OtaGonzo: Cosplay Fusion 2009 Part 2
by otaking on Jun.29, 2009, under Otagonzo
(Welcome to my first installment of OtaGonzo. What is Gonzo? Check out the following links: Gonzo Journalism, Hunter S. Thompson, Spider Jerusalem, Anthony Bourdain, Neil Strauss, and P.J. O’Rourke.)
The LEGEND
As Cosplay Fusion started to wind up at about the 4pm mark (it was really too much to ask for it to start on time in our culture) I sat down with my friends in the sweltering heat, under a white tent set up just for the event. Already a line of cosplayers were forming at the bridge that hung over the Rockwell basketball courts. The cosplayers (and the costrippers — people in costume who were just hanging out) themselves were a broad cross-section of otakudom: Optimus Prime, Ranfa from Galaxy Angel, a Swordsman from Ragnarok Online, a cardboard box explicitly labeled “Box from Metal Gear Solid”, a loligoth girl about two inches taller than me, with a scythe that I didn’t recognize, whom I discovered was named Mia and was attending her first cosplay event ever. She was fourteen. I shook my head in disbelief.
"The *special* hell."
I spotted Mike Abundo milling around. I took a deep breath, stood up, and headed off to greet him. See, Mike, whom I hadn’t seen since college, is not a very popular figure in the cosplay world. Actually, I understate. In fact, broad swathes of otaku have an almost-automatic reflex just from the sound of his name. And I was meeting up with him in public.
I hesitated not because I hate the guy — although we’ve had our disagreements in the past, and many of my friends certainly do. I hesitated because of what people would think of me after this. No, I recognized what it was — just more disapproval from other people. NOT meeting up with him would be a violation of everything I’d ever said about being otaku, about being accepting, about living your life no matter what people said about you.
And Mike is a walking, talking, hadoken-throwing example of someone who just doesn’t give a crap. Infamous for, among other things, snatching up domain names in time to capitalize on upcoming local events (annoying, yes, but technically not illegal) and dressing up as an anime-fied version of himself named ‘Slick’ and hamming it up in front of an incredulous Yuu Watase, and a certain blurry phone cam video, Mike simply doesn’t care how people perceive him.
I found myself envying the freedom this gave him.
“Hey Mike,” I said, wincing at how loud my voice seemed.
He turned around and yelled my name. “Cliff!” So much for being inconspicuous. “Where’s your lightsaber, man?”
“I didn’t bring it. Wanted to go unencumbered this time.”
He hid his disappointment well, but I saw it anyway. Fact is, the thing was heavy. I was expecting this to be a long day of talking to people, braving the heat, and enduring the crush of cosplay fans and curious onlookers.
Mike took a couple of photos of a character from .hack and then rapidly introduced me to several people, most of whose names now elude me. The event organizer. A few cosplayers. A software developer and ex-employee of Google. The backstage staff. The owner of MaxiCollector. For some reason security would let me through as long as I said I was with him. If I wanted to get an insider’s peek into today’s cosplay world, this was it.
It was chaos.
And Mike, unfazed, was schmoozing like a pro. This wasn’t the Mike I knew from college. Well, he was, but with a turbo kit. Mike 2.0. He shook hands, bravely risking A( H1N1) infection. He showed genuine enthusiasm. He merged sets — meaning he would introduce different groups of friends to one another. Someone had plugged a very efficient social networking routine into his brain and he was applying the new knowledge to its fullest extent.
We sat near the front row, close to the crush of photographers that had formed in front of the stage after the band ended their set with a valiant rendition of “God Bless” from the Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya. The hosts came up on stage — the Gosengfiao sisters Alodia and Ashley as Black and White Mage, and a stage magician named Kel, who, commemorating the death of Michael Jackson, was apparently a smooth criminal.
I would get in Kel’s face very soon.
=====
Mike introduced me to a fellow who liked to call himself Bluzone. When I asked for his website for my phone, he didn’t hesitate to punch the URL in himself while I found myself holding the phone up for him. He informed me that an event or two ago, he got ‘faggot-punched’ on the side of the neck by someone I couldn’t make out because it was so noisy. When someone mentioned ‘GamerTotoy’ his eyes darted around. “Where? He’s here?” Then he walked off.
Finally the cosplayers came on stage one by one, introduced by the hosts. All sorts of ninjas, robots, monsters, superheroes, and martial artists paraded on stage, and each one found themselves being mocked by Kel. Some of the jabs were quite funny and referred to the character, but soon I found myself listening to him making fun of the person who had bothered to cosplay that day only to have his life choices questioned by a stage magician.
