Hey I know the feeling. I am in Mantachie Mississippi .. I love to dress up and just hang out at my house.. It's only me and my man.. That is sad I know.. We like having cosplay parties but you can't call it a party when there is only 2 people.. I play as Sephiroth from FF7 and he is Vincent.. I wish we could find more people that like doing that so we can be friends with them..
Last edited by SephirothCrescent at 4:43:00 PM CDT on August 10, 2010.
Wow, I'm really impressed that you had the courage to be different. That's very cool. I'm surprised that your town is like that, though. I personally know of a smallish town that has a library that started it's own "anime club". I think small towns seem to be getting a bad name.
But, then again, everyone is different (which you bravely proved ) and not everyone is going to like small town life. I hope you manage to find even more friends who share your interest!
Wow, I wouldn't dare to cosplay, especially at school. That's really awesome what you did!! In middle school, I was the only REAL otaku there T_T, but now in high school, there are TONS of otakus. What I did to make otaku friends was put pictures of diffrent animes on my binder, and read manga in front of everyone xD It actually worked! Now im getting some of my friends who don't read manga into Manga and Anime! But i hate it when people make fun of it T_T It gets on my nerves...
I live in Mississippi to and it souds like what happend to me on Halloween when I dressed-up as Sakura from Naruto...I caried around an Anime magazine to show people what I was.
Yeah! Country-Otaku Unite!
I too live in a small hick-town up in western montana. EVERYONE is cowboyish and does the whole tobacco-dip crap and talks about being wasted...
Anyhoo, I still dress as Edward from FMA every Friday. And, I gotta say, I got the same reactions. Ppl think it's weird to dress up and pay homage to ur fave character. But, it did lure out all the Otakus and I've made some awesome friends. Way to go! BLEACH RAWKS!!!
Being a Southern girl myself, and living somewhat near Mississippi(I live in TN), I honestly don't encounter the same problem you do...the problem I personally encounter is too many "otakus" that just watch Bleach, and all else within the Adult Swim and TV range of US anime. It gets annoying. I don't go to school anymore though, although I start college soon, and hope to find it different.
But it's pretty sad and amazing that no one there knows about anime...or well watches it and enjoys it.
But yeah, I guess I'll subscribe to you too...and well, the limited html is growing on me...but I still dislike it.
Ok, that was totally awesome! And hey, I'm an otaku from mississippi, so don't knock all country people. But you're right, theres hardly anyone who's into anime here, and conventions are so far away!!! TT_TT
But I'm impressed that you would do that! Judging by the reactions you must live in a real hic town. I feel for you. Keep doing your thing!
Its same here as well although we do not have any con's around here or even nearby. Anime and Manga is still seen as a kid's shows. So Con's or cosplay doesn't exist AT ALL in my country, Portugal.
You truly got guts to do it but at least you made the difference and showed people that being different its not as bad as it seems.
Awesome, Southern Miss is my number one Mississippi college choice. If I don't make it anywhere out of this state, thats the college I'm going to. Ole Miss and State can kiss my butt, stupid party colleges. I'm going to Copiah-Lincoln Community College in Wesson first, since it's about two blocks away from me and its cheaper.
I grew up in Southern Mississippi, and your school sounds a lot like mine was. Although my home town was only an hour away from New Orleans, so I think there was a little bit more cultural variety than a lot of the towns farther north. Still, there was no shortage of close-minded, conservative "country folk" who would shun the very idea of any grown person watching cartoons or engaging in otherwise unrealistic forms of entertainment. I gotta say I was lucky (or nerdy) enough to have one of those cute little junior high relationships with a guy who introduced me to Dragonball Z and Neon Genesis Evangelion, and though I was never much of a fan of anime/manga throughout high school, I did have an appreciation of the artform, and I've developed a greater interest more recently.
I'm currently in college at Southern Miss, and there's a pretty big subculture of anime/fantasy fans and cosplayers. I'm a Theatre Tech major with an emphasis on costume design, and it's actually my love of costuming that has sparked my interest in cosplay and re-ignited my fondness for anime.
Anyway, that's pretty cool that you wore your costume to school. It's always awesome to make a statement like that. Keep doing what you do, and you'll definitely find your niche when you move on to college. And if you're planning on going to USM, then maybe I'll even see you around. ^_^
lol...i like observing people's reaction too, its fun.
i think i should do that one day....its a good way to lure out those hiding otakus! i mean, they just hide because they think no one likes anime besides themselves, but if you show them that you like it too, then they will immediatly talk to you. xD its greats.
I've got to hand it to you, you've got DEFINITE guts. I'd never even be able to do that.
Anime is a pretty popular thing in my area, I guess. I live pretty close to Chicago, and we even have convention in my city (that I didn't even know existed until this year).
I'm glad their are people out there willing to challenge people's mind sets. It would have been so fun to see everyone's reactions to your cosplay.
There are several people in my area who are all about Naruto and that's about it. But I guess that is how it must be everywhere. (And normal people go around talking about 'those backwards Asian booky-things', so knowledge about anime and manga is relatively well known.)
Enough of my rambling.
Wonderful story, I most certainly got sucked into this.
I've done the same thing with my Urahara cosplay in this little town just north of Cincinnati. Only one person knew who I was, and that was because they recognized the noise my geta made. XD
I knew that I was not the only Mississippian who was a nutty otaku. The only difference for me is that I found a lot of my otaku buddies. While you showed your love for anime and manga through cosplay, I showed mine through my junior research paper (it was on robotics).
