The Mandalorian Chapter 13 Recap: The Jedi brings answers

The Mandalorian Chapter 13 gives fans what they’ve been waiting—the much-talked about Jedi. But we also get some unexpected answers.

The Mandalorian Chapter 13 finally introduces the elusive Jedi to the show. It’s not exactly a surprise to fans, who have known about the rumors for a while, but the Disney Plus show did make viewers wait for an entire episode to see the character.

In the previous episode, Mando and the Child had received some help on their way to Corvus, a moon where they would find Ahsoka Tano (Rosario Dawson), according to Bo-Katan Kryze.

Their trip to that system may have been bumpy, but it’s going to be well worth the ride when they finally meet the Jedi.

The Mandalorian Chapter 13 – Return of the Jedi

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Ahsoka Tano gets a fantastic entrance in The Mandalorian Chapter 13—and it pays homage to many such appearances in Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Star Wars: Rebels. Considering this episode is directed by Dave Filoni, executive producer of the animated shows, that is hardly surprising.

Corvus is being run into the ground by Magistrate Morgan Elsbeth (Diana Lee Inosanto), the Imperial fleet designer and now one of the last vestiges of the Empire. She has made Corvus her own playground and left nothing but rubble, pain, fear, and death in her wake. Ahsoka won’t stand for it.

While Ahsoka could have probably taken Elsbeth, her right-hand man Lang (Michael Biehn), and her small army of droids and masked men on her own, she gives Elsbeth the option to surrender. And when the Magistrate doesn’t, Ahsoka gets some assistance from a familiar Mandalorian.

We soon see how much the reputation of the Beskar armour-wearer precedes his arrival. Lang barely questions Mando when he arrives at the town’s gates—he just assumes that Mando is here looking for work.

The Magistrate takes Mando at face-value, as well. She shows off her Beskar spear and promises it as a reward for Ahsoka’s death. This wasn’t exactly how Mando was planning to find the Jedi, but it works.

Ahsoka isn’t the easiest to track down, but she finds him more than he finds her. A short duel later—which Ahsoka totally wins—and the two start a conversation. Ahsoka is immediately drawn to the child, so there isn’t much to discuss.

The Mandalorian Chapter 13 – Who is the Child?

To Mando, it looks like the child and Ahsoka aren’t speaking, but as we learn in The Mandalorian Chapter 13, the Jedi don’t always need to speak to converse. They connect through the Force and learn much about each other.

It turns out the child has a name—Grogu! Who knew? He immediately starts responding to it, as well, so he must have been super-confused all this while when Mando was calling him everything under the binary suns but Grogu.

Interestingly, Ahsoka reveals that Grogu has learned the ways of the Force—he trained under many Jedi Masters during the Clone Wars. When the dangers reached Coruscant, he was hidden away and suppressed his Force abilities.

This has had the side effect of making those years quite fuzzy in his memory—and it’s generated a lot of fear. Between that and his attachment to Mando, Ahsoka realizes that Grogu is a Force-sensitive individual who could go down a darker path.

Being his teacher would be a risk—she’s already seen a good Jedi turn to the Dark Side because of fear and attachment, after all. Ahsoka may never get over her shock of discovering that Darth Vader was actually once her Master, Anakin Skywalker.

But Mando is insistent—Grogu is meant to be trained by her and be with the Jedi. So, they come to a decision—if Mando helps Ahsoka take down the Magistrate, she will train Grogu.

The Mandalorian Chapter 13 – A New Alliance

The Magistrate and Lang seem pretty sure they can take Ahsoka down in The Mandalorian Chapter 13. That’s until Ahsoka is at their doors—again—making short work of their guards and showing them a piece of Mando’s Beskar armor.

But her seeming victory against their mercenary doesn’t deter them—Elsbeth orders her troops to find Ahsoka and kill the citizens. Meanwhile, Ahsoka leaps from building to building, as she often did in the animated series, to draw the attack away from the people.

Little does the Magistrate know that Mando is waiting in the wings to protect the people as Ahsoka fights. He is ably helped by Governor Wing (Wing Tao Chao), now an ordinary citizen trying to protect his people.

When Lang arrives, Mando holds him to a stalemate—and eventually kills him—while Ahsoka duels the Magistrate in her headquarters.

