We are now two episodes deep into The Mandalorian and with what has been revealed so far, we may finally be getting answers to one of the biggest questions about the mythos…Who are the mysterious race of aliens Master Yoda belongs to?
When Yoda was first introduced in Empire Strikes Back, he appeared to Luke as a mysterious, old, diminutive, 3ft tall being who offered cryptic advice and training. This has always been done intentionally as Lucas purposefully kept Yoda and his species a mystery.
“So he’s a mystery character, he’s a magical character. He has no background. He comes and he goes. He’s the subversive secret mysterious stranger that enters the film and to then exits at the end.” – George Lucas
Even though his race is currently a secret, we do know a few things about them. The most well-known fact being that they are a rare species in the galaxy. We also know that they are an ancient species, partially due to how long they live as 50 years to them is still an infant to a human. Little bits of information suggest that they may even be one of, if not the first, sentient species in the galaxy.
Speaking in terms of Canon, there only only 3 confirmed members of this species with 2 of them being Jedi. Master Yoda. who lived to be 900 years of age, and Jedi Master Yaddle, who sat on the counsel. With Master Yaddle, we did get confirmation that the species has two genders…Male and Female. Appearing recently in The Mandalorian we were introduced to a “baby” of this race. Physically appearing as a 1 year old, it is in fact 50 years of age as they mature very slowly compared to most life forms in the galaxy.
So far, all members of this race seem to be very adept in The Force and has a greenish skin tone. In the old Legends canon, we know that other members had pale skin, almost brown in nature. It was revealed back in The Clone Wars that this race has a physical brain as well as a secondary meta physical consciousness that is strongly connected to the light side of The Force. It allows them to tap into visions and feel The Force much more than an average Jedi could.
The old Legends canon attempted to give more light on this subject. Often times George Lucas would actively discourage creators from revealing too much. One clear example is when an old trading card revealed members of this species gathered around an idol, worshiping it.
The character at the bottom was speculated to be Yoda himself but was never proven. During another incident, the “essential guide” to Star Wars characters listed Yoda’s race as being from the planet Dagobah which is where Yoda exiled himself to. Lucas would once again shoot this idea down leaving us once again without any definitive answers.
While not Yoda’s species, there does exist a race known as The Wills, they who are protectors and visionaries of the light side of The Force. The Wills are known to have passed down many histories of teachings from the Ancient Jedi Order. Once again, Lucas claims that Yoda’s race are not connected to The Wills but it’s a very popular fan theory.
Looking again into the Legends side of Star Wars canon we meet a few other members of Yoda’s elusive species. One of them being another Jedi master known as Master Otek who served on the counsel during the Cold War. The other character is known as Minch. What’s most interesting about Minch is that he doesn’t fall under the category per say of being a pure light side user of the force but is described as being “fiery” on the battlefield and possessing a unique connection to the Dark Side resulting in him being portrayed as a “Rogue Jedi.” It is worth noting that he did defeat a powerful dark user of The Force and was described as a hero by others too. Master Oteg from the Old Republic was a powerful Force user and a strategist who helped direct the Jedi during times of war and conflict.
So with this information, how will The Mandalorian explore this great, powerful and mysterious race moving forward? Leave your comments down below and feel free to follow me at @QuantumxParadox on Twitter!
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