2023 is the year The Mandalorian Season 3 finally arrives, and surprise, Grogu is still pretty popular. The little green guy shocked a few folks with his seemingly better command of the Force in the latest look at the series, which creates promise he could become a powerful Force user at some point. His popularity and potential had me thinking he's the most popular character for the franchise since Darth Vader, which really got me thinking about the similarities between the two.
I've gone down a rabbit hole that, quite frankly, I can no longer ignore. I'm beginning to think that Grogu existed and continues to exist as a Force response to Anakin Skywalker and that he might just grow up to be the anti-Darth Vader in the Star Wars universe. I know it sounds bonkers, but put on that tin foil hat and bear with me, because I feel like The Mandalorian and Star Wars at large could really run with this theory if given a chance.
A Brief Re-Introduction Into How Star Wars' Force Allegedly Works
Years ago, Freddie Prinze Jr. unleashed an epic Star Wars rant that forever changed my life. In an impassioned speech against trolls, the former Rebels voice actor revealed what he knew of the Force from executive producer Dave Filoni, who learned all of what he knew about the franchise directly from creator George Lucas. The whole thing is worth watching, but this little bit in particular is really important for what I'm talking about in regards to Grogu being the antithesis to Darth Vader when evaluating how The Force fundamentally works:
All these videos games have fucked people up on what The Force is. Luke's skill doesn't dictate whether he wins or loses. The Emperor doesn't dictate whether he wins or loses. The Force dictates whether he wins or loses based on balance.
Freddie Prinze Jr. then explained that The Force seeks equilibrium, which is precisely why the Emperor sought to seduce Anakin to the Dark Side rather than outright kill him. Killing Anakin possibly meant another potentially good Jedi more powerful than the Emperor would rise and possibly catch him by surprise. The actor then pointed out that Luke and Leia were brought into existence to balance the scales, but is that correct? What if an additional person is factored in and served as a true balance to Anakin Skywalker? Am I suggesting Grogu could be the true balance to Anakin? It may seem crazy, but we must consider something not a lot of people talk about.
Anakin And Grogu Are Around The Same Age And Have Other Parallels In Their Stories
Grogu may be a "Baby Yoda," but in human years, he's actually much older than he looks. In fact, it appears that Grogu might be roughly the same age as Anakin Skywalker. Grogu's birth age is listed as 41.9 years Before the Battle of Yavin, while Anakin Skywalker was born in 41 BBY as well. Ironically enough, Vader looked well over his forties when he died, which is a great ironic thing to state, even if it isn't entirely relevant.
Now, obviously, there are clear differences in their stories from birth, but they both share the experience of being powerful Force users who were taught later than the recommended time for training Jedi. In full transparency, we do know from The Mandalorian that Grogu spent some time in the Jedi Temple way back when, but with those memories repressed, it seemed he forgot much of what he previously knew.
Despite warnings against training from other Jedi, both Anakin and Grogu underwent the training. One key difference is that unlike Obi-Wan did with Anakin, Luke noticed Grogu's distraction and that he wished to return and be with the ones he loved. Grogu chose to leave the Jedi way to lead a life with Din Djarin, while Anakin stayed and became a key figure in ending The Clone Wars. He also grew to be one of the most feared figures in Star Wars history, even if he found redemption by killing the Emperor.
Will Grogu Become The Anti-Darth Vader For Star Wars?
I can't pretend I know the future Star Wars has laid out for Grogu long term, and for all I know, The Mandalorian Season 3 could end with him joining the beginnings of the First Order as a shadow agent. With that said, it seems like the franchise set this character up to be around for a long time given Yoda's long lifespan. Grogu could be character who has a great influence in the generations to come as he grows in maturity.
Assuming Grogu stays on the path of good, there's potential for him to do a lot of great things with his abilities. Maybe he'll do things just as good as Vader did that were evil, and believe me, Vader carried out a lot of evil acts. Vader was so bad that even other bad guys feared him, so Grogu would have to really offset that to come anywhere close as the "anti-Vader."
With that being said, Grogu also would potentially have a lot more time to balance out Vader's negative impact on the Star Wars universe with his own good. Yoda lived to be 900 years old, so even if Grogu doesn't do anything as good as Vader did evil, he has more time to balance out the impact. Maybe he can even build a quaint ice castle on Hoth to rival Vader's on Mustafar? Hey, it's all about balance!
Could Grogu Ultimately Become A Villain?
As I speculate and fantasize about a world in which Grogu is the antithesis of Darth Vader as predestined by The Force, I came upon an unpleasant reality. While I may feel like Vader's one great act of killing Emperor Palpatine didn't erase the many bad acts he did previously, he still ultimately gained Force Ghost status. That's something canonically only reserved for good Jedi.
For Grogu to be the anti-Vader, would he have to ultimately commit one final despicable act that benefits the Dark Side? You know what they say, you either die a hero or live long enough to see yourself become the villain. I'm not sure I'm thrilled about the prospect of that happening anytime soon, but if Star Wars blindsided me with a twist like that after years of him being so lovable? That would be as shocking as finding out Vader was Luke's father, and I haven't been that surprised by Star Wars in a long time. So in that respect, I'm for this dark reality and the idea Grogu is fated to be the anti-Vader.
Ultimately, I don't know if The Mandalorian Season 3 will keep Grogu on the path of good or vastly improve his Force-wielding abilities. What I do know is I can't wait to watch the premiere with my Disney+ subscription on March 1st. I'm also considering a re-watch of the previous episodes in the meantime, or maybe just those awesome episodes with Din and Grogu in The Book of Boba Fett.
