#mandalorain culture

[penvisions]

of beskar and kyber {chapter 23}

Pairing: Din Djarin x Force Sensitive! Reader (the Mandalorian x Force Sensitive! Reader)

Summary: You begin to heal in the safety of the Crest, as you travel alongside Din once again.

Word Count: 4.4k

Warnings: canon typical language, canon typical violence, inner musings of reader, mentions of past heartbreak and pain, deadly poison, talks of injuring / killing people, ritualistic and religious activities, talk of past manipulation and administration of sedative drugs, reader has a lot of quiet moments in this, sexual content, kissing, descriptions of the male body, din djarin y'all. those are the ones i can think of, i'm so sleepy

A/N: been recovering from a tooth extraction and needed a little comfort / happiness. so please enjoy this baby chapter that doubles as an interlude before the series picks back up. love y'all

ao3 link || series masterlist || main masterlist || ko-fi

The hum of your lightsaber is a quiet one as you practice smooth movements to illuminate the grove of tall trees you’re in the midst of, slicing through the open air of the field to allow you to see in every direction. The sun had set hours ago, the fire crackling still as Din and ad’ika are settled on the other side of the clearing. Both nodded off, as they sit around it with remnants of a giant bird that had been hunted and roasted over it for dinner. Eyes follow the white of your blade, the energy flowing strongly so much so that it lifts the fine hairs on the back of your neck and prickles your skin.

But there’s no one around, even if you think of the shuffling sound that alerted your senses from your own idle relaxation.

“We’re safe, mesh’la.” The deep rumble of Din’s voice calls, still quiet though enough volume to trickle into your ears even as you strain to hear anything out of the ordinary. “I’m not picking up any heat signatures.”

“I could’ve sworn…” With the push of a button, the saber retracts, and you turn around to face the man where he’s sitting and leaning up against a fallen trunk. Endor was alight with so much energy, left over from many battles of wartime that ravaged the world at one point in time. It had been a simple ask, from your lips to Din’s hears. The last sight of battle against the Empire. The last place you one of your own had been rumored to be. Though that was years ago, the energy still lingered. Strong and sparkling all around. It was hard to focus on what was real and what was whispers from the past.

Everything was all so much, you took a deep breath as you engaged your saber again. The white of it glows brightly even as you made your way a few steps into the tree line and ensured that your trio was truly safe. You trusted Din, you had faith in him to keep you safe but there was an underlying feeling of unease on this planet. If for no reason other than your own connection to the force and how it practically bathes everything in sheen here. The planet was one in a long list of those to visit, to search.

“The glow seems…brighter.” Din’s voice was a low velvet caress as you as you fit yourself beside him, close enough to feel the coolness of the beskar that protects his body. But he’s removed the left pauldron, that same arm wrapping around your shoulders and gently pulls you to rest your head against the thick flight suit he dons underneath. His questions are still more statements made that imply his curiosity, though he does outright ask you things in some instances.

But it’s never serious, not since that day he stood beside you as you buried your mother. You appreciate his caution, almost, but you feel…okay. For the most part, more connected with yourself. Despite taking her life, you don’t feel the pull of dark tendrils around your limbs and mind in the quiet darkness of the light or the moments when your brain recalls the ordeal that led to it.

“It’s the energy, it’s so concentrated here.”

“Is…there a reason for that? Beyond the battle taking place here.”

“It’s because he died here. Anakin.” You say his actual name, not the one you know he has taken on in his journey into the dark side. “He brought balance to the force after all the wreckage he caused, all the destruction he caused. It’s not…it’s not common knowledge but he a good man once. Tried to do good, but the Jedi, the teachings and disciplines….they were constricting. Open to interpretation that went against human nature.”

“You trained under him.” He knows that, from the confession you made the first time you headed toward Nevarro with him, at the request of a pleading Greef Karga.

“Yes, him and his master wanted me to train to take over eventually. But not when he was a Jedi, I had only glimpsed him over the couple years I was at the temple. There was a war going on, so many people in and out of those doors. So many Jedi all fighting and more training, more providing guidance and protection. A lost of masters and skilled individuals were lost. But only one Sith can be in power at a time, at full power. To kill your master gains you the title. Anakin…he was struggling even with the best medical aid. If he wasn’t in a bacta tank, he was…hooked up to a respirator and all kinds of support. I never asked what happened to him, but I always wondered if it happened during the attack on the temple. The one that he led.”

“But you didn’t kill him.” Din moves slightly, leaning back into the trunk of the tree he was sitting against more firmly before he helps to situate your legs across his lap. Fingers hidden in gloves trace down the length of your legs, swirling over your knees and down to where you ankles flashed as the fabric bunched up around the tops of your boots. He pulled everything back to cover you, hand tracing back up hooking around your left thigh to hold you to him. Safe, content, even as the conversation gains weight.

“No, when I found out their plans to begin the destruction of Mandalore, I intercepted the first few deployments. The first they chocked up to a mistake on the droids. The second, a judgement in error.”

A breeze picks up and makes its way through the small clearing, Din notices the way you tense and pulls you closer into his body. The beskar captures your heat from leaning against it and it warms you to feel the give of his sides in between the plates.

“Akiz, he fought alongside me. Once he was well enough, we tried our best to do what we could. But the last ship we took down, it was…too much for us to handle alone. Storm troopers managed to get a distress signal out and Moff Gideon came after us. He was lost in the crash, too injured to move without causing more damage. He…he gave me his helmet and told me to run. I barely made it out myself. The gunfire alone, the smoke, the fire, all of it was too much. But it gave some people time to get out, to relocate.”

“Is that when you fled to Tatooine?” The deep tone of his voice washed over you, the attentiveness he exhibited and the questions he had begun to seek answers to soothing your heart, your mind. He was engaging in a way he hadn’t been previously, had said he was unaccustomed to. It made you giddy, that he was willing to ask and converse with you more freely, little jokes sneaking in here and there during the lighter moments. Care and concern cloaking the darker moments.

“Figured the desert was the easiest place to get lost in. They wouldn’t send droves of people to search the sands for one person. Resources were abundant, but not enough for that. I was considered a ‘calculated loss’ at that point. The damage I did outweighing the worth I was to them.”

“I was there a few years before the Empire fell. Once I got the news, I fled home and well, you know how that turned out…”

“But you did good, took out what you could. Helped my people to get to safety, to flee.”

“I could’ve done more, I should’ve done more.” You can’t help the heat that tinges your words, emotions strong on the matter, on the memories. There was so much, so many small things that couldn’t been done or done differently. A dangerous free fall that would once awaken the dark tendrils that lay dormant in the corners of your mind. But since Maldovan, you hadn’t felt the pull of them, the motion of them slithering about and biding their time. They were gone, or at least, they didn’t seem to bother you as much.

“You did what you could, that is enough.” He assures you, his voice holding so much emotion even through the modulator. Soothing you and making sure you understand that what you did do was enough, that it was more than enough. Forsaking what could’ve been done was a dirty business and he knew it all too well.

“You and your space sword.” He jostles you a bit, hand running up and down your arm to keep you warm as another breeze flits by. He thinks he’s funny, you know this because the same rumbling chuckle sounds in his chest as when he had first used the term. There’s no use fighting the smile that pulls at your lips, affection blooming in your chest.

“Wish I had one of those pulse rifles, like you.” You can’t help the slight whine that coats your voice, it was always a lavish thought, to purchase one of your own. “Could cause some good damage with one of those.”

“I’m sure you could, mesh’la.” His laughter echoes around the small clearing and your heart skips a beat, he’s so carefree right now. So at ease and it makes you wish for more moments exactly like it.

“Your laughter makes me happy.” Voice dipping, you reach up to plant both of your hands atop his shoulders and shift to straddle his lap. There’s a twitch against the inside of your thighs that sparks flames across your skin despite the chill of the night air. “It’s such a good sound, ikaad.”

Baby.