Internet Champion (Otaku Eternal) | Posted 03/22/08 | Reply
Haha, wow. That is really brave, so kudos for you.
Here's what I've found, unfortunately, atleast here. Public cosplaying draws a whole lot of negative feedback, and could actually alienate people who may have considered watching anime. Cosplaying without any rhyme or reason can potentially backfire, and reflect poorly on everyone involved in that particular group. It has been my own experience, personally and indirectly through seeing others, that there is always a time and a place for cosplay. Conventions? Heck yes! Photoshoots? For sure! But here's where it gets iffy: with meetups, and just because. It can be done, but eh...
In any case, it was an interesting sort of experiment, to say the least, haha. =3
Yay! Go you! That's awesome! Way to show some guts & be different! You ruel! I would totally do what you did if I still went to public school, but I'm homeschooled my friend Mike & I went to the mall in Naruto cosplay though random cosplay is awesome! The world would be a better place if everyone dared to be different!
That's definetly a brave thing of you to do. Sadly I don't own any cosplay costumes but I do have many anime t-shirts that I wear over the clothes I wear to my dance classes. I don't dance with anime fans (they're of the "but why do you watch cartoons?" mindset). The best comment I've gotten so far, thanks to a "Bleach" t-shirt was "Why are you advertising a cleaning product in class?"
Kind of reminds me of where I live. Although we do have a Strategy Gamers' Club (we're the kids who play D&D, Magic, and LARP, although I don't LARP), it still feels like there aren't very many otaku in my school. I live in West Virginia, where most of the kids seem to spend their time drinking, hunting, and having babies (honestly, you wouldn't believe the number of kids in my school who have kids of their own). During Halloween, I learned we weren't allowed to wear costumes, so instead I wore a pair of cat ears and an Akatsuki headband I picked up from Tekkoshocon. So many people stared at me like "Wow, who's the idiot? Isn't that from those Chinese cartoons or sumthin'?" and when I wore the ears again at Homecoming, somebody pulled them off of my head. I got some serious death glares from this group of black kids doing the Soulja Boy behind me, so I had to assume it was them. I wish I would've gone all out like you did, though. This year at Halloween, since it'll be my senior year, I'm planning on wearing my Uryuu Ishida cosplay...if I can get up the courage, that is. Maybe I can convince the rest of the kids in the club to cosplay on Halloween this year.
I tried cosplaying as Chii at school once. The ears got caught on a tree in the courtyard. (oops!) and my hair is black, so I had to use a blonde wig, and that got stuck in my locker!
Honestly, it's not too uncommon to see someone walking around with cat ears at my school. But there's still that close-minded minority who feels the need to mock anyone who's different...I wonder what would happen if I wore my Ed Elric jacket to school.
Anyway, I think it's cool that you were so brave! Most of the otaku at my school are girls, are they all boys there?
omg...this is exactly what I needed, I needed to know other people do this too! I live in a town with 2000 people and so ya, I understand your problem, I'm planning on cosplaying as misa some day and try to drag some people out of their caves lol a girl at our school was outcast on her first day because she wore a naruto head band, not to mention she was a new student...so ya, she was completely and totally outcast by almost everyone, which I think is wrong with alot of people today, stupid prejudices ><
Wow, you're amazimg. I would never be brave enough to wear one of my cosplay to school. Also, thanks. You helped educate some people on cosplay and anime.
I hope you make more friends, get more people interested, and start a club. Good luck! And keep us updated!
Wow, pretty interesting experiment you did.
I would love being able to cosplay one day.
I live in an area that's very populated and more people would know what I was doing if I did that but trust me, peer pressure can effect the people around you. That's where criticism and stuff starts coming in and then you'll have another Death Note in Virginia predicament. Just standing out in my school breaks dress code -_-
*sigh* But it will still be fun though. Don't know how my parents would react but they would probably wouldn't allow it.
Anyways, I enjoyed reading your interesting experience.
If you have any more of those, please write them for us ^^
Haha!!! I would totally do that at my school if I wasn't so shy!! Sounds like you had quite the interesting day though! Keep it up and you'll find more crazy otakus like us ^.^
*clap clap clap clap* good job!! proud of you lol! I don't know bery many people who are otakus either! For halloween I dressed up as a mew mew once and everyone said it was cute, but they didn't know what it was. I hope one day there is like a worldwide cosplay day lol everyone wears cosplay for the day! so much fun! again good job!! *applause* maybe I'll do that someday ,except my school wears a uniform so i would for sure get a detention XD
Awesome! You posted it here and even got it published!! That's great. I think it's so brave of you to do that...and it's really cool that it was successful. *hugs* I'd get eaten alive if I tried it here (PA)! XD
Wow. You have my full respect on this one! I really do admire people who do things that'll make them stick out and don't give a crap about what others say. I wish I was that fearless... But, it really looks like you're starting something very different in your school. That's good, small schools need a change now and then, I think (lol). Keep at it, girl!!! Never give up!!! *hugs*
I live in oklahoma theres not much anime here and I'm not sure where you would buy any, so me and my fried would make things to wear to school sometimes. no one said anything, but gave us weird looks. I was in drama so they thought I was a freak anyway.
Few words from me...I FEEL YOU!!! (Thats to the author...) I'm in a similar situation though the amount of people who like anime is a little bit more in my school, town, wtvr...
