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[Eau de Decus]

Originally Posted by R3X

What are you're opinions on people who cosplay outside of a fandom they're in?

I have no opinion. I plead the "Do whatever the hell you want" response.

[violetlights]

The whole reason I got into cosplaying was because my friend talked me into doing her Homestuck OTP with her! I'll be honest, I did a pretty crappy job, but it was fun and the fandom didn't seem to mind that I had no clue what was going on xD

[Scorpio8116]

I agree with what everyone's said so far; you should be able to cosplay what you want.

I want to add something about the roleplay part someone mentioned on Homestuck. Most fandoms tend to have really outgoing people that like to make all sorts of series references and in-jokes (which is great, I love that kind of stuff). But I do recommend looking up or asking a friend about popular memes/jokes if you're the kind that doesn't like feeling out of the loop. I know I would feel really awkward if, say, they're all making some sort of joke about how so-and-so character "gets around" and it happens to be the character you're cosplaying and you're just have this clueless smile on your face like ?

That being said, if you have no problem or think it's still super-enjoyable then do what you want! :3 I just know that personally I'd at least look up a few in-jokes so I wouldn't accidentally become the butt of a joke or something without knowing it myself.

[dx7879]

I would cosplay something I wasn't into if it's part of a group and I like the costume

[Shana05]

I really don't understand it. I'll admit I sometimes get the urge to cosplay something I haven't watched/read/played but I never make the jump to actually doing so until I have and enjoyed it. I can understand it if you're doing so for a friend's group cosplay but otherwise it seems odd to me.

[TenTigerLilies]

I'm A-OK with it, and I don't understand the people who think that you must have an undying love for your character to have the right to cosplay them. I don't watch Bleach, although I really want to do an Ulquiorra (if I spelled that right?) cosplay, just because I LOVE his character design.

Despite the fact that I've now been infected with a love for Young Justice, before I was, the friend who infected me had planned to do an Artemis Crock cosplay, but she has this aversion to cosplaying any character without having someone else in the group cosplay a character from the same series, so I agreed to do Miss Martian only on the premise that she's green and she has a cape. The only aversion I would have to people who cosplay outsidie of fandoms they're interested in is that they may not know a lot about their character, since now that I've watched Young Justice, I know that Miss Martian really wouldn't be my first choice personality-wise (And I would have done Zatanna Zatara had I picked it XD) But again, personal choices!

[BlondieSundae]

I wanna cosplay Grell, I don't care much for Black Butler though, just him.

[R3X]

Oah, I wasn't expecting so many replies!
Thanks for the advice so far guys ;>

[mokulen22]

I made my Happy cosplay before really knowing or watching the series Fairy Tail. I was commissioned to make a plushie of Happy and the character design was just too damn cute that I fell in love with him.

I did a bit of research before wearing the cosplay to a con though...I didn't want to be like O_o duhh what?? when someone talked to me about the series. :P

[ilafatyu]

I'm actually doing that right now. I found my next cosplay through fanart, and only started reading the manga because I don't want to look like a moron or be unable to correctly interact with other cosplayers of the series (if there are any to be found). I dislike almost everything about Magi except for probably three semi-minor characters and an antagonist. I think it's worth it, though.

I'd suggest researching your character and learning about them rather than reading the entire comic. I personally find Homestuck dull and confusing (not to mention the issues with Earthbound/Homestuck), but the cosplayers and fandom are pretty...robust. Interesting. You know what I mean.

[Apple Adams]

A majority of the characters I cosplay are from series that I initially have absolutely no experience with. However, I am the sort to do an insane amount of research on the person I'm dressing up as (I really like to embody the character when I'm at a con), so I typically end up getting really into it.

There are so many books, shows, and games that I've gotten into purely because I liked the way a character looked.

[trophy-bot]

I see no problem there, not even with awkward fanbase interactions, unless it bothers you.

There are so many tr00 fans of this or that who just can't get in character. Often because they can't get past their OTP or fandom portrayals of the character, therefore turning an interesting char into a gushing uke or a one-liner-throwing cool guy, completely dismissing character depth and anything but the weirdest perks. Then again, some big fans of a show might cosplay only because they like to craft, having no intention to roleplay or interact with their fandom even if they know their series inside out.
Awkward moments may happen to these fan cosplayers just as well, because not everyone likes the same pairings, or because some just expect every cosplayer to want to act in-character.

So no, don't be worried about cosplaying something you don't really know, unless you're afraid of awkward social situations.

[ChillyCircle]

I've gotten into quite a few series because I've wanted to cosplay characters from them. At Acen I will be cosplaying Alice: Madness Returns and I started the costume before I even had the game. Also, I've had friends dress up with me as characters from an anime they didn't know before, so I can't really say anything bad against other cosplayers that do the same. They didn't have a problem with it either. Moral of the story: Who cares. As long as you like at least SOMETHING about the character and you put effort into the costume, go for it!

[Ithlia]

I mean...I don't really have a problem with it unless a person does ZERO research on the fandom. I mean, I agree that people can and should cosplay as whoever they want to. However, I think that when people cosplay from something they aren't familiar with...it kind of defeats the purpose. I mean, if a person does no research on the character or series, how will he/she pose for photos while remaining in-character? And how will he/she interact with fans of the series? I would just hate for someone to get bashed by fans for not knowing anything about the series at least.


I mean, most people that ask for your picture are fans of the character or the series that the character is from. And to not pose in-character for the person would be a little disheartening to that person. I mean, personally when I take a picture I love when the cosplayer poses in character. It looks awesome! And then there are times where the person will just stand there and I'm like....oh ok then... Of course, then again some people will take your picture because they like the outfit ^^

Overall though, I'm about 95% ok with people cosplaying as characters from a fandom they aren't too familiar with. Personally, I try to avoid it, but if I do choose a character to go with a friend or because of the design, I'll force myself to play/watch the series. I usually end up enjoying it regardless though, so I actually use cosplay to get involved with new series. The only thing I ask people is that they do a little bit of research at least so they are familiar with the character and the series ^^ It will lead to a more pleasant experience when interacting with fans and posing for pictures.

[Shiva Edge]

I personally wouldn't cosplay a character I know nothing about aside from appearance... but it doesn't really matter if other people do it or not.