The Big Picture
- Boba Fett's armor contains symbols and sigils that reference his cultural heritage, despite not being raised as a Mandalorian.
- Fett's armor includes the crest of Jaster Meerl, his father's mentor, and the skull of the extinct Mythosaur beast.
- Fett's armor has had multiple owners and has been revamped throughout its existence, reflecting the customization and personalization of Mandalorian culture.
Although the franchise itself has grown more expansive in recent years than it ever was before, few characters in the Star Wars saga are more enigmatic than the bounty hunter Boba Fett. Ever since his cinematic debut in The Empire Strikes Back, Fett’s merely wordless nature and signature costume design suggested a rich history to the character which has been expanded on extensively; between the telling of his backstory in Attack of the Clones, working him into a guest role in The Mandalorian, and finally making him the protagonist in The Book of Boba Fett, the Star Wars franchise can't get enough of Boba Fett. As his backstory is now much less enigmatic than it once was, it's now known that Boba Fett’s armor contains symbols and sigils that reference his cultural heritage.
What Do Boba Fett’s Armor Sigils Mean?
Despite wearing their signature armor, Boba Fett was not actually raised as a Mandalorian. While traditionally, Mandalorian warriors hail from the planet Mandalore, Fett was an identical clone of his father, Jango Fett, who was created on the planet Kamino. Unlike the other clone troopers who served in the Grand Army of the Republic, Boba Fett was raised by his father, who taught him some of the values that he had learned during his experiences growing up within the Mandalorian culture. Jango Fett’s prominence as a bounty hunter meant that Fett was taught more practical skills about combat as opposed to traditional Mandalorian chivalry. Jango Fett’s death at the hands of Jedi Master Mace Windu (Samuel L. Jackson) meant that his son had to take it upon himself to learn about the armor that he had inherited.
A majority of the Star Wars expanded universe content that was released before the purchase of Lucasfilm by Walt Disney Studios in 2012 has been relegated under the non-canon, “Legends” banner. However, Fett’s armor contains many allusions to Legends content, some of which have been made a part of the official canon through appearances in recent Disney-approved content. The sigil on Fett’s chest is the crest of Jaster Meerl, a Mandalorian Journeyman Protector from the planet Concord Dawn introduced in the 2002 comic book series Jango Fett: Open Seasons. Meerl was Jango Fett’s mentor and a member of the “True Mandalorians,” an honorable warrior sect that was unique from the violent Death Watch group.
R.I.P. to Din Djarin's Face in 'The Mandalorian'
Pedro Pascal's latest role could keep Mando from taking his helmet off ever again.The infamous skull on Fett’s armor represents the Mythosaur beast, a powerful creature native to the planet Mandalore. While ancient Mandalorian warriors had tamed and ridden these creatures during battle, they became essentially extinct by the time Fett first adopted the symbol. The symbol’s prominent placement reflects Fett’s conscious awareness, and perhaps fascination, with the heritage he never fully understood, and emphasizes the importance of his relationship with his father. While Fett himself never encountered a Mythosaur before declaring his armor, Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal) crossed the powerful creature in The Mandalorian episode “The Mines of Mandalore.” By conquering it, Djarin absolved himself of the crime of removing his helmet.
Boba Fett’s Armor Has Had Many Owners
Fett’s costume has evolved throughout the franchise, as each of its owners has revamped and refurbished the armor. While Jango Fett had originally earned the armor on Concord Dawn during his adolescence, he customized the suit with a flamethrower, wrist laser, and mini concussion rocket launcher to advance his career as a bounty hunter. Mandalorians use their armor as an expression of their identity, and the advancements Jango Fett made to his armor earned him the reputation as one of the galaxy’s most fearsome bounty hunters. It was due to his terrifying reputation that Fett was selected by Count Dooku to become the template for the Clone Army on Kamino.
Fett obtained his father’s armor after the Battle of Geonosis but did not immediately adopt it as his own. As seen in Star Wars: The Clone Wars, a young Fett disguised himself as a clone cadet to help the bounty hunters Aurra Sing and Bossk lead an attempted assassination attempt on Windu. While the mission’s failure landed Fett in prison, he later escaped and refurbished the armor with green paint. In the Mandalorian culture, a color change may indicate a change of intention or state of mind. Here, the green would represent the duty and honor by which Boba lives. By adding his own customizations to the armor, Fett was able to establish his own reputation whilst still honoring the memory of his father, which can be seen through the red trim.
While the suit served him well throughout his career, Fett temporarily lost his armor after being swallowed within the Sarlacc Pit in Return of the Jedi. Although the armor succeeded in protecting Fett from being digested by the Sarlaac, it was later taken by Jawas who discovered him wandering the desert of Tatooine and bartered. While the armor eventually made its way into the possession of Marshal Cobb Vanth (Timothy Olyphant), it was exchanged to Djarin and eventually returned to Fett.
Boba Fett Is an Overexposed ‘Star Wars’ Character
While The Book of Boba Fett firmly established him as one of the franchise’s heroes, Fett’s future within the Star Wars saga is unclear. A second season of The Book of Boba Fett seems unlikely given the initial installment’s tepid response, and Fett did not appear in the third season of The Mandalorian. While it seems possible that he could have an appearance in the upcoming feature film The Mandalorian & Grogu, Fett’s journey may have come to an end.
This isn’t an entirely unwelcome scenario, as Fett is far less interesting as a character now that his backstory has been revealed. As with many of the classic Star Wars characters that have appeared on Disney+ shows, Fett often felt like he was intruding on a narrative that was not his own. Regardless, Boba Fett will certainly remain one of the saga’s most popular anti-heroes and a prominent part of Mandalorian lore within Star Wars.
