The following contains spoilers for The Mandalorian Season 3, Episode 2, "Chapter 18: The Mines of Mandalore," streaming now on Disney+.

The Bo-Katan Kryze that Din Djarin meets in the Season 3 premiere of The Mandalorian is not the rival fans expected. Multiple times in the episode she takes the ceremonial lightsaber from him, using it far more effectively than he ever did. Bo-Katan arguably earned the Darksaber back from the Mandalorian or, at least, from the creature who "won" it from him.

Earlier in the episode, Din draws the Darksaber to defend against the Alamites who attack him and R5-D4. It's almost instantly too heavy for him to use, though he scrapes by dispatching the enemies. Viewers assumed that the balance that eluded him on The Book of Boba Fett was related to Grogu's absence. Yet, with his adopted son back in his care, Din remains so unbalanced he can barely hold it. However, even though Bo-Katan has given up her quest to restore Mandalore, she is as balanced as can be. Her fighting style is more trained than Din's, and when she uses the saber it seems light as air. She uses some moves that would've made Obi-Wan or Ahsoka check her midi-chlorian count. Instead of keeping the sword, she genuinely cares for Din. She saves his life twice in the episode, and neither time does she seem to have any other agenda. The Darksaber should be hers.

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The Darksaber Must Be 'Won' in Star Wars Lore

As described on multiple Star Wars TV series, the Darksaber is a ceremonial lightsaber. The Mandalorian Jedi Tarre Vizsla created it millennia before The Clone Wars. After his death, the Jedi kept the lightsaber in the temple. Members of House Vizsla somehow stole it from them, using the sword as a symbol to unite the various Mandalorian houses and disparate clans. It likely stayed in House Vizsla until the time of The Clone Wars, when Darth Maul killed Pre Vizsla with the Darksaber. Maul possessed it through the time of Star Wars Rebels.

When the crew of the Ghost stumbled upon Maul, he was no longer using it. Rather, the Darksaber sat on an altar on Dathomir. Sabine didn't win the saber from Maul; he abandoned it for a broken Inquistor's saber. She trained with it and beat Mandalorian leader Gar Saxon, uniting the Mandalorians against the Empire. She needed the Darksaber because she was responsible for creating a weapon for the Empire that made beskar useless. House Wren wasn't Sabine's clan though, the crew of the Ghost was. So, she gave the weapon to Bo-Katan. What happened between then and its landing in Moff Gideon's possession isn't known, but it certainly wasn't good.

The context suggests that Bo-Katan was the leader during the Night of a Thousand Tears that destroyed Mandalore. Perhaps he bested her in single combat, claiming the Darksaber as his own. This may be why he highlights how it needs to be "won" to Bo-Katan. Since Sabine just took it from Maul and gave it to Bo-Katan, none of them were the legitimate wielders of the sacred blade. Surprising everyone, Bo-Katan would rather give up on leading Mandalore than kill Din Djarin for a laser sword.

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Bo-Katan Didn't Win the Darksaber From the Mandalorian, She Earned It

Katee Sackhoff as Bo-Katan on The Mandalorian

Going by Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows rules, Din was the master of the Darksaber because he won it from Gideon. Yet, the nightmare techno spider-crab that captured Din defeated and disarmed him. It's not ritual combat, but "a win is a win." The creature, more machine than bug, fought Bo-Katan in two robot bodies. She used the Darksaber as deftly as any Jedi to defeat him with ease. There is an argument to be made that she is now, technically, the master of the Darksaber. Yet, no one but Grogu saw it. Din would certainly give it to her, already trying to in the Season 2 finale. She simply doesn't want it anymore, which is precisely why she should have it.

The Mandalorian Season 3 may be about a lot of things, but it seems primarily about Din's path to balance. Grogu is home, but his Force training with Luke stopped at lightsabers. He could just ask Bo-Katan. When Sabine trained with the Darksaber, she said it was heavy. As she found her balance, it grew lighter. Whether balance or sheer force of will, Bo-Katan doesn't struggle with doubt like Din Djarin. He may be on a path to becoming a reluctant leader, but as Bo-Katan explained, she was born to lead. Star Wars likes its generational dynasties, but so far most of them earn it just the same.

Without a doubt, viewers caught up on The Clone Wars and Rebels suspected that Bo-Katan would have an ulterior motive for rescuing Din. He dropped his weapons at the Living Waters. She could've just let him disappear under the water, and Grogu wouldn't even be mad at her. Jedi or not, her acts of selflessness are the definition of a "light side" path. She may not have the Darksaber, but the guy who does will probably follow her anywhere after what they experienced.

The Mandalorian debuts new episodes Wednesdays on Disney+.