I think the major thing with the mandolorian is it feels how we imagine people would live in this universe; like it is in no rush to get from plot point A to B, it was happy to slowly wander through to the A plot after establishing the status quo of the mandolorian, spent a whole episode giving the Mandolorian reason to care about the little one while building up the side character of Griff a little more as a guy who "has seen some stuff and has a lot of life experience, but is happy living the simple life.", spends half an episode building up to the inevitable "when will the mandolorian decide to change the status quo?" before crack. It all happens and we feel it is a sangicent moment that will impact on every minute of his life after that, something that is built up over another 3 episodes. It's very kind of remisent of A New Hope in that it starts with intense action, then establishes the status quo up so we understand what normality means to the character so that when things do change, we feel that change. Same with Hoth; we get a sense of what life is like there before the Empire arrives e.c.t. It's a slightly low key nostalgia, aside from having a extreme 6 second close up to blue milk.


And that's what biomarkers is; if it's inferred that midicholorians is the force, it's certainly not in any movie or source material I've seen. Biomarkers detected in the body and tested for usually aren't the core symptom of what the scientists are actually looking for; they are usually a bioproduct of some other biomechanical purpose that produced that particular protein/ketone as a bi-product. Mitochondria likewise once existed as a completely independent species of bacteria that through some unknown process became integrated within the cells as a mutually exclusive relationship, mitochondria produce the power, we feed it. I imagine the relationship with midcholorians, which I imagine Luca's more or less ripped off; came to be in some peudo science fashion. The force/fate is strong in an individual? More folks gather and some bright sod figured out how to detect them as a good biomarker to measure potential. It's really simple as that.

Interesting sidenote; Mitochondria can only be inherited by the maternal side of the family, so midicholorians obviously don't work in the same way otherwise Leia would've won the lottery and left Luke high and dry, so it's inferred that exactly what motivates these little fellas isn't governed by what we understand. That being said, Luca's is a story writer not a scientist so I would expect him to take the name and basic inference, nothing more. In the same way that Jedi are peusdo samurai with hints of Buddhism and Taoism, duality and what not lashed onto the standard fantasy epic trope of defeating an evil wizard.

I've liked the idea that midichlorians are extremely advanced nanites that harken back to the beginning of the Force eons ago. Lets say some evil scientists developed nanite technology to the extent they had allowed it to get out of hand and replicate across the Galaxy and within all life. They alone, the ancestors of the Sith, had nanites spliced into their DNA (early midichlorians which could be passed through offspring) which allowed manipulation of the Sith-nanites to do powerful, magical things. Responding to the evil Sith-Scientist domination of the Galaxy, another group of scientists (ancestors of the Bendu? Whill scientists?), replicated the DNA-nanite splicing and merged new anti-Sith-nanites into the Sith-nanites. This allowed a "balance" of the nanites and new "Force" using "Jedi" came on scene to battle the Sith.

18 hours ago, P-47 Thunderbolt said:

I actually kinda like the idea of midichlorians as mitochondria. Kinda interesting, and a neat way to tie the scientific into the mystical side of the force.

I have been reading William Shakespeare's Star Wars by Ian Doeschester out loud to my wife. In The Phantom of Menace he pokes at the fan reaction to midichlorians with a pointed wink and a nudge. For me, I understand the objection to reducing the essential religious minimalism of the Force to mere biomechanics, but I also feel like one could interpret those references very liberally. One option would be to assume that it was a popular "junk theory" some Jedi had adopted. Another would be to assume they are merely a quantifiable indicia of force ability. Yet another would be to suggest they are a physical reaction to force use. And yet another would be that they are a sort of built-in sixth sensory system that allow one to perceive (sense) the Force. Some people have more finely tuned senses than others, and some people may be "force blind." In other words, midichlorians don't necessarily define the Force itself. My issue with the idea is that they rob the Force of is majestum and mysterium, but not everyone is comfortable with mysticism.

5 minutes ago, Vondy said:

I have been reading William Shakespeare's Star Wars by Ian Doeschester out loud to my wife. In The Phantom of Menace he pokes at the fan reaction to midichlorians with a pointed wink and a nudge. For me, I understand the objection to reducing the essential religious minimalism of the Force to mere biomechanics, but I also feel like one could interpret those references very liberally. One option would be to assume that it was a popular "junk theory" some Jedi had adopted. Another would be to assume they are merely a quantifiable indicia of force ability. Yet another would be to suggest they are a physical reaction to force use. And yet another would be that they are a sort of built-in sixth sensory system that allow one to perceive (sense) the Force. Some people have more finely tuned senses than others, and some people may be "force blind." In other words, midichlorians don't necessarily define the Force itself. My issue with the idea is that they rob the Force of is majestum and mysterium, but not everyone is comfortable with mysticism.

The Problem with Midiclorians is they are a ham fisted method of saying this guy is powerful... There was probably a better way to accomplish that goal.

6 minutes ago, Daeglan said:

The Problem with Midiclorians is they are a ham fisted method of saying this guy is powerful... There was probably a better way to accomplish that goal.

