>>64102371
It's overrated because internet retards keep insisting they're this super sikrit ninja branch of the French military that recruits murderers, has spooky blood rituals and people dying in training.
In truth they're not even a branch of the Army properly speaking, as Legion regiments are scattered throughout brigades with non-Legion units. Another one is in special ops command and two serve as garrison units for the ultramarine territories.
Training and the general vibe is definitely is more on the rough side in the Legion than in most of the French Army, but you could argue the airborne units are close if not similar, and the same regulations apply everywhere anyway, Legion or not.
The whole "recruting criminals" thing is 19th century shit, they won't take you if you did anything serious. If you were a bit rowdy as a youth and had a few run-ins with the cops in your SEA/LatAm shithole homeland, that's fine, but anything gang, sex or drugs related is an instant boot to the ass.