Hehe yeah thats the way to do it! Me and my twin always go to school one day every year and dress up in Harry Potter outfits (Just the robes and such). We always get a few lookers but I wonder what would happen if we just decided to cosplay! I doubt it would be aloud at our school. I really admire what you did and even had just the courage to do it in such a redneck town. My town here isn't too big but at least there are otakus in my school who have a passion for anime like you and myself. If I could I'd wrap them up in a box and send them to you! Well, best of luck up there!
lol if I cosplayed when I was in high school I would've been called a nerd by at least a few people (some of them called me a nerd anyways). I remember this one day though, I saw someone wearing a big 'M' on their forehead as if they were possessed by Majin Buu from DBZ, that was pretty cool.
Sadly,at my school,if you do that kind of thing,you're mocked horribly,even on days you don't wear it.My friend cosplayed the exact same Captain you did,but she's still being tormented by the "gansta" idiots on our bus because of it.I sometimes wish I could have the courage to do this,but I just can't.
Ha! Reminds me of where I used to live (and kinda where I live now). Where I lived previously was a purely academic school (college prep school in a literal sense), so there was maybe 30 people out of 400 (7-12) who actually was an otaku. One day I wore a Naruto headband when I was going through my Naruto phase and I got so many stares.
Where I live now (redneck place so bad that they take "redneck" as the highest compliment you can give) only has about 15 people that are true otaku ("true" as in not "OMG I just saw Naruto an tv Saturday! I loved how Sasuke did the Lightning Blade (emphasis on Lightning Blade and not Chidori or Raikiri, if you catch my drift )!". The close friends I have there are either, A)otaku, or b)don't care either way. One of my friends, for holloween costume day, dressed up as your stereotypical Japanese schoolgirl, hardly stands out, and so my people where "OMG, what are you wearing?" This year I was going to dress as this punk-goth girl I saw from a picture. I wonder what would happen? =P
Anyways, I have a talent of getting people hooked on anime (I got one of my close friends who hated anime to become addicted to it). Maybe I'll get the anime fandom to rise
your way luckier than me where i live st. Albert Alberta Canada! yays
any ways i have a good bit of otaku friends...but other people thats roght everyone kind of knows what is.. think anime is a horrible thing meant for kids because they think of pokemon and crap
I hate to say this but you kind of hide your identity untill the anime cons...
I would rather commit sepuku then to live in a place that has no interest in anime.
Girl, move out of that Racist, Uncultured, Beer Guzzlin', Gun Totin', Satan/Hitler/George W. Bush Worshiping, Home of "Klan Meetings"(I HATE THE "KKK" SO FUCKING MUCH!!!)Incest performin', Country/Bluegrass Music Listenin', Hillbilly Hellhole area better known as "The South" and move up to "The North"(yes, the very same North that whipped the South's ass ages ago), you can bring your friends and family of course, we have Anime Conventions in Boston every now and then, we also have stores that sell anime merchendise and Anime Shows/Movies on DVD, we have REAL music up here(Not that Country/Blugrass BULLSHIT) and its ALOT nicer in all the seasons then down there, where the weather down there is nothing but Summer Weather usuals; Tornado Warnings, Omega Heatwaves, etc, etc!
Sorry for ranting your eyes out and your ears off. As you can clearly tell: I hate the South, pure and simple...
lol wow. this was really entertaining. i know exactly where ur coming from with the rednecks (i used to live in a town in alabama that wasn't listed on any map and now i live in texas) and the whole not wanting to stick out or anything. i have to say i had a similar expierence this year on "dress like a pirate day" for our homcoming. while everyone else (the few ppl that did dress up) did like pirates of the carribean, i went as sanji from one piece. everyone was like "wtf?" and that was the second time i've cosplayed for school. but i think that it's really cool that u were able to go out there and do that. it takes alota courage and i commend u. ^^ we should all inspire to be wonderful and proud otaku such as urself. ^^
When I was in High School, and even this year here at my University on Halloween I alway dress up in my anime costume. A few times on random days a really good friend of mine did the same thing as you.
But yeah, the town I'm from is sounds a lot like the one your from. Although I'm in Canada. lol.
Here in Louisiana it's a little more accepted(though when people critize us we give them the bird XD) Haha this happended exactly to my friend!She came as Itachi to school on Halloween and everybody was aking her what was she supposed to be. Our Latin teacher was all like "what are you suposed to be?" and she simply replied weasel XD But because of this we found an otaku, she was dressed like shippuden Naruto (just a little note, later on she came to school as Light Yagami XD)You're a great storyteller, that must have been one heck of an adventure!
Let me just say this. I did the exact same thing you did. I went to school one random day dressed as Reno from Final Fantasy VII. I even dyed my hair red to give my cosplay the big impact I wanted. The ENTIRE day I got stares, and comments as to why I was dressed as a man. A lot of people though took it normally, because they all know I'm a crazy girl who's into anime and manga.
Anyways, I actually found quite a few people in my grade who're into video games. They knew immediately I was Reno, and thought it was awesome I put the cosplay together. They even suggested getting a group together for next Halloween. :)
On another day, this time during Spirit Week for Homecoming, I dressed up as Temari from Naruto. They day was "Disney Day", but I decided to go against Disney and cosplay instead. Hehe. Let's just say people were a little confused as to why I was dressed as a ninja, and carrying a huge ass fan around with me. I enjoyed it though. And people were really interested in the outfit. I found a couple more anime fans too. Not many, but a few. Mostly just got random comments and questions.
