Even The Mandalorian's Emily Swallow Is In The Dark About The Armorer
The following article contains spoilers for "The Mandalorian" season 3, episode 7.
There is only one episode left in season 3 of "The Mandalorian." So far, the storyline has largely focused on the retaking of Mandalore, Din Djarin's (Pedro Pascal) redemption, and Bo-Katan Kryze (Katee Sackhoff) returning to rule her people. While that has been the main narrative, another big stand-out, at least for me, is the arc of the Armorer (Emily Swallow). Though she originally sounded very strident in her beliefs regarding the Death Watch clan's rules and regulations, more of her character has been revealed as the season has progressed.
The Armorer isn't strident at all. She merely holds the line her faith tells her to, enforces rules without judgment (at least none that we see) in a matter-of-fact way, and leads her people. What has been so surprising, however, is to see how open she is to follow a different path if it serves her clan. Instead of judging Bo-Katan for removing her helmet, she assesses the situation, judges that she has to change what she would normally do, and accepts Bo into the clan. She essentially tells her people that they may follow the Way, but that there is more than one Way. She tells them that they are working together now. Every change is accepted with a calm and grace that is quickly making her my favorite character outside of Grogu.
Still, we don't know very much about the Armorer's past, and Emily Swallow, who plays the role, doesn't either.
'They've given me a lot of freedom'
In a recent interview with ScreenRant, Swallow was asked if she knew the Armorer's past identity or real name. Swallow joked that the character's name is Pam. "I think it's something real basic. It doesn't get in the way," she laughed. Then she said:
"No, one of the things I love about her is that we know so little about her personal life. Normally, when I'm working on a character, I like to have so many details about backstory and about someone's personal history.
But for the Armorer, because she does exist so much in service to Din and in service to the other Mandalorians, I personally have stayed away from trying to connect too much to what her backstory is. Because it helps me in playing her. We haven't established a whole lot for her that Jon [Favreau] and Dave [Filoni] know haven't told me. They've given me a lot of freedom with deciding whatever I want to decide, but they haven't told me much about her."
In a way, the Armorer feels like a monk to me. She doesn't focus on who she is as an individual but instead just listens to the needs of her people — even when they conflict with what she believed in the past.
'She is also somebody who I think wants what is best for her people'
This isn't the first time she's spoken about the Armorer's dedication to her people. In a March 2023 interview with /Film, Swallow discussed a key point in the Armorer's personality and leadership style, which is listening. She explained:
"But she is also somebody who I think wants what is best for her people and is open to listening. We talked a lot about that while we were shooting this season, about the importance of being willing to listen to conflicting ideas. If nothing else, I think the Armorer is willing to listen. That doesn't always mean she agrees, but she's not afraid to listen to opposing viewpoints. I think she knows that's an important part of dialogue and an important part of growth. She's not afraid of conflict."
With only one episode left, I'm dying to know what's next for her. Just don't kill her off, okay? I understand that a willing sacrifice would fit what she's shown of her character so far, but we already lost another major character this week. Plus, I'm worried that they're going to take Mando away from Grogu again. If the Armorer dies, I don't know if my heart could take it.
"The Mandalorian" is currently streaming on Disney+.