Research – Page 7 – Living History in the Star Wars Galaxy

Galactic Style Guide – Hats III

Welcome back to another installment of the Galactic Style Guide, where we break down the ‘Star Wars aesthetic’ in order to help you create a more Galaxy-accurate ‘outer persona’! This month we’re finishing up our brief survey of in-universe head coverings.

In my research into space-archeology clothing styles, I found the wide-brimmed, low-crowned style seems more common on the galaxy’s fringes, and is more likely to be worn by bounty hunters, settlers, explorers, treasure hunters, and the like. As I discussed previously, this style draws on visual archetypes of Spaghetti Western gunslingers and Pulp Serial archeologists, although our two final examples (both Naboo) seem to buck the trend, and instead invoke the more pastoral petasos of the Classical Greek traveler.

**Wide-brimmed hats**: Jacobi Sterne, Outer Rim Marshal (FFG Far Horizons), female archeologist/treasure hunter #1, female archeologist/treasure hunter #2; Rodian fringer/explorer; Nico Okarr, Cad Bane; Levet (Duro archeologist), Theed citizen (22 BBY) who appears to be carrying (in addition to a large striped bag) a wide-brimmed (straw?) hat; ‘the artist of Naboo’ (SW Visionaries).

Searching for Rebel trooper helmet variations

Almost as soon as I finished my ‘fleet trooper’ helmet back in 2017, I started planning a ‘donut’ helmet build, which I hoped would remedy all the complaints I had of the ‘swoop’ helmet: it would be smaller, more mobile, quieter, and much better at blending in with woodland scenery. However, on the off chance that I ever feel like busting out my ol’ swoop again, I’ve still kept my eyes open for examples of documented swoop helmet variations that might be a little more woodland guerilla-friendly. Sure, it would be easy to say, ‘Ehh, I’m sure a Rebel cell somewhere must have painted their helmets to blend in better, just make something up!’ But for accurate reenacting and living history, the bar is a little higher, and we can’t settle for fan creations on DeviantArt—we need examples from the visual record! Therefore, I wanted to share the examples of non-standard Rebel ‘swoop’ helmets that I’ve been able to dig up in hopes that they might be of use to someone else in the same boat. Enjoy!

These swoop-less helmets (art by Brian Schonburg) appear in Rules of Engagement, the Rebel SpecForces Handbook (1997).

seven more examples after the jump!

Galactic Style Guide – Hats II

Welcome back to another installment of the Galactic Style Guide, where we break down the ‘Star Wars aesthetic’ in order to help you create a more authentic ‘outer persona’! This month we’re continuing our survey of galactic headgear.

Conical ‘coolie’ hats might not be politically correct, but K’hkruk’s hat is still freaking sweet. The Mos Espa example appears to be a little more substantial (or maybe it’s just more broken-in) than the standard Asian rice hat, and looks tightly woven. Would probably be perfect sunshade on Tatooine (Ki-Adi Mundi wears his while tracking down Sharad Hett), and if paired with a fully GFFA-style outfit, you might be able to wear one without eliciting cries of “Cultural Appropriation!” As we see, this style was commonplace among the civilians of Nadiem during the Clone Wars (Hide in Plain Sight).

As I’ve found in my other ‘fictional anthropology’ pursuits, to make sure your audience knows you’re dealing with a fantastical, non-modern-Earth setting, throw in some Tall Hats…it works in BONE and Dinotopia, and the GFFA is no different!:

Building the Inner Persona: Curses and Interjections

In this installment of the Inner Persona miniseries, we’ll continue to expand our mental ‘word-hoard’ by adding some words and phrases from the Star Wars galaxy you can use to spice up your in-universe speech. If you’re portraying a character from the rougher side of the Galaxy, the saltier the better!

While we on modern Earth—depending on the decade—use words like swell, cool, awesome, or lit to express appreciation for something we like, the GFFA has “wizard” (Episode I), “rugged” (Rogue Planet), and “prime” (Galaxy of Fear)!

– “As stars live and die!”
– “Blast!”, “Blast it!” (can’t go wrong with this classic)
– “By all the souls of Alderaan!” (Rogue Squadron)
– “Chuba chips!”, “Chuba chunks!” and “Chuba lips” are all used by Ratts Tyerell in Jabba’s Game Galaxy
– “Emperor’s bones!” (Rogue Squadron #2)
– “Emperor’s black bones!”
– Flaming: as in, “this flaming coastline is full of coves,” (Last of the Jedi #4: Death on Naboo)
– “Force-forsaken” used as a replacement for Godforsaken; I’m not a fan.
– Frell, frelling (Republic Commando)
– Frip, fripping (often used in Death Star, all the way up to “un-fripping-believable!”

plenty more examples below!

Galactic Style Guide – Hats I

Welcome back to another installment of the Galactic Style Guide, where we break down the ‘Star Wars aesthetic’ in order to help you create a more authentic ‘outer persona’! For this month’s installment, we’re taking things from the top and talking Hats!
Our main cast of characters tend to go hatless, but for secondary and background characters, hats are very commonplace. While certain styles tend to work better with certain settings, covering your head in some way is a great way to remind your audience that you are portraying an inhabitant of the Galaxy Far Far Away.
When I put a call out to the SWLH facebook group for style suggestions, the immediate first response was ‘Caps with flaps!’. As this type of hat is readily available as military surplus, such hats are a no-brainer way to make yourself quickly blend into the galactic populace:

Jedi Temple guards (3653 BBY), Grotto Werribee, Donovian ‘rainman’, tramper, Suu Lawquane concept; Pfilbee Jhorn, Alliance cold-weather troopers, Echo Base hangar technicians, Benedict Vidkun.

