Spoilers below for anyone who hasn't yet watched The Mandalorian's latest episode, "The Passenger."
After kicking off Season 2 with the glorious introduction of Timothy Olyphant's sharpshooting Cobb Vanth, as well as the reveal of what is presumably the still-alive Boba Fett, The Mandalorian largely left those details by the wayside for Mando's mission in Episode 10. The bounty hunter was tasked with transporting a Frog Lady alien to a different celestial body, in an attempt to gain info about reconnecting with other Mandalorians. But what actually happened? For the most part, viewers learned just how big and gross Baby Yoda's appetite is.
Remember that moment back in Season 1 when Baby Yoda looked all cute as he was chowing down on a frog? That bit was played up for its "aww, how adorable" value, but it was apparently also a fairly important and understated slice of foreshadowing. Now let's talk about The Child's seemingly insatiable hunger while wondering if some major reveal will come from this.
Baby Yoda Was Immediately Drawn To Eating Frog Lady's Eggs
The Child had it pretty rough in the episode's cold open, having nearly been kidnapped after the Razor Crest was ambushed, and I guess that kind of fear really worked up his appetite. As soon as Amy Sedaris' Peli Motto brought out Frog Lady, Baby Yoda's attention instantly went to the creature's egg offspring cargo. So it only makes sense that, as soon as he was alone in a room with Frog Lady's device, he made his move and popped one of the eggs into his mouth. Thankfully, I suppose, Mando caught him in the act and took him away before he ate them all. But why was that even Baby Yoda's first instinct?
Baby Yoda Is Fine With Disobeying Mando If It Means Eggs
Even though Mando isn't exactly parent material, he's still genuinely protective of Baby Yoda during their time together, and for the most part, the smaller creature behaves accordingly. But even though he was warned against the awkwardly disgusting act of eating a shipmate's pre-children – which were meant to be transported to an estuary moon of Trask – Baby Yoda barely hesitated before his next attempt at snacking on Frog Lady's eggs. One could assume that they are either super-duper tasty, or that they do something special for The Child when he eats them. Could munching on amphibious eggs enhance Force-related capabilities? Probably not, but there must be a reason why he keeps attempting to eat them without Mando's knowledge.
Baby Yoda Also Ate A Spider Creature's Egg, Because Why Not?
In a scene that appeared to pay light homage to Ridley Scott's Alien, Frog Lady was soaking in a hot "bath" in the midst of hundreds of fairly large eggs scattered across the ground. After being reprimanded for staring too lovingly at Frog Lady's own eggs floating in the hot water, Baby Yoda set his sights on the larger and far more plentiful food sources nearby. He popped one open and ate up the half-formed creature inside, as well as the necessary fluids, seemingly proving that Frog Lady's eggs weren't necessarily special for Baby Yoda's purposes in their own right. Of course, it was ultimately a very bad move, since an entire army of various-sized spider creatures were unleashed on the trio, but why would eating one even occur to him in the first place?
Baby Yoda Doesn't Even Chew Those Eggs
This probably doesn't have any grand mysterious reasonings behind it, but it's almost unnerving to watch Baby Yoda shove Frog Lady's eggs into his mouth without lots of chewing involved. Perhaps it makes it easier for him to sneak those particular snacks without Mando seeing it or being shaken awake by Baby Yoda's rampant chewing. Or perhaps it's just an easier way for the puppeteers to handle the bitty character's eating habits. Or maybe he's just so hooked on them that he can't bother with the procrastination that chewing offers.
Despite behind decades old already, Baby Yoda is still a youth within his species, and is technically a growing creature, so it's possible that all the egg-based snacks were just a way to keep his nutrition going. But it doesn't necessarily appear to have made Baby Yoda stronger with the Force, nor more powerful in other ways. Otherwise, he might have done more than freak out and whimper whenever that spider creature landed on his head. The fact that he was saved by Frog Lady SHOULD have been a sign that he shouldn't be eating her children, but his appetite clearly transcended social norms, and the episode ended with him imbibing on one last egg.
Had full-grown Yoda been known to take down a couple of frogs every time Luke went down to Dagobah, then Baby Yoda's meal plan might make more immediate sense. But the elder creature was more prone to chowing down on rootleaf stew in those days.
What do you guys think Baby Yoda's endless appetite means for the future? Let us know in the comments and remember to tune into new episodes of The Mandalorian every Friday on Disney+ at 3:01 a.m. ET. While waiting for the next installment, head to our Fall 2020 TV premiere schedule to see what other new and returning shows are on the way.