“Is that a new nick name?” His big hands wrap around your hips, keeping you steady in his lap, fingers toying with the hem of your shirt. He presses his forehead to yours, the coolness of the helmet causing a shudder to race down your spine. He pulls you flush against him, his rough action hitches your breath and it fogs up the front of the helmet.

“Do you like it?” You ask, hesitancy underlying your words even as you press your hands to the sides of his helmet and begin to lift it. Eyes closed, you can hear the compression hiss as you pull it away from him. His hands reach up, helping to guide yours to set it down beside you both. There’s a rustle of fabric, the hiss of leather and then you feel his bare fingers cradle one side of your face while the other spreads across your lower back.

He chuckles once again at the hitch of your breath, the way you worry your bottom lip between your teeth and tighten your eyes against the sensation of his skin against yours. His nose brushes yours, his lips a hairsbreadth away, the feel of them so close making you dizzy.

“Moan it into my mouth and we’ll find out.”

And then his lips are on yours.

You take a seat at the makeshift table, fingers trailing over the cabinets and side paneling that have been left open to reveal the caf maker on your way over to it. There's steam rising from the back of it, from the mechanics inside that heat up the water and transform the condensed grounds into caf. Scenting the air and making your heart calm. you hadn't loaded it up nor pressed the button to it up, but Din had.

The hush of water sounding from the fresher tells you where the man in question had disappeared to. The warmth of his body and the comfort of it pressed to had disappeared from the bed and woken you up from your deep slumber.

The helmet he dons is sitting there in the middle of the table, the beskar glowing in the low light it catches. You take a sip of your steaming drink, just a little sip before you reach for it and cradle it in your hands.

The artistry of it is immaculate. Beautiful. You see him in the visor even if he's not behind it. Feel the energy of him in it even if it's not secure over his head. It's a part of him, it's the first thing you had seen of him. It was him, in a way.

Peering inside as you tip it slightly, the panels lining the inside of it glow as the power coursing through them picks up on the energy tingling your entire body. Gentle fingers trace them, feeling the delicate and careful positioning. You didn't dare lift one up to explore underneath, not wanting to activate anything or disrupt anything on accident.

The sound of the shower shutting off barely registers as you continue to look over the precious thing in your hands. You don't know how long you do nor do you register the figure that steps out of the fresher. Eyes focused and mind at peace as your thoughts wander over the skills that went into the creation and forming of the helmet, of the man who wears it.

You wonder if...the Creed is something you would be willing to take, if given the chance.

If it had been offered to you before your master's had found you in the marketplace that fateful day of your childhood. If your mother would have been just as willing to send you away if it meant you'd give up your purchase on what little your family name had and let you go with those who sought you out. She had been hesitant with the Jedi, mulling it over for weeks before she had made the decision to let you go in search of something greater than what she could offer you on K'ath. A blacksmith's daughter, an armorer in training from her own shaping. But that didn't deter you from holding onto your adoration for the skills, the handiwork and devotion it took. You had cultivated it even amidst the jedi, their lack of need for armor or weapons at odds with the interest you held.

You had been so young, it had been a rare instance of intense interest. The man who had seen the power of the Force flowing strongly through you, the easy direction of such casual in the way you had been idly playing with shells laid out before you and the tools of your trade. And then the journey to where you are now had begun. Taken away on a long travel, the first time you had ever been in hyperspace had been something mesmerizing. You hadn’t asked many questions on the way to Coruscant, you had merely followed closely behind the Jedi Master that had seen the potential in your younger self. Even younger than those around you once you were placed amidst a group of six or seven other children. An age gap of four to five years separating you. You had only been six at the time, far too young for the world you had been taken to be a part of.

But despite that, you can recall so clearly the trainings and the meetings, endless conversations about your life and past. The attachments you may have had beyond your mother and if you had any other family they might be able to trace to see how the concentration of your blood was so strongly suited for the life that had become your own.

It had been dizzying, going from a humble life as a blacksmith’s daughter on the mostly oceanic world of K’ath.

But the Mandalorian's....they prided themselves in the armor they dressed in, created rituals around it. The metal it's comprised of was revered, respected, a culmination of everything you felt with the artistry and creation of even the most basic of metal and armor. The man that Din was, the values he held and tried his best to let guide his life...even if the bounty hunting was a little more black and white, a simple way to provide means for his remaining people, his covert...they were admirable. He was admirable. A good man. At the very core of who he was.

The Creed he had sworn...it was something you had been thinking over a lot. Asking him gentle questions here and there as you mulled over specifics and recalled memories of doing the same with Akiz. The man whose last name you had adapted while on the run with him. He hadn't offered you to take his religion, but he had taught it to you, allowed you any knowledge you had sought after to the best of his ability. But there was a clear distinction between the faction he and Din practiced and that prominent on Mandalore. That had been prominent on Mandalore. Even so...the itch was there, to explore it and consider it as an option to truly become more like the person you thought yourself to be.

There was no reason for you to seek a new identity, not now with the royalty of what was almost your life vouching for you with the New Republic and clearing whatever record you had accumulated. Din too, they had vouched for, in regards to the connection with the job you had both worked for his old crew that seemed to be ages ago now...

He's been going without it more, the helmet. When ad'ika is asleep or occupied in the upstairs cabin, his penchant for meditation picked up from you despite his smaller attention span. You had conveyed to him the feeling of the Force and calmly let it flow through your mind, pushing the feeling into his own carefully and showing him some of the faces you recall. Hoping he could practice reaching out, because you had questions too. There didn't seem to be...anyone and it was a rather lonely realization. You had knowledge, but very little from the time you had trained as a girl to the time you had spent with Moff Gideon in his base, with those who were building you up to learn the darker path...

"You look so beautiful, ner kar'ta." Din's deep, unmodulated voice breaks your silent reverie. You don't look up from the helmet in your hands, the scented steam from his wash wafting into the open space of the hold now that he's leaned up against the doorway. Heat floods your face, his unabashed compliment spurring butterflies in your stomach and tingles in your chest.

You ache for him, you had done it back on Maldovan and every day since. Even as he lays beside you each night and cares for you and adi'ka in the ways he knows how. A quiet job he's determined to keep up even in the hard moments, the low moments, the ones where your aversion to touch and conversation flares and your memory fizzles. Actual jobs were slow right now, more focused on beginning the search for other Jedi, others who had been able to devote their life to the ways you had only been beginning to.

You still hadn't looked upon his face, doubt still lingering despite everything you've been through together in nearly a year.

It is a big step, it is a big decision. Monumental, in more ways than one. Words that meant so much shared between you both, for each other. The vows he had written down in your notebook for you to look over, what he recalled from listening to his fellow people in the covert. Spoken word the only way they persevered as they did. He had wanted to share them with you, have you look over them and contemplate them. He wasn’t asking, he wasn’t pushing, it was simply a way for him to express himself and let you come to him slowly in your own time.

But you look up now and you see the shock wash over his features as your eyes take him in.

Tension fills the hold, thickening the air and the tingling in your chest grows as you greedily take in his features.

His skin is bronze all over, you've seen it before. Flashes of it about the cuffs and neckline of his suit, full swaths of it as he lay in bed beside you in his underclothes or sleepwear he’s begun to walk around in on a regular basis. Seen all of it bared, in that one instance he had indulged you in booking a stay instead of returning to the ship… Felt it before with your wandering hands, against your own skin. Both in innocent settings and some that spark thick, syrupy desire low in your middle…

Stray droplets from his wash catch the dull light as he's in nothing but a pair of flight pants, slung low on his narrow hips. Strong arms that are crossed over his chest make your stomach flip. His neck is thick, shoulders broad, skin littered with silvery scars that tell of his past. A strong jaw you only glimpsed at before is now traced by your eyes adorned with dark scruff, his plush lips parted slightly as he almost freezes in his spot. You had felt those lips on your own, the way they moved desperately against you. Conveying so much in a moment when nothing felt like it would be right ever again.

