#My RepCom musing

[cienie-isengardu]

My RepCom Musing: if there were (clone) strills everything would be much better

For me, the biggest missed opportunity & disappointment of the Republic Commando story is that NO ONE APPARENTLY CAME UP WITH IDEA TO CLONE MIRD. And I swear, everyone would be better off with strill puppies (kittens?) around. Like seriously. Vau? Mird is what kept Vau alive and happy for decades and is literally what makes Vau soft and caring. Now multiply Mird and Vau won’t magically change from hardened veteran & harsh training sergeant into overprotective, overemotional dad, sure, but it would definitely make it easier for him to show his care and deeply hidden emotions once each squad of his batch gets a cute lil clone!Mird to take care of (and be taken care of in return). Can you imagine all the cadets’ excitement and wonder for their own strill, for the unconditional love and loyalty of an highly intelligent and smart animal and for the Vau’s trust given alongside it? All the things boy!Vau must feel at some point too, when he was stuck with an abusive family or shortly after leaving them and be on his own in an unknown, uncaring galaxy? Can you imagine him swarmed by the puppies and clones with a thousand and one question on how to deal with strill so he could unleash all his love for Mird on everyone around?

Or Atin, after losing his first batch mates? Or even after Geonosis? No point for violence when you can drop an emotional support animal on a hurt, depressed human being. Deltas too could benefit from lil Mird. What could be better than a strill for emotionally stunted people with even more an emotionally shut down trainer? Beside the whole long-term therapy, I mean.  

Jango too should get a strill, the man is like one, walking trauma and Boba would be better to hang out with a loyal pet than Aurra Sing or other assholes.

Where is a cute lil clone!Mird for each squad of Vau’s batch, I demand to know?! A loyal strill  to make everything better? WHY NONE OF YOU in-universe SMARTASS THOUGHT TO GIVE MIRD A BUNCH OF SMALL PUPPIES (KITTENS) TO MAKE KAMINO A BIT BETTER PLACE FOR THE STRILL, VAU AND CLONE CADETS? Everyone would be mentally healthier!

Well maybe beside Kal who could have a heart attack once Jaing brought the strill puppy or two or a whole pack and Skirata was forced to explain how that happened to overprotective Vau & Mird XDDD 

UNLESS Vau wanted to do so but Kaminoans, remembering that this animal hunts them down out of boredom decided FUCK NO. Then I will accept the canon as it is, but only then…

(I do remember Vau sicing Mird on Ordo in book canon but I will admit I do not have a clue what was the point of this action besides making us, readers, to dislike Walon on the spot. I mean, killing people and physically trashing cadets? Sure, it makes sense within his characterization. But using Mird like that without any logical reason and just for fun? Nah, I will pass. Like Ordo lacked trauma and reasons to dislike strill and Vau when Kal had plenty of his own complaints about Walon to pass to his kids.)

[cienie-isengardu]

Laseema: "… Etain can’t take care of her baby, Darman doesn’t know he has a kid and I kinda lie now on a daily basis about the whole babysitting Kal’s grandson to Atin too? I feel like I’m betraying his trust but I can’t tell him I know who Kad'ika's parents are, can I? And what if Atin will hate me for this once the truth will come to light? Because Etain and Kal will tell Darman about the baby one day, right. They will tell him, RIGHT? And there is this jerk at work that won’t stop bothering me and can you believe that asshole was yesterday waiting for me outside when my shift has ended? I wish I learned how to use the knife like Atin proposed but I guess it wouldn’t help me much against that bastard; he looked like he wouldn't mind breaking my arm and, you know, do worse stuff. I KNOW, I should tell Kal but he is so busy with… whatever he is doing anyway and Jusik is on Mandalore with Fi, Ordo is already freaked out about Fi and Besany’s safety and I don’t wanna be a burden. I can’t even comm Atin because he is on a mission on the other galaxy’s side, ya know, commando stuff and even if he could comm me, I can’t tell him because I don’t wanna him be upset and distracted over something he can’t do anything about anyway. I couldn’t forgive myself if he got killed because of my problems. Pathetic, right Mird? 

Oh, did I upset you? Sorry Mird, I just needed to rant a bit but don’t worry, I will figure something out. I know what will cheer you up! What is the word Walon is always saying? Oh, right. OYA! Whatever that means Wish I know whatcha thinking right now. Something nice, I bet.

Mird: [HUNT HUNT HUNT HUNT HUNT...]

[part 2] [part 3]

[cienie-isengardu]

Masterpost

Making a master post for my analysis and theories, so I would not need to look for them in the depths of my blog. The list for sure won’t include every piece ever posted on tumblr, but should have the more ambitious or important project. 

