Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Star Wars Fun Fact
Did you know? There’s a working Mandalorian language! The spoken version was created by NYT bestselling author Karen Traviss while she had been writing Star Wars novels for Lucasfilm.
Life on “Tweet”-ooine
Shaving with a lightsaber is not big, macho or a very smart idea. But it *IS* “the best a man can get”…probably. Sorry @Gillette.
— Jedi Order PR (@JediOrderPR) August 7, 2014
Star Wars Swag Bag
Star Wars Jedi Robe Sleeved Blanket – click the pic!
Trivia Time!
Yesterday’s answer: C-3PO
Today’s question: What article of clothing did Luke begin wearing midway through Return of the Jedi?
Force Feature: Mandalorian Mercs, Bounty Hunters for Charity
I’m sure there are Mandalorians who are dishwashers, or taxi drivers, or wet nurses. But for many of us Star Wars fans, the word Mandalorian may as well be a synonym for “bounty hunter.” Mercenary. Soldiers of fortune.
First, there was Boba Fett, whose popularity is amazingly remarkable considering how little he does and says in the movies. In fact, Lucas did something similar with even less. Remember the tall woman in the skintight red suit and a long gun, bald but with a big ol’ ponytail, who was spotted watching over the podrace in The Phantom Menace for mere seconds? That was another bounty hunter, Aurra Sing, and Lucas did that precisely because he knew it would blow up like Boba did. And of course, she did. But I digress.
Then there’s the other Mandalorian we know, Jango Fett. Also a bounty hunter. And in the Clone Wars cartoons and Expanded Universe novels, you find out more about them as a culture. As Wookiepedia summarizes it:
In later years, the Mandalorians moved away from their obsessively war-like and conqueror ways and instead, most became bounty hunters and mercenaries, selling their skills to various individuals and factions in the galaxy. However, the Mandalorian Protectors sided with the Alliance to Restore the Republic ever since about 3 ABY and even continued to serve the Alliance of Free Planets, the New Republic, and finally the Galactic Alliance.
So yeah, Mandalorians. Great people to have on your side in a fight, that’s for sure. And also, not exactly the good guys, and not exactly the bad guys. So if you’re looking at the 501st Legion and the Rebel Legion and going, “Hmmm, I dig Mandalore. What do I do?”
Well, you’ve got Tom Hutchens to thank for creating the Mandalorian Mercs back in 2007. Tom realized that not only do Mandalorians not fit cleanly into either group, the costuming needs were different. So in founding the Mercs, Tom also decided not to go as strict to canon in the costuming requirements. As the Mercs’ website puts it, their costuming is “based on methodology and ideology as opposed to visual accuracies based on the Star Wars films.”
Not only do they go further in their costuming, they’ve also expanded the kind of charitable work being done by costuming clubs, by founding their own non-profit charity! Little Warrior International started off as a Merc-supported fund to help provide a Christmas to remember for underprivileged children. Over the years, it expanded to support other children in need, and finally in 2012, they made Little Warrior its own official organization.
So it seems that some stereotyping in Star Wars may actually have a basis in reality. The Mandalorian culture, as you dive into the Expanded Universe, really IS all about being a battle-driven, war-loving tribal community. And as you explore the culture of Star Wars costuming organizations, you find that the fans who participate in these organizations are deeply, deeply generous people, giving not only their money to worthy causes. They’re also giving a significant amount of time, and they’re setting out to entertain as many Star Wars fans as possible in the process.