On Saturday, Tristan & I went to see That 1 Guy on his ‘Mustaches and Laser Beams’ tour. Part of why I adore him is that it’s evident he just picks out some things he thinks are fun, like fake mustaches and playing with laser beams and doing card tricks, and incorporates all of them into his show–his attempts at breakdancing have now been replaced with a mustache-based quick-change show.
He also stopped in the middle of Weasel Potpie to talk to everyone about his biggest problem with the Star Wars prequels–not that they don’t have many problems, but one was glaringly bigger than the rest–so, in the third one, after Yoda is finished fighting alongside the Wookiee army that, y’know, we just found out about, he stops and says “It’s been an honor to fight beside you, King Chewbacca.” How, exactly, does he go from being king to Han Solo’s mechanic? HMM?
Yeah. You chew on that.
Since we both walked around in a bit of a eardrum-damage-induced haze the day after the Electric Six show, Tristan brought us fancy earplugs that still allow us to hear the music without being physically injured by the music, in the hopes that maybe neither one of us will be deaf by 40. The earplugs helped a LOT. It was novel to walk out of a show without my ears ringing, and for those of you who insist that earplugs are totally not punk rock, I will let you in on a secret: neither are hearing aids.
That 1 Guy had a performer who goes by the name Heatbox open for him, and through beatboxing and the help of some looping equipment, he put on a really entertaining show–I’d never heard anyone beatbox the tetris theme before. And when he came back onstage to jam with Mike in the encore, I’d never heard such a funky, rocking version of Hava Nagila before!
Any show that you walk into sans mustache and leave WITH a mustache, ladies and gentlemen, is a good show. Unless it’s a dirty sanchez. Fuck those kinds of shows.
Unless it’s a dirty sanchez. Fuck those kinds of shows.
…anything that needs a nickname to hide it’s true identity is never a good thing. That goes for you, Batman.
Aww, but I like Batman. 🙁
Perhaps Chewbacca is an Aragorn analogue. You know, the King in Exile. He’s not exactly the equivalent of a Ranger, I know.
Oh come on. I cannot be the biggest nerd on your flist. Can I?
But even as the king in exile, if an Aragorn analogue, he should’ve been able to command some troops unless he’s crappiest king in exile ever.
You are almost assuredly not the biggest nerd on my flist, give it a little time–the theories should come rolling in. 😀
Weaselmom’s theory matches mine pretty closely, but I’ll flesh it out some. The Empire treats anyone not human as second-class, at best. We know (from Extended Universe, probably) that Chewie owes Han a life debt for rescuing him from slavery. So probably, as a late stage of the subjugation of the Separatists that we’re seeing the beginnings of in Episode III, the Empire sent in a massive force to Kashyyyk (the Wookie homeworld). Chewbacca, not wanting to see his people exterminated, surrenders when it becomes clear that he can’t win. He, and all the other warriors[1], are enslaved and sent to work in the mines. Some years later, Han is sent to the same mine (possibly in a similar arrangement – we learn in The Courtship of Princess Leia[2] that he is descended from the last king of Corellia), and rescues Chewbacca as a side-effect of his own escape plan. The Empire’s still too powerful by far for Chewbacca to go back and reclaim his throne, but Han clearly needs the help he’s honor-bound to give, and he’s a decent enough thorn in the Empire’s side.
[1] We presume that not all Wookiees are shipped off as slaves, because Chewbacca’s family is living together on what appears to be Kashyyyk during the Holiday Special[3], sometime between the battles of Yendor and Hoth.
[2] Not a recommended read.
[3] Not a recommended view, for normal people. But it’s legendarily bad, so I have to recommend it for your group.
And after that much effort to establish nerd cred, I went and called Yavin “Yendor”? It’s a nerdy mistake, sure, since I was clearly thinking of the Amulet of Yendor, but still.
This…this is reasons 1-11* why you are awesome.
My friends and I actually tried to watch the Star Wars Holiday Special and could NOT get through it. There are some things that are simply too awful for words.
*The list is extensive.
How do we know that it’s the same Chewbacca that is buddies with Han? For all we know, Chewbacca could be the Wookie version of Michael/James/Christopher/Muhammad/Jose/any other super common name? Could be he is just named after King Chewbacca…
It COULD be. But this is the first instance of a repeat name in the whole series. If it’s not the same Chewbacca, for clarity’s sake, why not give him another freaking name?
We know from the Star Wars Storybook, which I foolishly did not liberate from my mother’s house over the weekend, that Han’s Chewbacca is 200 years old at the time of A New Hope. Given that he looks the same as King Chewbacca, and is played by the same actor, it’s only reasonable to believe they are the same Wookie.
“and for those of you who insist that earplugs are totally not punk rock, I will let you in on a hint: neither are hearing aids.
“
BWAAHAAHAAAA
Good point though…
I can’t wait for 50 years from now when all the totally punk rock dudes have got a big honking hearing aid strapped over their ears that already have lobes stretched so far I can put my fist through them.
I don’t get how stretched lobes are attractive.
I am SO not a fan of the stretched lobe. They actually kind of freak me out, especially without earrings, all flappy and loose. :shudder:
Uh, can I be the first one to mention that Chewbacca was never a king? That was not the line in the movie, and never was it ever mentioned that he was any kind of royalty. I don’t know where he, or you guys, are getting this.
Oh, earplugs. I can no longer sleep without them. Wearing them to a concert would be a great idea. I probably won’t remember by the time the band I want to see starts their North American tour it will be next summer. At the earliest. Stupid European people touring Europe first, like they live there, or something.
Pfff, don’t they know that the TRUE international touring method is to tour the US extensively with only a few selected european and asian dates to make the t-shirt fancier?
I know. Instead they run around Germany and such being weird at people. And sometimes get into fistfights with creepy stalker fangirls. Well, more like ‘punch creepy stalker in face after she damages his ride and assults his mum.’ But still.
…what.
What band is this that assault runs both ways?
>.> <.< Tokio Hotel. *runs and hides*
Pfft, I don’t judge. 🙂
Tis okay, I am irrationally guilty when it comes to Tokio Hotel. Something about being older than most of the band and all of the fanbase.
That and I get crazy fangirls for them. Because I wear some of their shirts. I DON’T NEED TO KNOW YOU WANT TO BANG BILL, PEOPLE. OMG.
It’s like that with anything people get super-fannish about, though. I always feel the need when I say “I like star trek” to clarify that I don’t put on pointy ears and run around talking about illogical statements to people.