‘Star Wars: The Mandalorian’- Why is Grogu Even Here?
Baby Yoda might be cute as heck, but Grogu shouldn’t be here.
Season 3 of the The Mandalorian has been something of a mixed bag. It’s got some real issues. But it also has a lot going for it. It’s got some cool action scenes and a lot more space battles. The show is also clearly building up some bigger things in the background and giving us our best look at the New Republic. It’s not as good as it once was, but it’s a far cry from bad. However, one aspect of the show is standing out more and more. Why is Grogu in it?
Grogu’s Return Was a Step Back
Din Djarin‘s journey with Grogu was the major storyline of the first 2 seasons of The Mandalorian. It was a solid throughline to the show. It also allowed for a lot of character growth for both Din and Grogu. But that arc and story wrapped up at the end of Season 2. Grogu was returned to his people, the Jedi, and left to train with Luke Skywalker. And then that was all undone. In a different show. Grogu just decides, nah, I’d rather be with Din. If this had come at the end of season 2, where he had stayed with Din instead of going that would be fine. But instantly undoing his leaving cheapest the whole show and doesn’t make a lot of sense. It undid a lot of the growth and sacrifice of both Grogu and Din.
It Could Have Worked For a Good Cause
Bringing Grogu back could have made sense if they had something important for him to do. But it’s clear five episodes in that they don’t really have any idea of what to do with him. While Din has had a couple of cute scenes with him that’s about it. Most of the time Grogu is just kind of there. He’s not active or affecting things. The only time all season he’s played any role was going to get Bo-Katan when Din was in trouble on Mandalore. A droid could have done this just as well. The fact is that the show has nothing for him to do. He’s just there. Sort of. There are multiple episodes where he is barely on screen.
Grogu Doens’t Have Much Room For Growth
I think one of the major issues with Grogu is that he really doesn’t have much room for growth. Grogu is effectively a deadly toddler that can’t talk. There’s just not much he can do. He can’t really talk or have major revelations. He can be cute and look worried. He can do a few force tricks. But there isn’t much room for him to do more.
Grogu is Here Because He Was Too Successful
It’s clear that Grogu is here because he’s just too successful to not be in the show. He was a major hit in the first two seasons. He was also super cute and allowed for a lot of merchandising opportunities. Grogu makes money. He’s what people want to see. And it’s fair to some degree. It’s kind of hard to think of The Mandalorian without Grogu. Keeping him was the safe choice, as actually having him leave would have required real changes. It would have been, brave and hard and made a lot more sense. As it stands, Grogu is seemingly here to make money and not for any story reason. And that’s kind of a problem. The show really needs to find something meaningful for Baby Yoda to do.
Let us know what you think about Grogu being in the show down in the comments!
