One of the most iconic bounty hunters in the Star Wars franchise is Boba Fett. From his beginnings as the son of Jango Fett to his reputation as the ruthless bounty hunter tasked with finding and apprehending Han Solo, Boba Fett's life has been nothing short of eventful. However, long before the release of Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones, Fett's life was different. There was once a time where he was never the son of Jango Fett and the product of Kamino's cloning.
The main Star Wars canon paints Boba Fett's journey as a child racked with grief over the death of his father, and he wants nothing more than revenge on Mace Windu for killing him. However, in Legends canon, Fett is described as a Journeyman Protector and known by the name of Jaster Mereel in The Last One Standing: The Tale of Boba Fett. Here, the bounty hunter is just as deadly as his canon interpretation, but the story makes sure to show that he is also a man of honor, thanks to his time as a lawman.
In Legends, Journeyman Protectors are a group of lawmen that protect Concord Dawn and the Outer Rim. Mereel was from Concord Dawn and joined the outfit to protect his people, but he was exiled for killing a superior officer. Protectors wore Mandalorian armor and carried the sigil on Fett's chest armor, while their red-brown sashes represented special recognition in their ranks. The Tale of Boba Fett would later follow the bounty hunter's story after his time as a protector, and it focused on how Han Solo became the bounty that got away.
Their feud began 15 years before the events of The Empire Strikes Back; however, while Mereel's end appears to be shown at the beginning of Return of the Jedi, The Tale of Boba Fett chronicles another 15 years after his escape. Rather than focus on his means of escaping, the story instead talks about his last job before retirement, which ultimately puts him on a collision course with Han Solo one last time and ends on a cliffhanger as the two point blasters at each other.
While Mereel's exploits were nothing short of engaging, the release of Attack of the Clones retroactively made his adventures as Fett non-canon. However, comics made sure to include him in some capacity by making him a mentor to Jango Fett, who would do the same with his son, Boba. However, once the Legends continuity was separated from the main canon, Mereel's impact on the Fetts was made non-canon as well. Now, the only known tie that the character has to Boba Fett is a brief look at the history of Boba's Armor in The Mandalorian, where it says that Jango's mentor went by the name Jaste.
While it's unknown if Jaster Mereel will return to the canon, his story has never been completely forgotten. Most of the bounty hunter's grit, ruthlessness and personality were initially presented in The Last One Standing: The Tale of Boba Fett. Even the Journeyman Protectors helped lay the groundwork for how the Mandalorians act and how their duties guide them through their lives. Even with the shifting canon, the future of Boba Fett continues to grow from the foundation introduced with Jaster Mereel and his earliest adventures.
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