STAR WARS:

Mini-series:

The Funeral Rites of the Clone Troopers: <The psychological and spiritual preparations for death pre-war> ⭐<What happens to the body of dead clone trooper [part 1] [part2]>⭐ <Conclusion> 

Jango Fett and Walon Vau: Age Difference & Childhood Trauma ⭐ The Laws, Orders, Jaster Mereel and True Mandalorians pre-Galidraan ⭐ Galidraan and its consequences ⭐(the final part about Kamino is not written yet)

Satine and Pre Vizsla: political & social position ⭐ Wealth: clothes < • > paintings seen in their residences < • > living conditions < • > personal ships < • > servants and guards, part 1  < • > servants and guards, part 2 (WIP)

Cienie’s take on Mandalorian Culture:

Kad Ha’rangir and mandalorian traditional weapons part 1 — part 2 — part 3 – part 4 — part 5

Arasuum - stagnation as symbol of death, not sloth, renamed as Arasuum - the God of Death, not Sloth part 1 — part 2 — part 3 — part 4

Original Mandalorians and Gai bal manda ritual

Hod Ha'ran, the god of visions, prophecies and magic

God of Death as a mighty Beast

The life experiences that shaped Anakin Skywalker: childhood in slavery ⭐ growing up in Jedi Order (p. I) ⭐ growing up in Jedi Order (p.II)

Anakin and marginalized groups: clones and droids < • > Tusken < • > female Twi'leks + additional Vader & droids

Anakin and Clone Troopers in Legends sources [2002 - 2005]: part I —  part II — part III (WIP)

Anakin’s traumatic experiences in slavery: Star Wars Episode I: Anakin Skywalker ⭐ part II (WIP)

One-shot metas 

Darth Vader and the violence against imperial low-ranking soldiers (Old Trilogy)

Tor Vizsla and “hire your own enemy”type of trap

Jaster, Tor and Montross

Star Wars Fact Files about Tor Vizsla

Jango Fett Open Seasons: Retreat vs. fight no matter the cost

My RepCom Musing:  Control Issue

My RepCom Musing: lekku language

My RepCom Musing: Men in kitchen… or lack of thereof

JF:OS/My RepCom Musing: Mandalorian armor color scheme

JF:OS/My RepCom Musing: Hair and mandalorian norms

Jaster Mereel seen by Dooku, Jango Fett and Tor Vizsla

My RepCom Musing: Arla Fett and Death Watch

My RepCom Musing: Vau and different sexual orientation(s)

Cienie’s Star Wars sidenotes (Jedi healers and Force healing)

An answer to ask about portrayal of stormtroopers/501st as being intensely loyal to Vader

Alpha & Cody and how they addressed or talked about Anakin in Legends sources (2002-2005/6)

A Mandalorian Tradition?

The Funeral Rites of Taungs and later Mandalorian Warriors.

[An answer to ask, originally answered from side-blog, archeo-starwars] Jedi Temple

The obedience of clones - or why I dislike TCW!idea of inhibitor chip and following answer

The case of Krell’s death?

Anakin making sure Obi-Wan get medical help & will not sidetrack on his way to medbay

How exactly Jedi intended to explain killing Chancellor Palpatine to senate and citizens of Republic?

Clone troopers & the movie “Soldier” (1998)

Jango Fett’ childhood on Concord Dawn

Arla - Mandalorian name?

Jaster & Tor

A bit about The Mandalorian s03′s take on mandalorian culture

Jango and “save yourself”

Mandalorians and thrones

About Children of the Watch 

An answer to ask about Sergeant Kreel’s lightsaber

Jango Fett as seen by Count Dooku, Mace Windu and Anakin Skywalker 

source material research

How Jedi made Anakin Skywalker feel through the years

How Yoda made Anakin feel through the years

Notron Cant - Taung language and Mandalorian dialects

A bit about Mandalorian Sigils

Darth Vader & Maximilian Veers

Adi Gallia: Human vs Near-Human source material

The way Tor addressed Jango through the years

Sources: Jango Fett sold into slavery

Anakin / Vader seen as warrior in various sources 

An iconographic summary of the main and side characters from Jango Fett: Open Seassons (1-4)

Jaster Mereel's Supercommando Codex - source material

MASTERPOST for MORTAL KOMBAT, ONE PIECE and AVATAR: THE LAST AIRBENDER here

[cienie-isengardu]

Fixer: Sir, are people always so illogical or I'm the weird clone here?

Vau: You're perfectly fine, Fixer. It's people who are weird.

Fixer: mhm

[cienie-isengardu]

My RepCom Musing: Vau’s knowledge about Jedi

The books give us a lot of hints that Vau has a wide spectrum of interests, be it technology or medical/anatomical knowledge (more to use in taking people apart than healing but still) or collecting data about living beings and/or their skills. The last one is especially true in regard to Jedi, especially in context of Vau’s personal dislike for Jedi for what happened on Galidraan - even if for a large part of the story the feeling does not disturb much his civil interaction with the force-sensitive characters around him.

Vau did learn a lot about Jedi and had some interesting insight about them through the course of three books.

TRIPLE ZERO:

(Witnessing Etain's method during interrogation of Orjul)

 There was a sharp gasp from Orjul and Vau looked around. Whatever Etain was doing, she wasn't even touching him. Just staring.

    "Kal, those people scare me more than Orjul does” Vau said.

---

(After an unfortunate meeting with agent Besanny and Gurlanin)

Etain and Jusik were kneeling on either side of the Gurlanin, hands flat on its flanks in some kind of Jedi healing process. Vau watched with interest. He was the anatomy expert, although he was more skilled at taking bodies apart than repairing them.  

