As a franchise, Star Wars™ is on its third or fourth generation, and has become a veritable cornucopia of pop-culture references. Our culture has seen a turnaround from a time when sci-fi fandom was more of a don't ask-don't tell situation to the main-stream as evidenced by some whimsical helmet art by HJC Helmets. I mean sure, they've got their sugar skulls, Marvel-licensed images and other really cool products, but the Star Wars-themed buckets trotted out at the Cleveland IMS have got to be enough to make anyone's inner geek squeal with delight.

Continue reading for more on the Star-Wars inspired helmets.

Fully DOT Compliant

Sure, we've had the “Kylo Ren,” “Boba Fett” and “Death Trooper” based on the RPHA 11 full-face helmet for a few months now, but the new bucket that grabbed my attention was the 3/4-face bucket shot to look like the Rebel pilots in “Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope.” (Think bombing run down the trench on the Death Star.) Some of these lids look a little distressed with normal wear and even battle damage for an authentic look. Yeah, it's niche, but some of the best things are, and though we probably won't see many Harley->ke300 or Indian->ke3292 riders sporting one of these badboys, as a full-face wearer I'd rock that Boba Fett one myself.

Best of all, these aren't “novelty” helmets either, but fully DOT-compliant protective gear, and the prices reflect that. We're talking about buckets in the $500.00-plus range, which is probably more than most of us usually spend on headgear, to be honest. Who knows, maybe this sci-fi geek sugar coating will encourage some to make the jump to real head protection instead of merely legal head protection. As for me; Boba Fett is going to have to wait for me to make my next million.