I know that by now if you have an opinion about this topic, or really have just been on the internet recently, you have been inundated with various takes on the subject of cosplay girls and the attention they receive. I too have read many articles, blog posts, and comments and pretty much every side has been covered so I won't bother adding much to the conversation except for two things:
1. The kind of outpouring of negativity that started this most recent chapter of a long running controversy is exactly what I am against on the internet, no matter what the topic.
2. Although it is but one of many, after reading this post and comments specifically, I would like to say that it is not just the people in so called "sexy" costumes that are involved in this. Last year at Comic-Con was the first year I cosplayed. I turned a dress into a TARDIS (which seemed to be a popular choice that year) by painting the dress myself with the appropriate signage, and paneling and making a lamp hat that lit up. I put a lot of work into it and was appreciative when far more people than I thought would be interested wanted to take my picture. Some even told me I was the best TARDIS they had seen, which meant a lot.
The point of this story is that the dress I chose would in no way fall into the category of sexy. Sure it was strapless, but it being a size too big (the color was why I bought it) and me not being especially well endowed in the chest area, there wasn't much to see. Also it was one of those floor length, fancy, not at all tight-fitting, bridesmaid numbers. And now that I am thinking about it I had caught the Con Plague and had a fever that day so I was looking especially haggard. Despite all of this I was harassed a bit. Most of the people I interacted with were very polite, asked to take my picture, and then went about their business. However, some made crude jokes and said things that I am sure they would not have said to a stranger in another venue. I got a lot of "Are you bigger on the inside?" and "Nice box" type stuff. Sometimes to my face, other times yelled at me from afar as I walked by, but pretty much always involving sexual innuendo.
At the time I was not too bothered by it (being delirious from sickness may have helped, as I was pretty much focusing my energy on trying not to fall over) and really mostly just sad that that was the best they could come up with. I did in retrospect feel that maybe those are not things you should say to a person you don't know and perhaps this whole "Con Courage" thing is a bit of a problem. Heck, isn't the fact that I basically accepted it when if something similar had happened anywhere else I would have been like "What the F is that dude's problem?!" a solid indicator that there is definitely something going on here?
To sum up: This issue cannot simply be blamed on the girls in sexy or revealing costumes. I was dressed as a non-slutty inanimate object for goodness sake and I was still the recipient of rude sexual comments. Common courtesy is still a thing, right?
Love,
A
Dear Shouting Into The Void,
I really appreciate what you wrote about The Big Bang Theory here. Although I do not necessarily agree with every single thing you say, I do think you make a lot of interesting points (and frankly some which I had never thought about and may change my view of the show a bit, although not enough to stop enjoying it). I especially wanted to thank you for composing a well written and reasonable essay making valid arguments instead of spewing hate with nothing to back it up. The internet needs more people like you.
Love,
A
Love,
A
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