Were Din Djarin’s parents killed by the Death Watch in The Mandalorian? Over the course of The Mandalorian’s first season, the title character’s backstory has been slowly revealed via flashbacks and conversations with other characters, and the finale completed the puzzle, adding what few missing pieces remained. Revealed under the name Din Djarin, the Mandalorian is seen on an unknown planet as a child, running with his parents from an attack by the CIS in a scene that takes place during the Clone Wars. Din’s parents hide their child in a sturdy container, which is then immediately rocked by a blast. It’s suggested that Din’s family die as a result, while the shelter saved his life.
While still in hiding, the young Din finds himself faced with the blaster barrel of a Super Battle Droid, only for the Mandalorian Death Watch to swing in and save the day. A warrior whisks the orphan away, where he’s later raised as a Foundling and swears an oath to the Mandalorian Way to become one of their creed. The Death Watch are a splinter group of Mandalorians that have previously appeared in The Clone Wars and Star Wars Rebels. They yearn for their planet to return to its violent roots in the face of an increasingly diplomatic government and aim to take over leadership by force in pursuit of this. The Mandalorian paints the Death Watch as Din’s saviors, but is there more to the flashbacks than meets the eye?
Contrary to what transpires in The Mandalorian, the Death Watch are not vigilantes or heroes, and are essentially a terrorist organization solely concerned with the restoration of their planet and warrior culture. To this end, the Death Watch initially form an alliance with the CIS, but this later turns sour. The Mandalorian’s viewers are left to assume that the Death Watch’s presence during the flashbacks is not necessarily to save the day, but to stick it to Count Dooku. Among the terror tactics the Death Watch would employ during their existence would be staged attacks, which the group would then swoop in and quash, gaining them support among the citizens of Mandalore. This could be exactly what The Mandalorian’s flashback scenes are depicting.
It’s currently unknown where and when The Mandalorian’s CIS attack is taking place, and it’s equally unclear why the Death Watch appear at just the right moment. If the entire scenario was orchestrated by the Death Watch themselves, this would explain the convenient timing, the circumstances of the assault, and perhaps also why a Death Watch warrior feels responsible for an orphaned young boy. Furthermore, with droids the main force of the CIS, faking a battle would be as easy as reprogramming some captured units - something The Mandalorian already set up with IG-11. In keeping with the Death Watch’s motives, staging an attack would be most likely to take place on Mandalore, which Din Djarin has already said he doesn’t hail from. It’s possible, however, that the Djarin family were on Mandalore for other business and were simply caught up in the attack.
A twist of this magnitude could have major ramifications for The Mandalorian moving forward. As things stand, Din is unerringly loyal to his Mandalorian Way and eternally grateful that they saved his life. Such determination is made clear when the bounty hunters opts to die rather than remove his helmet in front of others. If everything Din thought he knew about the CIS incident was a lie, this would shake the character to the core, and cast a massive shadow of doubt over Din’s status as a Mandalorian. From a purely pragmatic perspective, sewing discord into Din Djarin’s beliefs would allow him to remove his helmet more often in The Mandalorian season 2, thereby opening up more dimensions to the character’s appearance and personality as the series continues.
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The Mandalorian season 2 premieres in Fall 2020.
