#but the fact that they used to be Jedi is less apparent

[ct-hardcase]

today's productivity is headcanoning that Obi-Wan knows, or at least recognizes, the Fourth Sister

[jedi-starbird]

A happier galaxy where the disaster lineage is somewhat less on fire constantly and senior padawan Obi-wan has developed a fixation on Mandalorians:

Sometimes Feemor regretted just how much he had given away when he had spent 5 expensive months bribing a traumatised Obi-wan to call him brother when he was 14. His dignity, for one, his access codes and shadow cloaking techniques, another. So he had a very dignified reaction when he was awoken to the shine of his younger brother's eyes in the dark at the foot of his bed. "I wou-stop screaming it's just me-I would like a Mandalorian. How do I procure one?"

"How the fuck should I know?"

Obi-wan scowled as if Feemor was being difficult, he wasn't, he wasn't quite awake enough for that yet. "You're a shadow, you're supposed to know things."

Ah, if being a shadow granted you the secrets of the universe instead of just a great many planetary governments, Feemor wouldn't spend so much time wondering what dark rituals Dooku had committed to result in Qui-gon Jinn. (He already knew what regular rituals Qui-gon had committed to result in Obi-wan)

"I know that I'm about to punt you out of my room right now."

"...My birthday is coming up, I believe I deserve compensation for all the traumas."

Obi-wan's eyes were very big now. Feemor sighed. He flopped back down into bed. He resisted the urge to pull his blankets back up and roll over. 'Oh sure when it's time to see mind healers everything's fine but now-'

"Shouldn't you be asking Master then?"

"Master would not approve of how I plan to use the Mandalorian."

He squinted at Obi-wan for a long moment. Obi-wan stared back. He did some quick mental maths and tried not to feel old. Eh. Fine. Feemor swung his legs out of bed. "You had me at 'Master wouldn't approve'."

"Do you think I could get one by walking into little Keldabe and asking very nicely?"

As it turns out, yes he could. A few too many in fact, apparently Jedi, their ancestral enemy, in the Mando district attracted attention, who knew? Feemor knew, Feemor would have known if only he had been properly awake when this semblence of a plan was proposed. He stalked through the cantina towards Obi-wan who was leaning slightly forwards against a pillar, ah...speaking, to a Mandalorian with painted orange armour while surrounded by a larger crowd of Mandos. At least they seem mostly amused. He ignored the youngers squawk as he yanked the back of his robes so that he moved away from the Mandalorian and spun him around.

"You cannot solve centuries of animosity by batting your eyelashes."

"I'm not batting my eyelashes " Obi-wan sniffed," I'm shaking my ass, there's decidedly more effort involved."

"I miss when I was an only child." Feemor sighed deeply. He used the force to scruff the neck of Obi-wan's robes and dangle him slightly in the air. He ignored the shouting from beside him and bowed politely to the staring Mandos. "My apologies for the disturbance, this will not happ-" He considered his brother who was now yelling out his personal comm code with a wink. " Please excuse us, this very probably will happen again, we shall workshop it. May the force be with you all."

I don't have a fully planned AU but it is Codywan!!! cause I love those bitches but have some more dialogue I came up with for this AU. I'm imagining them both as like 20-23, Obi's close to knighthood. He's still a padawan for this because I think him causing Qui-gon headaches is funny. Feemor fully thinks this complicated courtship dance Obi's created is funny, he likes studying his little brother like a bug, he just wasn't prepared for him to just waltz into little kelbade and start hitting on people, though he really should have been.

Hand wavy timeline with Jaster alive but the clones are still clones, Jango was kidnapped and held in stasis or something, Jaster claimed them as Mandos. This is really just about Obi's first and biggest diplomatic achivement being friendly Jedi-Mando relations purely cause he was in his thot era. This also somehow saves the galaxy from the sith.

I like to imagine that Cody's brothers recorded that little exchange between Fee and Obi on their helmets and uploaded it online where it went viral on MandoNet before going viral galaxywide because wait holy shit is that a Jedi saying that????. Qui-gon gets called in for a very weird meeting where the council's like ok so the entire holonet has seen your padawan being horny on main but also this is like the biggest jump in our diplomatic relationship with the Mandos in centuries so like can we keep this up somehow? This results in Obi-wan being holonet famous, first through vode recordings but then he starts a space tumblr and twitter account and he's famous now. Then his friends and other jedi start accounts because wait we're allowed to do that? and those become big as well and this is literally the best PR the jedi have had in hundreds of years. the holonet loves them. the sith are fuming.

Obi-wan, scoffing: What were they gonna do? Shoot me? Feemor: Yes. Obi-wan: I don't believe in blasters. Bly: ...like as a concept...? Obi-wan: No, spiritually.

Obi-wan: I'm sure there's a nice Mandalorian we can find for you Feemor: I'm not sure those 2 words belong together Obi-wan: No of course not, we can't find a nice one, then they'd be all alone, we need to find an absolute bastard of one so that you two match :)

Obi-wan: Oh so Master gets to take in pathetic life forms but I don't? This one's already domesticated! Wolffe: Debatable. Feemor: Cody's a person! Not a stray tooka! Obi-wan: Master takes in stray people all the time! That's how he got me!

Qui-gon: How do you explain this behaviour Padawan ? Obi-wan: The force pushed me towards the Mandalorians Master, it was quite insistent on me developing better relations with them given our difficult history. Feemor: Fascinating, please do elaborate, I'd love to hear the theological implications of a force-assigned kink.

[gatorbites-imagines]

Anakin flirting with m reader and ending making out? Pls

Anakin Skywalker x Male reader

Headcanons

You are a non-jedi general during the Clone wars, cuz yall lost focus and had a consensual workplace relationship.

This turned out a lot sweeter than i had planned ngl.

You were a general during the clone wars. You weren’t anything special, you couldn’t use the force, you weren’t from some rich or special background, your name didn’t carry any weight. The only gift you seemed to have, was your inability to be affected by the force. All in all, you weren’t anything to write home about.

Of course, that’s also what made you so damn useful in your role. No one kept an eye on you, everyone underestimated you, you could get away with so much because to most people in charge, you didn’t exist. You not being able to be manipulated by the force, also made you extremely skilled in what you did, without anyone seeming to notice.

Your feat of climbing the military ranks in leaps and bounds only got you mild acknowledgments, and a handful of attempted manipulations from some people in power. But when they realized you didn’t bend, but you weren’t important enough to get rid of, they left you alone.

At 22 you had reached the rank of senior general in the republic army, placing you above even a good chunk of the jedi you fought against, which was also why you had been placed with the 501st, to apparently teach their general the basics.

Anakin and Obi-Wan had both been unsettled by the fact that they couldn’t sense you in the force the first time you met. Every being, even the nonliving, had a presence. But you didn’t. it was like you didn’t exist.

That took quite some time to get used too, especially to someone as force sensitive as Anakin. But over time you two started getting along, and though it took him some time and a lot of grumbling, Anakin did learn quite a lot from you.

The flirting had been subtle in the beginning, or as subtle as Anakin could be. From getting your help on reports and readings he just “couldn’t understand”, to getting you to help him stretch after he had spent hours going through his katas.

You weren’t oblivious, you couldn’t be with the life you lived, so of course you noticed his attempts at flirting. It was endearing in a way. To see someone who was supposed to have no connection to people like that, seem so drawn to you.

It also left you feeling uneasy in a way, as you had never really had much time to relationships or even flirting for that matter, having spent all these years making something of yourself.

Alongside the flirting you two became good friends, and you had even signed yourself up to stay with his platoon, even when your training was done. This was also where you learned he had had a thing with Padme, but they realized they were better as friends a while ago.

When you shared your own lack of experience, it seemed to boost some of Anakin’s confidence, seeing as you both were on new ground. And like with anything else, he took to it with gusto.

The fact that you never turned him down or rejected him, sometimes even laughing and playing along, only made Anakin try even harder. It was cute, to see him trying his best to woo you in a subtle and less noticeable way, seeing as he was still a jedi and it wasn’t actually allowed.

The 501st knew though. Of course they knew, and when Ahsoka came around she figured it out very fast, and she most likely took up the role as hype man and background support.

Your flirting became part of your dynamic, it was just something that you two did, which to outsiders was just seen as banter to keep the spirits up.

It also didn’t go past flirting for a long time, seeing as you guys were always surrounded by people. And being besides Anakin didn’t let you slip into the shadows like you were used too, since he would glow so brightly.

The need for privacy was what had you two slinking off to the side during one of the nights in camp, the platoon having settled down on a planet and waiting for their next orders. Anakin and you had decided to wander off, settling somewhere nearby, but far enough away to get some time alone together.

There might also have been a bottle of alcohol in your coat. It was nowhere near enough to get either of you drunk, especially with the force helping clear it out of Anakin’s system quicker than average folk. But it was enough to loosen up and get comfortable.

Your normal banter of flirting was constant, but as the buzz settled it became something softer and somehow hotter, the feelings growing thick in the air and noticeable enough that even you, who was as force sensitive as a rock if not lesser, could sense it.

Anakin must have made some corny pass at you, that cocky grin on his lips and his hair brushed back and out of his face, letting you truly see his handsome features. Something came over you, later you would blame the force, but it just felt right.

Leaning in and closing the gap between you seemed to have shocked Anakin, his eyes wide before he seemingly melted against you, arms wrapping around your neck and torso and pulling you even closer.

The kiss was far from the most skilled or pleasant, but your shared lack of experience was fully made up for by enthusiasm.

Anakin would pant and grunt as the kiss turned steamier, lips parting and tongues rubbing together, spit gathering at the edges of your mouths and a line of drool running down his chin. His eyes were shut tightly in concentration, his brows furrowed and hands grasping as your coat.

You had no idea how long you two were laying there, kissing like two lovesick fools from some romance novel. Hands were grasping and exploring, but never going further than that. Now wasn’t the time to go any wilder than what you were doing, but the possibility of it was enough to make the kiss even better.

When you pulled away, Anakin leaned after you with a soft noise, bottom lip pouting out and red from the insistent kissing, his eyes cracking open to look at you with the softest look you had ever seen from him.

“Not all of us can hold our breath for hours” you snarked with a soft chuckle, since you knew he could, thanks to the force. Your jedi grumbled, but tucked his head under your chin, still clutching you close and brushing his lips against your neck.

