The Mandalorian Chapter 7 - Easter Eggs, Fan Nods and Callbacks
Jon Favreau and his team have done an amazing job engaging Star Wars fans of all generations by inserting a mind-blowing number of Easter eggs, fan nods and callbacks into each and every episode of The Mandalorian. As a service to Star Wars fans everywhere, we're attempting to identify and catalog all the references in each episode. If you think we've missed something, let us know in the comments or on social media. We'll be happy to add it to the list after verification and credit you for the submission.
If you're into podcasts, then take a listen to our audio review of Chapter 7. A few of Eric's in-laws joined us for this episode. And despite some heavy edits in post production, it's still quite apparent that in-laws are fantastic at derailing our well-laid review plans.
And don't forget to check out our Easter Eggs list for all the other episodes of The Mandalorian:
Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8
[*** This list contains episode 7 spoilers ***]
Chapter 7 - "The Reckoning"
[04:08] The Zabrak Species
When Cara Dune reemerges in this episode, we find her engaged in hand-to-hand combat with a Zabrak, for sport. Many Star Wars fans will quickly recognize this species because of Darth Maul in the prequel trilogy. However, there are others of note in the Galaxy. Agen Kolar was a member of the Jedi High Council, as seen in Attack of the Clones. And a Zabrak named Savage Opress - voiced by Clancy Brown, who guest starred in the previous episode - makes an appearance in The Clone Wars animated series. Zabraks originated from the largely inhospitable Mid Rim planet of Iridonia, although there are numerous subspecies on other planets spread throughout the galaxy.
[06:46] Thermal Detonators
As Mando brings Cara to his weapons locker to pick out a weapon for the impending mission, we see three thermal detonators on a shelf towards the bottom. Clearly, Cara Dune has seen these before, as she picks one up and renders a brief smile. Thermal detonators made their first appearance in A New Hope, but have subsequently appeared in most of the properties in the Star Wars franchise. We've seen Mando use explosives quite a few times in this series but never this particular type. Perhaps, this is a bit of foreshadowing for what's coming up in the final episode of the season.
[10:13] "... in accordance with the Charter of the New Republic"
When Kuiil is telling the story of how he recovered the IG-11 droid, he mentions the Charter of the New Republic. This document - first mentioned in the canon novel, Bloodlines - outlined the principles of the New Republic's government, as agreed upon by the Galactic Senate.
[14:02] Force Choke
This particular force ability was made famous by Darth Vader, in A New Hope, but he certainly wouldn't be the last force user to use this ability. That said, we've certainly never witnessed a child using it. There's a lot of jokes to be made here, especially given the target of his force choke, but we're going to leave that to your imagination (or you can listen to the podcast review for some no holds barred commentary).
[18:36] "little bogwing"
Greef Karga refers to the Yodalorian as a little bogwing, when they first meet up with Mando on Nevarro. Bogwings appear on Dagobah in Empire Strikes Back; however, the canon sourcebook Star Wars: The Visual Encyclopedia claims this species is originally from Naboo.
[23:31] Force Heal
After Karga is attacked by some dragon-like creatures on Nevarro, the Yodalorian finally gets to lay down some of that special healing. He's tried this once before, when Mando was injured by the Mudhorn on Arvala-7, but he was stopped before he could finish the task. As far as we are aware, this marks the very first successful use of this force ability in the new canon.
[25:52] "It's a trap!" [Credit: Shawn Willette]
As Shawn from the Star Wars The Mandalorian Facebook group pointed out, there's a callback to this famous line spoken by Admiral Ackbar in Return of the Jedi. Given Favreau's apparent love for meme-able dialog, we're not surprised to see this iconic line made it's way into the script. Ackbar definitely said it better, though!
[25:54] A "New" Plan (or a recycled one)
The revised plan that Mando cooks up to kill The Client is something of a Star Wars trope at this point. Karga and Dune are to present a handcuffed Mandalorian to the Imperial remnants as a way to get close to the target, just as Han and Luke did with Chewbacca in A New Hope. But that's certainly not the last time we would see this plan put into action. Leia would later pose as a bounty hunter in Return of the Jedi, delivering a captured Chewbacca to Jabba the Hutt. And in Solo, Qi'ra would pretend to be a prison warden bringing in Chewbacca and Han at the Kessel internment block.
[26:28] A Comlink
Although we don't get a very good look at the device until later in the episode, Kuiil gives Mando a comlink before they part ways on Nevarro. The design of this device is exactly the same as the one Luke uses during the Death Star infiltration in A New Hope.
[27:18] Scout Troopers
Back at the city on Nevarro, we see that Stormtroopers have infested the place. And sitting right at the front arch are two scout troopers on speeder bikes. These specialized reconnaissance troopers made their first appearance in Return of the Jedi, where they were a notable part of the Imperial complement protecting the Death Star's shield generator on Endor.
[29:52] An RA-7 Protocol Droid
We mentioned this droid model in the episode 6 list as the most likely inspiration for the Q9-0 "Zero" droid. However, we get to see an undeniable replica in the cantina, serving as a bartender. Originally designed as a protocol droid, we first see this model on-screen in the Jawa's sandcrawler from a A New Hope. Despite their long-held moniker of "Death Star Droid," very few of these droids actually served on the Death Star. The Empire preferred to use them as spies instead, as noted in The Clone Wars.
[32:28] Death Troopers?
After the cantina on Nevarro is suddenly riddled with heavy blaster fire, Mando looks out the shattered window at what appear to be Death Troopers. They're not wearing quite the same attire as the Death Troopers introduced in Rogue One, but their look is very similar. This specialized unit was also depicted in Rebels, but their armor was more of a shiny black than the dark chrome look we see here. Whether they're actually meant to be Death Troopers or not, we believe that was at least the primary inspiration.
[32:37] Imperial Troop Transport
Way back in 1979, Lucasfilm allowed the Kenner toy company to design a handful of their own original Star Wars toys. That is to say, they designed some play sets that were not actually taken from scenes in the movies. This Imperial Troop Transport happens to be one of those - in fact, it was the first original Kenner design ever sold in stores. That vehicle design would later be used in Marvel's first Star Wars comic book series, and later in the Rebels animated series.
[33:33] A TIE Fighter
This iconic spacecraft and its numerous variants have appeared in the majority of the Star Wars properties, as they are used by both the Galactic Empire and the First Order. Moff Gideon, played by Giancarlo Esposito, makes his entrance to the series in one of these. This particular TIE design is shown with folding wings that allow it to land on the surface of planet. While that may be a new sight on-screen, the modified design is actually borrowed from Doug Chiang's concept art for The Force Awakens.
That's at least another 14 Easter eggs, fan nods and callbacks in this episode. But we've probably overlooked a few, so please let us know what we might have missed in the comments or on social media!
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