Anime is definitely a little more accepted here in Arizona. We have 5 or 6 Cons a year here.. So it's nothing unusual. I live in a small town though, with the High School only having 900 kids. (Normal High Schools have like 2,000 out here.) It was fun though. :)
Wolf, you're an amazing storyteller. It's really easy to just get sucked into your work, and I know you're gonna inspire a lot of people out there to get a bit more daring with their fandom (the fact that you actually give otaku and cosplayers a good name instead of being obnoxious about it or anything is another major plus.
Just some things for next time: I edited this a lot to bring the writing standard high enough for publication in terms of grammar, punctuation, and spelling - even then it was a bit of a judgement call (but like I said, I felt this was a really good story). I rarely do this for people, and this'll probably be the last time I do this for you. Run the next work you want to publish through Word or something - or, if you have any friends who can read over your writing beforehand, that works too. Otherwise, I'll have to turn them down for publication next time.
Like I said, though, you're an amazing storyteller. I think this is a really good example of the kind of casual, informal "life" posts we'd be willing to publish for theO's Fan Words.
I do hope you'll keep us up to date on any future developments with your work on forming an anime club and stuff, and wish you the best of luck.
HEhehehe so you decided to hand us a more detailed report on your cosplay day?...AWESOME xD ^^
Hehehe like i said before,you're absolutely AMAZING for making such a BOLD move to cosplay in a a non-anime watching town xD.I have the same problem as you have...stuck in a city where nobody knows what anime is...not to mention manga...I think that i'm the only "girl otaku" inmy town -_-It's so....hard....for me to talk to somebody about those stuff here,i even failed to "contaminate" my best friends with that -_-.But that's why i have TheO,MyO and you Wolfy-chan ^^.So in the end it's just me,myself and i watching anime and reading manga here....but not long ago...my big bro and his friend...somehow got interested...i don't know what i did...but it's just Bleach,nothing more...not like me,i'm watching....well i lost count of the animes,and the manga i'm seeing now ^^ :P
I'm soooo glad that you found such positive reactions form your school when you cosplayed :D.It's nice that you even found some new otakus ^^.Hehehe now you can have some kind of a gather-up and even have a cosplay day in your school ^^.It will be fun xD
Like i said before,you need to post some pictures form the whole thing,i just can't wait to see them xD ^_^.I hope it will be soon ^^
Well this was a long one,so take care my sweet friend and see ya soon ^_~
P.S Sorry if i post only here,cause i'm so loaded with school stuff,projects,exams,i don't have so much free time...it's just gonna be these two weeks...hellish weeks >_
lowelltheotaku123
Otakuite | Posted 04/22/11 | Reply
im with you dude
i wish i could find more otakus
i feel forever alone
SephirothCrescent
Otakuite | Posted 08/10/10 | Reply
Hey I know the feeling. I am in Mantachie Mississippi .. I love to dress up and just hang out at my house.. It's only me and my man.. That is sad I know.. We like having cosplay parties but you can't call it a party when there is only 2 people.. I play as Sephiroth from FF7 and he is Vincent.. I wish we could find more people that like doing that so we can be friends with them..
Last edited by SephirothCrescent at 4:43:00 PM CDT on August 10, 2010.
Sammii Chan
Otakuite+ | Posted 04/05/09 | Reply
Woot!! I did the same thing *naruto headband, gloves, ect* and i got stared at all day!!! Only my friends watch anime... >,<... lolz...
*high five to a fellow otaku*
~Sammii Chan
aidenanime
Otakuite | Posted 10/04/08 | Reply
Lmao that story made my day :) ..dude that sucks your stuck where theres barely any otaku.. kudo's to you for doing that ^_^
gnnwan
Otakuite+ | Posted 08/25/08 | Reply
Whoa...this was true? Man, you sure have a lot of guts. It was really funny.
Zanalo
Otakuite | Posted 07/29/08 | Reply
Wow. I'm another Mississippi Otaku. You have a lot more guts than I ever did. You get many many props from me.
Kittenlark
Otaku Legend | Posted 06/25/08 | Reply
Wow, I'm really impressed that you had the courage to be different. That's very cool. I'm surprised that your town is like that, though. I personally know of a smallish town that has a library that started it's own "anime club". I think small towns seem to be getting a bad name.
Best of luck with everything!
XSoraKuroiShindaX
Otakuite | Posted 05/31/08 | Reply
Wow, I wouldn't dare to cosplay, especially at school. That's really awesome what you did!! In middle school, I was the only REAL otaku there T_T, but now in high school, there are TONS of otakus. What I did to make otaku friends was put pictures of diffrent animes on my binder, and read manga in front of everyone xD It actually worked! Now im getting some of my friends who don't read manga into Manga and Anime! But i hate it when people make fun of it T_T It gets on my nerves...
FireCat13
Otakuite | Posted 03/30/08 | Reply
I live in Mississippi to and it souds like what happend to me on Halloween when I dressed-up as Sakura from Naruto...I caried around an Anime magazine to show people what I was.
TheDarkAngel
Pathetic Diabetic (Otaku Eternal) | Posted 03/25/08 | Reply
Yeah! Country-Otaku Unite!
I too live in a small hick-town up in western montana. EVERYONE is cowboyish and does the whole tobacco-dip crap and talks about being wasted...
Anyhoo, I still dress as Edward from FMA every Friday. And, I gotta say, I got the same reactions. Ppl think it's weird to dress up and pay homage to ur fave character. But, it did lure out all the Otakus and I've made some awesome friends. Way to go! BLEACH RAWKS!!!
And, then... I met you.