 ---

(Etain and Vau working together to eliminate a target)

"Could you choke him using the Force?" Vau said quietly.

 "What?"

"Just asking. Very handy."

"I was never trained to do that."

"Pity. All those fine combat skills wasted."

TRUE COLORS:

(Delta Squad and Jusik getting the needed information in search for Ko Sai)

"Yeah, the questions might be harmless, but you're not..." Leb now looked past Scorch and spotted Jusik jogging across the permacrete, Jedi robes flapping. "Oh yeah, now the Jedi's going to zap me with his Force powers, isn't he? Shove a lightsaber in..."

Jusik caught up with them. He always looked as if a strong breeze would knock him over. "No lightsaber necessary, my friend. You haven't got any reason to withhold information, have you?"

When Jusik used that especially quiet, reasonable tone - and he never raised his voice anyway - Sev wasn't sure if he was using Jedi mind influence or not. There was always something disturbing about Jedi, even the approachable ones like Jusik. Sergeant Vau said it was a good idea never to turn your back on one. They weren't like regular folks.

Would I know if he was using that mind stuff on me?

Sev thought about that more and more lately. He still liked Jusik, though.

---

(Jusik and Deltas while talking with Master Zey)

Jusik sat completely composed, fingers meshed as his hands rested on Zey's lovely blue desk. Sev, in I'll-wait-to-be-spoken-to mode like the rest of Delta Squad, sat to his right, helmet on lap, staring straight ahead, managing to feel that the conversation didn't involve him or his brothers at all. It was, Vau said, probably like a Jedi being in a state of meditation: aware, but not distracted. It was handy to be able to do that when your CO was getting a subtle roasting from his boss right in front of you.

ORDER 66

(The Skirata gang meeting)

"How do you lie to a Jedi Master?" Laseema asked. "Without him sensing it, that is?"

"I didn't," said Vau. "I said I'd tell him if I found Kal doing anything to help the enemy. The minute that this little shabuire opens a comlink to any former Death Watch personnel, I shall gladly turn him in."

Skirata paused for a moment, then managed to laugh. "Do I know any?"

"No, but they're the only group I'd really call my enemy. So I didn't lie, and I was genuinely emotional enough for him to believe what his Force senses told him he wanted to believe."

Laseema applauded politely. "That's a very clever technique."

"Thank you, my dear. Mando'ade are trained to acquire certain states of mind for battle, so it's an easy switch."

---

(Zey confronting Vau why Kal was beaten up)

Zey clasped his hands in front of him in that Jedi way, looking slightly sideways at Vau.

"Trying to sense any dark side in me, General?" Vau asked.

"You don't feel remotely dark. Quite serene, actually."

"I've been told that before, and that should set off your warning bells, jetii. Your senses need recalibrating. None of you can feel darkness right under your noses."

&

Vau gave him a thumbs-up gesture and walked away toward the accommodation wing. So what did he know about a big assault? There was always one coming, and Vau was good at leaving everyone wondering just how much he knew, just enough revealed to make folks take notice of him.

He knew an awful lot about Jedi, that was for sure.

Scorch slapped down his own curiosity and told it to behave. He didn't care how Vau knew. He was just glad that he did and he trusted him, because Vau's words always came back to him from those first days on Kamino.

Everything I do from this moment on is to make sure you survive to fight. Even if I don't.

As Scorch noted, Vau knew an awful lot about Jedi - what shouldn’t be that surprising if the book series alone consistently showed the Mandalorian taking notes about force-sensitive people, either from asking them about their skills or observing said skills when used. Though Mandalorians have a rocky relationship with Jedi Order for millennials (and there is a great shift from Mandalorian Wars era to modern time in how Mando perceived them), the Galidraan was devastating event for True Mandalorians so Vau’s special interest in Jedi may come years before Clone Wars even started. Especially if we take into account how Walon Vau and Jango Fett had a much closer bond than Kal and Jango ever had:

Vau had been far closer to Jango Fett than Skirata ever had. He understood - perhaps too late, but eventually - the depth of Fett's loathing of the Jedi. [IC: 501st]

 The gaining knowledge about “enemy” may be Vau’s way preparing for the worst  - interestingly, Vau shared his knowledge/observations about Jedi with Delta Squad (although how much of those opinions were shared during the Kamino era and how much during war is sadly hard to determine), maybe even as to increase their chance of survival in the war.

[cienie-isengardu]

Vau’s habit of reality checking with Skirata is really amusing. He always makes a good points while being sarcastic.

[cienie-isengardu]

My RepCom Musing: The use of “psycho” and “crazy” and similar terms

Not sure where my research will ultimately lead me as I’m still collecting data how RepCom book series treated the potential mental illness and/or the perception of the “psycho” characters - something I've been meaning to write for some time in regard to Walon Vau and Sev, but for now I would like to share a few observations made so far:

There is a visible difference in how Walon Vau and Kal Skirata approach the topic of potential mental illness of their clone commandos, which I think fits their introvert and extrovert natures well. As far as I can say, Walon in general is not talking with outsiders about his men’s mental state - he acknowledged (think) Sev is “psychotic” and lacks “the most basic social graces“ [True Colors] or confronted Scorch about his breakdown [Order 66] but we don’t see him revealing much of their traumas or how horrible was their training to anyone who wasn’t already a part of said training program (and we know that Vau and Skirata argued about that a lot). In contrast, Skirata talked surprisingly a lot to other characters about what happened to Ordo/Nulls or occasionally to Omegas, usually to explain why his sons act in this way. This happened with Etain and Obrim and even Fi, though how Ordo feels about his trauma being talked with “outsiders” is not really brought by narrative. 

