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Star Fans II (Moscow, Russia)

Discussion in 'Star Wars: Celebration' started by Darth Zloi, Mar 30, 2015.

  1. Darth Zloi

    Darth Zloi Dark Moogle of the Sith

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    Some people say that the FIFA World Cup is one of the few things that truly bring people from all countries, cultures and creeds together. Well, in my experience football’s world championship is not the only example of an experience that transcends both boundaries and borders.

    Star Wars and its adventures in a galaxy far, far away manages this in its own right. After all, one of the central points to the story is a Force that runs through all things and binds them together.

    I was on hand to experience this fact first hand, via a Star Wars festival in Moscow. Star Fans II was the second such convention held in Russia’s capital. If not for the language and writing seen, one would be hard pressed to guess where in fact they were upon entering. An array of galactic citizens expressed their love for the ultimate in space fantasy. There were Twi’leks, Mandalorians, an Ewok, lightsaber-wielding children in Vader masks, Jedi and Sith, just to name a few.

    There was no season 2 premiere of Rebels, nor was there a new trailer for the Force Awakens. Neither Mark Hamill, nor JJ Abrams were in attendance. While it wasn’t Celebration Anaheim, it still had the most important ingredient … love and fellowship through Star Wars.

    The festival featured plenty of excellent cosplay. There was a vote for several awards in this theme. A young lady dressed as Hera Syndulla took away the award for best costume. An incredibly jovial Darth Maul won the award for most accurate representation. I really enjoyed a quartet of Mandalorian warriors who each added their own unique spin to their armor and helmets. There was even a stormtrooper-like white Mandalorian (inspired no doubt by original Ralph McQuarrie artwork). I called him Snowba Fett. The future Mrs. Darth Zloi even got a Star Wars – themed manicure.

    Besides costumes, fans were treated to a workshop on lightsaber dueling. Said group, actually offers regular classes called Saber Art. You can bet I’ll be attending in the near future. The group displayed a fantastically choreographed battle on stage. It was the first time I’d ever seen a double-sided, multi-colored lightsaber. Fans also were able to don Jedi or Sith cloaks provided by the staff and engage in a lightsaber duel photo session with a friend, in front of a magnificent Coruscant backdrop.

    Several local sci-fi and fantasy themed shops offered an array of collectibles for attendees. Among the items were of course figures, models and books. My favorite and most original of the options were lightsaber chopsticks. There was a concert with Star Wars music and interviews with the actors who did the Russian voice dubbing of Luke Skywalker (Danil Eldarov) and C-3PO (Mikhail Tikhonov). The irony of Mikhail’s last name is that its root involves the word quiet, which is one thing we all know Goldenrod is most certainly not. Also, the hosts of a popular Russian Star Wars podcast were there to meet and greet fans.

    In my experience living here in Russia, the natives are incredibly good improvisers. The custom-made costumes, props and life-size sculptures were made not only well, but with love and care. A few particular pieces that stood out were, a hand-crafted X-Wing fuselage and cockpit, where fans could sit inside and take a picture as though they were descending in attack formation upon the Death Star. Also, there was a fantastic life-sized Jabba the Hutt sculpture (where I became one of his victims for humiliation, minus the gold bikini thankfully) and the sail-barge cannon from ROTJ. Fans were able to “fire” this gun before another excellent backdrop.

    There was a report from Russian fans who’d made the trek to Germany for Celebration Europe II. Fans in the audience erupted in applause when Ian McDiarmid was shown in a clip saying the line “And now young Skywalker, you will die” in an interview (because McDiarmid rules, not that they were happy about Luke being tortured). There was an exclusive interview with Anthony Daniels, which was of course translated into Russian. But then Mr. Daniels surprised us all, by saying a few words in Russian without a translation. Which should come as no surprise. He is fluent in over 6 million forms of communication, after all.

    Special thanks to the organizers and Star Wars fans in the truest sense, Ekaterina Pogodina, Alexandra Strizhevskaya and Alexander Staraodubvtsev. It really made up for not being able to attend Celebration Anaheim and showed me that Russians really know how to celebrate our beloved Star Wars. May the Force bring us together and be with us all!

    - Your Cantina brother, Darth Zloi
     
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  2. Voxx

    Voxx Jedi Hero of Legend

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    Wow great review! I can't wait to see any photos you took!
     
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  3. Darth Zloi

    Darth Zloi Dark Moogle of the Sith

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    Here are some pictures from the Festival (yours truly is in the blue sweater and black hat). Hope you all enjoy. I've decided it's the last convention I won't be decked out in full regalia!
     

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  4. Darth Zloi

    Darth Zloi Dark Moogle of the Sith

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    IMG_20150328_174750[1].jpg IMG_20150328_174907[1].jpg IMG_20150328_175324[1].jpg
     

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  5. Voxx

    Voxx Jedi Hero of Legend

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  6. Darth Zloi

    Darth Zloi Dark Moogle of the Sith

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    IMG_20150328_175823[1].jpg IMG_20150328_180020[1].jpg IMG_20150328_180724[1].jpg IMG_20150328_181336[1].jpg
     

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  7. Darth Zloi

    Darth Zloi Dark Moogle of the Sith

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    IMG_20150328_181515[1].jpg IMG_20150328_181532[1].jpg IMG_20150328_181612[1].jpg IMG_20150328_182428[1].jpg
     

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  8. Darth Zloi

    Darth Zloi Dark Moogle of the Sith

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  9. Darth Zloi

    Darth Zloi Dark Moogle of the Sith

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    Your feeble skills are no match for the power of the dark side!! IMG_20150328_190251[1].jpg IMG_20150328_190712[1].jpg
     
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  10. Darth Zloi

    Darth Zloi Dark Moogle of the Sith

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    IMG-20150328-WA0007[1].jpg IMG-20150328-WA0005[1].jpg IMG-20150328-WA0004[1].jpg IMG-20150328-WA0001[1].jpg
     
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  11. Darth Zloi

    Darth Zloi Dark Moogle of the Sith

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    No, it's a Russian guy. I'm in the blue sweater and black hat. The nails belong to my fiancee)) I've seen this guy at cosplay websites as Anakin.
     
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  12. Voxx

    Voxx Jedi Hero of Legend

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    Oh okay. Your blue sweater costume is not as impressive ;)
     
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  13. Darth Zloi

    Darth Zloi Dark Moogle of the Sith

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    LOL ... I'm going full Darth Zloi Sith mode next time. It'll be the last time I don't go full decked out. It was kind of short notice and was super busy with work.
     
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  14. Voxx

    Voxx Jedi Hero of Legend

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    Where does Zloi come from?
     
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  15. Darth Zloi

    Darth Zloi Dark Moogle of the Sith

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  16. Darth Zloi

    Darth Zloi Dark Moogle of the Sith

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    It's the Russian word for evil
     
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  17. Voxx

    Voxx Jedi Hero of Legend

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    Ah! Very nice! Darth Zloi sounds menacing!
     
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  18. Grand Master Galen Marek

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    Thanks for translating, remind me not to post evil your way.
     
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  19. Darth Zloi

    Darth Zloi Dark Moogle of the Sith

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