Neither of you spoke for a while, just holding onto each other. You found yourself brushing your fingers through his hair, Anakin almost arching into the touch like an affection starved tooka, a sight that only made you smile more.

“I like you a lot” he mumbled, glancing up at you through his lashes with that insistent determined, but somehow still soft and warm look in his eyes. Just seeing him like that made you wanna kiss him again, to devour him whole.

“I think I like you too” you replied, an upwards tick to your lips as you pulled him close again. Even without the ability to feel the force, you could still feel it flare, like the sun rising in the morning. It would be no surprise if Ahsoka knew exactly what had happened, and the padawan would be confronting you guys about it later.

But right now all that mattered was laying there with Anakin, and maybe stealing a couple more of those deep insistent and longing kisses, since he sounded so pretty when you did. You guys could deal with everything else later.

[ani-and-the-corries-au]

There are some things that all troopers know Nat born's will never understand.

All the troopers grew up in a world where perfection was the standard and anything less resulted in death. Where individuality was a crime and being anything more than just another number was a danger, Where saying the wrong thing in front of the wrong person could get you killed.

All troopers know this, but post Kamino the Guards have had it drilled into them all over again. If they want to survive In the Senate they have to fall back on the lessons they learned on Kamino.

The Corries know that there are some things that nat born's will never understand. Things that Nat born's shouldn't understand.

So no one in the guard quite knows how to feel about the strange fallout of the Shiney squad's Jetti Cadets apparent discovery of the Guards position on Courcant.

It starts small, the guard notices that the boy stops being weird about the fact that most of the Corries don't use their names, when asked, the boys. "It's because I know that you have them now." raises more questions than answers, because apparently the boy just figured out that they used their designation numbers around the Senate because their names were a secret on his own. He also seemed to get an unreasonable amount of joy from the fact that all the clones chose their own names.

If it has stopped there then it probably wouldn't be so weird, but it didn't. From sneaking in extra medical supplies and food, (actual food, not just ration bars) when he discovered that 'depur' was cutting their budget for stuff that they needed to function, to the way he seemed to intrinsically understand their need for secrecy, and their reasoning for it. "secrets keep us safe." Without anyone seemingly telling him.

They all agreed that they weren't gonna ask about how the boy had managed to rangle several senators around to the truth of the situation and his point of view with only a few words to one of them. A point of view that not only had them working on trooper sentient rights bills, but also had them aiding in his more under the table helping.

At first it was weird and confusing, both because this kid was a nat born, and because how did a Jetti Cadet develop this kind of understanding, he was a child. It took them a while to connect the dots, Even as the boy started unconsciously dropping hints.

At first it was that weird little nickname he had for the Senate and Senators, in a language that even the most nerdy of Corries didn't seem to understand. They weren't sure what a Depur was, but apparently it applied to the Senate and was probably not a good thing.

The next clue was the stories, because as Anakin spent more time with the guard, becoming more of a Vod'ika than a Jetti Commander and subsequently beginning to learn more and more about the secrets that they kept from the rest of the Senate.

As the boy learnt about the lighter side of the inner workings of the guard, and how to speak the clones particular brand of Mando'a, the guards began to learn stories about Ekkreth, Leia and Ar Amu, stories about secret plots and tricking the The infamous Depur in ways that resulted in the freedom of those he enslaved.

About secret Languages, Tzai, Jappor snippets and secret rituals. About the ways one could steal back some control from the Masters in ways that they would never even notice. About things that the boy claimed that all Slaves should know, lessons that would help keep them safe from their Masters. A term that by now the guards suspended was not referring to the kind the Jedi had.

By the time the boy causally mentioned that he and his mother had been enslaved prior to him being taken to the temple, the Guards already had a pretty decent picture of the situation.

The fact that the boy had been adopting them into his own culture right under their noses had been vastly more surprising. He'd been a little awkward when he'd admitted it. Saying that he knew that they were sort of Mando'ade, but they could be Amavikka too if they wanted.

And sure, maybe it was a little dark that part of the reason the boy spent so much time in the barracks was because it felt familiar, but also this kid cared about every single one of them, to the point where he apparently sees them as family.

Well it really was no wonder that it was agreed that the entire guard would do just about anything for their Ad'ika. Including possibly stopping said Ad'ika from doing the same for them. (Bloody Skywalkers)

[twinterrors29]

historically, Jedi were dragon riders, bonding for life with dragons to serve the Force and the Galaxy together

a being needs to meet a certain threshold of Force-sensitivity to be able to form such a bond, so any child born above that threshold is sent to the Temple to prepare for such a bond and the duties that come with it

however, over the centuries that have passed since the last Sith Wars, dragons have become increasingly scarce in the galaxy (*cough Banite Sith plot cough*), such that by the time of the Prequels Era, they're considered more or less extinct in the wild, and even within the Order, only a handful of older Masters are actually bonded with a dragon

enter Jango Fett, a man who, like most Mando'ade, had a strange mix of DNA due to his ancestors' tendency to adopt and intermarry with various species

a man whose DNA the Kaminoans were able to use to recreate dragons, according to a contract they received from the Jedi Order (one which none within the Order had known of)

in fact, they were able to create millions of new dragons, of all different types, some previously known and some seemingly new varieties

this led to a complete reversal of the previous imbalance: now, with only about ten thousand Jedi in the Order, there were not nearly enough Jedi to be able to bond with a dragon

as they try to start making assignments, it quickly becomes apparent that a single Jedi can in fact form bonds with multiple dragons at the same time

the reverse had obviously been seen, with a single dragon bonding to knight pairs or Master-Padawan teams, but there had never been such a disparity in the number of dragons seeking to bond with Jedi compared to Jedi

the first such case study was the established pair of Master Obi-Wan Kenobi and Alpha-17 adding a bond with Cody, but they were quickly upstaged by the case of Ahsoka, already sharing a bond with her Master to Rex, simultaneously establishing new bonds with Echo and Fives

[marvelstars]

Anakin´s politics

After reading many takes in fandom of Anakin´s politics as well as many fics, I believe Anakin´s political leanings are often reduced or misunderstood, in part because Lucas didn´t delve too much into them, because Padme and Obi-Wan kind of dimiss htem and also in part because we have two different ideologies, Anakin´s political ideology pre Vader and Anakin´s political ideology post Vader which are similar but not the same.

Early Vader/Just fallen to the darkside Anakin asked Padme to become his Empress but given that at the time he was in a deep, deep breakdown and practically out of his mind deep into darkside force energies which Lucas has compared to a drug, I personally don´t believe even Vader "post dark side high" would have exactly the same idea.

Vader in general was of the mind that the galaxy needed order, that there was a role the Emperor had to play but given Leia´s and Vader´s whole conversation about the Sentate in ANH where Leia accuses Vader of acting outside the Senate approval to which Vader answers that she was a confirmed traitor to the Empire at this point, so her ship could not longer be considered a diplomatic vessel unlike all those other times Vader let her go to do her "mercy missions" which he knew were a front for her pro-rebellion missions, all this means Vader also was often around seeing Sente proceedings, right allong with his military meetings.

Vader he doesn´t care as much about the type of goverment there is in the galaxy as long as it´s effective and less corrupt than the Old Republic was. "Lest bring Order to the galaxy"

Anakin is a different matter, as a child he just knew he wanted to free all the slaves on Tatooine and do his part to support a more equal and fair galaxy "the biggest problem in the galaxy is that no one helps each other".

As a Jedi padawan, when he was talking to Padme about how the system didn´t work, precisely because Padme told him that it was hard for the senate to do anything because they almost never agreed, he suggested someone to "make them agree" "someone wise" and in that way fix the problem of the current system, Padme was talking about the issues of the working system and Anakin suggested a way to fix those inconsistencies.

Here we can already see Palpatine´s hand in Anakin´s political perception but I believe we often forget there is another important body that influenced Anakin political pov´s in his younger years, when Anakin talked about "Someone wise should make them agree" he pretty much was describing Master Yoda and Windu role in most decisions of the Jedi Council when the Council didn´t agree on something.

So my guess is that Anakin was suggesting someone like Yoda and Palpatine supported this idea because it would make it easier to make the change from Yoda to himself.

Here Padme sees it as a dictatorship but I believe here Lucas didn´t really thought things too deeply, because there are Hereditary Monarchies in the Republic and her own role as Queen of Naboo had an almost absolute authority but well I disgress.

Anakin didn´t believe the the Senate needed to be taken down, in fact in ROTS he gets mad at Padme precisely because she was asking him to ask Palpatine to leave his emergency powers and Anakin believed that was something that had to be taken to the Senate instead of using Anakin´s apparent influence over Palpatine, which was non-existent but neither of them knew that.

My point is that Anakin himself wasn´t suggesting to take down the Senate or the Republic, his pov was that the system itself didn´t work as a system that actually got things done for the benefice of the people of the Republic. Anakin´s priority is to fix the system to get things done, not hold an ambigous ideal that only exists for some people.

Lest remember Shmi´s words in TPM "The Republic doens´t exist out there, we have to take care of ourselves"

This was Anakin´s early relationship to the republic and all those diplomatic missions as a jedi in which he mostly helped the elite of each planet didn´t serve to convince him the republic was good for something other than serving the elite.

So while Padme and Obi-Wan saw the Republic as an ideal that could be fixed with time if only because that´s what they had to work with, Anakin thought that it´s alright to hold republican values, in fact he went to war for the whole "keeping the republic together" but this republic "Is functional?" "It works for what it says it works?" and the answer is no, the system is broken, something Padme found out in the first movie, when she saw how the occupation on her planet by the Federation could be ignored because of their influence and it would take months if not years to do something about it while the Senate discussed it but Padme as a Senator hoped to help fix it but then they were at war and there wasn´t time.

So in short, Padme and Obi-Wan see the Republic as something worth fighting for on itself on principle even when they knew the politicians of the senate often were trash while Anakin sees the republic as something that could be fixed but isn´t worth fighting for on itself if it really doesn´t seek to serve the people outside of a few elites. This is something that he understood because he was directly wronged by the dysfunction of the republic.

