Link: https://www.instagram.com/mlptte

There is this artist whose work I truly love on an unfathomable visceral level.

This drawing is one of the many beautiful examples of their creation. For the love of all that is holy and unholy, please check them out and give them a follow!

Link: https://www.instagram.com/mlptte

(Edit: sorry I’m not normally so blatant but their art does move me on an unprecedented emotional and intellectual scale)

FEMALE STAR WARS FANS: THEY HAVE ALWAYS BEEN HERE

WHY DO SOME STILL ASSUME STAR WARS IS A GALAXY FOR MEN AND KIDS ONLY?

40 years after Star Wars arrived in our galaxy, society often still pushes the misconception that Star Wars is primarily the domain of adult males, then kids and teens (male ones primarily). And it gives the impression that maybe if you’re looking in unique places, you might find the unicorn of Star Wars fans, adult females, on the fringes of this domain. Mega-store Target was heralded as if they discovered the female Star Wars fanbase, celebrating this “discovery” to sell merchandise during film release time. It is an inaccurate perception of Star Wars that we keep having to melt away.

For a long time female fans have been a large part of this fandom, and I’m glad to see more coming to light to correct the perception of the female fanbase, particularly with news of the “Looking for Leia” documentary in the works, which talks about the strong female characters that attract a female fanbase (although it’s not just because of the female characters that I like Star Wars).

I peek out at this topic well submerged in my Star Wars point of view. I’ve just assumed for a long time that there are just as many females as males are out there living the Star Wars life just like I do. I’ve seen moms at my kid’s school wearing Star Wars shirts, and my kid’s Cub Scout den leader has a Star Wars purse and she, like others I’ve met, are more into Star Wars than their husbands or kids. I’ve seen the large female fan base at Star Wars Celebration and follow social media run by female fans. So why is this prevalent conception that Star Wars is a male or child’s domain?

A LONG TIME AGO…I WAS THERE TO SEE STAR WARS

My history of being a non-male Star Wars nerd runs deep. I saw Star Wars in the theaters in 1977, when I was 6 years old.

It was socially acceptable for me as a kid in the late-70s to be a Star Wars fan, less so to be one because I was a girl. But of course the assumption was that Princess Leia was my favorite. Leia certainly showed me that a brunette with brown eyes (like me) could be a princess, smart, skilled with a blaster, and someone who others looked to for guidance – not a common motif in the 70s. And, yes, I dressed up as Leia for like 5 Halloweens in a row (because my mom could not compute the idea that I wanted to dress up as Darth Vader). But it wasn’t just because there was a female lead character that I became consumed by the Force.

SITHS NEED LOVE, TOO

Darth Vader was my favorite character. When my sister and I would pretend that we had boyfriends; she chose Han Solo, and I chose Darth Vader not really because I thought at age 6 that get up was sexy, but it was more because I wanted to be like him. I was introverted, a pushover, picked on by my sister, and if I were Darth Vader with Force choke powers none of that would be happening to me. I do wonder: where was the female Sith for me to identify with in the late 70s?

JUST WHEN I THINK THE MYTH OF THE FEMALE FAN IS DISPELLED…

When looking for Star Wars bedding for my room, I learned that Pottery Barn Kids puts Star Wars sheets in the “boys sheeting” category. Some use George Lucas to defend this because he said that he intended Star Wars to be a kids’ movie. This assumption that it’s for kids leads some people to criticize men, in particular, who like Star Wars, diminishing their interest as something to hide like in this comment on a post for a Millennium Falcon Asteroid Field coffee table: “Who’s up for ditching the women, getting our own place, and having this as a centerpiece lol” Yes, the comment is for their personal situation, and it was said with a lighthearted tone as implied by the “LOL,” but it highlights one of the impressions given out there – that the Star Wars universe is a male or child’s dominion, that a home would have to be devoid of women for Star Wars furniture to be allowed in it. With these impressions being given, it’s not surprising that merchandisers reflect this idea that female Star Wars fans are an anomaly.

AND…WAIT, DO WE REALLY STILL USE THE TERM “HOUSEWIFE?”

I want Star Wars home decor, but not because I’m a housewife as this implies. Really, do we still use the term housewife? Ugh.

