Could Bo-Katan Kryze Unite Mandalore Once and For All?
By Ian Walter
Where the third season of The Mandalorian dives right into Din’s mission, a pleasant addition to the quest is the assistance from Bo-Katan. Though the bulk of the third episode is devoted to ‘The Convert’ Dr. Pershing, it purposefully opens up and ends with Bo-Katan Kryze. Not only did she accompany Mando in the Living Waters (where she saw a Mythosaur, but is keeping this to herself for the time being), but she also inadvertently redeemed herself as well.
Though Din Djarin admits he owes Bo-Katan for saving his life, he must first return to his ship and announce his redemption to his covert. They are intercepted by fan-favourite TIE Interceptors and must use their exceptional piloting and dogfighting skills to survive the attack. They may have won the battle but not yet won the war, as TIE bombers strike back on Castle Kryze in the hills of Kalevala.
On Coruscant, Dr. Pershing has entered the Amnesty Program to reintegrate with the New Republic. There are definite parallels with other dystopian sci-fi properties not to mention similarities within the galaxy, namely Andor, only with a slightly friendly (compared to the Empire anyways) coat of paint. Moff Gideon’s right hand officer (Elia Kane is played by Katy M. O’Brian of Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania) is also going through the same program, and offers to take him sightseeing through Coruscant.
In light of the ethics of cloning being complicated, and L-52 (Dr. Pershing) having said as much while explaining to Coruscant’s elites the benefits of being able to duplicate individuals with one single strand, the New Republic has him doing menial data-entry tasks on a daily basis. After being given Imperial travel biscuits from the ‘old days’, Dr. Pershing is told by Elia that he could continue his research if he had a mobile lab unit. The Doc says to himself that his work is a benefit to the New Republic, and he also claims to have never deviated from authority like this before.
On a risky journey via rail to the disposal yards where the New Republic is decommissioning Imperial Star Destroyers, the duo arrives at the lab aboard one of them. Doc remembers the joy of his first encounter with a state-of-the-art Imperial lab, and Elia Kane formally introduces herself citing “I must’ve passed you on Gideon’s ship about 100 times.”
Though not attacked by creepy bugs on the Star Destroyers (I imagine we’ll see more of these at some point down the line), they are quickly surrounded by officers as it is revealed that Elia (the LIAR) had set up Dr. Pershing all along. This is the one area where you might have to stretch your suspension of disbelief when exposed to ‘mind-flayer light’ and Dr. Pershing is accusing Elia of the set-up, that the New Republic officer would then be so stupid as to leave her alone with the controls to savagely increase the torture to a level that will surely cause brain damage. When earlier Elia claimed it was the red biscuits that she liked best, this should be a tip-off that she is not all she claims to be when seen enjoying a white travel biscuit while torturing the good doctor.
The Mandalorian has brought Bo-Katan to the hidden covert, where the Armorer confirms they are telling the truth about bathing in the Living Waters and getting redeemed. The rest of the covert chants “This Is The Way” as Bo-Katan of clan Kryze is welcomed into the covert for as long as she wishes to follow the creed. This is an especially interesting development for Bo-Katan’s character (at least for the time being), as she has previously scoffed at the superstitions of the Children of the Watch.
As much as she claims to not be following the way, Bo-Katan Kryze still believes in the legends surrounding the Darksaber, and her encounter with the Mythosaur which she currently keeps secret has certainly sparked her interest. The story-line depicting Dr. Pershing as a potential convert for the New Republic represented the ever-looming threat of the dark side, and the prospect of conversion (however temporary) for Bo-Katan to find a new community that could potentially help restore Mandalore to glory is representative of hope. Could Bo-Katan or Din Djarin use the taming of a Mythosaur to unite the Mandalorians once and for all?