The high point for the Resistance in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker comes when the rebels have gathered in the skies above Exegol for a final battle with the Emperor’s forces. The good guys are severely outnumbered, but the situation turns around when Lando Calrissian appears in the Millennium Falcon and reveals that he’s brought some friends with him. A whole host of ships then join the fight, made up of those across the galaxy who wish to help.
For fans, this is a bit of a high point, too, as the sequence allowed the VFX team to slot in various familiar ships from across Star Wars media. One notable easter egg is the inclusion of the Ghost, the beloved ship from Star Wars Rebels. Another type of vessel from that same animated series also shows up in various shots, though – a Mandalorian Fang Fighter. In fact, there appear to be several of them involved in the battle.
In Rebels, Fang Fighters belong to Mandalorian protectors, the personal guards of Mandalore’s leadership. We don’t yet have a full picture of the situation of the Mandalorian people by the time of the Sequel Trilogy, but as for why they might help the Resistance in TROS, we can turn to Disney Plus’ The Mandalorian. That series, set just after Return of the Jedi, establishes that the survivors of the race have become nomads after a purge of Mandalore by the Empire.
The show makes clear that the Mandalorians are no fans of the Imperial forces, with a small army of them aiding Din Djarin in protecting Baby Yoda from Moff Gideon, just so they can take out some Stormtroopers. Likewise, come Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, Lando may have been able to sweet-talk the owners of these Fang Fighters into joining in the battle in order to help defeat Palpatine once and for all.
Expect The Mandalorian season 2 to further clarify what happened to the Mandalorians and Gideon’s plans for his stolen Mandalorian loot, the Darksaber.
