Following the return of the Praetorian Guards in The Mandalorian season 3, the Knights of Ren could be similarly redeemed on the small screen. Although they were set up to be major enforcers serving Kylo Ren in the sequel trilogy, the dark side warriors hardly got the screen time or the full roles that they deserved. Now, The Mandalorian series can help redeem the Knights just like it did for the Praetorian guards.
In the final episodes of The Mandalorian season 3, Moff Gideon (Giancarlo Esposito) requests a trio of Praetorian guards from the Imperial Shadow Council. Serving as lethal bodyguards, the warriors from The Last Jedi were given a second chance to showcase their skills. In that same vein, a new theory suggests that the Knights of Ren could receive a similar treatment with The Mandalorian providing the perfect opportunity for their story to be fully fleshed out.
The Mandalorian Season 3 Redeemed Last Jedi's Praetorian Guards
In the service of Moff Gideon, the Praetorian guards were epically redeemed in The Mandalorian season 3. During the Mandalorians' campaign to reclaim their homeworld of Mandalore, they fell into Gideon's trap as they were unaware the Imperial Remnant had built an entire secret base underground. Although the Children of the Watch's Paz Vizsla bought his allies enough time to make their escape through the various cave systems, he sacrificed himself in the face of the Praetorian guards who crippled and executed the Mandalorian warrior with deadly efficiency, despite his valiant efforts taking down an entire squad of stormtroopers with Mandalorian-inspired armor.
The Praetorian guards were ultimately defeated taking on Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal) and a Force-wielding Grogu in The Mandalorian season 3 finale. However, they still got the chance to prove that those in their ranks were a force to be reckoned with. The Praetorians' addition to the recently concluded Star Wars show was most welcome considering their original appearance in The Last Jedi where eight of the highly trained guards were easily defeated by Kylo Ren and Rey, having done nothing of note in the rest of the movie. They also weren't featured ever again in the sequel trilogy.
Star Wars Wasted The Sequel Trilogy's Knights of Ren
Just like the Praetorian guards, the same kind of underutilization was even worse for the Knights of Ren in the Star Wars sequels. Despite being teased in a flashback during The Force Awakens as the band of dark side warriors loyal to Kylo Ren, the Knights were nowhere to be seen in the rest of The Force Awakens and were completely absent in The Last Jedi. Although they were featured in The Rise of Skywalker, their screen time was minimal with next to no insights about who they were or how Kylo Ren came to lead them.
Instead, the duty of fleshing out the Knights of Ren's history was left to Marvel's canonical Star Wars comics. For example, The Rise of Kylo Ren series by Charles Soule and Wil Silney revealed Ben Solo's transformation as Kylo who then took over the Knights following his victory over their lightsaber-wielding leader who was simply known as Ren. Likewise, Soule's Hidden Empire series set after The Empire Strikes Back recently revealed that the Knights worked with the crime syndicate Crimson Dawn before they entered the service of Emperor Palpatine just before Return of the Jedi. Regardless, their time on-screen was far more limited than it should have been.
The Knights Of Ren Would Fit Perfectly Into The Mandalorian Era
Considering the established Star Wars timeline and what's known about the Knights of Ren thus far, it could certainly be revealed that the group of dark side agents continued serving the Imperial Remnant during The Mandalorian era. Whether it's in future seasons of The Mandalorian or in connected shows such as Ahsoka, The Book of Boba Fett, or the Skeleton Crew series, the Knights could be the perfect overarching villains to help set up the sequel trilogy. This era is also years before Kylo's takeover, meaning that Ren himself could make his live-action debut when and if the Knights were to make an appearance.
As it stands, there's currently a villain vacuum following Moff Gideon's defeat in The Mandalorian season 3. Keeping that in mind, there's certainly a logical narrative future where the Knights of Ren could help fill that void either as the villains of The Mandalorian season 4 or elsewhere in the aforementioned shows. Just like the Imperial Remnant, the Knights could be a dynamic force pointing toward Star Wars' inevitable future with the First Order and the eventual resurrection of Emperor Palpatine.
The Mandalorian Era Can Give The Knights of Ren Their Second Chance
Just like the Praetorian guards, The Mandalorian could be the Knights of Ren's second chance to have the screen time they deserve. The Knights were set up to be impressive servants to Kylo Ren and the First Order, only to be hardly featured at all and easily defeated following Kylo Ren's redemption as Ben Solo. Although they're not Sith Lords like Emperor Palpatine or Darth Vader, the comics revealed they have a connection to "The Shadow", their name for the dark side of the Force. Existing as one of the few Force-wielding sects who lived through the reign of the Empire, they're certainly worth a return to the screen.
While this concept is purely conjecture, the Knights of Ren definitely deserve to have some form of redemption in the Star Wars canon. What they got in the sequel trilogy was not nearly enough by any means. As such, here's hoping that the foes get worthwhile roles and arcs that are dynamic and satisfying in the near future. While The Mandalorian era is the only time period that really makes sense for an on-screen return, it's evident that Star Wars needs to correct its Knights of Ren mistakes in some shape or form.