"You're beautiful too." The words are barely a whisper, but they spur him into movement. He's pushing off from the door frame and crossing the space in three long strides. His hands reach and you don't flinch as they wrap around your ribs and help to pull you up from your seat. He simply holds you as you gaze up at him, eyes taking him in and his own roving over your steadily growing smile.

He’s so beautiful, the man standing before you. The man who, when you first met, never anticipating meaning anything to you. But he’s all you want, all you need, he’s…he’s home for you. The reason behind no place ever feeling quite right, the hiding spots you created for yourself just shy of being accommodating. Off kilter in the way that the space inside his ship isn’t. He’s given you so much with his simple disregard for a bounty out on you so long ago, his own actions allowing this feeling to flourish into what it is now. He’s safety, he’s protection, he’s…he’s your heart.

“Ner kar’ta, you’re so beautiful.” You feel the rough palms of his hands rove up to cup your face, his wide eyes so brown and sparkling in a way that you were sure was reserved just for you. Thoughtful in a way most people wouldn’t expect of the man, the Mandalorian – a feared and renowned bounty hunter.

But right now he wasn’t that man, right now he was Din Djarin. The one who had helped you to reclaim your life back, to give you options when there didn’t seem to be anymore to consider. He was the one who had helped you to reclaim so much that you had lost, even things you hadn’t realized.

“You’re too kind, mesh’la,” His head ducks a bit, gaze focused on the pulse he could surely see jumping in the column of your neck. Thick curls tumble, the water still soaked into the tresses smelling so sweet and exactly like you. You can’t help the urge to reach up and run your fingers through them, delighting in the flutter of his long lashes as his eyes close. A deep hum sounds from within his chest, almost vibrating through you with now you’re held so close to him.

“Ni kar'tayl gar darasuum.” And oh it’s so beautiful the way you see the wrinkles around his eyes deepen as his face breaks into an almost shy smile. Eyes wide and earnest as they flutter open in response to your whispered sentiment. The hitch of his breath visible as his chest rises with it and the way his lips nearly tremble as he dips down to capture your own. The words repeated and breathed into you as his strong nose brushes against yours and his hands curling around face. “Gar're ner yaim.”

I love you. You’re my home.

He kisses you, again and again. His lips a soft pressure that makes your heartbeat fast in your chest and you can’t help but tangle your fingers in his damp hair, returning them with as much fever. His own hands, his warm palms trail over the column of your neck to your shoulders. Stirring tingles to dance across the bare skin exposed in your sleepwear of a tank top and shorts.

 “Bal gar cuyir pal'vut.” He pulls back just enough to trail his soft lips along your jaw breathing words into the skin there. You can’t help but wrap your arms around his neck as he begins to nip and lave his tongue down your neck, seeking and praising you in the most intimate way. Your muscles shake as you resist the urge to jump up and wrap your legs around his waist, resist the urge to lean in and use your own teeth along the golden planes of his chest. As if reading your thoughts, his arms loop down below your arms, your waist and grab at the back of your thighs. Large hands so secure against the give of them he hauls you up into his hold and begins to walk you towards the open door.

Lips meet lips in deepening kisses, almost desperate and urgent as heat begins to swirl in your belly and arousal tingles brightly across every inch of skin that touches his. Small groans and panting breath bubbling up and are swallowed as his words echo in your head.

And you are mine.

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[thewriterowl]

I had a funny thought of ANH Obi-Wan telling Luke about the Mandalorians and their culture while reminiscing about the Clone Wars. Obi-Wan casually mentions how the quickest way to gain a Mandalorain's trust is to first prove you can hold your own in a fight and then prove your loyalty by protecting one of their own without question.

Obi-Wan is kinda of a dimwit because he failed to see that this was also grounds for Mandalorian mating process. Satine, Jango and Cody all fell for him. (Oblivious Stewjon ginger) and in doing so accidentally is the cause as to why Luke is now Manda'riddur, pregnant, and basically a whole army ready to die for him.

YES. LOL Ok, I love this

Like Obi-Wan being a Mandalorian slut but also not realizing that it wasn't his amazing flirting skills that landed him a mini-harem but being a great warrior with sass and kindness who has done a lot for children and for Mandalorians and their clans. For one SO smart, he too has the infamous Disaster Lineage braincell too.

So, he's just, "to make friends you just do X, Y, Z...we'll talk about flirting when you're older."

"I'm nineteen."

"Still too baby. Older."

And then Luke accidentally woos the future Mand'alor by just being stupid, powerful, and friendly and somehow makes an army of loyal Mandalorians who would not only die but kill for him.

Obi-Wan, in the Force, is just, "....oh, so THAT'S why I kept getting railed by Mandalorians."

With Anakin just shrieking, "NO SHIT"

[antianakin]

Satine is one of the most frustrating characters of all time because she seems like she should be an enjoyable, interesting, complex character. She's got one of the most interesting backstories of any character I've ever met, and I'd LOVE more of THAT story (not the on the run with Obi-Wan bit, that bit can get left out, but the bit where she has to somehow bring together an entire population of warring people who just nearly destroyed their own planet due to years of fighting and a civil war that just killed her father and she managed to convince them into a peaceful, pacifist lifestyle while she was only a teenager). The level of strength and competency that this would require of her is INSANE.

I want to know more about where this prime minister came from, whether he was ACTUALLY elected or if Satine chose him, whether the position existed prior to Satine or if she created it, and what the actual difference is between Satine's role as a ruling duchess who inherited her role through birth and the prime minister. I want to know more about Satine's relationship with her father and with Bo-Katan. I want to know more about where the fuck Korkie came from and how Satine ended up with him and what happened to this mysterious third Kryze sibling that is presumably Korkie's parent.

And the concept of Satine as this person who was raised in a culture of war and violence and who, at a pretty young age, insistently chose to follow the opposite ideology of pacifism, and how these two very differing things impact her as a leader is INTERESTING. Satine as someone who struggles with an instinct towards violence and arrogance because it's how she was raised but who WANTS to be calm and reasonable and peaceful and strives towards this ideal as much as possible even though she doesn't always achieve it is INTERESTING. Satine as someone who clings to her pacifist ideology so hard that it becomes a fault of its own sometimes (by causing her to REFUSE to see nuance in anyone else's situation) is INTERESTING.

And yet, that's never the character we get.

There's no real nuance to Satine. There's never any real discussion of Satine making MISTAKES or being WRONG. When she condemns Obi-Wan and the Jedi, the narrative supports her. When her choice to remain neutral cuts her planet off from all trade, the consequences of it aren't attributed to HER choices but to literally EVERYONE ELSE'S as they struggle to deal with the ramifications without her ever bothering to find a solution to a problem SHE CAUSED. She threatens an innocent man with imprisonment for wanting to save a warehouse full of evidence from being blown up and it's just brushed off as Satine being passionate about her cause instead of a dangerously incompetent and arrogant asshole. And somehow she was strong enough to stand up to a bunch of Mandalorains who had just been at war with each other and force them into being at peace, but when Death Watch shows up with a few criminals she immediately rolls over and surrenders without even bothering to fight back in any way, but this is represented as Satine giving the people what they want instead of Satine just being weak.

Believe me, I WANT to like her. The version of Satine that is implied by her backstory is so interesting, but the version that exists in the present day is one of the worst political leaders we're introduced to in Star Wars. At least most of the other terrible political leaders have the decency to be openly lazy or selfish or evil. Satine is presented as this perfect benevolent intelligent leader and then every action she takes is the stupidest, most arrogant bullshit imaginable that constantly just makes her and her people's lives worse. What is there to enjoy about that?

[mrfandomwars]

The Hardships Of Being A Mandalorian Jedi: Part One - Resol'nare

Hello, it's me.

With another post about Mandalorians (and Jedi).

Sorry, couldn't help it XD

Anywho, back to what needs to be said about this post: I'm breaking down how Jedi, if they wanted to be Mando'ade or are mando'ade that were adopted into the Jedi Order (of which then consider something to think about when making ocs like that), would have a hard time with the rules that were put on the concept of 'mandalorian', both in the Six Actions (Resol'nare) from Legends and with the Way Of The Mandalore from (Disney) Canon.

