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'The Mandalorian' finally makes it official: The Stormtroopers do have the worst aim in the galaxy

A mercenary on the latest episode of 'The Mandalorian' takes offense at the implication that he shoots like a Stormtrooper

While the Imperial Stormtroopers employed by the Empire are undoubtedly a fearsome bunch, there's one thing they're historically bad at doing — hitting a target that's right in front of them, no matter how many shots are fired.

It's a running meta-joke in the 'Star Wars' universe, but never one that's actually been acknowledged. Heroes merely consider themselves lucky to have not been hit by a stray blast even with half an army shooting directly at them.

This week on 'The Mandalorian', however, it's revealed that the galaxy knows just how bad the Stormtroopers' aim really is. 

While it seemed like 'The Mandalorian' was all set to quietly fix this infamous 'Star Wars' mistake with Stormtroopers who actually seemed competent, it appears that those soldiers were either an anomaly or received a little post-Empire training (which might explain why their armor was so scuffed). 

Hired for a prison break, the first person the Mandalorian meets on the crew he's going to be working with is a man named Mayfield (Bill Burr). When told that Mayfield used to be a former Imperial sharpshooter, the Mandalorian is not impressed.

"That's not saying much," he says, to which Mayfield snaps, "I wasn't a Stormtrooper, wiseass." The obvious implication here is that it's well known throughout the galaxy how bad the Imperial Army is in general at hitting their targets.

There may have been exceptions, like Mayfield, to imply that one shoots like a Stormtrooper is apparently quite an insult to any self-respecting gunman in the Outer Rim.

However, it's a great joke for longtime 'Star Wars' fans, delivered with a completely straight face by comedian Bill Burr, who later in the episode also makes fun of the 'Star Wars' franchise's other longtime shame — the overly goofy Gungan species. 

The next episode of 'Star Wars' airs on December 18 on Disney+.