Cosplay

It’s time for another edition of Good Cosplay, Bad Cosplay.

Haruhi Suzumiya

I had to do some Wikipedia research to figure out that Haruhi is the protagonist of a light book series (think Nancy Drew). This is what happens when you stop watching anime for a few years. All these new characters become popular that you’ve never heard of. In any case, the cosplayer is great. But I’m fairly confident the photo has been digitally manipulated to enlarge the pupils and smooth out the cheeks.

VERDICT: Good

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I’ve been reading a lot about professional cosplay photography and how many of the models use Photoshop to enlarge their pupils, color their eyes, remove skin blemishes, etc. Is it fair to compare these images to candid, unedited images from anime conventions? Is using Photoshop akin to cheating?

I think it depends on what you value with cosplaying. Is it about using the body as a canvas to project an anime character? If so, then Photoshop isn’t cheating. But if you value the hard work that goes into creating the right costume, picking the right makeup, and looking damn good in-person, then Photoshop manipulation is kind of dishonest.

For the purposes of these cosplay articles, I’ve decided not to omit digitally manipulated images. Just as with amateur photos, a picture that has been edited with Photoshop range from good to terrible. I’ve seen quite a few cosplayers who looked good on their own but mucked everything up with too much lens flare. If a cosplay image was shopped badly, it deserves to be ridiculed along with the rest of them.

Rikku

A lot of girls like to cosplay as Rikku from Final Fantasy X-2 and I suspect it’s because deep down inside, everybody wants an excuse to make dirty pirate braids. I count my lucky stars that I haven’t seen a bad Rikku cosplayer yet. In the picture above, the girl has a smile to die for and a very accurate costume. I’d say this is definitely a WIN.

VERDICT: Good

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The cosplay craziness continues this week with six new examples that will make your head spin. Are you a cosplayer? Want me to mercilessly judge your costume? Let me know. Your tears sustain me.

Midna

For those unaware, Midna is the impish creature that fights alongside Link’s wolf form in The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. She’s meant to be somewhat cruel and heartless as a result of being cursed but develops empathy along her journey. The pose really captures Midna’s haughty personality. The costume is very impressive and the texture (which looks like rubber) in extremely accurate. While the cosplayer is a bit tall for Midna, she uses her pear-shaped body to great effect.

VERDICT: Good

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After a brief hiatus, we’re back with more examples of good and bad cosplay. Something I’ve noticed in my pseudo-research is that some characters are simply easier than others to emulate. Usually, there’s a singular trait that overpowers the rest. If the cosplayer can get that one feature right, they can flake on the rest and still look decent overall. Read on!

Sakura Haruno

It’s true that the hairstyle is a little different. But everything else about this Naruto heroine’s costume is spot-on. She’s even wearing green contact lenses. Sakura doesn’t really have any distinguishible features and thus can be fairly easily cosplayed by any girl that looks cute.

VERDICT: Good

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We’ll be looking at four more examples of cosplay. Morrigan, Link, Jill Valentine, and Akuma. Sometimes, facial expressions make all the difference in the world. If you look bored, your audience will be bored. If you look constipated, your audience will mock you on their blog.

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Crisp, clear photography makes a big difference. So does lighting. In this edition of Good Cosplay, Bad Cosplay, we’ll be examining two good examples of professional cosplayers’ pictures and their use of background. We’ll contrast that with two sets of cosplayers who are just kind of slumming around a convention floor.

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