So they are basically Klingon, a warrior caste with a heightened sense of honor. So, why do they do such a dishonorable job such as bounty hunting? They use the prize they get to refurbish their armor, which bears some sort of religious importance. So they are not materialistic, they are honorable, and yet they allow themselves be hired by all kinds of scum to do their dirty work. Why?
sharewhy not?
Soldiers gotta soldier, and it's been common throughout history for warriors to go mercenary here on earth. Just because a samurai goes ronin doesn't mean he loses all honor.
The show seems to be telling us that Mandalorians:
1. value weapons as their religion
2. want kills to be honorable
3. attach cultural significance to their armor
None of that is inconsistent with being a bounty hunter. But the second one DOES seem inconsistent with delivering an infant to be slaughtered.
I'll admit, I DID have a problem with him stealing back "baby Yoda" after collecting the bounty. But then it occurred to me that, once the deal was done, ANYONE could steal "baby Yoda" again. Indeed, seems like others besides Herzog's character were actively looking.
It's perhaps the client's responsibility to protect his "property."
In any case, it's clear what he did doesn't violate Mandalorian code, although it apparently does violate the code of the bounty hunter guild.
But that's unions fer ya'
It would never be acceptable for a bounty hunter to take back the package after he delivered it. If that was acceptable then why would the bounty hunter even bother to deliver the package, why wouldn't they just show up claiming to have the package and then killing the client as soon as they saw they had the payment on them.
This part simple made no sense at all. Even worse was the fact that his fellow mandalorians came to his rescue. They would have logically be as upset with what he had done as the client as it painted their entire group in a bad light. Who would trust a mandalorian in the future if this were to have happened.
They don't seem to follow the same code as Klingons. I don't get that "today is a good day to die" feeling from them. More like today is a good day to kill your enemies and come back with the spoils. I think they aspire to be warriors until they're old, then maybe serve as instructors for the kids. Many of them won't get there of course. It's a dangerous way of life they pursue, and I'm sure they honor the fallen, but there isn't that desire to martyr themselves gloriously in battle that we see with the Klingons.
The armor seems as much a practical consideration as a religious one. You use your expensive special steel to make new armor instead of selling it to buy other stuff because it renders you nearly impervious to small arms fire and protects you against impacts and explosions that would otherwise kill you instantly. Although those kinds of things can damage even the super-strong steel.
Let's face it: most of the people a bounty hunter is hired to track down are scum. Lawbreakers at the very least. Every so often (assuming they don't get to pick and choose) they'll end up retrieving an innocent person on behalf of a disreputable client. From what various Star Wars fans have said in other threads the Mandalorians were once conquerors who enslaved the populations of other worlds. So their code of honor is obviously not the same as that of, say, a Samurai. We found out this week that they never abandon their own in battle no matter the circumstances - or the cost. They're going to have to relocate to another planet now because of that incident. But they went charging in without a second thought.
Bounty hunting is an honorable job. All of the official jobs are for people with a court order for their arrest, mostly bad dudes or people who skipped out on bail. The under the table jobs might be illegal hits.
shareTo be hired by the Hutts, nevermind the Empire, to collect debt and detain people, as was the case with Boba Fett? The Mandalorian lends to all this a strange, "honorable," context that I don't understand.
shareBoba Fett was never a Mandalorian, LOL. He just wore their armor, apparently.
shareWell, Wookiepedia claims that Jango Fett, and therefore Boba, his son/clone, were Mandalorian: https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Jango_Fett/Legends
shareWe may be in "who shot first" territory. Originally, Jango was a Mandalorian, but in The Clones Wars cartoon titled "The Mandalore Plot", it's suggested that he isn't one. Legends vs EU.
Lucas said that Jango wasn't a Mandalorian and only wore their armor.
My guess is that he considers Jango and Boba to be villains so he no longer wanted them to be Mandalorians who are honorable. Similar reasoning for having Greedo shoot first instead of "heroic" Han.
I tend to ignore Lucas' revisions: Han shot first. Jango and Boba are Mandalorians. Only legitimate movies are the original theatrical versions - not specialized edits. Legends is canon.
I will stand behind you and nod when you give this speech.
I have some misgivings about the Mandalorian's outing themselves over one member stealing a baby. Must the whole cell take action even if a foolish, emotional choice is made by one? It is hard to say that it was even a case of "doing the right thing." We, the audience, know that the tyke is likely good and that those who payed for it are up to no good but how does the Mandalorian know that? It could be a disease carrier that they need to destroy and make antidotes from to save its entire race. His childhood flashbacks are barely enough for me to excuse his behavior but not enough to accept the whole team mobilizing. Do they scramble thus every time one of their own is in trouble?
