Darth Vader and Hoochies

Last week Gabe watched the last two Star Wars movies (of the THREE that exist). He was quite taken by them. Before we watched Empire, I did what I could to make sure he, like all true fans, agreed that it was the best of the three movies. Sure it's depressing as hell (I don't think I saw it for the first time until shortly before Jedi was in theaters--and I saw that one in a theater--so there wasn't any big looming question about what happened to Han in my world), but that's what makes it the best. It was the last Star Wars movie made for adults, without a burgeoning toy market to take into consideration (which can be the only explanation for the creation of the Ewoks, which were an almost likeable option compared to what Lucas did to the prequels). Jedi was Libby's favorite. She likes the Ewoks. And she told Gabe as much.

After he watched Empire, he agreed with me that it was his favorite Star Wars movie and went on to say that it was the best movie ever. He hasn't seen Schindler's List yet (I figure five is a good age to introduce the Holocaust to him), so I took that with a grain of salt. Then, two days later, he watched Jedi, and all bets were off. He loved the "little bears" as he called them. He was actually far less drawn into the movie up to the point of the Ewoks--it took him two tries to get through before he had the attention span to pull it off--but once the Ewoks and the space battle started, he was glued to the TV.

Anyway, shortly after that, this video happened.

I'm pretty sure I've mentioned before that the villain who haunted most of my childhood dreams was Darth Vader (I used to do this thing where I would hide down, under the covers, at the foot of my bed and pretend that Luke and I were hiding from Vader, who was wandering around our room, looking to slice us to bits). So I'm glad that I could share that with Gabe. He hasn't really had any problems in the dark at bed time, though, so he might need to see Empire a few more times so it sinks in.

So there was that. And then there was this.

For Christmas, Norah received a Dora the Explorer doll. It's a weird thing. She's a teenager (I think she's got a new series or something). I am failing to see who this is supposed to appeal to. She's still doing more or less preschool type things, so I think it's geared for preschoolers. However, she's a teenager (or preteen or something, I don't pay that much attention to girl things), so the doll has all sorts of accessories that she can be dressed up in--which seems less like a preschool thing. At least Norah hasn't really grasped the concept. She LOVES to change Dora's shoes, but that's about it. Well, that's not true. She likes to get Dora naked, too. She just doesn't like putting her clothes back on. Probably there is something I should say about that, but I'll pass.

Last week, though, I got tired of getting Dora dressed again just so Norah could take her clothes back off, so I told Norah as such and insisted that she dress Dora on her own. So she spent a goodly amount of time consumed in the activity. And when she was done, this is what she created:


I'm afraid the picture might not entirely do the doll justice. Dora is wearing underwear--a bra and panties. When she's naked, that's all she has on. They are pink. Now, if you look closely at the doll, you'll notice that she's wearing a shiny gold jacket that only goes slightly below her boobs--opened up, of course--and a pair of capri stretch pants, which are barely pulled up over her pubic region. If not for the bra and panties, she would be arrestable. And THIS is what my two year old daughter thinks is appropriate dress (I'm not sure how the single shoe works into it--it's probably code for something that, being old, I don't understand). These kids today!