Purgatory
Otaku Legend | Posted 03/24/08 | Reply
Being a Southern girl myself, and living somewhat near Mississippi(I live in TN), I honestly don't encounter the same problem you do...the problem I personally encounter is too many "otakus" that just watch Bleach, and all else within the Adult Swim and TV range of US anime. It gets annoying. I don't go to school anymore though, although I start college soon, and hope to find it different.
But it's pretty sad and amazing that no one there knows about anime...or well watches it and enjoys it.
But yeah, I guess I'll subscribe to you too...and well, the limited html is growing on me...but I still dislike it.
Hana1991
Otakuite++ | Posted 03/24/08 | Reply
Ok, that was totally awesome! And hey, I'm an otaku from mississippi, so don't knock all country people. But you're right, theres hardly anyone who's into anime here, and conventions are so far away!!! TT_TT
But I'm impressed that you would do that! Judging by the reactions you must live in a real hic town. I feel for you. Keep doing your thing!
ShadowLight
Otaku Eternal | Posted 03/23/08 | Reply
@Anomaly:
Its same here as well although we do not have any con's around here or even nearby. Anime and Manga is still seen as a kid's shows. So Con's or cosplay doesn't exist AT ALL in my country, Portugal.
You truly got guts to do it but at least you made the difference and showed people that being different its not as bad as it seems.
The crazy bubbly shadow
wolf of sorrow
JMusicGuru (Otaku Eternal) | Posted 03/23/08 | Reply
@handoverthebees:
Awesome, Southern Miss is my number one Mississippi college choice. If I don't make it anywhere out of this state, thats the college I'm going to. Ole Miss and State can kiss my butt, stupid party colleges. I'm going to Copiah-Lincoln Community College in Wesson first, since it's about two blocks away from me and its cheaper.
handoverthebees
Otakuite | Posted 03/23/08 | Reply
I grew up in Southern Mississippi, and your school sounds a lot like mine was. Although my home town was only an hour away from New Orleans, so I think there was a little bit more cultural variety than a lot of the towns farther north. Still, there was no shortage of close-minded, conservative "country folk" who would shun the very idea of any grown person watching cartoons or engaging in otherwise unrealistic forms of entertainment. I gotta say I was lucky (or nerdy) enough to have one of those cute little junior high relationships with a guy who introduced me to Dragonball Z and Neon Genesis Evangelion, and though I was never much of a fan of anime/manga throughout high school, I did have an appreciation of the artform, and I've developed a greater interest more recently.
I'm currently in college at Southern Miss, and there's a pretty big subculture of anime/fantasy fans and cosplayers. I'm a Theatre Tech major with an emphasis on costume design, and it's actually my love of costuming that has sparked my interest in cosplay and re-ignited my fondness for anime.
Anyway, that's pretty cool that you wore your costume to school. It's always awesome to make a statement like that. Keep doing what you do, and you'll definitely find your niche when you move on to college. And if you're planning on going to USM, then maybe I'll even see you around. ^_^
dreaming baka
Otakuite+ | Posted 03/22/08 | Reply
lol...i like observing people's reaction too, its fun.
i think i should do that one day....its a good way to lure out those hiding otakus! i mean, they just hide because they think no one likes anime besides themselves, but if you show them that you like it too, then they will immediatly talk to you. xD its greats.
mewmewpudding
Otaku Eternal | Posted 03/22/08 | Reply
I've got to hand it to you, you've got DEFINITE guts. I'd never even be able to do that.
Anime is a pretty popular thing in my area, I guess. I live pretty close to Chicago, and we even have convention in my city (that I didn't even know existed until this year).
I'm glad their are people out there willing to challenge people's mind sets. It would have been so fun to see everyone's reactions to your cosplay.
There are several people in my area who are all about Naruto and that's about it. But I guess that is how it must be everywhere. (And normal people go around talking about 'those backwards Asian booky-things', so knowledge about anime and manga is relatively well known.)
Enough of my rambling.
Wonderful story, I most certainly got sucked into this.
Kudos to you!
otakualchemist
Senior Otaku | Posted 03/22/08 | Reply
I've done the same thing with my Urahara cosplay in this little town just north of Cincinnati. Only one person knew who I was, and that was because they recognized the noise my geta made. XD
Tempus321
Senior Otaku | Posted 03/22/08 | Reply
I knew that I was not the only Mississippian who was a nutty otaku. The only difference for me is that I found a lot of my otaku buddies. While you showed your love for anime and manga through cosplay, I showed mine through my junior research paper (it was on robotics).
Anomaly
Internet Champion (Otaku Eternal) | Posted 03/22/08 | Reply
Haha, wow. That is really brave, so kudos for you.
Here's what I've found, unfortunately, atleast here. Public cosplaying draws a whole lot of negative feedback, and could actually alienate people who may have considered watching anime. Cosplaying without any rhyme or reason can potentially backfire, and reflect poorly on everyone involved in that particular group. It has been my own experience, personally and indirectly through seeing others, that there is always a time and a place for cosplay. Conventions? Heck yes! Photoshoots? For sure! But here's where it gets iffy: with meetups, and just because. It can be done, but eh...
In any case, it was an interesting sort of experiment, to say the least, haha. =3
KyuketsukiNinja
Otakuite+ | Posted 03/21/08 | Reply
pokkypok
Otakuite+ | Posted 03/21/08 | Reply
That's really awesome. My friend and I were the ones who got most of our other friends into anime, so we have a big group.
