June 2012
30 posts
Jar Jar June Closing Ceremonies: Jar Jar June Day...
Thank you very much to everybody who commented, read, or shared Jar Jar June, and a special thanks to my wife for her invaluable assistance and support throughout the whole month. Though Jar Jar June 2012 is now over, The Phantom Menace: The Holiday will of course continue after I take a short break—the party will start again a few days after the Fourth of July. If you’re distraught...
Jar Jar '83: Jar Jar June Day 29
As ever, click on the pics to enlarge them!
Jar Jar ‘83—Return of the Jedi!
The Carbonite Melts!
“Whosa there?” “Someone who loves you.”
“Jabba, meesa payin’ you triple! Yousa throwin’ away a...
Bootlegged Binks: Jar Jar June Day 28
I love the optimism of the international syndicate of bootleggers in 1999—they didn’t think that there would be enough Jar Jar to go around, so they took matters into their own hands…and the chemically-burned hands of those working in their back-alley toy factories. The results are below, with minimal commentary. When applicable, the actual Hasbro Jar Jar figure will be...
The Many Tongues of Jar Jar Binks: Jar Jar June...
When I had first started planning out Jar Jar June months ago (though I’m pretty sure my friend Karen had requested a Jar Jar month a year or two ago, after I did a lower-scale “Bossk Month” on facebook), I thought a chunk of it would be comprised of various essays I’d write on esoteric JJB-centric topics. It didn’t really turn out that way, in part because a lot of...
Hold Me Closer, Tiny Jar Jar: Jar Jar June Day 26
You know, Elton John has never really been my thing, but I’m sorry…this couldn’t be avoided!
yesterday: tomorrow: Bathroom Binks ?
Bathroom Binks: Jar Jar June Day 25
Wow, only 5 more days left of Jar Jar June— I had a lot more posts planned than I was able to squeeze into this month, but they’ll appear in the future on TPM:TH. Why not spend some of the limited time we have left on the Glorious Gungan’s presence in toilets around the world?? Hopefully, this month has illustrated very conclusively that Jar Jar Binks could be found...
The Real Jar Jar: Jar Jar June Day 24
As much of a fan of the Gungan, Jar Jar Binks, as I am, he’ll never be my favorite being named “Jar Jar”.
This was the real Jar Jar: 2008, Montour Falls, NY
Instead of being a clumsy orange amphibian, the real Jar Jar was a regal, chatty, female Siamese cat who became a part of our family over 12 years ago. I was strictly a...
Blow-by-Blow Binks Blow-Up Blow-Out: Jar Jar June...
When planning out an absurd event once, one of my friends suggested that we get inflatable things. “They add a sense of scale, ” he said—and he was right! Inflatable items not only add to any kind of display with their large size, but they’re usually cheap and super-easy to deflate and store. Seeing that it’s Jar Jar June (for a few more days, at least… :( ),...
In Praise of Ahmed Best: Jar Jar June Day 22
The first time I ever watched the 2009 Clone Wars episode “The Gungan General”, I remember exclaiming to my wife, “What the hell?? That’s not Ahmed Best doing Jar Jar’s voice!” I checked the episode guide on starwars.com as soon as the episode was over, and sure enough, it wasn’t Ahmed Best—it was a mysterious voice actor named BJ Hughes....
Her Majesty's Stickiest Tongue: Jar Jar June Day...
I first became aware of the “Jar Jar Sticky Tongue” in the afterglow of The Phantom Menace phenomenon of 1999—it was exotic because it was only available in the UK, and so I quickly bought one online. The JJB Sticky Tongue was exactly what you see in the picture above (which makes it look even creepier than it does in person): a plastic Jar Jar head with a long, sticky...
The Plastic Pre-Life of Jar Jar Binks: Jar Jar...
“Mommy, where do Jar Jar action figures come from?” It’s a question that parents the world over DREAD being asked by their kids. Of course, the answer is, “When a Lucasfilm and a Hasbro love each other very much, they go to a factory in China and come home with a brand new Jar Jar figure.” Today’s installment of Jar Jar June will cover some of the Jar Jar...
LL Cool JJ (LEGO Loves Cool Jar Jar): Jar Jar June...
LEGO understands Jar Jar Binks…why can’t the rest of the world???
yesterday: tomorrow: Jar Jar ‘80 ?
Jar Jar '80: Jar Jar June Day 18
Jar Jar ‘80! (click on pics for larger images!)
“Yousa could USE a good kiss!”
“Then meesa seein’ yousa in HELL!”
“And meesa thinkin’ theysa...
Jar Jar Binks Pizza Party: Jar Jar June Day 17
this:
…demanded that this had to happen:
yesterday: tomorrow: The Sweetest Naboo: JJB Candy ?
The Sweetest Naboo--Jar Jar Candy: Jar Jar June...
You would think there would have been a TON of Jar Jar Binks-themed candy in 1999, since there was pretty much “Jar Jar” everything else, but there really weren’t too many Jar Jar-based candies, at least in the USA. I’m not talking about candy bars that just happen to have JJB’s image on the wrapper, but candy or candy dispensers centered around him. Luckily, the few...
Be@rbricked Binks: Jar Jar June Day 15
First, today’s JJJ entry was supposed to be “Jar Jar ‘80”, which, due to unforeseen circumstances far beyond my control, will now appear on Monday, June 18 (Day 18). I’m sorry—especially if you’ve planned your entire weekend around “Jar Jar ‘80”! Hopefully, it’ll be worth the wait. Instead, today’s installment of Jar Jar June...
