September 2020 – Living History in the Star Wars Galaxy

Galactic Style Guide – Vests I

Welcome back to the Galactic Style Guide, our monthly series in which we break down the ‘Star Wars aesthetic’ in order to create a more authentic ‘outer persona’! This time around, we’re looking at a key element introduced by the very first non-droid Star Wars characters ever seen onscreen:
Yes, we’re talking VESTS! Since they are so prevalent and we have so many examples to discuss, we’ll be devoting two entries to them. Original costume designer John Mollo had a pretty simple reason for giving the Rebel ‘fleet troopers’ (and many other characters) vests – visual interest! “‘The waistcoats look a bit more businesslike and give them a bit of texture,’ he says. ‘They would have been a bit boring if they had just been wearing a gray overall suit.’” (Alinger, Star Wars Costumes – the Original Trilogy. p 22).

If you’re behind the times, please note that the screen-used Rebel Fleet Trooper vest auctioned in 2017 boasted a whopping ELEVEN pockets, most of them entirely pointless or impractical! (As they say, go big or go home.):
vest-RFT screenused We’ll continue with vests used by the Rebel Alliance.
Continue reading “Galactic Style Guide – Vests I”

Upgrading the Rebel persona: uniform tunic

Over the years, I’ve acquired a number of different ‘in-universe’ garments. Some are based on examples from film or print sources, some are extrapolations based on planetary styles, some are just attempts to apply the generic ‘galactic aesthetic’ to my everyday wardrobe.

But so far, I haven’t tried to outright copy a specific example…the closest I’d come was the ‘bib’-front shirt I whipped up for the debut of my ‘Citizen Olis’ persona in 2017, meant to be a local take on the style worn by the Rebel ‘fleet troopers’ and Yavin communications officers seen in Episode IV:

Building the Inner Persona: Jokes!

In this installment of the Inner Persona miniseries, we’ll continue to expand our mental ‘word-hoard’ of in-universe phrases. In addition to the everyday words we use for things, the jokes we use can also be a great way to do this!

“What’s the last thing to go through an Imperial scout trooper’s head when he hits a tree? His afterburner.” ―Joke told by Rebel forces on Endor (New Essential Guide to Vehicles & Vessels)

“What do you call someone who speaks three languages? Trilingual.
What do you call someone who speaks two languages? Bilingual.
What do you call someone who speaks one language? Human.” (Empire Blues, Tales from the Mos Eisley Cantina)

“What’s the difference between a lightsaber and a glowrod? A lightsaber impresses girls!” (Legacy of the Force: Invincible) As we will see below, it seems Jacen was still making dumb jokes even into adulthood. Continue reading “Building the Inner Persona: Jokes!”