No caption needed", "George Lucas Meets Baby Yoda in Adorable Mandalorian Set Photo", "George Lucas Cradling Baby Yoda is This Year's Greatest Parenting Moment", "You'll Have to Wait for Official Baby Yoda Toys", "The Mandalorian Hiding Baby Yoda For So Long Was A Marketing Mistake", "Star Wars: The Mandalorian Fans Can Blame Donald Glover for Lack of Baby Yoda Merch", "Even Disney Is Talking About That Secret 'Mandalorian' Character Now So I Give Up", "Star Wars Officially Spoils The Mandalorian's Baby Yoda Twist", "Disney made it official: We can talk about that Mandalorian character now", "Baby Yoda, Daddy Mando, and How Star Wars Gave Parents a New Fantasy", "Why The Mandalorian is, in fact, a show about a single dad", "Somali and the Forest Spirit Will Fill The Mandalorian Hole in Your Life", "5 Westerns & 5 Samurai Movies To Watch If You Love The Mandalorian", "How The Mandalorian's Plot Twist Evokes a Classic Manga Series", "The Mandalorian: How the Series Takes Star Wars Back to Its Samurai Roots", "Baby Yoda is the adorable, big-eared savior of Disney+'s 'The Mandalorian', "The Mandalorian Is Basically Big Daddy in Space", "Is Baby Yoda Bad to the Bone? The name of this species has never been revealed since "Star Wars" creator George Lucas wanted to give Yoda a sense of mystery. As an example, Ashley Carman of The Verge cited "Baby Sonic", a young version of the video game character Sonic the Hedgehog who appears in his 2020 film, which she described as "like something ripped out of Disney's playbook".[174]. In "Chapter 20: The Foundling", Grogu trains with fellow Foundling Ragnar Vizsla (Wesley Kimmel) until Ragnar is captured by a large winged Raptor. This Week's 'The Mandalorian' Has Us Wondering", "The Mandalorian: Baby Yoda Learns About Good & Bad In A Powerful Way", "We Regret to Inform You Baby Yoda Might Be Evil", "Wait Is Baby Yoda Tempted By The Dark Side? Introduced at the end of the first episode of The Mandalorian, Grogu is an enigmatic child sought after by Empire remnant Grand Moff Gideon.Gideon, through multiple underlings, recruited the members of the Bounty Hunters Guild to collect the apparent baby for medical experiments. This secret has kept Yodas species completely hidden from the rest of the galaxy. It wasn't until The Mandalorian season 2, episode 5 that Grogu's real name was revealed, which is why many still liken him to Yoda. [39][40][41] The plan goes wrong and Kuiil is killed by Imperial Scout Troopers,[44][45] who briefly abduct Grogu before he is rescued by IG-11 at the start of the first-season finale, "Chapter 8: Redemption". It can't just be a straight-up Disney baby, it has to be a little bit tweaked. Do you think we will finally learn the name of Grogu and Yodas species? He also helped Rey and Kylo Ren, and all those who would seek council with the Force. He is a Force-sensitive 50-year-old infant of the same species as Yoda who is sought after by the Bounty Hunters' Guild on behalf of the Imperial remnant. In "Chapter 14: The Tragedy", the Mandalorian brings Grogu to said temple, where he begins meditating, creating a protective Force field around him. [5] In an article in the magazine, writer Rebecca Keegan argued Grogu is the culmination of several shifts and trends in the entertainment industry over the decade prior to the release of The Mandalorian. Yaddle is a female of the unnamed Yoda/Grogu species and is seen briefly in Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace, serving on the Jedi Council. It's very difficult to keep secrets about projects you're working on. We do not know how old Yaddle was, and we dont know how long she lived. In "Chapter 17: The Apostate", the Mandalorian has IG-11 partially repaired as a prospective companion, but IG-11 defaults to his original programming and attempts to kill Grogu before once again being destroyed. [139] Some critics called Grogu one of the best and most lauded new Star Wars characters in recent memory,[113][136] while others said the character had made the Star Wars franchise relevant to an even wider range of audiences. In "Chapter 11: The Heiress", the group arrives on Trask and after bringing Frog Lady and her remaining eggs to her husband, the Mandalorian, and Grogu encounter Bo-Katan Kryze (Katee Sackhoff) and two other Mandalorian warriors, who save them from a crew of Quarrens who tried to kill the two and steal the Mandalorian's armor. The only other things Grogu and Yoda have in common this point are having been part of the Jedi Order, having gone into