It isn´t coincidence Anakin as a general in the clone wars tried to serve not only the needs of official Republic allies but also citizens that just happened to be in the crossfire and didn´t have the means to defend themselves but also weren´t anyone´s priority. (Example: The farmers, Saw Guerrera, the slaves who were not allies of the republic trapped on Zigeria, etc) and on this Anakin showed he prefered the people, citizens to take matters into their own hands instead of having to depend of the Republic, Senate or Jedi to act. Just give them the tools to do it themselves.

Vader is the opposite, no longer trust the people to make the best choice but he believes of having order for everybody.

This is interesting because I don´t believe Padme or Obi-Wan ever took seriously Anakin´s political ideology and so they didn´t discuss it with him, they just expected him to support them because they were his wife and master respectively but they didn´t ask for his pov either and Anakin didn´t try to talk about this with them, only Palpatine seemed interested in his political ideas and so Anakin didn´t want to create conflict with people he considered family, it was easier to go along with them than fighting with them over the details.

So while I think he sometimes disliked Padme´s role as a senator for the time it took from them as a couple, he knew it was important for her and he wanted to be supportive, he definitely resented the republic and it´s politicians hypocrisy.

Now Vader is perfectly capable of discussing and getting mad with Palpatine over political issues, the main problem is that he is pretty much broken emotionally and so isn´t so willing anymore to try to make changes, just fix what little he sees he can fix but his perspective is a lot more authoritharian than it was when he was young. He belives if he had to fight some rebels to expand the Empire towards the outer rim, take down governments and give them a similar way of life to the core system, including education and work, he is totally going to do that. The end justifies the means for Vader

[dracowars]

luke figuring out reader's father is obi-wan. like, it would be so awkward talking to obi-wan's force ghost now, "how am i suppose to tell him you're my partner?" 😭😭

general kenobi | luke skywalker

pairing: luke x kenobi!reader

word count: 1,1k

summary: where luke finds out who y/n's father is

a/n: how my mind works: if obi-wan is y/n's father, then satine has to be her mother lmao (it's not mentioned!) there is just no other way for me

warnings: none

universe: star wars

"W-What did you just say?", Luke stutters, halting in his steps, his eyes growing wide while he looks at you as if you just turned into a rancor right before his eyes. Since he stopped you in the middle of your rant with this kind of expression on his face, you frown, not quite sure what he wants you to repeat since you just kept talking and talking.

"Uhm, I just said that we are going to carry out this mission without any problems..?", you say, but it sounds more like a question since you are feeling really unsure as his facial expression does not change. Judging by his big eyes and open mouth, this was apparently not the answer he was hoping for and even though you are confused, you can't help but find him especially cute right now.

Usually, Luke has a strict plan, always following every order, but right now it seems like there is no logical explanation for whatever is going on in his mind and you genuinely can't wait to know what caused this sudden change in his demeanour.

"N-No, no. I mean about your.. your father?", Luke tries again, but this time he actually seems like his mind has stopped spinning and he came back to the here and now, looking at you like you are the one acting weirdly. Which you definitely aren't, but you can't suppress a small giggle as he appears to hang on your every word in this moment. Now that he mentioned your father, you at least know what caught him off guard and you can hopefully help him.

"Oh, about that. Well, I basically only said that I will guide you the same way my father used to guide yours in the Clone Wars", you shrug nonchalantly, still not getting why this simple fact got him all messed up.

"And your father is...?"

"Obi-Wan Kenobi?", you finish his sentence, giving him the answer he has been waiting for. Suddenly, Luke's eyes grow even bigger - if that is even humanly possible - and now you are not sure if you may have actually turned into a rancor right in front of him. But no, you are still very much human and Luke is still very much acting weird.

"Luke? Are you alright? Do I need to call a medic?", you ask, actually concerned now that he hasn't answered you for at least two minutes. He is just standing in front of you, frowning as he seems to be connecting things in his head. The more you look at him, the more it dawns on you what your words might have to do with all of this.

"Wait, you didn't know?", you question, a more or less humourless chuckle leaving your lips as you can't believe that he actually did not know this very important fact about you. About you and who your father is.

"You only told me about your mother, really. And you never dropped any names! I knew your father was a Jedi but not that he was the Obi-Wan Kenobi!", Luke whisper-yells at you now, finally regaining his voice, looking like his whole view of the galaxy was shattered with this one single statement.

The way he runs his hand through his hair, ruffling through it, and how he bites down on his lower lip, finally breaks you and you erupt into a fit of laughter. He looks so cute, all flabbergasted and confused, that you just can't help yourself but to laugh at the weirdness of this situation. You would really like to say that you did talk about your very prominent father, but right now, you can't think of one moment where you actually dropped his name. And this makes you laugh even more and, slowly but surely, Luke starts to laugh too.

"May I introduce myself?", you manage to bring out after your laughter died down, hands on your hips as you try to catch your breath, feeling exhausted by all the laughing. "I'm Y/N Kenobi. At your service, General Skywalker."

Holding out your hand, you wait for him to place a gentle kiss on the back of it as part of your introduction, but Luke only shakes his head in amusement, still too caught up in his thoughts.

"You can't be serious, Y/N!", he almost reproaches you, running his hands over his face while sighing. Then, he takes a step closer, grabbing your hand and placing it against his chest as he leans in.

"How am I supposed to tell him that you are my partner? That we are a thing?", Luke whispers, but he is doing it so quietly as if he expects your father to listen in on every word, putting strong emphasis on his last words.

"I mean, that is not really my problem, is it?", you tease him, taking his proximity to you as a chance to place a soft kiss on his cheek, which riles him up even more. Caressing his cheek with one hand, you fix his disheveled hair with the other and smile your brightest smile at him while he apparently sees his life passing by.

"You are evil, you know that right?", Luke whines, pouting while you are enjoying this more than you probably should. But deep inside, you got a feeling that your father already knows about the two of you. You certainly did not talk to him about it, however, he has always been good at observing and you feel like this ability got even better since he became one with the Force.

"Just.. don't act like you did right now and you will be fine", you giggle, pinching his cheek before leaving a quick kiss on his lips. You catch his eye, wanting him to say something, anything, but all you see is utter fear. Only when you notice that he is looking at something behind you, you follow his stare and see your father, in all his Force ghost glory, making his way over to the both of you.

"Oh, is that Leia over there? I really need to talk to her about the mission", you lie with a bright smile on your lips and you squeeze Luke's hand to give him strength and support.

Completely frozen, he stands in front of you, but he somehow manages to take a deep breath after a few seconds to mentally prepare himself for what is about to come. The strongest Jedi you know nearly gets defeated by a simple conversation with your father, his master.

"I will leave you two alone then", you say your goodbye, waving to your father who is coming closer as you two talk, and make your way to actually find Leia. Turning around one last time, you give your boyfriend a thumbs up which he only replies to with a small smile.

Luke Skywalker is a great fighter, a Jedi who always finds a way out, who always has a plan, who can face the strongest opponent, but the one person he can't face right now is your father. And when he does, as your boyfriend, it is not as bad as expected.

[antianakin]

Honestly felt like such a disservice to Ezra "I Will Risk My Life For People I Just Met" Bridger. The "I will solo confront Thrawn and 3 ships worth of troops on the slim chance my plan works" to not even try to AT LEAST scout out Thrawn's stuff. You seriously can't tell me someone who spent a good chunk of their life sneaking around and stealing couldn't do that especially with the reduced numbers present. The literal best part of the finale was him getting the emitter similar to Kanan but where the fuck did the crystal come from

Yeah, I questioned the fact that Ezra had apparently been doing NOTHING but moving around with the Noti for the last decade. He just says it's suicide to try to get anywhere near, but... it does feel like a disservice that he couldn't do ANYTHING AT ALL and would've been nicer if he could've had more info on hand to pass off.

The entire sequence of them breaking in just felt like a video game where you defeat one group of enemies and then something happens and now you have a new obstacle and then there's a mini-boss and then and then and then. They're not utilizing any of the information they DO have on hand (like ANY of their experience with Dathomir and the Nightsisters and zombies). I dunno, it didn't feel all that interesting or unique to me as an action sequence, either. And having Ezra have more knowledge of what might be coming because he'd broken in a few times but perhaps not made it all the way or had to fight zombies a few times or something could've helped with that particular issue.

I'm actually less fussed about where the crystal came from than I am about having Kanan's emitter. Because Jedi just kind-of... acquiring kyber crystals randomly is at this point a fairly time-honored tradition. Luke gets a new green lightsaber pretty randomly in ROTJ and while I think it gets explained away as having been via supplies Obi-Wan had in a deleted scene (a quick Google search tells me that Legends apparently said it was a synthetic crystal but that the concept of a synthetic kyber crystal no longer exists so, it still begs the question of where OBI-WAN got a random kyber crystal from). And Ezra himself does exactly the same thing in Rebels back when he lost his blaster saber at the end of season 2 and magically has a new green saber at the beginning of season 3 without a SINGLE explanation of where it came from (he can't go back to the Lothal temple at that point anymore and we never see him grab any of the lightsabers from the dead Jedi on Malachor).

So. Whatever. Sure. He found a kyber crystal on Peridea somewhere, fine.

But using Kanan's emitter (and the added salt in the wound of the blade being BLUE now) just felt like lazy nostalgia bait to me. This is going to sound really insensitive and rude and insulting and I'm really sorry, this isn't aimed at you specifically, I don't think you're stupid for liking this moment, I just didn't care for it and my thoughts below are going to edge into a rant about how frustrated I am with the way this show has gone and why this moment doesn't work for me.

I want Ezra to be able to have his OWN blade still, I want him to be able to have something unique to him that reflects the experiences he's had in this new galaxy, I wanted them do something new and unique and interesting and instead they just... basically gave him Kanan's saber. Like yeah he constructed it to be new, but it's blue and it's the same distinctive emitter so it may as well just be Kanan's saber. It creates emotions because it's Kanan's saber, but personally this just felt like yet another moment where they relied entirely on nostalgia for Rebels to make the moment emotional rather than doing any real work to make the moment emotional or interesting or develop Ezra's character in any way at all. They've barely mentioned Kanan ONCE up until this episode and just as a quick throw away line to explain that Jacen might have special powers. There's nothing from Hera, or Jacen, or Sabine, or even EZRA prior to this moment that really creates any tension or emotion around Kanan's character and his loss, so this moment where Ezra just recreates Kanan's saber feels... hollow. Empty.

