Huffington Magazine Issue 58 | Page 72

Exit CULTURE HUFFINGTON 07.21.13 THE TRENDY ONES FROM LEFT: ALBERT L. ORTEGA/GETTY IMAGES; COURTESY OF FREMEN PHOTO When an obsession surfaces in our culture — be it a buzzy new TV show, film, or comic book — chances are it will be reflected in the cosplay world for however long it’s in mode (usually a few years). According to Chuang, My Little Pony is dying down a bit this year, while Adventure Time is still going strong. Dr. Who is one of the greater success stories in recent years, though its had its own convention, Gallifrey One, since 1990 (according to Chuang, it’s already sold out for 2014). Cosplayer Hannah Black credits the rise to new showrunner Steven Moffat, who played a large role in bringing Dr. Who to a mainstream American audience — and to Comic Con itself. THE MASH-UPS Why be one character when you could be two? Our cosplay panel tended to agree that mash-ups are some of the most fun costumes to witness — no matter the new trends, shows and comic books percolating, these are the unexpectedly clever ones, the ones that prompt passersby to ask, “Who are you supposed to be?” Take cosplayer Hannah Black, who has cleverly mixed Dr. Who’s time machine (known as TARDIS) with pairings from Captain America’s USO Girl to Sailor Moon’s Sailor Scout. Black is pictured here in a Victorian take on Dr. Who (with a TARDIS parasol) — while not intentional, it’s been mistaken for a Mary Poppins/Dr. Who mash-up enough times that Black’s embraced it, finding the pairing apt. “I’m completely cool with people thinking I mashed those two together because Mary Poppins definitely has Time Lord qualities,” Brown told us. COSTUMES TO WATCH FOR Game of Thrones, My Little Pony, Black Cat (manga), Adventure Time (animated series), Red Sonja and Mera from Aquaman, Thor (and his archenemy Loki) OUR COSPLAY PANELS’ FAVORITES INCLUDE: Mary Poppins and Dr. Who, Deadpool and Sailor Moon, Link and Assassin’s Creed, superhero Disney princesses, 1920s Twilight Sparkle, Avengers Playboy