This meta will be divided into 2 parts, the first part is this one and will focus on the Resol'nare (fair warning though, I Will use most of the Legends version of Mandalorian when talking about the Resol'nare, so no fanon) while the second part, found Here, will focus on Canon, specifically on The Way Of The Mandalore.

This part was a lot more certain - in terms of what the jedi would be able to do and what they can't do - than the second part, but only for a bit, honestly.

That said, let's start, shall we?

Resol'nare - Six Actions

What constituted the Six Actions, you may ask? Well, following "The Mandalorians: People and Culture" from Star Wars Insider 86, it's the following six rules:

This is the 'rules' to be a mandalorian that are followed by most mando fans, especially the older ones.

The Resol'nare was - outside of universe - created by Karen Traviss for her version of Mandalorians - of which are still very popular in the fandom, even though a good proportion of the said fans ignore a good part (for valid reason) of what she created.

Wearing Armour

Speaking Mando'a

Raising their child(ren) as Mandalorians

Defending themselves and their families

Contributing to the clan's welfare

Following a Mand'alor and rallying behind said leader if they call for arms

Sounds easy enough, right? Ehn, not so much if you are also a Jedi.

Why, you may ask? Let me break it down for you:

1. Wearing Armour -

This is one of the easy parts, anyone can wear armour - and, although I wasn't able to find a confirmation, it is said that a helmet issue in Chapter 20: The Foundling might have been simply how the mandalorains adapted to someone needs, just like we do in the real world. Meaning that armour could be adapted for Everyone

2. Speaking Mando'a -

Also super easy! And I'm sure there are variants or certain rules for Ithorians, who can't speak basic and have to use a translator

3. Raising their child(ren) as Mandalorians -

Oh boy! Now we get to the hard ones! Why, you may ask?

Because a Mando Jedi Would have Two Cultures that they would raise their kid by!

And while I'm sure it maybe wouldn't be an issue, the fact is: Mandalorians are known to forcefully change the name of kids they adopt (Kal Skirata, for an example of a victim even though his situation was portrayed positively because Karen Traviss Would Never show her mandos in anything that Wasn't a positive view), we don't get a lot mandos that show other cultures Beyond Mandalorian culture - which is bad btw (and before anyone comes at me, I'm just going to say that it could have been done during the Rebels or The Mandalorian) - and also since they view Jedi as enemies it wouldn't surprise me that they wouldn't be too kind on a kid who was mixed cultures, let alone if the kid preferred the Jedi culture more than Mandalorian.

This is not even talking about the fact that raising children is hard and that the Jedi might have to leave their job in the Order to raise the kid(s) if they weren't force sensitives - thus no longer being a Jedi job (which is what most people want when they say they want a mando jedi), and if they were force sensitive it would mean that they would probably be raised in the Order - And I want you to look at me in the eye and tell me if you truly believe that the majority of mandalorians wouldn't say that the Jedi wasn't "a true mandalorian" for taking that decision.

4. Defending themselves and their families -

Again, they will 100% do that UNLESS it means a greater harm for a good amount of people - and can you tell me that most mandalorian clans would accept that fact? That they wouldn't be the priority if something much bigger happened? Most people in real life wouldn't like that! Would fake accept and then get mad when it did happen because they were hoping that the person would change their minds!

But being a Jedi means following a philosophy of Harm Reduction and that means choosing the option that would save more lives/harm less lives, that fact doesn't change just because one of the people you won't be able to safe is your family. Or your whole family will be people you won't be able to safe, but a million more will survive, and there's No changing that.

5. Contributing to the clan's welfare -

This one seems easy but we don't know how much the Jedi are paid - if they are paid at all, honestly. For all we know they could get paid anything that could help anyone and all their things are made by the Jedi themselves or are donated or given by the Senate for missions, like they give them communicators, but it's mostly with the intent of using them during missions and not every day life - even if that becomes a side effect.

Or maybe the Jedi are given a budget, and they pay their workers, buy stuff they need (food, for example, even if I believe a good majority of vegetables and fruits are grown in the Temple) and pay the bills and then pay the Jedi/give the all the Jedi money depending on their age and rank. and maybe Jedi Shadows win money while undercover that they can use afterwards or normal Jedi have side hustles to earn money, but none of this we know for sure.

We don't Know how much the Jedi get if they get anything at all, so they won't be able to provide financially.

Okay but not with money what else could they do? They can't help around with the kids or daily tasks regularly when they have always the chance to be called away for a mission that could take months to years at the time. They can't help moving because they might get on call and drop that agreement. They can't move around or leave the Republic space because they might be needed for emergencies.

There's nothing that the Jedi can promise to do to help the Clan because of their job, and like.

Again, I can see a good majority of the Mandos (and Fans) not being able to forgive that and use it as a 'proof' that the Jedi ins't a 'True Mandalorian'

6. Following a Mand'alor and rallying behind said leader if they call for arms -

This is the one that it's a full No for the Jedi.

They are supposed to be Neutral, they can't join a side - they can't join the Mand'alor side or support them without a very good reason to.

The Jedi joined the Republic because they could help more planets and people would Listen more easily because they would have the Republic's backing. And I mean, looking at the good they did! A Thousand years of peace, ending slavery in the Republic and still working on ending it outside (Quinlan was on Tattooine, probably undercover take down a slavery ring)

Like lives are in danger and the best course of action is to ally themselves with with the Mand'alor.

Oh, and before anyone brings up the Republic and the War:

The Separatists were Enslaving worlds and literally built a weapon to eradicate all the organic life in a certain distance of the weapon, they Needed to be taken down. No matter the faults of the Republic, they were the better option in the Clone Wars as much as I hate to say it

I already said before on how the Senate is the one giving the Jedi stuff, and I will say it again! The Senate is probably the one who pays for a LOT of things of the Jedi, things they possibly need to survive. They Could Not say no to the Senate without risking the Order's entire life, ESPECIALLY because you can't tell me that Palpatine wouldn't activate Order 66 Earlier if they had said no.

Speaking of Palpatine, did you know the Senate and him drafted the Jedi? Yeah, they CANONICALLY did that.

Anywa, went off the road a bit but yeah.

The Jedi would only swear themselves to the Mand'alor If they were forced to, OR more lives would be saved that way.

And this fact? This being unable to swear themselves to the Mand'alor would be a deal breaker, since then they would be following 5 out of the 6

THE VERDICT:

Out of the Six Actions, we have:

2 that a Jedi would have no trouble following

2 that they would need clauses on - something that the majority of mandos wouldn't allow

1 that is Uncertain, but it's probably a negative since we don't know how well the Jedi would be able to help their clan and most mandos would probably want a full commitment and help for their clans

1 that the Jedi wouldn't be able to follow without a good reason that would last longer than a month

Meaning? A Jedi wouldn't be considered a Mandalorian by the majority of the Mando'ade, in fact they would most likely be considered dar'manda by a good proportion of the Mandalorian people.

Personal Thoughts: All my thoughts right now are surrounding Tarre Vizsla and how he would deal with all of this, since he would only be able to swear to two with no problems Makes me think that what @/aspiringwarriorlibrarian (sorry for the tag) theorized about Tarre becoming a Mand'alor via the non-warrior elite is a lot likely

Part 2 Here

[foomoosworld]

Stars Too Far

CHAPTER 16 - Lemon Tree

Mando X Fem Reader

Minors DNI

Summary: I'm too fucking tired to reiterate 15 chapters of whats gone on. Just read this and if you're interested, read the rest. There's no smut in this one cause... fucking plot and twists sometimes have to take place in between dicks. At least in literature... fuck. don't reference Shakespeare.,, exception to the rule? (Checks list) nope never mind. Well, I'm sorry, I'll make up for the lack of sucking and fucking next time. There's tender moments here that will leave you teary eyed.

.... I will never write my own summary again. This is the worst.