Very little gunpowder in my complaint. I enjoy the show. It could be enjoyment from low expectations created in me by Disney but so what. I'll take it. Upward trend in quality is upward.
"one member stealing a baby."
Mando saved the baby.
You forgot one important detail. The baby had saved his life. I thought it was lousy of him to turn the baby over after that.
"It could be a disease carrier that they need to destroy and make antidotes from to save its entire race."
Then the government, the New Republic would be involved in medical research and finding cures - not some backwater organized crime group with disgraced former stormtroopers working security.
"misgivings about the Mandalorian's outing themselves over one member"
Not just any member. Mando appears to garner respect and honor. He gives back to their community. If such a man is in trouble, then the group will help him out - no questions asked - because they trust and respect him.
"low expectations created in me by Disney"
I can relate, but Filoni is a Lucas hire, not Disney. Lucas had a knack for hiring talent so I had higher hopes with this show. Filoni's Rebels cartoon is great, too. Lucas' only hiring mistake was with Kennedy. And selling to Disney.
I really wonder what Lucas's sequel trilogy would've looked like if he had actually made it. It would certainly look very different from what Disney has given us.
Disney has fucked things up in a serious way, but I do like one part of their approach: They are serious about building out the Star Wars universe on screen. Books are one thing, but film fans want movies and TV shows.
My hope is that The Mandalorian represents the beginning of a new direction in terms of story and 10 years from now we'll look back at the JJ Abrams/Rian Johnson years simply as this weird, rocky time in SW history.
According to Lucas, his sequel trilogy would've focused on a Skywalker grandchild with Luke as his/her mentor. It would've had a different visual look instead of rehashing the old.
My guess is that the three main characters would've been together in the movies and I doubt if Han would've been killed off. Lucas would've had an interesting theme. A new threat to the New Republic.
Your link is to a "Legends" article, meaning that story only applies to non-canon books, comics, etc. Here is the correct link:
https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Jango_Fett
"Although Fett wore Mandalorian armor, the government of Mandalore saw him as nothing more than a common mercenary with no actual ties to the Mandalorians."
Amen.
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this show is bantha pudu!
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Forky, you're over here too? Oops, maybe I should keep that quiet. As to your review, that's why they make pistachio
and rocky road.
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I am! It needn't be a secret! And truth, my man!
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I was concerned that one of us would get a slap on the wrist from the little old ladies who run this place. They get their panties in a twist when you mention a competing site. I've had mine slapped several times.
Or even worse, they might even whack our pee pees!
https://media3.giphy.com/media/3o6ZtltBRvJjScLJLy/200.webp?cid=790b7611a0689195aacf9da92f25da64caee71b4c5af3438&rid=200.webp
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You need to study their culture, as well as read up on their history, particularly the era when the Empire was ruling. You also need to read up on how bounty hunting is seen in the SW galaxy. You can find all of it on the Wookiepedia.
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They are the Spartans of the Empire.
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I think they are like religious bigots here on Earth.
Their code of honor is internal. For instance, Jews and muslims have tons of rules, but they only apply to others in their cult, not to everyone.
Very true... In fact their religions both provide that their members can treat outsiders in a way that would be forbidden if it were directed at their fellow members.
shareYeah, Hollywood is run by one of those religions and the writer Jon favreau is a jew.
However, this show isn't promoting that it's using it as a device to give the lead character extra trouble to deal with. It makes sense because like I've said, such groups exist on our reality and are pretty dangerous.
The irony of course is that it should be highlighting the problem with any religion that acts in that way... but that message is going to be going right over the heads of people like Favreau.
shareI agree.
John Carter of Mars novels were about how a jewish like religion pulled the strings on Mars and caused wars, fear of death with their stories, and etc. It was a great story about how these groups divine people instead of bringing them together.
That would have been a great series of movies given all of the conflicts in the mideast. However, they washed all of that from the film and made it about magic rocks or whatever.
You will never get jews in Hollywood making movies that undermine their hustle. That is crazy because they haven't changed and people will try to kill them again and again.
Even Edgar Rice Burroughs, who wrote John Carter before WWII backpedaled on the theme because the Nazis did what he said they should do, try to eliminate the manipulators, but they did it in a brutal fashion instead of a noble one as Carter would do.
I think the lead female forger mentioned that they weren't always like this in the old days, but their numbers diminished. So it was "do bounty hunting", or disappear as a race.
I guess they could've become farmers or market sellers, but those people get trampled on and I would assume the Mandalorians, with their history of being some of the toughest warriors in existence, would feel wasted in those roles. And perhaps doing some Bounty Hunting not only lets them recruit more Foundlings to grow their numbers again, but to possibly...get revenge on some thugs who did their people wrong? (just my assumption, I don't know if the Mandalorian code allows for vengeance).