The highly anticipated third season of the Disney+ series The Mandalorian has finally arrived with its fourth episode titled “Chapter 20 – The Foundling”. Below is a breakdown of what was seen in the episode and how it possibly connects to future events in the season.
The episode opens with the entire Mandalorian warrior group from the Children of the Watch participating in combat training; they’re firing lasers, testing out their flame gauntlets, practicing their flying maneuvers and of course, hand-to-hand combat. Din encourages Grogu to participate in some of the training and somewhat goads him into fighting another foundling, Ragnar Vizsla who was seen reciting the creed in the opening of the premiere episode. Ragnar jumps out to early lead thanks to his familiarity with the drill but after some brief encouragement from Din, Grogu manages to emerge victorious thanks to some nifty Jedi moves learned during his time with Master Luke Skywalker. All is quiet until a large raptor arrives and captures Ragnar and while a brief chase ensues, the pursuit is broken off and Bo-Katan arrives in her starfighter to track the giant beast.
Having managed to track the raptor to its nest on top of a gigantic peak, Bo-Katan organizes a war party to go after the beast and retrieve the foundling but there are a few wrinkles to this hunt; the nest’s location prohibits the Mandalorians from using their jet packs to get closer so they must proceed carefully so as not the frighten the creature and endanger the foundling. As the war party departs, Grogu is told to stay behind as he has not yet taken the creed and cannot fight just yet so the Armorer takes him into the caves and shows the forge, the place where their armor is forged and stories are exchanged and it’s here that the biggest glimpse of Grogu’s past is revealed. The sparks from the forge trigger him to experience a memory of Order 66 and his dramatic escape from the Jedi Temple. We find out that he was aided by Jedi Master Kelleran Beq (portrayed by past Star Wars actor Ahmed Best) who had to dispatch several Clone Troopers and speed through the skies of Coruscant prior to finding a landing pad occupied by friendly Naboo Armed Forces and escaping into the galaxy. This is likely a subplot that will be returned to at some point this season as there is still roughly 20 years in between the events of Order 66 and when The Mandalorian takes place. The flashback ends and Grogu learns that he is being accepted into this group as the Armorer has crafted him a rondel bearing the mudhorn sigil of his adopted father.
The action then moves back to the war party and Bo-Katan is continuing to learn the intricacies of the strict adherence to the Mandalorian way. As night falls and the group shares a meal, she learns that they don’t eat together; they gather their meal and share a private spot where they can enjoy their food. She seems hesitant to remove her helmet as she’s aware of her tenuous spot in this group. The war party reaches the base of the peak and they must ascend it with grappling hooks, aware that any large noise will attract the raptor and a brief climb thanks to editing, they reach the nest and it is a macabre scene. It’s been revealed that this raptor has snatched up a foundling in the past and several helmets can be seen, presumably belonging to dead foundlings. An initial scan doesn’t reveal the young Ragnar but does show a heat signature that something is in the nest but Paz Vizsla, Ragnar’s father and Din’s one-time rival, rushes in to rescue what he believes is his son but instead awakens three of the raptor’s chicks and they are ravenous. Right on cue, the raptor arrives and regurgitates Ragnar to feed to her chicks until they open fire and another chase ensues but this time, the warriors are prepared and immediately begin to swarm the raptor and shoot lines in order to bring down the creature. While brief, the chase is another exciting example of the type of action that is expected from this series. Ragnar is able to be retrieved and is reunited with his father and the war party returns to the covert to celebrate their victory. They’ve also brought along the three raptor chicks as their spoils and the Armorer offers to replace some of Bo-Katan’s armor as it had fallen off during the chase with the raptor. Her encounter with the Mythosaur still is present on her mind as she requests the duel sigil of the mythical creature and her house sigil of the night owl, she reveals that she saw the creature in the Living Waters but her encounter is met with disbelief by the Armorer and even though Bo-Katan is wearing her helmet, the wheels seem to be turning about her future actions and whether or not she will return to Mandalore, tame the Mythosaur and claim her place as the ruler of Mandalore.
Featured Image Credit: Wookiipedia
