I’ve done a lot of cosplays so far but I think this is the first time that I’ve done one on accident.
When I first started playing Tokyo Xanadu, I was playing it on PC. At that time, I had started streaming Code: Realize on PS4. Unfortunately, I couldn’t stream past the first chapter, so I bought Tokyo Xanadu again for PS4 and started streaming that instead. In order to promote my stream on IG, I thought it would be a good idea to cosplay one of the characters. I originally had my eye on Sora, because she was my favorite at the time (I wasn’t that far into the game). I had an unfinished skirt from a cosplay that didn’t work out, and it was close to her uniform skirt. So I thought, “I’ll finish the skirt, buy a blue wig, and do a shoot.” But when I started to really get into the game, I decided to stop streaming because I knew other people wouldn’t want to watch me configure soul devices for two hours. So that cosplay fell by the wayside.
The idea resurfaced while looking up pictures of Rion for the planning post. The unfinished skirt was still sitting in my project pile, mocking me. I still had plenty of fabric and bias tape along with a pattern for a sailor collar from my Sailor Neptune cosplay. I just so happened to remember the gold fabric I had from yet another unfinished cosplay, which was literally just enough to make the bow. I already had a pink wig that I bought on a whim. I knew where I could get a sweater like hers. So clearly this was fate and I had to make it.
Now, mind you, not everything was smooth sailing. Like I said, I bought the wig on a whim, so it wasn’t specifically for Rion. It’s the super cute Princess Pink Mix Gaia from EpicCosplay. The thing is, it is specifically made to be worn in a twin-tail style. I wasn’t in the position to get another wig just yet, but I really wanted to do the shoot so I did the only thing I could: I clipped one ponytail to the back of my head and took every photo from one side. Man, the amount of retakes I had to do because the angle exposed the wrong ponytail… Also, that’s why I had to edit some stars into the first picture. So if I look awkward in all of these, that’s one reason.
The other reason is probably because I had a hard time thinking of poses. When I do her SPiKA outfit, I’ll have plenty to work with, because I have an idea of how idols move in anime. But I forgot to look at her more normal everyday actions beforehand. The cool thing about Tokyo Xanadu eX+ is that in the extra content, they have something where you can pose each of the main characters. So I can pick a place and an outfit for Rion, and choose from quite a few different expressions (“Angry”, “Shy”, “Confused”, things like that). All I could think of were all the times when she was singing, so most of my shots ended up being just me with my mouth wide open hoping you couldn’t see what I had for lunch. Thankfully you weren’t there to hear me. I mean, I was lip-synching, but still. My rendition of “Unlasting” wouldn’t be anywhere near Lisa’s. It’s a heart-rending song, you should check it out.
So overall, though I’m not particularly happy with this shoot for several reasons, I am happy with this cosplay. I used to think that nothing could beat a good knife-pleated skirt, but box pleats might become my new favorite. Also, for no reason at all, I am incredibly proud of how adorable this bow turned out. I might re-shoot this cosplay once I get a better wig. But honestly, I’ll probably just save that wig for her SPiKA outfit, which I am still absolutely stoked to do at some point.
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