After con question to cosplayers (deep thoughts ahead??)

[Mr Silmero]

I talked to a friend of mine who said that she changes slightly when she cosplays, she is no longer her normal self but becomes the person she dresses up as. So my question to all of you cosplayers is "What is life like after you go back to the regular world?" are you one of the "well adjusted" folks who does not change at all or are you the type that finds it hard to go back to your normal everyday joe persona? I don't cosplay myself (right now) but this question bothered me today.



Let the discussion begin

[makichan]

It's easy to go back, but it sure feels different after being a vampire for three days lol.

[nikkiolie]

I was in a Temari mind set for those three days....I was cocky and a little bit of a bitch....plus when I looked at my friends Sarah and Lauren (Gaara and Kankuro) I almost wanted to start telling them of my day because I felt like they weren't there. All three of us really got into character and we had a lot of fun. I didn't see Sarah and Lauren, I saw Gaara and Kankuro

[superjaz]

I think when cosplaying i hoestly don't care what others think, with the exeption of that i am happy and i want to see others happy, (at one point during con i saw a girl in a corner looking so sad, so i gave her some candy and told her cheer up, it was all i could think of)

I know we all say we dont care what others thing, but thats not true, I do care what my friends think of me and what my brother and fiance think of me I want them to think well of me, for the most part I can be myself around them but we all hold back somthing a bit

that said during con my alter ego superjaz  takes completly over, like when we were witing for an elevator onthe second floor to go to the lobby, it stopped and there was so room and the peeps inside were like "duh why don't you just take the stairs ? its only 2 floors!"  not taking the time listen to the fact that one of up had been helping peeps at info desk from 7am to 9 pm, and i had gotten 4 hours of sleep and both of us were half asleep and so tired we could barely walk,
so i yelled "f#%^ off' as the door was shutting, and no not the best of actions and my friend was a little miffed but I was on auto pilot and my concern for others was nil t that point

it takes a bit for the con buz to wear off, like today at work I know I made some jokes that no one got, like when i said i was bad and she said i wasn't and then i told her i was eviler and kicked puppies and liked the taste of brushed teeth and orange juice (see syd-chan's sig for refernce)
then another one when i put my hoodie on and claimed "bezenof no prezento!!!"

it prob lasts a bit longer for me cuz its my birthday tomorrow and end when i have gotten my last gift then the party is over

[Ryu-chan]

best vacation ever,  dont need to be in character because it IS my character hehe only a bit stronger on it,

[megchan]

I think being "in character" for cosplay skits or photo shoots or things like that is one thing, but I don't really understand how people could have problems adjusting to being themselves again.

But I dunno, I've always had problems with people being "in character" when they were cosplaying out in regular places interacting with regular people. If you're using crappy japanese to try to order some food, you're just being a jerk. If you're making a ruckus in the mall because that's what you're character does, you're still being a jerk. If your character is a pervert and you go running around flipping up girls' skirts, I will call the freaking cops. You and your friends may get a kick out of it, but show some common courtesy for those that either don't want to be a part of it or have NO IDEA what you're doing.

[nikkiolie]

Well being in character for Temari was only slightly out of the ordinary for me. I act a lot like her as it is...and all the photos that people were asking for only raised my confidence....I try not to act in character if I am not at the con

[totemo_oishii]

Normally, I would never wear skin tight pants and bare my tummy in public - but it felt absolutely normal for me at the con. I noticed this after we could venture farther away from the con space, and I felt the need to cover up my tummy while walking around...

[The Night Bringer]

Haha, it took me a full day to stop talking like James from team rocket. lol

[reppy]

Haha, it took me a full day to stop talking like James from team rocket. lol

Don't ever stop talking like James from Team Rocket!! 

Also, I found cosplaying to be extremely fun.  This was my first time cosplaying.  Can't wait to do it again! ^_^  I do have a strange urge to go outside and cosplay, which probably wouldn't be right...

