For pop culture fanatics the world over, it’s the most magical week of the summer: Comic-Con International, also known as San Diego Comic-Con, starts today, kicking off a weekend chock-full of news on next year’s biggest comics, movies and TV shows.

Besides the awesome panels and announcements, one thing that invariably comes out of Comic-Con every year is a slew of photos of attendees in crazy costumes. The costumes have become an essential part of the massive annual event and perhaps the most recognizable, though many observers might not understand the appeal of dressing up in such elaborate outfits.

Though I have never been to Comic-Con, I have been to other conventions and seen the fanciful “cosplayers” (a portmanteau of “costumed role-players”) roaming the show floors. But before I attended and reported on Awesome Con, Small Press Expo or Baltimore Comic-Con for The Diamondback, I attended other Baltimore conventions — and I cosplayed myself.

I’ve always loved getting dressed up for Halloween, so of course I dressed up the first time I went to a convention back in 2010. Because I was aware of my friends’ costumes for the annual event, I went to the anime convention Otakon in a last-minute costume I made with some calculated digging in my closet. At the convention, I looked plain in the massive crowds full of superheroes, Sailor Senshi and Pokémon, but quite a few people put together that a redhead holding a plush Spider-Man could only be Mary Jane Watson.

I had such a good time at my first convention that I knew I had to return for the next Otakon, but when I returned, I was going to be prepared. Over the next two years, I learned how to sew with my best friend Anna so the two of us could go to Otakon in style. We spent hours each summer planning, picking the right color fabric at Jo-Ann, pouring over patterns, taking measurements, thrifting and, of course, sewing to make our outfits for the three-day event.

Though our costumes were fairly straightforward the first summer we worked together, the next year we began to dream up more complicated ensembles. We struggled to pick something we could do together, until we saw The Avengers. We knew we wanted to dress like characters from the film, and what better pair than the god of thunder, Thor, and his evil brother, Loki? Rather than sticking with the movie designs, however, we decided to adapt the costumes to our styles, and designed our own versions of the pair’s armor. The minute we decided that Anna was to be Lady Thor and I was to be Lady Loki, we poured all our efforts into making it happen. 

Our Loki and Thor costumes tested the limits of our creativity; we learned how to work with foam, leather, wire, tissue paper and medieval corsetry to make our preliminary design sketches pop off the page. Even though we started months in advance, we worked late into the night the day before the convention to make sure everything was perfect. When we joined the line in front of the Baltimore Convention Center for Otakon in 2012, heads turned to look at us — that’s how we knew we did an amazing job.

Cosplay at Comic-Con

Dressing up is a way to find common ground and start conversations in the midst of thousands and thousands of strangers. I could only describe the sensation of entering the convention center for the first time in 2010 as going to Disney World, but instead of Mickey and friends, one could take pictures of everyone from the Tenth Doctor to Cloud Strife to Nyan Cat. These costumes facilitate conversations between attendees. Conventions can often be spaces for those who might not have mainstream interests to bond with other fans; it’s easy to strike up a conversation with a cosplayer and have a lengthy chat about the latest developments in the Metal Gear Solid series when you can identify a mutual interest from yards away. Many friendships start at conventions, and cosplaying can be a fun way to get the conversation started.

From the first time I went to Otakon only partially in costume, I found out how fun adopting the persona of a character was. From asking “Tony Stark” for a photo as Mary Jane to commanding others to bow down before me as Loki, fully embracing the role-playing part of cosplay can be half the fun of a convention. Some people go just to show off their latest costume creation and interact with other cosplayers from the series — and with the amount of time it takes to make some of these costumes, it’s not hard to see why you wouldn’t embrace the experience.

Having your picture taken is part of the fun as well; Anna and I were pleased when we gathered a crowd to photograph us when we were posing together. For the amount of time we spent obsessing over the minute details in Loki’s shoulder pads or Thor’s hammer, it was fulfilling to see how others appreciated the effort we had put into our outfits. Some cosplayers — such as “sexy Pikachu” Jessica Nigri and Anthony Misiano as the Joker — have gone to Comic-Con as a nobody in costume, but left as viral superstars thanks to all the photographs that circulate following the convention.

While fame, even temporary notoriety, is not guaranteed at any event, if you go to a convention just looking to have a good time while showing off your costume, then you won’t be disappointed.

Though it might seem absolutely crazy, cosplaying is a major hobby to some and even a career to others. To those who enjoy it, it is a labor of love. While that labor might not always be noticed, for those who dress up, it’s a wonderful opportunity to play a part for a few days, meet some new people and share your love for your favorite characters.

Get your geek on, cosplayers.