Cosplay is a youth subculture originating from Japan. The nickname is derived from the words “costume” and “game,” and is believed to have been first devised in 1984 by a Japanese studio executive named Nov Takahashi. When he wrote for Japanese sci-fi magazines about the stunning costumes worn by attendees of the Los Angeles World Science Fiction Convention, he gradually adopted the term cosplay, which is used to describe the current trend.
The main characteristic of cosplay is that the participants enjoy dressing up as their favorite characters from anime, comics and video games. It has been developed to include, especially when adopted in the West, people dressing up as characters from popular non-Asian fantasy and science fiction movies and games, such as Harry Potter, The Lord of the Rings, Doctor Who and World of Warcraft .
As a fashion concept, cosplay has also been seen to extend into a style of dressing not just as established famous people, but as characters that enthusiasts have developed themselves. This is often a cross with the Japanese Lolita dress style, where girls wear a distinctive and cute style. This allows girls who like the look but do not want to fully embrace the Lolita style as a street dress to enjoy the less serious “Cosplay Lolita” style at cosplay venues and events.
Additional trends and sub-genres in cosplay include “crossover play,” which involves wearing the costume of a character of the opposite sex, and participants called “bucks,” who use full-length suits and masks to play characters without their own faces at the same time. view. more like sports mascots.
Cosplay is usually something that takes place at parties, concerts, conventions, and places where like-minded people gather to show off their costumes (often handmade), socialize, and photograph other enthusiasts. The most popular area for these types of activities is the trendy Harajuku area of Tokyo. In the Akihabara district, several cosplay-themed cafes have opened over the past decade to cater to cosplayers, and staff wear anime-themed costumes.
Twice a year, hundreds of thousands of cosplayers flock to Tokyo to visit the Comiket convention and market, the world’s largest event for cosplay enthusiasts.
The concept of dressing up and participating in role-playing games based on popular characters also exists in the West, where cosplay-style costumes are worn to attend science fiction and comic book conventions. The largest of these takes place annually in San Diego.
