Rex's cyare

“Verd ori’shya beskar’gam” translates to “a warrior is more than their armor.” Armor is an integral aspect of being Mandalorian, but it isn’t the only thing, certainly not the end all be all, and I think that… people… have lost sight of that. Being Mandalorian is about more than just wearing armor. You don’t stop being a Mandalorian once you take the armor off. Mandalorians throughout Star Wars history emphasized a level of hyper-competence both in and out of armor, on and off the battlefield. But even then, I don’t think this is solely about war or combat.

I don’t know that all Mandalorians are soldiers, mercenaries, or hunters. I can’t imagine all Mandalorians take up a trade in combat, although the ability to if the need arises has to be there, regardless of their profession. We know some Mandalorians are farmers, artisans, mechanics, engineers, business owners, cooks, metalsmiths, armorsmiths, I’m sure there are even Mandalorian artists and whatnot. But that doesn’t mean that martial capabilities are gone from their life. It’s an important part of being a Mandalorian, if not for active combat, then at least for preparedness, protection, and defense. They are a warrior culture, after all. Not to mention they have traditional rights of passage involving martial prowess. It’s not something that can be discarded from their lifestyle and culture, and still consider themselves Mandalorian.

It isn’t even just about that, though. Again, you don’t stop being a Mandalorian once you take the armor off. You need to hold close to heart the philosophies, ideals, morals and values, the cultural ethos of the Mandalorians. It’s a mindset and a way of life. It doesn’t start and end with a set of armor. That idea is something that has been heavily overlooked by both Lucasfilm/Disney (esp a certain someone) and fans alike, I think.

I think this is a really important thing to bring up, because the laws and ideas surrounding culture and identity is what separates Mandalorians from the rest of the galaxy, it’s what distinguishes a *Mandalorian* from someone who simply wears armor. This is one of the main reasons why I’m so adamantly against the Children of the Watch, or really any of Filoni’s/Favreau’s version of “Mandalorians.” Because it so blatantly either contradicts or discards major aspects of Mando lore that have been built up and established for decades. The tendency to “black and white, no nuance” and “basic, surface level” everything in Star Wars has got to stop. Filoni’s MO fr. Disney, too, yea. Disnify. Disney-ify. I don’t know.

❤️💜💙

requested by @flowersandhappiness

thank you :D enjoy !!! <33

Magnífico 😍👑

...unless, since this topic is Star Wars, it's a non-human culture that is not communal in nature and engages in like. Infant cannibalism. In which case good on you for deciding to value children communally instead of eating your neighbor's kids so that your own have a greater share of resources.

I think I might start headcanoning that the reason Mandos think of themselves as uniquely caring of children is that the Taungs were an "eat your neighbor's baby" species and so human Mandos were like "Okay so childcare is REALLY IMPORTANT to us. do not eat my baby."

From Heir to the Empire and Dark Force Rising

I will never forgive the artists of the Thrawn Trilogy comics for ignoring Zahn’s writing and giving Mara a skintight sleeveless catsuit.

Did you forget about her iconic tiny blaster???

The one that she conceals in her sleeves??

And like, I get it- she doesn’t like to see me struggling or in pain. But it hurts to have to tell her “no, this is just a good day” and see her face fall the next time I do use it.

A couple weeks ago after another comment, I told her that I was in a lot of pain and was actually struggling really hard to be there. I should’ve been using my cane, I told her, but I wasn’t, because I was tired of how people were treating me when I do.

I prefer being in unecessary pain to getting stared at. I prefer being in unecessary pain to getting dirty looks when I walk down the street. I prefer being in unecessary pain to the pitying comments people make or the pleas for me to just pray more. I prefer being in unecessary pain to feeling like a freak. I prefer being in unecessary pain to the awful anxiety I get from using my cane in public.

And it is definitely one of those things exacerbated by growing up poor and then being a super poor twentysomething, but I think it's something many of us fall into.