The Child.

November 22, 2019 10:45 AM

Disney made it official: We can talk about that Mandalorian character now [Polygon] “Since Disney Plus launched, the only thing I’ve wanted to talk about online is the big reveal at the end of the first episode of The Mandalorian. But here, in the opening paragraph of a story about spoiler culture, I don’t want to say what fans have been calling the creature — even though we can be reasonably sure that name isn’t accurate — because I don’t want to ruin the reveal for anyone who has yet to see it. [...] It’s a spoiler for The Mandalorian, but it’s also a big selling point for the show. So once again, Disney has provided an official answer to the spoiler question. The company put the character into an official tweet for the first time today, complete with full-on images. So it’s clear we’re allowed to talk about it at this point, with the company’s blessing. [**After this spoiler warning.]**”

• Just a Whole Bunch of Questions About Baby Yoda [Vulture]

1. Where did Baby Yoda come from? Was it born, hatched, or what?
2. Is Yoda the father of Baby Yoda? If so, does Baby Yoda have a mom?
3. There’s already a fan theory that the mom is Yaddle, a minor character we all surely remember from Attack of the Clones. If Yoda is the dad and Yaddle is the mom, what is the baby’s name? Yodle? Yoddler? Yaby? Lil’ Yoda?
4. The characters on The Mandalorian speculate that Baby Yoda is 50 years old. If they’re right, who was hiding him for all this time — throughout the rise of the Empire and subsequent rebellion — and why?
5. How many Yoda-like creatures are out there? Is Baby Yoda the last one?
6. Is Baby Yoda force sensitive?
7. Does Baby Yoda’s crib float on its own, or did Baby Yoda make it float?
8. What will it look like when Baby Yoda has a tantrum?
9. Will future episodes of The Mandalorian revolve around Baby Yoda causing chaos, a la Jack Jack in The Incredibles? (Please say yes.)
10. Does Baby Yoda wear diapers?

• It’s Baby Yoda’s World and We’re Just Living in It [The Mary Sue]

“When it comes to The Mandalorian, we’re all either in love with the masked Mando strutting into our lives or we’re now obsessed with a baby version of Yoda. I don’t make the rules, I just convey them. The baby became “The Asset” that Mando had to protect and from there, I found myself lost in the love of this hot daddy Mandalorian protecting a baby Yoda throughout his mission back to Werner Herzog. What’s nice to know is that I’m not the only one out there. In the latest episode of The Mandalorian, we see a lot more of baby Yoda (Yoddle?). A fifty-year-old being, this version of Yoda is basically a toddler. Every time Mando puts him to bed, Yoda waddles back over to him wanting a hug. It’s basically watching one Mandalorian and a baby for thirty minutes and then all the sudden the baby uses the force to take out a giant rhino-like creature because, at the end of the day, the baby is still a baby Yoda (thing? Kind of? We still have no idea).”

• Star Wars 'Baby Yoda' toys are coming to a store near you [CNN][Stupid Auto-Play Video]

“The toy company — which has an exclusive license from Disney to make Star Wars, Marvel, "Frozen", and Disney Princesses-related toys and apparel — announced it will be releasing a line of baby Yoda toys and products in an exclusive CNBC report. The baby Yoda character, referred to as "the Child" on the series, made its surprise debut at the end of episode one of "Mandalorian" earlier this month. Director Jon Favreau recently told Collider his team convinced Disney and Lucasfilm not to make or release the baby Yoda toys prior to the series' launch, the better to keep a lid on the character's reveal. Fans of the Disney+ series have been gushing about the adorable alien on social media since laying eyes on his little green face, with his enormous eyes, button nose and baby fuzz atop his head. Baby Yoda merchandise could be available for purchase as soon as Friday at Macy's, Target, Kohl's, Zazzle, Hot Topic, Box Lunch and Amazon, according to CNBC, which said it verified the information through an anonymous source familiar with the situation. Hasbro did not immediately respond to multiple requests for comment from CNN Business.”

