A pivotal scene in the season 1 finale of the Mandalorian might reveal Bo-Katan’s fate after Star Wars Rebels.
Warning: There are spoilers ahead for The Mandalorian Chapter 8 “Redemption”
When the premise of The Mandalorian was first revealed, many fans were hopeful that the show would incorporate the character of Bo-Katan Kryze. The fan-favorite character was introduced in The Clone Wars. She was last seen in Star Wars Rebels where she wielded the Darksaber to help unite the Mandalorians against the Empire.
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Bo-Katan never showed up in season 1 of The Mandalorian nor is she ever explicitly mentioned. Yet, the end of “Redemption” unveils that Moff Gideon now wields the Darksaber, a legendary weapon many fans hoped would appear in the show. Earlier in the episode he’s confirmed to have played an important role in the Great Purge where most of the Mandalorians were wiped out by the Empire.
In The Clone Wars when Maul challenged Pre Vizsla and in Star Wars Rebels when Sabine Wren fought Gar Saxon, Maul and Sabine killed their respective enemies and then took possession of the Darksaber. In season 4 of Rebels, Sabine chose to pass on the Darksaber to Bo-Katan, believing her to be the leader needed to unite the Mandalorian clans.
Given all this knowledge, it’s not a stretch to believe that Moff Gideon killed Bo-Katan during the Great Purge, thereby allowing him to claim possession of the Darksaber.
As the leader of the Mandalorians who united them against the Empire, Bo-Katan would be one of the Empire’s main targets when the Great Purge happened. It’s a downer to think about, especially since this means that with the exception of flashbacks, Bo-Katan will not make her live-action debut in The Mandalorian.
Moff Gideon having the Darksaber opens up a number of possibilities for future seasons of the show, though it doesn’t confirm that he’s Force-sensitive. Of the aforementioned characters, Maul is the only one who was Force-sensitive. Moff Gideon isn’t a Mandalorian like most of the most mentioned characters, but he could still be a formidable enough warrior to have defeated Bo-Katan in combat.
As if capturing and harming Baby Yoda weren’t already enough, the inclusion of the Darksaber and Moff Gideon’s role in the Great Purge makes him an even more personal villain for the Mandalorian Din Djarin. Finding Din Djarin and Baby Yoda is now also a more personal mission for Moff Gideon as well. He may wield the Darksaber now, but what does that power mean when a Mandalorian survives and keeps preventing Gideon from securing the asset he desperately desires?
With the Darksaber likely playing a significant role in future seasons, hopefully the show will one day confirm how Moff Gideon acquired the weapon and whether he had to kill Bo-Katan to do so. If this is not the case, fans eventually deserve an answer of what happened to Bo-Katan after Rebels and whether or not she survived the Great Purge.
Do you think Moff Gideon killed Bo-Katan during the Great Purge? Let us know in the comments!