Qui-Gon Easter egg in the Mandalorian finale spells doom for Baby Yoda

Should Luke Skywalker have taken Baby Yoda? The Mandalorian’s action-packed Season 2 finale featured Mando and Grogu (still affectionately known as Baby Yoda) sharing a heartfelt goodbye. The moment broke the hearts of Star Wars fans everywhere, but the blow was seemingly softened by one key detail: Grogu wasn’t leaving Mando for any small reason, but to be trained by Luke Skywalker, who showed up during the finale to save the day at the last possible minute.

But perhaps the fact that Luke was taking Grogu shouldn’t have comforted Star Wars fans after all. In fact, one Star Wars theory suggests the opposite — that a subtle nod to the prequels in the Mandalorian Season 2 finale viewers should be really worried about Luke taking Grogu away from Mando.

The Theory — Redditor u/skywalkinondeezhatrz argues that Luke taking Grogu may be a dark reflection of a moment from the Star Wars prequels. In specific, the theory suggests that Luke separating Grogu and Mando is eerily similar to Qui-Gon Jinn taking a young Anakin Skywalker away from his mother. The redditor believes that if Anakin had not been taken away from his mother — leaving her vulnerable to be killed in Attack of the Clones — then Anakin wouldn't have turned into Darth Vader.

Applying the same logic to The Mandalorian Season 2 finale implies that Luke taking Grogu away from Mando could send him down a dark path. That possibility was even hinted at by Ahsoka earlier in the season, when she refused to train Grogu due to his attachment to Mando. If so, then many of the things that were implied in The Last Jedi — that Luke’s Jedi Order failed because he made the same mistakes as the Jedi Masters before him — would be proven true.

The Lessons of the Star Wars Prequels

George Lucas, Dave Filoni, and multiple other Star Wars creatives have gone out of their way to make it clear that the methods of the Jedi Order in the prequels were undeniably flawed. Their willingness to get involved in galactic politics and wars, in addition to their cold and judgmental training methods, were instrumental in their own downfall. Luke even specifically points this out in The Last Jedi, admitting that he made many of the same mistakes when he was trying to rebuild the Jedi Order. It’s easy to see then why the moment when Luke takes Grogu could feel reminiscent of Qui-Gon recruiting Anakin.

On the other hand, it’s hard to tell if Jon Favreau wanted viewers to feel concerned for Grogu in The Mandalorian season finale. The scene itself, while bittersweet, sets Luke up as a measured and wise teacher for Grogu to be trained by — despite everything we learned in The Last Jedi about his failures with Kylo Ren. So it’s possible that Grogu’s journey with Luke ends up being different, therefore saving Grogu from suffering the same consequences as Luke's other students.

Is Baby Yoda Really Doomed?

The fate of Baby Yoda has been on the minds of Star Wars fans ever since he was introduced in The Mandalorian’s pilot episode. Is he still alive during the events of the Sequel Trilogy? Is he in hiding, living peacefully with Mando? Or was he one of Luke’s students that were mercilessly killed prior to the events of The Force Awakens?

Understandably, Luke promising to train Grogu in The Mandalorian Season 2 finale has only added further fuel to that latter theory. But as of now, it’s impossible to know exactly what Jon Favreau and co. have planned for Baby Yoda. Hopefully, they’ll manage to complete his story in a way that doesn’t involve him being slaughtered by Luke Skywalker’s angry nephew. But, as this theory points out, the many instances in Star Wars where children have been taken away from their parental figures for force training… typically haven't panned out well for all involved.

The Mandalorian is now streaming on Disney+.