Summary

• The Mandalorian has helped counteract the infamous Stormtrooper aim trope that has been in Star Wars since 1977.
• Stormtroopers often manage to hit Din Djarin with their blaster bolts in The Mandalorian, correcting the franchise's past mistakes.
• The show manages to balance familiar tropes like giving its main characters plot armor while still keeping Stormtroopers a legitimate threat in the series.

Star Wars created, and calcified, countless clichés with its blockbuster premiere in 1977. One of the most notable, and longest-lasting, is the "Stormtrooper Aim" trope. No matter how many Stormtroopers there are, or how well-trained they may be, the Empire's "elite" shock troops never seem to hit their targets. However, the first season of The Mandalorian went a long way in countering that reputation.

The Stormtroopers' aim has been something of a franchise plot hole from the very beginning. Early in A New Hope, a line of dialogue hinted at a deadly -- if wholly unsupported — reputation. When Obi-Wan Kenobi inspects the aftermath of an attack on the Jawas' Sandcrawler, he observes to Luke Skywalker, "These blast points are too accurate for sand people. Only Imperial Stormtroopers are so precise."

Updated by Jordan Iacobucci on March 1, 2024: The Mandalorian has been a key factor in saving the Star Wars franchise after its polarizing last few years. The Disney+ series, which stars Pedro Pascal as Din Djarin, is now setting up the next stage of the ever-popular sci-fi franchise, including the release of two new films, The Mandalorian & Grogu and The Heir to the Empire. However, some of the Star Wars mistakes that have been amended by The Mandalorian are actually quite small. In fact, the series even helps fill in one little plot hole that has been annoying fans since A New Hope.

Bad Stormtrooper Aim In Star Wars Is Just 'Plot Armor'

Upon re-watch, that scene is almost comical given all the Star Wars media produced since then. Stormtroopers are famously imprecise, despite Obi-Wan's words. Historically, Stormtroopers almost never hit a main character at whom they aim. Especially after gaining insight into their training, the imprecision of Stormtroopers is baffling. One would think that elite soldiers would be able to strike a target from relatively short distances. Whether they are on open battlefields, shooting at stationary targets, or in the narrow hallways of the Death Star, Stormtroopers rarely hit the heroes with their blaster bolts.

• While the Empire's Stormtroopers were conscripted, the First Order's stormtroopers were in large part raised to be soldiers, having been kidnapped as young children from their parents.

From an out-of-universe perspective, it's easy to see why. Protagonists often wear what's referred to as "plot armor." It's the requirement that they make it through relatively minor conflicts unharmed so that they're able to proceed through the rest of the story. Tropes like "Stormtrooper aim" and "plot armor" often serve as criticism for a lack of realistic storytelling, as they can pull audiences out of the story and prevent the danger of any given sequence from resonating.

Stormtroopers Actually Hit Din Djarin Several Times in The Mandalorian

However, The Mandalorian hasn't been so willing to fall into this same trap. In Season 1, Episode 3, protagonist Din Djarin is struck multiple times by Stormtroopers. Their blaster bolts explode against him as he invades a complex, his stealth advantage thrown to the wind once he is discovered. It comes as a small but reassuring detail amid all the action that not all Star Wars creators will continue to make the mistakes of the past.

• There are currently four Star Wars films in active development: Jon Favreau's The Mandalorian & Grogu, Dave Filoni's Heir to the Empire, James Mangold's Dawn of the Jedi, and Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy's new film starring Rey Skywalker.

Of course, it's not as though the Stormtroopers in the episode just gunned down Mando and left him a smoking husk. The blast bolts hitting him were likely added to show the durability of his newly won armor. Now replete with a freshly forged Mandalorian cuirass, the scene helps fortify the Mandalorians' reputation for fearsome fighting skill and capable craftsmanship.

It's only natural that the character's literal armor would strengthen his plot armor, so it's not as though the show completely escapes some of the hazards of including such familiar tropes. But it's common sense that a hero would make it through violent conflicts early in the story so that they can stick around until the end. The trick for a storyteller is juggling tropes so that no single one feels overused, and The Mandalorian managed just that.

The Mandalorian's Stormtroopers Finally Hit The Mark

The fact that Stormtroopers constantly miss their targets throughout the franchise makes these villains look buffoonish and unthreatening. Seeing that the Stormtroopers Mando fights can actually hit their target helps establish the threat they could pose in future conflicts all the more. When audiences see characters who do not wear such powerful plot armor, it increases their investment in the dangerous situations portrayed.

• The Mandalorian was the first live-action Star Wars show ever, premiering in 2019 with the launch of Disney+, and it also marked Dave Filoni's entry into writing and directing live-action Star Wars.

However small the detail is, it helps fill in the plot hole first created by Obi-Wan's observation from Star Wars' first film. For the oft-used henchman to feel threatening, it is important that their attacks actually have consequences — and it only makes sense that Star Wars' grittiest and most down-to-earth project yet would be the one to address the issue.

Why Are The Mandalorian's Stormtroopers Better Shots?

There may be a particular reason for Stormtroopers' better aim in The Mandalorian as opposed to other Star Wars movies and shows. The Stormtroopers in The Mandalorian are all those who survived the events of the Galactic Civil War and who avoided New Republic imprisonment thereafter. These are the best of the Empire's soldiers, who not only managed to outwit the New Republic in its early years but also remained loyal to their government after its total collapse. These Stormtroopers are true believers in their cause and the elite of the Empire's now-scattered forces.

• Set to come out in 2026, The Mandalorian & Grogu will re-establish a longstanding tradition of releasing Star Wars movies in the month of May. With the exception of Solo, all of Disney's theatrical Star Wars releases have been in December.

This would explain why The Mandalorian's Stormtroopers are generally better shots. And, as the basis for the First Order, which rises from the Imperial Remnant, this would explain why Stormtroopers in the sequel trilogy tend to be better shots as well. If the First Order's Stormtroopers were founded upon and trained by the elite Stormtroopers of the Empire, they would naturally have better aim and devotion to their cause, making them better soldiers overall.

There are numerous ways in which The Mandalorian has filled in plot holes and contrivances from other Star Wars media. One of the show's best fixes is quite subtle, as its Stormtroopers quietly prove that they are capable of overcoming their supposed bad aim.