Star Wars home decor was exactly what I was on the hunt for when I was pregnant in 2007. Of course, a Star Wars themed nursery was the only consideration. At this time there was little merchandise for such a choice. Not only that, I had to battle the social conventions like “blue is for boys,” and “pink is for girls.” Why does this still exist? It hasn’t always been that color association; it’s a relatively recent arbitrary phenomenon we mostly perpetuate in our society.

BACK IN MY DAY, WE HAD TO MAKE OUR OWN STAR WARS DECOR AND PARTY SUPPLIES

When I was pregnant, I refused to find out the gender of my child and wanted to surround it in primary colors and of course have a Star Wars-themed baby shower. I planned and created all the needed supplies myself because they didn’t exist in 2007, and I knew that if I didn’t do it, whoever offered to host my baby shower would probably slip into the pink and blue conventions. To allay my mother’s anxieties from the idea of a Star Wars baby shower and her fear people wouldn’t know what to buy, I told her she could tell people it was a “space/Star Wars” theme. I specified to people that I wanted primary colors, and if they felt the need to get pastel that I wanted NO pink. People asked, “what if you have a girl?” As if I’d have no choice but to leave her undressed if there was nothing pink to put on her. They were okay with the Star Wars theme and primary colors if I was having a boy, but saying the theme applies whether it’s a boy or a girl really did confuse people.

For the shower, I made Star Wars baby bingo cards, matching game, and a pin-the-belly on Padmè game. I made R2D2 and Yoda soaps for the party favors. I made my own announcements too. Today, I could probably buy Star Wars baby shower supplies, in a much higher quality on Etsy.

My mother overcame her anxieties and she as well as her good friend, made bassinet and crib sheets and a changing pad cover for me using Star Wars fabric. Gotta give credit to my late mom for enabling my Star Wars nursery dreams despite her inability to accept it. My godmother even made Star Wars chocolates to serve at the shower.

Friends and family gave Star Wars toys (unable to find anything age appropriate for a baby, though, but great for decorating the nursery) and managed to find a few Star Wars baby clothes online which was not an easy thing to do at the time, and I was fortunate enough to find Star Wars mini-blinds for the nursery from 3-Day Blinds. I made my own birth announcements, too.

My sister painted a series of prints for the room.

Now that my son is older and wants nothing to do with Star Wars, they have taken a spot of honor in our living room. He still bugs me about removing the blinds.

IT’S 2017: THE MERCHANDISE ABOUNDS - THANK THE MAKER!

Now I’m pushing 50, and Star Wars is well integrated into my life thanks to the wealth of merchandise out there. With the amount available, I don’t have to make things. Every day I wear Star Wars apparel, whether it’s my Empire Strikes Back Vans, a t-shirt, cardigan, socks, jewelry, or a jacket, I am wearing something Star Wars. I have a Star Wars wallet, my “everyday” First Order purse and my “fancy dress” Boba Fett purse. My car has an imperial symbol on the rear window and Darth Vader hanging from the rear view mirror. My work bags are a Darth Vader brief case and a rolling Darth Vader backpack. I bring snacks to work in a Boba Fett lunch box and my water in a stainless steel Kylo Ren reusable bottle. When it rains I have a Darth Vader rain jacket and two lightsaber umbrellas to choose from, and if it’s cold a Boba Fett beanie.

I lay me down to sleep under the watch of a Death Star on my wall, on Star Wars bed sheets and keep warm under a Star Wars comforter and, in the morning, I push my feet into Star Wars slippers upon my Death Star rug. I am cleansed by the water coming from my Darth Vader shower head, the Kylo Ren shower curtain keeping the spray contained, and I dispose of rubbish in my R2D2 bin. In the rare instances I bake, I have an R2D2 measuring cup set, a Stormtrooper and Darth Vader spatulas and Star Wars Cookie Cutters. I sip ale from Mos Eisley Cantina pint glasses.

FEELING INADEQUATE

But, I’ve always considered myself of a low-grade fan because I don’t have the budget to have more merchandise and because I am wholly unfamiliar with the expanded universe and the canon debate. Hence, a mere squire in the house of Ren.