Granted, both men are using different frames from what they count normal (good) - Vau is operating in the good soldier zone (as being a soldier has a special meaning for him related to his own fucked up childhood) while Skirata focuses on family life (something he failed at once and many clones may never have a chance to experience) but that is a topic for another time.

Similarly, Delta Squad and Atin(?) are rarely seen calling other characters as the psycho, especially in a negative way. Scorch did use that name for Sev, but either Deltas were in their own company or Scorch made an observation about his brother’s behavior as he was worrying about him a lot in Order 66. Frankly, as far as my research showed, Deltas did not call Walon Vau the “Old Psycho” but they did at least twice called Skirata “crazy” (True Colors and Order 66). Interestingly, the majority of “psycho” and “crazy” terms - in context of mental illness / dangerous behavior - used by clones alone in the books comes from Omega (those members originally trained by Kal) and Nulls. 

Old Psycho, as a nickname for Vau was used twice (or so I assume) by Fi and once by Mereel. Bonker Squad as a nickname for Nulls was used by Fi and Darman/Niner and Skirata who coined this term. 

  "Your buddy ... ," Darman teased.

    "Rather have him for a friend than an enemy."

    "Ooh, he likes you. Hobnobbing with ARC officers from the Bonkers Squad, eh?"

    "We have an understanding," Fi said. "I don't laugh at his skirt, and he doesn't rip my head off."

    Yes, Ordo had taken a shine to him. Fi hadn't fully understood it until Skirata had taken him to one side and explained just what had happened to Ordo and his batch on Kamino as kids. So when Fi had thrown himself on a grenade during an anti-terrorist op to smother the detonation, Ordo had marked him out as someone who'd take an awfully big risk to save comrades. Null ARCs were psychotic-bonkers, as Skirata put it-but they were unshakably loyal when the mood struck them. [Triple Zero]

 There are also variations of the “All Nulls are psychos / crazy” statement, quite often coming from Omega, Kal or Nulls themselves. Interestingly, Vau at the beginning of True Colors described them simply as hooligans (rather than psychos) and it was put in contrast to Sev and Vau’s men in general (the good soldiers) while Vau seems to be more prone to call Skirata the crazy one than Nulls. 

Also, it seems like most of the psycho/crazy statements or rumors repeated(?) started with Skirata and was adapted by his men at some point? Like:

mentioned Bonker Squad for Nulls (used solely by him and Omega)

the not best opinion about ARC even if Nulls are the psychos themselves? (“but an ARC who'd gone AWOL was-impossible. Jango Fett had raised and trained them personally, with an emphasis on absolute loyalty to the Republic. Sergeant Kal said that Jango was an unhinged shabuir, but he always stuck to his contract, and that contract had included creating a loyal, totally reliable army. Darman had heard rumors to the contrary, and the Nulls were living crazy proof that a clone soldier could be as eccentric and wayward as any random human, but nothing had ever been confirmed.) As in “Jango was an unhinged shabuir and because he trained ARCs, they are like that too” kind of logic?

And considering that Deltas do not call Walon Vau as the Old Psycho but Fi and Mereel used that nickname, I think it is safe to assume this comes from Skirata too?

Additionally, I made a working diagram - it's not fully correct, as for now I focused on looking for specific phrases (psycho and crazy, bonker or those specific moments that I remembered), but for curiosity's sake I'm posting it in regard to Nulls, Vau and Sev as they are the most prominent characters in regard to “psycho” nickname.

[cienie-isengardu]

Knowing how Vau trained his squads, this Scorch’s quote is double hilarious. I mean, of course, it may be just a joke, but if this is in fact what Vau kept saying to Delta Squad (and by extension, to all his trainees), then Vau literally said one of the most universal thing a parent says to his kids - eat the vegetables (just in capsule version) LOL

[cienie-isengardu]

"How unstable, exactly?" Skirata asked. "If they don't work a stabilizer compound into the plastoid, it'll blow their workshop into orbit as soon as they attach a det to it." Scorch sniggered appreciatively. "Just a precaution," Ordo said. "If we end up using it for a sting operation and by some chance it goes wrong, then we'll at least remove a few huruune in the process." "And half of Galactic City." Sev grunted to himself and peered through his scope to calibrate it against the view from the window. "You spook boys overdo it sometimes." Skirata patted Ordo's arm. "Nice job, son. Now tell me where you've stored it." "Half at the safe house and half under Fixer's bed." Scorch guffawed. Boss smacked his ear but it didn't stop him from laughing. "I'm sharing Fixer's room, di'kut."