Maitreya
Otakuite | Posted 03/21/08 | Reply
That's definetly a brave thing of you to do. Sadly I don't own any cosplay costumes but I do have many anime t-shirts that I wear over the clothes I wear to my dance classes. I don't dance with anime fans (they're of the "but why do you watch cartoons?" mindset). The best comment I've gotten so far, thanks to a "Bleach" t-shirt was "Why are you advertising a cleaning product in class?"
Guitar Legend
Otakuite | Posted 03/21/08 | Reply
Good job! I'm totally gonna do it when I get my next costume!
So sad money's no good right now....
KaiManga12
Otakuite | Posted 03/21/08 | Reply
Kind of reminds me of where I live. Although we do have a Strategy Gamers' Club (we're the kids who play D&D, Magic, and LARP, although I don't LARP), it still feels like there aren't very many otaku in my school. I live in West Virginia, where most of the kids seem to spend their time drinking, hunting, and having babies (honestly, you wouldn't believe the number of kids in my school who have kids of their own). During Halloween, I learned we weren't allowed to wear costumes, so instead I wore a pair of cat ears and an Akatsuki headband I picked up from Tekkoshocon. So many people stared at me like "Wow, who's the idiot? Isn't that from those Chinese cartoons or sumthin'?" and when I wore the ears again at Homecoming, somebody pulled them off of my head. I got some serious death glares from this group of black kids doing the Soulja Boy behind me, so I had to assume it was them. I wish I would've gone all out like you did, though. This year at Halloween, since it'll be my senior year, I'm planning on wearing my Uryuu Ishida cosplay...if I can get up the courage, that is. Maybe I can convince the rest of the kids in the club to cosplay on Halloween this year.
AkaiOokamiKiba
Otakuite | Posted 03/21/08 | Reply
Man your awesome to do something like that in a redneck town! (I know how you feel I live in TN X.x) Soi Fong is the best.
jRockstar11385
Senior Otaku+ | Posted 03/21/08 | Reply
I tried cosplaying as Chii at school once. The ears got caught on a tree in the courtyard. (oops!) and my hair is black, so I had to use a blonde wig, and that got stuck in my locker!
queenbakura3
Otaku Legend | Posted 03/21/08 | Reply
Honestly, it's not too uncommon to see someone walking around with cat ears at my school. But there's still that close-minded minority who feels the need to mock anyone who's different...I wonder what would happen if I wore my Ed Elric jacket to school.
Anyway, I think it's cool that you were so brave! Most of the otaku at my school are girls, are they all boys there?
key1127
Otakuite | Posted 03/21/08 | Reply
lol i did the same thing in oklahoma i went as urahara lol
sirithaeariel
Otakuite | Posted 03/21/08 | Reply
omg...this is exactly what I needed, I needed to know other people do this too! I live in a town with 2000 people and so ya, I understand your problem, I'm planning on cosplaying as misa some day and try to drag some people out of their caves lol a girl at our school was outcast on her first day because she wore a naruto head band, not to mention she was a new student...so ya, she was completely and totally outcast by almost everyone, which I think is wrong with alot of people today, stupid prejudices ><
KeybladeMewKasa
SHSL Lamebutt (Otaku Eternal) | Posted 03/21/08 | Reply
Hmm... Interesting experiment!
WAY TO BE DIFFERENT! ^_^
I wonder how that would work at my school..
I'd either get eaten by people who don't know what it is...
Or praised by my otaku friends. ^o^
sakura nekoyasha
Otakuite | Posted 03/21/08 | Reply
Wow, you're amazimg. I would never be brave enough to wear one of my cosplay to school. Also, thanks. You helped educate some people on cosplay and anime.
I hope you make more friends, get more people interested, and start a club. Good luck! And keep us updated!
Sasuka14
Otakuite+ | Posted 03/21/08 | Reply
Awesome! Im it the same type of sitution. I should try that when i go to jr. high next year.
Lunar Rukario
Otaku Legend | Posted 03/21/08 | Reply
Wow, pretty interesting experiment you did.
I would love being able to cosplay one day.
I live in an area that's very populated and more people would know what I was doing if I did that but trust me, peer pressure can effect the people around you. That's where criticism and stuff starts coming in and then you'll have another Death Note in Virginia predicament. Just standing out in my school breaks dress code -_-
*sigh* But it will still be fun though. Don't know how my parents would react but they would probably wouldn't allow it.
Anyways, I enjoyed reading your interesting experience.
If you have any more of those, please write them for us ^^
twilight luna
Otaku Legend | Posted 03/21/08 | Reply
Wow, that's awesome. If I had more people to cosplay with me, I would go to school dressed up too! Kudos to you for cosplaying by yourself!
@Angel Zakuro
I live in PA too and I've had my share of getting almost eaten alive so I know how you feel! More otakus would be nice.
yamisgirl
Senior Otaku | Posted 03/20/08 | Reply
Haha!!! I would totally do that at my school if I wasn't so shy!! Sounds like you had quite the interesting day though! Keep it up and you'll find more crazy otakus like us ^.^
munchy
Otaku Legend | Posted 03/20/08 | Reply
*clap clap clap clap* good job!! proud of you lol! I don't know bery many people who are otakus either! For halloween I dressed up as a mew mew once and everyone said it was cute, but they didn't know what it was. I hope one day there is like a worldwide cosplay day lol everyone wears cosplay for the day! so much fun! again good job!! *applause* maybe I'll do that someday ,except my school wears a uniform so i would for sure get a detention XD
Baka No Hanyou
Otakuite+ | Posted 03/20/08 | Reply
The most basic way to explain anime is just to say "Japanese cartoons"
Angel Zakuro
bird nerd. (Otaku Angel) | Posted 03/20/08 | Reply
Awesome! You posted it here and even got it published!!
