Jon Favreau’s The Mandalorian has revitalized the Star Wars franchise by moving away from nostalgic plot points and familiar characters and, instead, telling exciting new stories about original heroes and villains. With the story of Din Djarin, Star Wars has successfully shifted from the Skywalkers and explored new corners of a galaxy far, far away.
But the series hasn’t avoided nostalgia entirely. Its first two seasons have been filled to the brim with Easter eggs for eagle-eyed Star Wars fans to catch and pure unadulterated fan service for everybody to enjoy.
The Trash Compactor Pole
Talk about a deep cut. In the background of a shot in “Chapter 3: The Sin,” the same kind of pole that Han and Leia used to try to keep the trash compactor open on the Death Star can be seen propped against a wall.
The trash compactor scene is a masterclass in suspense-building, with the walls closing in and Luke desperately trying to contact a blissfully unaware C-3PO. It’s one of the most iconic moments in the whole saga.
Mos Eisley Spaceport
Mando has visited easily the most renowned planet in the Star Wars canon – Luke Skywalker’s homeworld of Tatooine – many times in The Mandalorian. Whenever he visits, he leaves the Razor Crest with Peli Motto, played by the great Amy Sedaris, in Mos Eisley Spaceport.
Motto operates out of Docking Bay 35, a few spots down from Docking Bay 94, where Han Solo and Chewbacca parked the Millennium Falcon before meeting Ben Kenobi.
Gamorrean Guards
In the opening act of Return of the Jedi, Jabba’s palace was protected by Gamorrean guards. The Mandalorian’s second-season premiere showed audiences what happened to those guards after the Rebels brought down Jabba’s criminal empire.
When Mando visits a gangster in “Chapter 9: The Marshal” and ends up having to shoot his way out, Gamorrean guards are seen fighting in a gladiatorial ring for the amusement of criminals.
Bounties Frozen In Carbonite
In the opening scene of The Mandalorian’s pilot episode, he brings in a Mythrol bounty. Aboard the Razor Crest, the Mythrol tells Mando he needs to use the bathroom but actually looks for a way to escape.
While exploring the ship, he finds a bunch of Mando’s bounties frozen in carbonite, a reference to how Boba Fett delivered Han Solo to Jabba the Hutt in The Empire Strikes Back.
Boba’s Back
Boba Fett quickly became a fan-favorite Star Wars icon following his softly spoken debut in The Empire Strikes Back, but audiences had to wait 40 years to see the bounty hunter spring into action.
In the hands of director Robert Rodriguez, Boba’s triumphant return to action in The Mandalorian episode “Chapter 14: The Tragedy” didn’t disappoint. He decimates a legion of Stormtroopers utilizing his full arsenal of gadgets and takes out the survivors with the rocket sticking out of his jetpack.
Mando’s Disintegration Rifle
When Darth Vader first recruits Boba Fett to track down the Millennium Falcon in The Empire Strikes Back, he stresses that he wants the Rebels brought in alive and says, “No disintegrations,” hinting that Boba had a history of disintegrating people.
After Jawas strip the Razor Crest for parts, Din Djarin debuts the weapon that Boba presumably used to do it. He takes out a big rifle and disintegrates a bunch of Jawas with it.
The AT-ST Walker
Season 1’s “Chapter 4: Sanctuary” is a pastiche of Seven Samurai in which Mando teams up with Cara Dune to help a bunch of innocent villagers defend their home from marauders. The stakes are raised when Mando and Cara learn that the bad guys have an AT-ST walker.
In the Battle of Endor, these walkers were gangly and uncoordinated, but with red glowing eyes and a super-powerful laser cannon, director Bryce Dallas Howard made The Mandalorian’s AT-ST walker subversively terrifying.
Return To Jabba’s Palace
Boba Fett returned to Jabba’s palace in the post-credits scene of The Mandalorian’s second-season finale. He and Fennec stormed the building and killed everybody inside, including Bib Fortuna. Fortuna was introduced as Jabba’s right-hand man in Return of the Jedi, but this scene revealed that he took over Jabba’s throne and empire following his death.
Now that Boba has killed Fortuna and claimed that throne for himself, the stage is set for his upcoming spin-off The Book of Boba Fett to be a thrilling gangster epic.
Krayt Dragon
While C-3PO is traipsing through the Tatooine desert in the opening scenes of the original Star Wars movie, he passes the gigantic, dusty skeleton of an ominous creature that was later identified as a krayt dragon.
In The Mandalorian’s season 2 premiere “Chapter 9: The Marshal” – the first episode directed by series creator Jon Favreau – Star Wars fans got to see a live krayt dragon at the height of its monstrous abilities, tearing through villages and feasting on Tusken Raiders.
Luke Skywalker
The Mandalorian’s greatest reference to the original trilogy – and one of the most talked-about TV moments in recent memory – arrived at the end of the season 2 finale “Chapter 16: The Rescue” when Luke Skywalker arrived to take on Grogu as his Jedi apprentice.
From the gloved hand to the green lightsaber to the instantly recognizable X-wing, everything about Luke’s Mandalorian cameo was designed to evoke fond memories of the original trilogy.