Din Djarin, the darksaber, and what makes a Mandalorian

Season 2 of The Mandalorian ended with a shock — well, several shocks, if you count the whole Luke Skywalker thing. But Din Djarin winning the darksaber from Moff Gideon and inheriting the entire weight of its legacy set up something quite amazing for future episodes of the show.

Further, the last several episodes of The Book of Boba Fett showed Din struggling to wield the saber, training with it, winning yet another duel “to the death” to claim it a second time, and possibly coming closer to accepting what it means to hold such a symbolic, powerful weapon.

Now in the upcoming third season of The Mandalorian, Din will presumably return to Mandalore to restore his honor and reclaim his identity. What he’ll find there is yet to be seen. What he’ll bring with him (besides Grogu)? The darksaber, most definitely.

Here’s the thing about the darksaber, though. As cool as it is (admit it, it’s VERY COOL), it’s quite dangerous to wield. The weapon is powerful not just because of its blade, but because of what it stands for … and what other Mandalorians (and Moffs) would do to get their hands on it.

At some point along his journey, Din surely has to realize that being a Mandalorian is about a lot more than the weapons you hold. And what it takes to lead an entire civilization isn’t determined by whether or not you’ve claimed the darksaber in combat.

By the end of The Mandalorian, the very definition of what it means to be a Mandalorian will have changed. Think of where things began in Season 1. Mandalorians were defined by their helmets and armor, their utterings of “this is the way.” But that’s not always going to be “the way,” is it?

Perhaps Din’s purpose in all this is to bring permanent change to the Mandalorian people and their culture — for the better, once and for all.

Season 3 of The Mandalorian premieres March 1 exclusively on Disney+.

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