Baby Yoda’s Hard Choice: Lightsaber vs. Mandalorian Armor (Explained)
In the final portions of episode 6 of The Book of Boba Fett, Luke Skywalker gave Grogu a decision between the armor that Djarin gave him and Master Yoda’s lightsaber and choosing one over the other means that he is choosing his own path in life. So, which between the lightsaber and the Mandalorian armor will Baby Yoda choose?
Grogu will most likely choose the Mandalorian armor. Luke hinted at that when he said that choosing the lightsaber means that it will take a long time before he would ever see Din Djarin again. And we also know that Grogu could not have been one of the students that Kylo Ren killed when he betrayed Luke.
The best thing about Luke Skywalker’s mentoring of Grogu is that he gave him a choice, which was something that he didn’t have when he became a Jedi to stop the Empire. Of course, the choice that Grogu will make will ultimately affect his fate. And that means that whatever he decides will also affect the flow of The Mandalorian’s story moving forward.
Why Does Grogu Need To Choose Between The Mandalorian Armor And The Lightsaber?
Episode 6 of The Book of Boba Fett is similar to episode 5 in the sense that they are extensions of The Mandalorian. You could even say that these episodes are made to be preludes to season 3 of The Mandalorian because of how they explore Din Djarin’s story more than Boba Fett’s. Of course, episode 6 also reintroduced Grogu, who we also know as Baby Yoda.
In this episode, Grogu was seen training with Luke Skywalker on a remote planet. Din Djarin went to see Grogu, but he was welcomed by Ahsoka Tano instead. As Ahsoka explained to Djarin that seeing him would affect Grogu’s training, the Mandalorian opted to leave without even seeing his little friend. But he asked Ahsoka to give Grogu his gift, which turned out to be a Mandalorian chainmail armor.
Later in the episode, Ahsoka met with Luke and gave him the gift that Djarin asked her to give to Grogu. This was when Luke made the decision to have his new mentee choose his own path in life.
In the final portion of the episode, Luke Skywalker showed the Mandalorian chainmail to Grogu. After that, he also showed a small lightsaber that was once owned by Jedi Grandmaster Yoda himself. But Luke told Grogu that he could only choose one of those gifts. So, why does Grogu need to choose?
If you remember, in episode 5, The Armorer told Din Djarin that Jedi forsake all attachments to the world and do not care about material possessions. Meanwhile, Djarin told her that loyalty is part of the Mandalorian code. Considering that Yoda is a Mandalorian foundling, being loyal to him was something that Din Djarin needed to do. As such, it became a battle between two of Grogu’s identities.
Of course, Ahsoka Tano and Luke Skywalker also said that Grogu had a strong attachment to Din Djarin, and that attachment was something that could hold either of them back. We all know what attachments can do to a Jedi, as Anakin Skywalker fell to the dark side because of his attachment to Padme Amidala. That is why Jedi are asked to forsake their attachments in life, as being too attached can make them too emotional, which would lead them to the dark side.
The Mandalorian armor that Din Djarin gave Grogu was a symbol of his attachment to him. As long as Grogu has that armor in his possession, he will always keep the Mandalorian in his mind, and that could mess with his training as a Jedi. That is why Luke allowed him to make a choice.
Of course, it was an amazing decision on Luke’s part to make Grogu decide. Remember that Luke didn’t have much of a choice when he was thrust into the war with the Empire and was trained to be a Jedi without deciding whether or not that was really something he wanted to do.
The word “choice” was also something that was highlighted in the episode early on when Ahsoka told Din Djarin that she didn’t want to train Grogu because it was his choice not to be trained by her. She also went on to say that “I don’t control the wants of others.” To that, Djarin told her that it was his choice to see Grogu.
In that sense, the episode allowed us to see that everyone’s life depends on the choices that they make. And now it is up to Grogu to choose his own fate in life by choosing between the lightsaber and the armor.
Why Would Grogu Choose The Lightsaber?
Once owned by Jedi Grandmaster Yoda, who was responsible for training Luke Skywalker, this lightsaber is a legendary weapon that was perfect for Grogu in terms of its size. Choosing the lightsaber means that Grogu would commit to the life of a Jedi, and that means that he has to forsake all of his attachments in life.
Grogu becoming a Jedi was always something that The Mandalorian hinted at when Din Djarin chose to go on a journey to return him to his people after finding him in the very first episode of the series. However, Grogu never had much of a choice in that matter. And it seemed as if parting with Din Djarin in the final parts of season 2 of The Mandalorian was one of the most painful things he has ever experienced in life.
So, by becoming a Jedi, Grogu has a chance to help rebuild the Jedi Order as Luke Skywalker’s first student. He has the opportunity to rebuild something that lasted for a thousand years before the Empire destroyed it. Of course, we all know that the New Jedi Order didn’t last too long on account of Kylo Ren’s betrayal. Still, becoming a Jedi seemed to have been Grogu’s destiny from the start.
Why Would Grogu Choose The Mandalorian Armor?
The Mandalorian chainmail that Din Djarin had The Armorer make for Grogu is a symbol of their attachment to one another. This is the symbol of the bond that they formed throughout their many journeys together. And it also shows how important Grogu is to Din Djarin and vice versa.
By choosing the Mandalorian armor, Grogu would essentially be choosing someone who was always there to protect him at all costs. It means that he values the bond he has formed with Din Djarin above anything else in life and that he is not willing to sever that bond even if it means forsaking his path to becoming a Jedi.
We also know that the series is focused heavily on Mandalorian lore and that Grogu is a Mandalorian due to a technicality. So, by choosing the armor, he chooses to become a Mandalorian instead of a Jedi, and that means that he could help move the series forward onto new things as he travels with Din Djarin throughout the galaxy.
How Does Grogu’s Choice Affect The Future Of The Mandalorian?
When Luke told Grogu that choosing the life of a Jedi means that it would take another lifetime for him to once again see Din Djarin, he was essentially telling us that we would never see him again. And that takes away one of the central characters of The Mandalorian while forcing Din Djarin into a solitary lifestyle once again.
Meanwhile, choosing the Mandalorian armor will allow the series to move forward with both Din Djarin and Grogu. There is a good chance that Grogu will be occupying the astromech droid pod on the Naboo Starfighter that Djarin is now piloting. Of course, the series could move on forward to bigger things with the introduction of the Pyke syndicate and Cad Bane and the possibility of Moff Gideon being a threat once more.
There is even a possibility that the next season will focus heavily on Mandalorian lore because Djarin might find himself on a redemption journey as a Mandalorian. And it would be interesting to see how things play out for him, depending on Grogu’s choice.
