Jason Wu's Fierce Militia

Jason Wu has had an exciting week. He expanded his fan base on Feb. 5 when he launched his booming capsule collection at Target, calling it "the cute side of Jason Wu." And he gave a greater number of fans, old and new, a deeper insight into his story and his artistic process at his New York Fashion Week Fall 2012 show on Friday, Feb. 10, where he referred to his collection backstage as his autobiography.

Living in Taiwan until age nine, Wu was exposed to an extensive variety of iconic Chinese imagery, which left a mark on his artistic inspirations as a designer. This collection answered a fundamental question for him and his heritage, Wu said. "The question of 'What is Chinese?' It was important for me to go back to my roots, as part of my personal journey," he explained.

The palatial red-studded doors to the Forbidden City opened with the runway emerging, and out came an onslaught of military-inspired pieces that became Wu's fashionable expression of the rich Chinese warrior heritage. Military green capes and jackets with lace and fur trimmings would keep any woman combating the weather warm and triumphantly chic. Sharp Mao collars and boxy shoulders made a strong statement and paid homage to the Chinese figure, especially when a Red Mao shirt was paired with a military green cotton twill cargo pant. Along with burgundy, these three will undoubtedly be the go to hues for fall.

Not all was revolutionary for Wu this season as he relied on his skills when combining the influence of the Qing Dynasty as well as 1930s-1940s Hollywood glamour, as exemplified by Marlene Dietrich in "Shanghai Express," into his intelligently more sporty collection. Black velvet tuxedoes and mandarin collared gowns alongside Qing brocade and long silhouettes came together masterfully on the runway. That military edge injected a key sense of practicality into the Asian influence that was just short of overdone. Though Wu started his designing career as a doll maker, these looks are not for costume, and each look can independently and powerfully be brought to life in the most sartorial of ways. Wu has been appreciated not just for his talent and his expertise, but also his style for the ultra-feminine design - chockfull of floral prints, bows, lace and bright colors. In this collection, painted cloud prints and color combinations of bright red and hot pink were comfortingly recognizant of collections of seasons past. Taking the dynasty's rich brocades from the royal court and mixing and deconstructing them, Wu created Westernized interpretations, mixing dual components of his own personal story. The show closed with an army of high-ponytailed models marching in rows of three to the literal beat, of the figuratively, Wu's Chinese drum.

For fall, Wu successfully manifested a nearly tangible edge and attitude that was the perfect element of novelty that we haven't seen from him yet, while he remained true to his aesthetic. "It felt like my life. It's a subject that's personal to me," said the designer. A true talent with great pride in his heritage, Wu knows how to extract and unite all the right components, making a tastefully elegant wardrobe for his, new and old, cute and less cute, fashionably fierce femme fans.