And given that this whole show's theme was about how great attachments are and how clinging to your loved ones is actually the only good thing to do in life, it felt a little frustrating to have Ezra recreate Kanan's saber. It SHOULD feel like Ezra trying to honor Kanan in some way and do this as a healthy remembrance of Kanan, but given the way they're acting towards Ahsoka's memories of Anakin and Sabine's choices regarding Ezra, it starts to feel more like Ezra refusing to just let go of Kanan and allow Kanan's legacy to be the things he taught Ezra. Ahsoka is DEFINED by Anakin and that relationship and so now Ezra's Jedi weapon also is defined by his master, one of the few things a Jedi has to truly identify themselves with.

We're not getting this nice message of "the master passes on everything they've learned to their student, but the student still goes their own way" so much as we're getting this really weird like... "masters and apprentices are intrinsically tied to each other for life and are the most important relationship either of them will ever have to another person and it defines who you become" kind of message. And I don't really care for it. And I think my frustration with that message took what COULD'VE been a nice homage to Kanan and made it into a symptom of something I just didn't like.

And I'll connect it to the problem you brought up first about how it felt out of character for Ezra not to be able to sneak onto the base to do any kind of recon or to try to take out Thrawn on his own at all. They don't WANT to explore Ezra as his own character any more than they want to explore Ahsoka as her own character or Sabine as her own character. Ahsoka and Sabine are just proxies for Anakin, they're variations of "Anakin as he should've been." Sabine and Ahsoka make all the same mistakes so that Ahsoka can sit there and go "Actually Anakin was always right and he was a good master and I'm going to act exactly like him except somehow without any of the genocide or enslavement bits."

Ezra I think is having a similar problem where I don't think they really CARE about who Ezra is as a character to delving that deeply into his psyche and how this time would have actually changed or impacted him or what his relationship with Kanan means to him. Ezra is just... there to be the catalyst through which to have Sabine act like Anakin so that Ahsoka can think about Anakin. So they're not trying to make Ezra act in character, they don't CARE that Ezra should be able to connect to the Howlers because space wolves are kind-of Ezra's THING. They don't CARE that Ezra should be able to sneak onto Thrawn's base because that's a major element of his character. They don't CARE about giving Ezra a unique lightsaber to explore who he is now as a person after all of this time. That's not the point of having Ezra on this show. Ezra is a means to an end and just yet another piece of nostalgia bait basically.

The thing I've said about most Star Wars media beyond the main 6 films is that it's all fan service, right? There's nothing INHERENTLY wrong with fan service or nostalgia bait. A lot of the stuff I genuinely love also does a lot of both. Rogue One, Andor, Obi-Wan Kenobi, even Rebels itself. The thing is, I happened to be the fan that those pieces of media were servicing. So I'm going to be able to watch them and let go of what little frustrations might exist as just nitpicks rather than things that make me give up on it as a lost cause entirely. I am NOT the fan being serviced in the Ahsoka show. At all. There isn't a single thing in this show that is aimed at a fan like me. There is NOTHING FOR ME on this show at all. So all of the little fan service-y nostalgia bait moments aren't hitting because I'm just continuously getting frustrated by it over and over and not getting even any real glimmers of like... "aw, that was nice though." Even the "nice" moments get slotted into the wider patterns of this show that I don't like.

So hey, the nostalgia bait of Kanan's saber probably worked for a lot of people and honestly, I'm glad it did. I'm glad there were people who got to really enjoy seeing Ezra recreate Kanan's saber as a nice homage to the character and their relationship. I'm glad there were some people who got to enjoy even this small part of this show.

I just... can't. I wanted more and I didn't get it.

[laughhardrunfastbekindsblog]

Shortly after the third episode of Acolyte dropped, a friend (who wasn't watching the show) said she probably wouldn't bother watching it because her brother told her the show was ruining everything that's been established about the Force and that it's implying the Jedi are wrong/evil.

I had gotten wind of some complaints like this being found on social media, but the fact that I was hearing this take first-hand from someone I know well kinda floored me.

Just today I came across a thoughtful discussion on Reddit about how both TLJ and Acolyte explore the idea of perspective and presenting opposing viewpoints (I would submit that Bad Batch does an exceptional job with this as well, even if it's not one of the main aims of the show), and this made me want to put some thoughts down on virtual "paper."

SPECIFIC ACOLYTE SPOILERS BELOW.

1) It seems some people somehow can't accept the heroes actually making mistakes and being called out on it in the story. Like, there's no room for gray areas and nuance. (This trend became especially apparent to me after TLJ first released.)

For example, I love the Jedi and think their basic beliefs, including their adherence to the Light Side, are absolutely correct. I also see how flawed the Jedi Order itself became by the time of the prequels, and also know that the Jedi themselves are flawed (of course they are!). Most of the Jedi are trying to do the right thing, but that doesn't mean they won't make mistakes. And it's painful sometimes to watch them make mistakes, but their intentions are still good and ultimately they are the heroes to root for, especially when they're up against the sheer selfishness and power-hungry machinations of the Sith in particular.

Somehow, though, Luke igniting his lightsaber in a desperate moment of weakness means Luke's character is absolutely ruined, no chance for redemption. It doesn't matter that it was a fleeting thought and Luke didn't actually act on it, just the thought is enough to condemn not only him but also the creators for daring to make Luke Skywalker anything less than a flawless hero.

Somehow, The Acolyte presenting a group of people who view/describe the Force differently than the Jedi do, and then spending equal time showing their perspective/justifications/flaws just as much as they show the Jedi's perspective/justifications/flaws, means the show is ruining the Force and obviously hates the Jedi.

It ends up that some of the discussion around who was right/wrong, that the Jedi should/shouldn't have done what they did, and that the coven should/shouldn't have done what they did tends to become inflammatory because some people won't accept that most of the characters are flawed and make mistakes and are just trying to do the best they can with the knowledge they have. (I say "most" characters, because Qimir is just straight up evil and there's no debate about that. He killed Jecki and referred to her as "it." Enough said.)

2) Another thing to consider is that, on the macro level, the stories themselves still are VERY much about good vs evil. No matter how much backstory is given to the "evil" characters or how sympathetically they are portrayed, at the end of the day very few of us root for the Sith or Imperial types to actually be in charge of the galaxy, we still want Jedi/Light Side Force users and Republics and independent systems with some semblance of democratic governments to win out. It's at the micro level that individual characters - both the good guys and the bad guys - are portrayed with more nuance to where the good guys make mistakes and the bad guys are granted some level of humanity to where we might see parts of ourselves portrayed in them (even if it's as simple as "there, but for the grace of God, go I"). Yet somehow some fans seem to take issue with this depiction of the heroes/villains and conflate it to mean the overall story somehow isn't ultimately about good vs evil. Even for stories like Acolyte that I consider to be villain origin stories, I don't think most of the audience WANTED Osha to kill Sol or join Qimir; regardless of why she did it, we still are guided to recognize that giving in to hatred and revenge is not a "good" thing. This show doesn't paint the Jedi Order as the "bad guys." It does thoughtfully depict both sides of the conflict as having both flaws and virtues (well... everyone except Qimir. He's just evil.) And it does depict the gradations of gray that come with making decisions with wide-spread ramifications that also involve other people with varying motives needing to make decisions as well.

3) Ironically, if a project doesn't depict a good guy as having notable flaws or a bad guy as having some semblance of sympathetic characteristics, we then get the accusations of characters being Mary Sues or one-dimensional or "flat." So there's just no way to win here.

[ghostofskywalker]

You Would Have Thought This Heist Would Have Been Slightly More Thought Out, Given The Circumstances

The Bad Batch & Reader (Platonic)

Words: 2,161

Summary: Hunter has to sit out on an assignment because of an injury, and it becomes remarkably clear to everyone else that the position of "voice of reason" is not something that can be replaced, especially not when you're there.

Requested By: anonymous

@clonexreaderbingo square: "let me do the talking"

Note: i hope this fulfills your request for "shenanigans, tomfoolery, japes, [and] mischief" anon!!

Clone Troopers Masterlist

You should have known things would go wrong the second Wrecker accidentally stepped on the ceramic tooka that sat outside the house you had to try and break into. The shattering of the delicate material cut through the silence of the night, and the entire team stopped in their tracks, wondering if this was going to be the thing that ruined the entire operation.

But it seemed that the man you were tasked to steal from was slumbering on, so you were safe for now.

Actually, you should have known something was up when Cid’s intel was incorrect. This assignment was all because of her, as you were being tasked to steal an artifact from a rival of hers here on Ord Mantell. Rel Fastom was a brute and a cheat, so you had no qualms about doing something that was less than legal (even though Ord Mantell was not a perfect upstanding society).

There was just two issues.

One was that along with being a brute and a cheat, this man was incredibly paranoid. Whatever you were being tasked to steal must be incredibly valuable, because when Tech managed to crack the code on his casino, the artifact was not where Cid said Fastom would be displaying it.

“Are we sure it’s not somewhere here and we’re just missing something?” Echo asked as the team began to search the building.

“I’m sure,” Crosshair had said, annoyed. He was still getting used to the way that things were were now, and you didn’t think he trusted Cid as much as the rest of you (and you didn’t even trust her that much). “What the hell is thing thing anyway?”

“Apparently, it is a jeweled scepter,” Tech said. “The central stone is said to have been formed from kyber, though it doesn’t have the same properties as what powers a Jedi’s lightsaber.”

You raised your eyebrows. “A jeweled scepter? What is this guy, a character in a bad holofilm? And why does Cid want it anyway?”

“Apparently she was supposed to buy it, but Fastom beat her out at the last second by doubling his offer.”

“That’s great, but we need to focus on the real issue here,” Wrecker said. “The fact that it’s not where we were told it would be.”

And of course, the other issue was that you did not have a full team for this heist. Hunter had been shot been injured on a team mission about a week ago, and was in no way healthy enough to be here. It was both a blessing and a curse that he was currently sleeping soundly and not taking part in a clandestine heist with the rest of you. The good part was that he was actually healing and wouldn’t prolong his injuries by going with you, but on the other hand, the team was now severely lacking in impulse control. You were just thankful that Omega had agreed to stay back and hadn’t come along, because you knew that if something went wrong, Hunter would be much angrier with you if Omega was accidentally put in harm’s way.

