'The Mandalorian' Trailer Easter Eggs Tease a Shocking Star Wars Plot

Boba Fett? Boba Fett? Where? Okay, so the Mandalorian in The Mandalorian is certainly not Boba Fett, but now that Lucasfilm has revealed the first trailer for the streaming Disney+ series, there might be a clue as to the plot of the series.

A few deep-cut Easter eggs might suggest who the Mandalorian is working for, and, what their mission could be. There’s no way to know for sure what the series is about based on the brief, 1 minute and 35-second trailer, but there is a common theme if you look close enough. And, if this theory is correct, it might flip the script on what we think we know about this show. In essence, the theory is this: Based on what we see in the trailer, could the Mandalorian be … working for the Rebels?

Speculative spoilers for The Mandalorian ahead.

First, let’s watch that trailer again.

What are we seeing here? On the surface the show looks like it’s about a Boba Fett lookalike going around the galaxy, tracking down people they’ve been hired to kill or capture, and collecting some money when the jobs are done. But, there’s a certain emphasis placed on who the Mandalorian is facing, and that could reveal what the secret plot might really be about.

The first shot of the trailer is a bunch of Stormtrooper helmets on spikes. And, as the trailer goes on, the Mandalorian seems to be running into a lot of people who still work for the Empire. Now, keep in mind, this series takes place just a little bit after Return of the Jedi, which means, the Empire has just suffered its biggest defeat at the hands of the Rebels. The Emperor is dead, and the Empire is probably struggling to figure out what to do with itself. Which is why it’s very interesting we see … these guys.

Yep, those are Death Troopers, first seen in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. Supposedly, these are super-elite Stormtroopers fiercely loyal to the Empire. So, what are they doing in a post-Return of the Jedi political climate? And why is the Mandalorian about to tango with them?

Theoretical, speculative answer: Because the Mandalorian is a bounty hunter who has been hired by the Rebel Alliance — in secret— to hunt down and straight-up murder any remnants of the Empire; specifically, really loyal people like Death Troopers. Such a mission would explain the stormtrooper heads on spikes, and it would certainly explain why this helmeted-badass is tracking-down so many Imperials. Sure, we see the Mandalorian fighting with some Jabba’s palace-style aliens, but even that could be suggestive of an anti-Empire bounty hunting spree.

The squid-faced alien the Mandalorian captures in the trailer is a Quarren, who, believe it or not, are aquatic aliens who lived with the Mon Calamari on the planet Mon Calamar. Yeah, that’s the planet Admiral Ackbar was from, and yes, it was host to a second whole species of underwater aliens. I can tell I’m losing you. Well, think about it like this, the Quarren were not as nice as the Mon Calamari, overall. So, what if that specific Quarren was someone who worked with the Empire to enslave the Mon Calamari during the reign of the Empire? If that’s true, then, suddenly, all the targets the Mandalorian is going after in the trailer are connected to the Empire.

Conclusion? The Mandalorian might be a show about a Bounty Hunter getting random jobs to track down random people and encase them in carbonite. Or, there’s a pattern to these targets, and that pattern all points back to the Empire. If true, this would create a really subversive wrinkle in the Star Wars mythos. Sure, the good guys won in Return of the Jedi, but who does the dirty work afterward?

The Mandalorian hits Disney+ on November 12.