Spoilers The Mandalorian Season 3

Discussion in 'Star Wars' started by JD, Mar 18, 2022.

  1. Burning Hearts of Qo'nOs

    Burning Hearts of Qo'nOs Commodore Commodore

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    I wonder if he and Luke ran into each other at some point and recognized each other.
     
  2. Reverend

    Reverend Admiral Admiral

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    Well, that's kind of my point. It takes a lot to break off even a beskar alloy like that, and I doubt this is hinting to some rando Imperial Commando just happening to have a beskar ingot in their pocket when someone tossed a grenade at them.
     
  3. David cgc

    David cgc Admiral Premium Member

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    I know, I was amplifying your point. Either the shard was planted, or something pretty wild happened to blast apart something made of beskar.
     
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  4. Reverend

    Reverend Admiral Admiral

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    I hadn't actually thought about it being a plant. On the one hand; figures Gideon would try and incriminate the Mandalorians, keeping them ostracised at the borders of Republic space. On the other; that feels like a bit of an oblique way to go about it. If they really wanted to frame them, then wouldn't it make more sense/be more dramatic to leave behind an actual Mando helmet or something?
     
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  5. Ar-Pharazon

    Ar-Pharazon Admiral Premium Member

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    I would guess whoever made whatever the shard came from isn't near as good as The Armorer™.

    Is "beskar alloy" different from pure beskar?
     
  6. thribs

    thribs Vice Admiral Admiral

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    Clearly to frame the Mandalorians. It’s not a very clever plan.
     
  7. CorporalClegg

    CorporalClegg Admiral Admiral

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    The implication that it is a frame job could just as easily be a red herring itself. There are still "bad" Mandos out there.

    There's also the possibility that a specific Mando might have snatched Gideon because he had information as to the whereabouts of someone 'she' was pursuing.

    Also, can we take a moment to appreciate the fact that their go-to choice for the most Gomery bureaucrat to ever bureaucrat was Timmy Meadows?
     
  8. The Wormhole

    The Wormhole Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    The villain from the episode Ahsoka was in during season 2 had Beskar. She worked for Thrawn.

    Nah, I'm probably reaching. Although...
     
  9. Amaris

    Amaris Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    It was a solid casting choice.
     
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  10. Reverend

    Reverend Admiral Admiral

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    Well yeah, by definition an alloy is a metal made with a mixture of at least two - if not more - pure elements. Steel for example is an alloy of iron and carbon, stainless steel adds some chromium into the mix too, while bronze is mostly copper and zinc etc.
    Beskar appears to be a base element, so while Din's armour is pure beskar, that's a rarity (and something of an extravagance) given the scarcity of the ore. That means most mando armour is going to mostly be beskar alloy rather than pure beskar, since mixing it with other elements (probably carbon) allows one to stretch out the materials (figuratively speaking.)

    If I were writing the lore, I'd make it so that typically (or at least historically) it's mostly only the heads of wealthy houses and their immediate family that could afford pure beskar armour, while most of the rank and file soldiers must make do with beskar alloys.
    Which honestly tracks with what we've seen of rando Deathwatch goons getting gunned down and sliced up with little difficulty, while meanwhile Sabine (of the ruling family of Krownst) can take a direct hit to the chest and head with nothing more than a scratched paintjob (and likely an urgent need for a change of underwear.) It also tracks with the idea that both Sabine and Bo Katan inherited (and reforged) their armour which has been in their respective families for generations.
    So yeah: Sabine, Ursa, Bo Katan, Pre Vizla, Almec, maybe even Saxon & Rook - all likely wearing pure beskar. Everyone else . . . not so much.

    Makes one wonder what Satine did with her armour. Probably had it melted down and turned into a sculpture or somesuch.

    Incidentally there could conceivably be some advantage to beskar alloy over pure beskar armour. While it's clear beskar alloy is less resistant to heat and directed energy (beskar's main advantage) it could also be a lot lighter. Pure beskar always seems to be very dense and heavy, which can be a problem for Mandalorian commandos who's main strength aside from skill and hardiness, is their mobility. But that's nothing new. All through the history of warfare there's been that push and pull between heavier protection (literally) and greater mobility/freedom.
    Part of the reason Jedi don't often use armour (and when they do it's usually very minimal) is because it slows them down too much. They're safer and more effective when they can move.
     
  11. Ar-Pharazon

    Ar-Pharazon Admiral Premium Member

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    Hard to tell, unless they've addressed beskar more in the animated shows. It could be akin to adamantium, unbreakable in pure form and possibly weaker as an allow (unlike many alloys). But using it an alloy makes a supply last longer.
     
