Spoilers if you're not caught up on The Mandalorian through Episode 2 of Season 3!
Some of the most shocking and entrancing reveals in the Star Wars universe as of late can be credited to The Mandalorian — from the sight of Moff Gideon wielding the Darksaber in the Season 1 finale to the confirmation that Boba Fett did not die in the Sarlacc Pit after all in Season 2. However, the second episode of the long-awaited third season easily boasts the Disney+ original TV show’s biggest reveal yet — a phrase we use quite literally here — with the appearance of the Mythosaur.
While more casual fans of Star Wars were likely intrigued and amazed by the sight of this gargantuan beast, those more familiar with the history of Mandalorian culture know that this creature’s cameo is one big, big deal and will have a profound effect on Season 3 of The Mandalorian moving forward. If you need an education or a simple refresher as to why, this is the way to learn all you need to know about Mythosaurs — starting with a basic description.
Mythosaurs Are Gigantic Creatures Thought To Be Extinct
If those who tuned into the most recent episode of The Mandalorian could not tell by the mere sight of it, the Mythosaur is a beast of unbelievable stature, with some accounts describing it as the size of a small city. In fact, in Issue #69 of Marvel’s Star Wars comic from 1982 — titled “Death in the City of Bone” — the skeletal remains of what was later identified as that of a Mythosaur in Star Wars Insider magazine was used as a slaver sanctuary. Of course, the authenticity of the skeleton was retroactively debunked as a fake in Karen Traviss’ “Legends” novel, Imperial Commando: 501st, but the point is that these things are really huge.
The appearance of the Mythosaur in “Chapter 18: The Mines of Mandalore” — after Bo-Katan Kryze (Katee Sackhoff, reprising her animated role from Star Wars: The Clone Wars) dives into the waters of Mandalore to rescue Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal) — actually marks the first time it has been seen in the franchise’s main canon in living, breathing form. The tusked beast was believed to be extinct prior to when much of Mandalore was destroyed in a war between the Mandalorians and the Jedi. Well, it appears that at least one has survived.
Mandalorians Adopted The Mythosaur Skeleton As Their Symbol
The first time that the Mythosaur was officially identified as part of Star Wars canon by name was actually in 2015 in an article about Mandalorian history from the 32nd issue of Star Wars: Build the Millennium Falcon — a magazine which came packaged with individual parts to create a model of Han Solo’s ship. However, the very first reference to the creature was decades earlier in, arguably, the best Star Wars movie — 1980’s The Empire Strikes Back — in which Boba Fett (then played by Jeremy Bulloch) bears sigil on his armor that resembles the creature’s skeleton.
Indeed, the Mythosaur skeleton does serve as the official symbol to represent the Mandalorian culture, which explains why it is found on Fett’s armor and that of many other bounty hunters like him. The insignia is not only a way for the memory of the beasts’ legacy to go on past their supposed extinction, but is reflective of their storied history shared with Mandalorians.
Mythosaurs Dominated Mandalore Before It Was Discovered
To understand how the Mythosaur and the Mandalorians are connected, we have to go all the way back to the founding of the ancient culture about 7,000 years before the Battle of Yavin (the in-universe name for the destruction of the Death Star at the climax of Star Wars: Episode IV — A New Hope). As described by Tarre Vizsla — the creator of the Darksaber — in the 2013 book The Bounty Hunter Code: The Files of Boba Fett, when Mandalore was first settled upon by a humanoid known as the Tuang the planet was already inhabited by savage, “huge, horned creatures.”
Of course, these are the very creatures that would come to be known to the Tuang as Mythosaurs. Eventually, the fierce denizens of Mandalore formed their own individual way of life and rebranded themselves with a new name inspired by their leader, Mandalore the First. Now called Mandalorians, the Mythosaurs would prove useful to their duties.
Mythosaurs Were Tamed And Used As Transportation By Ancient Mandalorians
The Mandalorian wasted no time slipping in a reference to the animal that Din Djarin’s people accepted as their collective symbol when it first premiered on Disney+. In 2019’s “Chapter 1: The Mandalorian,” Kuiil — an Ugnaught voiced by Nick Nolte and portrayed on set by Misty Rosas — says to Pascal’s title character, “You are a Mandalorian. Your ancestors rode the great Mythosaur.”
Indeed, this quote does ring true about the early history of the Mandalorian people, who are said to have managed to tame Mythosaurs and used them for practical purposes, including transport. The animals’ remains would also be used to construct tools and weaponry, such as the primitive melee weapon called the Mythosaur Axe.
The Mythosaur’s Return Has Been Prophesied For Years
Kuill’s brief history lesson in “Chapter 1” was the first, but not the only time the Mythosaur’s name was spoke on a Star Wars TV show developed and ran by Jon Favreau. In the Bryce Dallas Howard-directed fifth episode of The Book of Boba Fett — at which point the miniseries, essentially, turns into The Mandalorian Season 2.5 — The Armorer (Emily Swallow) mentions to Din Djarin that an ancient prophecy of the large creature’s return, which would bring forth a new age of Manadalore, is hinted at in songs and mythological tales rooted in the culture.
Now that The Mandalorian has revealed that a living Mythosaur does indeed reside on its native planet, it appears that the prophecy may have been fulfilled. So, what does this mean? Well, considering Bo-Katan is the only one to witness the creature and that she and Djarin are already not on the best terms at the moment, this reveal will likely fuel a brewing conflict between the two Mandalorians over who will lead their people into this important new era for the culture.
How exactly things will change for our titular hero following the Mythosaur’s return remains to be revealed on The Mandalorian Season 3. At least, now, you can practically call yourself an expert on all things related to this magnificent beast as the story unfolds on Disney+.