In addition, my cosplay is put to shame by the amazing ensembles I see. A doubled-edge lightsaber piece of evidence for my argument is sexy cosplay. I don’t have a problem with if women want to sexualize a Star Wars character and pose seductively. On one hand, it does put the association out there of women so fanatical about Star Wars that they do dedicate art and craft to there quite often amazing cosplay, breaking the perception that Star Wars is for the male of the species. Although some might argue that these women are not really fans and only dressing up as Star Wars characters, objectifying themselves to sell something to the large male, heterosexual demographic the Star Wars fanbase is perceived as being.

VERITY OF GRANDEUR

In the world that I want to live in, Star Wars is never assumed to be only of interest to the male of the species. And it’s clear that I’m not the only one, but things had gotten to a point where I had to double-check. Hope continually shines through with stores like Her Universe, Hot Topic and Think Geek selling products to FINALLY reflect the needs of female fans; merchandising is getting more considerate of the diverse fanbase.

Society, also, still has quite a way to progress with gender expectations and its assumptions what women want to buy, but it is progressing, and a film franchise, Star Wars, because of its immense awesomeness, is playing a role in this broader melting of arbitrary gender divisions and mislaid societal expectations.

–Squire Ren

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squireren-blog

7 years ago

Archives of the Last Jedi Academy (continued, pt. 6)

Impulse Unleashed

She had devoted a portion of her strength controlling her impulse to use some of the forbidden arts of her culture. She wanted to learn the ways of the Jedi, pure, unaided by ancient spells and powers. Training was getting more difficult as was her ability to keep this skill set repressed. She was proud as she excelled past those with whom she had begun training, even after her injury, and often detached from the moment wondering how much farther she could excel if she had allowed herself to use those powers. The distraction was so disabling but it set a great contrast to those moments that she could clear that from her head and allow the Force to flow throughout her, she felt more powerful than any spell ever made her. She worked on forgetting her past, the traditions, her mother’s teachings to keep her mind consistently clear. She made a deal with herself to stay away from the archives just until she could have complete control of thoughts of her culture, then she promised herself she would return to her research.

Ben and she had found other places to meet. He saw the acceleration of her control of the Force and on hiatus from their research, they would test each other in their secret meetings. He had a such a surge of the Force that she wanted to match; it seemed more powerful sometimes that he could not control it. She began to imagine that she could match his power if she returned to her culture’s craft, that ability would help her equal the surge of the Force in him. And soon, the memory of being intimidated by him became distant and implausible.

In their training with Master Luke, she and Ben were paired up to spar. She feared that Master Luke would sense her use of that craft but more feared losing a match to Ben. She exploited his confidence and lack of control over the immense Force flowing through him. She held back on using any of her familial arts for half the spar; he had seemed to be holding back; he feared any similarities in their methods could reveal their secret training, and then he became unpredictable. Luke cautioned Ben on the the feelings he sensed, confused about the fear he sensed Ben was trying hard to conceal. She decided to provoke him, to push him to reveal that fear because it would give her an advantage.

In spending time together, she could push taunting him. He revealed good humor and patience with her contrary to the rumors she had heard about him reacting strongly to any attempts to reveal his vulnerability. She had seen glimpses of it in his training with Luke who knew the potential Jedi inside of Ben, pushing him harder, testing his temper.

Suddenly in sync, the flow of the Force released any control that she felt, including drawing forth her craft, the act of defeating Ben no longer required her conscious thought. He seemed to move in increasingly slower movements, she could see the molecules vibrate with each of her moves, her saber leaving trails with each movement. Then she felt a shattering in the Force, and Ben no longer moved in slow movements but in erratic, fierce pulses. The swings of their sabers left intertwining glowing trails in the air as they no longer sparred but fought. As they charged for each other and locked sabers, their master held them in place forcing them to stare at each other, to fix on the expression of the other, to silence the growls of their attempts to use mind tricks against each other. Their muscles began to burn frozen in this stance and Master Luke shut off their sabers and took possession of them and pushed them away from each other, both falling to the ground. He looked back and forth between them, finding a moment of weakness as the adrenaline drained away.

As she felt her thoughts slip from her control, she felt Ben panic at her slip then felt his anger at her use of her culture’s spells and those thoughts became clear to Luke. “Much more training do you both require.” He turned and walked away. Vulnerability on display brought a surge of relief and she began to cry; there was no need to expend any more energy on these secrets. She wiped her tears and stood up and looked across at Ben. She knew that anything between them had to end, had to be let go in the flood of regret between them.