Star Wars is risking repeating Marvel Studios' mistake over Thanos' snap when it comes to The Mandalorian's Baby Yoda's real name debacle. Created by Jon Favreau, the Disney+ show wrapped up its eight-episode first season with a clear set-up for its next one. Aside from the confirmation that Moff Gideon (Giancarlo Esposito) has the Darksaber, the finale also gave Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal) his new mission as Baby Yoda's official caretaker.
Debuting at the end of The Mandalorian premiere titled "Chapter 1" and directed by Dave Filoni, Baby Yoda remains a mystery. We know that like the legendary Jedi, it's strong with the Force as it's repeatedly helped Din get out of tricky situations using its unique capabilities. However, its origins and Moff Gideon's real motivation for going after it are still big talking points. Clearly, Baby Yoda will remain a pivotal element of the show in the foreseeable future, especially seeing how popular it has become.
The Mandalorian, however, has still yet to reveal Baby Yoda's name. While certain details about the creature are being intentionally saved for future storytelling purposes, it's baffling why they're holding off confirming its name. Both Favreau and actor/director Taika Waititi know what it really is, but refuse to divulge it in the meantime. The lack of a proper name for the character has resulted in the public simply referring to it as Baby Yoda, which may understandably cause some confusion for those who aren't particularly well-versed with the lore. Baby Yoda isn't actually Yoda, nor is the infant the offspring of the iconic Star Wars character. However, since there's barely any information regarding their species, it somehow make sense to refer to it as such. And by delaying the confirmation of the baby's real name, Star Wars is risking repeating Marvel Studios' gaffe regarding Thanos' purge of half of life in the universe at the end of Avengers: Infinity War.
For the longest time Kevin Feige and his team let the public call the event as the snap, but apparently, Thanos' snap is officially called the Decimation in MCU canon. Spider-Man: Far From Home also attempted to introduce another term for it in "The Blip." But as everyone knows, the general public refer to it simply as the snap. This shows fans will more likely stick to the name they’ve given something rather than adhere to what’s official. And the longer The Mandalorian keeps the child's real name a secret, the bigger the chance that fans won’t care when they finally confirm it and just stick to Baby Yoda.
Unless its real name is a spoiler, there’s really no need for Star Wars to continue hiding Baby Yoda's name from viewers. It doesn't seem like Favreau wants The Mandalorian creature to be known as Baby Yoda evidenced by his chastisement of Disney CEO Bob Iger for calling it that. They've insisted that fans call the infant "The Child" - coincidentally, also the title of The Mandalorian's episode 2 where we learned more about its Force sensitivity. However, if they really want to establish its branding, they have to stop teasing and just confirm its name already before everybody decides that it really doesn't matter because the name Baby Yoda has already been established.