The Mandalorian successfully brings Star Wars back to its space western roots, but fans might not realize that it also pulls from another key influence on George Lucas' saga. The Disney+ series follows the titular Mandalorian, a bounty hunter named Din Djarin, and The Child, a Yoda-like creature he's hired to retrieve. Sent by a mysterious man known only as The Client, the Mandalorian, or "Mando," tracks down the adorable Baby Yoda and delivers him up for the bounty. It's a setup that closely echoes the Lone Wolf and Cub films, the originator of the "warrior and baby" formula.

The films are based on the Japanese manga of the same name which consists of 28 volumes and was first published in 1970 by the writer and artist pair, Kazuo Koike and Goseki Kojima. With the films arriving on HBO Max on May 27, fans of The Mandalorian can use them to fill the Mando-hole in their heart as they wait for Season 2.

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Starring Tomisaburo Wakayama, all six of the Lone Wolf and Cub films, also referred to as the Baby Cart series will be available to watch on HBO Max as part of the Criterion Collection. The collection includes the first six films in the original series, starting with Sword of Vengence and ending with White Heaven in Hell. It will not include the 1980 compilation, Shogun Assasin, or the 1993 adaptation Final Conflict, though.

Lone Wolf and Cub follows a skilled swordsman named Ogami Ittō who serves as executioner to the shogun. His job is to enforce the will of the shogun over lesser domain lords. When a rival clan betrays Ogami, he's framed for treason in an attempt to take over his position as the executioner. He returns home to find his wife, Azami, and his entire household slaughtered -- all except for his infant son Daigorō. The two set out for the countryside where Ogami becomes an assassin for hire. He seeks justice and pursues those who framed him, all the while fighting off any enemies that come his way.

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Lone Wolf and Cub is exceptional because of the way it portrays the human heart. After Ogami is falsely accused, he doesn't just take his son with him; instead, he offers him a choice first: death or the sword. He does this by showing his son two objects -- a sword and a ball. If he picks the ball, an object of childhood innocence, Ogami will kill him and reunite him with his mother. If he picks the sword, he will join his father on the "Assassin's Road." Although interested in the ball, Daigorō ultimately chooses the sword. Though he's young and might not know the consequences of this decision, he knows enough to know that it is the choice that will keep him beside his father. Death would have been easier, but he chooses the sword. The decision shows the bond between father and son, and the lure of the sword that has seemingly passed down through blood.

The moment is similar to the scene which takes place in The Mandalorian when Mando first finds The Child. He stops the droid from killing it, unknowingly choosing a different path in letting The Child live. Like Ogami, Mando is an assassin for hire who ends up going on the run with an infant. The connection between Daigorō and Baby Yoda is the most evident, though. Both infant companions are partners with their roaming seniors, despite their age. Daigoro adopts his father's violence and rage overtime and Baby Yoda, though kinder than his surrogate father, is not above helping Mando kill when their lives are at stake. There's even a moment where he chokes Cara with the Force because she was arm-wrestling his guardian.

Star Wars as a whole is heavily influenced by Japanese films, with George Lucas crediting samurai movies for helping him shape the tone and story, as well as series' the space western theme. While Lucas may not have been the creator of The Mandalorian, clearly the influence remains.

HBO Max is available now.

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