Ask John: Why do So Many Ugly People Cosplay?

Question:
Why is it that most American cosplayers are so ugly. I mean really, there should be someone at the door to stop these people from entering conventions. There’s nothing I hate more than witnessing such a train wreck as people who think they look hot and cute when in reality, they belong in the same group as gorgons and butt pimples. I would really appreciate an answer, even though it’s such a contorversial question.

Answer:
I hear variations of this question frequently, so I think it’s worth answering. I’ll try to be tactful. But in advance I’d like to say that I do appreciate and respect fans that cosplay because I think that creating and wearing anime costumes is a sign of intense devotion to anime.

Although not to the same extent now as I think was the case in the 1970s, 80s, and early 90s, I think that anime attracts people from the fringes of society. Especially during the 1980s, anime fandom in America was largely characterized by fans that didn’t fit in with mainstream society. Young people that had low self esteem or whose tastes weren’t mainstream, and just “outsiders” found an underground, exclusive treasure in anime. Anime provided a wonderful escape from reality- a look into other worlds that were more exciting, romantic, and adventure filled than the one anime fans lived in. Now that anime has become far more mainstream in American culture there are more fans that now enter the hobby for superficial reasons, but I believe that there are still many fans who unconsciously use anime as a surrogate life- a temporary respite from reality.

I don’t intend to sound cruel, but I do think it’s true that many young people who don’t have a positive self-image or who don’t have a lot of self-confidence are attracted to anime because anime provides a reassuring, supportive world that accepts everyone equally. Furthermore, I think that frequently these fans who subconsciously may not be totally happy with themselves find temporary freedom in role-playing as someone else. Cosplay allows a fan to psychologically become a bit of a different person for a while. And I think it’s often the most put-upon youngsters who most benefit from the cathartic pleasure of role-playing. Not only does dressing up as someone the cosplayer admires or wishs to be create a temporary sense of freedom, cosplaying at anime conventions is especially rewarding because the cosplayer find him or herself in the company of supportive, appreciative, like-minded individuals. I’m not saying that all cosplaying is a symptom of self delusion or the result of an inferiority complex, but I do think that a sense of inferiority does subconsciously motivate a lot of anime fans who cosplay.

Although I don’t cosplay myself, I have a fondness for people that do. I feel a solidarity with people that cosplay because I think they are people like myself who are deeply devoted to anime. I believe that I, and all of the people who cosplay, could live without anime, but we don’t want to. Making and wearing anime costumes is entertaining and affirming and reassuring for certain people who may need a boost to their self confidence or may occasionally need to step out of their own lives. I don’t pity these people, and I don’t dislike these people. I appreciate their devotion and their courage. Although they may look different from me and may dress different from me, they are anime fans just like me. They like the same things I like, and may have other sympathies and weaknesses in common with me. So when I see a fat girl dressed as Sailor Moon, inevitably I see a fat girl wearing a silly costume. But at the same time, I also see an anime fan like me who is enjoying herself proudly, and I respect that.