The most recent episode of The Mandalorian ended with the reappearance of Giancarlo Esposito’s Moff Gideon, now sporting a stylish and extremely Darth Vader-esque outfit. It was revealed that he’s had a secret tracking beacon installed on the Razor Crest and seems set to hunt down Din Djarin and steal Baby Yoda in the next installment. And having failed to achieve this in the season 1 finale, he’s not taking any chances, as surrounding him were two rows of intimidating-looking black Stormtrooper gear.
The subtitles named these as Dark Troopers, which means they’re a direct reference to the classic 1995 FPS Star Wars: Dark Forces, where you played as Kyle Katarn, a mercenary working for the Rebel Alliance who uncovers and destroys the Dark Trooper Project, who are power-armored Imperial super-soldiers. That story’s now consigned to Legends, though Phase II Dark Troopers appeared in Star Wars: Commander (which is apparently still canon), so there’s precedent for them in-universe.
Of course, The Mandalorian has already looked back to old Star Wars video games for inspiration, with the first episode of the second season containing a big nod to Knights of the Old Republic. But if they’re willing to delve into this corner of the mythos, there’s at least a small chance we may also see the return of Kyle Katarn, who would go on to become a Jedi and appear in sequel games Jedi Knight, Jedi Outcast and Jedi Academy, so there’s a lot of information about the character just waiting to be tapped.
Plus, we know that Terminator and Aliens star Michael Biehn will be appearing in a mysterious role at some point this season. Could it be too much to hope for that he’ll be a new version of Katarn? One thing’s for sure, fans would be go absolutely bananas if The Mandalorian brought the much-missed character back into official canon.
Published: Nov 23, 2020 04:28 pm