No disagreement. It was lazy storytelling and missed an opportunity for increased nuance and passion.

It also underscored Lucas' personal need for everything to be quantifiable and his discomfort with the notion that human reason has limits.

Baby Yoda, however, is a obviously the living embodiment of midichlorians. See how I did that? Back to the Mandalorian!

4 minutes ago, Vondy said:

That is a thing of beauty and a joy forever.

23 hours ago, LordBritish said:

Interesting sidenote; Mitochondria can only be inherited by the maternal side of the family, so midicholorians obviously don't work in the same way otherwise Leia would've won the lottery and left Luke high and dry

Every human inherits their mitochondria (the energy burning organelle inside (almost) every cell in any person's body) from their mother. Luke and Leia would have the exact same mitochondria. It also means Luke, Leia, Padme and Ben Solo all have the exact same mitochondria. Assuming conventional genetics, Anakin would have Shmi's mitochondria but he is unable to pass that mitochondrial line on since he is male.

2 hours ago, DarkHorse said:

Every human inherits their mitochondria (the energy burning organelle inside (almost) every cell in any person's body) from their mother. Luke and Leia would have the exact same mitochondria. It also means Luke, Leia, Padme and Ben Solo all have the exact same mitochondria. Assuming conventional genetics, Anakin would have Shmi's mitochondria but he is unable to pass that mitochondrial line on since he is male.

Oh, yeah. ****, how the shrubbery did I forget about that?

Time to relearn biology!

I'm really looking forward to the new planets we'll see in Season 2. I would imagine Din would be traveling to a few homeworlds of species to try and find where the Child comes from - and here's hoping we get some neat new species, as well.

6 hours ago, DarkHorse said:

Every human inherits their mitochondria (the energy burning organelle inside (almost) every cell in any person's body) from their mother. Luke and Leia would have the exact same mitochondria. It also means Luke, Leia, Padme and Ben Solo all have the exact same mitochondria. Assuming conventional genetics, Anakin would have Shmi's mitochondria but he is unable to pass that mitochondrial line on since he is male.

So, wait, Padme is the Chosen One?

On 11/13/2019 at 12:12 PM, Jegergryte said:

Showing (yet) another aspect of the Mandalorian culture, distinct from the Nu-mandos and death watch of TCW (and the protectors from Rebels), their organisation in tribes:

• Hereunder the background as "foundling," the liminal transitions, and hints at rituals of the tribal Mando culture.
• Their relationship and hideout with the surrounding community: the stares and clear reactions at seeing someone in Mandalorian armour.
• And of course the melting and working of beskar was different and cool enough to pull me in and make me giddy.

Makes me wonder who you did take the death watch reveal

On 12/5/2019 at 11:38 PM, Eoen said:

It’s not cannibalism if it’s another species... just saying.

I consider it cannibalism if it is sentient.
So no fried calamari for me. I am really missing them. 😛

Still no auto-merge. dammit.

On 12/16/2019 at 12:17 AM, Vondy said:

My in universe explanation is that this rebel pilot saw so much action during the Galactic Civil War that he's "been there, done that."

A single re-build fighter trying to launch... YAWN!

Makes actually more sense than bad acting. The NW Pilots look like this was just Tuesday. Another day another beacon, happens from time to time. Destroy the target. jump out and enjoy a drink.

On 12/16/2019 at 8:14 PM, VadersMarchKazoo said:

Now, why the New Republic would just blast the outpost without attempting non-violent actions first, including some sort of investigation/criminal proceedings.

Because that is what the signal is for. Destroy the target, no questions ask.

On 12/19/2019 at 6:33 PM, P-47 Thunderbolt said:

I nearly pulled that on my GM once when I was just starting on this game, but I decided to be nice (also, he wouldn't let me ).

Our group would have done exactly that.
But our GM would have been prepared with the big bad taking cover in the TIE-Fighter, Tanks in reserve, TIE-Squadrons in the air and a star destroyer in orbit. We tend to solve things with orbital bombardment if possible. So our GM is prepared.

11 hours ago, SEApocalypse said:

Makes me wonder who you did take the death watch reveal

Well. I guess. There will be differences between the animated and live-action shows in how factions and characters are portrayed, developed and used. That Din Djarin was raised by the Death Watch, or at least that is what it seems like, shows that there is more to them than shown so far in other media.

It shows also that this keep-helmet-on-way-thingy is practised differently - ignoring the fact that it is a new thing for this series, and the fact that animated kids' shows tells stories differently - over time, and among Mandalorian tribes and clans.

I'll admit that I didn't immediately notice the DW symbol, nor think it was them, despite the colours.

On 12/27/2019 at 1:00 PM, RLogue177 said:

Scout troopers are jerks.

For years I thought an IG droid reprogrammed to be a medical droid would be a fun, ironic character. Curse you, Favreau! If I make that character now, I'll just be "stealing" the idea from this show.