This made absolutely no sense to me. Why would you throw an event where you diss the people whose individual efforts toward their own costumes made the event possible? The whole thing depended on the quality of the contestants’ work, otherwise the event would be three hosts and a bunch of people in pajamas, kind of like those lame costume parties where no one makes any effort and everyone comes as themselves.
Before I knew it, the me that corrected my teacher’s spelling in elementary by going up to the blackboard and fixing it myself, the me who informed my Comparative Literature professor that her dissertation was ‘pointless’ (because it intentionally had no point in order to avoid criticism), the me that might get me shot by a congressman in traffic one day yelled:
“You’re supposed to BUILD UP the contestants, you douchebag!”
I wondered if he’d heard me. He looked directly at me.
Yep, he did.
What the hell had I done this time? At the first event I actually decided to cover myself? I was still an outsider!
Mike laughed uncontrollably. “It’s good to see you’re still an intellectual rebel!” It sounds so dorky when you put it that way.
Later Mike told me that the director told Kel to be mean to the contestants, so I was all up in Kel’s face for nothing. I apologize.
The director’s a douchebag.
=====
During a break in the program, Mike introduced me to the Gosengfiao’s mother Jing, who circulated the room like the proud mother she is, and their father Ed, the owner of a shipmaking company, who seemed to prefer fading into the background but seemed no less proud.
“I’m a lawyer who’s just getting back into the whole otaku scene,” I told Jing. “So it’s like this is all new to me, too. How did you first take it when you found out that they were into this kind of stuff?”
“Well,” she said, eyes looking up to remember, “at first I thought it was weird. Dressing up and so on. But this is their passion. This is what they love. So I totally support them in whatever they do.”
The expected answer, naturally. But how else would I have reacted? I thought to myself. Like any parent whose kids were into something I couldn’t understand, I suppose. If it isn’t doing them any harm, and it’s something they loved? No matter how weird I thought it was?
=====
I told Alodia the same thing afterward, that I was a recovering ‘normal person’ rediscovering my weirdo roots.
Alodia is surprisingly subdued and soft-spoken for a well-known cosplay figure, and likes to separate her very public public life from her private life. Being in the spotlight appears to be something she’s simply forced herself to learn. She told me, “I’ve always been weird. I’ve never been normal. I never want to be normal.”
“Haven’t you ever wanted to dress up normal and blend in, just to find out what the other side is like?” I asked, hoping that she would answer yes so I’d have an excuse for why I pretended to be normal for five years.
“Not really.”
One time for the cameras
Normal is overrated.
=====
After the contest was over, the awards were handed out (Mecha Godzilla banzai!), and the photos of the winners were taken, I said goodbye to Mike and everyone I’d met as they all left for the Maid Cafe at press, and headed back to my friends. It was like coming home from a very hectic vacation. I was culture-shell-shocked.
I thought to myself, every day I dress up for work, and I deal with people who wouldn’t give me the time of day if I was dressed in my casual wear. I cosplayed as a lawyer every day I went to work. And then it hit me: People cosplay as a single character ever single day.
But cosplayers switch from character to character, finding it confining to stick to just one. This is a part of cosplay that most non-cosplayers never realize — the freedom to change your identity, Optimus Prime one day, Wolverine the next.
Most people treat you as the person they perceive you to be, and usually this is just one image: lawyer, annoying weirdo, obedient child, domineering parent, douchebag.
Otaku.
Our friends, the people who know us the best, know that we are as changeable as our moods, and they accept the package deal. They know we play different characters every day, and we know that they do, too. We grow tired of hanging out with people who only see one side of us, who choose to do it because it’s easier than getting involved with the kind of mess that only real people make of themselves. Real people like the people I just hung out with, the people I just met.
People like us.
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OtaGonzo: Cosplay Mania 2009 Part I - Project Otaking
September 15th, 2009 on 7:06 pm[...] The Vigilant) and then I shook hands with Marcelle Fabie aka Kel, whom my readers may remember as the host I had heckled back at Cosplay Fusion. He was passing the time playing Dissidia on his [...]
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Tuned In
June 29th, 2009 on 5:31 pm
Real people… Tag or Label?
Nice piece.
June 29th, 2009 on 8:52 pm
Why thankees. And it’s a Tag, one that we all have.
June 29th, 2009 on 5:37 pm
Life is a cosplay. Glad you had fun, Cliff.
June 29th, 2009 on 10:14 pm
I had fun, but I was tired as heck afterward.
