Bad Cosplay

This one's a bit off the norm for this blog. But it's my blog. I do what I want.

Tell 'em, bitch.

As I've mentioned previously, I'm not an actor. I do act (on occasion) for fun, but primarily I'm a costumer/cosplayer when it comes to the "dress up and pretend to be somebody else" thing. That's how I got started in ASSIST ME!, which was my first "real" experience acting. And even that started as just a fun way to help a couple friends make a YouTube video. I didn't think of it as a job.

Somebody once asked me the question "What do you think about bad cosplayers?" followed up by another person asking "Yeah, can we talk about how people shouldn't cosplay--" that's all I remember. I stopped listening. Because, Jesus Christ, you guys. Jesus.

Jesus.

And I've seen that mentality come up a lot. I'm not gonna get all White Knighty and defend cosplayers individually or anything. Truthfully, I value free-speech as much as anybody. And if you gotta exercise it by knocking the hobbies of others, well that's sad for you, but damn it, people died face down in the mud so that you could say whatever the hell you want.

That's assuming you live in a free country. If you don't, fucking move to one. Jesus.

Anyway, the real problem I have with this is that aside from people just knocking the quality of somebody's cosplay, countless people come to this conclusion that cosplay is some kind of privilege. Like if you're not doing it to their standards, you have no right to be doing it. And that's fucking asinine.

That's like if I walked into a pool-hall, saw a guy step up to make a break and have him do a sub-par job, and then I decided he had no business playing the game in the first place (the bastard.) Cosplay is a hobby. People do it for fun. They don't do it to please anybody else (well, some might I guess, but generally speaking here.) There are great cosplays, there are $2-and-this-paper-bag-I-found cosplays, and there are all manner of things in between. And they're all equally qualified to exist if for no other reason than that they're enabling a fan to show that they're a fan.

I'll admit there were times when I was younger I'd see a bad cosplay and think "dude, what were you thinking? That character tucks his shirt in, dumbass" But a quick self-check would remind me that they have every right to be wearing the costume, they're just showin' the love, they probably don't care as much about the accuracy and today I'm a better person for realizing that my standards don't - and shouldn't need to - apply to them.

I don't consider myself to be a bad or good cosplayer. I feel someplace in the middle. I'm just a dude making costumes that I love to show my fandom because it's fun. I believe some of my attempts have been better than others, sure, but if you came up to me and said "Hey, your costume doesn't look accurate enough. You shouldn't wear that." you'd have a hilarious trip down an upwards-moving escalator shortly following that.

Me in my old Jack Sparrow costume.

People can cosplay whatever they want (assuming of course they're not in actual violation of decency laws or bronies [just kidding, bronies - but seriously, what the shit?]). You don't have to be fit enough, tall enough, the right age, the right ethnicity, have the right eye color, or even be the right gender to show your fandom.

Now there are some insanely good cosplays out there. Some people go so far as to follow strict diet and workout routines to fit their character - and I'm not knocking that. That level of devotion to anything - even a hobby - is an admirable quality. And if the final result is the cosplay looks like it was ripped from the screen of some anime/video game or the pages from some comic, I will be impressed. I'll think it's awesome. Hordes of people will think it's awesome, because it is.

But cosplay didn't start that way. Cosplay started with hardcore fans with slapped-together costumes making their outfit on a budget, getting together and taking pictures because they love their fandom and wanted to have a great time with like-minded fans. It wasn't model-fit folk with their hair and makeup done perfectly and their outfits professionally tailored. The quality of cosplay in general grew over time as the hobby expanded, and more and more people with trade skills got in on it and spread that knowledge to their fellow cosplayers.

Cosplay wouldn't even be the thing it is now if it weren't for the hardcore fans that started it all. So every time you find yourself ogling Jessica Nigiri or Liz Katz or for those that like the guys, InkyLinks, Jack Conways, etc... All of which are (probably - I don't know 'em all) hardcore fans all the same - remember that you owe that ogling moment to the pioneers of the hobby, who looked a lot more like this:

"You're welcome, you hopped up little shits."

So don't be that dick that mouths off about whether someone should or should not cosplay. I mean, go ahead, I guess. It's a free country. But look at it from somebody elses perspective. If at the end of the day you feel that somebody shouldn't take part in a hobby they love because they don't do it well enough to fit your standards, then you might want to reevaluate yourself.