“I have an idea of where we might find what we’re looking for, but it won’t be easy,” Tech said as he recalibrated the lock on the nightclub that you had just broken into and the five of you stepped back into the night air. “If this man is as paranoid as I believe he is, then it’s likely the scepter we’re looking for can be found in his personal residence.”

“So what do we do?” Echo asked. “Breaking into someone’s house wasn’t in the job description, and it’s much more dangerous if we get caught.”

Crosshair shrugged. “It’s the middle of the night, I say we at least try to get it,” he drawled. “And then we can force Cid to double the pay.”

The sniper’s suggestion got Echo to pause. It seemed that the rest of the team was at least willing to give this crazy idea a shot, but Echo was the one most likely to have some reservations. Although their debt had been wiped out by Omega’s surprising skills, they still needed all the money they could get. The goal was to eventually be able to settle down somewhere and not have to live out the rest of your lives as muscle for hire, and those extra credits would go a long way in helping make that dream a little more attainable. “Fine,” he said. “But if we get caught, let me do the talking.”

***

Even though the house was now one ceramic tooka down, at least Tech was able to work his magic on the lock, and you didn’t have to resort to breaking down the door. Now you were faced with a new problem: finding the thing you came for (and of course, stealing it without being caught).

Both of those things would be easier if there was actually a plan in place, but this had been a decision made on a whim and a half-hearted hope, none of you actually knew what to when you made it here. It was now that you were starting to regret not having Hunter here, because things would be way easier if he suddenly started handing out orders and always listening for the sounds of a stirring casino owner. Tech signaled that you should all split up, and a group nod meant that everyone understood.

The first place you looked was the kitchen, which was (predictably) well stocked with wine and other liquors. You were staring at a particularly expensive bottle and wondering if you could fit it in your bag without the fear of it leaking all over the place when Crosshair walked in. “You had the same idea I see,” he said quietly. “I can’t find this thing anywhere.”

You shrugged. “I figure that either Tech or Echo will find it. Wanna raid this guy’s chiller in the meantime?”

Crosshair nodded, and he kept watch while you rooted through the high-quality food that was sitting unguarded in the chiller. Some of this stuff you’d only heard about in stories because of its rarity, and yet here it was, in copious amounts and ripe for the taking. You took a few round fruits out of a package and tossed one to Crosshair, both of you taking a bite at the same time.

“Where can we get these?” you wondered aloud, absolutely enamored with the sweet and slightly tart sphere you were holding.

“I don’t think we would be able to afford these,” was Crosshair’s response. You nodded, knowing that this man probably had access to things you could only ever dream of. Even before the end of the war and the collapse of the Republic, luxuries like this were never something you had access to. “Is there anything else in there?” Crosshair asked as you put away the container of fruit.

You had were just about to suggest that the two of you indulge in pieces of the rather large cake that was currently residing in the chiller, but the sound of your comm device crackling to life cut you off. “Where are you?” Echo asked, his voice slightly crackly through the channel.

“Crosshair and I are in the kitchen,” you said. “You guys should come check it out, this guy has great taste in food.”

“I thought you were supposed to be looking for the artifact!”

“What? it seemed like the rest of you had things under control.”

Echo sighed, and you could almost feel the waves of disappointment coming from him, despite the fact that you weren’t even in the same room. “We found the artifact,” he said, not responding to your statement (but proving its validity all the same).

“Great, so we can get out of here?” Crosshair asked, walking over to speak into your comm device.

“Not exactly.”

“So what’s the holdup?”

“You’ll see, come on.”

Echo directed you to the stairs, where he, Tech, and Wrecker had gathered about halfway up. Crosshair broke the silence first. “What’s the big deal?”

Tech pointed at the door, and you pushed it slightly open to see Rel Fastom’s sleeping form, clutching what looked suspiciously like what you were supposed to be here for. “Oh,” you said, as you and Crosshair turned around to face the rest of the team. “That’s certainly a wrinkle in the plan.”

Wrecker nodded. “How are we going to get it?” he asked.

Now, here’s where you probably should have stepped back and returned home. No one would fault you for knowing your limits, and a new plan could be devised if Cid still wanted to move forward.

But of course that’s not what happened, because you had an idea.

In your head it was an idea that was just crazy enough it might work, but in reality “might” was probably a generous estimation there. Either way, you didn’t even take the time to explain, telling the rest of the team that they needed to have the ship ready to take off. The idea was that once you got the signal, you would gently remove the scepter from Falstom’s arms and just hope he didn’t wake up until after the Marauder had returned to hyperspace. But you didn’t tell them the whole plan, specifically so no one tried to talk you out of it.

Like most of the half-baked plans you came up with when traveling with the Bad Batch, this one seemed like it was going to work for the first minute it was taking place. The rest of the team headed out to the ship, and once you heard the sound of the engine powering up through the comms you creeped into the bedroom, trying not to think about how much you didn’t want to be there.

If you were being honest, the scepter was an ugly thing, and in no way worth this kind of trouble. But you, like the rest of the Bad Batch, had no money of your own and were faced with nothing but consistent struggle in the cruel reality that had taken shape in the days since the fall of the Republic, so you had no choice if you wanted the money.

And of course, the galaxy was never going to be kind enough to let you get away with this unscathed. Fastom did not take long to start throwing punches when he woke up and realized what was going on. You were thankful that the room was dark and it was highly unlikely that your identity would be at risk, but this was still not how you wanted to spend your time right now.

He might have been taller, but you had a small advantage in your sheer desire to get the kriff out of this situation. It wasn’t much though, because even after you threw the man against the wall, he hadn’t yet yielded the artifact (or been knocked unconscious).

Or, at least not until a stun bolt flew through the air behind you and sent your opponent careening to the ground.

You turned around, shocked to see Crosshair standing in the doorway. “Your plan wasn’t very good,” he said. “Get the thing and let’s get out of here.” Grabbing the scepter off the ground, you followed Crosshair out to the ship, and soon you were basking in the relative safety of hyperspace. Bypassing a lecture from Echo, you hid away in your bunk, pretending to tend to an injury you didn’t have.

You had no regrets in your decision. If the situation came down to it, you would put yourself in harms way every single time if it meant that you would be helping the rest of the crew. Because even though you’ve sometimes helped to save them from harm, they saved you in a more meaningful way by simply allowing you to travel with them (and becoming the closest thing you had to a family), and you wouldn’t have it any other way.

Cid didn’t question your ambiguous story about why the assignment took you longer than expected, but it seemed that Hunter did. When your employer left to put the new prize on display in her office, and Tech, Wrecker, and Echo left to get some rest, he stared at you and Crosshair with a questioning expression. “You just had to stop and refuel, huh? There wasn’t any trouble with the assignment?”

“Of course not!” you jumped in, knowing that Crosshair wasn’t going to contradict your statement. “Did you really not trust us to do something so simple?”

The sergeant’s expression shifted, and it was clear that he didn’t seem to believe you, but he didn’t push the topic. Next time you did an assignment like this, you decided, it would probably be better if the whole team was present.

Even if you knew Hunter would never let you raid someone’s chiller in the middle of a stealth operation. 

- the end -

i no longer have a taglist! if you're interested in being notified when i post, you can follow my library blog @ghostofskywalker-library and turn on notifications!

[eomereadig]

Snippet: Nursemaid

Written for the prompt “reluctant caretaker” for @whumpril! This is also my final prompt!

Fandom: Star Wars

Pairing: Obi-Wan Kenobi & Darth Maul

Rating: T

Tags: sick fic, sick Obi-Wan Kenobi, care taker Maul, Obi-Wan Kenobi whump, kidnapping, but also humour, protective brother Savage, caretaking, sponge baths. pre relationship

Full fic now avaliable here

He’d been kidnapped - that much was obvious. Why he’d been given the luxury of a bed, though, was still a mystery to him. Obi-Wan desperately tried not to consider the darker implications of that fact, not wanting to reignite the panic that he was barely keeping at bay. 

The Jedi did his best to peer around the room, though he could see little lying as he was. Even as alert as he could be, Obi-Wan’s mind still felt slow and soupy, his vision blurred as he couldn’t rub his eyes. 

It certainly didn’t look like a prison cell. 

It looked more like… more like a bedroom. Albeit, barely used. There were personal items dotted around the utilitarian space - a black robe here, some mechanical equipment there, a belt slung somewhere else. Reason told Obi-Wan that there was good chance this was his captor’s bedroom. How amateur. Aside from that sickening thought in the back of his head again, Obi-Wan wasn’t able to ascertain much else. 

He reached out into the force, both to try and ground himself and get rid of this infernal headache but also to try and sense his captor - to see if they were close by. 

Only, any time he tried, the force seemed to slip through Obi-Wan’s fingers - there but wholly unable to grasp. 

Shit, the cuffs must have been force-suppressors. Perhaps his kidnapper wasn’t an amateur after all. Whoever they were, they likely understood the risks that came with capturing a Jedi - even if he was being kept in someone’s bedroom. 

With each small piece of information Obi-Wan gathered, things made less and less sense. 

Able to get glaringly little other than that from his environment, he cast his mind back to the last thing he remembered, instead. 

He had been on leave, he knew that much - checking out some of the local establishments on Alderaan that Bail had recommended along with some officers from the 212th. Unlike the clones, Obi-Wan hadn’t really been drinking. He had been feeling under the weather for the past few rotations, but after some persuasion from Waxer and Boil, had come along with them anyway. Cody would have been willing to stay behind and keep Obi-Wan company in his bunk room, perhaps play nursemaid a little, but the Jedi knew he would have much rather have been out with his men. 

And so, Obi-Wan had gone along. Needless to say, he was regretting that now. 

The last thing he remembered was leaving the first bar to head to the second on their mental lists - one that Bail apparently swore by. He’d been lagging behind the clones, his nausea and dizziness steadily growing the longer he was out. 

When Obi-Wan focused, he could recall the back of someone’s head - a yellow zabrak, he thought. Familiar… yet he couldn’t place where. All he knew was that something had niggled in the back of his mind and Obi-Wan had stumbled to follow them into an alley. 

