Photos from @moth.princesss on Instagram
By Allie Cohen
Although Halloween only comes once a year, dressing up as beloved characters in pop culture is a year-round activity. Cosplay, or Kosupure in Japanese, is a performance art where people dress up and act out characters from various forms of media including video games, television, and comic books. Aside from the opportunity to act out and dress up, cosplay is also a social outlet, providing people with the opportunity to come together to sport, emulate, and relate to both their favorite characters as well as other cosplayers through online communities and in-person conventions.
Lucy Woodrow, a 19-year-old cosplayer who goes by the name Moth Princess sat down for an interview to give a greater understanding of this dynamic activity.
When did you start cosplaying? Was there something specific that inspired you to start doing it?
“I was first introduced to anime by a close friend in 2020. Later that year, I started playing Japanese video games, and through that, I was inspired to cosplay – specifically, from the gaming franchise DanganRonpa, aka Bullet Refutation in English. The game series is composed of three main story games, each of which has about 16-18 main characters. Although there were many characters, because of how well thought out each character was, I found myself relating heavily to more than one of them. After completing the series, I started to miss these characters which led to me looking for more content on social media. Following this, I found myself consuming cosplay content by other creators which helped me make internet friends with the same interests. After seeing how much fun cosplay can be, I bought my first cosplay of Mikan Tsumiki in January 2020. A month later, I bought and worked on another cosplay, Peko Pekoyama, and posted my first cosplay on TikTok. After this, I fell in love with the makeup artistry, sewing, and wig styling that goes along with cosplay by nature and have continued ever since.”
What is your favorite character to cosplay and why?
“My favorite characters to cosplay are probably Asuka Langley Soryu from Neon Genesis Evangelion and Spider Mother from Demon Slayer. I love cosplaying Asuka because her character was incredibly well written: she can be selfish, have angry outbursts, and be incredibly rude-which makes her a really fun and eccentric character to portray. In addition to her eccentric facade, she’s also a deeply troubled young girl- so cosplaying can also be a way to portray someone with intense emotions that a lot of people can relate to.
Finally, sporting her look – which includes a red latex suit with ginger hair – is one of my favorite looks to capture. Spider Mother is another favorite, primarily because I get to use face paint for her since she’s a white and red-colored demon meant to resemble a spider. Unlike Asuka, her character doesn’t have much depth or clarity, so cosplaying her is primarily centered around the visuals of her character – which is scary-looking, beautiful, and undeniably dangerous.
While I like cosplaying characters based on their personality-their design is also very important to me. At the end of the day, even if I put a lot of effort into portraying the character correctly and making emotional content, these characters are still fun to dress up as. As shallow as it might sound, I also happen to feel very pretty when I cosplay these two, and feeling your best and being confident is crucial to enjoying cosplay.”
What are some common mistakes people make when cosplaying?
“There’s no ‘right’ way to cosplay. However, in my experience, I’ve improved my cosplays by working on my makeup and wigs. I think this is crucial since cosplay is very visual; I’ve noticed a lot of younger cosplayers can struggle with makeup – which really can make or break a cosplay. For anyone struggling with makeup, I would just say to spend time practicing and planning ahead for how you want to look with each character. Wigs are also important since so many anime characters have big and bright hair. Aside from the color of the wig and buying a wig that looks good straight out of the box, styling a wig is equally as crucial. I want to acknowledge that cosplay materials can be very expensive, so I understand that not everyone has the time or money to do these things. However, as a full-time student who also struggles financially, I’ve realized that quality over quantity is better. The last important thing to keep in mind is that acting is crucial for those who post videos: cosplay acting is different from regular acting and requires good lip-syncing, exaggerated facial expressions, and fragmented and animatronic-like movements, which are all things you get better at over time.”
Is cosplaying limited to individuals and portraying things online?
“Cosplay is not just an individual activity or solely based online. There is a cosplay community, which has been growing in popularity thanks to social media and recent trends. Some cosplayers only cosplay online, and some only cosplay at cosplay conventions, and then there’s a mix. Speaking from experience I think it’s much easier to make cosplay friends online rather than at conventions or in real life. Conventions are mostly a place to meet up with online friends for cosplayers, at least in my experience.”
What are some common misconceptions about cosplaying?
“One of the most common misconceptions is that cosplay is just for anime or superheroes. Cosplayers cosplay any and every media that exists. For example, I’ve seen cosplays of characters from things like BoJack Horseman to Downton Abbey to Game of Thrones. With that said, there are three main groups I’d categorize cosplay into; The first is Marvel and Superhero cosplayers, who also usually cosplay Disney Princesses and other widely known media. Then there are practical media cosplayers, who cosplay things like BoJack Horseman, Steven Universe, Avatar the Last Airbender, etc. Then there are anime and Asian media cosplayers, who usually cosplay from anime, manga, and video games. Most of the media here are Japanese, but I’ve seen a rise in Chinese video games as well, like Genshin Impact. These categories of cosplay aren’t exclusive -many cosplayers dabble in each including myself. However, people tend to gravitate towards one medium over the others.”
Was there ever a time when you felt that your costume was controversial (e.g. could your costume be viewed as cultural appropriation)? If so, how did you deal with it?
