The Jedi Are the Best, Actually.

the fact that mando fans make satine out to be an enemy of her culture--write her as someone leading what is essentially a cultural genocide--is very... meta, to me. satine represents an opportunity for nuance in a fictional culture that is primarily known for the cool armor and the badass fight scenes, but the fans like the armor and the fighting. and satine does not. so satine as a character/what she represents in-universe has become an enemy of what makes mandos interesting to the fans. and she is an enemy they can punish by stripping her culture from her, by taking away her history and her art and her context and making her out as a wannabe republic senator with fascist leanings.

And like. The Jedi are a culture. They’re a religion.

You know that, right? You know that many cultures, including generally peaceful ones, have sacred weapons, right? You know that the bond between a Jedi and their crystal(s) is an extremely sacred thing that requires the consent of both parties and is integral to their way of life, right?

You know that lightsabers are not intended to be only for killing, right? That the first thing Luke learns to do with his lightsaber is to shield and defend? You know that a culture having sacred weapons doesn’t mean that they view killing as sacred, right?

I put special emphasis on "practiced for a number of reasons such as physical, mental and spiritual development; and the preservation of a nation's intangible cultural heritage" because that's exactly why the jedi have lightsaber combat: it's part of their culture, as essential to it as the Force, and it's a way to train and connect with themselves, each other, and the Force. plenty of martial arts use weapons like swords and staffs, and it's most notable on asian martial arts like kendo, which is literally what lightsaber combat in the movies was inspired on. the weapons don't mean they're more violent than unarmed martial arts, or that they are meant to kill. they're just a different style of martial art, much like music has so many different genres.

plus, lightsabers are extremely limited in range, they are obviously meant for defense over offense. they can only cut down people who get close enough to be within range of the blade, and even though they can deflect blaster shots they still need to have been shot at first. using a lightsaber to kill is easy. anyone who gets their hands on a lightsaber can do that. using a lightsaber to defend, to save lives? now that requires plenty of training, discipline and understanding of oneself and one's weapon. that's what lightsaber combat is. that's why jedi carry lightsabers.

But here's the thing: what if they DID?

What if they DID try to find out why Jango Fett was hanging out with the Separatist leader?

What if they interrogated the Kaminoans about it, and the Kaminoans said they hadn't been keeping track of who Jango was hanging out with, and anyway Jango was just the donor - he wasn't the one who had placed the order - so his treachery against the Republic wouldn't impact the clones at all? ("Oh and we specifically modified the clones for obedience so you don't have to worry about Jango's rebellious genes causing a problem")

What if Yoda and the other Jedi, who could sense the clones' presence in the Force and knew them as individuals, met the clones and realized these soldiers were good men, loyal and dedicated and fully invested in serving the Republic as they had been raised to be? The gene donor might have had some shady dealings, but that didn't mean the clones did.

Jango Fett might have been in league with a Sith Lord; but as far as the Jedi Order was aware, it was a Jedi Master, Sifo-Diyas, who had placed the order for the army of clones, and those clones were indeed loyal to the Republic at a time when the Republic needed an army, fast. And the Kaminoans certainly wouldn't have given the Jedi any information that would have made them think otherwise.

@godmybackhurts @skiesfyre

The Jedi taught emotional control, not repression.

The Jedi took kids with parental consent, they did not kidnap them.

The Jedi did not hold people against their will, they could leave the Order at any time.

A Jedi discusses his worries over becoming a General. Written for Fandom Empire Fortune Wheel - Week 4: Faith vs Doubt and Jedi June 2025 - Prompt: Survive and Star Wars 100 - Prompt: General and Lyrical Titles Album Challenge 2025 - Song: "So Long, Mother Earth" - Chevelle - NIRATIAS

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He took a few sips from the teacup, then sighed as he lowered it, looking back at his former master. She waited patiently for him to speak.

“I thought I was prepared to be knighted,” he said. “And you must have thought so, too. But I… this wasn’t what I was trained for. I was prepared to go out into the world being called ‘Master Jedi’, not… ‘General’.” His voice was even, but his distaste and anxieties pooled around the word in other ways. Even the least Force-sensitive stranger could probably have picked it out, and his former Master knew the currents of his emotions far better than that.

“You’re afraid,” she said. “What are you afraid of?”

Isn’t that obvious? he was tempted to say – in his younger years, he often had. But he wasn’t a padawan anymore, and he’d absorbed the truth that teachers didn’t ask you to perform sums because they didn’t know the answers themselves, they asked so you’d learn how to do it and to show that you could.

“The war,” he said. Too broad, too nebulous and unhelpful. “Being responsible as a military commander – all the men whose lives will be in my hands.”

She nodded, and sat back as she thought for a moment.

“Our missions have always put lives in our hands,” she said. “People depending on us to resolve disputes and crises that have far-reaching consequences. Maybe not so immediately as in battle, but no less critical.”

“That’s true,” he said, looking down. He could think of such missions he’d had as a padawan. He’d been able to overcome his doubts then, but now...

Jedi: ????? What bad things

Mace is steel faced, stoic and determined, an unyielding unbreakable focus on defeating his enemy

But palpatine's is what's really interesting, there's anger there, but you can also see terror, a fear, this is not going the way he was expecting and Palpatine is terrified! You can just see him realizing "oh shit, I could lose"

And he does