Republic Commando: Triple Zero

The fact that Scorch and Fixer shared a room in Triple Zero is a pretty interesting detail. Scorch and Sev seem to me like natural room mates as they have this very close bond (especially seen in games, when both chattered forth and back while Fixer nagged them to calm down and focus at the job). At the same time, Fixer and Boss are calmer, more reserved(?) than their brothers so for sure they would get along just fine and maybe even could take a break from the more hot-headed part of the team and actually enjoy the calmness for once. But then maybe Scorch and Sev were intentionally separated to keep them out of trouble? You know, one more calm Delta and one of the hot-headed duo, to keep the balance since they are working with Kal’s boys rather than people they are familiar with, as in, coming from the same training batch?

Also: Fixer is fearless and Scorch is having too much fun 🤣

[cienie-isengardu]

My RepCom Musing: Skirata & Darman vs. Vau & Delta Squad

One of the things that kills me about Etain’s pregnancy in the grand scheme of the story -  and I mean it as is frustrating and hilarious at the same time - is the extreme  different reaction about the news that books provided over the course of three volumes.

We have Skirata who through the course of Triple Zero noted to himself how Etain and Darman are close to each other and, rightfully, suspected they were lovers. Beside one weird misunderstanding scene involving Ordo (in which Ordo was angry at Etain for using command “Stop” on him during fight and when Etain asked Skirata for help, he - for whatever reason - assumed it had to be something of romantic/sexual(?) nature she did against his boys), in Skirata’s POV there was no mention of Etain having that close physical bond with any other man and and yet when the news was delivered to him, Kal’s first reaction was to ask who is the father?

"Thank you for being so understanding about me and Dar," she said.

    Skirata rubbed his forehead. "I'm sorry for lecturing you. I'm very protective of them all. But you're both happy, and I'm glad to see that."

    "I hope you'll be glad that I'm having a baby, then." There was a moment's silence.

    "What?" said Skirata.

    "I'm pregnant."

    She watched his face harden. "Pregnant?"

    She hadn't expected that. An unpleasant coldness spread up from her stomach into her chest.

    "Whose is it?" Skirata asked. His voice was level, controlled, distant. It was a mercenary's voice.

    That hurt. "Darman's, of course."

    "He doesn't know, then. He'd have told me if he did."

Similarly, although not exactly the same way, Darman reacted. He did not ask who was the father of the child but before Etain managed to tell him the truth about their child, he accused her of infidelity with… Mereel. 

"Dar, I need you to listen to me." Etain took his arm. She wanted to grab him by both shoulders to keep him facing her, but he was too tall. "Dar, I'm going to tell you something I should have told you a long time ago. Please don't be angry with me, even though I deserve it."

That got his attention. "Is it Mereel?"

"What?"

"When I'm away."

Etain was shocked silent for a moment. "Fierfek, Dar, never! No, nothing of the kind. I'd never betray you like that." She'd been at this point so many, many times, and she hovered on the brink again. It was agony. Do it. Tell him. Do it. Stang, did he really think she'd cheat on him? "Dar, the reason I was away on Qiilura for five months was ... I was pregnant. I had a baby." [Order 66]

In case of Darman, his paranoia may be understable to some degree, even more since Mereel was the ladies man (or at least seen as such) and Darman knew more or less what he taught Corr about getting ladies whenever he went, as it was suggested by the books. Of course, this accusation doesn’t make sense for readers (me), as Etain had little to no contact with Mereel to begin with and from all the Nulls it was actually Ordo who interacted with her on various points in the story? Darman though did not have a constant contact with Etain, did not have a way to check on her and did not see her face to face in a long time, as both had their respective duties while Etain was stuck at Qiilura for months. So okay, fine, Darman showed his, somehow justified, paranoia and maybe some hidden complexes or whatsoever. 

But then we have Walon Vau and Deltas that so far showed little interest in romances - their own or other people’s personal lives, beside maybe some rumors and theories about Skirata’s grandkid done mainly on Scorch’s part, and who are, well, not really emotionally people themselves. 

And yet, when Vau heard the grand news about Etain’s pregnancy, he (the same as present there Mereel) did not need to ask who was the father as Etan and Darman “romance was hardly a secret: even Delta knew.”:

"What about Etain?" Vau asked.

    "I know, Kal," Jusik said. He looked embarrassed. "I can sense these things. Don't worry about the Jedi Council. They don't know."

    "It's not them I'm worried about," Skirata said. Shab. Maybe he should have told all the Nulls that Etain was carrying Darman's baby, not just Ordo. "It's the Kaminoans."

    "Fascinating." Vau sighed. "Who doesn't know what you know, or what Kal knows, and that I don't know, but the Kaminoans don't know, either, but if they did know, then Kal knows they'd be a problem?"

    "It's not funny, Walon," Skirata said. Mereel was going to get huffy when he realized Ordo had kept something of so much importance from him. "We have a personnel issue we have to factor in to all this."

    "I wish I'd never taught you all those big words."

    "Okay-Etain's pregnant. Short enough for you?"

    Vau made a noise in his throat that sounded remarkably like Mird's gargling objection to being moved from the sofa. "I'll start knitting," he said. "Obviously the Force wasn't with her."

