The ending of The Mandalorian [1]'s fifth episode includes the biggest cliffhanger yet [2], and we're dying to know who the mysterious figure is. To recap: after being double-crossed by Toro Calican, the assassin Fennec Shand is killed and left in the desert of Tatooine, only for her body to be found by an armored figure at the very end of the episode. While we don't know who that person is yet, we've definitely got some theories.

So far, there are a few major theories about who this figure is. Viewers who listened carefully at the end of the episode might have noticed a distinctive sound as the person's footsteps approached: the sound of jangling spurs. In Star Wars lore, that sound has always been closely associated with one character in particular, one who already has a connection of sorts to the Mandalorians. That would be Boba Fett, the clone bounty hunter from the original trilogy of movies, whose entrance into scenes was frequently accompanied by the sound of spurs jangling to evoke the vibe of an Old West bounty hunter.

There have been countless theories already that Boba Fett will play some role in The Mandalorian — in fact, before the show debuted, there were rumours that the show's mysterious protagonist would actually turn out to be Boba Fett [3] himself. That theory, of course, has long since been debunked, but the show's setting in the world of bounty hunters has kept the theories alive. There's just one problem with this idea: The Mandalorian takes place approximately five years after Return of the Jedi [4], in which Boba Fett was unambiguously sent to his death in the Sarlaac pit. Considering how adamant much of the creative team has been about Boba Fett not being in the series, it feels like the iconic jangling sound might be more of a nod to fans than an actual hint. But still — the episode does take place on Tatooine, where he supposedly met his death, so if there was going to be a twist, this would be the way to do it.

The other main theory suggests that the mysterious armored figure is Moff Gideon. Played by Breaking Bad's Giancarlo Esposito, Gideon is a character who was announced [5] but hasn't appeared yet. Esposito described his character [6] to Entertainment Weekly as "an Imperial remnant of a very fine officer who then switches to become sort of the guardian of the people... This guy is going to be a big player because he has an idea of how to keep order." Fennec Shand mentions, before her death, that she has a meeting at Mos Espa, so it's possible that meeting was with Gideon or his subordinates. Shand not turning up for their rendezvous would explain why he would be out in the desert searching or how he might have ideas on where to find her.