That Beskar armor is strong stuff—it can hold up against Ahsoka’s lightsabers. But Ahsoka is a former Jedi—she makes short work of the Magistrate. But not before asking her one crucial question—where is Grand Admiral Thrawn. Fans, now is the time to scream.

The Mandalorian Chapter 13 – Onward for the Duo

With the Magistrate gone, Governor Wing takes over his ruined city. Ahsoka remains to help, but she rescinds her offer to Mando about training Grogu. He is far too attached to his father figure, which makes him hard to train.

But there is another option—Tython, a planet with a temple strong in the Force. Ahsoka asks Mando to place Grogu there and let him decide his path. If he chooses the ways of the Force, the few remaining Jedi will find him.

This isn’t exactly what Mando had in mind, but at least it’s not a definitive ‘no.’ He believes Grogu should be trained to use his powers, so he takes this option happily, leaving Ahsoka to protect Corvus.

Neither of them appears to be aware of the tracker placed on the Razor Crest by Moff Gideon’s spy. We still don’t know his endgame or what he’s planning to do with the darksaber.

The Mandalorian Chapter 13 – The Easter Eggs

There were plenty of moments in The Mandalorian Chapter 13 that would have fans frantically pointing at their screens.

But first, some behind-the-scenes Easter Eggs. Diana Lee Inosanto may have been terrifying as the Magistrate, but she is also a martial artist, a skilled stuntsperson, and the goddaughter of Hollywood legend Bruce Lee!

Wing Tao Chao may be a new face to the Star Wars universe, but he’s been a mainstay for Disney, working as an imagineer for years and helping expand the company into Asian markets.

If you’re wondering why Lang looks familiar, it’s because he’s played by OG Kyle Reese from the Terminator films, Michael Biehn.

On to the on-screen Easter eggs. Ahsoka’s arrival in the episode was accompanied by her theme music from The Clone Wars. In this episode, her presence also meant we got to see her avian companion, Morai, in a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moment. Keep a sharp eye out for when Mando is walking through the dead forest.

Speaking of Star Wars animals, you can’t miss the loth-cat during the final battle. These creatures were often seen on Ezra Bridger’s home planet of Lothal and have been seen before in the first season of The Mandalorian.

Ahsoka’s explanation of what the Force is echoes the words of Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda in films past. The concern she shows about Grogu’s path is due to her own Master, Anakin Skywalker’s fall from grace.

Grand Admiral Thrawn was a thorn in the side of the Rebels. He was last seen with Bridger, disappearing into outer space. There was recent speculation about Bridgers’ appearance on the show, and with Thrawn being name-dropped, that character could also find a new lease on life.

And finally, Tython is a planet mentioned in the Star Wars books, but it could also herald the arrival of Luke Skywalker, who would have become a Jedi Master during the time that The Mandalorian is set. Of course, nothing is confirmed, but there is plenty of room for speculation!

Final Thoughts: The Mandalorian Chapter 13 is Full of Surprises

The Mandalorian Chapter 13 is quiet yet exciting. Filoni, who struggled with execution in the opening season, has vastly improved for the second installment. The episode has its slow moments, but it works.

Though expected, Ahsoka’s revelation was well done, and Ahsoka was faithful to her Rebels appearance. From her facial markings, her hair, and even her expressions, Dawson captures the much-loved character and brings her into the live-action universe with ease.

But as exciting as it is for fans to see Ahsoka onscreen again and hopefully head towards some resolution to her story, we cannot ignore the controversies surrounding the actor, which will make this episode a particularly tough watch.

Several fans are also distressed at Ahsoka’s depiction in this episode—she comes across less as a Grey Jedi who balances between the Light and Dark sides, falling more on the darker side. This was not my reading of the episode, but that is some of the criticism on the internet.

The Mandalorian Chapter 13 is following the trend this season of tapping into the larger Star Wars universe. But more than halfway through the season and one concern can be that this show is being used to resolve the plots of Rebels instead of standing on its own.

Mando saw a great deal of character growth in his initial outing—here, he seems to be stuck in place even as he and Grogu travel the galaxy. We will have to see what journey the remaining episodes take the character.

What did you think of The Mandalorian Chapter 13? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

The Mandalorian streams weekly on Disney Plus.