  12. The Nth Doctor

    The Nth Doctor Infinite Possibilities... Premium Member

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    Holy shit! Zeb! I was hoping we would get a surprise cameo this season leading up to Ahsoka but I fully expected Sabine. Which is probably why they snuck in Zeb. I still expect a possible appearance from Sabine but it my Rebels need is sated. For now.

    The rest of the episode, like the rest of the season, was excellent. I haven't been participating much in the discussion since I'm usually late in my viewing and most people (usually Reverend, Ar-Pharazon, and a few others) have expressed everything I thought, along with further insights I never considered. Like Carson Teva has wisely suspected, this is all leading to something and I cannot wait to see it play out.
     
  13. Reverend

    Reverend Admiral Admiral

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    Like I said, it's mostly supposition, but it does seem to fit the facts. Probably the closest to direct evidence we have is the secret mining operation on Concordia where Deathwatch were mass producing armour. Seems unlikely all that ore would just left lying around if it were beskar. Much more likely that's local ore used to make beskar alloy from old stockpiles (probably House Vizla's that they managed to keep secret after the civil war.) That or Concordian beskar ore contains WAY more impurities than what's found in the mines of Mandalore, which would account for why Concordia (an agricultural moon) was all but strip-mined in the last civil war. Either way, the sheer scarcity of the material implies beskar alloy armour is far more common than pure.

    As for the properties of alloy vs. pure: most alloys are inherently stronger than pure metals (indeed that's kind of the whole point of them) so it's more likely that the trade-off is in it's thermal characteristics. After all, blasters and lightsabers aren't really kinetic weapons, they're thermal. So an alloy with a lower melting point than it's pure form means it'll be more vulnerable to high energy plasma weapons. Indeed, it's that high melting point that Sabine's 'Duchess' weapon seems to take advantage of, by heating the beskar to such a high temperature that anyone wearing it is incinerated.
    I can't help but wonder if that was at least in-part a trial run/live rehearsal for Zeb's appearance on Ahsoka. I mean Filloni was literally right there on the set. Indeed the fact that it looks so flawless tells me ILM put some serious effort into this, which is a long way to go for what's a fairly disposable part. Like, if it didn't work, they could have very easily re-shot the scene with literally anyone else. Hell, they may have done that on the day with one of the masked extras and just dub & sub in the dialogue in huttese later as a 'Plan-B'.

    The smart money seems to be on all roads leading to Thrawn. Whether we'll actually see him here first, or in Ahsoka remains to be seen of course. My gut though says it'll be in Ahsoka, but even then, rather late on, if not the very final episode. We may get a more explicit hint here though; perhaps a stinger with Gideon on a holo-call with the (off-camera) Grand Admiral.
    Assuming of course Gideon is working for Thrawn and not a rival. Moffs were after all not subordinate to the Admiralty, and have more overlapping power and authority than not, so they may be rivals. (Which incidentally is by design; Palpatine like to keep his underlings too busy trying to throttle each other to pose a coherent threat to him.)
    It's possible Thrawn had Gideon extracted because he has information he needs. Like say, the location of Weyland?
     
    Last edited: Mar 30, 2023
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  14. The Nth Doctor

    The Nth Doctor Infinite Possibilities... Premium Member

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    I'm still hoping and praying Lars Mikkelsen will return as Thrawn, whenever he does inevitably return.
     
  15. Reverend

    Reverend Admiral Admiral

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    I can't imagine why they wouldn't go back to him provided he's willing (and I think he's given affirmative to that.) Casting Thrawn is such a weird, tricky balancing act that it would be odd to search for someone else when they have someone already proven perfect for the role.
    I know he's denied having received the call, but it wouldn't be the first time an NDA has led to a Star Wars actor making exactly that kind of explicit denial. So it really means nothing either way.
     
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  16. valkyrie013

    valkyrie013 Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    Was like.. Okay is it zeb.. Then he talked.. Woo hoo!
    More evidence of a crap burocracy.. If we didn't have the Doc episode, we would have bern asking.. Huh? Isn't that girl familiar? Pieces of a puzzle. Excellent.
     
  17. wayoung

    wayoung Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    He's the droid Luke & his uncle were going to buy from Jawas but was defective so they ended up with R2D2 instead. Or at least that's what it says online.

    I never followed the cartoons and have to say I'm pretty much phasing out of The Mandalorian this season. Just isn't grabbing me.
     
  18. Nerys Myk

    Nerys Myk A Spock and a smile Premium Member

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    Omega really needs a proper helmet and armor.
     
  19. The Nth Doctor

    The Nth Doctor Infinite Possibilities... Premium Member

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    Yup, that's been bugging the hell out of me all season. Pretty sure I brought it up before, too.
     
  20. JirinPanthosa

    JirinPanthosa Admiral Admiral

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    Was Zeb just there for fanservice or is he going to have a significant role this season?