Unnecessary Comical Picture Thread

[Luftmensch]

I think cosplay can leave a lot of room for interpretation, depending on the character, the convention, the situation in general. If you look up Joker cosplays, you'll find a lot of contradicting interpretations, and perhaps even costumes with no overlapping features (for example, one person could do an unpainted scar-faced Heath Ledger Joker versus an over-the-top Killing Joke Joker). Even when there haven't been multiple canon interpretations, some characters simply lend themselves to different cosplay approaches (look up Wall-E cosplay if you want some good examples). A seemingly contradictory accessory, in a thoughtful, well-done costume, can be perfectly appropriate.

Speaking of cosplay, apparently this fella was spotted sweeping up garbage at a convention.

[Roderick]

Hey, I'm all about going wild and lots of variability in cosplay. I support that. But I think the thing that leads me to the belief that the Goldeneye Cartridge 'should' be faithful to Brosnan's visage (barring, like I said, specific comedy purposes), is that it's an image of Brosnan. There is no doubt that the guy is going for authenticity. The cartridge has clearly been made with lots of care. The pose has been carefully studied. He's wearing a movie-appropriate watch. Unless his intention is to go "Doink! And now I'm an Asian guy with glasses!", it doesn't fit that he wouldn't also take the same care to constructing the face in the most genuine manner.

[James]

What's with all this prescriptive nonsense? Don't people primarily do cosplay for their own enjoyment? I personally have no interest in it, but if people want to dress up, they can do so however they damn well please. Or do these rule-making people think the not-entirely-matching people are making a mistake about how to enjoy themselves the most?

And you only suggest the GoldenEye costume is a comedy one? He has a cartridge on his head! The glasses are clearly appropriate.

[ThunderPeel2001]

Bottom line: it's an awesome costume.

[Roderick]

To not give the wrong impression, I'll reiterate that I'm not part of the cosplaying community (even though I do cosplay occasionally), and am only reflecting the discussions inherent to some parts of it. I try to be as little prescriptivist as possible, because, indeed, I fully agree with you, James, that people should do what feels best for them.

As for the Goldeneye Cartridge, there is another point to make, which is that there are two currents of comedy at play here, and they shouldn't be mixed up. The first is the immediate joke, the one I think is the main attraction: here's a guy dressed up as a Goldeneye Cartridge. That's hilarious. I've seen cosplays of people dressing up as the painting of the pirate from the Spongebob Squarepants intro. I love that stuff.

But then there is another joke that may be at play here (I personally think it is), which is: Hey look, I took all this effort to look like the Goldeneye Cartridge, but then I didn't do anything to look like Pierce Brosnan himself. This is jarring, and pretty funny as a result.

If the purpose would have been only to go for the first bit of comedy, it would make sense to attempt the most faithful recreation possible, which is what leads me to the statement that in that case, the glasses are not ideal. It isn't about being prescriptivist, it's about understanding what someone is trying to attempt (artistically!) and then seeing how that goal is reached or not.

[ThunderPeel2001]

I think the joke is: "Here's me as James Bond... on an N64 Cartridge!".

I think there's some unintentional humour in him not wearing contacts.

[James]

  On 1/20/2013 at 12:52 PM, Rodi said:

It isn't about being prescriptivist, it's about understanding what someone is trying to attempt (artistically!) and then seeing how that goal is reached or not.

I guess if you're going to bring art into it it's bound to get messy.

I think the thing I really reacted to was this part of your original post: "whether you need to physically look like a character to cosplay them". I know you were just reporting on a portion of the cosplay community, so my response is thus directed. One can judge whether or not a costume worked in their eyes or according to a certain ideal, but one can't really make any comment on whether or not the cosplayer should have bothered in the first place. Who's to say which people are after creating a very specific and precise effect, and which are just expressing themselves and having good time or whatever?

Again, that's not directed at you, Rodi.

[Roderick]

Oh, yeah, you are right in that there is a lot of BS in that community that I emphatically do not support. The more heinous aspects, which try to put down what you can or can't do, are reprehensible. But I think there is value in looking at these things as expressions of culture and what they say, and as such, they are art and you can make some critique on them. It's all in the tone of course. I mean, the first time I saw that picture I laughed hard and showed it to my mom. I think it's very successful, no matter how you spin it.

[Luftmensch]

Sounds to me like you think that successful art is X, then you see successful art that is Y, and you're having trouble accepting that model X is wrong. Since art can be approached in an unlimited number of ways, I think ultimately the success of most art has less to do with how it's made and more to do with the reactions it gets, but that's a fuzzy explanation.

[Roderick]

I think that's overcomplicating it a little

[subbes]

Scruffy was posted earlier; he's an actual Scruffy cosplayer.

[subbes]

[MrHoatzin]

At first, I was the only pointer at the party, then I clicked to open the ligh-tbox and then I was the only black cursor at the party.

[Roderick]

Mine is white, but with a shade. The others are looking at me with suspicious minds. We can't go on together.

[Nachimir]

Linking because it's big.

[Luftmensch]

What the hell

[ThunderPeel2001]

Woah... Our brain can create charicatures?

[subbes]

[Luftmensch]

Porn, edited to be safe for work.

[subbes]

[Luftmensch]

[ThunderPeel2001]

15 year old girl leaves this for her parents to discover. Very sweet (no pun intended).

[tegan]

Cute, but it all comes down to how they reacted.

[dibs]

Did they eat the cake?

[Roderick]

Probably only funny for the Dutchies is this silliness I made:

The woman pictured above is our queen Beatrix, who loves to sculpt busts and heads. When I saw archive footage of her going at it on tv (because of her recent abdication announcement), all I could think of was Lionel Richie.