Star Wars has enough characters to provide endless hours of entertainment. Many ongoing projects in the franchise practice the challenging experiment of escalating a cool design to a universe of new material. The original trilogy did just fine with fun drawings and the occasional line of dialogue. Take Boba Fett as an example. He was an elevated henchman with a cool suit of armor and some unique weapons, but through years of fan requests, characters like Jaster Mereel emerged to flesh out his history.
Disney’s 2014 acquisition of the Star Wars brand has been a bit of a mess. While the franchise continues to make endless money, its new inventions struggle against fan expectations. Disney routinely leaves notable figures from the old expanded universe in the wasteland beyond canon, only to create a near-identical figure that they can more easily monetize. Jango Fett is inarguably canon. His mentor, Jaster Mereel, has a different path.
Who is Jaster Mereel?
In 1996, Daniel Keys Moran wrote “The Last One Standing: The Tale of Boba Fett.” This was the first proper attempt to give Boba Fett a backstory and personality beyond his limited appearance in the original trilogy. It likely remains the best example of his characterization, but more recent adaptations supersede the short story. “The Last One Standing” imagines Fett as an aging, bitter, haunted lawman who lost his career after killing a superior officer. Fett’s name is actually an alias that he picked up after leaving his lawful position to become a bounty hunter. According to Moran’s classic short story, Boba Fett is actually Jaster Mereel. This detail, with nearly every other aspect of “The Last One Standing,” became non-canon shortly after its production. Its fate is unfortunate, but it remains well worth reading despite its excision from the primary narrative. Jaster Mereel became a new character, but his connection to Boba Fett lived on as the original bounty hunter used Mereel as an alias in various dealings.
The new Jaster Mereel adopted large portions of the original character’s narrative. Jaster was born on Concord Dawn, an agricultural planet in the Outer Rim’s Mandalore sector. The planet had a strong connection to Mandalorian culture, sharing many values with the traditionalist warriors. Jaster became a Journeyman Protector as a grown man. He served his community as an old-fashioned constable, enforcing the law and protecting the innocent. Jaster’s strong sense of justice pushed him to gun down a corrupt superior officer, earning him an exile from Concord Dawn. His skills and drive led him to join the Mandalorians, where he quickly found distinction as an excellent warrior. His story becomes vague for a time, but Jaster becomes the Mand’alor, the leader of his newfound culture. As Mand’alor, Jaster instated the Supercommando Codex. This set of rules formalized the Mandalorian’s warrior spirit, pushing all those who wished to fight into military or mercenary work instead of the shameful path of brigandry. This placed Jaster between two factions in the burgeoning Mandalorian Civil War.
What happened to Jaster Mereel?
Some Mandalorians adopted pacifism and became the New Mandalorians. Others opposed that decision and supported violent conquest, forming a group called Death Watch. The two factions waged the Mandalorian Civil War. This conflict spilled out onto Concord Dawn, prompting Jaster to return home. He found his replacement, a man named Fett. Unfortunately, Fett and his wife lost their lives in a Death Watch attack. Their son, Jango, demonstrated impressive courage and resourcefulness as he helped the Mandalorians escape and outwit Death Watch. Jaster adopted young Jango, molding him into his successor. Jango got his opportunity early. Jaster spent six years teaching Jango everything he knew about Mandalorian life. They fought together in a battle on Korda Six. Though Jaster expected minimal resistance, his foolish ally led them into disaster. Jaster died, leaving Jango to claim his Mand’alor mantle and avenge his sad fate.
Could Jaster Mereel be canon?
Mereel became canon as Jango’s mentor in the Legends continuity. He lost that position in the 2014 Disney acquisition. He is, however, semi-canon in the new timeline. When Boba Fett appeared in Chapter 14 of The Mandalorian, he accessed the chain code of his distinctive armor. The gear listed a name in the Mandalorian language. Fans translated the visible letters as “JASTE.” This strongly implies the existence of Jaster Mereel in the modern canon, but the character hasn’t appeared in person. Future seasons of The Book of Boba Fett or other spinoff projects could bring him back.
Jaster Mereel is a fascinating case of shifting canonicity. As the franchise’s goal changes, characters, stories, and names can move and alter. Jaster Mereel started as a reveal for Boba Fett’s character. Later comics reimagined him as the first link in a chain of proud Mandalorian warriors. Jaster’s strong sense of justice animated Jango’s early life, but he clearly lost his way in his later years. His son had to find the path his adoptive grandfather once walked. That could be a fascinating hook for the next Book of Boba Fett season. Look out for Jaster Mereel in any future Mandalorian-adjacent adventures.
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