It’s been nearly two full years sinceThe Mandalorianseason 3 released, and I’m just now understanding what exactly went wrong with theStar WarsTV show’s latest installment. Despite being one ofStar Wars’most anticipated releases, arriving roughly two and a half years after the conclusion ofThe Mandalorianseason 2, season 3 was ultimately met with mixed reviews. Audiences were, and continue to be, divided about the story, particularly the direction it chose to go in regarding its titular protagonist:Din Djarin.
I, as perhaps one ofThe Mandalorian’s biggest fans myself, found myself torn between these two opposing groups for a long time. While initially rushing to defend the choices made inThe Mandalorianseason 3, I came to realize just how disappointed I was by them, but I couldn’t put my finger on exactly what had gone wrong - or how. Now, however, I finally understand what happened to my belovedStar WarsTV show, and it all comes down to a rather simple principle that’s left me torn about my outlook on the past and future ofThe Mandalorian.
The Mandalorian Season 3 Restored Din Djarin & Grogu To Their Defaults
Back Together, Bounty Hunting, & More
The biggest issue most viewers had withThe Mandalorianseason 3 was that Din Djarin and Grogu were both rather stagnant, and if anything, their stories regressed - particularly the former’s. There’s a stark contrast between where Din Djarin is at the end ofThe Mandalorianseason 2 and the beginning of season 3, which has everything to do with what took place in the TV show’s spin-off series,The Book of Boba Fett. Din went from being the accidental heir to Mandalore’s throne with potential doubts about his helmet rule to an apostate with a mission of atonement.
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As for Grogu, something similar happened as well. Grogu went from being the first student of Luke Skywalker’s Jedi Academy to a foundling yet again in his adoptive father’s charge. To make matters quite worse,byThe Mandalorianseason 3’s ending, both characters are essentially right back to where they started the series. Din Djarin is yet again bounty hunting, this time as an under-the-table independent contractor for Captain Carson Teva and hisNew Republicrangers, and Grogu is traveling with him as a Mandalorian apprentice.
This is easily what I had the hardest time grappling with in season 3, particularly given how clear Din Djarin’s path looked at the end ofThe Mandalorianseason 2. Left standing amongst others without his helmet and theDarksaberhanging from his belt, it seemed reasonable that season 3 would see Din grappling with his new responsibility and the potential of diverging from his helmet rule, instead adopting a Mandalorian way more likeBo-Katan Kryze’s in the process. Instead, Din focused wholeheartedly on redemption, making the Darksaber plot somewhat useless.
The Mandalorian (& Din Djarin) Experienced The Illusion Of Change
Essentially, what happened withThe Mandalorianand Din Djarin in season 3 is that it was utilizing the illusion of change, a principle described and detailed expertly byPeter David. The illusion of change is whenstorytellers find ways to make it seem like their characters are changing, when, in reality, everything is still at its status quo. The example David uses is Spider-Man, comparing the similarities of his high school life with his college life: in both, he’s a student with problems in his love life and in his finances.
Over the years, Stan and Steve (and later John) put him through changes. But when you get down to it, they satisfied the concept of illusionary change. Peter went from high school to college… but he was still a student. Betty Brant and Liz Allen gave way to Gwen Stacy and Mary Jane Watson, and nemesis Flash Thompson stepped aside for nemesis Harry Osborn. Otherwise, though, he was pretty much the same guy. Sure, he got a motorcycle, which was the ultimate in cool… but he wound up having to sell it, thereby bringing the money problems back to the forefront.It was evolution, but 360 degrees’ worth. Same old Spider-Man, same old Peter Parker, same old problems at the core.
Any change that can’t be undone simply isn’t implemented, and if it is, it requires complex solutions to undo it, as seen with Spider-Man’s marriage in the Marvel Comics. ForThe Mandalorian, this was the season 2 finale, which saw Grogu heading off to Jedi training with Luke Skywalker and Din Djarin inheriting the Darksaber, and Mandalore’s throne, while questioning his helmet rule.Star Warswas on the cusp of some intensely irrevocable changes for both these characters, and after evaluating its massive success, they ultimately decided it was too risky to continue that path.