hiding, and species, and two of those aren't unique among people Ahsoka has known. [144] BBC writer Caryn James said he did not believe anyone without an emotional attachment to Star Wars would care about Grogu. [198], In 2021, Grogu's likeness was published in scientific literature, in a medical journal article titled, "Baby Yoda: Pareidolia and Patternicity in Sacral MRI and CT Scans". [108] Pre-orders for the Funko doll made it the top toy on Amazon upon its release. [115], One scene in "Chapter 7: The Reckoning" led many fans to reevaluate Grogu and question whether he may demonstrate evil tendencies. [53][55] She instructs the Mandalorian to seek out and deliver Grogu to the others of his kind, and that until this occurs, the Mandalorian and Grogu are a "clan of two", and that the Mandalorian will be like a father to him. [131][184] The toy sold out within days of its announcement, with new deliveries not expected until December 2020. [177] In mid-January 2020, Disney issued takedown notices against several Etsy sellers using the words "Star Wars", "Mandalorian", and "Yoda", citing copyright violations. [2][4][15] Until Chapter 13 (i.e. Chapter 6: From the Desert Comes a Stranger, "Baby Yoda: Everything we know about The Mandalorian star", "Baby Yoda Is an Acceptable Name for The Mandalorian's Breakout Star, Says Dave Filoni", "Big deal, he is: how Baby Yoda became 2019's biggest new character", "In Baby Yoda, Hollywood Sees Its Past, Present and Meme-able Future", "5 Reasons Why Disney+ Is Breaking Records While Making History", "Baby Yoda is key to the Disney+ takeover", "How Disney+ Uses Star Wars to Dominate Digital Entertainment", "The massive popularity of Baby Yoda memes highlights just how successful Disney Plus has been, one analyst says", "Why Jon Favreau Chose Baby Yoda: 'We Don't Know a Lot of Details About His Species', "Baby Yoda: the Mandalorian's adorable alien co-star, explained", "Everything you need to know about Baby Yoda, who is probably not actually Yoda but still very cute", "Let's Talk About Baby Yoda's Age In The Mandalorian", "Werner Herzog's 'The Mandalorian' Character Is The Next Great 'Star Wars' Villain", "The Mandalorian: Taika Waititi Wants Fans To Petition To Bring Back IG-11", "The Mandalorian episode 2 reveals the true nature of this Star Wars bounty", "The Mandalorian: What The Empire Wanted With Baby Yoda", "This 'Mandalorian' Theory About Baby Yoda Is So Important", "The Mandalorian Hints at the Return of Kamino Cloning", "The Mandalorian: Greef Karga's Backstory Explained", "The Mandalorian: 10 Most Interesting Characters In Season 1", "5 Reasons The Witcher Geralt Will Be a Better Dad Than the Mandalorian (& 5 Reasons He Won't)", "The Mandalorian episode 5 recap: Baby Yoda travels to an iconic planet", "The Mandalorian Vs. Solo: Which Had the Best Criminal Crew? These characteristics include Grogu's ears, posture, and the way he cocks his head. [65] Various celebrities have tweeted about the character, including Ariana Grande,[62] Elon Musk,[153] Dwayne Johnson, Russell Wilson, Alex Rodriguez,[149] and Donald Trump Jr.[154] Zach Vasquez of The Guardian wrote: "It's now practically impossible to scroll through any social media platform without being inundated with pics, videos, memes and gifs of the bug-eyed, big-eared tot. The force-sensitive youngling is only the third of his species seen in canon, preceded by Jedi Masters Yoda and Yaddle, both of whom served on the Jedi council. As mentioned previously, Grogu is a member of the same species as Jedi Master Yoda. We are aware of one other adult from Yodas species. He looked similar to Grogu, but was. He's constantly vaping. [16][78] There are several stand-in versions for Grogu used in filming in addition to the primary puppet. [172][173] Some critics have noted that other media companies introduced young versions of their own characters following the debut of Grogu, and suggested they could be attempts to capitalize on Grogu's success. Grogu is a youngling of Yoda's species, only fifty years old in his current appearances. They clearly hold a special place within Star Warslore, and its important that we explore every avenue for understanding these unique beings. [105][106][107], Grogu was kept secret and was deliberately withheld from The Mandalorian's prerelease marketing and merchandise plans due to the risk that details about the character could leak before the show aired. episode 5 of season 2) of The Mandalorian, Grogu was not identified by a proper name, being referred to by