Liz Lee, the star of MTV's hybrid scripted-reality series My Life As Liz returns Feb. 8 with more adventures of a geek girl trying to make her way through life one Star Wars reference at a time. The first season showed her struggles against the popular girls in high school, but this time around Liz takes on art school in New York City.
Fans who attended Star Wars Celebration V might recognize Liz as a co-host of "A Conversation with the Masters" panel. She's single-handedly made Star Wars relevant to Justin Bieber fans from her popular Twitter feed alone.
StarWars.com chats with Liz about her love for Star Wars, why high school graduation is better with a lightsaber flashmob, and why Star Wars fans should tune into the new season.
How would you describe your show to someone who's never seen it?
It's like live-action Daria meets My So-Called Life.
You show off your geek cred and your love for Star Wars quite a bit in the show, even when it isn't considered cool by your classmates. Why do you think it's important to be yourself and not be afraid of what others might think?
When I used to hang out with the popular girls in high school, I couldn't really show that side of me and it was a really uncomfortable feeling. It's not fair to have to hide the things you're really into because you want to look cool. It just makes life boring to have to fall into that cookie-cutter image they want you to be.
When I didn't have many friends, I could still go home and use Star Wars to escape to a galaxy far, far away. It's not just a movie at that point. You come home to it and it's there for you. It's almost a friendship that you have with Star Wars.
How often do you watch Star Wars?
I usually watch at least one Star Wars movie a week, which I know sounds like overkill. But I get different stuff from it every time. I feel like nerd cred in our culture, especially with Star Wars, is so important.
Is Star Wars seeping into any of your college term papers?
Oh yeah, any time I get the freedom to decide the topic on any of my schoolwork I use Star Wars. I did a midterm paper for English class about how Star Wars is so much more than just a film. It incorporates all these components that Joseph Campbell talked about, such as Jungian symbolism and archetypes, that make Star Wars this intelligent and unstoppable force. I also tied in a Star Wars connection to great literature. In my paper, I described Star Wars as "Beowulf in outer space." My professor said it was one of the best papers that she got!
There are quite a few Star Wars-related moments in the first season of My Life As Liz -- from your lightsaber duel with your friend Sully to the even bigger lightsaber flashmob at your high school graduation. Which one was your favorite?
The lightsaber flashmob at graduation! At a school where I was kind of an outcast, we all came together in a way, and I felt like I fit in for a little bit. It gave me a little more love from my peers that I didn't have before. It was the perfect way to say goodbye to my school.
Your lightsaber fight with Sully that you instigated to work out a problem in your head was great! How often do you pick up a lightsaber just for the fun of it?
A lot! I have the spring-loaded lightsabers but I love the ones that look great in the dark too. Picking up a lightsaber is therapeutic for me. In fact, anything Star Wars is therapeutic!
What kind of Star Wars stuff do you like to collect? What's your pride & joy item?
I love my adidas Star Wars sneakers and my lightsabers. I have a Darth Vader helmet that I think was my first item in my collection. I have a Star Wars shelf in my room, but there's also stuff on my desk and all the walls too. I have a huge Jabba the Hutt from Toy Tokyo on top of my cubby case. I put nerdy glasses on him. I also like my Lando Calrissian Disguise Kit from Celebration V. I have two -- one to wear and one to hang on my wall.
On the show, there was a great scene where you and Bryson were reading Star Wars comics together. Which ones are you reading now?
Dark Times, Empire and Legacy. I really like Legacy because it shows Cade Skywalker.
Is Cade Skywalker your favorite Expanded Universe character or is there another?
Actually, I really like Mara Jade because she's a really strong woman. I like to see a woman be in the limelight. When you're younger and you're playing Star Wars games and you want to be a character, you don't want your only character choices to be Princess Leia, Aunt Beru and Mon Mothma. Mara Jade is so cool.
I feel like you transition as you get older. When you're younger everyone loves Luke Skywalker or Han Solo. And then as a teenager you want to rebel and so Boba Fett is your favorite. And then as you get older you start appreciating Darth Vader more.
Do you compare yourself to characters in Star Wars? In the first season of My Life As Liz, you're definitely the underdog fighting against the popular girls, like Luke battling against the Empire.
If Taylor Terry is Darth Vader, then Cori Cooper is the Emperor. In fact, at the end of Season 1, Taylor realizes she was bad and turns on Cori. Bryson is Han Solo. Sully is Chewbacca. Though originally we wanted to do a poster where Sully was in a Slave Leia costume grasping my leg as I was holding up a comic book.
If you were going to do Star Wars cosplay, who would you dress up as?
Jabba the Hutt! I can't do the sexy Leia thing even if I wanted to. I walk like a football player. Putting me in heels is embarrassing, and I just look weird in dresses.
What kind of Star Wars debates do you have with your friends?
Not that long ago, we all got together to watch Star Wars because Cori hadn't seen it before, and Bryson was visiting from college. Before we all used to talk about which Jedi we wanted to be, but this time Bryson said he wanted to be a bounty hunter because they get the money and the ladies, and Jedi don't. Bryson had turned into this weird hybrid of his old nerd self mixed with a bro mentality. Troy was so upset that he got misty-eyed and had to leave the room.
What is your funniest Star Wars moment you've shared with your friends?
Troy and I saw Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith at least six times in the theater. I saw the midnight showing, then missed school the next day to see it again at noon, then again at 6pm. Troy wore his Darth Vader helmet, and we both brought lightsabers. When we sat down to watch it, we felt like we were part of history. At certain points of the film people would start clapping -- like when you see the Lucasfilm logo, and when the music started, and when Darth Vader rises from the table. But the more times we would see the movie, it seemed like the less people clapped at those moments. So Troy and I would always try to start the slow clap any way but we were never quite successful in getting the audience to clap with us.
You tweet a lot about Star Wars. Are you finding it easier to locate your own online nerd herd through social media? Are a lot of geek girls contacting you too?
So many kids are watching Star Wars and tweeting me about it! It makes me so proud. That's why I tweet about it. It's not something you should be ashamed of! I usually get a tweet every day from girls who thank me for showing them that it's okay to show off their love for Star Wars. We are the number one show for 12-17 year-old girls all across the board, and we have higher ratings than Hannah Montana. So to reach that many girls with Star Wars who are normally obsessed with Justin Bieber is pretty great. To show them that there's this entire other world out there that exists that's not lame, is awesome.
Why should Star Wars fans tune into Season 2 of My Life As Liz?
We have double the Star Wars references this season! And I'm in New York now so it's such a nerd haven. There are so many toy stores and comic book shops here! It's definitely more nerd-friendly here. This season is about my move to New York and going to college for the first time. I'm really glad it shows the side of college that you don't get to see usually. It's really hard to be alone the first semester. You don't instantly have this incredible social life. But I'm very excited about this season!
Watch Liz on My Life As Liz Season 2 premiering Tuesday February 8 on MTV.
Be sure to follow Liz Lee on Twitter.
