From the front this seems like typical Rodarte: off-kilter, randomly wispy, like she’s starring in an apocalyptic ballet and the Mulleavys just glued a couple extra notions to her before she left the hotel. It’s a bit edgier than the Natalie Portman who grew up into a pretty staid Dior girl, but on first blush it’s not a record-scratch.

On second blush, however, IT’S JUST PANTIES.

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I don’t even like the word panties. It’s awkward. It’s a word that we don’t really need anymore. Like make love. Both of those, thanks to slang and the passage of time, have been replaced with way better ways to say it. And yet, I’m saying it here: THIS IS JUST PANTIES. And only from the one angle. It’s a backside pun in fashion form. Natalie was five years removed from Black Swan, had a baby and did two Thor movies (well, one and a bit, right?), and some Miss Dior promotional videos. So maybe this is the message. Maybe SERIOUS BUTTOCK is the grand statement here. “I AM BACK,” she might be saying, with a wink.

Or she just felt like airing it out for a second in a really fugtastic frock. Maybe a panty is just a panty. … Yep, I still hate that word.

[Photos: Getty]