Bo-Katan Kryze’s characterization has an interesting trajectory across the Star Wars canon universe, starting as a villain in Star Wars: The Clone Wars, becoming a hero by Star Wars Rebels and ending up as a little of each in The Mandalorian. As a faithful member of the Mandalorian terrorist group, the Death Watch, Bo-Katan is a staunch believer in Mandalore’s old warrior ways, and as the allegiance of her people has changed over time, so, too, has her own. This ended up putting her on the same side as the heroes for a time, but with Din Djarin now the rightful owner of the Darksaber (and thus the ruler of Mandalore), her status as hero or villain is uncertain.
In Bo-Katan’s first appearance, she aids then-Death Watch leader Pre Vizsla in terrorizing and murdering a village of innocent people (all to prove the Death Watch’s supposed strength) and tries to kill Ahsoka Tano. Toward the end of the Clone Wars, she and the rest of the Death Watch became allies of the former Sith Lord Maul, helping him form the criminal organization known as the Shadow Collective and conquering Mandalore before turning on Maul. She and about half of the Death Watch refuse to join Maul after he, in Mandalorian tradition, usurps and kills Pre Vizsla, becoming the ruler of Mandalore. For the rest of the war, she becomes an ally of the Jedi and Clone Troopers, fighting to reclaim Mandalore from the Sith outsider. Bo-Katan remained an ally of the heroes when the Empire conquered Mandalore. Though the Death Watch didn’t formally join the Rebellion, the two worked together to defeat Tiber Saxon and weaken the Empire’s hold over Mandalore.
In both The Clone Wars and Rebels, Bo-Katan’s apparent heroism is simply the result of her sharing a common enemy with the protagonists. Bo-Katan is a murderer and a terrorist, motivated by power and a traditionalist view of Mandalorian culture. When Sabine nearly executes Tiber Saxon, Bo-Katan warns that doing so would make her no better, despite Kryze having murdered innocents on Carlac as a demonstration of strength. Bo-Katan accuses Din Djarin of being part of a cult of religious zealots because he refuses to remove his helmet, yet Kryze’s own fundamentalism contributed to multiple civil wars on Mandalore.
Although Darth Maul became the rightful ruler of Mandalore, Bo-Katan refused to join him simply because he’s an outsider. It had nothing to do with Maul’s cruelty and willingness to harm innocents since Kryze herself has done the same. The destabilization of Mandalore, which she and Pre Vizsla contributed to, led to countless lives lost, including Mandalorian civilians. During the Empire’s reign, Bo-Katan’s only interest was in reclaiming Mandalore. Aside from the two opening episodes of Rebels season 4, Bo-Katan is never depicted as aiding the Rebellion in freeing the galaxy from Imperial oppression.
Bo-Katan’s true colors are shown in The Mandalorian. Kryze is only willing to help Din Djarin if it benefits her goal of reacquiring the Darksaber from Moff Gideon. When Din defeats the ISB Agent, he inadvertently became the rightful owner of the weapon, leading a scenario where Bo-Katan felt betrayed even knowing it was an honest mistake. The season 2 finale of The Mandalorian ended before Din and Bo-Katan’s conflict could further develop, but they’ll likely become adversaries in season 3. Bo-Katan is, ultimately, an unscrupulous, power-hungry character, and being the sister of the pacifist Satine Kryze doesn’t make her a hero.