I bet Filoni is a SW RPG player and reading this forum. tea, the astromech, nursey killer bot, the heavy, it'S basically our group minus the Verpine Ace
We even had the kid on the table! Twice! 😉
Though our face character is not a guild guy, but instead a trader twi'lek.

On 1/3/2020 at 6:30 PM, sixsevenfour said:

News flash, everyone other than Nazis...hates Nazis. We just don't all expect to be congratulated for it.

News flash for you. The last German state election had a fascist leader getting 27.5% of the votes. So the amount of people who actually hate nazis is getting smaller and smaller, unfortunately globally. And those guys are maybe a little too fond of power fantasies and gaming in general, so they are sitting right among "us".
Collateral damage is still a bad thing, but once you get used to see those ***** everywhere ... auto-fire from an e-web seems like a valid solution even when it's not. 😉

On 1/8/2020 at 6:26 PM, Vondy said:

So, wait, Padme is the Chosen One?

Well … she is supposed to be force sensitive. Right? 😉

If Cara comes back, I hope we get some flashbacks of her. I wanna see some action cuts of Rebels dropping into atmo and kicking butt. ODST but in Star Wars.

1 hour ago, kaosoe said:

If Cara comes back, I hope we get some flashbacks of her. I wanna see some action cuts of Rebels dropping into atmo and kicking butt. ODST but in Star Wars.

With Barra Barra or One Vision playing as their drop ships come into the drop zone...

7 hours ago, Jegergryte said:

Well. I guess. There will be differences between the animated and live-action shows in how factions and characters are portrayed, developed and used. That Din Djarin was raised by the Death Watch, or at least that is what it seems like, shows that there is more to them than shown so far in other media.

It shows also that this keep-helmet-on-way-thingy is practised differently - ignoring the fact that it is a new thing for this series, and the fact that animated kids' shows tells stories differently - over time, and among Mandalorian tribes and clans.

I'll admit that I didn't immediately notice the DW symbol, nor think it was them, despite the colours.

I suspect it was the purge that forced the surviving Mandalorians to adopt the keep-the-helmet-on way. The same way they have the "only one of them can be in public at a time" rule.

I thought it was Death Watch the first time I saw the episode. It wasn't until a re-watch that I noticed the symbol.

Just now, Inquisitor Tremayne said:

I suspect it was the purge that forced the surviving Mandalorians to adopt the keep-the-helmet-on way.

Even during Rebels, Sabine Wren and whichever Saxon fought each other with their helmets off, so it clearly is something fairly new.

3 minutes ago, Inquisitor Tremayne said:

I suspect it was the purge that forced the surviving Mandalorians to adopt the keep-the-helmet-on way. The same way they have the "only one of them can be in public at a time" rule.

I thought it was Death Watch the first time I saw the episode. It wasn't until a re-watch that I noticed the symbol.

1 minute ago, P-47 Thunderbolt said:

Even during Rebels, Sabine Wren and whichever Saxon fought each other with their helmets off, so it clearly is something fairly new.

Diaspora groups who are trying to maintain their cultural identities and practices often take a more inflexible approach to tradition than those who remain in their homelands. This is especially true if they are persecuted.

Aye, sometimes their social practices are all they can cling onto especially if they are in foreign lands and feel threatened, which their practices in turn only enhance their isolation. The Mandolorian literally existed deattached from society, taking jobs and leaving without much word and while eventually a friendship/comradery of sorts was established between the Mando and the leader of the town; it took an inciting incident and a lot of circumstance to bring that about. As highlighted in Episode 6, not even the people he worked with really knew him. The only character aside from Baby Yoda who seemed genuinely interested in the Mandolorian was Kuiil, who had enough experience to judge a character and had more patience then the average folk and probably more then a little world weariness. He didn't really mind dying if that was his fate, otherwise he wouldn't have gone with the Mando to a very probable trap.

I for one totally understand the response to not being able to see the face; in my mind there is no room in society for a full facula obscuring mask of any description as that gives opportunity for someone to mask their identity. I am weary of people with who dress like this as that could be a man under there, with a bomb or a knife under his vest just travelling for some terror act, or a thug wanting to remain concealed before or after a robbery, or a woman wishing to do the same. Is this culturally insensitive? Maybe, but I do think about these things as I've dealt with people wearing hoodies all their life trying to pull stuff because they think their identity is being hidden, so I do exercise reasonable caution around person's I can't immediately look in the face. I imagine the way the Mandolorian is perceived is pretty similar, no one is entirely sure whether he's a customer or here to murder some people as they only see the mask and know that with it comes violence.

2 minutes ago, LordBritish said:

interested in the Mandolorian was Kriff,

Um... I think you mean Kuiil...

Just now, P-47 Thunderbolt said:

Um... I think you mean Kuiil...

Oh, lord, I haven't even got off the same page. XD Edited.

So... What are the odds that darksaber-having Moff Gideon has it in his head that the Child is key to artificially awakening his own (Gideon's) Force-sensitivity (injecting midi-chlorians or other such spirit-techno-whatzit)?