****** goes Victorian, Goth in Japan cosplay trend

CptSternn · 09-30-2008, 02:23 AM

http://tinyurl.com/4myd4t

TOKYO (Reuters Life!) - You can call it Jane Eyre meets the Addams family, but for the hundreds of Japanese girls who dress in Victorian dresses trimmed with lace, eyes rimmed with heavy black makeup, it's "Gothic-******."

Showcasing yet another example of Japan's love for costume and role play, the women carried parasols, wore laced-up bodices and elaborately curly wigs, as wells heavy make up, during a Gothic-****** fashion event in Tokyo this week.

Their style has taken Japan by storm in the last few years, even spreading overseas among fans of Japanese "cosplay."

"****** is my basic needs. Without ******, I cannot be myself so I'm extremely glad that I found ****** fashion," Eriko Enokizome, 24-year-old part-time worker, told Reuters.

Cosplay, a combination of the words "costume" and "play," originated in Japan where teenagers gather in streets and parks on weekends to show off their costumes -- and indulge in a little escapist fantasy.

The "******" the women take their name from, however, has nothing to do with Vladimir Nabokov's classic novel.

"Gothic-****** fashion is like that special magic that allows me to become a different character," said 25-year-old businesswoman Chizuru Matsuda.

"It's been eight years since I discovered this fashion, but it took me two years to actually complete my overall style."

Gothic-****** is not yet high-street fashion, but hundreds of stores sell clothes and accessories linked to the trend throughout Japan and at least three major magazines are dedicated to its fans.

The style has become popular across the country, and some veteran Gothic-****** followers complain that its authenticity is being lost.

"I would like all Gothic-****** girls to refine their inner beauty first," said 28-year-old Misuzu Kitahara, who, influenced by her mother, has been wearing nothing but frilly Victorian dresses ever since she was born.

"I see a lot of girls smoking and sitting down on the floor in their outfits. I don't want them doing this," she added.

Mealla · 09-30-2008, 06:39 AM

And gothic.net reaches new censorship lows when it decides the word ****** must be hidden from the world. *chuckles*

LaBelleDameSansMerci · 09-30-2008, 08:30 AM

That word has been censored for a while. It's got a bunch of other things associated with it, like a book and movie based on said book about a guy who becomes obsessed with a 12-year-old girl, another movie about a guy who marries a woman so he can take advantage of her daughter, and just general predatory intents toward underage girls.
Gnet doesn't want to come up on searches that people make on the subject.

Despanan · 09-30-2008, 11:03 AM

Rrrriiiiggghhhht, we can totally write crappy fiction about eviscerating our transvestite lovers, the site can have stories about vampire chicks with deadly acid in their fake boobs, every other day someone can post a thread about slitting their wrists and ending their wretched, My Chemical Romance inspired existence, and I can call someone a Mohammed-Ali Teabagging Fuckspear, but if someone says one word about r@pe or lol.lita that's going too fucking far.

The Rules/Permissions/Censors on this site are positively ridiculous, seem to be completely arbitrary, and most likely are motivated by laziness.

Valravn · 09-30-2008, 11:05 AM

I must say, even if i respect the fact that people want to dress with the gothic ****** style, things in japan (style specially) has the tendency (at least for me) to look kinda stupid and superficial.
There is another style where those girls dress like "princesses" ... I mean sometime I think in that country they read way too many mangas, though i read mangas myself but well...you get the point.

Minyaliel · 09-30-2008, 11:34 AM

... didn´t you like to play dress up when you were little, Valravn?

The l0lit@ fashions is just an expression of the Peter Pan syndrome, really. I must admit even I show some symptoms of it from time to time. It´s quite fun.

Valravn · 09-30-2008, 11:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Minyaliel

... didn´t you like to play dress up when you were little, Valravn?

The l0lit@ fashions is just an expression of the Peter Pan syndrome, really. I must admit even I show some symptoms of it from time to time. It´s quite fun.