After that, everything was blank. 

The zabrak in question was likely his kidnapper, then. 

That fact came with a host of pros and cons. On one hand, it was good as they were near human so wouldn’t accidently kill him (he hoped). They’d feed him the right things and would likely know how long he could go without water, for example. But then again, Obi-Wan had met enough zabraks to understand their less than savoury quirks. Avoiding angering them would be difficult, even if the Jedi gave it his best shot. They were instinct-driven and volatile by nature, unpredictable even with their strict sense of honour which rarely seemed to align with Obi-Wan’s own. They were similar in a lot of ways to the nomad Mandalorians he’d met, so Obi-Wan knew he’d have to keep his jokes and flirting to a minimum to avoid making his already precarious situation even worse. 

Obi-Wan sighed heavily and tried as best as he could to relax back onto the uncomfortable mattress. Even though he’d calmed himself, his head still pounded something fierce. 

What he wouldn’t have done for a glass of water…

[wantonlywindswept]

another captive prime bit

captive prime tag | last bit

wrote lil bit more

---

Jango was only upright through sheer, stubborn determination, and the fact that if he laid down, he wasn't sure he'd be able to get back up.

"Where I go, he goes," he rasped, choosing to ignore the title that he hadn't deserved in a very long time. From what he'd gathered from being able to access the holonet for the first time in four years, even the idea of a Mand'alor had been wiped out of collective Mandalorian memory.

"Sit down," he added.

Mace Windu, Master of the Jedi Order, inclined his head. He sat down gracefully in the sole chair in the corner, gaze never leaving Jango's as he settled his robes around him. His lightsaber he kept in clear view, clipped to his hip, and Jango had to fight down nausea just from seeing one of those cursed weapons again.

Or maybe that was the drug withdrawal. He had no idea what the Kaminoans had mainlined into his veins all these years, and the brave boys that broke him out hadn't known--or more likely, hadn't been able--to pack any medical supplies on the Slave I. There was only what was left in the medkit from four years ago, expired rations and dusty hyposprays that Jango had nevertheless risked using.

The boys...they hadn't been any of his Alphas, who he'd taught under close supervision with a collar around his neck. Probably CC-class, going by their abilities and apparent ages.

He didn't even know their numbers, much less their names. They'd saved him and he had no idea who they were, if they were even alright--

"Are you alright, Mand'alor?"

Jango struggled to focus, Windu's quiet inquiry dragging his meandering thoughts back to the present. He inhaled a shaky breath and lowered the blaster.

The boys. That's why he was here.

"I need your help."

[lajulie24]

jaina solo is mary sue

What an interesting assertion to leave in my inbox! Especially because without context it’s not entirely clear whether that’s meant to be a question (do I think Jaina Solo is a Mary Sue?) or a challenge (e.g. “Jaina Solo is a Mary Sue, prove me wrong”).

And, assuming we conclude this statement is true, is that supposed to be a bad thing? If Jaina is a Mary Sue, am I not allowed to like her as a character? Or is she supposed to be my guilty pleasure or something if I do like her? (I don’t really have guilty pleasures, anyway, I prefer just to have pleasures.) I do have lots of thoughts, so thank you in advance, dear Anon, for the ask and the opportunity to share them.

At this point I will freely admit that I have not read a ton of Jaina Solo stuff in Legends. A lot of Wookieepedia articles and fics in which she appears, yes, a lot of the actual books in which she appears, no. I do have a version of the character that I put into my Sequel Trilogy fix-it fic series, but she has some significant differences from her Legends canon counterpart (a couple big ones being that her turned-to-the-Dark-Side brother isn’t her twin, and she’s the younger sister by quite a lot).

However, being around the fandom one does glean some general opinions, so I’ll take a shot at talking about “Jaina Solo is a Mary Sue.” Buckle up, I’m going to be very wordy here.

I really recommend the @thisweekinfandomhistory podcast episode they did on the concept of “the Mary Sue” — it’s a great rundown of where the concept came from, how it evolved over time, how it has affected fanfiction writing as well as mainstream characters in books, TV, and film, and some of the not-so-subtle ways it’s been used to police how we write or how we enjoy femme-presenting characters. The general concept of the Mary Sue is of a (almost always female) character who is sort of a blatant self-insert, where they have all kinds of amazing skills or powers, and are so attractive that everyone is in love with them or wants to be their friend, and they’re friends with all the main characters, and the story sort of starts being about how awesome they are, they saved the day and everyone clapped. The idea is that writing a Mary Sue into your story makes your story terrible and boring and they’re just a flat character who sucks. I think.

So — Jaina Solo. In Legends canon she is:

Strongly connected to main characters we know and love (eldest child and only daughter of Han Solo and Leia Organa and niece of Luke Skywalker)

Extremely strong in the Force and a Jedi with the crazy Skywalker-brand Force lineage

An incredible pilot and very mechanically savvy as well (also probably helped out by the whole extremely-Force-sensitive thing as well as having at least two incredible pilots in the family)

Able to speak Shryiiwook (makes sense given that Chewie is her father’s best friend, has a life debt to her father, and is pretty much part of the family)

Very attractive (some combo of her mother’s and her father’s good looks, probably more so Leia’s)

Everyone is in love with her (there is an ongoing war among various love interests, including Jagged Fel, Zekk, and Kyp Durron, plus Ta’Chume once tried to marry her off to Isolder when his wife (also the mother of Jaina’s close friend Tenel Ka) was still alive and very much still married to him)

Super-special because of her twin bond with Jacen and being the Sword of the Jedi and having the Vong think she was their trickster goddess

Okay, so there could be some ingredients here that point to Mary Sue for Jaina, particularly the “she’s extremely skilled and the best at all these things” and “everyone is fighting over her affections” business. I would argue the fight of Jaina’s love interests is less about Jaina and more about the fact that in the era many of those books were written, apparently the only way they knew to give women conflict was to a) have them fight with other women (this is a problem they gave Leia a lot too) or b) have them worry about which man they should choose. Or the typical back and forth among authors who had competing love interests and wanted theirs to win. (Side note: Jaina and Tenel Ka should have gotten together at least for a while. Or Jaina should have pulled a Kelly Taylor from 90210 and said “I choose me.”)

Here’s the thing about Jaina having mad skills at multiple things, though. As you can see from most of the bullets above, her skills aren’t just out of the blue so someone could make an overpowered self-insert character. There are solid reasons for those skills. And why do we hear so much about her adventures and her skills? Well, the book series in which adolescent/adult Jaina appears are called Young Jedi Knights and The New Jedi Order. If she’s one of the titular Young Jedi Knights, or a member of the New Jedi Order, she’s one of the beings the book is about! And honestly, however you feel about those series, you’re gonna have a bad time if the whole New Jedi Order series is about Jedi who have no skills and always lose and suck.

Hey, you know who else has a lot of skills and is an excellent pilot and does crazy bonkers things with the Force and often comes and saves the day and has lots of love interests in Legends? Luke Skywalker. Is Luke a Mary Sue? (Well, he’s a man. Being a Mary Sue is apparently reserved for women. So I guess not.)

I don’t think Jaina is a Mary Sue, but let’s say she is and go back to my earlier point: so what?

Women are not exactly featured in the Star Wars universe. My girl Leia is a main character, but there are more women dancing for a Hutt in Return of the Jedi than actually have speaking lines in the original trilogy. (The minuscule number of humans of color in the Star Wars universe is a whole other issue, so blatant that SNL once did a skit about it featuring Lando.)

Maybe we get to have a female character who is beautiful and smart, crazy powerful in the Force, a kickass Jedi, an ace pilot with more kills at nineteen than several of the Rogues put together, who brings all the boys to the yard. (And probably plenty of beings of other genders, let’s be real.) Who is Han Solo and Leia Organa’s beloved daughter, Luke Skywalker’s beloved niece, Chewbacca’s beloved family, Jacen and Anakin’s beloved sister, Mara Jade’s beloved niece and Jedi apprentice, friend to many. Who struggles with her identity and her purpose, who grieves, who grapples with the Dark Side, who worries about winning peace for the galaxy but ending up alone in her life. Maybe I want to read about and write her adventures — which could, yes, include which being she ends up with romantically. Maybe I put a little of myself in there, or a lot of myself, or what I’d want to be if I had even half the talents she has and lived in the Star Wars universe.

Maybe we get to have a kickass Organa-Solo daughter with a purple lightsaber, as a treat. And maybe we get to have as many treats as we want.

TL;DR: “jaina solo is a mary sue�� 1. No, she isn’t. 2. Maybe she is, and maybe that’s okay. Great, even.

Congratulations if you waded through this whole thing, Anon, and thank you for the very intriguing ask!

[eriexplosion]

God IDK if I'm prepared for Solitary Clone again tbh

Weak for the design of Desix really, I just love this fully enclosed city style thing

And GOD am I weak for Tawni Ames, like. My lady. I'm particularly weak for her in her mask with the voice modulation. Forget taking the dude hostage she should have just shot him. I had to look up his name (Grotton) because I refuse to call him the governor he's just some bitch that showed up suddenly.

CROSSHAIR THOUGH. THERE HE IS. He somehow looks even worse than Return to Kamino and several months (presumably) of recovery from his 32 rotations on an open platform. Terrified to think of what he looked like right when they found him.

The food has upgraded, now instead of merely 'cylinder' we also have 'Drumstick' and 'orb' not that Crosshair gets to eat any of them.

God I'm sorry it is so funny to me that Crosshair has managed to get less popular like it's awful for him obviously but like. He was always dreadfully unpopular HOW did it get worse?

I have a working theory that it's perceived favoritism. Like, he apparently has a bare box for a room and he sleeps on a slab without a blanket but it IS a private room. He gets called on personally by the Admiral, even though the audience knows it's pretty much just to be disrespected. They didn't bother going back for him on Kamino for 32 days but they DID go back for him and that's more than most clones get.

Alternate theory is that his vibes are just that bad because he's so desperate and lonely. Poor bastard sits silently at the end of the table and STILL gets abandonoed.

The way that Crosshair spends so much of this season in a variety of depression jammies

Rampart just casually like BTW HOW LONG DID WE LEAVE YOU FOR DEAD? JUST REMIND ME. I WANT TO KNOW WHY YOU'RE SO DESPERATE THAT YOU'RE STICKING WITH US AFTER THAT.