    Nobody asked who the father was. The romance was hardly a secret: even Delta knew. [True Colors]

And this is worth mentioning that on Coruscant, Vau wasn’t in their safe house from the start and joined the team properly somehow in the middle of operation and then spent some time sleeping outside ‘cause Mird wasn’t allowed inside. So, between his part of duties and spending time/sleeping on the landing platform, his direct contact with Etain and Darman was much more limited than Skirata’s. And yet not for any moment he accused the young Jedi of infidelity with any man (especially not any Nulls), did not cross his mind she could, you know, sleep with other clone(s) for fun or out of need during her mission on isolated Qiilura.

Then we have Scorch and his brothers who were pretty sure Etain and Darman were lovers, even if no one said anything aloud. Deltas, Omegas and Etain did not work all the time together - in True Colors all of them had separate missions, so between the second and fourth book some months to two years had passed. Which is a pretty long time and a lot could have changed in their relationship yet Deltas did not question Etain’s love and loyalty to her clone lover even if the whole romance stuff wasn’t their thing or anything close to their comfort zone (thanks to Vau’s advice). Despite that, Etain told them she has a son:

"You okay, General?" he asked.

There was a crackle in the circuit as if she'd switched off her audio for a moment.

"I'm worried about Coruscant," she said. "I have friends and ... family there."

Well, at least she was honest enough to admit she had a bit of a thing going with Darman, in not so many words. Scorch found he could shut the doors on feelings like that. Getting that close to anyone caused pain; Vau had told them so, when they were wide-eyed kids drinking in his wisdom and he was the most important figure in their limited world. Letting anyone get under your skin, trusting anyone who said they loved you, was a recipe for being hurt and betrayed. So they had to protect themselves by keeping the world at arm's length. It was good advice for the life they led.

"Darman will be fine." Scorch took the risk of acknowledging her open secret. "He's a survivor, like all the Omegas. Shah, they couldn't even kill Fi permanently, and he was dead."

"Yeah, nobody could shut Fi's mouth for good" Sev said. "It's a force of nature in its own right."

That was another cover story nobody bought but that everyone accepted. Etain swallowed loudly. Boy, was she in a weird mood today...

"I have a child" she said.

Scorch really didn't have a comeback for that. It even shut Sev up. Nobody said a word, except Enacca, but it was very soft; and they didn't understand every word of Shyriiwook.

"That's kriffing awkward for you, ma'am," Boss said at last. They knew the Jedi rules, although they also knew there was now some weird Jedi sect that had shown up to fight alongside the Temple boys, and they were okay about having families. "We didn't even hear you tell us that. We know nothing."

"Thank you, Boss," Etain said. "Now let's see what our Sep friends are up to." [Order 66]

Deltas, like Vau, did not need to ask who was the father nor had any reason - real or imaginate - to wonder if the Jedi had sex with anyone beside Darman. 

And like I said, it is frustrating that Kal and Darman, two men Etain had the closest personal relationship with, jumped to the wrong conclusion (Kal because of his overprotectiveness toward his boys or his bad luck with women in general? Darman because of his personal fears?) while I find it hilarious that the emotionally closed-off Vau and Deltas not even for a moment had a doubt about Etain’s faithfulness to Darman. 

Dunno if that was the intended purpose of the story but for emotionally closed off /struggling people, Vau and Deltas somehow get a better grip of Etain’s character?

[cienie-isengardu]

Sha'kajir meant sitting down for a meal, and had come to refer to a truce or cease-fire. Skirata found that remarkably apt in this case. Everything could be resolved over a meal, the neutral territory where you said what you had to say and everyone was treated as kin, at least until the meal was over. He was still negotiating his cease-fire with Uthan. Vau managed a smile. "Mij'ika seems like a new man since he's found someone to discuss bacteriology and congenital urethral obstruction with him. If only everyone was so easy to please." "Not at the table, I hope." "It's all big words, Kal. You won't understand the really stomach-churning medical detail." Skirata ignored the jibe without even trying. A year ago, maybe less, it would have started the old fight going again, but they both found their differences weren't worth the effort now.

Imperial Commando: 501st

[cienie-isengardu]

You remember how during the hunt for Ko Sai, the team needed to find a way to pass the small underwater entrance to what seemed to be Kaminoan's laboratory so Mereel decided to rent a shark-shaped boat? 

I absolutely love the difference between Vau’s first reaction (”Fierfek, it looked like fun”) and Kal’s wanting to say fuck no but trying so hard to keep up appearances and being nervous about getting inside that thing.The whole trip to abduct Ko Sai was definitely way too fun for Walon since the whole deal brings up to surface his “inner sailor”, the part of Irmenu that he seems to like and enjoy very much while Kal simply suffered for he was the only one who “never completed the diving course”. Talk about a good family trip.

(Also, side note, but Vau must really have a great knowledge about nautical matters, if he was on spot able to name the potential species of shark (x) that Wave-Chaser was designed to resemble? I swear, if Vau did not teach Deltas and Atin some sea traditions and sailor skills, I’m gonna be so disappointed!)