• There's More to The Mandalorian's Concept Art Than 'Baby Yoda' [io9]

“Now the the first two chapters of The Mandalorian have hit Disney+, the studio has dropped a batch of images from artists Christian Alzmann, Nick Gindraux, Ryan Church, Jama Jurabaev, and Doug Chiang showcasing the creative team’s early visions for some of the series’ most action-packed moments. (Sharp-eyed viewers may recognize these images from the show’s end credits.) What’s amazing about the illustrations, aside from their straight-up beauty, is how well they capture the overall tone of the series. There’s an aged ruggedness in each image that contrasts with how new the entire show feels. Take a look for yourself.”

posted by Fizz (52 comments total)

Were people not talking about this because it was a spoiler? Because I've read it on Facebook and had to answer questions about it at bar trivia already.
posted by jacquilynne at 10:48 AM on November 22, 2019 [9 favorites]

With the company's blessing?? Oh FFS.
posted by gusottertrout at 10:53 AM on November 22, 2019 [16 favorites]

I mean, at this point, it is a bit of a cat out of the bag type of situation but I still wanted to frame it that way because I know in this day and age, some people just haven't made the time to see it and things get backlogged. There's so much to see and do in 2019.

Baby Yoda is cute as fuck. My wife and I both make “squee!!” noises whenever we see it.
posted by Fizz at 10:54 AM on November 22, 2019 [5 favorites]

A carefully engineered cute animal, tied to a prominent media franchise, getting the full-court media press and just hitting the market in time for Christmas?

This is all so... coincidental.
posted by mhoye at 10:58 AM on November 22, 2019 [31 favorites]

This is all so... coincidental.

You misspelled craven capitalist marketing stunt.

It's still cute as fuck though.
posted by Fizz at 11:00 AM on November 22, 2019 [16 favorites]

mhoye: "This is all so... coincidental."

His name is short for "Gimme Yoda Lers"
posted by chavenet at 11:04 AM on November 22, 2019 [5 favorites]

What I find interesting is that people were definitely being coy about baby yoda for the first few days, but sometime earlier this week everyone seemed to decide it was okay, and the memes erupted on social media like there were 30-50 feral hogs.
posted by dinty_moore at 11:06 AM on November 22, 2019 [10 favorites]

His name is short for "Gimme Yoda Lers"

Give you yodelers?

If you insist.

(That is how I parsed it at first, seriously.)
posted by Four Ds at 11:11 AM on November 22, 2019 [1 favorite]

Listen here you little shit.
posted by TheWhiteSkull at 11:13 AM on November 22, 2019 [40 favorites]

I haven't seen it, and knew about Baby Yoda probably about 2 days after the 1st episode. I mean, I guess it's probably still unknown if you don't look at websites that have anything to do with sf media.

My questions are more fundamental - the fanbase calls the character Baby Yoda, but what are they calling it on the Mandalorian (I vote for craven capitalist market stunt, myself, but doubt that would get out of the writers room)? Do we have a species name? Is it toilet trained, or is the Mandalorian changing diapers?
posted by nubs at 11:15 AM on November 22, 2019 [1 favorite]

I mean, at this point, it is a bit of a cat out of the bag type of situation but I still wanted to frame it that way because I know in this day and age, some people just haven't made the time to see it and things get backlogged.

Sorry Fizz, I didn't mean to question your intent, which I know is good, just reacted badly to the idea of company approval being an important consideration. Sorry for the derail.
posted by gusottertrout at 11:16 AM on November 22, 2019 [2 favorites]

I'm just tired of being pandered to, you know? I'm tired of having my youth repackaged and re-sold to me over and over again. At some point, I wonder if this is all they think of me, all they think I'll tolerate? Or is it just that they think my inner self is an extractive resource now, that I'll click the buy-now button like a rat in a cultural Skinner Box?
posted by mhoye at 11:16 AM on November 22, 2019 [18 favorites]

Is the show any good?
posted by SoberHighland at 11:21 AM on November 22, 2019 [1 favorite]

@mhoye, couldn't agree more.
posted by doctor_negative at 11:23 AM on November 22, 2019 [1 favorite]

Is the show any good?

