The Mandalorian took the Star Wars world by storm when it was released, with the first two seasons receiving widespread acclaim. The show introduces plenty of new characters and locations, featuring a more gritty look at the iconic galaxy through a bounty hunter’s eyes. That said, there's not as much mysticism as the movies, which revolve around the eternal conflict between the Sith and the Jedi.

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On the other hand, there are plenty of Easter eggs that connect The Mandalorian to the wider Star Wars universe, some of which pay tribute to the franchise's real-life contributors. Many of these Easter eggs are easy to miss on the first viewing, but most fans will appreciate the hidden references upon a rewatch.

Updated on March 7, 2023 by Ajay Aravind: Although Season 3 of The Mandalorian failed to maintain the momentum established by the previous two seasons, this Disney+ offering remains a popular addition to the Star Wars franchise. As such, we've revamped this list with more information about the various Easter eggs in The Mandalorian.

10 The Amban Rifle's Debut

The Mandalorian Amban Rifle

Din Djarin sports a distinctive pronged gun that he uses for long-ranged focused combat, known as the Amban Rifle. Although The Mandalorian popularized the design and brought it to the mainstream Star Wars universe, it has appeared before.

The rifle originally made its debut in The Star Wars Holiday SpecialBoba Fett was seen using it during the animated segment that also served as the character’s debut. The special is not canon, but the Amban rifle’s design was pulled from it and given new life as a formidable weapon in the hands of Din Djarin.

9 Life Day Returns

The Mandalorian Life Day

The concept of "Life Day" is another topic that can be attributed to the Holiday Special. It is mentioned in the first episode of The Mandalorian when one of Din Djarin’s bounties says they are hoping to be free by "Life Day."

In The Star Wars Holiday Special, it was a Christmas-like holiday celebrated by Wookies. "Life Day" was later made canon in other forms of media as a holiday celebrated more widely across the galaxy. The Mandalorian marks its first onscreen mention since the special, making for an interesting Easter egg.

8 Voice Actor Matt Lanter’s Cameo

Matt Lanter Mandalorian

Matt Lanter is known for voicing Anakin Skywalker in the animated series Star Wars: The Clone Wars. Up until The Mandalorian, he had never portrayed a live-action role in the Star Wars universe, so his cameo is easy to miss.

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In Episode 6 of Season 1, Lanter makes a brief appearance as Lant Davan, the unfortunate guard of the prison ship being infiltrated by Din Djarin and his team of mercenaries. Davan doesn’t last long against the mercenaries, so it’s easy to Lanter's cameo on the first watch.

7 Dee Bradley Baker Is The Frog Lady

Frog Lady and Mandalorian in Season 2

Dee Bradley Baker has done numerous voices in the Star Wars universe and is most known for his role as all the clones in the various animated shows. With his vocal talents, Baker was brought in to be the voice of the Frog Lady in The Mandalorian’s second season.

Even those familiar with Dee Bradley Baker's work in The Clone Wars and beyond are sure to miss this detail, as the Frog Lady's alien language makes his voice practically unrecognizable. However, a careful glance through the credits can confirm Baker's contribution.

6 The ISB Gets Namedropped

Star Wars Rebels Alexsandr Kallus looking surprised

The ISB, or Imperial Security Bureau, is brought up in the second season of The Mandalorian, as Din Djarin and Mayfeld try to infiltrate the Empire’s databases to find Grogu. Though only mentioned in passing, the organization has an extensive history in both the novels as well as in Rebels.

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A prominent Rebels character named Alexsandr Kallus was a part of the organization before his defection. As a result, the ISB’s mention in The Mandalorian is an interesting Easter egg for keen-eyed fans who know their Star Wars history and are familiar with both shows.

5 R5-D4 Returns From Obscurity

Star Wars R5-D4 and R2-D2

Going all the way back to A New Hope, R5-D4, nicknamed “Red,” was a droid initially bought by Uncle Owen and Luke Skywalker. The droid then sabotaged itself for R2-D2’s sake so the Death Star plans could be delivered, as explained in Rae Carson's story "The Red One" from the anthology novel From a Certain Point of View.

After that, R5-D4 fell into obscurity. However, the droid makes a reappearance in The Mandalorian, working in Peli Motto’s service, helping both her and Din Djarin. This reference is so obscure that it would be very easy to miss.

4 Mos Eisley Allows Droids Now

Greedo pointing his blaster at Han Solo's chest in A New Hope.

In the fifth episode of The Mandalorian’s first season, Din Djarin travels to Tatooine in search of work. He meets up with a fellow bounty hunter, Toro Calican, in a cantina in the city of Mos Eisley. This cantina is the same one featured in A New Hope, where the famous scene between Han Solo and Greedo takes place.

Din and Toro may even have been sitting in the very same seats. While droids were not allowed in the cantina during A New Hope, that rule was clearly changed in the years that followed. In the second season, Din returns to the cantina once more, allowing fans another look at the iconic location.

3 Dave Filoni’s Cameo

Dave Filoni as Trapper Wolf flying his x-wing in The Mandalorian.

Dave Filoni is one of the great minds behind many successful Star Wars series, particularly The Clone Wars and Rebels, and he served as a director for The Mandalorian. He has a cameo in Episode 6 as one of the X-wing pilots summoned by Din Djarin.

Filoni later reprises this role in the second episode of Season 2. The Mandalorian serves as Filoni's live-action acting debut, making this Easter egg somewhat easy to miss. However, anyone familiar with the behind-the-scenes footage of The Clone Wars may have caught him on the first watch.

2 The Kaminoan Cloning Operation

The Mandalorian Pershing

In the second season, Din and his allies infiltrate an Imperial base. Here, they come across strange humanoid experiments that appear to be connected to Doctor Pershing. Although it seems that they are nothing more than one of the Empire's macabre research projects, Pershing's relationship with cloning technology paints a completely different picture.

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This cameo gives insight into what became of the Kaminoan cloning technology after the Empire, as the fate of the clone operations was left ambiguous following Attack of the Clones. Fans are bound to learn a lot more about the universe's cloning techniques between The Mandalorian and The Bad Batch.

1 Morai Flies In For A Visit

Mandalorian Morai

Ahsoka Tano’s live-action debut was a highlight of The Mandalorian’s second season, linking the show to The Clone Wars and Rebels. Her appearance also brought back a lesser-known but important character: Morai. Briefly seen sitting on a branch while Din Djarin is looking for Ahsoka, Morai is a type of bird called a convor that was introduced in Rebels.

Morai is connected to The Daughter, a Force entity that appeared back in season 3 of The Clone Wars and is also linked to Ahsoka. The bird’s cameo is short and easy to overlook but is something that should excite Ahsoka fans.

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