[cienie-isengardu]

My RepCom Musing: Men in kitchen... or lack of thereof

With more than twenty mouths to feed, meals at Kyrimorut had now acquired an industrial scale. The complex was more than a house. It was yaim-part barracks, part hotel, part married quarters, part farmhouse, the archetypal Mandalorian clan home. They were lucky that Laseema, Atin's Twi'lek wife, had worked in a restaurant and so could manage a kitchen. She knew all the complicated stuff about portion sizes and making sure everything was ready at the same time. Ny was happy to take orders from her.

Imperial Commando: 501st

I’m trying very hard to remember that this paragraph shows us the Ny’s POV but even then this does not put men of the RC series in a good light. I’m sorry but oh so genius NULLs who can create a complicated programs presumably based on mathematical algorithms to steal incredible amount of money from banks and who can pilot a hybrid of space and submarine ship just by reading manual couldn’t figure out how to deal with portion sizes or cooking two things at the same time? Even working together, in pairs or ya know, all the six super soldiers putting their big brain to use? I’m sorry, Mandalorian veterans who are soldiers and part of the army all their lives aren’t capable of going into the kitchen to make a proper meal for their family because 20 people to feed is such a horrible and difficult task? Laseema is awesome, sure, but she didn’t married Atin to be tied to kitchen because men apparently are fucking useless in this homestead. Not to mention she worked as waitress and sex-worker dancer, not as cook which is a huge difference between serving food and preparing it.

And yeah, Ny may just assume the Skirata clan is lucky to have Laseema to take care of things because feeding so many people is hard and she is doing so well, but I think it could be much easier if the men actually deign to come to help. Because when it comes to cooking meals, it is Laseema, Besany, Jilka, Ruu Skirata, Ny (on her own choice to help) and even Arla Fett:

In the kitchen, Vau, Uthan, and Gilamar sat at the table watching the holonews, while Besany and Jilka helped Arla serve up the meals. It was the first time Arla had joined them. She looked lost, but then a kitchen was a chaotic, noisy place after years in a padded cell.

Like, SERIOUSLY? I’m so angry I’m willing to quote all the moments when our female characters are mentioned closely tied to kitchen and cooking just to prove this point.

The only two (three) men I’m willing to give some slack are:

ATIN

Who gutted and most likely scraped the fish scales for Laseema:

Ny was surprised by the rebuke, but Jilka didn't snap back. She went on chopping, eyes fixed on the table. Atin came in carrying a plastoid bowl full of gleaming freshly caught fish.

"Kaminoans eat fish, don't they?" he said, as if he was having second thoughts. "I never asked back in Tipoca. We didn't eat with them."

Laseema picked up a fish by its tail. "Did you gut them properly?"

"Of course I did. And it's going to take me ages to get the smell off my hands."

"You're a darling. Now all I need is some gihaal stock to poach them in."

CORR

Corr poked his head around the kitchen door. Ny wondered if Jilka could tell all the clones apart yet.

"Can I hide in here, please, ladies?" He gave them his best cheeky-boy smile and swaggered in. "The atmosphere's a bit intense out there. Aiwha-bait alert."

"Since when does the kitchen have a FEMALES ONLY sign outside?" Jilka asked. "Make yourself useful, soldier."

Corr winked, took the knife from her hand, and began chopping with surprising speed and skill. The more surprising thing was that she let him.

and

"Who's for more eggs?" Corr yelled over the hubbub. He'd volunteered for kitchen detail with Ny this week, probably to impress Jilka, and Ordo decided it was working. She watched Corr when she thought he wasn't looking. "Make the most of these. The nuna can't keep up with you greedy shab'ikase. It'll be boiled mealgrain until they start laying again."

(and yeah, the first mention of Corr’s help was about him trying to hide in kitchen to avoid a tense atmosphere created by Kal meeting a Kaminoan Jedi survivor of Purge and later, he tried to impress Jilka but he at least was in the kitchen helping ladies)

and honorable mention of WALON VAU:

While Besany wrestled with dough, and Scout and Ruu sliced the haunch of shatual that Mird and Vau had hunted, Ny made igatli from scratch, following a recipe on a datapad propped on the kitchen table.

And yes, Fi, Parja and Corr hunted too and generally all members of the clan clan helped with fishing, but the text at least strongly suggests that Scout and Ruu got not so much as a hunted animal to deal with, but skinned (and gutted?) one so the meat is ready to be portioned for a meal or preserved to eat in the future.

That is. The three men who are apparently reliable. And surprise, surprise none of them is Kal or trained from start Kal’s boys. Geez.

[cienie-isengardu]

Hey, do you remember this scene?

Some of the items in the bag were priceless antiques. "Beshavo ancestral icon," Ordo said, and held up a time-stained square of gilded parchment. Collectors would happily shoot their mothers for it. They certainly shot each other. "I hope you know a reliable fence in the fine art world, Kal'buir, because we're going to need one."

 "The fine arts," Skirata said, fighting a hysterical urge to giggle, "are my natural territory."

 "You're an uncultured savage," said Vau.

