The last couple weeks I've been hearing speculation about the show. Will it be positive or negative for cosplayers/geeks, etc. Then it aired and OMG my cosplay friends and cosplayers I love and follow EXPLODED with opinions. Like whoa y'all, simmer down. Though I get a little riled up in the following "review", lol. (Er, that means I cuss, I do that when I'm riled up, lol. Or just talking, haha!!)
Tonight I finally got a chance to watch it, no thanks to Hulu's ridiculous ads that don't load correctly so instead of a 102 second commercial break it ends up being more like 400-500 seconds despite the fact I pay these jerks for their service but I digress. #firstworldproblems Now I feel like I need to preface this by saying that I have not read any online reviews short of a status here and there and after cosplayer Charmedseed mentioned something on facebook about a nasty article everyone seemed to be sharing, I avoided them because it sounds like this particular reviewer was downright NASTY and I don't need that shit. In the world of cosplay there is entirely too much nerd on nerd hate and I'm sick of it. We all love what we love and if we love it enough to dress up as a character then we should be able to. /this particular rant. For now.
First of all I thoroughly enjoyed the show. I would have liked to have seen more of the costume making processes but this is reality TV so they're not going to focus on that despite that cosplayers, people who enjoy seeing others cosplay or want to start cosplaying are their audience. They are going to focus on the DRAMA. Which brings me to my first annoyance- people are judging these people on the show with "OMG she's such a bitch" blah-de-freaking BLAH. Syfy hasn't been the same since they were Sci-Fi for one and two this is reality TV and drama is their priority. Drama brings in viewers or the reality TV fad would have died when it should have years ago. (Ok not ALL reality TV should die but crap like the Bachelor, Big Brother & Survivor? WHY IS THIS SHIT STILL ON??) Someone had commented on a friend's fb status that they knew someone that actually knew one of the people on the show (or something along those lines) and said she really wasn't that nasty in real life. Here's the thing you need to remember when watching reality TV: It needs to be taken with a grain of salt. They're going for views. The crazy lady who flips out on everyone around her is more interesting than the girl that calmly gets her cosplay together.
Second: Cosplay can be freaking stressful. Anyone who has ever cosplayed knows this, so going on about how crazy someone is being is ridiculous. These people are at the level where most are perfectionists. I'm a perfectionist which is why I have so few completed cosplays because unless it's perfect I won't do it at all with few exceptions (ok, one exception). Some people are like that. If you can throw something together last minute and be cool with that? Good for you, but don't judge someone for wanting their craftmanship to show how much they love what they're cosplaying as or to show just how hard they've worked on it. This is also for competitions so there is an added level of stress and needing to be the best for some people. Which again adds the the drama I discussed in the previous paragraph.
I've heard that people are upset with the show because they chose to follow "ugly" cosplayers. Stop right freaking there. This is bullshit and it makes me stabby. As Becky says in the show, the internet is unforgiving. Fat versions of characters, etc. This is the kind of shit in the nerd/geek world that pisses me off the most. Now I'm not comfortable cosplaying as say Winry from Fullmetal Alchemist with her stomach showing which is my choice. If you're a curvier gal and are comfortable with it? Good for you! This body shaming crap needs to stop. As nerds we've all for the most part spent a pretty good chunk of time being bullied by non-geeks and the fact that we have so much nerd on nerd bullying is flat out sickening. Now I understand that some are upset that majority on the show is white females, which I can understand, but saying the people they're focusing on are ugly is beyond ridiculous.
All in all, I liked the show and I'm excited to see more. I think it shows reality of cosplay. Cosplay is hard and stressful when you're at the level where you're doing competitions and not just for fun. Hell it can be stressful even when it's just for fun. Things fall apart, plans fall through, bodies change shape and require costume alterations, and that one thing you thought was going to work could fall apart last second. *sniffles while thinking about her OC: Sailor Mimas' staff breaking in half* Really as of this first episode it's real and also all in good fun so I honestly don't see what people are getting butthurt about. :D
