Strawberry Red, Skywalker Blue (endnotes)
anonymous
August 19 2010, 09:13:27 UTC
Author!anon's notes:
Housing: Somehow, in spite of Russia's immense territory, Russians throughout history have suffered from chronic housing shortages. Even in the country, where there is plenty of space, entire families of impoverished serfs often lived in the same, tiny house.
'The stores are better in America': Soviet housewives used to stand in line for hours to buy whatever was available-usually, not much. An anecdote often repeated on the subject runs as follows: "A Soviet leader visits America. He is taken to a supermarket-an average U.S. grocery store. Seeing that there are not only 2, or 3, but dozens of different varieties of each product, he says to his guide, 'It's a good thing the people back home can't see this. If they ever found out, I'd have a revolution on my hands.'”
Champagne at the gas station: author!anon has never purchased champagne at a gas station, but can verify that 7-11 carries it at many locations.
Strawberries: often an index of economic shortage/luxury. In the film 'Soylent Green,' a small jar of strawberries was said to cost $150. Since the film was made in 1973, that's actually more like $750 in 2010 dollars. This is not new: in the 1891 novel 'Tess of the D'Urbervilles,' the titular (lower-class) heroine is given fresh strawberries by her (wealthy) seducer.
'real champagne': Technically 'champagne' is an 'appelation controlee,' meaning that it's not 'champagne' unless it's from the Champagne region. The increase in popularity of Californian sparkling wines has caused some controversy about whether American companies should be able to use the term 'champagne' in labeling. This has been much more of an issue recently than it would have been 1993-5.
'shot of steroids': Epinephrine is not technically steroids; however, Russia might associate steroids with America.
America's boxers: necessary due to a 90s men's fashion that involved wearing baggy jeans belted low enough to show significant amounts of undergarment. This could not be done in an even remotely attractive manner with briefs.
Radium watch dials: Radium was actually taken out of most glow-in-the-dark paint in the US by the 40s. This may not have been the case in the USSR; mostly, this detail is a shout-out to the general nuclear paranoia of the Cold War.
'the evil empire': the Soviet Union actually was referred to in this way
Kruschev, Andropov, and Chernenkov: The three leaders that immediately followed Stalin-who were in turn followed by Gorbachev.
Gorbachev: The last Soviet leader-his policy of 'glasnost' (opening) led to the end of the Soviet Union in 1991.
'not supposed to like Star Wars': during Soviet years, one did not admit to liking US culture. Even Stalin himself couldn't admit that he liked John Wayne's films, because they were anti-Communist. (Star Wars IV, V, and VI came out in 1977, 1980, and 1983 respectively, at the height of Soviet power.)
'Star Wars' missile defense system: essentially a system of lasers that were supposed to shoot missiles out of the sky(it was also known as the 'strategic defense initiative'). It was never built.
'too much power. . .': the USSR gave weapons to the Viet Cong, and to many other Communist or Communist-friendly groups during the Cold War, even when there was no 'official' Soviet involvement; the U.S. did the same for anti-Communist groups. This increased bloodshed in conflicts that might have been quicker or smaller-scale without outside intervention, particularly when there was intervention on both sides of a conflict.
'alien peoples': It's unclear why the Ewoks were involved in the fight between the Empire and the Rebels.
'twenty years': Wikipedia dates the end of the Vietnam war at 1975.
'you drove a boy to the stars, and you let him fly': This refers, in part, to the Cold-War-driven space race; to JFK, the youngest elected president, who had a large part in getting America to the stars, and also to the fact that without Vader, without the Empire, and without Vader's acknowledgment of Luke as his son and a worthy opponent, Luke would have stayed on Tatooine forever.
'You destroyed the evil . . .': It was Vader who killed Palpatine, and thus destroyed the Empire-just as the Soviet Union fell not from external pressure, but from its own change of heart.
Re: Strawberry Red, Skywalker Blue (endnotes)
anonymous
August 19 2010, 10:34:15 UTC
Oh my god. This is one of the best Russiamerica fills I have ever read. ;___; I am a huge Star Wars nerd and I have a massive weakness for playful!sex. The "Luke, I am your father" part absolutely killed me, and I somehow didn't care one bit that we didn't get to see the actual sex. THAT is the sign of an awesome fic - it's about sex but doesn't need the sex itself to make it awesome. (If you had written the sex, I'd probably be too overwhelmed to write anything coherent. Lol.)