I certainly felt a lot more outgoing. I'm usually kind of shy, but I was really outgoing, got a lot of glomps, and I was on top of my comedy game!

[~boogiepop~]

I tend to try and cosplay as characters with my personality in the first place so it's not a big difference. But with that said I also tend not to get into character unless it's for a photos because I'm horrible at acting something other then myself.

[makichan]

For me, since I was traveling in a group, it was really easy to get into character. When we ventured to the mall or away from con territory however, we went back to our normal, sarcastic selves xD

[Acheron]

Megchan, you don't cosplay, do you? You seem to have a huge chip on your shoulder about cosplaying in public...

It is hard, sometimes! I didn't cosplay at all this year, but when I was at Kumoricon last year, it has hard to transition from White Mage to Olivia. @____@; That's probably not a bad thing, though, 'cause I was a lot nicer when I was White Mage...

It's a pain going from con!me to regular me, too. I was in such a blue funk yesterday... I was so happy at Kcon, and now it's just regular life and back to school. *sigh*

There's always next year, though!

[megchan]

Megchan, you don't cosplay, do you? You seem to have a huge chip on your shoulder about cosplaying in public...

I have cosplayed for YEARS, thanks : D

It's not that people do it in public, but it's that they take it OVERBOARD and start to harass people who have nothing to do with con or even con goers that don't want to be assaulted by Naruto all the time.

[Acheron]

Megchan, you don't cosplay, do you? You seem to have a huge chip on your shoulder about cosplaying in public...

I have cosplayed for YEARS, thanks : D

It's not that people do it in public, but it's that they take it OVERBOARD and start to harass people who have nothing to do with con or even con goers that don't want to be assaulted by Naruto all the time.

^^ My apologies. You simply sounded very hostile and bitter, so you can see where I would get the assumption? Or maybe it's that you simply dress up and don't act in character? It is costume play, after all...

[megchan]

Megchan, you don't cosplay, do you? You seem to have a huge chip on your shoulder about cosplaying in public...

I have cosplayed for YEARS, thanks : D

It's not that people do it in public, but it's that they take it OVERBOARD and start to harass people who have nothing to do with con or even con goers that don't want to be assaulted by Naruto all the time.

^^ My apologies. You simply sounded very hostile and bitter, so you can see where I would get the assumption? Or maybe it's that you simply dress up and don't act in character? It is costume play, after all...

I really think that there is a particular time, place, and audience for cosplay. I understand the allure of "freaking out the normals," but maybe I just grew out of it when I was 14. I just know that if I was working at a Starbucks or something and some kid dressed up as a ninja came in, darted around the store, ordered in a crappy Japanese accent, and generally made customers uncomfortable, I would be upset! Even if I was just another customer. There's a difference between being tolerant of other peoples' hobbies, but when they start disrupting my business I think it's ridiculous and too far.

[Kimiski]

I always refer to Kumoricon as "going home"
It feels more real to me then day to day average normal life, I get to be surrounded by people who are into the same thing as me, and I can turn to almost anyone and start talking about an anime and they will know exactly what I am talking about. Like that article on Kumoricon I think it was last year, where the reporter said "people laughed, and I didn't know why..."

Going back feels weird at first but honestly, almost all of my friends are either into anime and I can talk with them, or they respect it and when I talk about it to them they alwyas want me to explain what I mean or seem interested in it. Whenever you pass someone in normal life you never know if they could be into anime or not, but when you all get together it just feels like everyone understands and accepts you.

If I started going off on some anime character in thew middle of class or something most people would probably think I am crazy, but at Kumoricon is normal behavior, lol.

[Acheron]

Megchan, you don't cosplay, do you? You seem to have a huge chip on your shoulder about cosplaying in public...

I have cosplayed for YEARS, thanks : D

It's not that people do it in public, but it's that they take it OVERBOARD and start to harass people who have nothing to do with con or even con goers that don't want to be assaulted by Naruto all the time.

