Actress Katee Sackhoff, who plays Bo-Katan Kryze in The Mandalorian, defended the series’ decision to have Din Djarin hand over the Darksaber to her.
Sackhoff’s Bo-Katan Kryze was given the Darksaber by Din Djarin at the end of Season 3 Episode 6’s “Guns for Hire” episode.
After defeating Axe Woves in single combat, Woves tells her, “According to our ways, the ruler of Mandalore must possess the Darksaber.”
Djarin then interjects saying, “Then she shall have it.” He then hands her the Darksaber saying, “This belongs to you.”
When she notes the weapon “is not a gift to be given no matter how well intended,” Djarin explains how she’s the proper wielder of the weapon, “While explore Mandalore, I was captured. And this blade was taken from me. Bo-Katan rescued me and slayed my captor. She defeated the enemy that defeated me. Would this blade then not belong to her? Would it not belong to her?”
Woves responds, “It would.” Djarin then hands her the Darksaber again saying, “I return this blade to its rightful owner.”
In The Book of Boba Fett Episode 5, The Armorer informed Din Djarin that the weapon must be “won by Creed in battle.”
She detailed, “If it is won by Creed in battle. It is said, one warrior will defeat 20, and the multitudes will fall before it. If, however, if it is not won in combat and falls into the hands of the undeserving, it will be a curse unto the nation. Mandalore will be laid to waste and its people scattered to the four winds.”
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While speaking with ScreenRant at Star Wars Celebration in London, England, Sackhoff defended the decision for Djarin to hand over the Darksaber without actually winning the weapon “by Creed in battle.”
Sackhoff said, “She did win it fairly. Listen, I think what’s amazing about the way that she did win it was that she didn’t even realize that she had. Because it’s not in the forefront of her mind anymore.”
Sackhoff continued, “She got to a point where she didn’t want it anymore. Every time she’d gone after it, every time she tried to rule, it just went wrong. And so she’s given up and I think that her ego is finally in a place of humility and now she’s ready to lead.”
“I think that she is understanding the weight and the pressure of bringing her people back together,” she went on. “And I think for the first time she’s looking to somebody else for guidance and she has the support of The Armorer and her faith, which is very inspiring.”
Despite Djarin’s explanation of being defeated by a creature and then Bo-Katan subsequently defeating the creature that defeated him, it still appears the weapon was not actually won by Creed. However, it’s unclear what the Creed is given it’s never actually been explained thoroughly and glimpses have only been offered in piecemeal.
One would think it would be some kind of ritual duel to claim the weapon rather than the Harry Potter hijinks that Din Djarin uses to justify handing over the Darksaber to Bo-Katan Kryze.
Based on The Clone Wars series and Bo-Katan’s immediate rejection of Maul’s claim to the weapon and Mandalore after defeating Pre Vizsla in single combat, it’s likely this duel would only pertain to Mandalorians dueling each other rather than a non-Mandalorian such as the creature from the show’s second episode.
As far as Sackhoff’s claim that Bo-Katan no longer wanted the blade, it’s hard to actually justify that comment as well given what the show actually presents. In the season premiere, Bo-Katan is clearly moping around her castle lamenting the fact that she doesn’t have the Darksaber and that all of her planning and actions to reclaim Mandalore evaporated because she failed to reclaim it from Moff Gideon.
She also seemingly still had higher aspirations as she’s the one who mentions the Mythosaur to the Armorer thus seemingly triggering the exception that allows her to not wear her helmet. It also makes her the figurehead to lead the Mandalorians to retake Mandalore, the goal she had been planning from the onset of her character’s introduction to The Mandalorian.
What do you make of Sackhoff’s comments regarding the Darksaber and Bo-Katan Kryze?