“First, it’s important to clarify the difference between cosplay and costumes. Cosplay can be seen as an art form or activity that’s created for the sole purpose of cosplaying a character accurately. On the other hand, costumes are usually created for Halloween or costume parties, and little emphasis on accuracy is made. I put a lot of thought into my cosplays and am very careful to respect any culture or theme that it’s associated with. For example, a character I frequently cosplay, Spider Mother from Demon Slayer, dons a Kimono. However, her Kimono is busty and sexual. When I cosplay her, I like to keep in mind that cosplaying her like this could be offensive and hurt people from Japanese culture, so I’ve made some alterations to the cosplay Kimono so it’s worn traditionally, without cleavage showing. Whether or not this is a more ‘acceptable’ way to cosplay her is not for me to say, since I am not Japanese; However, I do believe that making slight alterations to resemble traditional Kimono is not only more comfortable but more respectful to Japanese culture.”
What are some of the biggest issues occurring within the cosplay world today (e.g Asian fishing)?
“Asian fishing was a huge problem in the early 2000s for anime cosplayers. However, with the presence of social media, it has gotten slightly better. Despite these improvements, every week or so a cosplayer will tape their eyes back or change their facial features with makeup to resemble Asian features that will turn up on social media. Since the cosplay community is so tight-knit and often holds progressive views, these people are usually held accountable and ridiculed for their actions. Even though the cosplay community is good at ‘calling out’ these issues, there are still some Asian-fishing cosplayers who slip through the cracks – which is unacceptable and an issue I hope is continuing to be fixed and rejected; Yet, it still occurs.”
Aside from Asian fishing, are there other types of cultural appropriation that occur?
“Absolutely. A lot of cosplayers who wear cosplay Kimono or other traditionally inspired cosplays wear them correctly and respectfully, which is acceptable from what I have seen Japanese creators say. However, there are always those who don’t acknowledge the cultural significance of these garments and wear them incorrectly or entirely wrong. This is where I think education is crucial: a Kimono has a long and important history in Japan, so it’s very important to research to make sure you are wearing them correctly: for example, tied left over right, making sure the Obi is facing the right way, and wearing traditional shoes are all ways you can make sure that you are being respectful of the Kimono. Overall, there’s a lack of research which results in a lack of respect.”
Do you think the over-sexualization of young boys and girls is a prevalent issue in the cosplay community?
“The over-sexualization of young characters is a huge issue in the anime and cosplay community. Many protagonists in anime are children, so popular characters to cosplay are often under 18. You can cosplay a character of any age, but it’s crucial to not sexualize them. Just because it’s just a fictional character, doesn’t mean that sexualizing them doesn’t have real-life implications. While I understand that cosplaying a seventeen-year-old character and ‘twerking’ or something as an adult isn’t the world’s biggest offense, it’s still very strange and odd-and something I like to avoid – due to these real-life implications.”
Are there any other types of issues that you’ve seen? For example, people darkening their faces to look like a character.
“Changing skin tone for cosplay is also still an issue. I’m not talking about making your skin blue or purple, I mean changing it to resemble a different race. Black-face is an issue that’s getting better with more people being held accountable, but it’s still definitely there. Racism in the cosplay community goes much further than changing one’s skin tone. I’ve also seen MANY black cosplayers being ridiculed or told that they can’t cosplay a character because said the character “isn’t black”. Yet, most anime characters are Asian, and people aren’t telling white cosplayers they can’t cosplay a character because a character isn’t white. There’s a huge double standard for black cosplayers in the community, who often have to work much harder or put more effort into their cosplays to be noticed. This is completely unfair because black cosplayers are the backbone of the community and get no recognition for it.”
In addition to the potential to dress offensively, can people also be offensive when acting?
“Yes, absolutely. Asian fishing goes further than changing your facial features. Using a lot of Japanese languages if you don’t speak Japanese, or acting on harmful Asian stereotypes like high-pitched voices, schoolgirl outfits, and being overly submissive in your daily life are all offensive. These are things I’ve personally seen.”
Have you ever cosplayed something and realized afterward that it was offensive? If so, how did you deal with it?
“No, not really, I entered the cosplay community at an older age than most people, which meant I had been watching and learning about the cosplay community for a long time before I started cosplaying. This helped me learn about avoidable mistakes and what’s disrespectful and what isn’t before I started cosplaying, which I’m very thankful for, as hurting someone or disrespecting a culture is the last thing I’d ever want to do.”
What are ways people can become more responsible cosplayers both in the ways they dress and act?
“I think being responsible in the ways you dress and act is very important in cosplay, all of which can be helped with education. When it comes to respecting culture, I think learning the history of certain traditional clothes is very important. However, it’s even more important to listen to Asian voices or the voices of other groups that can potentially be hurt when trying to figure out if something is ok. I’ve seen many cosplayers who aren’t sure if they are being disrespectful post a video and ask, which is always helpful. It’s also important to acknowledge that one opinion doesn’t represent an entire community, so continuously doing research, and asking.
To see the content of Lucy Woodrow, you can find her on her TikTok @moth.princess