Is not that I don't like the fashion itself but I believe there are ways for make something look good and extravagant without falling into ridiculous.
I have seen certain Gothic ****** that are able to dress well but it seems that are really few to me.

MitsyMayhem · 09-30-2008, 04:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Valravn

I must say, even if i respect the fact that people want to dress with the gothic ****** style, things in japan (style specially) has the tendency (at least for me) to look kinda stupid and superficial.
There is another style where those girls dress like "princesses" ... I mean sometime I think in that country they read way too many mangas, though i read mangas myself but well...you get the point.

Actually, my friend had some students from Japan visit her school for a while. They actually thought she was weird for liking Manga so much.

MegearaErotica · 09-30-2008, 04:45 PM

I really like lol.ita but you shouldn't call it lol.ita cosplay, mainly because of the fact that lol.ita cosplay often uses bad material and is conformed to a specific look.

Valravn · 10-01-2008, 03:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MitsyMayhem

Actually, my friend had some students from Japan visit her school for a while. They actually thought she was weird for liking Manga so much.

Interesting, well as far as I knew most of the japanese population does read mangas, though I have never been in Japan I was quite interested in the culture itself.

Saya · 10-01-2008, 04:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Valravn

Interesting, well as far as I knew most of the japanese population does read mangas, though I have never been in Japan I was quite interested in the culture itself.

Our Japanese prof explained to us one day that its mainly teens and young adults who are regular manga readers, and there's a bit of a gender gap, its more popular among boys than girls, about half those surveyed said they regularly read manga. She showed us statistics but I don't have it anymore

Mealla · 10-01-2008, 05:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Saya

its more popular among boys than girls

Which is funny, because I read somewhere that in the states manga is more popular with girls, whereas boys tend towards more traditional american styles of comic book.

Tam Li Hua · 10-01-2008, 08:03 AM

L.olita has been 'goth' and Victorian for quite some time, Cpt.

What -I- want is a Gothic L.olita Bible in English!

That would be friggin' SWEET!! ^___^ [The ones at Books-A-Million are $20, so I'll be buying mine from Amazon when I get some money to blow next! ]

*sigh* I wish I was young enough to pull off Gothic L.olita *mourns adulthood*

Despanan · 10-01-2008, 08:07 AM

That book sucks ass. Why the hell would you want to waste your money on it?

Tam Li Hua · 10-01-2008, 08:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Despanan

That book sucks ass. Why the hell would you want to waste your money on it?

For the pretty, my friend. For the pretty.

I was on the edge of buying the one in Japanese when I was in California, but they were WAY more expensive, and no matter how I sliced it, I just couldn't justify $40 for the thing.

PortraitOfSanity · 10-03-2008, 03:25 AM

What Despanen said. Seriously, every time I read a post by you Tam, I think you're getting dumber.

$haDe · 10-09-2008, 08:38 AM

The word "cosplay" caught my attention.

As I, $haDe, am one of the most active 'cosplayer' in Bangkok, I'll have to say that Gothic-****** was one of the hardest form of cosplaying.

Due to all the clothing,accessories and how you look.

Drake Dun · 10-10-2008, 06:27 AM

If anyone is really deeply interested, I could probably be persuaded to go take some photographs. It'll be the 1600x1200 type that I get out of my cell phone, but still.

Resurrectus · 10-14-2008, 08:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tam Li Hua

What -I- want is a Gothic L.olita Bible in English!

That would be friggin' SWEET!! ^___^ [The ones at Books-A-Million are $20, so I'll be buying mine from Amazon when I get some money to blow next! ]

*sigh* I wish I was young enough to pull off Gothic L.olita *mourns adulthood*

You can often find cheap copies of the Gothic L.olita Bible on eBay. Kera is also a great mook.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Despanan

That book sucks ass. Why the hell would you want to waste your money on it?

Are you kidding?