Random Musings of a Star Wars Nerd

That’s not the issue at stake here. Let me tell you a little something about “minirooms.”

Minirooms are a way of television writing that is becoming more common. Basically, the studio will hire a small group of writers, 3-6 or so, and employ them for just a few weeks. In those few weeks (six weeks seem to be common), they have to hurriedly figure out as much about the show as they can – characters, plots, outlines for episodes. Then at the end of the six weeks, all the writers are fired except for the showrunner, who has to write the entire series themselves based on the outlines.

This is not a widespread practice, but it has become more common over the past couple of years. Studios like it because instead of paying for a full room for the full length of the show, they just pay a handful of writers for a fraction of the show. It’s not a huge problem now, but the WGA only gets the chance to make rules every three years – if we let this go for another three years and it becomes the norm? That would be DEVASTATING for the tv writing profession.

Do I feel like I’m mistreated? No. I LOVE my job! But in a world of minirooms, there is no place for someone like me – a mid-level writer who makes a decent living working on someone else’s show (I’d like to be a showrunner someday, but for now I feel like I still have a lot to learn, and my husband and I are trying to start a family so I like not being support rather than the leader for now). In a miniroom, there are only two levels – the handful of glorified idea people who are already scrambling to find their next show because you can’t make a decent living off of one six-week job (and since there are fewer people per room, there are fewer jobs overall, even at the six-week amount), and the overworked, stressed as fuck showrunner who is going to have to write the entire thing themselves. Besides being bad for me making a living, I also just think it’s plain bad for television as an art form – what I like about TV is how adaptable it is, how a whole group of people come together to tell a story better than what any of them could do on their own. Plus the showrunner can’t do their best work under all of that pressure, episode after episode, back to back. Minirooms just…fucking suck.

The Mandalorian S03E08 - Iron Man (2008)

The legends of this sword talk about how it's meant to unite all Mandalorians. For some, it's just a lightsaber, heirloom, fancy tool, or symbol of power. But in reality, it's something created with the use of the Force. Force is important here. If you watch Star Wars you know it exists no matter how much some characters will say they don't believe it is.

The Darksaber was never meant to be the symbol of power. It belonged to the first Mandalorian Jedi. Someone who unites two worlds that fought each other for centuries. It was the ancient Mandalorians who gave this saber a different meaning, but it was its creator and the Force that gave the Darksaber purpose.

All the bad/hating comments you can see about the Darksaber plot being useless, or wasted potential are blind to those facts. I will say it just in case, I'm not a fan of how the Darksaber ownership was carried, BUT I do see the bigger picture here.

Favroni didn't want the Darksaber to carry the brutal legacy of ruthless Mandalorians, they wanted to show the true purpose of the Darksaber, the peaceful, uniting one. And the truth is, if not for the Darksaber, all of season 3 wouldn't take place.

Let's say, Bo fights Gideon, and she gets the Darksaber. Din and her telling each other goodbye, he goes to Boba, etc, and wants to be redeemed. What now? Hypothetically:

He drowned in the Living Waters or died because of that Borg creature.

There was a war between Gideon and Bo's forces that weren't that successful because she herself never reached the full potential in that scenario.

Several members of the covert get eaten daily.

Nevarro is occupied by pirates.

Ang so on…

The Darksaber was in Din's hands for a reason, but it wasn't the reason to make him the next Mand'alor, because that is what was adopted over the years when Mandalorians tried to define their own rules of what it means to be a Mandalorian. Din got it for its real reason to unite himself and the others. To put him on a path with his fellow, lost Mandalorian Princess.

Bo and Din lived different lives. Yet, they both are Mandalorians. It is often mentioned how the two groups hate each other. We can even see the hostility on screen. There are constantly reminding us how Mandalore fell because of their own divisions. New Mandalorians, Death Watch, Maulorians, Resistance Warriors, Children of The Watch… Shattered like stars in the galaxy.

Bo-Katan was the first one to break the circle of the constant battle over the power of the Darksaber. We now know she didn't want to challenge Din Djarin for the saber, even if she knew at the stake was everything she worked for. Bo saw beyond the brutal nature of the Darksaber's legacy, beyond the tool that in its signature brought death and power. She saw a human behind it.

With that, the Darksaber lost value for her. She said herself, that she was not sure if that blade will be enough to unite them all. Bo lost all the glorification she had for that weapon. Back in season 2, she was confident that with the Darksaber she will restore Mandalore to its former glory, but now she knows the Darksaber is not special when it comes to power. Because it's people that matter.

Her refusal to take the blade, or challenge Din was a catalyst for restoring the actual way of Mandalorians. The way of unification. From now on, her and Din's life was bound by the Darksaber. Just like the first owner Tarre Vizsla was bound with Mandalorians and Jedi.

The Force will find its way, always. Even if they don't believe in it. But the blade itself rejected Din, on purpose. He never wanted it and it was not his destiny. However, because he got the blade, it triggered a chain of events that resulted in his and Bo's lives crossing together, this time for good.

At the point when it didn't matter to both Din and Bo, the Darksaber was nothing, yet it was everything. As time passed Din and Bo grew to know each other, respect, and understand. They, Mandalorians of two opposite ends, working together, spending time together, being a great team, being stronger together.

They both learn from each other what it truly means to be Mandalorian. And it's not bloody fights every night, it's not killing your own people over differences. It's the care for family, for their tradition, their legacy. It has always been the care about Mandalore and its people.

The blade united Bo and Din, which brings us to a bigger picture here.