Re: Strawberry Red, Skywalker Blue (endnotes)
anonymous
August 19 2010, 11:43:57 UTC
Pffffffft, this is fantastic on every possible level. It's like 75% hilarity, 20% d'awww, and 5% sexy. :DDD
And this? "I'm not crying," America said with great dignity. "I just-got-lube in my eye. Both of my eyes." He sniffled quietly. FFFFF AMERICA WHY SUCH A DUDE?
Anon, you are seriously fabulous. May I have your illegitimate children so the state can support them in our new socialist utopia? Y/Y?
Re: Strawberry Red, Skywalker Blue (endnotes)
anonymous
August 19 2010, 17:45:55 UTC
Oh lord light saber cocks and Star Wars quotes in bed. What is this I don't even.
And then the emotional part and more light saber cocks.
I laughed so hard, anon.
(Hey, with your author's notes, don't put corresponding numbers in the text of the story. It's distracting. Just post the separate author's notes and let people come to their own conclusions.)
I AM SO IN LOVE WITH THIS YOU WOULDN'T BELIEVE IT
anonymous
August 21 2010, 13:48:28 UTC
MOST PERFECT FIC EVER
ashfjhvjrndvufuf I HAVE NO WORDS TO MAKE THIS JUSTICE. IT'S PERFECT. IT'S ABSOLUTELY FUCKING BLOODY PERFECT IN EVEYR LITTLE DETAIL. Their playfulness, their banter, the in-jokes to their conflict and themselves, the way they turned into little kids when they put condoms on, for God's sake, the 'lightsaber fencing' battle (which might be the most brilliant scene in the meme), and god, all the comparisons, paralelisms, historical bits etc between Cold War and Star Wars. Fuck, but you're a genuis ♥ And that end, that sweet, sweet adorable end, beautiful in every possible way. I'm off to rec this like fucking crazy. You're amazing.
'you drove a boy to the stars, and you let him fly'
T-That is so-*sob* GORGEOUS <3 (I actually thought the 'boy' was meant to be America himself)
Also, can I ask you a question? Do you know if Star Wars was successful in Russia? I mean, even if you weren't supposed to like it, did people like it?
Re: I AM SO IN LOVE WITH THIS YOU WOULDN'T BELIEVE IT
anonymous
November 29 2010, 03:47:37 UTC
[Author!anon speaking]
Thank you, I'm glad you enjoyed the fic. ^_^;;;
Unfortunately, I don't know how the film was received in the Soviet Union. I could probably find the information somewhere, though; when I do, I'll let you know.
Re: Strawberry Red, Skywalker Blue (endnotes)
anonymous
November 18 2010, 06:42:36 UTC
This is the geekiest thing I've read in...dskjhgksa I don't even know how long. HOLY SHIT, WRITER!ANON, A-FUCKING-PLUS. This is a thing of beauty, JSYK.
Re: Strawberry Red, Skywalker Blue (endnotes)
anonymous
November 29 2010, 12:19:19 UTC
oh gosh, this was brilliant and wonderfully written! ahh i laughed so hard when they started fighting with lightsabre cocks. love how you connected the whole cold war thing to star wars. you totally made my day! ^^
Housing: Somehow, in spite of Russia's immense territory, Russians throughout history have suffered from chronic housing shortages. Even in the country, where there is plenty of space, entire families of impoverished serfs often lived in the same, tiny house.
'The stores are better in America': Soviet housewives used to stand in line for hours to buy whatever was available-usually, not much. An anecdote often repeated on the subject runs as follows: "A Soviet leader visits America. He is taken to a supermarket-an average U.S. grocery store. Seeing that there are not only 2, or 3, but dozens of different varieties of each product, he says to his guide, 'It's a good thing the people back home can't see this. If they ever found out, I'd have a revolution on my hands.'”
Champagne at the gas station: author!anon has never purchased champagne at a gas station, but can verify that 7-11 carries it at many locations.
Strawberries: often an index of economic shortage/luxury. In the film 'Soylent Green,' a small jar of strawberries was said to cost $150. Since the film was made in 1973, that's actually more like $750 in 2010 dollars. This is not new: in the 1891 novel 'Tess of the D'Urbervilles,' the titular (lower-class) heroine is given fresh strawberries by her (wealthy) seducer.
