Well, first of all , tell me about the character you are portraying and how you become to pick that particular character to cosplay !
I chose to cosplay Lucy from Lynn Okamoto’s haunting anime, Elfen Lied. Lucy is a Diclonius whose goal on this Earth is to wipe out the human race and can do so very effectively with the use of her “vectors”, which are large invisible hands that generate from her back. Having been held captive, and fitted with a helmet thats main goal was to limit the use of her “vectors” Lucy planned her escape. When the opportunity came she went through every obstacle wether it be huge metal walls or human bodies and was once again a force to be reckoned with. The half helmet that i debuted originates from the very beginning of the anime, as Lucy escapes the compound and is almost executed by a sniper. The shot from the weapon splits the helmet apart but didn’t have the power to take her life as well. Elfen Lied has to be one of the darkest anime series that i have yet come across since i first stumbled into anime.
Choosing to cosplay as a character from such a gruesome series not only challenged me to try to be the best Lucy i could be, but also gave me the chance to try and bring the character to life in all her dark glory. Plus, there is always the shock value that you get when you debut a cosplay that you have done well, that has the potential to either make people scream with joy and rush up to hug one of their favorite characters or back away and stay their distance for fear of the character itself. Its safe to say that i received both reactions while at Otakon 2009 and felt the thrill of knowing that it was a job well done.
And your outfit, tell me how you put it all together ?
There wasn’t much to be done on an actual outfit because in actuality Lucy doesn’t wear anything while seen wearing the helmet. Needless to say i was NOT going to be seen at Otakon by thousands of people in that manner. So the top and bottom i created out of a sports top and a pair of shorts. I wrapped the top and bottom with medical bandage wrap and then figured out there was no way to get out of the cosplay since i had made it with me IN it. Out came the scissors and hours later i had the top fitted with a zipper on the left side that allowed for a much easier removal. Then came the fun part as i proceeded to fling stage blood all over the fabric and most of the wall it was hanging on.
Most of my work was obviously spent on the helmet. Whereas the top and bottom were made in as little as three days the helmet took three weeks. The first step in making the helmet was to make a mold of my face, so that when completed, the helmet would actually conform to my face structure. Then i had a lot of fun working with clay to build the actual shape i wanted the helmet to take on. After that i had to make both a positive and negative mold so that the area in between could be filled with something called Wonderflex, which i had previously shaped. Wonderflex was the best material to use in this case because once the helmet was completed it would have left it very light in weight but durable enough that it could go through some basic wear and tear and not be affected. Then to smooth out all my edges and the surface i used a material called Gesso. This was painted on the helmet in layers. I had to apply Gesso and then sand it to a smooth finish and then apply more Gesso, then sand, ect. ect. After that process, all that had to be done was the painting. I tried to add a small detailed effect on the surface of the helmet to give it a dull, worn texture. Then for the Horn I basically did the same process.
Once the Helmet and Horn were completed i was able to sew it onto the wig. With the helmet not being very heavy the wig was able to keep the Helmet in its place throughout the entire convention. And once i added my crazy pink contact lenses and dipped my hand in some very sticky stage blood, Lucy was complete.
Dang, the mask sounds like it took so major time ! How were the reaction of the people at Otakon when they saw you ?
I had a variety of reactions while at Otakon but there were four that really stood out and i don’t think i will likely forget them.
The first was a girl that, from the moment she saw me, was behind her friend and wanted absolutely nothing to do with me. She didn’t want to look at me, let alone get close to me, which was pretty hard for her since her friends were pushing her towards me and asking me if could just run up and hug her. i gave her space though because i really didn’t want to scare her THAT badly.
Another reaction that i got that really gave us some good laughs was a girl that started screaming “Lucy” and just about tripped over people in her haste to catch up with me. But the funniest part was when she did, instead of asking for a hug, she looked right in my eyes and said i just need to touch you. And sure enough she stuck her finger out and poked me. Just poked me in the shoulder and proceeded on her merry way leaving my friends and i dying from laughter behind her.
The next was a group of very loud and exuberant boys. They asked if they could get a photo with me, and as i posed for the camera, around me, all of them crippled over in horrible positions of pain, screaming that i was chocking one of them with my “vectors” and ripping another guy apart as he was wriggling around on the floor. It was priceless and I really wish i could have gotten a copy of that photo.
The last i have was on the last day 2 men walked up to me, one was very shy and quiet, but they asked if he could get a photo with me. He seemed nervous to touch me while we posed so i threw my arm around him and he broke into a huge smile for the photo. Once the photo was taken he laughed and pulled up his pant leg to show me a huge tattoo he had of Lucy, wearing the helmet and not much else but a coat of blood. It really felt great that i was up to his standards of his favorite anime character, so much so that he would ask for a photo.
Aside from Lucy, what who else have you cosplay ? And along the same line, how did you get started in cosplaying ?
Since Otakon 2009 was only the second convention that I have been to, i’ve only ever cosplayed once before. I ended up taking the safe route and did Misa from DeathNote, which was exceedingly simple. So of course i was just one the the numerous Misa walking around Otakon 2008. With Otakon 2009, i wanted something that i could really work at, something that would be eye catching! And sure enough, as Lucy, it was hard to walk ANYWHERE without having to stop every 2 seconds for another photo. Though, secretly, i LOVED it! lol. I got started cosplaying in 2008 when i went to my first convention. Just seeing all those con goers, looking amazing as their characters, i just knew it was something that I had to become a part of.
Would you with Lucy for future cons and working on anything for the future ?
I will definitely keep Lucy for any other conventions i might attend in the future. And with my husband, who is military, having just been assigned Okinawa, Japan as his new duty station, i cant wait to attend even bigger conventions overseas. Im not currently working on any new cosplay at the moment, but that is just because i am in the middle of choosing who i should cosplay as next. Im split between Lady Jagara from Wolf’s Rain or the wolf Okami from the hit ps2/wii game. Decisions Desisions lol
And finally if you have unlimited money, unlimited time and technology was no concern, who would you cosplay ?
Hmm now that is a TOUGH question. If i had all of that at my disposal it would have to be Misane from Witchblade in her second powered up figure. ^^ Ive been desperatly trying to figure out the best way to achieve creating a cosplay as technical as this one, but at the moment its just in my dreams lol.
