Warning: This article contains spoilers for The Mandalorian season 3, episode 6, “Guns for Hire.”
The Mandalorian’s third season has been a mixed bag so far, with many episodes devoted to lore-heavy deep dives and a glut of cameos. And while some have been more impactful than others, the latest episode brings us a trio of eye-popping cameos that has many fans agog.
In “Guns for Hire,” Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal) and Bo-Katan Kryze (Katee Sackhoff) travel to Plazir-15, a planet located in the Outer Rim, while trying to find Axe Woves (Simon Kassianides), Koska Reeves (Mercedes Varnado), and the rest of her old cohorts. Instead, they get pulled into a scheme to solve Plazir-15’s droid problem by the planet’s rulers, Captain Bombardier (Jack Black) and the Duchess (Lizzo), who offer to recognize Mandalore as a “sovereign system and petition the New Republic to recognize it as such” in exchange.
As Captain Bombardier and the Duchess explained, the planet is a democracy but also has nobility, and because of Captain Bombardier’s Imperial past, the planet is not allowed to have a military or weapons within the city walls. (Mandalorians are apparently an exception to this rule because weaponry is integral to Mandalorian culture.) While Din and Bo-Katan inhabit Star Wars’ version of Law & Order, Grogu helps the Duchess cheat at a game with the Force and gets knighted in the process. And the darksaber eventually ends up back in Bo-Katan’s hands.
It’s a sillier episode that harkened back to season 1’s heyday, both for its Grogu moments—the Duchess scratching Grogu’s little head like he’s a small cat is certainly a highlight—but one in which the guest appearances themselves became the main draw.
In an episode that featured Christopher Lloyd as the villain of the week, it’s Jack Black with a magnificent beard and Lizzo who stole the show.
Lizzo’s been pretty vocal in her love of The Mandalorian: In 2021, she dressed up as Grogu for Halloween. And when Lizzo posted about her latest appearance in the episode, she posted a photo of herself surrounded by Grogu merchandise and excitedly tweeted, “I’m in Star Wars YALL!”
Many fans are thrilled that Lizzo “manifested” her way into The Mandalorian, while the Duchess’ mindset of focusing on Grogu proved to be relatable. And one of the purest joys of Star Wars (other than whatever cute hijinks Grogu gets into every week) is seeing a famous Star Wars fan get the chance to join the franchise.
Captain Bombardier and the Duchess might go the way of many Mandalorian figures and never reappear, and it might not solve The Mandalorian’s larger issues. But for a moment, The Mandalorian was absurdly silly again—and it’s Black and Lizzo did that.
