The Mandalorian Season 3 Review: Chapter 18: The Mines of Mandalore

The Mandalorian’s quest for redemption leads him to test his faith.

Crash Test Droid

With IG-11 still needing repairs, our episode starts with Din stopping by Peli Motto’s shop on Tatooine in search of the part needed to fix him. After being told by the Jawas that the piece is unavailable, Pelle offers an R5 droid instead. Mando’s distrust of droids is legendary, but he settles for R5D4 so long as it can scan the surface and air of Mandalore, for poisons or toxins as the planet is said to be uninhabitable. R5 has a bit of a personality and seems downright petrified to go on this mission to Mandalore with Din but a deal is a deal. This opener sets up the episode's big mystery. Is Mandalore truly uninhabitable as many have feared, or will Din be able to get the redemption he seeks by bathing in the waters of it’s mines?

En route to the abandoned planet, Mando teaches Grogu how to use a map, saying that navigation is an essential skill for the Mandalorians. He gives Grogu a bit of the backstory of his people before they land and R5 scans the area for poisons. The droid is reluctant but beeps and boops away until it disappears. Soon after Mando has a hard time communicating with the droid on comms so it’s decided that he and Grogu will investigate. If R5D4 looks familiar he was featured in the very first Star Wars film, A New Hope, where he is bought by Luke’s uncle Owen but malfunctions and is replaced by R2-D2. The callback is chef’s kiss, but this opener sets us up for a spooky series of events moving forward.

Grogu’s Day Out

Seeing the desolate planet of Mandalore is depressing enough knowing how it came to be, but following Din and Grogu into the planet’s depths was a sight to see. The former cityscape is now in complete ruin, yet it is not abandoned. We know this because Mando is assaulted by three Alamite warriors. Thank Vader he left Grogu in the Starfighter. After besting them, Mando hears the faint beeps of R5 and goes to investigate. He finds the droid turned over, and rights it They return back to the starfighter and Mando is shocked to find out that the air IS breathable, as Bo Katan had predicted. Taking Grogu with him, Mando almost gives a tour of what he has heard about his people. Suddenly, Din and Grogu come upon a pile of discarded Mandalorian helmets which distracts Din long enough to spring a trap.

He is captured by a weird mechanical being with an organic eye. (I apologize for not identifying the creature but it is out of the scope of my personal knowledge. Grogu does his best to try to free his Dad but barely escapes with his own life. Mando pleads with Grogu to find Bo Katan and as he runs as fast as his little legs can take him, he is confronted by an Alamite. Using The Force, he knocks the beast out of his way and does a sweet flip into the starfighter.

In a sweet moment, Grogu uses the map reading skills he learned from Mando earlier to successfully navigate to Bo Katan’s castle! He’s proven he can take orders and learn, which are probably lessons he experienced while he was training with Luke Skywalker. Either way, giving Grogu the spotlight was cool because he’s often portrayed as a MacGuffin to be fought over

The Queen’s Gambit

Bo-Katan Kryze is very surprised to see Grogu on her doorstep and knows something has gone wrong with Din’s trip to Mandalore. I was wondering to myself, why would Bo help anyone, especially someone she deems a zealot? Before she knows it’s Grogu she says “Let’s get rid of him once and for all”, seemingly proving. If you ask me, Bo-Katan is playing 3D Chess. She truly believes Mandalore to be a lost cause but if this unpredictable loner can prove she’s wrong there might actually be a chance for her people to be reunited on their planet. My point is, I don’t think all of Bo’s motives are altruistic in this episode.

We get to see her signature starship, the Gauntlet as she and Grogu traverse the galaxy to find, and save, Mando. Once they are close enough to view the wreckage of the planet, Kryze gives her side of the Mandalorian backstory, one Din only knew about but Bo experienced. It’s a reminder of how invested Bo has been in the liberation of her people and how shameful she feels over her perceived failure to save them. Heavy is the head, and this Queen has no people or army to command. All she has now is the sliver of a chance that Din could be right about the mines.

It’s Bo Time

Suddenly it’s “Bo Time” as we watch the former wielder of the Darksaber, make her way through the same perilous cave that Din did. Unlike our Mandalorian however, Katan is a seasoned vet and manages to take down some Alamites with the help of her vast array of weaponry. As someone who is just now getting into “Star Wars: Legends” this scene feels like the show is demanding we put some respect on the Kryze name. They want you to know that Bo is a force to be reckoned with. The question is, is she a force for good or evil?

After impressively taking down the Alamites, she seems to take pleasure in Grogu’s reacting to her skillset. She reminds him that his “dad” isn’t the only Mandalorian, whilst wondering what else could have survived the purge. This is the beginning of Bo-Katan's willingness to believe Din Djarin might be correct. The embers of hope have been stoked but will it all go up in smoke? Kryze manages to save Mando from his robotic captures who seemed to have been draining Mando of his blood. Realizing his weakness Bo makes some soup and they speak about how their people have always been torn apart by civil war. If you recall, I believe this Civil War will be the final set piece of this season, if not the series as a whole, and this hint has all my Spider-Sense going nuts.

The Lore of Mandalore

Luckily, there is no infighting just yet although Bo and Din differ over the ceremonies and traditions of Mandalore. Bo, as a member of royalty, saw these things as necessary but performative theater, meant to make her people feel safe. Mando was raised by these teachings, and after the death of his parents, “The Way” of the Mandalorians has been the only thing that can give him comfort. Despite their differences, they are able to locate the mines and the living water beneath them. Din disrobes in ceremonial fashion whilst Bo continues to make a mockery of the whole scenario. I love how Mando is unphased even when confronted by a non-believer who claims to serve the same side as he does.

He doesn’t argue. He doesn’t try to convince her. He just goes about his business. Suddenly while walking in the living waters and reciting the creed Din drops from view. Terrified, Bo Katan dives into the waters without a second’s notice and uses her jet pack to search the murky depths for our hero. She finds Mando unconscious and while she is doing her best to bring him to the surface we see an incredible sight. First, we notice there is some gigantic figure looming in the ocean. When Kryze sets her helmet-mounted light upon it, we see the creature for what it truly is, a Mythosaur. That’s right! The lauded and fabled leviathan, which was thought to be extinct, lives comfortably underneath the mines of Mandalore. For Bo, this is like bumping into Santa Claus on the street. What do we do when we find out the bedtime stories we were told as a child are true?

My Take

While it is only episode 2 of this season I am already extremely impressed with how they have been able to lead us through this crash course in Mandalorian history. Fans of Clone Wars and Rebels are being rewarded by seeing the effects of events details in those series. Seeing Sundari in ruin after it was the location for so many memorable moments was rough.

I also liked how this episode was a mix of both sci-fi and biblical horror. Those robots were incredibly creepy, and then we see a ghost of tradition in the depth of the lving waters. That ending was definitely a jaw dropper and I hope we get to see Mythy (that’s what I’m calling it) in all its glory soon. Similar to his loose allegiance to Bo, this Mythasuar serves as a unpredictable element that has to come into play. Imagine being Bo-Katan in that moment. It would be like an athiest witnessing a man walk on water. Whether or not she’s convinced that this is a sign, Mando looks to be in some rough shape so let’s see where this adventure takes us. I s

My Rating: 4/ 5 Dark Sabers