Din Djarin and Grogu had a 360-degree evolution, with Din going back to bounty hunting for the New Republic and Grogu being in his father’s charge.
As a result,The Mandalorianseason 3 was given the task of taking Din Djarin and Grogu both back to their status quo, righting their course so that no unnecessary risks were takenin their storytelling.The Book of Boba Fettbegan this process by showing Din Djarin’s struggles with the Darksaber that would never cease and giving him the mission to earn his atonement for removing his helmet in theLiving Waterson Mandalore. Grogu was given a choice by Luke Skywalker to continue his training or return to his father, and he chose the latter.
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By the timeThe Mandalorianseason 3 rolled around, the status quo had already been somewhat restored; Din Djarin and Grogu were back together again, and they had a new mission set before them. Where the illusion faltered in season 3, however, and thus exposed itself with a feeling of wrongness detected by its audience, was thatDin and Grogu’s mission was only carried into the third episode of the season. Afterward, they had nothing else to do but help Bo-Katan’s efforts to retake Mandalore, the story that Din may have had if things were different.
At the end of it all, the status quo reset had been set. Din Djarin and Grogu had a 360-degree evolution, with Din going back to bounty hunting for the New Republic and Grogu being in his father’s charge. Things are slightly different, in that Din’s jobs are more justifiable now and Grogu’s place with his father is more permanent, but at the end of the day,they’re not really that different from the beginning of season 2 at all. Even exclusive footage fromThe Mandalorian and Grogumovie promises more of this with theRazor Crest’s return.
The Franchise Needs These Characters To Last
All of this is to say thatThe Mandalorianhas regressed purposefully instead of progressing, and it has everything to do with favoring the franchise over the narrative. These two can indeed oppose one another when it comes down to it;the story has different needs than the franchise in both the short- and the long-term. The story of a single season may demand that Din Djarin undergo more significant change, as was set up byThe Mandalorianseason 2 finale, but the franchise needs that character to maintain his core archetype, as seen in everything after that finale.
Star Wars wants to keep making stories with Din Djarin and Grogu for as long as possible, and to make that feasible, they cannot allow the characters to change too much.
In the case ofThe Mandalorian, the franchise has won out.Star Warswants to keep making stories with Din Djarin and Grogu for as long as possible, and to make that feasible, they cannot allow the characters to change too much. Otherwise, their longevity is at risk, as is the charm that initially made them resonate with the audience so well. For Din Djarin, that’s being a faceless bounty-hunting father figure, and for Grogu, that’s being an adorable albeit powerful sidekick. That’s how they’re going to stay, because that’s what the franchise needs from them.
Will The Guaranteed Longevity Of The Mandalorian Justify This Decision?
Will It Be Worth It In The Long Run?
The positive in all of this is that fans ofThe Mandalorian, such as myself, don’t have to worry about Din Djarin and Grogu going away anytime soon. The use of the illusion of change alone indicates that, like classic superhero characters,this duo will have staying power inStar Warsfor the long term, hence why they have now returned to their status quo. Unfortunately, this comes at the cost of either one of them undergoing major transformations in the future. On this current path, neither one of them will stray far from where they are right now.
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This is why I’m torn about how I feel about all of this. As a massive fan ofThe Mandalorianmyself, and someone who considers Din Djarin to be my favorite character of all time, I’m of course relieved to realize that he’s not going anywhere in the long-run. Knowing it will, and already has in the case of season 3, come at the cost of his character development being hindered, however, is hard to accept. I’m gratefulStar WarswantsThe Mandalorianto continue, but I’m uncertain if it’s worth the price these characters have to pay.
The Mandalorian
Cast
Released on June 12, 2025 The Mandalorian follows a lone gunfighter navigating the galaxy’s outer reaches after the Galactic Empire’s fall. As a skilled bounty hunter, he operates in a lawless universe, undertaking various missions on the fringes of the New Republic’s territories.
