Who
exactly are cosplayers?
Cosplayers
are fans of movies, TV shows, comic books, literary characters, Anime, Manga,
toys and video games who love to dress up and pretend they’re their favorite characters
in each genre.
What
started out as simple expressions of creativity within a small group of fans
has blossomed to a huge following with literally hundreds, If not thousands, of
cosplayers attending conventions and various events.
One
of the biggest conventions is the New York Comicon and cosplay is huge there,
as gigantic as NYC itself.
Smith Street Books/Rizzoli and writer Andrew Boyle present a
small, thick, hardbound book called: ‘Heroes
& Villains: A Photographic Odyssey Into The Fantastic World Of Cosplay’.
Inside
readers are treated to cull-color photos of cosplayers dressed up as their
favorite superheroes, super villains, video game characters, movie persona and
just about every type imaginable of pop culture characters.
Accompanying
the photos are interviews and quotes from the cosplayers themselves (many of
whom make cosplaying a lifetime occupation).
Visually
mind-boggling the book is a gallery of costumes by fans whose creativity and
imaginations knows no bounds.