The Mandalorian Discussion Thread (spoilers and such)

[Broomstick]

Given that Mandorlorians are heavily into free-lancing it could be that the Mando was on board that ship on the payroll of whomever was flying it and NOT part of the "rescue" party. Leaping from "beskar" to "the Mandos did it!" is making some assumptions that may or may not be true.

[Solauren]

Also, it's been mentioned that alot of Beskar was stolen from Mandalore by the Empire. Who knows where it could have ended up by now?

[Juubi Karakuchi]

Given that Mandorlorians are heavily into free-lancing it could be that the Mando was on board that ship on the payroll of whomever was flying it and NOT part of the "rescue" party. Leaping from "beskar" to "the Mandos did it!" is making some assumptions that may or may not be true.

Indeed. And I can think of other possibilities. But will the New Republic show the same forbearance?

We have a situation in which an independent planet was attacked, the NR outright refused to intervene - or allow its own personnel to intervene - meaning the Mandos had to do it. Now they are living openly on the same very grateful planet. And not long after that, circumstantial evidence emerges that a Mando attacked an NR shuttle, killed NR personnel, and made off with a captured war criminal. I say again, the evidence is entirely circumstantial. But the Franco-Prussian war was started by a slightly-reworded telegram.

This also ties in to Bo-Katan. The Armourer is now pushing her as a cosmopolitan leader, one who can pull together the various Mandalorian traditions. All she has to do now is go back to Mandalore and ride a Mythosaur; and she's the new Mand'alor. Mandalore was once capital of an entire sector, and it is at least implied that there are a lot of Mandos still out there. If she pulls this off, the Mandos could become at least a regional power once again; and that might worry the NR. Her rise could fuel a breakdown in relations with the NR, and at the same time could be fuelled by it.

As a minor side point, that Lasat pilot was, apparently, the one and only Garazeb Orrelios.

[LadyTevar]

I see two reasons for the Beskar being there.

1. Some very angry Mandos decided to take the law into their own hands and lynch Gideon.
However, they'd probably have left his body there in as gruesome a death as they could devise, to get the point across.

2. Someone mentioned "Imperial Mandalorians". In that case, it's a rescue mission and Gideon will be back next season as the Big Bad keeping them from regaining Mandalore.

[bilateralrope]

What could cause a piece of Beskar to break off Mandalorian armor like that ?

Whoever put that Beskar there, I doubt they were using it like Mandalorians do. Best guess is that someone wanted to frame them.


As for the latest episode, it was fun. Looks like the amnesty program can produce some good results and having a separatist be behind everything was an interesting choice.

[ralfy]

The last episode was awful, and the one with the political thriller element just as bad. But I can't blame them because it's as if they have to combine the goofiness of the original trilogy (which is fine because the franchise is really meant for kids) and the banality of the prequels (which makes stories a snoozefest). Also, if it's really for kids, then anything that entertains them is fine, whether it's Jack Black or Baby Yoda jumping around.

[Broomstick]

Yeah, although this most recent episode had its moments it felt disjointed and farcical to me, with a side of Aesops about over-reliance on automation and the pitfalls of democracy.

[Gandalf]

I quite enjoyed it. It was cool to have a plot that was more fun focused than the regular fare. TOS had serious episodes, but they also had Gangster Planet.

Also, the idea of droids as a happy labour class because without said work they face an existential crisis was pretty cool. I wonder what their compensation is, if anything. They have a droid bar, so perhaps there are other droid amenities?

[LadyTevar]

In Hindsight, yeah.. where ELSE would Gideon have his true hidey-hole, but in the place he claimed as his own (In the name of the Emperor).

Vizlo went out a hero. Took 3 of the Imperial Guard to kill him, and only after he'd been softened up first.

I can't wait for next week.

[Gandalf]

So I guess we've started the run up to Ahsoka, and setting up background for the sequels with Thrawn, Pellaeon, and Hux.

Giancarlo Esposito acts the hell out of being an Imperial bigwig. Big Gus Fring energy, with just the right silly.

[LadyTevar]

So I guess we've started the run up to Ahsoka, and setting up background for the sequels with Thrawn, Pellaeon, and Hux.

Giancarlo Esposito acts the hell out of being an Imperial bigwig. Big Gus Fring energy, with just the right silly.

I saw an interview from last season, and yes, he's enjoying the hell out of this role and chewing scenery.

Now, what else we see is why there was Beskar in the shuttle, since it's clearly from his new DarkTroopers.
I'm also wondering how long before the 501st recreates the Trooper armor we see in this base.

Now, all we have to see is how they get a signal to the fleet about the ambush. Assuming the Mandos survive, Gideon's left them a nice military base already built, stocked, and ready to move into at least.

[bilateralrope]

Now, what else we see is why there was Beskar in the shuttle, since it's clearly from his new DarkTroopers.

Though there is still the question of what could break Beskar like that. Unless the DarkTroopers are using lower quality Beskar.

[Lord Revan]

Now, what else we see is why there was Beskar in the shuttle, since it's clearly from his new DarkTroopers.

