With The Mandalorian having returned to Disney+ on March 1, why not look back at the galaxy’s cutest Jedi-in-waiting? If you’re worried about spoilers, these moments are season three spoiler-free since there is plenty of cuteness from previous seasons. On that note, Grogu playing ball, balancing, jumping, and flipping (as adorable as it is) in The Book of Boba Fett only receives an honorable mention. Although, seeing a small sized beskar chain mail shirt does pack plenty of adorableness.
It would be cheating to list ten cutesy moments of him sleeping or passing out since it’s one of the cutest things ever. Even then, the kid triggers more than enough “aww” reactions besides those. Let’s be honest. Everything Grogu does is cute, but let’s look at the 10 Cutest Grogu Moments in The Mandalorian.
Grogu Gets Scared (Season 2: Chapter 9)
In the Tatooine town of Mos Pelgo, Marshal Cobb Vanth bargains with and enlists the help of the Mandalorian to kill the Krayt Dragon. The entire sandy town shakes as the massive beast tears through the ground, causing Grogu to stumble near pottery on the floor. A little later, he slowly and cautiously lifts his head, ears springing, from out of a bottleneck pot. The hiding head reveal plays to the classic cute creature motif seen across other movies and shows.
Grogu Tries To Heal an Unaware Mandalorian (Season 1: Chapter 2)
Just looking at Grogu tells anyone how sweet he is, or at least it should. If not, early in the series audiences witness his heart and tease his future bond with the Mandalorian. As a wounded Mandalorian painfully tends to his bleeding gash, Grogu begins closing his eyes, stretching his tiny arm out, and attempts to heal someone he only just met. The cutest part isn’t just his emotional intelligence but his big-eyed stare before (it’s no wonder Peli Motto calls him bright eyes).
Grogu Surprises Himself (Season 1: Chapter 6)
Grogu may have had preliminary Jedi training, but his powers with the Force, according to Ahsoka Tano, were suppressed as self-protection. As the series progresses, his abilities surprise others and even himself. The Mandalorian is no stranger to the underground or back-channels of galactic business. Naturally, participating in a space prison break shouldn’t be too surprising.
The Mandalorian safely secures the child and leaves him behind on board, only to find himself in a set-up and tricked by Ranzar Malk’s nefarious crew. One double-crossing crew member Zero, who’s a killer droid and pilot, finds the child and aims to shoot. The petite Grogu bravely raises his arms toward Zero, and the droid’s head explodes. His delightful shock at his Jedi powers causes him to stare at his hands in wonderment. Although it turns out the Mandalorian blasted Zero from behind, Grogu’s reaction remains cute nonetheless.
His Name Is Grogu (Season 2: Chapter 14)
The Mandalorian accepts the task of reuniting the child with the Jedi, which leads him to the planet Corvus. Here Ahsoka Tano feels the child’s words and reveals his name to be kid Grogu (as she corrects Mando). Back onboard the ship, the Mandalorian calls the kid by name and then quickly calls him again, each time cooing. The combined joyfulness of the Mandalorian’s thigh-slapping (literally) laugh and Grogu’s puppy-like perkiness doubles the cuteness.
Grogu Says Goodbye to Winta (Season 1: Chapter 4)
According to his creed, the Mandalorian should never show his face to someone else. However, the series introduces a village and teases it as being a place where he can be at peace with a simple life. On the planet Sorgan, a village girl named Winta asks to feed and play with the child. Grogu endears himself to the village children, playing games and spitting out a live frog to their amusement.
Unfortunately, the Mandalorian reluctantly decides to flee the planet after a bounty hunter tracks him down, but not before a misty-eyed goodbye. Winta hugs Grogu on the back of a wagon, and the episode’s final shot shows him, tilted head, riding away. Though bittersweet, it is still cute all the same.
Grogu Pushes Buttons and Flips Switches (Season 1: Chapter 4)
A running joke throughout the series is Grogu messing with the Razor Crest’s buttons, switches, and levers, even using his powers to unscrew a metal lever knob. He also tried flying the ship away after overhearing (while upside down) Cara Dune and the Mandalorian. However, the most memorably cute moment would be Grogu deliberately defying the Mandalorian’s commands to stop touching things. He pauses and then slyly leans back and flips a switch all the while maintaining eye contact with the annoyed Mandalorian.
Grogu Enjoys Hatchlings (Season 2: Chapter 11)
Fairy or unfairly, the fictional made-up character Grogu did get heat for his appetite, but he is just too cute. He even stopped the Mandalorian and Cara Dune from killing each other just by slurping his bowl of soup. That said, the hungry kid does eventually stop eating a container of endangered space frog eggs that the Mandalorian helps transport. Grogu’s cuteness magnifies just like his face through the aquarium glass housing these eggs, his enlarged mug lighting up as an egg hatches. Towards the episode’s end, he sits between space frog parents and rubs the newly hatched frog in a bowl of water.
Grogu Goes to School (Season 2: Chapter 12)
What’s cuter than a toddler’s first day of school? The Mandalorian and Grogu return to Nevarro, and Greef Karga and Marshal Cara Dune clean up, even setting up a children’s school. Like any nervous dad, the Mandalorian reluctantly agrees to leave his charge in class. Cuteness overload ensues as he teeter-totters to his teensy desk and takes his seat. If that wasn’t cute enough, Grogu palms out to ask another kid for a type of pastel space macaron or cookie. After being rejected, he uses his powers and sneaks the treat away, holding it half-bitten with crumbs sprinkled on his robe collar — too cute.
Grogu Crosses Wires (Season 2: Chapter 12)
Space travel is not without its challenges and the occasional mid-flight repair. A tight compartment needs a compact hand at times. The Mandalorian shouts down a compartment chute or duct at Grogu trying to help repair the ship. Holding a red and a blue wire in either hand, the Mandalorian (fighting his frustration) slowly and calmly tells him to switch out the wires but to make sure the opposing wires don’t touch each other. It appears he understands but then plugs the wrong wire despite the Mandalorian’s pleas.
Of course, Grogu then crosses the wires and electrocutes himself, launching his little self backward. Don’t worry about thinking that was cute, the next scene shows him just fine. In fact, the Mandalorian slightly lifts his helmet to drink, showing a new openness, and Grogu mimics him, mirroring one another to an additional cute effect.
Grogu Says Goodbye to the Mandalorian (Season 2: Chapter 16)
It takes a special kind of acting talent to emote through a static metal helmet, but Pedro Pascal is just that talented. It’s no wonder he’s taken over Hollywood, and everyone loves it. The most tear-jerking — I’m not crying you’re crying — scene has to be when the two seemingly leave each other for good. Through the Mandalorian’s beskar (a tough impenetrable metal) helmet, Grogu senses the Mandalorian’s sadness and gently reaches out to his face. This final interaction circles back to their first interaction — a fitting bookend to season two.
Published: Mar 9, 2023 10:00 am