June 29th, 2009 on 8:13 pm
strangely enough the hairdo matches the necklace dude XD
June 29th, 2009 on 8:51 pm
Ah you like my shaggy Simon hairdo eh?
June 29th, 2009 on 8:40 pm
wow, that was a really well-written and insightful, er, blog (especially since its mostly about the cosplay scene). great writing skills too
June 29th, 2009 on 8:51 pm
Thanks! And thanks for dropping by!
June 30th, 2009 on 12:10 am
great post as always.
got me thinking about actually being rather tired with one of the roles i’m currently playing. maybe it’s time to change the script a little or ditch the role altogether.
June 30th, 2009 on 3:58 pm
Costume change!
June 30th, 2009 on 12:43 am
on the douchebag: I remember the emcees from that Miriam run con K judged at sometime ago did the same thing. this may not be an isolated case. It seems that in order to market the event to the “normals” that happen to pass by or observe, the emcees resort to kids games. Something that the majority in our culture understand so well. T_T Come to think of it, the guy who hosted alongside Pinoy Hard-Gay at Saizen Orchestra did the same thing. O_o
June 30th, 2009 on 11:13 am
Hey there, Kel here.
In this time and age of American Idol and Simon Cowell’s insane popularity, I have been tagged by some as a host following in his footsteps. I’ve been doing this for five years already, from weddings to the Smackdown press conference. This isn’t my first dance, and it sure as Hades wouldn’t be my last.
Flattering (Or unflattering) as that may be, I’d like to point out that though I criticize, I do draw the line someplace, and refuse to cross it. I have yet to tell a single cosplayer to give up cosplaying. Off-color humor? Yes. Pointing out someone looks like someone else? Yes. But telling them they downright suck? I leave that kind of stuff to Ariel and Maverick.
Just as the cosplayers portray a character when onstage, I am also a different person when I host. It’s my job, and as a professional, I do what is required of me. The organizer’s loyalty is to the cosplayers. The host’s loyalty is to the audience.
As Marcelle, the person, I do apologize for offending people with my antics. I respect that people have different thresholds for sensitivity, and hovering so close to that line I refuse to cross can and will trample on some sensibilities. It is what the job description calls for, and I have to do what is asked of me.
As Kel, the onstage persona, the loose cannon, I maintain that between boring the audience and offending some people, I would much rather go for the latter, no matter how much of a D-Bag that makes me.
With that, good day. I may not see eye to eye with what you have to say, but I sure as Hades respect your right to say it.
June 30th, 2009 on 3:37 pm
Yeah, thanks for dropping by.
If you notice, I said in the main text that I got in your face for nothing if your director did instruct you to be mean to the contestants and if that’s the case I apologize. I’ll direct my concerns toward the organizer and director of the event and clear this up.
Maybe this is a problem with the format? American Idol has a panel of judges. You guys were hosts. As I understand it, you weren’t Randy, Paula, and Simon, you were three Ryan Seacrests. Of varying degrees of moe.
At any rate, thanks for dropping by. Nothing is True; Everything is Permitted.
June 30th, 2009 on 5:12 pm
Nah, I still think that guy is a douche. Please sir, please. I’ve hosted before, and have done a show before a large audience … and I know the meaning of having a separate ’stage’ personality. Been there, done that. You can be a jerk when the mood calls for it or your character needs to. But you also have to act like a host and feel out the moment. Not every occasion is the same. And even Simon Cowell knows when to shut his pie-hole. So, in behalf of those who have hosted events and shows before, cut the bull and admit that you don’t know what you’re doing and you insulted kids. Don’t hide behind the job, please.
June 30th, 2009 on 6:10 pm
Where did I insult kids? I’ve been nothing but gracious to the Tiny Titans, and to the other younger cosplayers.
Where did I say that this or that cosplayer sucked? If I point out someone’s headpiece looks like a microphone, how is that demeaning to them as a person? If I pointed out how they resemble someone else, how does that trample upon their dignity? If I ask why Mace Windu had hair, is this not merely an observation of fact? When did I discourage a cosplayer from pursuing what they want to do?
Sometimes, people get too caught up in their indignation and gloss over what was actually said.
June 30th, 2009 on 5:53 pm
All that aside, I believe that it’s also a case of culture shock. I understand you haven’t seen a cosplay event in a while, but poking fun at each other (and ourselves… I also did put myself down a couple of times) has been something almost customary in some segments of cosplay already. It’s not (or at least, not meant to be) mean-spirited, and is really done with an air of jest; not condescension, or worse, condemnation.
The thing is, as a host, my main job is to get a reaction from the audience, by any means possible. This is why I reiterate that my loyalty is to the audience first, secondly to the cosplayers.