A Quick History of 3.75" Jar Jar Action Figures:...
3.75” action figures are the bread and butter of Star Wars merchandise, and they’ve been a huge part of my whole Star Wars world since I was 5 years old in 1978. 1978-I’m holding Chewie, there’s a Stormtrooper on the right, and R2 and 3PO are under my little sister’s purse or whatever that pink thing...
Biohazardous Binks--13 year-old JJB Fruit Rolls:...
If you were around in 1999, you may remember the subtle marketing used to promote the release of The Phantom Menace. One of the items in this stealth campaign was Farley’s Star Wars Episode I Galactic Watermelon Fruit Rolls, its packaging covered with the likeness of the Gungan of the Hour (or month), Jar Jar Binks. Not wanting to leave the Binks-crazed Canadian market of Québécois...
Cosmo, The Triple-A Ball Binks : Jar Jar June Day...
How it was kept from me, until a couple of months ago, that the Las Vegas 51’s Triple-A Minor League Baseball Team have as their mascot a desaturated Jar Jar Binks named Cosmo??? It honestly blew my mind for a good two days after I initially stumbled across him on Google image search. I’ve never had a lapse in my Star Wars fandom that would’ve prevented me from hearing about...
Obscure Binks from Books for Kids: Jar Jar June...
These 3 are from “Dangers of the Core” - art by Boris Vallejo:
The following 3 are from “Watch Out, Jar Jar!”- art by Bob Eggleton: The next 3 are from “Anakin to the Rescue” - art by Chris Trevas: (WTF!)
The last 4 are from “Gungan Trouble!” - art by Jerry Vanderstelt: ...
Gungan Rescue Patrol: Jar Jar June Day 10
Even though I’m so broke that it’s not even funny (when is it ever funny that somebody has no cash?!?), today Valerie and I went to the “Rochester Toy Show”—not to be confused with the Rochester “Village Gate Toy Show” that we went to a few months back, detailed here. This one was in some silly domed arena at the county Fair and Expo center, and definitely...
The Jar Jar Palm Talker : Jar Jar June Day 9
Japan has always been the world leader in “Super-Deforming” beloved characters (Luxembourg is a close #2), and in 2000, Tomy Japan produced a line of super deformed TPM characters called “Palm Talkers”. The gimmick of these involved two metal contacts on the bottom of each figure that would conduct either through placing them on metal, or holding them in the palm of your...
Jar Jar '77: Jar Jar June Day 8
Why not? They both wear vests… (for larger versions, click on any pic!)
“but whosa gonna fly it kid, YOUSA?”
Greedo shoots first, of course!
Jump to Hyperspace
“ohh, maxi...
"Jar Jar Genesis" from the SW Insider,...
To make up for the awful jokes from yesterday, I scanned this excellent article on the origins of Jar Jar from the Aug./Sept. 1999 issue (#45) of the Star Wars Insider. Even if you’ve read it before, it’s well worth a re-read. Feel free to pass it on to any JJB-haters you may know, because it’s fine if they continue to dislike him—-but if they can’t respect how...
Jar Jar's "Joke" Jam #1: Jar Jar June Day 6
Why is S.E. Hinton’s “The Outsiders” Jar Jar’s least favorite book?
-because Gungans no liken Outsiders!!
What reality show did Jar Jar study to outwit Rish Loo and General Grievous?
-“Undercover Boss”.
Why did Jar Jar press criminal charges...
трясіння трясіння гніздування лялька!: Jar Jar...
(thanks for the translating help, Alex!)
Way back at the beginning of the century, my friend Curtis went to Eastern Europe and brought me back a bizarre Star Wars nesting doll featuring a pink lightsaber-wielding Luke Skywalker, a mannish Princess Leia wearing a pantsuit, and a Soviet-looking Han Solo. I had wondered if I could find another as weird or weirder, and started checking eBay for them...
Panties and Prejudice: Jar Jar June day 4
Over the past 12 years, I’ve bought a lot of Jar Jar items on eBay. Some years have been lighter than others depending on the financial realities of any given time, but my JJB collection has been an ongoing thing since 1999. I try to prioritize truly bizarre Binks artifacts over the things that are more easily procured—the weirder the better. The following items were almost too weird,...
Unexpected Jar Jars are the Best Jar Jars --Jar...
At 3:15am, I had just gotten done writing today’s JJJ entry (which will now be tomorrow’s entry), and I wasn’t really tired yet. I was listlessly looking through the forums on a Star Wars collecting site, grouchy that I haven’t found any new Star Wars figures in ages, and decided to go try my luck at a 24-Hour Walmart. As I rounded the corner of the Star Wars aisle, I saw...
Jar Jar June: Opening Ceremonies!
The first-ever Jar Jar June is now officially underway! Tomorrow: A Shameful Purchase!
Welcome to JAR JAR JUNE!
For the next 30 days here, it’s all Jar Jar, ALL the time! Think of it as a limited-engagement museum exhibit, kind of like when they haul in King Tut’s treasures or whatever for a month—except that it’s not some musty old mummy’s bric-a-brac on display, it’s the vast cultural impact of the world’s most controversial Gungan. To love The Phantom Menace is...
