Bo-Katan Kryze

Bo-Katan Kryze is a major character in the 2008-2020 animated series , the deuteragonist of the two-parted Season 4 premiere episode "Heroes of Mandalore", and one of the two tritagonists (alongside Greef Karga) of the 2019 live-action series .
She was voiced, and later portrayed, by , who famously portrayed Kara "Starbuck" Thrace in Battlestar Galactica.
==Biography==
She was a member of the Mandalorian terrorist organization Death Watch during the Clone Wars which sought to revitalize Mandalore's warrior past. Bo-Katan was the sister of Duchess Satine Kryze, the pacifistic ruler of Mandalore whom Death Watch were attempting to overthrow.
Eventually, during the last year of the Clone Wars, Bo-Katan and Death Watch gained a powerful ally - the Sith lord Darth Maul. Maul helped Death Watch overthrow the pacifistic Mandalorian government, placing Death Watch's leader Pre Vizsla on the throne of Mandalore. However, Maul challenged and executed Vizsla in honorable single combat, firmly placing Maul as the new leader of the Mandalorian people.
A large portion of Death Watch known as the Death Watch loyalists believed that an outsider such as Maul should never sit on the throne of Mandalore. Amongst those who opposed Maul's claim to the throne was Bo-Katan, who acted as the leader of the new Mandalorian resistance. Maul later killed Satine to torment Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi, whom had held a special relationship with the Duchess.
Eventually, Bo-Katan enlisted the support of former Jedi Padawan Ahsoka Tano and the Galactic Republic by extension. The Grand Army of the Republic and the Death Watch loyalists launched a joint siege on the Mandalorian capital of Sundari. Maul's forces were defeated and the Sith lord himself was captured. In the aftermath, Bo-Katan was named Regent of Mandalore by the Republic.
Unfortunately, Bo-Katan's position didn't last long, as she was ousted once the Republic was reformed into the Galactic Empire. Kryze spent the next eighteen years rebelling against the Imperial occupation of Mandalore. Roughly one year before the destruction of the First Death Star, Bo-Katan encountered a Mandalorian named Sabine Wren who wielded the Darksaber.
The Darksaber was an ancient black-bladed lightsaber that symbolized leadership within the Mandalorian culture. Sabine wanted Bo-Katan to wield the Darksaber, however, racked by the guilt of her previous failings, Bo-Katan initially refused the blade, but ultimately accepted the weapon upon Sabine's insistence. With the Darksaber in hand, Bo-Katan was able to unite the Mandalorian clans against the Empire.
==History==
===Clone Wars===
During the time of the Clone Wars, Bo-Katan served as Pre Vizsla's trusted right hand in Death Watch. The militaristic splinter group sought to restore Mandalore's warrior past, an ideal which Bo-Katan held—even if it meant ousting her sister, Duchess Satine, from office.
While Bo-Katan was loyal to Vizsla, she had reservations concerning Death Watch's alliance with two beings they discovered in an escape pod: the Sith brothers Darth Maul and Savage Opress. Since the Death Watch had been betrayed by Count Dooku once, Bo-Katan believed that Sith were "no better than Jedi." Maul Force-choked her for the remark, but she remained strong in her convictions.
Following the Sith’s lead in a scheme to take over Mandalore, Death Watch became part of the Shadow Collective: an alliance with criminal organizations including the Pyke Syndicate, Black Sun, and the Hutt Clan. Vizsla, however, informed Bo-Katan that once the Death Watch assumed control of the planet, they will betray their Sith and criminal allies. As orchestrated by Maul, the underworld gangsters launched an attack on the Mandalorian capital city of Sundari, and the Death Watch would save the people from them. Bo-Katan gave a speech to the Mandalorian people presenting the captured criminals and introduced them to Vizsla, now their new Prime Minister. Afterwards, Vizsla turned on Maul and Opress and jailed them, but Maul challenged him to a death duel. After defeating Vizsla, Maul beheaded the Death Watch leader with his own Darksaber, as Bo-Katan watched in horror. On the verge of tears, she refused to serve an outsider and freed her sister from prison. Satine was recaptured, however, as part of a larger plot to lure Obi-Wan Kenobi to Mandalore. Finally, Maul had his revenge against his nemesis and killed Satine. Bo-Katan, while devastated at the loss of her sister, helped Obi-Wan escape from Maul's clutches. She vowed that Mandalore would survive this terrible turn of events.