I guess I can only point you to contrast as an explanation why this hosting style works even if it may rag on the cosplayers a bit. I’m sure you’ve seen it at work in “Eat Bulaga” and “Wowowee”, but it also hinges on the fact that there is still a line I don’t cross. If you’ve seen Ariel and Maverick host, you’d understand what I mean.
June 30th, 2009 on 6:04 pm
Hmm. Point by point, seedsop said what I wanted to say. Darnit. But, let me add one last thing …
kids.
Nuff’ said.
June 30th, 2009 on 5:56 pm
To me, it sounds like a bunch of excuses for poor hosting. I don’t claim to be an expert in hosting but I have helped organized events and I can’t think of anyone actually instructing the host to insult the contestants. Even in Filipino noon time shows they keep insults to a minimal or none at all. So, if we don’t tolerate it on national TV why should we tolerate it during a cosplay event that are targeting kids and young adults?
Better get a new act because yours won’t last too long and people will probably get fed up sooner or later.
June 30th, 2009 on 6:17 pm
Been doing hosting for over five years, son. I’m just doin’ my job.
And, oh… I hosted the TOEInty group cosplay competition in Eastwood a few years back. My job description there was remarkably different, and needless to say, I did what I was asked to. I think people can tell you I was not on “Simon Cowell mode” for that show. I do what I am asked to do, and if the audience approves (As the majority did, then and now.), then that’s me fulfilling my job.
I’m just doin’ my job.
And re: your point about Philippine TV Noontime Shows… I take it you don’t watch Wowowee often enough to know that you’re stretching the truth there.
I rest my case. We’ve gotten to a point of hypersensitivity now.
June 30th, 2009 on 6:36 pm
affected now aren’t we?
Anyway I enjoyed reading this. More power to you! o/
June 30th, 2009 on 8:00 pm
Um, thanks!
June 30th, 2009 on 6:53 pm
I was at that cosplay event. You’re hosting wasn’t amusing even back then.
Secondly, so you’re comparing yourself to the host of Wowowee? Nice choice. Besides, they are not as blatant in using insults as you are painting them out to be. And let us not forget the contestants on those shows aren’t really kids.
I wonder who really is getting sensitive about the whole thing.
July 1st, 2009 on 12:08 am
I think you would’ve been better off just biting your tongue man. Your over-zealous defense of yourself just makes you look, well, guilty. Just chill and take it all in stride.
Peace all!
Excellent work, otaking.
June 30th, 2009 on 7:22 pm
A bad act is a bad act. People were put off, your act bombed. End of story. Do better next time. In the meantime, stop trying to make excuses.
And no, seniority doesn’t always necessarily equate to skill, so stop waving it around.
June 30th, 2009 on 8:10 pm
I just find it sad that certain noon time shows were used as examples of hosting “that works”.
When the target audience of such shows are somewhat significantly different from that of say a cosplay/convention crowd…
not to mention that most of said noon time show hosts are douche bags themselves most of the time.
As for Simon… a lot have tried… and failed…
June 30th, 2009 on 8:19 pm
A challenge!
Besides, better Simon than Kamina. My physique isn’t that show-ready yet 
June 30th, 2009 on 8:28 pm
You can do it. Believe in the you who believes in yourself.
June 30th, 2009 on 8:33 pm
No not that Simon! XD
Was replying to those who try and host/critique like Simon Cowell~
Hweheheheheheh~
June 30th, 2009 on 10:27 pm
and here I thought you were asking him to cosplay Simon.
June 30th, 2009 on 10:46 pm
Does this mean I’m off the hook?
I really want to go as Mr. H though…
June 30th, 2009 on 11:10 pm
Producer-san! \o/
July 1st, 2009 on 2:32 am
If you go as Mr. H; imma go as Hooded Reaper~ with frog noise
July 3rd, 2009 on 4:06 am
It’s surprising what people are capable of especially in their comfort zone. With that said, their comfort zone is then widen when they see other people sharing the same interests as they have. It would perhaps reach out to their other side of their life which used to be their non-comfort zone.
A really great post! Props to you. =]
July 3rd, 2009 on 3:03 pm
Thanks man! Do one thing that scares you every day. That’ll go a long way as far as expanding your comfort zone goes.
July 7th, 2009 on 2:59 pm
Hi Cliff! Never knew you were a blogger. Excellent post bro. Wish I was there at the event
July 7th, 2009 on 7:28 pm
Heya Wauks!
Nah I just started this blog a couple of months ago. Thanks for dropping by!