Baby Yoda is everywhere. If you’re a weird conspiracy theorist, you believe Disney and Mandalorian show creators Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni have carefully crafted the little tyke’s image to make him as memeable and gifable as possible.
That’s crazy.
Absolutely crazy.
Don’t be ridiculous.
I love him.
Now that season one of The Madalorian has come and gone, we’re left with lingering questions.
How is Baby Yoda so cute?
Why is Baby Yoda the best thing to happen to Star Wars since John Williams?
Where will we see Baby Yoda again?
When will Baby Yoda get his spinoff Hanna Barbera cartoon?
Also, I guess people want to know where the little booger came from. That’s reasonable. In that case, we’re promised answers in season two. Keep in mind that, despite the internet’s moniker, Baby Yoda is not confirmed to be “Baby Yoda.” He’s simply known as “The Child.” So who is the child? We may find out later this year. In the meantime here are four wild (or maybe not) theories to dwell on…
He’s the Family of Yoda
What would it mean if this theory were true? It would mean “the child” is a son, possibly a grandkid (please, no, not again), or maybe even a distant relative. Why do this? For one simple reason: It would allow the show to make a connection to Yoda without actually bringing the famed Jedi master back.
If you want to appeal to the nostalgia in the viewers but don’t want to risk alienating the segment of the fanbase that doesn’t want to see the legacy of Yoda tarnished, then making the child Yoda’s third cousin, once removed on his mother’s side is a good compromise. You can even introduce viewers to the Yoda planet and family and expand the lore of the mysterious Jedi Master without actually using said Master.
Does that mean he and Yaddle…you know what, let’s not even go there.
He’s a Clone of Yoda
What would it mean if this theory were true? This actually is my personal, pet theory, though I’m sure I’m not the only one to think of it. The idea is that Moff Gideon wants to fill the vacuum left by the destruction of the second Death Star (and, specifically, the death of Darth Vader) by cosplaying as Vader, himself. The problem is, of course, Gideon is not force sensitive. He’s got the desire for galactic control, he’s got the suit (sort of), he’s got the TIE Fighter. Dude’s even got a saber (granted, it’s the darksaber, but still). All he needs is the chokey-chokey force power.
So the theory goes that Gideon hatched a plan that involved cloning Yoda (let’s say he got a genetic sample from some archive on Coruscant, who knows) hoping that he can do some kind of blood transfusion that grants him force power. Bonus points if you can do all this without saying the words midichlorians.
Why go down this road? For one simple reason: You get to use Yoda without retreading old ground. He’s not a clone that will grow up to be Yoda 2.0. He’s a clone that will be used to tell a different story. How you get around making a Yoda clone that’s already fifty years old, I have no clue, but there you go.
He’s Not Related to Yoda at All (He’s Nobody)
What would it mean if this theory were true? It would mean The Child is just some kid that happens to belong to Yoda’s species. And since we’re dealing with characters who largely don’t know who the Jedi (thus, Yoda) were, you’re not bound to explain Yoda or make any mention of him at all.
Why do this? Well, apart from the twist of introducing this character and then saying “he’s nobody” (which, unlike the many similar twists in The Last Jedi, would be a twist without a greater narrative purpose to serve), the really isn’t a reason to do this.
If he’s not going to BE Yoda then at least making him related to Yoda opens narrative doors. Anything less feels like a missed opportunity. It would just be hollow nostalgia which, after The Rise of Skywalker, I think Star Wars fans are ready to do without.
He’s a Whill
What would it mean if this theory were true? It would mean a mild retcon of current canon and a big doing away with old canon. George Lucas thought of the Whills as an ancient race of storytellers who recorded the legends of old in their journals. One such legend was the story of Anakin, Luke, Han, Obi Wan, et al, that was recounted to them by the two characters who were there for the story from beginning to end: R2-D2 and C-3P0. Later on, as George was wont to do, he changed his mind to make the Whills into microscopic beings who fed off the force and controlled the universe. This would have been a big concept to be explored in his versions of Episode 7-9.
But the idea of the Whills never really materialized until Disney bought Lucasfilm and their writers started deep-diving into old and rejected lore.
In Rogue One the planet Jedha is home to the Guardians of the Whills, force-sensitive monks who looked after the planet’s ancient secrets. There are big, Tolkein-esque statues on Jedha but none of them look like a muppet.
So that probably rules out Yoda’s species being the Whills.
But maybe they soft-recon that little idea. Maybe Yoda’s mysterious, mostly unknown race are the ancient Whills. They’re not microscopic, but maybe they had (have?) a relationship with the force in a closer way than anyone else. Maybe, if you must bring in the midichlorians, they naturally have a higher midichlorian count than anyone else (other than Anakin, who was himself created by the force, which explains the conversation between Obi Wan and Qui-Gon where Obi Wan noted that “not even Master Yoda” had midichlorians as high as Anakin).
Making The Child a Whill is a great way to expand the lore of Star Wars, answer some long-wondered questions, and bring some mysticism to a show that, to this point, has mostly been grounded and gritty (as much as a Star Wars property can be).
I suppose we’ll find out this fall…ten months from now.
Me too, kid. Me too.
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