You hold Shy-Tan in your arms tightly bundled in rags with Din standing next to you on a stage in the ball room of the Mandalore Palace as Bo-Katan addresses a meagre crowd of Mandalorians that chose to show up. This may be a hard sell.

“This is Din Djarin…”  She starts loudly as she motions to Din.  "He has worked numerous times and put his life on the line to rebuild and save Mandalore.”  Din nods at Bo Katan.  “This, is Din Djarin’s Riduur…  She has saved him numerous times from death.  She has put her life consistently on the line for one of us without any benefit to herself.”  Bo explains.  The crowd is still silent and obviously unsure. "She gave birth to the first Mandalorian/Luc child since the exile of Lucs to our planet with her RIDUUR” She ensures to emphasise, “Din Djarin.”  The crowd is still unsettled and silent.  Bo decides to take another approach.

“This is not about a decades old exile we tried to strike from our history books.  This is about seeing people for who they are, not what they came from.  The basic code of being a Mandalorain.  We do not judge our Foundlings this way.  Shame on us if we judge other races this way! This is not about revenge on a bloodline. This is about continuing a bloodline!  This isn’t about genetic failure, this is about OUR failure!  We failed the Lucs.  A species that only wanted to exist peacefully and procreate and make the universe better through their actions.  They.  Chose. Us. As mates.  We turned a blind eye to exactly what that would entail.  We never asked questions about their culture, their history, and they didn’t even know their own history, being children.  We should have done the legwork to ensure our Foundling Luc population had the right care and informed people caring for them.  We failed.  Mandalorains failed.  Not Lucs. Today, with the birth of Shy-Tan Djarin, we re-write our history books.  We will learn, accept and protect those around us…”  Bo puts a soft arm around your back and ushers you up to the microphone.

“Hi…” you wave shyly.  “I-uh... don’t want to kill you…”  You look back at Din shaking your head and shrugging your shoulders not sure what to say.  He puts a gentle hand on the small of your back and pushes you back up to the mic and whispers quietly, 

“Say what you need to say…”

You step up to the mic again and clear your throat, completely unsure of where to start. How can you sum up the entirety of two races battling each other as one, uninformed woman, thrust into a leadership role you never wanted. So you started where ever you could grasp a thread in your story...

“I was born on a planet that killed everything alive.  My mother and father died there.  But when I was about to give up, was dying of malnutrition, I found a seedling of a lemon tree.  Lemon trees had no reason to be on Sypar and had no chance of survival without intervention.  And I watered that tree every day, weeded around it,  Gave the ground nutrients of my food when I was hungry.  That seedling grew into a tree that bore fruit to me and I learned how to  survive the harsh environment to keep myself alive with its fruit.  That tree didn’t ask to be there.  It was just born there.  It took myself fo it to help it to  thrive until it could give back to me.  That seedling should have been an afterthought.  Something to be brushed off as something to die because it didn’t belong there, it was nothing.  I helped.  That’s all it took.  Was a little help.  And that tree is the reason I’m here.  The reason Din Djarin met me.  The reason our child exists. That tree taught me that  love grows love.”

You step away from the microphone as all of the Mandalorians are still silent.  I look to Din, nervously, and shrug as if to say “I did my best”  Bo looks aprehensively around the silent crowd.

“I will plant the seed!”  A Mandalorian's voice echoes out through the ballroom as he steps out of the crowd and thrusts a fist to his chest.

“I will plant the seed!” another Mandalorian shouts from the back of the crowd.

“I will plant the seed!” another Mandalorian steps forward and shouts.  Then one by one, the entire crowd steps forward stating they will stand with you and Din.

Din hugs you close with a strong arm and whispers to you, “You’re not alone anymore.”

………………….

Bo leads you, Din and Shy-Tan in your arms back through the palace and informs you,

“I have intel that Imperial Cruisers are on their way here and there’s another giant fleet coming from the other direction.  Our censors can’t pick up what kind of ships the ones from the East are.  It’s like they’ve never been scanned or in this sector before.  And there’s a lot of them.  You need to find another planet to hide on.  We can't hold both fleets off even if we can get the rest of the Mandalorians on board. You’re not safe here for long.”

Din nods, “How much time do we have?”

“Maybe an hour.  We’ll get you to your home fast but leave right away.  We’ll create a distraction.  I don’t think you’re getting out of here without a battle.”

Bo Katan's assistant shuttles the three of you back to your shabby house as fast as possible and we frantically load everything into the Razor Crest as fast as we can.  You’re in the bedroom gathering up Shy-Tan when a bounty hunter aims through the window and blasts at you.

You tumble with Shy-Tan in your arms behind a door frame and Din immediately hears and rushes in and shoots the bounty hunter.

“Come!”  Din yells grabbing your wrist and trying to dart you out to the Razor Crest.  

Storm Troopers line the property and start taking shots at you, raining the air with blaster fire.  It's too late, the Imperial Cruisers have landed and so have Bounty Hunters and soon another fleet will be here to kill you, Din and take your child. You, with Shy-Tan huddled close to you and Din rush and crouch behind a small cargo box in the front yard.  You're huddle together, Din’s arms engulfing you.

“How are we getting out of here?”  You ask frantically through the blaster fire coming from all directions.

Din looks around, watching Storm Troopers surrounding you from every angle.

“I-I dont know…”  He stammers, and for the first time you hear terror quaking his voice as he holds you and Shy-Tan even closer under him.

He pushes his vembrance and releases his whistling sparrow missiles but it only takes out about ten Storm Troopers with 50 more closing in.

Din’s Com Link goes off and he hear’s Bo-Katan say, “The other fleet has arrived… prepare for more fire!”

You whine, terrified, holding Shy-Tan under the cave that Din has created over you with his body.  

“We’re going to die.”  You cry then put your hand over Shy-Tan’s eyes.  Din doesn’t say anything but you feel his body tense as he covers you.

There’s the sound of ships soaring overhead, ship fire, blaster fire and screaming.  There’s numerous blinding, flashing, lights, explosions and you feel dirt being thrown around and shot into your skin from the blast.  After the initial blasts and ship engines soaring close to the ground it sounds like hand to hand combat until it becomes quiet.

Din refuses to stop covering the two of you, shaking, sure that this would be your end.

Everything is silent.  The air can be heard again.

A hand touches Din's shoulder.

Din raises his helmet to see a man standing over him.  He holds a long sword dripping with blood as he drops the decapitated head of a StormTrooper.  His face is striped with glowing neon blue stripes.

He holds his hand out to Din to help him up.  

“Din Djarin?” He asks.

Din takes his hand, confused and stumbles up to his feet, letting you and Shy-Tan who he was covering, slowly sit up.

Din stares around the horizon watching the unknown fleet eradicate numerous fleets of Star Troopers in the horizon with flashes of blinding blue light on the battlefield and screams.  He stands in awe.

You stand up with Shy-Tan in your arms, eyes wide, taking in the war torn environment then stares at the man who saved you.

“Who are you?” Din finally manages to mumble in awe.

The man doesn’t respond.  His blue stripes streaking across his face illuminate brighter.

You speak up, understanding who they are...

“They’re the enslaved male Lucs from the Empire Raid on my home planet... You survived."

Stars Too Far Masterlist

[amuser-96]

I just wanna say if you’re a Mando fan and you ever wanna bring up Legends again in the same breath you wanna have feel good Mando vibes then you’re better off keeping to Fanon and the new Disney Canon.

And I’m not even talking about Death Watch or anything. I’m talking about traditional Mandalorians, or the Old Mandalorians, like Kal Skirata. The True Mandalorians weren’t really any different than the Old Mandalorians only in that True Mandos believed it honorable to become mercenaries while Old Mandos believed it better to be an actual soldier.

For one, in Legends remember that strange “progressive” Mando bit about how Mando men don’t mind if their non Mando wife have affairs with non Mando men and conceiving children with them as long as the child is raised Mando? You do realize that if you combine that with how Mando children aren’t allowed to be raised in non Mando households (like Christians), and the mercenary nature of what Mandos do to make a living than if that Mando husband were to ever die than custody of her Mando child would go to strangers rather than it’s biological and living Non Mando parents?