During the following year, civil war broke out on Mandalore between Maul and his forces and her and the Nite Owls. During the tail end of the Clone Wars, around a year after it started, she approached Ahsoka Tano, whom she had previously met on Carlac when she was still with Death Watch, and pleaded for her help in liberating their planet, convincing her that despite being enemies in the past, they shared a common one in Maul, which Ahsoka agreed with and accepted the offer. They then contacted Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker, with Bo-Katan informing them about Maul and telling them she needed help from Republic forces to take back the planet. Obi-Wan was reluctant, however, since Mandalore is a neutral planet, and having their forces get involved would break peace treaties and lead to another war. However, she ends up ultimately getting help from a specific division of the Grand Army of the Republic that Ahsoka leads alongside her long-time friend, Clone Commander Rex. Ultimately, the combined might of Bo Katan's forces and the clone division end up overwhelming and defeating the Mandalorian forces loyal to Maul, with Maul himself being outmaneuvered and defeated in a duel with Ahsoka. With the remainder of Maul's defeated forces being taken into custody and Maul being transported in a special vault designed for Jedi back to Coruscant, Bo-Katan saw Ahsoka off on amiable terms, and she was subsequently made the regent of Mandalore.
===Star Wars Rebels===
Following the Empire's occupation of Mandalore, Bo-Katan refused to surrender to the Emperor's tyranny, which led to her being betrayed by Gar Saxon and the rest of his clan, who pledged loyalty to the Empire, with Gar being made the planet's new governor and Bo-Katan being forced to step down from her position. Years later, she joined with rebel Sabine Wren to help destroy an Imperial weapon that targeted Mandalorian armor. After their victory, Sabine gifted the Darksaber to Bo-Katan. She accepted, finally uniting Mandalore. 
Events in The Mandalorian will possibly explain how Moff Gideon apparently stole possession of the Darksaber. 
===The Mandalorian===
The Mandalorian's ship crash lands on the surface of Trask, accompanied by The Child and the Frog Lady. There, the Frog Lady is reunited with her husband, and Mando's temporary job is complete. He goes to a bar and buys information from a Mon Calamari regarding where he can find a Jedi. On the boat this information led him to, the Quarrens on the ship push the Child into the sea through a latch, and the door closes on Mando as he goes to rescue him. The Quarrens are enlightened by the prospect of obtaining his beskar amor, until three Mandalorians in blue armor appear, with wrist blasters, grappling hooks, and other Mandalorian tech. 
They defeat the crew members and rescue the Mandalorian, and Mandalorian Koska Reeves saves the Child from a sea monster. They took off their helmets, and the leader of the group revealed herself to the Mandalorian as Bo-Katan Kryze. The Mandalorian grows distrustful towards them after they took off their helmets, but Bo-Katan mentions that he must be a Child of the Watch fixated on reestablishing the ancient ways of Mandalore. He was seemingly unaware that his views were only shared by a small sect. His goal to find others like him was succeeded; the Mandalorian leaves anyways, only to be followed by the her and the other two Mandalorians: Koska Reeves and Axe Woves. Bo-Katan takes him to a bar to reason with him. The two make a deal that if Mando helps her on her mission, she'll take him to the Jedi. 
They raided a cargo ship, and stole some weapons, making quick work of stormtroopers. The Imperial Officer onboard contacts Moff Gideon to request backup, to which he requests that he crash land the ship to become a martyr to the Empire. The four Mandalorians then rush to the cockpit to apprehend the officer, and Bo-Katan inquires about the Darksaber, which is what she is really after. The unnamed Imperial Officer then commits suicide for inferable reasons. Following the success of the mission, Bo-Katan commends the Mandalorian and offers future assistance (which he declines), and more importantly, the whereabouts of a Jedi named Ahsoka Tano.
Shortly later, Bo-Katan and Koska were having a drink at a bar when they were approached by Mando and Boba Fett. Mando asked for Kryze's help to rescue Grogu who had been kidnapped by Moff Gideon but Bo-Katan refused claiming he would never find Gideon. She then accuses Boba Fett of not being a Mandalorian, the latter declaring that he never claimed to be, which led to a verbal altercation between Boba and Koska which Bo-Katan quickly stopped. Mando then reveals to have Gideon's coordinates and that he will let the Nite Owls take possession of the Imperial cruiser to reclaim Mandalore, something Boba criticized due to the state of the planet, much to the disgust of Bo-Katan who treats Boba's unworthy of his armor when Boba retorted that his armor belonged to his father, which Bo-Katan instead referred to as a "donor" due to Boba being a clone himself. The former bounty hunter then threatened Bo-Katan for her disrespect, leading to a brief fight between him and Koska until Kryze stopped them and agreed to Mando's request so she could get the Darksaber back.