That's great. I think it's so brave of you to do that...and it's really cool that it was successful. *hugs* I'd get eaten alive if I tried it here (PA)! XD
Sapphire24Koneko
Senior Otaku+ | Posted 03/20/08 | Reply
Wow.
You have my full respect on this one! I really do admire people who do things that'll make them stick out and don't give a crap about what others say. I wish I was that fearless... 
But, it really looks like you're starting something very different in your school. That's good, small schools need a change now and then, I think (lol). Keep at it, girl!!! Never give up!!! 
*hugs*
~Koneko
akiranth
Otakuite | Posted 03/20/08 | Reply
I live in oklahoma theres not much anime here and I'm not sure where you would buy any, so me and my fried would make things to wear to school sometimes. no one said anything, but gave us weird looks. I was in drama so they thought I was a freak anyway.
mirahsan2
Otakuite+ | Posted 03/20/08 | Reply
Few words from me...I FEEL YOU!!! (Thats to the author...) I'm in a similar situation though the amount of people who like anime is a little bit more in my school, town, wtvr...
bleachandblood
Otakuite | Posted 03/20/08 | Reply
Hehe yeah thats the way to do it! Me and my twin always go to school one day every year and dress up in Harry Potter outfits (Just the robes and such). We always get a few lookers but I wonder what would happen if we just decided to cosplay! I doubt it would be aloud at our school. I really admire what you did and even had just the courage to do it in such a redneck town. My town here isn't too big but at least there are otakus in my school who have a passion for anime like you and myself. If I could I'd wrap them up in a box and send them to you! Well, best of luck up there!
EtherForce
Otakuite++ | Posted 03/20/08 | Reply
lol if I cosplayed when I was in high school I would've been called a nerd by at least a few people (some of them called me a nerd anyways). I remember this one day though, I saw someone wearing a big 'M' on their forehead as if they were possessed by Majin Buu from DBZ, that was pretty cool.
Manen
Otaku Eternal | Posted 03/20/08 | Reply
Sadly,at my school,if you do that kind of thing,you're mocked horribly,even on days you don't wear it.My friend cosplayed the exact same Captain you did,but she's still being tormented by the "gansta" idiots on our bus because of it.I sometimes wish I could have the courage to do this,but I just can't.
MaCheriexx
Grand Otaku | Posted 03/20/08 | Reply
Glad to hear I'm not the only one who cosplays to school for no occasion. xD
Zakuro Rose
Otaku Eternal | Posted 03/20/08 | Reply
Ha! Reminds me of where I used to live (and kinda where I live now). Where I lived previously was a purely academic school (college prep school in a literal sense), so there was maybe 30 people out of 400 (7-12) who actually was an otaku. One day I wore a Naruto headband when I was going through my Naruto phase and I got so many stares.
Where I live now (redneck place so bad that they take "redneck" as the highest compliment you can give) only has about 15 people that are true otaku ("true" as in not "OMG I just saw Naruto an tv Saturday! I loved how Sasuke did the Lightning Blade (emphasis on Lightning Blade and not Chidori or Raikiri, if you catch my drift
)!". The close friends I have there are either, A)otaku, or b)don't care either way. One of my friends, for holloween costume day, dressed up as your stereotypical Japanese schoolgirl, hardly stands out, and so my people where "OMG, what are you wearing?" This year I was going to dress as this punk-goth girl I saw from a picture. I wonder what would happen? =P
Anyways, I have a talent of getting people hooked on anime (I got one of my close friends who hated anime to become addicted to it). Maybe I'll get the anime fandom to rise
wolf of sorrow
JMusicGuru (Otaku Eternal) | Posted 03/20/08 | Reply
@WinterChild:
All right! A Louisiana otaku! I lived in St. Bernard Parish before Hurricane Katrina kicked me out to crappy central Mississippi.
ZeelZy
Otakuite++ | Posted 03/20/08 | Reply
your way luckier than me where i live st. Albert Alberta Canada! yays
any ways i have a good bit of otaku friends...but other people thats roght everyone kind of knows what is.. think anime is a horrible thing meant for kids because they think of pokemon and crap
I hate to say this but you kind of hide your identity untill the anime cons...
dragon king
Otaku Legend | Posted 03/20/08 | Reply
I would rather commit sepuku then to live in a place that has no interest in anime.
Girl, move out of that Racist, Uncultured, Beer Guzzlin', Gun Totin', Satan/Hitler/George W. Bush Worshiping, Home of "Klan Meetings"(I HATE THE "KKK" SO FUCKING MUCH!!!)Incest performin', Country/Bluegrass Music Listenin', Hillbilly Hellhole area better known as "The South" and move up to "The North"(yes, the very same North that whipped the South's ass ages ago), you can bring your friends and family of course, we have Anime Conventions in Boston every now and then, we also have stores that sell anime merchendise and Anime Shows/Movies on DVD, we have REAL music up here(Not that Country/Blugrass BULLSHIT) and its ALOT nicer in all the seasons then down there, where the weather down there is nothing but Summer Weather usuals; Tornado Warnings, Omega Heatwaves, etc, etc!
