We Aim To Misbehave...Still

For the loyal and long-lasting fan base of the 2002 Fox show, Firefly, affectionately known as Browncoats,  Fox has hit an all time low. Sure, the network isn't on the top of many Browncoat's friends lists after they cancelled this unbelievably amazing show after just one season, but they have added insult to injury by cracking down on the sale of unlicensed handmade hats inspired by the show.

 

The gun-toting, trigger-happy character Jayne Cobb is overjoyed to recieve this loving handmade gift from his mother in the shows 12th episode and is hardly seen throughout the episode without it. Just as it was with Jayne, for the Browncoats, it was love at first sight. Jayne's hat has become a subtle symbol for the fanbase, making it easier to identify one another at conventions, at signings, or just walking down busy city streets. 

Some fans love Jayne's hat so much they don't simply settle for tossing it on their head as a sign of their devotion, but would rather proclaim their loyalty on a much larger scale. 

The simple, homemade look of Jayne's hat combined with the lack of available merchandise and the eventual cancelling of the show all added up to the fans taking matters into their own hands and creating their own versions of the iconic head piece. Online shops selling different versions of Jayne's hat popped up on Ebay and Etsy and other such sites and have flourished over the past 10 years with no problems from Fox and certainly never hearing the words copyright infringement. That is, until last month. 

The popular go-to online store for geek apparel, accessories, toys, and other basic necessities, ThinkGeek, recently began selling a licensed version of the Jayne hat. This seems logical. A store that sells nothing but items for "smart masses" would undoubtedly love to sell such an outstandingly popular item, but I doubt they knew the storm they were about to unleash upon themselves when they agreed to carry the item. In the last 2 weeks Fox has gone about sending cease and desist notices to the online shops selling the unlicensed, homemade versions of Jayne's hat telling them that their products violate copyright law and are the intellectual property of Fox and that only the official licensed merchandise is allowed to be sold. This caused the Browncoat community to go nuts. Tweets, emails, and facebook rants flew across the internet (despite Fox's request in their C&D notices to keep the matter quiet) and of course some of the fallout landed on ThinkGeek.

The store however has released official statements claiming that it was never their intention to attack the independent shops creating their own products and stating that they have in fact ordered multiple homemade unlicensed Jayne hats in the past from these sellers. ThinkGeek has decided that all the profits from their sales of the licensed Jayne hats will be donated to  Can't Stop the Serenity, a Browncoat charity that raises funds and awareness in support of Equality Now- a charity that aims to stop violence towards women across the globe. 

With ThinkGeek off the hook and the Browncoats still unsettled by the new restrictions imposed on their entrepreneurial spirits, what  other results could possible unfold other than for the ever loyal fanbase to follow the words of their Captain? 

Since the crackdown multiple online shops have stopped selling Jayne Cobb hats but have begun to sell items with such names like, "Controversial Hat With A Backstory" and "See Spot Run With Not Jane Hat" all bearing striking resemblance to a certain orange-hued earflap pom-pom hat, but of course it is just a coincidence *cough cough wink wink*.

With no knitting, crocheting, or entrepreneurial skills of my own to contribute to this splendidly sarcastic and subtle rebellion I can only say keep flyin' guys.