The Mandalorian Season 3 Kinda Shames Fans For Ignoring Grogu's Name
This article contains spoilers for the season premiere of "The Mandalorian" season 3.
Long before we learned the truth about his tragic origins, the bundle of joy at the center of "The Mandalorian" was affectionately named by the "Star Wars" fanbase. Though the show tried to impress a couple of options upon us — most often referring to him as The Kid, The Child, and The Asset — the most obvious choice won in the end: no matter how hard Lucasfilm tries to rebrand our favorite little guy, he will always be known as Baby Yoda.
In our defense, it's a lot punchier than The Child, and it wasn't until midway through season 2 that we finally learned his real name is Grogu (courtesy of Ahsoka Tano). By that point, the entire Internet had solidified its undying love for the little tyke and his adorable new moniker. It's not rocket science, folks! He looks like a baby version of Yoda, whose species remains nameless. And since the wise Jedi master is recognizable to even the most peripheral Star Wars fans, everyone immediately has the same thought when they see Grogu toddling around and slurping up frogs: "Aw, they made a little Baby Yoda!"
All that being said, his true identity has not only been established since then, but we also have it on good authority that Grogu prefers being called by his real name — not to mention how much Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal) loves doing it. Every time he speaks the name aloud, Grogu swivels his little head to look and Din's heart obviously melts in his Beskar armor. Meanwhile, Baby Yoda still reigns supreme amongst "The Mandalorian" audience. Which is why the season 3 premiere made sure to include a very stern reminder that we can nickname him all we want, but he'll always be Grogu.
It's Grogu to you, Mr. Magistrate
When Mando and Grogu return to Nevarro in "The Apostate," they meet up with an old friend. Greef Karga is now the (High) Magistrate of the planet, who refuses to suffer fools or pirates, and would love for Mando to stick around as his new sheriff. He offers a bit of land and a chance for Mando to comfortably settle down. "I can set you up with a prime tract right over by the hot springs," he promises. "You and the little one. You can settle down, you can hang up your blaster, live off the fat of the land." In response, Mando doesn't even answer. He just offers a correction: "Grogu. His name is Grogu." His clipped tone speaks volumes; not even the High Magistrate of Nevarro gets to disrespect Grogu's name when Mando is around.
When the alien toddler first got his name, not everyone was happy; the main criticism being that it wasn't cute enough, and didn't follow the so-called naming convention established by the only other two members of his species that we know, Yoda and Yaddle. (Let the record show that it could've been much worse, though. He could've been called Yermit.)
Since dissenters were so loud, this is hardly the first time that the Star Wars universe has poked fun at the Grogu name controversy. In "The Book of Boba Fett" aka "The Mandalorian" season 2.5 aka a show you definitely need to have seen to understand what the hell is happening in "The Apostate," there was an even more obvious jab at Baby Yoda fans. Grogu reunites with OG Baby Yoda fangirl Peli Motto (Amy Sedaris), who learns his name and exclaims: "Grogu? Whoa, that's a terrible name. Sorry about that, pal. No way am I calling you that."
It's OK — you can still call him Baby Yoda
But rest easy, Baby Yoda truthers. When "The Mandalorian" creator Jon Favreau discussed the naming on a Good Morning America segment, he gave fans express permission to call him Baby Yoda.
"I had written [his name] in the script from very early on, and we finally revealed it in the show. But of course, everybody knows Grogu as 'Baby Yoda.' Which, by the way, is fine with all of us. We still call him Baby Yoda too, but he prefers to be called 'Grogu', if you notice in the show. He perks up a lot when you say his name."
In other words, don't let Mando's stern words for the High Magistrate scare you away. By all means, if you find yourself in the company of Grogu and his dad, make sure to properly address the little guy. But in the comfort of our own homes, it's Baby Yoda all the way! Sorry Mando, old habits die hard.