If there’s one lesson we’ve learned from the Star Wars universe thus far, it’s this: Those who are strong with the Force, but lack mentorship, are highly likely to be tempted by the Dark Side.
That was true, tragically, of Anakin Skywalker a.k.a. Darth Vader. It was true of his son Luke, who was one lightsaber blow away from striking his father down in anger at the Emperor’s instigation. And it was true of Rey: Whatever you think of the way the sequel trilogy was rendered, her flirtation with the Dark Side is just about the only narrative thread that runs through all three movies.
In The Mandalorian, meanwhile, the most powerful Force-sensitive being is The Child, known informally on our planet as Baby Yoda. And he has no mentor, just a terrible sorta-dad who keeps getting him in trouble. But he could never be tempted by the Dark Side, right? I mean, just look at him! Those eyes! Those ears! That cheeky little smile! He’s just a toddler (despite being 50 years old)! Surely someone that tiny could never do anyone any harm!
Anyone who has recently interacted with toddlers may raise a skeptical eyebrow at that one. The rest of us would do well to remember a quote from the only other member of the Child’s still-mysterious species we’ve ever heard speak: “Judge me by my size, do you?”
The Mandalorian Season 1 gave us no reason to doubt Baby Yoda’s bona fides. The Child was simply adorable; he was, as I wrote when we dubbed him Being of the Decade, the one creature who could unite a fractious and weary populace. He was goodness personified, and no viewer had cause to think otherwise. His worst crime was the adorable theft of a metal knob on Mando’s dashboard.
Season 2, however, is turning out to be quite a different story (and spoilers follow, of course, for those who haven’t seen it). In the second episode, this fifty-something kid repeatedly eats protected eggs belonging to an endangered species even after being told they were endangered, stirring a minor backlash among fans.
And in the most recent episode, the Child has his first day at school on the planet Nevarro — where he promptly uses his Force power to steal blue macarons belonging to a fellow pupil. He literally becomes the school bully on day one. In what movie would that end well?
The little green one is later seen eating (and regurgitating) his ill-gotten gains in the Razor Crest, suggesting the theft was not discovered or punished. We’re never told what happened. Was that Threepio-esque protocol droid teacher simply unable to keep order in her classroom? Did the bullied kid consent to giving up his cookies, or did he just think he consented, thanks to some nefarious Jedi mind-trick?
Either way, Baby Yoda has clearly learned one lesson at school: crime pays. In storytelling terms, especially Star Wars storytelling terms, it shouldn’t matter that the larceny was petty. “Once you start down the dark path,” warned the slightly larger and much wiser Yoda in Empire Strikes Back, “forever will it dominate your destiny.”
(Side note: Those blue macarons are now on sale at Williams-Sonoma. The marketing copy merely references “a sweet moment when a young Nevarro student debated sharing his treats with the Child,” which is not at all what happened. By the logic of the show, I’m sure the store won’t mind if you grab these $50 packets of 12 macarons and walk out without paying!)
Judging by Lucasfilm’s bemused reaction to the charges of egg-based genocide, it seems likely that these scenes are merely being played as comic relief. Hey, baby’s gotta eat, amirite?
What part of “don’t eat a childless couple’s last remaining eggs” don’t you understand, kid?
Image: Francois Duhamel / Lucasfilm Ltd.
If Baby Yoda is in any kind of Dark Side danger this season, it comes from the Imperial remnant led by Moff Gideon, current owner of the Darksaber. The most recent episode also told us that cloning experiments that used blood drawn from “the asset” have been a failure, and more is now needed. Translation: The baddies are going all out to capture the kid again.
But there’s also the possibility that a long game is being played here. Mandalorian showrunner Jon Favreau has stressed that the character isn’t intended to be comic relief or “cute.” He is already deep into writing Season 3, with Season 4 likely to follow hot on its heels. Multiple incidents of Baby Yoda misdeeds this early in the game, clustered together like this, may yet serve as foreshadowing — much as we were supposed to be paying attention when that 9-year-old podracer pilot in The Phantom Menace had flashes of hot temper.
The child is father to the man: This too is a constant lesson in the Star Wars universe.
In our world, too, you’d have little doubt this kid was a crime spree waiting to happen. Just look at the circumstances of his upbringing: an inexperienced single parent who is distracted at best and endangering at worst, driving his charge around the galaxy in a death trap of a ship that is regularly shot down. The kid is being dragged through the gambling dens and seedy bars of the Outer Rim, learning all about gunfights and drinking and double-crossing.
Now consider the power at his fingertips and the taste he seems to have acquired for eating creatures while they’re still alive. If the Child makes it safely back to his people courtesy of the Jedi after all this with no harm done, it will be a minor miracle.
Given how little we know about Baby Yoda’s people, of course, we have no idea if “Dark Side Yoda” is even a thing that is possible. Perhaps all Yoda people are just unimpeachably good at heart, even when they steal stuff. Maybe they only do that when they’re, say, under 100. (Then again, one of the first things we saw Yoda do was bashing R2-D2 with his cane to make him give up his rations. Maybe they’re just really into food!)
But as a fan theory, “Dark Baby Yoda” already has a lot of credence — certainly more than the “Dark Side Jar Jar” theory that went viral a few years back. Keep your eyes on this kid, and don’t be surprised if his adorable peepers and cute smile eventually give way to a sinister frown and an evil laugh.