But this isn't really the point. McQueen has indulged in self-referential wallows in the past before, but this, for the most part, avoided that feeling. If some of his carapace-stiff shapes are as unviable as they ever were, the airy rainbow-bird-wing-printed pleating, an Art Nouveau-patterned blouse, and his romantic fairy-goddess chiffons put him back in the game of current trend (though they'd have been better without the fierce waist-cinching belts that looked like a hangover from winter). In all, McQueen honored his mentor by striving to bring out the best in himself.