The Tragedy Of The Mandalorian Princess: The Potential Of A Bo-Katan Story

Bo-Katan Kryze first debuted in the Star Wars: The Clone Wars. We have seen her appear in Star Wars Rebels and The Mandalorian. Bo-Katan started as Pre Vizsla’s right hand in the militaristic splinter group Death Watch. Her interesting character arc began in the Death Watch's quest to restore Mandalore’s warrior “greatness” from the pacifist reign of Bo-Katan's sister, Duchess Satine. Ever since, her story has been filled with tragedy, treasury, and a persistent hope of one day reclaiming her planet. But how much do we know about Bo-Katan’s fight for Mandalore and what can we expect to see from her moving forward in the Star Wars franchise?

"Bo-Katan Kryze was born of a mighty house, but they lost sight of the way. Her rule ended in tragedy. They lost their way, and we lost our world"

―The Armorer to Din Djarin

Mandalore’s dispute during the Clone Wars era was nothing but a full-out war for power between factions. It started with the Death Watch’s plan to overthrow the pacifist government under Duchess Satine, Bo-Katan’s own sister. The alliance that Pre Vizsla formed with the Zabrak brothers Maul and Savage Opress (and their newly formed crime syndicate the Shadow Collective) ensured that the public opinion turned in their favor against the “weak” rule of Satine. Vizsla had planned to betray the brothers once they took Mandalore’s rule from Satine’s hands. However, this plan turned on its head when Maul challenged Vizsla (now de facto ruler of Mandalore) to a duel. According to Mandalorian tradition, the victor would rule over Mandalore as well as wield the Darksaber (an ancient lightsaber formerly wielded by Tarre Vizsla, first Jedi Mandalorian and former ruler of Mandalore). After Vizla’s defeat and death at Maul’s hands, Bo-Katan began her insurrection, claiming that no outsider should ever rule over Mandalore. This will bring her in alliance with Republic forces against Maul.

RELATED: How Bo-Katan Could Be Made Into A Villain For 'Mandalorian' Season 3

"Bo-Katan is a cautionary tale. She once laid claim to rule Mandalore based purely on blood and the sword you now possess. But it was gifted to her, and not won by Creed."

―The Armorer to Din Djarin

Bo-Katan managed to become the leader of Mandalore for a brief period of time following the end of the Clone Wars. However, her refusal to submit to the newly formed Empire led to another betrayal and defeat. In Star Wars Rebels, we get to see how Clan Wren’s resistance against the Empire and Gar Saxon’s rule over Mandalore forced them to seek a Mandalorian worthy of wielding the Darksaber. This led them to Bo-Katan, who many still considered the rightful ruler of Mandalore. After defeating the occupying Imperial forces, Bo-Katan claimed the Darksaber for the first time when Sabine Wren gifted it to her. However, Bo-Katan’s second chance to rule Mandalore ended as soon as it began, hitting the exact same beat it did the first time. The Great Purge ensured that the Empire’s genocide of the people of Sundari would put the Mandalorian insurrection down for the rest of Emperor Palpatine’s rule over the galaxy. Bo-Katan Kryze suffered a second humiliating defeat. The Empire overthrew her reign and destroyed the Mandalorian capital city of Sundari. As seen in Chapter 5 of The Book of Boba Fett, a flashback of the Night of a Thousand Tears showed the imperial neutralization of Mandalore in a massacre led by Moff Gideon. In addition to destroying Sundari, Gideon also obtained the Darksaber from Bo-Katan.

“I will kill the Moff and retake what is rightfully mine. With the Darksaber restored to me, Mandalore will finally be within reach.”

― Bo-Katan to Din Djarin

In Katee Sackhoff’s debut as Bo-Katan in The Mandalorian “Chapter 11: The Heiress” we were reintroduced to Bo-Katan’s third attempt to restore her rule over Mandalore. With Din Djarin’s help, Bo-Katan was able to obtain a Gonzanti-class Imperial cruiser for her quest to recover Mandalore. When she met Din Djarin a second time, she was given the opportunity to defeat Gideon in combat. However, it was Din who unintentionally won the Darksaber from Gideon in a duel, setting him up as the potential ruler of Mandalore.

What about Bo-Katan? The title “Heiress” from The Mandalorian Chapter 11 did refer to our Mandalorian princess and her “inherited” right to rule Mandalore. Despite the fate of her homeworld being teased in the first season of The Mandalorian with Moff Guideon’s mention of the Night of a Thousand Tears, we have not been able to comprehend the scale of genocide that the Empire caused on the Mandalorian society during Bo-Katan’s second rule. Despite Bo-Katan’s uncertain future in the Mandoverse, we have yet to see a clear picture of how her past defeats affected her as a character. We see an arrogant and overconfident leader during the age of the New Republic. This does not match the story of a warrior who saw her world taken over by a former Sith Lord, an army of stoic clone troopers, and the bombs that turned Sundari to ashes. This portrayal of Bo-Katan in The Mandalorian has resulted in a lack of empathy and disconnection to what is surely a character with a much larger potential. We hope to see her character develop further as we move forward into the future of the Mandoverse.

“If you should manage to finish your quest, I would have you reconsider joining our efforts. Mandalorians have been in exile from our homeworld for far too long.”

― Bo-Katan to Din Djarin

Rumors suggest that Bo-Katan may be getting her own show with Katee Sackhoff reprising her role once more. Whether this rumor turns out to be true or not, we will at least see Bo-Katan in the third season of The Mandalorian. For the future of this character, the showrunners should slow down the narrative to allow the audience to comprehend what Bo-Katan had been through in the past before moving her story to new stakes.

There is little chance of Bo-Katan accomplishing her original goal of ruling Mandalore. However, this could open a whole array of possibilities for making Bo-Katan the next Ahsoka Tano, a character that most people were doubtful about in the beginning, but became popular thanks to quality writing, and well-defined character development. Bo-Katan has the potential of becoming another strong female lead in the franchise. Building up her tragic backstory as the Mandalorian princess will create a mythos of one of the best Mandalorian warriors in canon.

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Written By Alex Velb

Source(s): Wookieepedia, Game Rant

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