The Bonkers Easter Egg Hiding in the New 'Star Wars' TV Show

At some point next year, we'll be getting our first taste of The Mandalorian, the new Star Wars TV show helmed by Jon Favreau (of Iron Man and "Vegas baby!" fame). If that sentence has you hyped (and it should), you're in luck, because Favreau just dropped a synopsis of the show, alongside a first look at (presumably) the main character:

After the stories of Jango and Boba Fett, another warrior emerges in the Star Wars universe. The Mandalorian is set after the fall of the Empire and before the emergence of the First Order. We follow the travails of a lone gunfighter in the outer reaches of the galaxy far from the authority of the New Republic.

It's a very interesting image, not least because this first look at what everyone hopes will kick-start a new, bright chapter in the franchise contains a subtle yet pointed reminder of the darkest moment in the franchise.

Did you notice the rifle on, um, the Mandalorian's back? We can't see much of it, but thanks to this photo that Favreau posted to Instagram, we know that it's an Amban phase-pulse blaster. Weirdly, this type of blaster doesn't appear at all in the main movies. It's so rare, in fact, that it's only appeared once onscreen before now: in The Star Wars Holiday Special, where we see it was the signature weapon of Boba Fett during those years when his mom was making his costumes.

It's debatable whether The Star Wars Holiday Special is in canon or not, but we're hoping that this image constitutes undeniable proof that it is -- not only because this special is one of the greatest things ever committed to film and we'd love the chance to spend the rest of our careers writing about it, but also because its inclusion doesn't make any sense otherwise. It's clearly intended to be a cheeky callback to Boba Fett, but since he never used this rifle in the movies ... you see where we're going with this.

With no official clarification from Favreau or Disney, we'll have to wait for the episode about "Life Day" to see if our suspicions are confirmed. Here's hoping!

Adam Wears is on Twitter and Facebook, and has a newsletter dedicated to depressing history facts. It's not as heartbreakingly sad as it sounds, promise!

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