^^ My apologies. You simply sounded very hostile and bitter, so you can see where I would get the assumption? Or maybe it's that you simply dress up and don't act in character? It is costume play, after all...

I really think that there is a particular time, place, and audience for cosplay. I understand the allure of "freaking out the normals," but maybe I just grew out of it when I was 14. I just know that if I was working at a Starbucks or something and some kid dressed up as a ninja came in, darted around the store, ordered in a crappy Japanese accent, and generally made customers uncomfortable, I would be upset! Even if I was just another customer. There's a difference between being tolerant of other peoples' hobbies, but when they start disrupting my business I think it's ridiculous and too far.

x_____x;;; Sorry, sorry, that came out a lot bitchier and passive-agressive than I meant. Because I actually agree with you!

If you're getting harmful, or even just obnoxious or in character all the time (which gets old, fast), I totally agree that that's not cool. But I also think that making people's days interesting is part of cosplaying too! Like... Team Rocket cosplayers asking people in Lloyd Center if they've seen a boy with a Pikachu running around, or a Casanova character giving girls roses. I don't think that's something to be condemned at all! I mean, I personally think that would be pretty cool, as does my non-con going friend. Once again, if they're being obnoxious, that's certainly not the image we want to project. But what we're going for (hopefully) is less "freaking out the normals" and "being a pain in the ass" than having fun.

Sorry if I made you think I was saying something else! That's the problem with the internet, no body language and whatnot.

[laurifer]

Seeing that meg covered all the points of what I was gonna say, I'm just going to agree with her lol.


Don't be obnoxious in public in cosplay, kids.

[xxxchihiroxxx]

Hmmm I dont ussualy get into character that often, it was kinda difficult to in a costume like a chocobo, but Kairi on the other hand I loved to wear around (despite i didnt look that great as her xD) but I didnt get so into character, well sometimes, I would cling to a Sora or Riku every now and then xD and pretend to act a bit helpless (cause face it she kinda is) but then on Sunday night I got REALLY out of character and started walkin around with a BIG gun xD a guy who was with our group let me borrow it for a bit :3

I think some one actualy snapped a picture of me with it, pluss a Haruhie with a chainsaw arm with our friend dressed as a girl with a couple pistals (cant remeber the characters name.) btw if anyone finds that picture can they post it? xD

oh and five bucks in pocky says Tom will move this to cosplay chat >:3 I'm detirmend to win my money back

[xkuroxhanax]

For me, it was pretty easy to go back, except I kind of missed being really tall, and I felt like everyone had grown 5 inches. It's kind of entertaining.

I had to start school a day after the con ended, so I just got shoved back into normal daily life without warning, but if I hadn't, I probably would have sat around in my Org 13 coat for a few days after, just to keep the con memories strong. xD

[nikkiolie]

Yeah you were really tall at the con then latter I was like....how the hell was she Axel? XD

[melchizedek]

Truthfully, I don't actually change much except for how I pose for photo shoots. 

However, the biggest difference I noticed in the few times I've cosplayed at events is that I tend to be drawn to people dressed as characters from the same anime I'm cosplaying.  I noticed this with others too, at Sak, when I cosplayed Seshi a random Kikyo asked me out. 

When I cosplayed dark link I felt the need to give every link cosplayer I saw an mean look.

[nikkiolie]

yeah I know what you mean. I felt really cocky around all the other girl naruto characters when I was Temari (because there is no female better than her XD).....Tsunade doesn't count.

[SpearXXI]

Now, I kind of want to test out this cosplaying... Maybe I could take the normal route and pick something obvious.... or something easy to make.... or do something weird.... Hmm... I would need to watch more anime for inspiration. I remember back in high school I dressed up in a goth attire for grins and giggles, and it was a lot of fun. It was kind of like an adrenaline rush to do something out of the norm, you know?

