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New York Comic-Con is the one weekend a year where onlookers gawk at swarms of comic characters, video game protagonists and a slew of other personalities as they walk down the streets of New York City with purpose. Being one of the biggest conventions in the world, the event attracts a massive amount of fans from every genre of fandom that exists.
This year, NYCC was hosted at the Javits Center and included photo ops, a range of acclaimed comic book creators, a swarm of vendors, in addition to exciting panels, which provided exclusive looks at upcoming television and movie projects. But even with all of that excitement, one of the most popular aspects of New York Comic-Con has always been cosplay.
For both participants and onlookers, there’s something thrilling about completely embodying a different person or identity. Cosplayers essentially become the characters they portray: when the Untapped Cities team asked a Captain America about why he cosplays, he responded: “I do it for what it stands for. Captain America is a symbol and people need that.”
Here are 15 great cosplay moments at 2017 New York Comic-Con:
While it’s usually attendees partaking in cosplay fun, actors have been known to don a costume here and there for convention events and even panels. This was the case with Tyler Posey’s Nissin noodle superhero costume that he wore at the Noods Before Dark pre-party.
The pre-party was part of the Heroes After Dark event, held in partnership with DoSomething.org for National Anti-Bullying Awareness Month.
The event was an invite-only red carpet event but that didn’t stop Tyler Posey, best known as Scott McCall MTV’s Teen Wolf, from donning a noodle sword and having a blast. But Posey wasn’t the only teen wolf at the convention: one cosplayer got down and furry with a rendition of Michael J. Fox’s Scott Howard from the original 1985 movie that the show was loosely inspired by.
Wonder Woman, Spiderman, Superman, and Red Venom walk into a bar… er, convention center.
Decked out in an impressive array of detailed and bulky costumes, this group of veteran cosplayers entertained a swarm of congoers with their many action poses. (Pictured here: Superman utilizing prop chains for dramatic effect.)
One of the most impressive group cosplays at New York Comic-Con is pictured above. Seven cosplayers were covered head to toe in intricate costumes, inspired by the new Power Rangers movie that was released in March.
Despite the movie’s mixed reviews, many of which were on the lower side, congoers were almost fighting each other to get a good shot of this impressive display of cosplay.
With the semi-recent release of Guardians of the Galaxy 2 in August, the hype for the movie’s cosplay was unsurprisingly overwhelming. Starlord, Groot, and a larger-than-life Rocket stood unphased as they were accompanied by the villainry of Ronan.
Untapped Cities staff are still wondering how Groot got through the door without losing his limbs.
First appearing in Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice, these cosplays (inspired by Jason Momoa’s Aquaman and Amber Heard’s Mera) proved to be a big hit.
With cameos for DC movies, the anticipation for Aquaman’s 2018 release next December has been fierce.
One of the bulkiest cosplays that the Untapped Cities staff spotted at New York Comic-Con was the Blood Raven cosplay inspired by the tabletop game, Warhammer 40,000.
As anyone can imagine, moving around in that substantial amount of armor was not an easy feat. This cosplayer mostly stayed rooted in position and often received assistance with maneuvering the armor.
New York Comic-Con wouldn’t have been complete without a few of the Avengers assembling. Showing off their weaponry, Hawkeye, Peggy Carter, and Captain America brought hope to the antsy congoers waiting in line for their favorite panels.
Helena Bonham Carter and Gary Oldman would have shed tears at this epic display of wizardry. Sirius Black and Bellatrix Lestrange may have been side-characters in the Harry Potter franchise, but they stole every scene they were featured in.
The two characters may have ultimately been on separate sides of the wizarding war, but they stemmed from the same bloodline. Their intensity, which was portrayed beautifully by the cosplayers, is unparalleled to any other character, thus making them a dynamic duo to portray together.
Deadpool is known for being the raunchiest comic book character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Fans let out a sigh of relief when the rating for Deadpool was announced as R back in 2016. Multiple ads featuring the character urged parents not to take their children to see the movie due to overt sexual scenes and foul language.
Ryan Reynolds, who can often be found trolling people on Twitter and posting similar tantalizing Deadpool photos, would have been proud of this punny and moderately inappropriate reference that does the Merc With a Mouth justice.
Tucked away in a corner outside of the exhibition hall lurked a creepy clown with a maniacal smile and a severed hand. Pretty grim, huh?
Apparently, not too grim for New York Comic-Con goers. Many guests braved IT’s seclusion by bypassing his closed-quarters and getting a photo with the clown. Following the overwhelming success of the 2017 remake of IT, this was the perfect character to give onlookers a bit of a fright.
Some of the best cosplays at New York Comic-Con were hybrids of costumes that few could ever imagine or think of: meet Ronald McThor? Thor McDonald?
Fitting in perfectly with the clown hype from IT and the excitement that was looming for the now-released Thor: Ragnarok, this creative cosplayer fashioned a Thor-inspired outfit fit for a clown. The detail in the logos and the creativity behind this McDonald’s and Thor mashup made it stand out among the rest.
There’s something to be said for grim characters lurking in corners outside of the exhibition hall. Skeleton Emperor, formerly known as Baraggan Louisebairn from the popular anime, Bleach, was towering over groups of people and waiting to scare new victims.
If only the cosplayer had Skeleton Emperor’s power to slow time, New York Comic-Con could have lasted forever.
Before popstars made crazy cone hair a fad, Uma Thurman rocked her own brand of cone hair in the 1997 movie, Batman & Robin.
Despite the numerous renditions of the beloved Batman villain, the 1997 version of Poison Ivy continues to be a fan favorite. Several Poison Ivy cosplayers graced the New York Comic-Con floor, but none seemed to walk with as much attitude and confidence as she did.
Decked out in a gown so puffy it would make Cinderella blush was a peppy Princess Peach cosplayer. Unlike the version often portrayed in Mario video games, this princess didn’t need saving as the whole floor gave her a two-feet wide berth for her and her dress.
Disney is often criticized for making its female characters fit too much into a damsel in distress archetype. Waiting until 2010 to make Tangled was a fantastic decision on Disney’s part because it allowed for Rapunzel to break the princess stereotype and become one of the strongest, and most independent princesses to date.
Instead of having a stalwart prince rescue her, Rapunzel rescues herself and makes it work with a crook. The deviation from the usual script was refreshing to watch and these cosplayers that were outside waiting for some late-night panels paid a great homage to characters. Even Pascal had a place in Rapunzel’s long locks.
Next, check out 5 Comic Book TV Shows Set in Cities that Mirror NYC: Gotham, Luke Cage, Daredevil and More and The Top Ten Ways to Celebrate New York Comic-Con in NYC. Get in touch with the author @LitByLiterature
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