The Weekly Geek: Don the golden bikini at Comic-Con

Comic-Con San Diego will soon be upon us, that great Mecca for all things geeky (it’s all about “comic art, films, and science fiction”). As usual, I’m watching this year’s show from afar, with my mouse hovering over the refresh button at my favorite nerdy blogs.

By all accounts, it’s a great time, but I’ve never truly been upset about my absence until I read about one particularly wondrous event scheduled for this year’s show: A “slave Leia group photo and video shoot." Women will gather, don Princess Leia bikinis, and smile pretty for the camera.

This means that hundreds of sexy rebel princesses, all decked out like it’s 1983, will be posing for pictures and participating in the ultimate nerdy/sexy video shoot. I’m swooning already, and I’m 3,000 miles away.

In fact, I’m just jealous that I can’t participate. But if you are interested in posing as the galaxy’s hottest star, you’re in luck — just mosey over to the Gentle Giant Booth Friday Morning (July 24). Wired had the scoop on the requirements:

Once at the Gentle Giant booth, the following rules apply:

— Only Vader daughters age 18 years or older need expose their midriffs.
— Ladies only. No Star Wars transvestites allowed, thanks.
— Leia’s gold bikini only. No mere bathing suits with Jawas painted on them.
— No other Leia-related costumes.

While I scoff a bit at the “no transvestites” part (I’m sure there are gorgeous drag queens out there who could do Leia justice), I’m still envious. Just imagine, being swarmed by a sea of hot, nerdy girls, all dressed in that metal bikini.

I’ll take this opportunity to give a bit of an impromptu salute to one of my favorite characters of all time, not just for her beauty; but also for her brains, her courage, and her leadership skills.

Leia was a feminist princess. Born of late '70s ideals, she was a woman who could hang tough with the boys (see: her handiness with a blaster), tell people what to do (see: her leadership of the rebel alliance), and do it all without mussing her fantastic hairdo. She was a bad ass (a literal rebel) and a cool chick, and even made use of her “slave girl” outfit to kill her captor.

As a young girl, I idolized her. She was the first film character I ever really identified with (fitting, since my very first movie memory involves Star Wars). I know that millions of other girls and women felt the same way — and I imagine some of them will be at Comic-Con, proudly showing off their intergalactic goods. Here’s wishing that the force is with them.