“I’m here to work, I’m here to work, I’m here to work…”
I repeat this mantra to myself as we are ushered into Invasion’s exhibition at the RDS, struggling to keep in check the rising nerd-gasm within me. Then I see a Desert Trooper, a couple of scouts and a Kel-Dor Jedi Master and I am lost. My inner four year old is dancing and my older geeky self is marvelling at the detail on the trooper’s T-21 light repeating blaster.
This is Bliss.
This is Heaven.
This is Invasion.
Invasion is the yearly event held in Dublin, Belfast and Cork by Emerald Garrison, the biggest Star Wars costuming club in the country. Everything on display, from the individual costumes to the flawless vehicle and set replicas, are hand-made by members, to be worn and showcased at various charity events around Ireland and the UK. This year, Invasion Dublin is being held in the RDS in Ballsbridge, in aid of Irish Autism Action.
So, at the advance press briefing today, I hoped to get the low-down on what’s in store for visitors this weekend.
The space for the exhibition is well thought-out: you immediately step bang into the middle of a smorgasbord of the most famous scenes and sets from the films. The life-size Y-Wing fighter-bomber immediately grabs your attention, as well as the towering AT-ST “chicken walker”. Not sure which of the exhibits I loved most, possibly the replica of the Emperor’s throne room on the Death Star. There’s nothing better than watching the destruction of the Rebel fleet while Darth Vader kneels before you, mwahahaha…
We were treated to a small percentage of the costumes and characters at the Garrison’s disposal, but they were indeed impressive: Obi-Wan, Plo Koon, 6 different flavours of Stormtrooper (including a mischievous camo-clad Scout named Magner) and an Imperial Guard all came out to meet us. Even details like battle damage, blinking diodes and the ‘trooper radio sounds are part of the rigs. Speaking to some Garrison members about the cost of making the costumes (purely for research, I assure you) I learned that it can run into the region of £1200. And of course Lord Vader made an appearance, swearing in some new Sith and fighting off a few pint-sized Padawans for the cameras.
Not only do the costumes look awesome, but the guys inside them are a great bunch altogether. I was fortunate to run into Julian and Brendan, high-ranking officers of the Garrison. Julian is responsible for making the truly stunning props and prosthetics on display, some of which have earned him the attention of the Almighty Lord George Lucas Himself. Brendan was in charge of building the sets and the fantastic vehicle replicas, which unsurprisingly took months to construct. All in all, the work these talented people put in is nothing short of mind blowing.
I’m told that over the weekend, we’ll have Boba Fett, TIE Pilots, a squad of Clone Troopers, an R2 unit and perhaps even Chewie, if they can get the costume finished in time. In addition, Garrison members will be holding light-saber combat exhibitions in the absolutely breath taking Jedi Academy set, and if you’re lucky, you might catch Darth Maul facing off against Obi-Wan on the floor somewhere.
Speaking of Fett and R2, fans will be thrilled to see some of the original cast show up for Invasion. Through their hard work and dedication, the Emerald Garrison have managed to secure support from many prominent figures involved with the films and the greater Star Wars community, some of whom will be appearing over the weekend. Included in this list are Jeremy “Boba Fett” Bullock, Kenny “R2” Baker, Paul “Greedo Shot First” Blake and many more.
One particularly welcome guest is Steve Sansweet, former head of Fan Relations at Lucasfilm and possibly the biggest Star Wars nerd of all time, as evidenced by his collection of about 200,000 pieces of memorabilia which he keeps in his former chicken ranch called (wait for it) Rancho Obi-Wan. Speaking to us in a short press briefing, Steve praised the work of the Emerald Garrison, and commented on the reasons behind Star Wars’ place at the pinnacle of pop culture phenomena:
“… (Star Wars) is a great story. It’s fun. It’s got great characters. It tells a good moral: Good vs. Evil. And one of the most evil guys in the galaxy, at the end, finds redemption…it’s going to be with us for a lot longer than anything that I know of that has this kind of staying power…”
Couldn’t have put it better myself.
For anyone with even a passing familiarity with Star Wars, Invasion is not to be missed. Young and old, casual viewers and hardcore fans, all will take something wonderful from this event.
For more information on Invasion Dublin, click here to head over to the official site (or just click the ad in the corner), Invasion.ie
Also be sure to check out the Official Emerald Garrison website too!
Whatever happened to Richard?
