I’ve talked about this before but like the way the mandalorian show treats weapons is very interesting. din has a very clear reverence for the weapons he uses and takes very good care of them, and they’re as much a part of his silhouette as his armour is, but the kind of reverence that takes on isn’t like the standard traditional masculine power fantasy. the camera and the characters both treat them like valuable tools that deserve respect, maintenance, training, and care to handle, but they aren’t emphasised as a form of masculine power. without things like visual guides and behind the scenes documentaries that show you close-ups of his rifle and pistol, the audience isn’t actually super familiar with all the fine details of his weapons because there are basically no lingering shots on them. the camera never “caresses” these weapons in the way a lot of western cowboy media does.
and I know din’s comment in chapter 2 about how “weapons are part of my religion” was a little flippant, but I think it’s very indicative of how those things are treated in the show. weapons are special and even sacred to mandalorians, but the meaning and value they derive from those weapons isn’t based on gendered notions of how to express and exert power over other people.
