We've known from the start that The Mandalorian takes place in the years following Return of the Jedi, but there's been some confusion surrounding what the show's timeline actually is. The waters were further muddied recently with comments from creator Jon Favreau that seemed to suggest Din Djarin and Grogu were separated for as long as two years!
Talking at the global premiere for season 3, Favreau was asked to clarify those comments by Variety (via SFFGazette.com), and while they now make a little more sense, it still feels like he's being deliberately vague!
"I don't know if I said many years, it's probably about the real-time that we've experienced it. So it was the end of Season 2 when they said goodbye, we checked in in 'The Book of Boba Fett' about a year ago when they parted company again, and then he rejoined the Mandalorian."
"So now, I think somewhere in there, more than one and less than, you know, somewhere between zero and two years." Favreau went on to confirm Din and Grogu definitely weren't parted for too long, so we're guessing around a year has passed at most since the season 2 finale.
We can't blame the showrunner for not wanting to tie himself to a specific period as there's only a finite amount of time between Return of the Jedi and The Rise of Skywalker to explore.
Going back to season 3, though, and we have a full gallery of concept art from "The Apostate." Highlighting several key moments, including IG-11's shock return, Bo-Katan Kryze on her throne, and that explosive opening, the artwork offers a fascinating glimpse into how those scenes were brought to life.
The Mandalorian's season 3 premiere included a surprise nod to Star Wars Rebels that you can read about by clicking here. We've also broken down how Cara Dune is written out of the series (find that here) and details on the unexpected return of a fan-favourite character are here.
Check out the full gallery of concept art below.