The Mandalorian Chapter 22: Return of the Transitive Property
Featuring The Official Trailer For ‘The Mandalorian And Grogu'
Editor’s Note: The Mandalorian And Grogu (above) opens in one week, Friday, May 22. Look for Media Room’s review Tuesday, May 26. In the meantime, Media Room republishes its review of Episode 22 of the series.
The primary plot of The Mandalorian, Season 3, involves Mandalorian unification following a diaspora caused by civil war and the Empire’s destruction of Mandalore.
There is also a religious schism, setting those who do not remove their helmets (True Mandalorians like Din Djarin) against those who do (Apostates like Bo-Katan Kryze).
Princess Bo-Katan Kryze seeks to unite the houses, but cannot claim authority without the Darksabre, currently in the custody of our hero who won it in battle with Moff Gideon (who is totally alive but more on that later).
Kryze cannot rule without the Darksabre, the Darksabre must be won in battle and that particular totem of authority is in the possession of our hero Din, whose life Kryze saved from a cyborg cyclops from hell.
Put simply, they are at that sweet, early place in their relationship where a fight to the death would be awkward.
Chapter 22’s climax, therefore, involves a critical plot point resolved by the transitive property of equivalence.
Syllogistic Reasoning: This Is The Way
The Darksabre confers authority to rule Mandalore (a), the Darksabre must be won in battle (b); ∴ whoever wins the Darksabre in battle rules Mandalore (c).
Din gives Bo-Katan Kryze the Darksabre (a), Din insists that because Bo-Katan slayed the creature which defeated him in battle (bʹ), she has performed the functional equivalent of beating him in combat (bʹ = b), which entitles her to rule Mandalore (c), a → b → c.
The violent, bitterly warring clans are oddly agreeable to this.
No tiresome pedant suggests that protecting a fellow Mandalorian is not in fact the same as winning a death match against an enchanted blade (bʹ ≠ b) and no one harshes the vibe by pointing out that this labored, juridical interpretation of an unwritten creed has no precedent.
I’m cool with it, too. We need to move this along so we can unite the Mandalorians and defeat the pirate kings. And do NOT get me started on the New Republic Amnesty Program.
I am in such a good mood after King Jack Black and Queen Lizzo (below) feasted our heroes and charmed Grogu that I can look past some fuzzy logic.
Finally, a little hombre a hombre with Din Djarin. I know you became an ascetic at age 10 or whatever, so please accept this hard-won insight into female behavior: Bo-Katan digs you, man.
Beautiful, single, Darksabre-wielding princesses don’t stay on the shelf for long. Make. Your. Move.
Cover image: © Lucasfilm, Ltd.
Agreed but all I’m saying is they better not screw this movie up using the prequels sucky property.