In fact, it’s one of the reasons why Kal was even able to persuade Etain to give up her child to him is that by Mandalorian law if her child isn’t raised within Mando culture then he’d be considered a Soulless abomination and not even Darman’s child anyway? And the whole reason Kal’s wife divorced him is because he wanted to bring their 8 year old sons into active War Zones, and according to him it’s a part of Mandalorian tradition. Never mind the Fanon that Mandos don’t let their children join them until they’re 13 years old, like the rest of the Galaxy.

Hell, despite the denial of Mandalorian culture not being religious, you do realize that Mandalorains view foreign children (and adults) as Soulless until they’re given a Mando name, right? And that adoption is sometimes seen as saving the soulless children from becoming “Walking Dead Men”?

"the jedi are bad and palpatine had a poi-"

[calamity-queen]

Guys plz lets not cancel pedro. He’s clearly an amazing guy that supports marginalized community in fandom. Just because he has to keep a facade of support for G*na to appease the mouse and keep his job doesn’t mean he deserves to be canceled.

And before y’all go “he doesn’t have to listen to Disney he shouldnt be forced to support someone who vocally opposes everything he believes in,” remember what company we’re dealing with here. Disney has the power to blacklist actors. Pedro is seeing a rise in popularity and is getting a lot of good roles in movies and television now and I’d hate for all of that to go away just because he couldn’t make one (1) instagram post.

And we can always pretend he’s talking about the characters of Din and Cara, because at this point I know I’ve disconnected Cara Dune the character from G*na C*r*no

[clonewarsarchives]

READY FOR BATTLE! (#115, MARCH 2010)

Dave Filoni explains why the time is right for the Mandalorians to join The Clone Wars and looks to the future of the show. Words: Jonathan Wilkins

At what stage did you make the decision to introduce the Mandalorians into Star Wars: The Clone Wars?

Our head writer, Henry Gilroy, and I had pitched George Lucas a Mandalorian story at the very beginning of the production of The Clone Wars. Henry is really interested in the Mandalorains. Of all the story lines that we had pitched, which included the Malevolence trilogy, the ambush in the Outer Rim arc, and “Downfall of a Droid”, the Mandalorian storyline was the only one we didn’t get approved by George at the time. He had his reasons, so I just pushed the idea out of my mind. I always used to rib Henry about it though, because he likes Mandalorians so much!

Then, one day George came back to the idea. He wanted to explore the Mandalorians and define their civilization, and at least the part of their history that we’d be interacting with in The Clone Wars. The Mandalorians are in the show specifically because of George.

Did you get the sense that George was using some of the original concepts he had when he developed Boba Fett for The Empire Strikes Back?

George conceived the Mandalorians as super-commandos from the beginning. We adapted certain elements, but—working very closely with George—we brought them to the screen the way that he envisaged that civilization.

What do you think the Mandos add to the overall dynamic of the second season of The Clone Wars?

They definitely add a lot. I like having an armed force that’s not a battle droid-driven force. We’ve been lucky in Season Two in that we’ve had the Geonosians, and now we have the Mandalorians. They’re very much their own group and they’re not as subservient as a lot of the occupied military forces. They are definitely working in league with Dooku, but they have their own goals as far as what they’re trying to accomplish for themselves in the Clone Wars.

Did you draw on any Expanded Universe sources when you were developing them for the show?

Not particularly. There were only a few scant things that George and I actually used in The Clone Wars series itself. That’s not to say that the other EU stuff is eliminated or gone. I know some people will say, “This isn’t the way I pictured it”, but we’re showing a particular point in their history, which is a very interesting development point. When I play games like Knights of the Old Republic that have Mandalorians in them, all that history is still there. We’re just looking at one slice of it at this particular moment. It’s bound to be different from some people’s ideas.

That’s true of a lot of Star Wars.

Absolutely! There’s what you think is going to happen, and then there’s what actually happens! I remember watching the prequels, and things were dramatically different than what I had speculated or what I had read as a fan. The way I’ve always operated is that when it comes from George, that’s the way it is! When George Lucas tells you what the Mandalorian planet looks like and what the buildings look like, and how it all operates, you have to say, “Well, he’s a pretty good source for information! I should listen to this guy!”

Given the weight of fan expectations, was it a difficult storyline to get right?

I don’t think it was difficult because we were working to George’s expectations. It’s a story he wanted to tell. Do we meet the expectations of the “Fandalorians” and the various groups that are immersed in that culture? We’ll have to wait and see. I’m sure the episodes will definitely raise some questions. And that makes it fun!

How did you come to cast ion Favreau as Pre Vizsla?

Jon was working on Iron Man, and it came to my attention that he was a Star Wars fan. He was at Skywalker Ranch with his family and was curious about what we were doing. He let me see some of Iron Man and he got to check out our show! It was a lot of fun. He mentioned off-hand that he would be interested in voicing a character for us and it just so happened that I had a character that wasn’t cast. I thought it would be a really cool thing for Jon, and fun for fans if he did the part.

And he did a great job of playing Pre Vizsla; he’s the one guy that, in this whole Mandalorian world, is the defender of the historic Mandalorian past. He’s the one character who knows what the Mandalorians were and what they should be, and wants to get them back to that reality. He’s a great character and I think that he’ll become a favorite of many fans.

Where does the name Pre Vizsla came from?

“Pre” is kind of a title, one of some stature, like “pre-eminent.” But “Vizsla” actually comes from a character that was in the comic books. Vizsla was the leader of the Death Watch movement. Of the things that existed in the EU world, Vizsla and the Death Watch were two things that George kept and wanted to work with in The Clone Wars, so we have those elements in our show. It also sounds like “pre-vis”—the process by which we shoot a pre-production rough of the show, so it’s also an inside joke.

Who comes up with the little proverbs at the start of each show?

That’s usually the task of that episode’s writer. When they turn in a script they’re supposed to have their little proverb worked out. Sometimes we find that in the course of making the episode it’s no longer true! The episodic directors, George, and I run the episodes through the wringer, and sometimes we change so much that the writers’ initial intentions have changed, so we’ll rewrite it. Henry Gilroy has a little book of proverbs that George had given him and we used to draw a lot from that. We’d change them a little in order to give them a bit of a Star Wars twist.

Are there any unusual sources of inspiration for the characters?

We are inspired all the time. The inspiration for Cad Bane comes from Sergio Leone westerns. The plunk droid is based on our designer Kilian Plunkett, so we have it make the “plunk” sound when it walks around. We do bizarre little things like that.

If you could change one thing about any episode so far, what would it be?

Being from the “George Lucas school of Star Wars” I can say that I fully understand why he makes Special Editions! There are all kinds of things about previous episodes that I would work on and change. When you evolve into a better storyteller and suddenly you also have better tools to tell the story, you sit there and think Boy if I could do that episode again I bet we could do it so much better! I have a list of things for a whole bunch of episodes, as I’m sure George did for his movies, but you just have to make a decision: Are you going to dwell on that or move on? What we’ve chosen to do is to keep moving forward and to try to make each new episode better. If I don’t like the way a planet turned out in the past, if we go back to that planet I make sure it looks way better. You’ll see that in something as recognizable as Coruscant. When you look at the view of Coruscant in The Clone Wars movie from outside Palpatine’s office, it’s just one painting. When you look at it now, in episodes like “Hostage Crisis” or “Senate Spy,” it’s a complete world. There are buildings outside, there’s more traffic... there are all kinds of things going on. I once talked to George about it, and he told me, “Ah, you’ve got to let it go; there’s nothing you can do about it.” I said “Hey, but you changed stuff!” George understands that you see things with a better and a more critical eye.

