Din Djarin appears to be headed towards a Mandalorian civil war in The Mandalorian season 3, but if he wins, Mandalore itself may suffer. The Mandalorian explores the new history and culture of Mandalorians in the post-2014 canon continuity, with Din Djarin’s tribe and Bo-Katan Kryze’s Death Watch being the most prominent sub-cultures thus far. Djarin’s journey at the end of The Mandalorian season 2 and The Book of Boba Fett season 1 has put him at odds with Kryze and positioned him to become the next Mand’alor, but as it stands, Djarin’s specific culture would ultimately harm Mandalore and all Mandalorians if it becomes the dominant force in the warrior creed.
At the end of The Mandalorian season 2, Din Djarin inadvertently becomes the latest wielder of the legendary Darksaber, putting him at odds with Bo-Katan Kryze, who seeks the title of Mand’alor and insists on attaining it by defeating the Darksaber’s current wielder. While Djarin’s significant role at the end of Book of Boba Fett does not follow up on his reluctant rivalry with Kryze, it does end with the promise of Djarin visiting Mandalore to become a true Mandalorian once more after having removed his helmet (and violating a tradition of his culture, the Children of the Watch). With Djarin traveling to Mandalore as the Darksaber’s wielder, another Mandalorian civil war now seems inevitable.
Although Din Djarin would be a far better Mand’alor than Bo-Katan for a multitude of reasons, his culture is ultimately just as destructive as Kryze’s. Bo-Katan leads the Death Watch, a power-hungry extremist group with a history of horrific violence towards civilians, but there is little separating them from the Children of the Watch. Bo-Katan may be hypocritical in describing Djarin’s sub-culture as “religious zealots,” but their fundamentalism would plunge the already-ravaged Mandalorian populace into yet another dark age of needless brutality. There is a way for Djarin to win The Mandalorian season 3 civil war without harming the rest of Mandalore, however. Djarin can create a new Mandalorian creed, or at least reform his current one - but even this likely comes with a high price to pay in terms of lives lost, and would limit Din's own personal arc for the foreseeable future.
Why Mandalore Cannot Go Back To The Old Ways in The Mandalorian
Mandalorians have nearly always been a culture of warriors, but unlike the Jedi, their history is one of expansion rather than defense of democratic society. Ancient Mandalorian crusades devastated indigenous populations and put them at odds with the Jedi Order. Oftentimes, Mandalorian clans would go to war with each other, ravaging worlds in Mandalorian space. Concord Dawn lost about a third of its planetary mass, and Mandalore itself was reduced to a radioactive desert world. It is precisely this brutal history that led to the rise of the pacifist New Mandalorian faction.
Mandalorian society and culture is doomed if Bo-Katan Kryze becomes the new Mand’alor, but Din Djarin would bring comparable devastation to the culture if he adheres to the Children of the Watch’s ancient ways. Djarin’s characterization in The Mandalorian’s first two seasons has seen him bend or occasionally even break traditions, so perhaps his arc in the third season could have him lead a new Mandalorian sub-culture that leaves their expansionist ways in the past. If not, Djarin’s potential victory in the inevitable civil war coming in The Mandalorian season 3 will bring ruin to the Mandalorian people writ large once again.