The blade won't unite all Mandalorians. But it united Din and Bo, who now are examples for everyone else to see that despite their differences they can work together. It is the relationship that they both developed with each other that is an example for others. Their actions, and what they represent. Both of them see beyond the Darksaber, they see the value of the people behind them. They ditched the fighting nature the old way and restored the blade's true purpose, making Din and Bo the contrast of reason against years of wars that led them to this point.

It's always been amazing to me how people take Fenn Rau and Pre Vizla's word for the story of the Darksaber and Tarre Viszla. A Jedi, who happened to also be Mandalorian, forged the Darksaber. lightsabers cannot be built by any other means than through the use of the Force. It is a symbol of unity of these two diametrically apposed cultures/religions/walks of life - a Mandalorian who trained as a Jedi.

Legends and History are written from the perspective and preferences of those who are telling the story. Altered to fit their purpose. 1000 years is a long time, with wars and strife and destruction between - the ACTUAL story of Tarre Viszla is not known. Also, it's interesting to note that even in Fenn Rau's own telling of the tale in Rebels, the Jedi held the Darksaber in the temple, in a place of honor. It was Mandalorians that broke into the temple, like petty thieves with no honor, to STEAL it and then claim power from it.

Din was meant to have the Darksaber as a catalyst for returning it to its original purpose: the unification of opposed factions. He was the protector of the weapon, carrying it until the rightful leader could actually EARN it, not through violence and destruction, but through honor, respect, self awareness, loyalty, and selflessness.

The Force moves in mysterious ways. And as the OP stated, it ALWAYS gets its way, even if it takes a long time.

Bo-Katan is the rightful ruler. Not because of bloodline, but because of her growth and understanding of Mandalorian culture, its flaws, and her willingness to put herself on the line to put Mandalore first. She has walked both worlds: that of the warrior, bent on revenge, power, control and also that of a unified community that takes care of all, no matter their clan, house, or origin of birth.

Worldbuilding for Mando stories! Hey cool. The key is to check out the things that seem interesting, steal what works best for your story, leave out the dumb shit, and have fun. That’s the most important part. Have fun.

I made this for me and now you get to have it too. It’s by no means exhaustive, but it’ll get you started. Remember, canon rules get broken all the time, so don’t sweat it. 

MESS OF LINKS BELOW CUT

"Moff Gideon would really like to be a Mandalorian, and there’s a reason for it. That’s his psychological, real problem. He really wants to be a Mandalorian because the strength and power of the Mandalorians is not necessarily that they are individuals. It’s that they are part of a group that have an ideal and a morality."

His new armor even has the ka'rta beskar on it, so it's really not just that he's stolen beskar alloy to make himself a cool set of armor: it is Mandalorian-style armor specifically. However, it's also armor based explicitly on the armor of Death Watch Maul loyalists.

It's reasonable to conclude that Moff Gideon would alike himself to Maul, an outsider who was able to inherit Mandalorian identity only through the possession of the darksaber. He would see Maul as a legitimizing path to Mandalorian-ness. I could easily see him idolizing Maul.

Bo-Katan - who rejected Maul instantly - would indeed be someone that Gideon would wish to destroy, but not by killing her. He once mocked Bo-Katan for needing the darksaber to legitimize herself, but his glee wasn't simple cruelty. He was delighted that she was legitimizing the darksaber itself, which in turn would legitimize him if he possessed it.

I think it's also telling that the episode goes out of its way for Din to say that no, the darksaber isn't important, and the belief that it is is a disservice to us. The darksaber isn't really what makes Bo-Katan a good leader.

I couldn't resist doing something based on this delightfully salty PSA by the (US) National Park Service.

And in Aurebesh:

Reason 1.) They showed a flashback of Dr. Pershing this episode

And 2.) Why Dins helmet is bathed in red (for the dark side) on the intro scene while Bo's is blue.

Sorry for the shitty pics, but it's all I can find, and you can verify it yourselves during the intro.

To further prove that point, all the helmets that belonged to the dark side of the force are lit red (including Vaders.) while the ones primarily on the side of good are lit blue.

Bo, Grogu, and all the mandalorians will have to save him. And all the people that owe their lives to Din. And perhaps that's how Bo knows she is good for more than just war.

I need Grogu, in the process of rescuing Din, to look Moff Gideon square in the eye and smash the “no” button on IG-12.

So much is going around the internet (as it tends to do) about people wanting/expecting Bo-Katan to die in the finale. Vague and/or Cryptic comments from actors and producers and directors are fueling the flames and it's getting me all kinds of nervous.

Some root for her to die because they hate that she is 'taking the spotlight' or 'sidelining Din' or fill in the blank generic "i don't like having more than one main character" type of schtick. Other say it's the 'logical conclusion' to her story arc. That she needs to be redeemed for being a terrorist and they only way to do that is for her to die.

On this second point, I have to push back hard on this. Rewatch the Clone Wars. Rewatch fucking Rebels. She owned her bad choices and mistakes. Demonstrated massive guilt and regret. Refused leadership several times until Sabine convinced her through the rallies clans who chose to support her. And then, as she did the first time after the Siege, she was crushed by the Empire as all others were. This time was just 10000x worse than Gar Saxon betraying everything Mandalorian and throwing in with the Empire. So, what's the redemption she needs?

Anyway, I could go on a rant for AGES about this particular point. So I'll stop myself here.

There are others who want/expect her to die so Din will be motivated to take up the dark saber, take revenge, and then rule.

I'll only say this once: STOP KILLING WOMEN TO FURTHER THE PAIN AND/OR STORY OF MALE CHARACTERS. See Satine Kryze's murder as case-in-fucking point.

So, I guess the whole point of this post is to ask: is there anyone else out there nervous/terrified that they are going to kill Bo-Katan off in the finale? I just...I can't shake the onslaught of posts and speculation and rooting for her to die. It's so depressing and disheartening.