba Fett did indeed survive that fall into the Sarlacc in "Return of the Jedi," and he's arguably more of a demonstrative badass than ever before. Boba just wants his armor back, which Mando got from Cobb Vanth (Timothy Olyphant) in the season premiere. After fighting some Stormtroopers who want Grogu, who is busy making contact with a mysterious Jedi, Boba finally got his armor back.

Unfortunately, two very bad things happened in "The Tragedy," the episode in which Boba Fett returns. One, Mando's beloved ship, the Razor Crest, is blown to bits by the Imperial troops attempting to capture Grogu. Two, yes, they are successful in capturing the Force-using alien, which paves the way for the season finale, titled "The Rescue." Mando has to assemble a team to attempt a wild rescue mission to try and get Grogu back. Boba Fett, Fennec Shand, Bo-Katan, and Cara Dune make their way toward the dastardly Moff Gideon, but a squad of Dark Troopers truly complicates matters.

Mando ends up duking it out with Moff Gideon for Grogu. After a hard-fought battle, Mando emerges victorious, but that puts the Darksaber in his possession, as the weapon must be won in combat. This pisses off Bo-Katan, as she desires the weapon to help her reclaim Mandalore. Those issues must be set aside, though, as the Dark Troopers present a threat the team cannot handle. When all seems lost, an X-Wing approaches — Luke Skywalker's X-Wing, to be specific. Yes, Luke shows up to make mincemeat of the Dark Troopers, becoming the kickass Jedi many fans always wanted to see.

But Luke is there for a reason. Grogu made contact with him in "The Tragedy" and Luke is trying to put together a new Jedi Order. As a result, Mando makes a heartbreaking choice to let Grogu go with Luke to be trained in the ways of the Jedi. Thus, it seems the dynamic of the show was to be altered greatly. Or was it?

While "The Book of Boba Fett" largely seemed like it was going to be a standalone story about the beloved bounty hunter, that proved not to be the case towards the end of the season. The show's fifth episode was literally titled "Return of the Mandalorian" and all but abandoned the main arc of the show to squeeze in an adventure with Din that is downright vital to the overarching story. Fans of "The Mandalorian" who skipped "The Book of Boba Fett" are surely going to have some major questions when their show returns.

In the episode, Mando is seeking out some of the surviving members of his clan and has a pretty tough discussion with the Armorer (Emily Swallow) in which it's revealed that he has taken his helmet off multiple times. This is not the way! She then explains that he must travel to Mandalore to seek redemption. To do that, he's going to need a new ship. So he goes to see Peli Motto (Amy Sedaris) on Tatooine to see what she can do for him. They end up fixing up an old N-1 Starfighter, which fans will recognize from "The Phantom Menace."

But before Mando could help Boba Fett handle his business in the finale of "The Book of Boba Fett," he paid a little visit to Luke and Ahsoka to see Grogu and check in on his training. It's explained that Grogu has an incredible attachment to Mando, which is making things difficult for him. Ultimately, Luke gives the little guy a choice: Continue to train in the ways of the Jedi, or reunite with Din Djarin. Grogu decides to go with Din, essentially undoing much of what was done in the season 2 finale.

It's also important to note that Mando had Beskar chainmail made up for Grogu, which can help protect him on the next round of dangerous adventures across the galaxy. "The Book of Boba Fett" also revealed that Grogu has a much better handle on his Force powers now, which should prove interesting come time for "The Mandalorian" to return. Those are the key things to remember, and for those who didn't watch "Boba Fett," much of this may sound pretty surprising.

For better or worse, the Mando-verse heads Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni used "The Book of Boba Fett" to deliver some incredibly important information about "The Mandalorian" and to restore the status quo of the series. We're right back to the adventures of Mando and Baby Yoda, even if there are many pieces of the puzzle left on the board, including Ahsoka Tano, a very angry Bo-Katan, and Luke Skywalker, who has deep connections to our main characters.

"The Mandalorian" season 3 premieres on Disney+ on March 1, 2023.