The Mandalorian Season 2 theory: A forgotten Jedi could explain Baby Yoda

For all its success, the first season of The Mandalorian failed to answer one incredibly important question: What's the deal with Baby Yoda? The Child — as Disney would like you to call it — was introduced in Episode 1 as the show's primary mystery, and eight episodes later we still had no idea where Baby Yoda is from or what the Empire wants with it. However, with Mandalorian Season 2 less than two months away, fans are hopeful that we'll finally get some answers, and one new theory argues that a huge clue has been staring us in the face for over a week.

Could the origins of Baby Yoda be hidden in an upcoming Star Wars video game? Here's why that last sentence isn't as ridiculous as you might think.

Almost as soon as Baby Yoda was revealed, Star Wars fans began to point to one overlooked Jedi from the prequel movies as a possible clue. Remember Yaddle? This female creature from the same species as Yoda appears in the prequels as a member of the Jedi Council, but she's never given much backstory or a narrative arc. (It's almost like George Lucas just thought it would be cool to make a female Yoda puppet and never gave it any thought beyond that.)

Plenty of people speculate that Baby Yoda could be the child of Yoda and Yaddle, though just as many fans argued The Child was a creation of the Force like Anakin Skywalker (the fact that they were born at around the same time also gives this second theory a boost). However, until The Mandalorian gives us an answer, all options are on the holotable. Enter: LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga.

As Reddit user u/spritezero12 points out, the decision to include a little-known character like Yaddle in the new Star Wars video game (and in the trailer!) could be a subtle clue. Perhaps, someone wants to remind us that Yaddle exists so that when she's reintroduced as Baby Yoda's mother, it doesn't come as a total surprise.

"Maybe Lucasfilm is slowly bringing her back into fandom consciousness for a reason," they write.

As an added bonus, this theory would explain why Yaddle disappears after Episode I: The Phantom Menace. Maybe she gave birth to Baby Yoda around this time and took off for maternity leave. Or maybe, she already had The Child during Episode I but went into hiding early on in the prequels once it became clear that the Sith had returned. Thanks to The Mandalorian Season 2, we could finally get an answer to the mystery of Yaddle.

The Inverse Analysis — It might seem like a stretch to think that The Mandalorian Season 2 will base its biggest plot twist on a forgotten character from The Phantom Menace. But with other prequels era characters like Ahsoka and Jango Fett actor Temuera Morrison rumored to return, it's not so ridiculous to think that Lucasfilm could dust off that old Yaddle puppet for a truly unexpected surprise.

The Mandalorian Season 2 premieres October 30 on Disney+.