What Do Pykes Look Like Without a Mask?

One of the things that have always interested people about the Star Wars shows that are on Disney+ is the fact that the showrunners aren’t shy about maintaining continuity by carrying over characters from previous works such as comics, standalone films, and animated series. This is the same case with The Book of Boba Fett, which introduced the Pyke Syndicate with and without their masks. But what do Pykes look like without their mask?

The unmasked Pyke in The Book of Boba Fett looked like an alien-like creature that is similar to what a catfish looks. Just imagine a cross between the usual gray alien and a catfish. This is far from what the Pykes look like in Star Wars: Clone Wars, as they had a more colorful and complex appearance.

Unmasking the Pykes in The Book of Boba Fett was a surprising yet accepted approach on the part of the showrunners, as they were able to allow us to see what the new canon appearance of these aliens is. That said, this is not the first time we have seen them on screen or unmasked, as the Pykes were also prominent in Clone Wars and in Solo.

What Do Pykes Look Like Without A Mask?

The Star Wars shows on Disney+ have an interesting take on how they approach the way they introduce the characters, as it was never a secret that they were not shy about maintaining continuity. This meant that they tried their best to make sure that the characters and storylines introduced in the older movies, shows, and comics were kept in the Disney+ shows.

This was apparent in The Mandalorian when we saw old characters crossing over and making an appearance for the first time in live-action, such as Ahsoka and Bo-Katan, who made their first appearances as important characters in Star Wars: Clone Wars. The same can be said about The Book of Boba Fett, which also introduced characters that we have seen in the past.

While The Book of Boba Fett introduced and reintroduced characters from older Star Wars shows and comics, we also got a better look at the Pykes, who made an appearance in episode 2 of the series.

In episode 2 of The Book of Boba Fett, the Pykes were running a train that they used to collect and transport spice from Tatooine. While on the same train, the Pykes were terrorizing the Tusken Raiders by shooting them down as the train passed by. This led Boba Fett to take action, as he eventually trained the Tuskens to learn how to ride speeder bikes so that they could take down the spice train.

Upon taking down the spice train, Fett and the Tusken Raiders tied the Pykes down as the bounty hunter asked for the leader of the group. The leader stood up and introduced himself while taking his mask off. This was the very first time that we saw the Pykes without their mask on a live-action Star Wars series.

If you are wondering what the Pykes in The Book of Boba Fett look like without their mask, you shouldn’t expect too much because there isn’t anything novel about their appearance. The Pykes in The Book of Boba Fett just look like alien catfish. Just imagine the usual gray alien crossed with the appearance of a catfish by giving it a snout-like mouth with one whisker on each side of the face.

It should be noted that this was not the first time we saw the Pykes on live-action. The Pykes were featured in Solo: A Star Wars Story, as there was a masked Pyke overseeing the spice mining operation in the mines of Kessel. However, that Pyke never took his mask off.

Meanwhile, the first time the Pykes were revealed was in Star Wars: Clone Wars, which is a CGI-animated Star Wars series about the Clone Wars that happened after Attack of the Clones and before Revenge of the Sith. In Clone Wars, the Pykes were part of a huge syndicate of spice smugglers that partnered up with Darth Maul for a while. However, in Clone Wars, they were unmasked and had a different appearance.

Pykes Without The Mask Images

If you are wondering what Pykes look like without their masks, we have two images for you:

The photo above shows the Pykes that were unmasked in The Book of Boba Fett. As you can see, they look like standard gray aliens but with catfish-like features such as their elongated mouths and their whiskers.

In this photo, we get to see an unmasked Pyke in Clone Wars. As you can see, they have a more complex and colorful appearance. On top of that, Pykes in Clone Wars also have lanky body proportions.

Why Are The Pykes In Solo Different?

While we did see the Pykes unmasked in The Book of Boba Fett, it is worth noting that they also take on a different appearance in Solo despite the fact that the Pykes were never unmasked in that movie. But the difference we see in The Book of Boba Fett and in Solo is in relation to the mask used by the Pyke in the latter movie. 

The Pyke in Solo used a more robotic mask. On the other hand, the Pykes in The Book of Boba Fett wore masks that were not robotic but looked like a cross between the masks used by the Pykes in Clone Wars and the ones they used in Solo.

As different as the Pykes may be in Solo, the more important question is in relation to the Pykes in the Clone Wars series. So, why do the Pykes in Clone Wars have a different appearance when unmasked?

Well, the only logical reason why the appearance of the Pykes in The Book of Boba Fett was changed when compared to the unmasked versions in Clone Wars is due to the fact that the animated version was difficult to translate to live-action. The lanky proportions, as well as the complex and colorful appearance of the Pykes in Clone Wars, are very difficult to portray in a live-action series like The Book of Boba Fett. Hence, the decision was to make the Pykes look simpler.