Following the infiltration plan, the group consisting of Mando, Fennec Shand, Koska, Bo-Katan and Cara Dune use a stolen Imperial ship which is falsely attacked by Boba aboard the Slave One to fool the Imperial forces when he approaches the cruiser. coming out of hyperspace. Once inside, the women storm the stormtroopers while Mando sneaks quietly to the cell block. The group manages to fight their way to the bridge, eliminating all Imperial forces but Bo-Katan notices that Gideon is not there. Later, Mando reaches the bridge with Grogu and a captive Gideon, much to Bo-Katan's shock as Mando now has the Darksaber, having taken it from Gideon defeating him in battle. Gideon then tries to take advantage of what this means to Bo-Katan so that she turns against Mando. The latter tries to return the weapon to Bo-Katan, even admitting defeat on the second attempt to give it to her, but she refuses because the Darksaber can only be obtained in battle. Subsequently, the Dark Troopers begin to perforate the armored doors of the bridge, but the group is rescued by the sudden arrival of the Jedi Master, Luke Skywalker. Understanding his defeat, Gideon grabs a blaster and fires at Bo-Katan who survives thanks to her beskar armor before the Moff fails to kill Grogu and is knocked out by Cara Dune. Bo-Katan and the others then witness Mando's farewell and Grogu leaving with Skywalker.
After Mando and Bo part ways, he eventually reunites with Grogu. Bo-Katan quickly lost her allies' allegiance due to not returning with the Darksaber, her hard-captured Imperial ships now serving mercenary use. Depressed, she returned to her ancestral home on Kalevala.
Months later, Bo-Katan is visited by Mando and a Grogu who has ultimately chosen to return to his adoptive father. She informs the bounty hunter of her abandonment of the reconquest of Mandalore following what she has just experienced, while declaring the tearing apart of Mandalorian society was the fault of the Tribe of which Mando was a part. Djarin reveals to him that he is going to the planet to check if it is really poisoned in order to go to the mines of Mandalore and bathe in the Living Waters to expunge the removal of his helmet which made him an apostate in the eyes of his clan but an incredulous Bo-Katan claims that the Living Waters have no power. She nevertheless reveals to him that what he is looking for is under the ruins of Sundari.
When Mando's ship once again returns to his castle, Kryze discovers only Grogu on board and subsequently departs to Mandalore to rescue Djarin. The air of the planet still breathable, she descends deep into the city in ruins accompanied by Grogu and faces the Alamites before finding Mando prisoner of a cyborg that she is able to kill by skillfully using the Darksaber. Unable to convince Mando to give up his quest, Bo-Katan agrees to guide him, judging that he will find nothing without her help. As she walks, she tells him how Sundari was a beautiful city where their fellows lived in their thousands before the purge, while telling him about her life within the royal family of Mandalore and her late father whom she held in high esteem. Finally arriving at the Living Waters, Mando recites the Precepts of the Creed as he enters the water, only to be suddenly dragged to the bottom as Bo-Katan and Grogu look on. The Nite Owl dives in to save Mando, but upon surfacing, to her shock, she sees a Mythosaurus still alive.
The two Mandalorians leave Mandalore afterwards, with Bo-Katan keeping the Mythosaur's existence to herself since Mando hasn't seen it. Back on Kalevala, they come into conflict with Imperial forces that Bo-Katan has previously offended. The clash ends with Castle Kryze being destroyed by bombers, forcing Mando and Bo-Katan to flee the system. They later arrive at the current Tribe hideout, but Paz Vizsla refuses their presence by reminding Mando he's still an "apostate". However, once the Armorer confirms the authenticity of Mando's claims, she reintegrates him into the Tribe and also considers Bo-Katan to be "rehabilitated" since she too entered the Living Waters and had not removed her helmet since then, making her a member of the Tribe.
Bo-Katan is slowly fitting in amongst this whole other kind of Mandalorian, also becoming a bit closer to Grogu. After a foundling, Ragnar, is kidnapped by a Raptor, Bo-Katan is able to track the creature to its hiding place and leads a squad to rescue the boy. After Ragnar's successful rescue, Bo-Katan has her Beskar right pauldron replaced which she lost in the clash with the Raptor, specifically choosing the Mythosaurus as her symbol. She also tells Armorer about the existence of the Mythosaur she saw on Mandalore, but Armorer is half-convinced.
Later, Bo-Katan participates in the assault on Gorian Shard's pirate gang occupying Nevarro. She takes care of landing the Mandalorians in the city before attacking Shard's ship while most of the aerial-born pirates are engaging Mando, who serves as a distraction. With little protection, she easily starts damaging the ship, after which Shard recalls them to defend him. They then engage in Bo-Katan in combat, but Mando returns as well to aid her, and together, they take out all of the pirates except for Vane, who flees the battle. With the minions defeated, Bo-Katan and Mando proceed to destroy Shard's damaged ship before it has time to do more damage to the city by taking out his last engine and causing it to crash. After the victory, The Armorer summons Bo-Katan to Nevarro's old secret and asks him to remove her helmet before telling hrt that she can gather what remains of their people into one so that all follow the path of Mandalore once again. Bo-Katan accepts with some reluctance at first and then separates from the Tribe to complete this quest.
==Trivia== 
*Bo-Katan's armor has been in her family for three generations.
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