With Luke taking Grogu at the end of the mandalorian season 2, there’s a ton of speculation on what exactly happens from here. Luke at this point is gathering students for his jedi academy. This is true in both legends and canon. This is 5 years after return of the jedi, and his powers have only become stronger since then. The things he’s learned, the texts he’s read from, the powers he’s focused to develop are things we have barely just seen in the finale. So what can he show Grogu? Well, besides the typical training a Jedi receives that we saw throughout the prequels here and there with Yoda, the younglings, and of course anakin and obi-wan, we will see something more. Grogu was more powerful than we see him to be. He had to hide his abilities to stay safe from the empire, if he didn’t, he would have been found sooner. What powers did he hide? We’ve seen him use force choke, which Luke has used as well. Did Grogu learn this from Anakin when he stormed the temple during Order 66 to kill Jedi? Did he see him use that and then copied it? Grogu can toss people around, create a force shield to protect those he loves, and use force freeze. We have to remember, he’s a baby, but he’s 50 years old. He’s seen 50 years of life and received about as much training as Mace Windu and Anakin. This leads me to wonder how he was found eventually. Did he have to use his powers for some dire situation that exposed him? Either way, the relationship between the two will be transformative for both characters. How will Grogu impact Luke? If Grogu saw the events of operation knightfall on the jedi temple during order 66, then what could he tell Luke? Just like he communed with Ahsoka through his thoughts and feelings through the force, how could he do the same with Luke? The two will spend a considerable amount of time together, and Luke may enter his mind to learn everything that happened to him. While seeing Grogu’s path and memories, could he find happiness in seeing Yoda, seeing the other Jedi Masters, until the visions begin to darken, and he sees a hooded figure cutting down and killing his own kind at the temple. Masters, Knights, Padawans, and Younglings…Could Luke jump out of the vision in terror and fear, seeing the face of his father and what he truly did. How will this affect Luke? We know from the comics that he did see glimpses of what Vader did during Order 66, however seeing them from a first person vision while feeling Grogu’s memories and thoughts could be something that truly shakes him up. I want to see how Luke reacts to seeing his father fall down the dark path, and what it turns him into. I’m sure he’s learned a lot from R2’s memories and explanation of everything, as in legends he saw holograms of padme and his father together, but until now in canon, we haven’t seen that on the screen.
Luke Skywalker’s jedi temple won’t be a carbon copy of the same stuff we’ve seen before. Luke will use all aspects of the force to guide him, he won’t feel pressured to only use the light side, as at this point, his understanding of the force is that there is just the force, and it’s not necessarily what powers you use that make you light or dark, but what you use those powers for. It’s your choices that determine your allegiance and your heart, not your abilities. Now here’s the issue with why the Jedi were so worried about using anything remotely dark side, because they felt once you use those powers and tap into the dark side, it’s a slippery slope, and forever would it dominate your destiny. I think Luke’s training of students could show a new side. A fresh side of things. That you can use these powers, and to refrain from turning to the dark side is what actually makes you stronger, not to necessarily fear it.
The only time Luke used his angry emotions mixed with fear and desperation was against his father in return of the jedi. It was here that he realized, once cutting his dad’s hand off, that if he continued down this path, he’d become just like him, not necessarily a monster or a machine, but someone disillusioned from who he wanted to be. It was this control over his thoughts and emotions that put him back on the path he chose, which was to use the force for good, not evil.
Grogu telling Luke about Order 66 could pose the same emotional spike for Luke, or it could resonate the entire theme of the first 6 films, which is that no matter how far you’ve fallen from your way, it’s never too late to make things right, and get back on track.