7 Easter eggs and references you might have missed in The Mandalorian trailer
From nods to Boba Fett, to the return of an old foe, here are the best callbacks to spot
We sense much excitement in you. That’s because the new trailer for live-action Star Wars series The Mandalorian has landed, giving fans of the space saga plenty to digest.
From new characters, to returning foes and Easter eggs, the second sneak peek of the new series – which sees Pedro Pascal play a lone Mandalorian gunfighter – is packed with key references to a galaxy far far away.
Here are seven of the best...
These aren’t the droids you were looking for
Although on screen for less than a second, it looks like the new series will feature super battle droids – the hardened war machines that were last seen in Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith. Not only can we glimpse two of the B-2 bots for a few frames, but the trailer also shows a droid heavy missile ship.
Does this mean a droid army will feature heavily in The Mandalorian? Our bet: probably not.
More like this
Since the show is set after the events of Return of the Jedi, it will take place several decades after the Separatist forces collapsed. Instead, it’s more likely the droids will appear in a flashback, perhaps explaining why Pascal’s character becomes a gun-for-hire in the first place.
Shipping out
While the ship belonging to the titular bounty hunter hasn’t appeared in the films before, its design gives a nod to an old craft owned by Jango Fett, another Mandalorian mercenary.
As players of the Star Wars: Bounty Hunter game will know, before tearing up space in his infamous Slave I ship, Fett roamed the galaxy in a chunky craft (an AIAT/I ship) made by Kuat Drive Yards.
And it looks very similar to the one we see in The Mandalorian. Sure, not identical – the engine position has changed – but it’s a nice reference for Fett fans nonetheless.
A fight in shining armour
Although stormtroopers sport a very similar looking – if camouflage-unfriendly white – armour to the Mandalorian, it doesn’t ever shield them from blaster shots (or Ewok sticks, for that matter).
But Pascal’s metallic battle suit seems like an upgrade – on several occasions, the lone gunfighter appears to deflect bolts with his shiny outer-shell. Poor stormtroopers and their cheap plastic armour...
"He's alive, and in perfect hibernation"
Remember in the Empire Strikes Back when Vader and Boba Fett fretted that Han Solo would be frozen to death when encased in carbonite? Those were the days.
Well, it looks like Solo’s hibernation sickness was all worth it: his experience showed the whole galaxy – or at least The Mandalorian’s titular character – that carbonite is an effective way to store your prize catches.
At least that's what we can gather after seeing the human cargo spotted in the trailer.
Taking the helm
Despite two trailers and many many publicity shots, we’re yet to see Pedro Pascal’s nameless bounty hunter without his Mandalorian helmet on.
And it makes us wonder: what if we never actually see his face throughout the entire series? Or what if the character carries some sort of injury that, if included in the trailers, could spoil a huge plot point?
Par-second thoughts
One of the trailer’s most memorable lines: “They said you were coming. They said you were the best in the parsec. Would you agree?”
Ominously delivered by Werner Herzog – who’s apparently connected to the Empire – it’s not only a testament to the titular character’s skill, but a subtle nod to one of Star Wars’ most famous fluffs.
We’re of course referring to the mention of a parsec in Episode IV: A New Hope. Although Herzog correctly suggests that a parsec is a distance in space (about 19 trillion miles, if you must know), Han Solo memorably appeared to think it was a unit of time – in A New Hope he says the Millennium Falcon “made the Kessel Run in less than 12 parsecs.”
In other words, Herzog: 1, Solo: 0.
Leading the jet-pack
Alongside his dismal Sarlacc death in Return of the Jedi, old Mandalorian Boba Fett is perhaps best known for his commando jetpack. And it looks like the main bounty hunter will use a similar device while hooked onto a ship piloted by Moff Gideon (Breaking Bad's Giancarlo Esposito).
Although not clear if the booster we see in the trailer is a genuine jetpack or an improvised gadget, this is definitely another reference to the Fetts.
The Mandalorian streams on Disney+ in the US from the 12th November, and in the UK at a later date
