The Surprise Reveal The Mandalorian Chapter 11 Made About Din Djarin's Upbringing
Spoilers for The Mandalorian Chapter 11: "The Heiress" ahead!
So far, season 2 of The Mandalorian has shown Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal) having a rough few days traveling through the galaxy. First, he helps some Tattooine villagers defeat a krayt dragon, and then he barely makes it out alive after an onslaught of space spiders. Things don't get easier in Chapter 11 as he touches down on the estuary moon of Trask to search for more Mandalorians, who will hopefully tell him where he can find more of the Child's species.
He does end up finding them, albeit after he gets captured by some unfriendly seafarers and needs rescuing. His gratitude toward this group of Mandalorians quickly turns into confusion when they remove their helmets. As you may recall, that was a major sticking point in the last episode of season 1, when Mando was reluctant to remove his own helmet even after suffering grave injuries. It goes against the code he's been taught most of his life. After all, "this is the way" is supposed to mean something, and now, there are these Mandalorians going against "the way." As Din soon learns, he's actually the one who's out-of-step, following an old, outdated principle.
Din Djarin is a Child of the Watch
Since we first met him in Chapter 1, the man we knew as Mando has been so dedicated to "The Way" that it was easy for newcomers to imagine the Mandalorians as a single-minded culture with a strict set of beliefs. However, when he meets Bo-Katan Kryze (Katee Sackhoff) and her comrades, Din Djarin learns there are other factions out there, with different views on what it means to be a Mandalorian. Bo-Katan's family has abided by the Mandalore way for generations — she even mentions in the episode that she fought in the Great Purge. It's at this point she reveals a shocking truth about Din's upbringing.
She tells Mando that he's actually a "Child of the Watch," which is a subset of Mandalorians. As she explains it, "Children of the Watch are a cult of religious zealots that broke away from Mandalorian society. Their goal was to reestablish the ancient way." That means everything Din was taught to believe growing up, like the importance of never removing his helmet in front of another living being, isn't followed by every single Mandalorian out there.
As one would expect after having everything you've known thrown out the window, Din doesn't take the news easily, and promptly flies away. They meet up later, and Bo-Katan tells Mando that her mission is to take back the planet of Mandalore, which he was always told was cursed. Bo-Katan responds by telling him he shouldn't necessarily believe everything he's been told about Mandalorian culture being a Child of the Watch. It's a big revelation for both Din and the audience, and it could potentially set up Mando for a falling out with his original ideology down the line.
One thing's for certain: viewers still have much to learn about Mandalorians, and they'll have to keep tuning into Disney+ every week to see what Din Djarin learns next.