[True Colors]

I absolutely love this little snippet, because it seems that Kal, despite previous animosity between them and generally having an opposite view on almost everything, actually listened and acknowledged Vau’s opinion:

Skirata knew he was everything Vau said - thug, thief, killer, uncultured oaf, and way too emotional.But he knew how to fight - anything, anytime - and he knew how to love.  [Order 66]

The thug, thief and killer is written into mercenary job. That Kal was way too emotional was part of their major disagreement how to train clones. But the uncultured savage/oaf is so hilarious to me, because this has nothing really to do with Mandalorian norms and I strongly suspect not even much in regard to their access to education.

[cienie-isengardu]

My RepCom Musing: Vau’s adoptive father

 In True Colors we learned that Walon Vau at some point was officially adopted by unknown [Mandalorian] man:

    Even I had a second father to adopt me ... too late, maybe, but better than never...

This makes me wonder, did Kal know the unnamed man or that Vau was adopted at all? And if yes, was the man also brutal/abusive? Because at the end of Order 66, Skirata thought that 

"I know he did Walon," Skirata said. Vau had never had a father worthy of the name; all things considered he'd done his best to be one himself. "I know he does. He's missing. Missing men often get found. Our missing men will be found."

This statement (and knowledge about Vau’s proper adoption into mandalorian family) could also put in different light the scene from Triple Zero, in which both men talked about their families:

[Etain] turned to Vau. "Do you see your men as your sons?"

"Of course I do. I have no others. It's why I made them into survivors. Don't think I don't love them just because I don't spoil them like kids."

    "Here we go," Skirata said, all contempt. "He's going to tell you that his father beat the osik out of him and it made a man of him. Never did him any harm, no sir."

Since the whole talk revolved around the subject of the biological family, logically Kal’s statement should be about the Vau Senior. Yet the next books provided insight into Walon’s mind and he openly hates biological family, something Skirata seemed to be aware of? And Walon never said anything alongside the line that his biological parent, in any way, made him a true man and even acknowledged that his “black heart” is the only true legacy inherited from the man. Which makes me wonder did Kal (unknown to Etain who at that point did not know much about Mandalorian culture) simply started talking about the Vau’s adoptive father without emphasizing the “adoptive” part as for Mandalorians this was totally unimportant detail, too busy arguing with Vau about something they argued for years probably?

Additionally, Vau most likely joined Mandalorians at pretty young age, if we take into account his statements about Mird (the strill was with him since “boyhood” [TC] and since he “joined the Mandalorians” [TZ]), so it seems logical to assume he was part of someone’s Mandalorian family/clan, no matter if  the proper adoption happened years later. So the quote “his father beat the osik out of him and it made a man of him” could also refer to the Mandalorian who for whatever reason decided to take young Vau (a survivor of domestic abuse coming from aristocratic messed up family) and “straighten” him up to make the boy/teenager(?) a proper man (Mandalorian) in my honest opinion.

[cienie-isengardu]

My RepCom Musing: "I steal. You don’t.”

Let’s talk a bit about the robbing bank scene in True Colors and more specifically this snippet:

"We can empty the-"

"I steal. You don't."

It was a fine point but it mattered to Vau. Skirata might have raised a pack of hooligans, but Vau's squads were disciplined. Even Sev... Sev was psychotic and lacked even the most basic social graces, but he wasn't a criminal.

I absolutely love this little insight into Vau’s mind for various reasons.

One - his view of Skirata as the criminal is consistent throughout the series. Even though both men became a very close comrades, this opinion did not change a bit, as was seen in Order 66

Skirata knew he was everything Vau said - thug, thief, killer, uncultured oaf, and way too emotional.

and

"I've known Skirata for some years," Vau said. "He's a criminal by Coruscant standards. So am I. But an outright traitor - no. He's a professional."

Both men are aware they are in fact criminals and they never try to deny this fact nor see themselves as some heroic people (though Vau sarcastically callsSkirata “playing the working-class martyr” and “my little working-class hero” but I guess this is a rant for another occasion).

At the same time, Vau is seeing Kal as a man who raised a pack of hooligans - what, to be honest seems to be aimed mainly at Nulls, as we know that once under Kal’s protection they did a lot dangerous things on Kamino for fun and out of spite toward Kaminoans (their abusers) and who kept stealing data, equipment and money, slicing into banks and other important institutions and so on during war. The fact that Vau considered Skirata to fail drill into his boys a proper military discipline and maybe even thought Kal lacked it himself, speaks a lot about Vau’s strict nature and his approach to following rules / orders (and this is another interesting point about him, but that is again a rant for another day).

So Vau’s approach (need) for discipline is another reason why the above quote is so telling a lot about him as a character. Vau literally put value over pragmatism, because he didn’t want Delta Squad - his disciplined soldiers - to become a common criminals, like him or Skirata, even though he did not see robbing his family’s vault as a crime but justice, for himself and clone troopers.

The third interesting detail is how Vau considers Sev to be psychotic and lacking any social grace (and geez, whose fault is that Vau?) but still see him as the proper, disciplined soldier. We know that in the books psycho and similar terms have a negative connotation and the game mentions that during training Vau even asked to re-check Sev’s DNA for possible mental aberration

but these Sev’s “faults” still do not overshadow Vau's positive opinion about the commandos and the contrast between Vau’s good Deltas and Skirata’s bunch of hooligans.  At least in that point of the story.