Seriously the fact that he can be like 'wow this clone is so loyal he forgave us for leaving him for dead' and instead of appreciating what he has he has to needle Crosshair about it. Just. "Left for dead and yet you still came back... why?" Smug faced bastard man.

"I'm a soldier of the Empire" because "I LITERALLY REJECTED EVERYTHING ELSE I HAD FOR THIS I DON'T HAVE ANY OTHER OPTIONS" doesn't play as well.

I really want the batch to know about this but I don't think he'd ever tell them. If there's one thing Crosshair is good at it's, for whatever personal reasons, choosing to present himself in the most unsympathetic fashion possible at every opportunity.

I wonder again if Crosshair was ever officially promoted. He still has a CT prefix rather than CC, and Rampart's super casual about putting him under someone else's command, referring to it as 'not ready to play commander again' it's like the entire title was just a good behavior courtesy rather than an actual promotion and so no official changes have had to be made. And now it's clear that Crosshair doesn't need good behavior courtesies or in fact any courtesy whatsoever to try desperately for approval, so why bother?

Really thought that he'd act out more against Crosshair over the false report thing but there's something so funny about the fact that he was doing this LITERALLY just to be a bitch because Rampart just is like that.

CODY

Crosshair looking at Cody's exact markings skeptically until Cody pulls his helmet off because the color is just as important as the design. Why aren''t you YELLOW?

"You're lucky I was available." I love that it takes literally 1 second for Crosshair's completely deadpan snark to come back when faced with Cody because what was he doing before this other than being miserable in his box of a room?

Cody probably is surprised but not because the batch went AWOL but because Crosshair didn't go with them. He doesn't know about the chips and Crosshair was the LEAST likely to follow orders before, not the most. Cody's experiencing Opposite Day over here.

Goddddd the musical cue after 'then they're traitors, like the Jedi' as Cody realizes that Crosshair is NOT safe to pressure on this anymore. I don't think he'd ever actually turn Cody in tbh but Cody can't know that. He's seen a LOT of clones act in ways he never thought they would after all. He's acted in ways he never thought he would.

Crosshair really seems to have dropped his attitude about regs like he uses the word once but he's completely chill with the new squad. Downright chatty practically, he's even said MULTIPLE sentences.

"He saw it coming. The galactic empire." Yeah fun thing about that Tawni, he DID see it coming true because that was. The plan.

I do love that they give people multiple outlooks - Serennians hate Dooku for obvious reasons, on Desix they don't really know how corrupt he was, so Tawni is almost admiring of him. In the end, Dooku and the Republic were corrupted and everyone is suffering for it but they can only see their piece of it.

Can't be mad that Tawni shot them down, Crosshair was told to come here and shoot her pretty much so like, her instincts were Correct.

Off to check the crash for survivors of which there are several literally no crash has ever had no survivors in Star Wars apparently.

Crosshair is so excited to get to shoot things again finally something he's good at.

The way he says "Trust me" just damn. The voice. The voice is so good.

I'm still not over Crosshair sitting COMPLETELY STOCK STILL WHILE BEING SHOT AT, ZERO FLINCHING LIKE THE RISK OF SHRAPNEL ISN'T EVEN REAL. And the shot straight down the tanks barrel, GOD.

The way that if things went different in all of this Crosshair might have actually found some acceptance with a squad but since the universe demands that Crosshair be as miserable as humanly possible as often as possible, that is not to be.

Love how they actually made the droidekas intimidating by bringing them into such tight quarters. Also the sound design on their rolling is done FANTASTICALLY.

Still, RIP Wyler :c

Seeing the tactics play out is so good. Yes I know our boys are on the side of evil but you don't have all the facts. (I love them.)

CODY SCREAMING NOVA'S NAME WHILE CROSSHAIR HAS TO PULL HIM OUT OF RANGE OF THE EXPLOSION.

Stairwell Scene Stairwell Scene STAIRWELL SCENE. Genuinely loved how they framed the fighting here, sticking them into interesting locations where they get to use the environment just. Adore.

POV: you still haven't bothered to train your hand to hand skills

Just yeet the puck into the air it's fine Crosshair will manage it's good. This shot is so completely impossible and improbable but you know what's more important than that? It is extremely cool.

"Nice throw." "Nice shot."

TOO BAD THAT EVERYTHING IS ABOUT TO GO VERY BADLY INDEED

THE CALLBACK TO MINA BONTERI GETS ME

The thing is that Crosshair was ordered to kill Tawni like, straight up ordered to kill her, and yeah he still has his rifle raised at this point but he was letting her talk, he was letting Cody actually negotiate, and when he was told to lower his rifle he did.

I remember right after this came out there was a lot of things about how Crosshair was BLOODTHIRSTY and FINE WITH KILLING HER and like he didn't jump to the task, not even when Grotton ordered her execution, he didn't do anything until Cody was threatened with consequences.

Crosshair isn't bloodthirsty, but he will do anything for people he cares about, including taking a shot that he knows Cody never would before Grotton even finishes saying 'consequences for disobedience'

The way Cody tried so hard though just, I love him, I adore him. All he wanted was for everyone to get out of that room alive.

THE WORST PART IS I think Cody fully understands why Crosshair took the shot too. The timing is obvious. And that makes him feel worse, because he did NOT want anyone to die for his sake. He didn't want Crosshair to kill her for his sake either. This whole thing was just too much.

I feel like his last moment with Crosshair in front of the memorial was him still trying one last time to get through to him, let him have a chance to say anything that might make this better (or make it seem like Cody has the option of trying to get him to leave the Empire with him) and Crosshair failed THOROUGHLY by doubling down on orders.

They both have to live with their choices and it's agonizing actually I am in PAIN.

Crosshair lying awake all night and then staring at the helmet when he wakes up.

GOD I am never over the absolute venom in Crosshair's voice when he's forced to spit out Cody's CC number to get Rampart to acknowledge it. It's the way he never argues his own number or his own treatment, but disrespecting CODY is different.

Also Rampart looks completely Disgusted that clones are out here having names still after all this.

His face on 'Problem?' is the most punchable thing I have EVER looked at.

Anyway I really do want to see Cody again post going AWOL but I would also be fine if we don't catch up with him until significantly later and he shows up in Kenobi season 2 or something. Unlike many people did when this aired I don't think they ever wanted to imply anything other than that Cody did in fact go AWOL, so I don't think we'll be seeing him as a CX clone or anything.

God this episode is still so good.

[thecleverqueer]

Random Thoughts on Star Wars Ships (Part One)

First, I’m going to focus on toxic Star Wars ships that I absolutely despise. There are three. They are all canon. Some of them are more serious than others, but all of them are incredibly pernicious and problematic. To say they’re my “least favorite” would be selling my hatred of them short, but yeah… the word “loathe” comes to mind. They are as follows:

1.) Luxsoka (aka Ahsoka Tano and Lux Bonteri)

This is my least favorite ship of them all because watching it unfold at times was physically painful. Part of me doesn’t understand it, but the other part of me knows that it was likely just a tepid attempt by Filoni egged on by Lucas to make Ahsoka more relatable. It didn’t work.

I guess the premise didn’t start out too bad with “Heroes on Both Sides” aside from the fact that it sort of felt forced and completely unnecessary, but holy fuck did it go off the rails fast!

Lux’s behavior in “A Friend in Need” was completely unacceptable and inexcusable. I mean, less than 10 minutes into that episode, Lux is threatening to shoot Ahsoka with a deadly firearm, followed by him stunning her unconscious, stealing her ship, hiding her lightsabers from her, then meeting up with known terrorists with anti-Jedi sentiment and history of violence against Jedi. Then, there’s the unwanted kiss. He just sort of grabs her and kisses her against her will to shut her up. She tries to wiggle herself out of it, and when she finally succeeds you can tell she’s PISSED. Rightfully so. Technically, that’s sexual assault. The episode ends with Ahsoka somehow being more fond of him, I guess… I assume it’s related to trauma. I don’t know.

Anyway, the last time we see them together is in the Onderon arc, Lux has fallen for and appears to be in a romantic relationship with Steela Gerrera, and Ahsoka finds a way get over him, which, good for her. It takes two episodes (of a four episode arc) of her being completely insufferable, but she gets there. Ahsoka deserved better anyway. By the end of the arc, she sort of does this attaboy shoulder slug to Lux after Steela kisses him for luck. By that point, Ahsoka probably also found Steela to be pretty hot, and at least one of them got to kiss her. Steela should have kissed you, Ahsoka, but we can’t win them all.

Filoni basically said he was experimenting with this anyway, and I would say that this particular experiment was an abject failure. I’m just glad that it fizzed out before it ever became anything. It was trash. Utter fucking trash.

2.) Anidala (aka Anakin Skywalker and Padme Amidala)

This is another toxic relationship that I don’t really understand. No. I mean, I do get it. It’s a plot point that gets us to a specific place in a character’s development.

It’s unfortunate really. Padme is supposed to be this badass strong, independent woman, and yet, she blatantly ignores countless red flags during “Attack of the Clones” that should have made her turn away… Anakin being generally creepy, crossing her boundaries, frequently interrupting her, admitting to being a dictatorial fascist… I guess I could technically write all of that off because sometimes your brain short-circuits when you’re in love, and you miss red flags. But… genocide? That was a bridge too far. She should have ran. She should have reported the incident to the Jedi council, but she didn’t because she’s “in love” and actually just a prop.

Their relationship didn’t get much better during the Clone Wars. Anakin guilted her often when she chose duty over desire, something her role in the galaxy required. It was also pretty apparent that Anakin didn’t trust her as far as he could throw her based on the way he acted during the Rush Clovis arcs. There was a point where it felt like their relationship should have ended during season six. Padme needed a break, and told Anakin that she just couldn’t do it anymore after Anakin brutally beat the dog shit out of Clovis. But then, more trauma. Maybe the moral of the story is to avoid “romantic” relationships when you’re in the midst of a traumatic experience because it’s going to end badly, I don’t know.

Then he kills her in “Revenge of the Sith”. Well. He force chokes her and she dies of a broken heart… and then he proceeds to lose his shit, force crushing an entire room with overwhelming emotion (say what you will about the Jedi and their obsession with not forming attachments and overcoming feelings but… *gestures vaguely at this incident right here*).

