Star Wars Cosplay: Princess Leia's Metal Bikini and the Women Who Wear It

"I would love to cosplay as Ivy from Soul Calibur," said my friend, "but my boobs aren't nearly big enough, and I'd have to be do a ton of sit-ups to have abs like that."

In the world of a sci-fi convention costuming, cosplayers have an eye for detail that is almost unparalleled. Hair styles have to match, costumes need not only to be the right color, but the right shade of that color. Weapons and accessories have to be the right proportion to the body that carries them. If you want details on a character's arms and armor, you ask a cosplayer.

But there's one costume in particular that floods the convention centers during every major science fiction or comic convention. Not only is the costume common, but it's become uncommonly flexible - a rarity in the cosplay community.

Princess Leia's slave girl costume from Return of the Jedi is a fixture of science fiction conventions, with group shots growing every year. But what makes the outfit singular among sci-fi costumes is the sheer variety you'll find. At any given convention you'll find Leias who are blonde, brunette, and redheaded, with their hair up in a braid, hanging loose, held in a headpiece, or even in a short bob. You'll find Leias who are armed and Leias who are wearing glasses. It seems like almost any sci-fi inclined woman can be Princess Leia, and nobody seems to mind.

But what is the appeal of Leia? The obvious answer is the revealing costume, but the fact is that science fiction and fantasy are two genres that are filled with revealing costumes. If that were the extent of the appeal, then the popular costume could just as easily be Red Sonja. Or, more likely, Barbarella. The metal bikini is definitely part of the appeal, but it could be that there's something more.

What, exactly, is the allure of the slave girl? It's a subject that can be debated almost endlessly, but I believe it can begin with three simple elements.

1. Confidence

Admittedly related to the whole "metal bikini" part of the equation, any two-bit relationship counselor worth -- well -- two bits will tell you that confidence is sexy. Leia represents a strong character in the Star Wars universe, and the daring outfit is pretty much the sex appeal of the entire original trilogy.

A sci-fi fan who walks around a convention hall in the fabled metal bikini automatically increases their confidence threefold. Being able to step out of the door and onto the floor in a metal bikini -- frequently accessorized with a chain -- is an act of courage, and that courage pays off in the attention that it draws.

2. Community

A Flickr group dedicated to the costume has 960 members and 890 pictures. Yahoo groups are dedicated to the building of the outfit with members swapping tips and convention stories, and a website dedicated to the costume has been featured prominently in the media.

Conventions with multiple Leias almost always generate at least one group photo, and the size of the group photo is almost directly proportional to the size and popularity of the convention. It's more than just sci-fi fandom and more than just Star Wars fandom. It's a sub-fandom of a sub-fandom. The cult of the metal bikini. And its members are proud and confident.

3. The Delicate Balance

DC Comics famously caused an uproar in the 1970's when they took away Wonder Woman's bracelets. They thought the move would be popular with the feminist movement, since they saw Wonder Woman's bracelets (which, at the time, were a weakness - she would lose her powers when they were bound with a chain) as a misogynistic remainder from a more patriarchal time. Instead, feminists blasted DC Comics for taking away Wonder Woman's power -- the bracelets that could deflect bullets.

Princess Leia's slave girl costume is, it cannot be denied, a slave girl costume, and her chain is little more than a leash. But at a pivotal moment, Leia proves that the outfit and the chain do not turn her into a powerless puppet as she literally turns her bonds into a weapon. It doesn't turn it automatically into a feminist triumph, but it does make the costume one open to interpretation -- and that openness is a sign of the balance it represents. Strength with vulnerability, tenderness with power, submission with dominance, all wrapped up in one character.