It’s worth pointing out that the hats of the Hoth hangar techs are essentially a WW2 US Navy deck hat, so if you’re handy with a sewing machine, stick around at the end for a free pattern.

On the subject of bounty hunting ‘trophies’

As I’ve talked about a few times before, when reenacting any setting (historic or fictional) one of the best ways to add depth to an impression is by including small details or items of ‘pocket trash’! One of the ideas I frequently see discussed in online Star Wars cosplay circles is the idea of ‘hunting trophies’, and a recent thread made me realize I definitely have some thoughts on the subject!

Whether it’s bones and claws from critters, crystals from Jedi lightsabers, battle droid fingers, or actual lightsabers, the notion that a bounty hunter or mercenary character should have a collection of tchotchkes taken from past kills dangling from their belt, blaster, or backpack is one of those trends that the costuming community has really latched onto. However, I submit that this type of decoration is A) actually an impediment to such work, and B) a fan reenactorism not seen in either primary or secondary sources. Be sure to stick around til the end for some ideas on how to more authentically portray these kinds of character in true ‘living history’ style!

Searching for AgriCorps style

It’s somehow been several (4.5?!) years since first I first ventured forth to do some first-person galactic interpretation, and as you would expect in a hobby geared towards constant tinkering and improvement, I’ve made plenty of changes to that impression since then. In the coming months, I plan to roll out some ‘complete kit’ breakdowns for my various Star Wars living-history personas. In the case of my ex-Agricultural Corps Jedi impression, I realized that a kit breakdown wouldn’t be the right place for fully detailing the research that went into said impression…especially since I portray him long after the Corps has been dissolved!
What’s more, a recent addition to our community in the SWLH facebook group expressed great interest in pursuing an AgriCorps impression, so I wanted to use this post and lay out the few bits of information I’ve been able to dig up–not only for their benefit, but for anyone else who might be thinking about such a persona. If you have an interest in gardening, botany, biology, geology, or environmental science and want to apply it to the Galaxy Far Far Away, consider the AgriCorps!

Compared to the larger Order as a whole, our sample size of analyzable visual examples for the Service Corps (and AgriCorps specifically) is a miniscule—only nine.

This generic Mohawk’d fellow comes from the Power of the Jedi Sourcebook (2002), while The Jedi Path (circa 115 BBY) gives us six more individuals, plus a generic Service Corps member:

Galactic Style Guide – Shoulders II

Happy Boxing Day, and welcome back to the Galactic Style Guide, where we break down the ‘Star Wars aesthetic’ in order to create a more authentic ‘outer persona’! For our final installment of 2020, we’re wrapping up our look at the archetypal exotic space-fantasy ‘wide-shouldered’ look.

We’ll begin by teasing out some examples of armor-based wide shoulders from the earlier phases of galactic history (pre-1000 BBY):

shoulders-armor-Ancient — Naga Sadow, Freedon Nadd, Exar Kun Ulic Quel-Droma, Arca Jeth, Gav Daragon; Vitiate, Arcann, Darth Vindican Satele Shan, Darth Malgus; Lord Hoth, Valentyne Farfalla, Army of Light

I don’t have a ton of interest in (or access to) much material from this period, so it’s totally possible I’ve overlooked some key figure. Is there anyone I’ve missed? Please let me know!
As we’ll see, more modern characters from the Clone Wars all the way into the Legacy era have also worn armor that widens the upper body: Continue reading “Galactic Style Guide – Shoulders II”

Galactic Style Guide – Shoulders I

Welcome back to the Galactic Style Guide, where we break down the ‘Star Wars aesthetic’ in order to create a more authentic ‘outer persona’!
Ever since the days of Ming the Merciless, sci-fi designers have been using a wide-shouldered silhouette to let the audience know a setting is exotic or non-Earthy, and Star Wars has been no different. While I’ve found no specific mention of this design point in comments from costume designer John Mollo, his original designs for ‘girl Luke Starkiller’ show a mantled hood that may have planted the seed that eventually became this prevalent costume element:
DIGITAL CAMERA It’s worth pointing out that even though the very first onscreen SW character (C-3PO) could be said to display a form of this style, it really didn’t kick into full gear until Return of the Jedi, and by the time the Prequels rolled around, giant collars, mantles, and shoulder pads were in full force!

shoulders Ep1 Naboo — **Wide shoulders on pre-Clone Wars Naboo:** Amidala, Sabe; NSF Palace guards, Sio Bibble, Phylo Gandish; Unidentified Theed civilian, unidentified advisor, Hugo Eckener, Horace Vacil, TC-14; civilian prisoners. Note that the entire Naboo Royal Advisory Council and Theed nobles dress pretty much alike.

Continue reading “Galactic Style Guide – Shoulders I”

In defense of ‘close enough’

Let’s talk about fish-lady sweaters for a second.
When a Mon Calamari showed up in The Mandalorian Chapter 11 wearing an off-the-rack fisherman’s sweater, the community lost no time in memeifying it before hopping on Amazon to snatch up one or two for themselves. I find it encouraging that people are interested in costuming a common civilian for once (instead of the rare-in-universe but over-represented-in-cosplay Jedi/Sith/Mando/bounty hunter ‘player classes’)…but if I was looking to put together a GFFA dockworker impression, I definitely wouldn’t go out and buy the exact onscreen sweater—and not just because they’re probably now very scarce! Here’s why.