Sorry for ranting your eyes out and your ears off. As you can clearly tell: I hate the South, pure and simple...
haseo luver92
Otaku Legend | Posted 03/20/08 | Reply
lol wow. this was really entertaining. i know exactly where ur coming from with the rednecks (i used to live in a town in alabama that wasn't listed on any map and now i live in texas) and the whole not wanting to stick out or anything. i have to say i had a similar expierence this year on "dress like a pirate day" for our homcoming. while everyone else (the few ppl that did dress up) did like pirates of the carribean, i went as sanji from one piece. everyone was like "wtf?" and that was the second time i've cosplayed for school. but i think that it's really cool that u were able to go out there and do that. it takes alota courage and i commend u. ^^ we should all inspire to be wonderful and proud otaku such as urself. ^^
haseo
Kastom
Otaku Princess | Posted 03/20/08 | Reply
When I was in High School, and even this year here at my University on Halloween I alway dress up in my anime costume. A few times on random days a really good friend of mine did the same thing as you.
But yeah, the town I'm from is sounds a lot like the one your from. Although I'm in Canada. lol.
I'd rather see in shades of gray.
WinterChild
Otaku Eternal | Posted 03/20/08 | Reply
Here in Louisiana it's a little more accepted(though when people critize us we give them the bird XD) Haha this happended exactly to my friend!She came as Itachi to school on Halloween and everybody was aking her what was she supposed to be. Our Latin teacher was all like "what are you suposed to be?" and she simply replied weasel XD But because of this we found an otaku, she was dressed like shippuden Naruto (just a little note, later on she came to school as Light Yagami XD)You're a great storyteller, that must have been one heck of an adventure!
fishycrackers
Grand Otaku | Posted 03/20/08 | Reply
wow.. u go girl!!!
Kimmeh
The Beautiful German | Posted 03/20/08 | Reply
Let me just say this. I did the exact same thing you did. I went to school one random day dressed as Reno from Final Fantasy VII. I even dyed my hair red to give my cosplay the big impact I wanted. The ENTIRE day I got stares, and comments as to why I was dressed as a man. A lot of people though took it normally, because they all know I'm a crazy girl who's into anime and manga.
Anyways, I actually found quite a few people in my grade who're into video games. They knew immediately I was Reno, and thought it was awesome I put the cosplay together. They even suggested getting a group together for next Halloween. :)
On another day, this time during Spirit Week for Homecoming, I dressed up as Temari from Naruto. They day was "Disney Day", but I decided to go against Disney and cosplay instead. Hehe. Let's just say people were a little confused as to why I was dressed as a ninja, and carrying a huge ass fan around with me. I enjoyed it though. And people were really interested in the outfit. I found a couple more anime fans too. Not many, but a few. Mostly just got random comments and questions.
Anime is definitely a little more accepted here in Arizona. We have 5 or 6 Cons a year here.. So it's nothing unusual. I live in a small town though, with the High School only having 900 kids. (Normal High Schools have like 2,000 out here.) It was fun though. :)
"This is Schweinsteiger fashion. ZIS IZ FASHUNN."
SomeGuy
Canadian Liaison (Team) | Posted 03/20/08 | Reply
Wolf, you're an amazing storyteller. It's really easy to just get sucked into your work, and I know you're gonna inspire a lot of people out there to get a bit more daring with their fandom (the fact that you actually give otaku and cosplayers a good name instead of being obnoxious about it or anything is another major plus.
Just some things for next time: I edited this a lot to bring the writing standard high enough for publication in terms of grammar, punctuation, and spelling - even then it was a bit of a judgement call (but like I said, I felt this was a really good story). I rarely do this for people, and this'll probably be the last time I do this for you. Run the next work you want to publish through Word or something - or, if you have any friends who can read over your writing beforehand, that works too. Otherwise, I'll have to turn them down for publication next time.
Like I said, though, you're an amazing storyteller. I think this is a really good example of the kind of casual, informal "life" posts we'd be willing to publish for theO's Fan Words.
I do hope you'll keep us up to date on any future developments with your work on forming an anime club and stuff, and wish you the best of luck.
anit4e
Otakuite | Posted 03/20/08 | Reply
HEhehehe so you decided to hand us a more detailed report on your cosplay day?...AWESOME xD ^^
Hehehe like i said before,you're absolutely AMAZING for making such a BOLD move to cosplay in a a non-anime watching town xD.I have the same problem as you have...stuck in a city where nobody knows what anime is...not to mention manga...I think that i'm the only "girl otaku" inmy town -_-It's so....hard....for me to talk to somebody about those stuff here,i even failed to "contaminate" my best friends with that -_-.But that's why i have TheO,MyO and you Wolfy-chan ^^.So in the end it's just me,myself and i watching anime and reading manga here....but not long ago...my big bro and his friend...somehow got interested...i don't know what i did...but it's just Bleach,nothing more...not like me,i'm watching....well i lost count of the animes,and the manga i'm seeing now ^^ :P
I'm soooo glad that you found such positive reactions form your school when you cosplayed :D.It's nice that you even found some new otakus ^^.Hehehe now you can have some kind of a gather-up and even have a cosplay day in your school ^^.It will be fun xD
Like i said before,you need to post some pictures form the whole thing,i just can't wait to see them xD ^_^.I hope it will be soon ^^
Well this was a long one,so take care my sweet friend and see ya soon ^_~
P.S Sorry if i post only here,cause i'm so loaded with school stuff,projects,exams,i don't have so much free time...it's just gonna be these two weeks...hellish weeks >_