It’s just an incredibly disastrous toxic sludge of a relationship. And, I know I was more vague about this one, but honestly, I could write a novel about it… so, I’ll spare you.

3.) Reylo (aka Rey Palpatine/Skywalker and Kylo Ren)

I hate this one too… mainly because Kylo tells Rey that she’s “nothing” except to him in “The Last Jedi” and that bothers me. This is something a narcissist might say to someone they’re abusing and gaslighting in an attempt to make them stick around, and that is just gross.

If Rey had actually been a nobody, it may have been less offensive, but she’s a fucking Palpatine. She’s not a nobody. Her grandfather (who isn’t actually her “grandfather” as her father was just a Palpatine clone, and goddamn, I’m going to need a better explanation for all of that shit because it just makes me dizzy, but I digress) was an oppressive emperor that reigned in terror for decades. She’s far from a nobody. In fact, Kylo’s grandfather (actual grandfather, not a clone) was Palpatine’s bitch. He should at least show her a little respect.

He was also generically mean to her during the entire sequel trilogy.

This one ended in death too, but at least it was Kylo’s and not Rey’s death. Again, Rey exhibited this weird mental exercise where she sees Kylo Ren and Ben Solo as two different people instead of them being one-in-the-same (much like the mental gymnastics that everyone does with Vader), so she tries to validate the whole thing. But, he’s an asshole too. She should have faced it.

[tarisilmarwen]

Rebels Rewatch: "Heroes of Mandalore"

Some familiar TCW faces as we close up the darksaber arc.

Live reaction version.

Sabine's transformation into co-protagonist is nearly complete, as it's the end of her darksaber arc that starts us out this season.

Also, you know, the Season Four trailers framing the whole of Rebels as the story of "A boy who was lost and a girl who was broken".

Not that I minded as it meant that Ezra and Sabine would be spending a lot of screentime together. :D

After not really touching on it in a while, Fenn Rau's courtesy hand on Kanan's shoulder to let him know he's signaled a stop was a nice little way of demonstrating Kanan's blindness and the accommodations other characters make for him.

Ezra finally has that jetpack he's been wanting lol.

I reserve the right to be giddy about the fact that Ezra is literally Sabine's right-hand man. And also that she painted him another Scout Trooper helmet.

Kanan showing off with the Force Leaps there, which Fenn Rau lampshades.

And now we're introduced to Tiber Saxon, Gar's less interesting more fanatical brother.

A+ mid battle banter. I do distinctly remember being delighted by all the playful quipping and snarking back and forth when this first aired, and it's still cute now.

Once again all it takes for Ezra to surrender is someone threatening Sabine. <3

I... I'm sorry, apparently I'm going to be Obnoxious Obsessed Sabezra Shipper for this rewatch, let me attempt not to comment on just them and their stupid faces and every time they interact.

Lol is one of the Kryze Mandos Naruto-running?

That was an awfully quick search of the base there, guys.

"Bo-Katan was made regent by the Jedi before the end of the Clone War." For all of what, one day? Lol.

I do have quibbles about Bo-Katan's characterization here in Rebels, at times it seems like it's assuming more character development than we actually see happen, when we eventually get back around to telling the story of the Siege of Mandalor.

I do find it kind of funny that SO many people were expecting Sabine to have an arc where she becomes Mand'alor when literally the second episode she actually had the darksaber she was immediately like, "Nope it's not me, I'm just holding it for whoever will be the true leader." Course I guess they expected that in this episode she would take up the mantle.

No dice and frankly I am not interested in that kind of plotline unless Ezra gets to be an accessory to it. (I uh... I have a thing about the Royal Maiden/Steadfast Knight dynamic.)

Ezra playing therapist again. <3 Nice to see it go over better than in "Trials of the Darksaber", Sabine is learning to be more open with her thoughts and feelings.

Kanan attempting the playful teasing banter he usually has with Hera (that Ezra and Sabine are suddenly very adept at now, what) but she shuts it down. This is another quibble I have about Season Four, I do not understand Kanan and Hera's sudden awkwardness and Will They/Won't They? when previously it seemed like they had been depicted as already a settled matter. Not really overt but comfortable and resolved. This weird walkback feels like a way to add drama and tension to Kanan's eventual death, and I really don't think it needed that?

The way I usually reconcile it is by headcanoning that Hera conceived Jacen in the three weeks between S3 and S4 and she's been standoffish and cagey about it because she doesn't quite know know yet and she's being anxious and worried and preoccupied and prickly as a result. I headcanon this because it's been my own experience when the husband and I have, ahem, not exactly been careful and had not had more kids in the plans.

Anyway.

Sorry is this not how the scene went? Lol.

Alrich immediately knows it's his baby girl aww.

Huh, I'd forgotten the side pockets on these transports could be used to stick extra troopers. Neat.

This is pretty nicely staged, a lot of fast smooth movement with the jetpacks, Sabine using the bike as cover was a clever touch. The speed of everything is really on display.

Love this hero cue when Kanan ignites his saber and enters the fray. Every character gets a nice little moment of being awesome.

Even Chopper gets to be a flying menace, clonking that one Trooper on the head with a blaster lol.

IF NO SUPPOSED TO SHIP LITERALLY WHAT EVEN IS THIS "SHE'S NOT MY GIRLFRIEND." MOMENT?

And ooop, show just stabbed me with Sabine's frantic worried, "Ezra! Get out of there!" and my brain went straight to the finale you guys really need to stop doing this to me.

<3333333

Little shit even gets in a cheeky, "Was wondering where you were." I love him.

And Kanan and Ezra look so happy for her awww.

Tiya's acting when Sabine realizes her weapon is on the battlefield is very nice. Sabine sounds horrified and heartbroken and scared.

Sabine's theme drawing out in long slow mournful notes here.

I'm actually really glad they didn't kill off Ursa and Tristan. It would have meant basically nothing since neither of them were developed enough characters for us to care and also I really didn't need another How To Train Your Dragon 2 Stoick/Valka gutpunch in my life.

Never kill off your characters unless you can tell more story with them gone than you can with them there.

Sabine's showing more emotion than we've seen out of her since "Trials of the Darksaber" oof.

Sabine getting a little bit distracted in her anger and grief and needing a nudge from Kanan. She's going to struggle with this a bit this episode.

It's cute how Bo-Katan kind of implies that Ezra should fly out with her to take down the TIEs.

This poor boy looks so consternated with all these crazy Mando shenanigans lol.

Yeah no, watching the Dutchess in action does not get any better.

Thrawn being all Villain Admirer of the Spectres again, while also picking at Tiber Saxon's logic here. It's basically the same logic and line of objections he has to the Death Star, that it's a bloated and inefficient waste of resources and will create more Rebels than it can kill. Thrawn is trying to point out, "Yeah so this literally insults the honor of a hot-headed quarrelsome proud warrior race culture how exactly is this supposed to quell them from rebelling again?"

Awww.

Ezra immediately gearing up to fight Bo-Katan to protect Sabine. <3 And then the other Clan Kryze members a minute later. <3

"Down boy."

You know something I haven't commented on is just how washed out Mandalore looks. Like, Lothal is covered with brown plains too but there's so much more life and color in them. Like the difference between Kansas farmlands and a nuclear testing site.

There's some kind of unspoken history here between Rau and Bo-Katan in the way they interact which... intrigues me. They talk like old friends and I would definitely like to know more about how they know each other.

With Bo-Katan's little speech here, I do see how people were expecting Sabine to be set up to be Mand'alor.

Something darkly ironic in Sabine naming a superweapon after a pacifist.

Tiber channeling his best Imperial fanatic here. What an ass.

This shot was apparently a visual shoutout to a similar one in TCW's "The Lawless", with Obi-Wan Kenobi. Not the last time Ezra and Obi-Wan would be paralleled.

Tiber really shouldn't have let Sabine have access to her own weapon, that was a stupid move.

Ooooh there's more on that theme of "We make deals with the Empire to survive." Tiber honey that never works out for anyone.

Sabine modifies the weapon all right, but Tiber's eagerness to use it after she warned him not to is hoist by own petard poetry.

BOY IT SURE IS A GOOD THING SABINE DIDN'T SET THE WEAPON TO FULL POWER OUT OF REVENGE. JUST IMAGINE WHAT COULD HAVE HAPPENED IF SHE LET HER ANGER DRIVE HER TO DO THAT?

OH WAIT I DON'T HAVE TO IMAGINE, TVTROPES HAS ME COVERED.

THANKS TVTROPES. THANKS FOR THAT BIT OF FRIDGE HORROR.

Sabine does still have a very mean vengeful streak in her even after all her years living with Jedi so it takes a bit of prodding from Bo-Katan (of all people) to talk her down from this wrath moment.

We can count that whole Star Destroyer as Sabine's kill right? Lol, she's catching up to you Chopper, better murder some more capital ships.

"The Empire will send everything they have to crush Mandalore." Haaaaaaaaaaaaa. *cringes in The Mandalorian's account of The Purge*

Honestly I think the reason they had Sabine give Bo-Katan the darksaber was because they didn't want to have to write around Sabine being absent again lolol. Having to stay and be the leader of a whole planet would have definitely taken Sabine away from the front lines of the wider Rebellion and more importantly taken her away from her crew and family and like hell were they going to let the Spectres go back to Lothal without her.

Ngl, I ship it a little bit.

This could have been a little more earned, not gonna lie.

IF NO SUPPOSED TO SHIP LITERALLY WHAT EVEN IS THIS??!!?

I'll be honest I'm not really invested in the Mandalorian side of things in fandom so while a lot of these action sequences were pretty cool visually I didn't have much emotional connection unless characters I already knew and loved were onscreen. I'm at least happy we got the arc done and over with and cleared up the rest of the season for other, more interesting (to me) things.

I've got no real thoughts on Bo-Katan, she's fine in this episode but like I said, inconsistent with her other appearances, I don't mind her being leader and having the darksaber but I would have liked her characterization to have more of a coherent throughline from TCW to Rebels to The Mandalorian.

Let's be honest I'm mostly just here for the Ezra/Sabine bits. <3

Next up, field trip with Crazy Uncle Saw!