It’s funny when people think we’ve gotten something wrong when in fact it’s intentional. For example, if a character has a cloak and it’s not like the cloak you saw in the live-action movie, there are probably several reasons—and not because we’re trying to make a fashion statement. There’s an allocation of cloth that we’re allowed to animate in every episode, so having a shorter cape on a character is easier than floor-length. That’s why Plo Koon doesn’t have the same outfit as in the movies. I would have preferred to have it the same, but our production time dictated that he had to have a belt, because he has a full-length shoulder-to-floor robe. I probably could do it differently now. Who knows? Maybe he’ll get a wardrobe change!

What sequences have exceeded your expectations?

I thought that Mustafar in “Children of the Force” turned out really well. A volcanic planet for us was a borderline panic attack! I remember watching web docs around Revenge of the Sith when they were saying how difficult it was going to be for them to do all the lava and other effects and I thought, Great, now we have to do it for TV! Joel Aron (visual effects supervisor) and the team rose to the challenge and pulled it off brilliantly.

Do you have a favorite in-joke in the show?

I don’t, because I think those kinds of things are just so cheeky. You really have to be in the know in order to realize that we just referenced something. I thought that we had gone too far in the first season, so we really pulled back. One thing that I thought was kind of “inside” was the scene in “Children of the Force” where Anakin and Ahsoka go to talk to Chancellor Palpatine, and Palpatine stops her at the door and doesn’t let her into his office. I thought it was a little tongue-in-cheek; the fans know that he’s the Sith Lord corrupting Anakin Skywalker, but it’s also for the fans who are perplexed by the question of why Ahsoka is there. Palpatine is dismissive of her, which I thought was kind of funny. I thought that they’d be glad that he dissed her so directly, so we did that very intentionally. There’s also probably the idea that young people often see through the disguise of evil more easily than adults. Adults have no problem thinking of Palpatine as a politician. He’s corrupt. Well, of course he’s devious. That’s the cliché of the corrupt politician. They don’t see that he’s the Sith Lord; maybe she would... but probably not!

Palpatine really has Anakin in his clutches at this stage.

One of my favorite things is seeing that father-like figure that Palpatine represents. He’s a constant supporter of Anakin and an encouraging presence. Where the Jedi tell Anakin to be more measured and patient, Palpatine tells him, “They need you more than you know. I suspect you’ll become the greatest of all Jedi, even more powerful than Master Yoda.” Who wouldn’t like to hear that kind of thing, as opposed to the constant criticism he gets from Mace Windu?

How defined is Ahsoka’s journey in the show and do you know what her fate will be?

I definitely have a plan for her in mind. I keep a tab on where she’s at, where she’s been, and where she needs to go. It gets considerable thought because I feel very invested in her, and Rex’s character as well. I really want to faithfully follow through on their eventual fates. I know that people like to think that when you start a project as big and with as much scope as The Clone Wars that you know from day one what’s going to happen to all these people. But through the creative process and the evolution of a story, many things can change. If you look at all the letters that Lord of the Rings author J.R.R. Tolkien wrote about characters, plot, and so on, you see the struggles that went on in the development of his characters and what was going to happen to them. Some of our characters’ fates are pretty easy to figure out, like Anakin. What happens to his relationship with Ahsoka is a bigger question.

[atagotiak]

I think my main problem with Traviss' Mandalore and fanon Mandalore isn't so much that many people prefer a nicer, kinder Mandalore than as is written, while still drawing heavily from Karen Traviss' worldbuilding.

It's that they treat it as canon that they're the morally upstanding, egalitarian people who have a strong cultural norm of treating children well.

And that just really doesn't bear out.

And it really really irritates me that traditionalist Mandalore is seen as an anticolonialist ideal when they're written as a colonial people.

I should still watch the Mandalorain and the Book of Boba Fett and such. They look good and real interesting, and from everything I’ve seen handle things far better than that. I just haven't gotten around to it. But everything I see about Legends Mandalore is still...

[uvena]

i never realized it before but when greef karga tries one last time to stop din from leaving nevarro with grogu he says “i didn’t want it to come to this. but then you broke the code.” that’s a very interesting choice of words for greef to use. historically speaking, it’s not uncommon for mandalorians to become bounty hunters or mercenaries. but when it specifically comes to this bounty hunting guild and its code, it contrasts with the creed of din’s sect of mandalorians. even if they are zealous and extreme in their practices, even if mandalorians are, in both legend and in life, warriors of an elite caliber, what people fail to comprehend is that family is also a part of their creed. in maintaining the code of the bounty hunting code, din is not only going against his own moral code (which we clearly see him struggle with prior to departing from nevarro) but going against the mandalorian one as well. even though he took the job for the sake of the culvert, that doesn’t erase the fact that handing grogu over is the sin. that giving up and abandoning the child goes against everything he knows to be right, both through belief and experience. so when he breaks guild code, he not only obviously redeeming himself but realigning himself with the tenets of mandalorain culture. even though it costs him nearly everything, he’s doing the right thing not only by his own standards, but mandalorian standards as well.

[justalittletomato]

🖊 Lis I swear to Hekk you have to tell me more about Ares! I don’t know enough about him!!!

AH ARES!!! 

That little honey bee ( or so named as little one), he is the nonforce sensitive and likely most sane of all the Terror Brigade mostly on terms of hey am I going to run off? Am I going dark side? Am I going to blow something up? Bake at 3 am? Run off with rebels with my shoes unlaced? 

Like his cousin Cress he loves to learn, more so medical and about the different fauna. Angel has long since gifted her son her books on the subject and that boy has a journal on the many different medical uses for the plants he has found on his adventures. 

Speaking of adventures he is Cress’s constant companion when they go exploring the Dathomirian terrain, Cress is just fascinated with everything while Ares slightly in the same way tries to find items of use in one way or another. 

He is slightly sarcastic and blunt about matters and quite honest on how he views force training...laser swords...one wrong move and its gone! 

He is caring for sure and checks over his families injuries and illnesses, learning much with Angel. 

He and Cress are what Maul and Savage could have been...brothers from the start. Wrestling and playing tricks and chasing after the other. When they were children and Leta had been around Ares would teasingly pick up little Leta on his back. It was fun to see Cress so flustered about his sweetheart. Ares would laugh and say he would never. 

He loves honey and dreams of seeing the ocean, it would be a nice change...

He loves Eris but damn his twin is so close to blowing up the Fortress with her experiments! Also she may have brought in a pet bat...and its kind of big? Hmmmm...

Feral is a great little brother and often leaves Ares a plate of honey cakes when he can. Ares says they are quite unhealthy and stuffs another into his mouth. 

Ares adores his mother, Angel. He wants nothing more than to make her smile and learn from her. His father was right to call her Angel...she is just that and has been since he entered this world. 

He looks a lot like Savage...a fact that starts to trouble him as he gets older. He is almost thankful when he is attacked by a rancor. It leaves a scar on his face and he silently begs Cress not to heal it. He doesn't want to look like Savage...what will it be like when he gets even older? Past an age that his father will never be? 

Speaking of Fathers, not once does Ares refer to Maul as father. It is always uncle and that is that. He does love him though and asks quietly for a story about his father, Angel tends to get teary eyed. Maul will nod and answer. “Have I told you...” 

As for Starlight? Oh she’s something and Ares learns much from her as well. It is nice to talk to other non forsesentives however she is a bit much given her Mandalorain culture but she tells incredible stories and makes the best spicy stew  (don't tell Angel) 

Aster...ah she’s dramatic that Princess but he loves her too. Does he wonder how the hell she is floating? Yeah...but that's force stuff so he isn't going to worry. she has gladly added to his journals detailed sketches of the plants he has found. 

and Dani...oh sweet baby Dani is so cute! BUT HOW CAN SHE BE SO CLUMSY????!!! If Dani is around Ares is at the ready with bandaids and often shielding the little tomato from a falling book. 

[thewriterowl]

There are nice Fics about Luke accidentally doing things that are considered courting in Mandalorian culture, but not so much of Din being the one to accidentally court Luke, so I was wondering if you had some headcanons about this?

