The Mandalorian recap: 6 Star Wars plot points to remember before The Mandalorian and Grogu

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Looking for what to remember before The Mandalorian and Grogu? Then this is the Way. The first season of The Mandalorian dropped way back in 2019, so your memory of Din Djarin and Din Grogu's adventures might be a little fuzzy.

Below, we've rounded up everything you need to remember before The Mandalorian and Grogu in a Mandalorian recap, so you can get up to speed at a glance. There are six crucial Star Wars plot points that are essential to remember, and we've got them all detailed here.

So, for all you need to know, head on down to our recap. For more, check out our guide to all the upcoming Star Wars movies and shows.

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The Mandalorian recap

Mando originally finds Grogu as a bounty target

Din Djarin meets baby Grogu in quite an unconventional way: a mysterious Imperial by the name of the Client tasks Mando with tracking down a 50-year old bounty. When Mando arrives, the bounty is actually a tiny, green baby.

From the outset, Mando protects him, shooting the bounty hunting droid IG-11 to prevent him from hurting the baby. While Mando does initially hand over Grogu to the Empire, he soon has a change of heart and goes back to rescue him. The fearsome Imperial Moff Gideon, however, continues to attempt to track them down.

Grogu trains with Luke Skywalker

Mando and Grogu have plenty of adventures together and start to develop a father and son bond, but Din Djarin is on a quest to return the baby to his own kind: the Jedi. Ahsoka Tano refuses to train the youngling because of Grogu's strong attachment to Mando, but, after Din Djarin takes his charge to the planet Tython, Grogu calls out to a Jedi. But, the baby is kidnapped by Dark Troopers and the Razor Crest is destroyed in the process.

Later, when Mando and his pals go to save Grogu from Moff Gideon, none other than Luke Skywalker shows up to save the baby and take him away to be trained. Mando and Grogu share an emotional goodbye, and Grogu leaves with Luke.

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Mando and Grogu reunite in The Book of Boba Fett

This part of the story is easily missed if you didn't realise The Book of Boba Fett was essential viewing. In the show, Din Djarin returns and goes to visit Grogu at Jedi school. Only, Luke and Ahsoka are reluctant to let Mando see the youngling, because of that pesky attachment rule. So, Mando leaves without seeing his former ward, but not before leaving behind a gift of Beskar chainmail.

Luke, sensing Grogu's heart might not be fully in his Padawan training, gives Grogu a choice between Yoda's lightsaber or the chainmail from Mando. Grogu makes his choice off-screen, but we learn the outcome when he returns to Tatooine in Luke's X-wing, rocking the Beskar vest. Peli Motto then takes Grogu back to Mando, and they reunite mid-battle as Din Djarin helps his old friend Boba Fett with his crime syndicate problems.

Mando will no longer remove his helmet

While Din Djarin had his helmet removed in season 1 by IG-11 in order to heal him, then took it off twice in season 2 for Grogu's sake, in season 3, he is dedicated to cleansing himself and keeping the helmet on. His Creed as a Child of the Watch means he is forbidden from letting others see his face. In season 3, he cleanses himself in the Living Waters of Mandalore, and so he earns forgiveness from removing his helmet.

"It's an interesting proposition," director Jon Favreau told us of whether Din Djarin's understanding of his Creed has changed. "Throughout the series, we had met different Mandalorians from different backgrounds, and each embraces a different part of the Mandalorian creed. Din Djarin comes from a tradition where the helmet stays on. Of course, Bo-Katan and others take the helmet off. And what's interesting now is we have a character that's going to be potentially both Jedi and Mandalorian in Grogu, and we'll see what his path is."

Imperial Remnants are a threat

While the Empire was destroyed in Return of the Jedi, Imperial Remnants – survivors of the old regime – still lurk in the galaxy. In The Mandalorian season 3, we see a gathering of them in the Shadow Council, plotting to restore the Empire (and hoping for Grand Admiral Thrawn's return). Moff Gideon is one such Remnant, though, at the end of season 3, he is killed in a fiery blaze.

In The Mandalorian and Grogu, the duo are tasked with tracking down an ex-Imperial warlord by the name of Commander Coin.

Mando adopts Grogu

At the end of The Mandalorian season 3, Din Djarin formally adopts Grogu, who becomes Din Grogu. That also means Grogu is now Mando's apprentice, and Mando is teaching him the Way of a Mandalorian.

"Grogu is now a Mandalorian apprentice," Favreau told us. "He's been tasked with that, for those people who had watched the show. If you hadn't watched the show, what you need to know is that he is now going to be a Mandalorian in training, and so his father and teacher is taking him along on the adventures. What we learn through this is that Grogu's quite capable, but also Din Djarin, the Mandalorian, is a very good protector, and so he's always going to look out. And I think it's the next stage of their relationship, both as a father and son, but also as a teacher and an apprentice."

The Mandalorian and Grogu arrives this May 22. In the meantime, check out our guide to watching all the Star Wars movies in order, or read our The Mandalorian and Grogu review.

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Molly EdwardsSenior Entertainment Writer

I'm a Senior Entertainment Writer here at GamesRadar+, covering all things film and TV for the site's Total Film section. I previously worked on the Disney magazines team at Immediate Media, and also wrote on the CBeebies, MEGA!, and Star Wars Galaxy titles after graduating with a BA in English.

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