How Did Moff Gideon Get The Darksaber?

I hope all of you have been taking deep breaths and hydrating during this golden age of Star Wars. Earlier this month of June was Star Wars Celebration and we were gifted numerous stories and announcements for exciting projects coming down the pipeline. This gave every fan something to be excited about whether that was the release dates for new shows or the resurgence of love for the Prequels. The big reveal during Celebration is a confirmation of the next season The Mandalorian, the show which follows Din Djarin and his faithful adoptive son Grogu as they face adventures throughout space coming in 2023.

In the show at the end of season 1, it was revealed that the main bad guy, Moff Gideon, appears to be a holder and keeper of the mystic lightsaber known as the Darksaber. It got its name due to its black appearance and somewhat checkered past (more on that later). By the end of season 2, Mando aka Din Djarin, took back the Darksaber from Moff Gideon when he was defeated and captured. In The Book of Boba Fett, we see Din is utilizing the Darksaber as part of his bounty hunting program, whether it is successful or not, you’d have to ask his thigh. There is certainly no question about Din being the current keeper of the blade known as the Darksaber but fans were left scratching their heads when Moff Gideon was seen wielding the blade. The sword has a history for sure but how did it get from the planet Mandalore into the hands of an Imperial senior officer?

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To figure out how Moff Gideon got the saber, we need to take a couple of steps back, hundreds of years, and see where the Darksaber came from and how it has taken on this mystical property. The Darksaber was a blade created by the first Jedi to be appointed from the planet of Mandalore, Tarre Vizla. He created a flat-bladed light saber that acted as a perfect counterbalance to the traditional Jedi blades which were rounded and were powered by dark, swirling energy. While not much is known about Tarre Vizla, he was a renowned and revered ruler of Mandalore and upon his passing, the Jedi kept his Darksaber in their temple but the descendants of Tarre Vizla took the saber back and returned it home. Since then, the Darksaber has appeared in The Clone Wars and Star Wars Rebels, and the belief that whoever carried the Darksaber was indeed the ruler of Mandalore. In the Star Wars Rebels episode “Trials of the Darksaber” the myth is expanded by the character Fenn Rau, who said, “His legacy was so well-respected that the Darksaber became a symbol of power the Mandalorians rallied behind as they supported the leader wielding it and that [House Vizsla] used the saber to unify the people and strike down those that would oppose them. At one time, they ruled all of Mandalore wielding this blade.”

In the Rebels storyline, Ghost crew member, and Mandalorian, Sabine Wren, used the Darksaber after it was retrieved from Darth Maul where she used it to stop the civil war and infighting which was occurring on her home planet. As the civil war began to die down, Sabine gave Bo-Katan Kryze the saber which ultimately led to her possession. However, with the Empire realizing the threat the planet could be to them, it was ultimately decimated in a scene and description from the Armorer in The Book of Boba Fett to Mando where she spoke about the “Night of 1000 Tears”, a night where the planet was essentially bombed to ashes and dust. Many laid blame on Bo-Katan as she claimed to be the leader because of her possession of the saber and as the Armorer told Din, "Only those that walked the way escaped the curse prophesized by the Creed. Though our numbers were scattered to the winds, our adherence to the way has preserved our legacy for generations.”

So, the question becomes, how did Moff Gideon get ahold of that saber and hold it for such a long time? There is not a lot of canon within the Star Wars books, shows, and movies so some conjecture and imagination are required. The most likely story is that on the Night of 1000 Tears, Moff Gideon was an Imperial Security Bureau officer who most likely led the bombing of the city and ultimately led to his possession of the saber. He certainly didn’t earn it via a trial by combat as Moff Gideon states his creed as stated at the end of The Mandalorian season 2.

As we look to 2023 with Din carrying the Darksaber still, both Bo-Katan actress Katee Sackhoff and Moff Gideon actor Giancarlo Esposito have confirmed to be back for season 3. During Star Wars Celebration, Esposito teased a little bit on what to expect from his character The actor explained that the Imperial officer wants to gather leaders of the fractured Empire together however, Esposito was reluctant to divulge the exact reason behind these ominous actions. Esposito said:

"[Gideon] has an agenda all of his own. He's been a warden of a certain part of the galaxy. He wants to bring all the other wardens together for what reason? Why can't he just live in peace in his own little piece of paradise? There's gotta be a reason that he's bringing all of them together because he must have an agenda of his own."

If this alleged gathering of the former Empire leaders is ahead, it should help us bridge the gap between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens when the Empire appears to have fortified its forces and transformed into the First Order.

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Written by Scott Ogino

Source(s): Wookieepedia [1], [2], YouTube, Screen Rant

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