'real champagne': Technically 'champagne' is an 'appelation controlee,' meaning that it's not 'champagne' unless it's from the Champagne region. The increase in popularity of Californian sparkling wines has caused some controversy about whether American companies should be able to use the term 'champagne' in labeling. This has been much more of an issue recently than it would have been 1993-5.
'shot of steroids': Epinephrine is not technically steroids; however, Russia might associate steroids with America.
America's boxers: necessary due to a 90s men's fashion that involved wearing baggy jeans belted low enough to show significant amounts of undergarment. This could not be done in an even remotely attractive manner with briefs.
Radium watch dials: Radium was actually taken out of most glow-in-the-dark paint in the US by the 40s. This may not have been the case in the USSR; mostly, this detail is a shout-out to the general nuclear paranoia of the Cold War.
'the evil empire': the Soviet Union actually was referred to in this way
Kruschev, Andropov, and Chernenkov: The three leaders that immediately followed Stalin-who were in turn followed by Gorbachev.
Gorbachev: The last Soviet leader-his policy of 'glasnost' (opening) led to the end of the Soviet Union in 1991.
'not supposed to like Star Wars': during Soviet years, one did not admit to liking US culture. Even Stalin himself couldn't admit that he liked John Wayne's films, because they were anti-Communist. (Star Wars IV, V, and VI came out in 1977, 1980, and 1983 respectively, at the height of Soviet power.)
'Star Wars' missile defense system: essentially a system of lasers that were supposed to shoot missiles out of the sky(it was also known as the 'strategic defense initiative'). It was never built.
'too much power. . .': the USSR gave weapons to the Viet Cong, and to many other Communist or Communist-friendly groups during the Cold War, even when there was no 'official' Soviet involvement; the U.S. did the same for anti-Communist groups. This increased bloodshed in conflicts that might have been quicker or smaller-scale without outside intervention, particularly when there was intervention on both sides of a conflict.
'alien peoples': It's unclear why the Ewoks were involved in the fight between the Empire and the Rebels.
'twenty years': Wikipedia dates the end of the Vietnam war at 1975.
'you drove a boy to the stars, and you let him fly': This refers, in part, to the Cold-War-driven space race; to JFK, the youngest elected president, who had a large part in getting America to the stars, and also to the fact that without Vader, without the Empire, and without Vader's acknowledgment of Luke as his son and a worthy opponent, Luke would have stayed on Tatooine forever.
'You destroyed the evil . . .': It was Vader who killed Palpatine, and thus destroyed the Empire-just as the Soviet Union fell not from external pressure, but from its own change of heart.
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And this? "I'm not crying," America said with great dignity. "I just-got-lube in my eye. Both of my eyes." He sniffled quietly. FFFFF AMERICA WHY SUCH A DUDE?
Anon, you are seriously fabulous. May I have your illegitimate children so the state can support them in our new socialist utopia? Y/Y?
Pfft, Captcha says "XIII lawlromp". What?
Reply
And then the emotional part and more light saber cocks.
I laughed so hard, anon.
(Hey, with your author's notes, don't put corresponding numbers in the text of the story. It's distracting. Just post the separate author's notes and let people come to their own conclusions.)
Reply
Sorry about the numbering, I thought I'd fixed that. ^_^;; (I'm used to footnoting when I write.)
Reply
Reply
Reply
ashfjhvjrndvufuf I HAVE NO WORDS TO MAKE THIS JUSTICE. IT'S PERFECT. IT'S ABSOLUTELY FUCKING BLOODY PERFECT IN EVEYR LITTLE DETAIL. Their playfulness, their banter, the in-jokes to their conflict and themselves, the way they turned into little kids when they put condoms on, for God's sake, the 'lightsaber fencing' battle (which might be the most brilliant scene in the meme), and god, all the comparisons, paralelisms, historical bits etc between Cold War and Star Wars. Fuck, but you're a genuis ♥
And that end, that sweet, sweet adorable end, beautiful in every possible way. I'm off to rec this like fucking crazy. You're amazing.
'you drove a boy to the stars, and you let him fly'
T-That is so-*sob* GORGEOUS <3
(I actually thought the 'boy' was meant to be America himself)
Also, can I ask you a question? Do you know if Star Wars was successful in Russia? I mean, even if you weren't supposed to like it, did people like it?
Reply
Thank you, I'm glad you enjoyed the fic. ^_^;;;
Unfortunately, I don't know how the film was received in the Soviet Union. I could probably find the information somewhere, though; when I do, I'll let you know.
Reply
Reply
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