I've been telling anyone and everything to watch it and the main reason is because Dave Filoni is involved. He's the main reason that the Clone Wars animated series and Rebels were so damn good. As far as I'm concerned, the Filoni interpretation of the Clone Wars is canon! That's how much I trust his vision of the Star Wars Universe.

The Mandolorian is kind of a western tv series that happens to be set in a galaxy far far away. I've grown very jaded with the main-line films, but Clone Wars, Rebels, and Mandolorian are where it's at.

So yes.
posted by Fizz at 11:24 AM on November 22, 2019 [11 favorites]

I wonder if this is all they think of me, all they think I'll tolerate? Or is it just that they think my inner self is an extractive resource now, that I'll click the buy-now button like a rat in a cultural Skinner Box?

Cynical corporate greed need not choose, nor even distinguish, between the two.
posted by Greg_Ace at 11:25 AM on November 22, 2019 [1 favorite]

Waitwaitwait--this is the big-deal surprise that I've been hearing about? I've been seeing memes of Lil' Yeezy since about twenty seconds after the episode dropped. I mean, I'm down with yelling at spoiler culture, but sheesh.
posted by Halloween Jack at 11:25 AM on November 22, 2019 [1 favorite]

Weird Christian Twitter has been arguing about whether one ought to baptize Baby Yoda:

Gonna start Thanksgiving dinner with a land acknowledgment and then move into asking people if they would baptize Baby Yoda.

If your minister doesn’t baptize baby yoda this Sunday walk out.

"Please do not baptize him until he is old enough to make that decision for himself."
- Respecter of Baby Yoda’s Soul Freedom

I have dedicated
the baby Yoda
that was in
the Star Wars show

and which
you were probably
hoping
to baptize

Forgive me
it's his decision
so credo
and not pedo

i say we play this baby Yoda baptism thing safe and just baptize him on his deathbed like they did Constantine

The scariest part of baptize baby yoda Twitter is that when Disney finally sells a baby yoda toy it’s going to immediately get baptized on tik tok
posted by straight at 11:26 AM on November 22, 2019 [10 favorites]

My questions are more fundamental - the fanbase calls the character Baby Yoda, but what are they calling it on the Mandalorian (I vote for craven capitalist market stunt, myself, but doubt that would get out of the writers room)?

Episode 2 was subtitled "The Child", the (also nameless) Mandalorian calls it "it" or "the kid". Another character (who appears to know a fair bit about the child) calls it "him".
posted by Rock Steady at 11:30 AM on November 22, 2019 [1 favorite]

I saw baby yoda on twitter first. I have a year's free access to Disney+ through Verizon, so I jumped on that offer and watched the first two episodes right away. Baby yoda is less a spoiler than a selling point - anyone on the fence got a big push to sign up. I don't think the whole story hinges on knowing that baby yoda is a thing, so having it out there is not a problem. Kind of like knowing that Vader is Luke's father - at this point it's pretty much a known fact, not a surprise reveal.
posted by jazon at 11:32 AM on November 22, 2019

Oh, and I am led to understand that, given where this show fits in to the timeline of the Star Warsiverse, this child was born in the same year as... Anakin Skywalker. Make of that what you will.
posted by Rock Steady at 11:34 AM on November 22, 2019 [5 favorites]

He's the first-act twist that drives the whole rest of the plot -- nice to have as a surprise for people who are going to watch the thing regardless, but also a fundamental part of the premise that's not really a "spoiler" for everybody else. It's like finding out that Friday the 13th isn't actually a rom-com about the counselors at Camp Crystal Lake.
posted by Holy Zarquon's Singing Fish at 11:35 AM on November 22, 2019 [7 favorites]

Yes, yes, soulless corporate evil and such. I mean, congratulations on not being all “How DARE you watch television when you should be resisting TЯЦMP,” but come on. It’s a cute character in a pretty good show. Do we really need to spread our MeFi all over it?
posted by MrBadExample at 11:37 AM on November 22, 2019 [14 favorites]

Baby Yoda is apparently 50, his species age of accountability is actually 19 years older than that.