Though there is still the question of what could break Beskar like that. Unless the DarkTroopers are using lower quality Beskar.

Honestly I wouldn't put it past it that imperials have poor quality Beskar either because they don't know the proper refinement process or that's all they got access to.

[LadyTevar]

Now, what else we see is why there was Beskar in the shuttle, since it's clearly from his new DarkTroopers.

Though there is still the question of what could break Beskar like that. Unless the DarkTroopers are using lower quality Beskar.

Honestly I wouldn't put it past it that imperials have poor quality Beskar either because they don't know the proper refinement process or that's all they got access to.

Agreed. I'd be very surprised if the Armorers didn't have Guild Secrets, taught only to their apprentices. And since the Armorer seems to have a quasi-religious role (at least for The Children), I'd bet money there are Rituals to how the Beskar is handled to give it the full potential.

Thinking along those lines --
We've seen the Armorer at her job many times. She does the blacksmithing piece by piece, by hand* and quenches the Beskar in what's probably a very closely guarded barrel of Water from the Source.

However, the Empire wouldn't waste time trying to learn/teach hand-forging. They would fully automate the process, turning it into an assembly line from the smelting to pouring it into pre-fab molds, to having droids clean up the pieces and assemble the product.
And, as we all know, assembly lines are great for getting lots of things made fast and cheap, but quality often suffers.

* I have Blacksmith friends, and they use power-hammers and trip-hammers to help their projects. Still Considered Hand-Forged because the Smith is right there, controlling the process. You can see nice examples of this on "Forged In Fire" episodes (which has featured many SCA blacksmiths over the years, and some even won!)

[Gandalf]

My memory is hazy, and google isn't helping much. Is their water specifically magical in any way, or is it like holy water in a church setting?

[Batman]

Nobody said anything about the waters of Mandalore being 'physically' special, the bathing in them redeeming a fallen Mandalorian seemed to be an entirely ceremonial thing. Indeed prior to Mando and Bo-Katan going there the Mandalorians considered the planet to be cursed but were still forging 'proper' beskar armor so it is doubtful they'd go back to collect any 'special water' to aid in the 'proper' forging process.

[bilateralrope]

Pouring it into the forge confirmed that it was genuine water from the mines. So there is something unusual in it. If it's some microorganisms, they might not need to go back if they can sustain a healthy supply.

But I'm going to assume that the weaker Imperial Beskar is due to a lack of knowledge and/or mass production, not anything important about the sacred water.

[LadyTevar]

Why I am NOT SURPRISED that Gideon is that much of an egocentric bastard to have THOSE in the cloning tanks?

[Gandalf]

Interesting to see how the Mandalore plot resolved. I wonder how the armour cult Mandalorians will go about living with their more secular fellow citizens once the initial post victory consensus moment fades. They'll need a lot of immigration to make that population viable.

A small part of me was also hoping for a small Grogu helmet, but that face makes a lot of money.

[LadyTevar]

Interesting to see how the Mandalore plot resolved. I wonder how the armour cult Mandalorians will go about living with their more secular fellow citizens once the initial post victory consensus moment fades. They'll need a lot of immigration to make that population viable.

A small part of me was also hoping for a small Grogu helmet, but that face makes a lot of money.

I'm also wondering how they'll manage to coexist, but between Bo Katan and The Armorer, who both saw how the faction-fighting lead to losing Mandalore, I think they'll work out a compromise while still having THE WAY.
I think this mostly because all of the non-Children were wearing their helmets during the baptism scene (a Children ritual), while some were unhelmeted while they were lighting The Great Forge.

[Batman]

Unless they want to cut off his ears, I think even a fully helmeted Baby Yoda would remain decidedly recognizable.

[bilateralrope]

I see that Gideon got the good Beskar. While the other imperials got some that couldn't stop blasters.

Also, did I miss what happened to all the TIEs ?

[Crazedwraith]

How would you helmet baby yoda. Cut outs for the ears? Squoosh them down inside? Have protrusions to put them in?

[Batman]

Cut outs most likely.

[LadyTevar]

I see that Gideon got the good Beskar. While the other imperials got some that couldn't stop blasters.

Also, did I miss what happened to all the TIEs ?

What we SAW --
The Mandos all escaped to the troopships, and used the magnetic weirdness of Mandalore's atmosphere to literally pass the TIEs on their way down. The TIES went straight for the Cruiser and did exactly as both sides planned -- they started blowing it out of the air. Some TIEs did get taken out by the Cruiser's anti-fighter weapons, but I'm assuming at least half may have survived to watch the Cruiser drop into atmosphere. Assuming the TIE pilots could plot the course, it's probably clear just where that Cruiser was going to hit.

If I was a TIE pilot with a jump engine, at that point I'd cut my losses and run because the mission just went FUBAR. There's no base to come back to. **IF** any Imperial bigwig survived, they'd blame the TIEs for bringing down the Cruiser atop the base, instead of "safely" blowing it up in space.