[nikkiolie]

something easy to make? Try Death Note...normal clothes and everyone knows it.

[MiriaRose]

Hmmm. I didn't really act like Mello that much during the con when I cosplayed as him. I mean, I DID talk about how lovely chocolate is and how annoying Near is, but I didn't act like him.

I hung out with some Haruhi Suzumiya cosplayers who really got into character, and it was fun.

And as for keeping the con memories alive, when school started, I wore my badge two days in a row. My school picture shows the lanyard. 

[xkuroxhanax]

Yeah you were really tall at the con then latter I was like....how the hell was she Axel? XD

xD yeah. i'm definitely only like 5'7" IRL. hahah.

[nikkiolie]

that is still 3 inches taller than me XD

[Dubaby]

I agree with what everyone is saying about how you should act to "normals" when in cosplay... if you want people to respect your choice to express yourself then you need to respect their space. That's why I don't understand when I see a bunch of little ninja's getting up in peoples faces while their shopping at Lloyd Center (nothing against Naruto cosplayers, I'm a narutard myself!)

Then again I'm 18 and JUST went to my first con, so maybe it's just that I'm like 4 years older than most of the violent-glomp, scare the passerby's crowd. lol

XD

[Dubaby]

that is still 3 inches taller than me XD

which makes you like... almost 4 inches taller than me... lmao

Ohhh why must i be so compact!!! ='[

[nikkiolie]

Yeah I am about 5' 3 1/2" but it isn't to bad being short.....I love your sig by the way.....its fun to watch XD I <3 Sai

[Dubaby]

Eh, your not THAT much taller than me then... I think i'm like 5'1''? IDK, really no point in measuring how tall I am, it always ends up being short.

I'm glad you appreciate my Sai sig! I saw it on photobucket and was like... "I have to have it..." lol

Oh your Temari outfit was AWESOME by the way!!! I saw you a few times and you looked just like her! =]

[MistressLegato]

I am always me, no matter where I go.  When I cosplay Demon Nurse, I am only her for pictures and skits.  I don't like to detach myself from my true personality so I can make actual friends who don't just like me for who I'm pretending to be.

[Blue Leader]

I must admit, it was a little strange re-adjusting from acting as the noble, arrogant and head-strong Gihren Zabi to my normal quiet and stand-offish self. But it wasn't really hard, just a bit... odd, I guess.

The hardest part was getting over not being able to go back to the con another day. It was fun cosplaying as Gihren. XD

Sieg Zeon!

[little_miss_ururu]

we did not cosplay this year due to being in the middle of moving. 

but i did notice that when we got on the max to leave on monday afternoon it was very....well beige.  that is the only way i can think to capture the feeling in one word.

at the con there seemed to be a real feeling of community.  a creative, joyous, free-spirited, togetherness feeling.  not everyone knew each other, but still it felt like an understanding of being with people who could relate to the things you liked and they like them too.

on the way home we sat on the max and looked around.  everyone seemed sad and in their own little world.  no one talked to each other.  nothing seemed as colorful or as beautiful.  there was no glomping.  no one posed for pics.  no one was chatting about manga or other cons or anything.  just people sitting and staring out the window.

so we did have a hard time adjusting.  but after a couple of days things went back to normal.   we are excited about the next con.  talon is planning his new cosplay already.  he got so many new ideas.

cerridwen

[nikkiolie]

That is the issue that I always have with a con ending. At first I am happy and sad it's over....happy because I am thoroughly exhausted and sad because it's over......about a week after it's done I am ready for the next one and now I have to wait till Sakuracon before I can go to another....time to start planing events to hold me over ^_^

[superjaz]

thing is con dose nt really end when con is over, if you help ith the year round planning

[melchizedek]

thing is con dose nt really end when con is over, if you help ith the year round planning

Yeah, there are meetings every month, people cosplay sometimes

[nikkiolie]

yeah maybe I'll get involved and help staff plan stuff during the off season