I will not type the number, the youth group boys will hoot and holler if I do, but let the reader understand.
posted by straight at 11:45 AM on November 22, 2019 [2 favorites]

So apparently Disney is trying to remove baby yoda gifts from giphy, so a company's blessing to post about a character starts to seem less ridiculous and more insidious.
posted by dinty_moore at 11:55 AM on November 22, 2019 [5 favorites]

Just the Baby Yoda Parts of The Mandalorian.
posted by 1970s Antihero at 12:09 PM on November 22, 2019 [1 favorite]

Disney loves to wave their copyright in front of everyone and threaten lawsuits. It's doubly insulting considering so many of their classic stories are stolen straight out of the public domain.

**baby Yoda stares in judgement**
posted by Fizz at 12:11 PM on November 22, 2019 [4 favorites]

hes baby
posted by poffin boffin at 12:29 PM on November 22, 2019 [7 favorites]

I mean, congratulations on not being all “How DARE you watch television when you should be resisting TЯЦMP,” but come on.

Thank you for consuming your approved entertainment product, citizen.
posted by mhoye at 12:42 PM on November 22, 2019

So is this a Kindergarten Cop sort of deal where Boba Fett is gonna have to babysit the little Yoda and realize that he's real handful and wish he could go back to his easy job of Bounty Hunting? I haven't seen the show in case you can't tell.
posted by Liquidwolf at 12:52 PM on November 22, 2019

It's like finding out that Friday the 13th isn't actually a rom-com about the counselors at Camp Crystal Lake.

I would watch this movie, yes.
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 1:00 PM on November 22, 2019 [2 favorites]

Liquidwolf: the Fanfare touchstone seems to be Lone Wolf and Cub, actually, given the likelihood of traveling around and probably outfitting Yodaling's carriage with some sweet weapons.

This show is completely ridiculous. I'm looking forward to it every week now.

I will be absolutely shocked if this doesn't launch at least 3 video game series (Mandalorian Colony Sim, some kind of Mass Effect/Deus Ex crossover, and probably some shitty mobile Beskar Crafting game).
posted by curious nu at 1:00 PM on November 22, 2019 [2 favorites]

Wow, i'm pretty disconnected, just saw the first episode Wednesday and knew absolutely nothing about Baby Yoda, so it was a nice surprise.

I don't mind Disney working to keep that a bit of spoiler for a week or so, but of course, if they try to suppress much else, I'll tweet bloody murder while re-watching Avengers: Endgame.

The show is good, mostly for not even giving a hint of the Skywalker saga.
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 1:03 PM on November 22, 2019 [4 favorites]

Brandon Blatcher - if you will accept an episode of an actualplay podcast rather than a movie - enjoy!
posted by darchildre at 1:07 PM on November 22, 2019 [2 favorites]

It's like finding out that Friday the 13th isn't actually a rom-com about the counselors at Camp Crystal Lake.

I would watch this movie, yes.

Film Reroll is a podcast where a group of friends plays old movies as RPGs. When they did Friday the 13th: The FInal Chapter, the GM told them they would be playing an obscure teen sex comedy called Summer Spell, going so far as to make a trailer from the non-choppy bits of the movie.
posted by Etrigan at 1:08 PM on November 22, 2019 [4 favorites]

Is this more Yoda or more Yodan’t?
posted by GenjiandProust at 1:36 PM on November 22, 2019

.....ON DVD NOVEMBER 12

..........WHO DA MAN?

