Costumes: Star Warsing

Despite any of my other nerdy enthusiasms, It always comes back to Star Wars for me. 
I encountered a lot of Star Wars fans showing their love at the Emerald City Con.  What I enjoy about the SW crowd is the sheer creativity they put into it.  And, to be fair, especially for the women, creativity is a must for a SW fan.  There's not a lot of female characters to draw from, at least in the original trilogy.  In the prequels and EU, there are elaborate Amidala costumes and some Jedi/Sith that can turn some heads, but for those who grew up with Princess Leia, the options are as follows: 1. Any number of elaborate, unflattering white bedsheet dresses.  2. Bikini.


I'm not complaining.  Just observing.

 That's why it was nice to see female fans take matters into their own hands (or the hands of talented Etsy vendors).   Below are some of the themed dresses and outfits I saw on the floor. 

X-wing and Darth as hair accessories!? 
Girls get all the fun.



Love the dress.  Guys? ladies?
Does anyone NOT want to marry this woman?
find the dress HERE

Something, something
"The droids you're looking for."
Something.

And then sometimes, someone brings
a costume that makes you feel ashamed
that you never though to do it yourself.

And then, maybe someone says, "You know,
this is how that character SHOULD haver looked!"

Of course, there were also some great character accurate costumes out there.  You won't be seeing me in that crowd.  There's not a lot of demand for a dark-haried Porkins.

And no one ever dared to dress as Obi-Wan. Ever again.



Would you expect anything less from Han Solo?

And lastly, a question.  have you, even on your best day, been as badass as a bagpipe-playing Darth Maul on stilts?   The answer, understandably, is no.



Costumes: Ani-Mia at Emerald City ComicCon

Day 1: "Ready?  OK!"
"Give me an S! ... What's that spell...?"

It's been a weird year for cosplayers so far. A lot of I think pretty healthy and needed (though sometimes not always friendly), debate about the roles, motivations and misconceptions of being a cosplayer, particularly at conventions.
For my money, whether a newb, amateur or semiprofessional, I think cosplayers of all types play a fantastic role in both geek culture and convention culture.  What's not to love about someone who is the living embodiment of a character we have grown to love? 
I first started paying attention to serious cosplayers after Baltimore's con. Once you meet and start to follow cosplayers at conventions, a strange domino effect begins, where you end up a fan of another cosplayer and another and another. It's a supportive and friendly community and these ladies and dudes cross promote all the time. And that's how you start to see just how big the community is. Somewhere along the line, I became aware of Ani-Mia.

Gundam style!
http://ani-mia.deviantart.com/

 
About thirty minutes into my trip to Seattle for the Emerald City Con, I got a text from Manny, "Dude, Ani-Mia is going to be there!"
Then he sent an additional 200 messages cursing my name for being there while he was not.
That's fair.
Ani-Mia is self described as a "little ball of energy that loves to make people laugh & dresses in sexy cosplay."  She is exactly that, but also very smart, gracious and friendly, particularly to guys like me who came back with a camera every day to get a pic of her in a new costume.  (She signed an autograph to an adoring Manny)
I'm a huge fan of hers also because her costumes are generally very accurate and painstakingly made.  Even when she takes creative liberties, the result is pretty stunning.  Now why the heck hasn't she done a Wonder Woman yet?

Rogue is way more dangerous without sleeves or pants!
That is a comics fact!
http://ani-mia.deviantart.com/

If you want to learn more, catch her Devaintart Gallery, her interview at Nerdreactor.  And also check out her shop for posters and goodies to help fund her convention trips.  Who knows, that might just bring her to your neck of the woods. 

Day 2: Silk Spectre

Day 3: Rydia wants you to visit our blog.