The term Cosplay, born from the union of the English words “costume” and “play”, means identification with your favorite character, whether he is a hero of anime (cartoons), manga (comics) or video games, trying to imitate their gestures and behaviors, and above all by wearing a costume, usually self-produced at home, identical to the one worn by the one you want to impersonate, possibly equipped with the same accessories, such as weapons, rings, scepters and so on. The term “cosplayer” instead indicates the one who practices with Anime Cosplay Costumes.
Origins of Cosplay
We are not sure what exactly the origins of this phenomenon are. The first fans are presumed to date back to the seventies, when they appeared at the comic fairs (Comic Market) disguised as the cartoon characters of the time.
These cosplay pioneers apparently intended to imitate what was happening in the United States of America, where, in the context of science fiction events, some fans appeared in the role of the heroes of “Star Trek”.
The phenomenon of cosplay in Japan extends like wildfire, and reaches considerable dimensions with the boom of Gundam, so much so that in August 1980 the Japanese press is interested in the phenomenon for the first time, publishing an article on the subject accompanied by photograph of some cosplayers dancing as the characters of the heroes of the Yoshiyuki Tomino television series. However, it is with the great success of “Evangelion”, in 1995, that cosplay reaches its peak and begins its overwhelming diffusion, which continues today and which has attracted people’s eyes to this art form.
The market immediately realizes the potential of the phenomenon, and thus numerous specialized store chains or websites are born that produce and sell costumes and accessories for cosplay, to make it possible for everyone to disguise and identify with their favorite character. Discussion forums for cosplayers, specialized sites, and in the main cities, bars or game rooms where shop assistants work dressed in cosplay costumes, depicting the main heroes of comics, video games or cartoons, are born on the internet. With the demon slayer Costumes you can really come up with the best choices.
Why Cosplay?
There are several factors that push to dress up as a manga or anime character. First of all is the fun. Why stop at carnival to be able to dress up and “play” to be another person? And then we are talking about fans: if we like a character in a story and we have the possibility to impersonate him, why not does it? Sure, maybe a bit of exhibitionism is there, but even the most shy person can become extroverted by playing a role for a few hours.
Cosplay is a far-reaching phenomenon in Japan today. There are many events and occasions in which it is possible to practice it, such as the comic market exhibitions called Comic Market, which take place at various times of the year and in various cities, but also events specifically dedicated to cosplay. In some events, called “Cosplay Dance Party”, groups of cosplayers compete with each other by dancing to the rhythm of the anime theme songs of the characters they are impersonating.
However, today we are witnessing the introduction of some limitations to events dedicated to cosplay, or in which it is possible to practice it, due to the growing concern of the organizers of these events for safety problems caused by the increasing number of people who show up in slightly different costumes.