...........YO DA MAN!

6 HOURS OF BONUS FEATURES
you'll actually want to watch!

.........YODA DA MAN!

posted by straight at 2:13 PM on November 22, 2019

The show is good, mostly for not even giving a hint of the Skywalker saga

Gotta save something for the season finale.
posted by nubs at 2:20 PM on November 22, 2019 [1 favorite]

Do we have a species name?

Do species work the same way in the Star Wars universe as in the real world, or are there singletons as in the Cthulhu Mythos, and/or some kind of BoJack Horseman-style vaguely humanoid pan-speciesism?
posted by acb at 3:51 PM on November 22, 2019

I haven't seen it, and knew about Baby Yoda probably about 2 days after the 1st episode.

I know nothing about The Mandalorian EXCEPT that Baby Yoda exists.
posted by jenfullmoon at 4:38 PM on November 22, 2019 [6 favorites]

So the Disney strategy is to hype the series then lock it in a cupboard?

It’s good of Disney to do their utmost to save BitTorrent from obscurity. Is it worth looking for?
posted by Grangousier at 5:10 PM on November 22, 2019 [1 favorite]

I'm not sold until there's a muppet babies/baby yoda crossover.
posted by mikelieman at 5:16 PM on November 22, 2019 [1 favorite]

The Mandolorian is kind of a western tv series that happens to be set in a galaxy far far away.

maybe they could pattern it off lone wolf and cub :P (and like work in a death scene or two!)
posted by kliuless at 5:24 PM on November 22, 2019 [2 favorites]

> So the Disney strategy is to hype the series then lock it in a cupboard?

No? It's right there on my TV, about to be watched? I don't know if it's available globally but it's easy to find in the US, at least, and not expensive.
posted by The corpse in the library at 6:33 PM on November 22, 2019 [1 favorite]

I'm just waiting for the inevitable Baby Yoda/Baby Shark crossover...
posted by oneswellfoop at 6:46 PM on November 22, 2019 [1 favorite]

That's the second oldest baby I've ever seen.
posted by ckape at 9:30 PM on November 22, 2019 [4 favorites]

What is the spoiler rule on Smooth Yoda?
posted by rum-soaked space hobo at 10:01 AM on November 23, 2019

As sung by Sadé:

No need to ask, he's a -
Smooth younger Yoda
Smooooooth, younger Yoda-aa
posted by Greg_Ace at 11:57 AM on November 23, 2019 [1 favorite]

The Mandolorian is kind of a western tv series that happens to be set in a galaxy far far away.

So.... a kind of space western?
posted by Weeping_angel at 1:09 PM on November 23, 2019

> So.... a kind of space western?

The music even sounds like an homage to the Firefly theme song, at one bit.
posted by The corpse in the library at 3:14 PM on November 23, 2019 [2 favorites]

Pretty much a space western, but also very video-game-y. Like, accept a quest/ mission, fight through levels, fight mini-bosses, fight boss, retrieve macguffin, return to quest giver, level up, repeat.

Throw in an ethical A/B fork decision or two.

But, yeah. This is actually really fun TV, for Star Wars fan of all spectrums and even for non-Star Wars fans too. It's smart without being highbrow and simple enough for kiddies and casual watchers to enjoy. It's trope-y and there's not much groundbreaking, but it's... fun.

Carl Weathers brings his career twilight magic (Arrested Development, Colony) again.

The music is apparently pretty polarizing. I don't mind it, enjoy the campy-ess, but it's definitely in the "fun" vein rather than anything serious.

The sets and costumes and CGI are first-rate, if not quite prestige-level. The attention to detail in the art is better than the technical execution, though.
posted by porpoise at 6:21 PM on November 23, 2019 [4 favorites]

The scariest part of baptize baby yoda Twitter is that when Disney finally sells a baby yoda toy it’s going to immediately get baptized on tik tok
posted by straight at 8:28 AM on November 25, 2019