So, Luke won't think it is intentional at first. He'd know, or believe, that Din couldn't possibly be courting him. Hope for, yes. But Din wouldn't need to know Tatooine courting culture. And Luke only knew a little of Naboo courting culture that it wouldn't make sense for Din to use those tactics...and Jedi courting was a bit like Mandalorian unless you were Obi-Wan who was apparently born with a Flirting Gene.

Still...Din certainly is doing a lot of things one would find on Tatooine when someone was looking for a partner to marry.

Story sharing was big on Tatooine. Besides getting drunk and waiting for something big to happen on the Holo or going off to have a Womp Rat shooing competition or impromptu pod-race, there was not much else to do for fun. So stories was something very important and personal to them. And Din shared a lot of stories with Luke. And not just general stories but ones that showed off his capability as a protector and provider, important things that were shared in a courting process.

But that wasn't anything. It's just two friends sharing their experiences!

The water gift could also be easily explained. Din gave water to Luke to drink, and ensured he drank first, because he was still keeping his face hidden. Watching your intended drink water you provided was a very common way to woo as well...but water wasn't as limited everywhere else and Din was just being kind.

It could be the same for providing Luke gifts of fresh fruits and vegetables. Meat could be found if you hunted enough on Tatooine (not great meat but it was edible) but you could not really go out and get good fruits and vegetables. Luke must've off-handled said he liked fruits and vegetables more during a conversation and Din, amazing and giving Din, remembered it and provided it just because that was the person he is...not because he liked Luke like that.

And no, Luke did not get all heartbroken and teary-eyed later when he realized the gifts were of friendship and not a proposal. He has not idea what you're talking about.

Din going out of his way to get items Luke really liked, but didn't need were a little harder to explain but, again, Din was just a good and giving man. Him finding Luke blue milk custard was just very, very sweet of him...but nothing romance. Impossible for it to be romantic.

Because the biggest thing with Tatooine courting culture is being blunt and making a sort of confession or proclamation. They were not the most romantic of people who could waste time nor were they the most gentle (Luke and Beru being exceptions). They will say their intentions clearly early on and Din never did. Luke figured Mandalorains were similar in that regards so it was easy to understand that Din didn't mean anything.

It still broke his sweet little heart but he hid it well.

Then they visit Boba who is married to Cobb (and maybe Fennec cause I love this OT3 when Boba isn't with Luke) and Luke is all sad and on finds in Cobb to just sort of vent. Cobb, who loves drama and getting involved, goes up to Din and is all, "Ya know you've been courting Skywalker, right?"

And Din is all "whut?"

So Cobb sits the moron down and tells him everything with Din going, "Is it too late to make it courting?"

So Cobb helps Din get himself in check with Boba making points on adding a Mandalorian flare ("Darlin', your courting skills are horrible." "They worked on you!" "I was the one who courted you--you just threw me over your shoulder and said let's go find a bed to break." "It still worked.")

Din goes and challenges Luke to a spar (gets his ass kicked; and he is so in love from it), hands Luke water to cool off with, says he wants to ensure he drank it (much to Luke's flustered confusion), talks to him about the time he was amazing and killed a Kryat Dragon, offered to do it again to get him a pearl (Luke is SO confused and freaked out and says Din better not risk himself like that) and then Din makes his intentions to courting Luke properly clear.

Luke is probably blushing so hard he faints.

[misswhovian101]

Black Widow on Disney+

There's been talk going around that Black Widow (and Mulan) might be released digitally first. And at first I was really against that idea. I mean, we've waited 10 YEARS for a Black Widow solo film, it deserves to be released on the big screen. And I totally agree with that...

But that was before COVID-19. We are in a pandemic, that changes a lot of things. For example, it's not the best idea to leave your home right now unless absolutely necessary, which includes going to the theaters. I know a lot of people will think "why can't studios just delay the films until all of this blows over?". But there's a possibility this won't all just "blow over" until TWO years from now. Most studios are holding onto the hope that will likely pass within a few months, not years. But that might not be the case. And studios cannot wait that long to release a film, they need money to stay afloat.

Which is why it might be best for Black Widow to be released digitally. The idea sounded terrible to me at first because it wouldn't really make any money, and it wouldn't have cultural impact like other MCU films. But it turns out, that money thing ain't true. Onward did "horrible" in the movie theaters, but it did really great online. It's been #2 on ITunes, and #6 on Amazon prime. And film costs $20 a pop on those platforms.

By the way, Black Widow wouldn't be released on Disney+ at first, it would go on to platforms where to would for the movie for 24hrs (iTunes, Prime, YouTube), then after it's made money from everyone who wanted to see it, it would go on Disney+.

I think this streaming thing is starting to become popular. It's letting people watch all these films they might not have been able to see in the theaters. And I think we have to face that this might be our new normal for some time. It might a really good invest for studios to jump in on this, because what else are they going to do?

And about the cultural thing? Just think of Strangers Things, Game of Thrones, or the Mandalorain. None of those shows were released by the big screen, and yet those shows continue to have a HUGE cultural impact!

And this is not to say Black Widow will never hit the big screen, because it will, it just take some time. It's like a reverse release plan; instead of "Movie theater release, to streaming movie online", it's "#streaming, to theatrical release". In layman's terms, that means there would be a second release after this whole ordeal is over, a theatrical release. So we would still get to see the movie in theaters, it would just have to wait awhile.

[thewriterowl]

For the trope post: 50 and 67 for DinLuke?

50: Arranged Marriage & 67: Character in Peril

Arranged marriage, one of the absolute best tropes for Dinluke. It is always marvelous and one I will probably return to in the near future after Hope and the Modern AU is complete.

So, with this, how about it is the Mandalorian v. Jedi war but things are finally beginning to cool down and treaties are being urged for, especially when the Jedi discover that the Sith are beginning to aim for a war themselves. The Jedi could not win two wars or if the Sith and Mandalorains pair. So there is a treaty created. Luke and Din, of course, are selected.

Only this time, Din has to be the one to live with Luke.

They live on Courscant and Luke continues training younglings but sees that his husband is struggling. He is unhappy and depressed and angry and homesick. Luke makes the offer for them to live on Mandalore (surprising and touching Din) but they needed to stay near the Jedi temple for now as part of the treaty. It is a show of trust and good faith and a test to the Jedi to ensure they will not do anything to the Mandalorian heir.

So, Luke brings him to teaching, including him in teaching the children how to fight like a Mandalorian. Din really gets close to one little youngling who is such a brat but so bright and happy and Din just loves the kid. Grogu is the same. Luke doe snot interfere and even urges for the two to connect, as he knows Grogu got lonely as well.

Luke shows Din so much about the Jedi's life and culture, they go to different temples and libraries and he is surprised to see so much more depth to the Jedi than he'd been led to believe. Din thought they were cold warriors who separated families. But spending time with Luke shows how they speak with the families and it is never guilt or pressure but just factual but emotional conversation. How so many families were eager to get rid of their Force-sensitive children. and how happy and loved the children are when they are in the temple. He learns the Jedi are not all boring and serious, but many of them are full of love and, honestly, super stupid that it put Mandalorains to shame.

He also learns that the Jedi did not wage war on the Mandalorains but the Republic did and the previous Mand'alor had done things that were not exactly honorable and were trying to take over territories. Din burns with shame in that realization.

Well, they continue to get close and are falling in love with each other and then Din comes to the realization that Luke was not simply chosen for his power or age but because the Sith side were targeting him. Luke was in danger at being kidnapped or assassinated because this mysterious Darth Sideous and his follower Vader were on a war-path to either have him as theirs or kill him so no one else could.

Din is not about to let that happen. Even if he wasn't in love with Luke, he'd be duty/honored bound to protect his husband...now with feelings involved, he had another reason to do so. There is no way he was about to let anything happen to his beloved cyar'ika nor about to let these two cultures fall back into war when, clearly, they would be the strongest unified force in the galaxy.

They work together to try and figure out who these mysterious people are and why they are so desperate for Luke, finding out some very startling information that put them both in even more danger...with the potential of Luke being kidnapped right from Din's arms.