sympathetic characters as "the child", "the kid", or "the baby", and by the antagonists as "the asset", "the bounty", "the target", or "the donor". Even more mysterious is Yaddle. The Phantom Menace; Attack of the Clones; Revenge of the Sith; A New Hope; The Empire Strikes Back; Return of the Jedi; The Force Awakens; The Last Jedi; The Rise of Skywalker ", "Is Baby Yoda Evil On 'The Mandalorian'? [10] Screeners of the pilot episode were not distributed to reviewers to avoid leaks about Grogu,[111] and the official Lucasfilm and Star Wars social media accounts did not start posting messages about Grogu until about a week after the series debuted, to avoid spoiling the character's debut as much as possible. Before this, the character's official name, used in subtitles and captions, was "The Child". [11], Grogu is mostly a work of animatronics and puppetry, although accentuated with computer-generated imagery (CGI). Herzog passionately urged him not to do so and to remain committed to the animatronics and puppetry, saying: "You are cowards. So far, there are only two other beings in the entire canon of Star Wars that are the same species as Yoda, and both of them have been powerful in the Force. In "Chapter 13: The Jedi", the Mandalorian takes Grogu to former Jedi Ahsoka Tano (Rosario Dawson) on Corvus, who communicates with him through the Force, learning his name and that he is a former Jedi youngling who was rescued from the Jedi Temple on Coruscant during the Great Jedi Purge and hidden for his safety, which is why he suppresses his Force powers. [168] Grogu was also parodied in the December 14, 2019 episode of Saturday Night Live. [117] Nevertheless, fatherhood was not a role the Mandalorian was initially seeking, and he makes repeated initial attempts to avoid this responsibility. She wrote: "There's something grindingly, performatively grouchy in leaping forward to damn something that 'everyone' likes, in no small part because everyone likes it. We know that Luke met Yoda on the planet of Dagobah, presumably his home since his clash with Sidious in Revenge of the Sith. "[89][90] Amy Sedaris said the animatronic Grogu puppet made everyone on the set happy: "The minute you looked into Baby Yoda's eyes you just got lost. It can't just be cute. The Forge triggers more of Grogu's memories of the Great Jedi Purge, revealing that he escaped Coruscant with the help of Jedi Master Kelleran Beq (Ahmed Best) and sympathetic members of the Naboo Armed Forces. He was portrayed by comedian Kyle Mooney in a Weekend Update segment, in which he gossiped about the Mandalorian cast, talked about his future business ventures, and threatened Baby Groot. Although Yoda is referred to as an elf in the original novelization of The Empire Strikes Back and the 1995 Essential Guide to Characters stated that he is originally from the swampy world of. [70] Moff Gideon in the season finale says, "You may think you have some idea what youre in possession of, but you do not." [15] During filming, the director of each episode would communicate with Grogu's puppeteers to discuss what was happening in the scene, what emotions Grogu should express, and what actions the character should take. [47] After fending off a final attack from Moff Gideon, the Mandalorian once again departs from Nevarro with Grogu.[51]. Physically, Grogu closely resembles Yoda, sharing his signature green skin and long, pointed ears. In fact, they are referred to almost exclusively as Yodas species.. Although Grogu presented the incredible potential to grow in his power and skills, he is still nowhere near Master Yoda's level in terms of power, skill, knowledge, and experience. [117] Some observers have criticized the series for the fact that the Mandalorian repeatedly leaves Grogu alone or in the hands of relative strangers,[115] as well as for making decisions that place Grogu in danger. In The Phantom Menace, Yoda is 864 years old, having lived through the High Republic era, and even long before, as a Jedi and powerful Force user. So familiar and yet so new. [145] Jeremy Gordon of The Outline called Grogu the "product of a merciless capitalist machine" intended primarily to generate merchandising revenue for Disney. [4][139][140] Julia Alexander of The Verge wrote: "There's no question that Baby Yoda is driving interest in Disney+". He had been a Jedi for most of his 900 years of life. Despite their best efforts, Grogu is captured by Gideon's Dark Troopers and taken to his cruiser, where he is imprisoned inside a holding cell.