The first episode of the new Disney+ live-action Star Wars series The Mandalorian is available now, and I’ve taken the opportunity to comb through “Chapter 1” to find as many hidden references (AKA Easter Eggs) as I can. Enjoy!
New Star Wars logo:
- Darth Vader
- BB-8
- C-3PO
- Kylo Ren
- R2-D2
- Rebel Alliance helmet
- Scout Trooper helmet
- Imperial Stormtrooper helmet
- First Order Stormtrooper helmet
- Mandalorian helmet
In the first cantina:
- Mandalorian armor: First worn on-screen by Boba Fett, there has since been an intricate backstory developed for the Mandalorian people in the Clone Wars and Rebels animated series.
- Huttese: The language spoken by the Hutts and their associates in the criminal underworld.
- Horatio Sanz: The former Saturday Night Live cast member plays the Mandalorian’s talkative target.
- Mythrol: A newly created aquatic species for this character.
- Quarren: The squid-face species from Mon Cala, the same planet as Admiral Ackbar’s species.
- Credits: The currency used under both Republic and Imperial rule.
- Mando: Short for Mandalorian. Mando’a is the native language of Mandalore.
- Beskar: Also known as Mandalorian iron. The title character is building his armor out of it, piece by piece.
- Aurebesh: The standard in-universe written language. The holographic puck reads “WANTED” backwards, which makes sense as it is facing away from us. At the bottom it lists this bounty’s value.
On the ice:
- Moisture vaporators: These devices capture water from the atmosphere.
- Kubaz: The same species as Garindan, the trunked character who tracked Luke and Obi-Wan to Docking Bay 94 in the original Star Wars movie.
- Landspeeder: A type of vehicle we also first saw in A New Hope.
- Droids: It seems the Mandalorian doesn’t like these mechanized beings.
- Brian Posehn: The comedian is a lifelong Star Wars fan, and makes a cameo appearance here as the Landspeeder driver.
- Ravinak: The giant walrus-like creature is newly created for this series.
- Gray Hold: I assume he means a space toilet.
Aboard the Razor Crest:
- Vac tube: Another term for the bathroom facilities on the ship.
- Life Day: The Wookiee holiday introduced in The Star Wars Holiday Special wasn’t made canon until very recently, and then only in ancillary materials. This is its first direct on-screen mention.
- Carbonite: Used by Boba Fett to transport a frozen Han Solo to Jabba the Hutt, it’s now apparently become a go-to means of conveying bounties.
- Rodian: A character of the same species as Greedo is frozen in one of the carbonite blocks.
In the second cantina:
- Trandoshan: The same lizard-like species as the bounty hunter Bossk.
- Kyuzo: The same species as Constable Zuvio, a character famously cut from The Force Awakens.
- The Empire is gone: This series takes place after the battles of Endor and Jakku.
- Calamari Flan: Currency from Mon Cala, home planet of the Mon Calamari and Quarren species.
- Bounty Hunters’ Guild: Institution that regulates the bounty hunter trade.
City streets:
- Jawa: Native to Tatooine, these scavengers have found their way off-planet.
- TT-8L gatekeeper: Eyeball-shaped droid series first seen working security at Jabba’s palace.
- Gonk droid: Also known as a GNK power droid, first seen aboard the Jawa sandcrawler in A New Hope.
In the Client’s office:
- Stormtroopers: As the Empire has been done away with by this point, these guys are probably up to no good.
- Imperial insignia: Werner Herzog’s character “The Client” wears this logo on a medallion around his neck. It’s also stamped on the ingot of Beskar given to the Mandalorian as down payment.
- Parsec: A measurement of distance, often dropped by Han Solo when bragging about the Millennium Falcon.
- Stun rifle: This weapon was carried by Boba Fett in The Star Wars Holiday Special.
Back in the streets:
- Kowakian monkey-lizard: First seen as a pet of Jabba the Hutt, these guys are in a bad situation.
- Twi’lek: Same species as Bib Fortuna and Oola from Jabba’s palace.
In the Mandalorian complex:
- White Mandalorian armor: this was Boba Fett’s original look before designer Joe Johnston added color.
- Mythosaur skull: The symbol of the Mand’alor – the traditional ruler of all Mandalorian clans.
- The Great Purge: This could refer to Order 66, Emperor Palpatine’s genocide of the Jedi Order, or more likely an as-yet-unknown event from Mandalorian history.
- Flashbacks: These are likely images from the Siege of Mandalore, one of the final battles of the Clone Wars.
On the third planet:
- Blurrg: Beast of burden that first appeared in the non-canonical TV movie Ewoks: The Battle for Endor.
- Flamethrower: Jango and Boba Fett both had these mounted on their wrists as well.
- Electro-dart: May be the first canon appearance of this weapon used in The Old Republic PC game.
- Kuiil: The Ugnaught species was first seen working in Cloud City in The Empire Strikes Back.
- Mythosaur: An extinct but culturally important Mandalorian species resembling a large dragon.
- Klatoo / Barada / Nikto: Originally a reference to the classic science fiction film The Day the Earth Stood Still, these three alien species served as skiff guards aboard Jabba’s sail barge in Return of the Jedi and populate the encampment here.
- IG-11: From the same assassin droid series as IG-88, who appeared briefly in The Empire Strikes Back.
- Unknown: It’s amazing that almost 40 years after his debut, we still don’t know the name of Yoda’s species. But this infant is clearly one of them.