Cosplay in Rain
December 29, 2005
The first day of the Anime Faire in S.F. Japantown started out dry and full of promise as lively and colorful cosplayers gathered around the Peace Plaza’s majestic pagoda. To everyone’s dismay, the light morning drizzle quickly turned into a downpour that lasted for the entire event. The whole event went completely topsy-turvy, and seemed as if the Faire was doomed to close down. But the resilience of cosplayers is something to be reckoned with. Many used costume props to fight off the storm, covering their heads with everything from large swords to oversized fans to feathery angel wings. The cosplay contest still went on with full force, and the J-Town malls were packed with tourists and superheroes, angels and demons, all enjoying the Anime Faire events and Japanese cultural performances.
Half the fun of going to an anime event is taking pictures of cosplayers. There were Kuchiki Rukia from the anime Bleach, Gaara of the Desert from Naruto, soldiers from Hideo Kojima’s Metal Gear video games and Anakin Skywalker from Star Wars. Not only does Japan Video and Media store have a great selection of Asian media, they sport what is probably the largest Totoro plushy this side of the Pacific — not for sale (I asked).
I stuffed my face with sushi, shabu shabu and crepes from Sophie’s Crepes, and practically overdosed on miso soup and green tea. An Asian American jazz band charmed shoppers by the coffee shop and a mochi pounding ceremony accompanied by taiko drumming wowed the crowds of people who were eager to enjoy the freshly made delicacy. Holiday shopping went on at the dealer’s hall. I got myself some Narutard gear, my main prize being the army-green Chuunin vest with a Konoha symbol on the back. Though the rain unfortunately cut out many of the performances, Random Ninjas rocked out the cosplay crowd and Stephanie Yanez captivated the audience with her award-winning voice.
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