by Jennifer Drewett
One of the things I love most about cosplay is the fact that it’s such a broad and accepting spectrum that allows one to dress up from an almost infinite range of sources. It’s something I truly enjoy. I must admit that I do notice some popular themes with some cosplayers seemingly basing their cosplay ideas on what anime/tv show/film/comic etc. is popular and what might get them noticed most. Occasionally this brings about a uniformity in cosplay with a massive amounts of the same character in one place. Whilst this isn’t necessarily a terrible thing, it does take away the chances of coming across unique people and unique ideas. Someone who definitely isn’t running out of different ideas is cosplayer Alex Borley. Whilst he’s definitely quite new to the scene but there’s a definite sense of something different in his cosplay page Punx Dead Cosplay. I interviewed him to discuss his journey and what he has planned next.
One of the things I love most about cosplay is the fact that it’s such a broad and accepting spectrum that allows one to dress up from an almost infinite range of sources. It’s something I truly enjoy. I must admit that I do notice some popular themes with some cosplayers seemingly basing their cosplay ideas on what anime/tv show/film/comic etc. is popular and what might get them noticed most. Occasionally this brings about a uniformity in cosplay with a massive amounts of the same character in one place. Whilst this isn’t necessarily a terrible thing, it does take away the chances of coming across unique people and unique ideas. Someone who definitely isn’t running out of different ideas is cosplayer Alex Borley. Whilst he’s definitely quite new to the scene but there’s a definite sense of something different in his cosplay page Punx Dead Cosplay. I interviewed him to discuss his journey and what he has planned next.
How did you get into cosplay?
The first time I cosplayed was when I went to London MCM with my flatmate one year. It wasn’t the first con I’d been to - that was many years ago. When I went to London MCM with my flatmate it was alright then I went to London Film & Comic Con with a friend of mine and she introduced me to a number of people who I started cosplaying and having a fantastic time with.
What is your favourite costume to wear?
Oh it’s Prince Oberyn (Game of Thrones) without a doubt. The red viper definitely goes down the best. It’s comfortable to wear, it’s recognisable, it’s great fun to be him. It just looks fantastic.
Quite a number of cosplayers have chosen to do cosplays from Pokemon but you’ve gone in a slightly different direction with your latest project which originates from Digimon. What made you go in that direction?
It’s not really down to a preference on the shows. I watched both shows as a kid and loved them both equally but Black Wargreymon (Digimon) stood out to me as being particularly bad arse and it came into mind after seeing large eva foam costumes of armour to try something like that for myself. I thought “What’s simple?” and “What do I really like?” Don’t get me wrong: it’s been a difficult, difficult cosplay but relatively compared to a lot of other costumes out there it’s pretty simple. I just wanted to launch myself into the cosplay scene as it were with just a big and ambitious cosplay.
What was the most difficult costume to put together?
Definitely Black Wargreymon. It’s the only one I’ve completely made myself. I completely bought my first cosplay but then that was my first ever cosplay. I made bits for Prince Oberyn like the belt and a few other items but not in its entirety. Black Wargreymon is definitely the most difficult and will probably remain the most difficult for some time.
Who/What inspires you to cosplay?
In all honesty it’s a give and take thing as it were. What I get out of it personally is the enjoyment I get out of people complimenting my costume. It is definitely a bit of an ego boost but it feels fantastic. There’s also the give part of it. It makes happy to see other people happy to see their favourite characters cosplayed and how ridiculously excited they get when they approach. That is the real reward of cosplay - just seeing how happy it makes everyone else.
The first time I cosplayed was when I went to London MCM with my flatmate one year. It wasn’t the first con I’d been to - that was many years ago. When I went to London MCM with my flatmate it was alright then I went to London Film & Comic Con with a friend of mine and she introduced me to a number of people who I started cosplaying and having a fantastic time with.
What is your favourite costume to wear?
Oh it’s Prince Oberyn (Game of Thrones) without a doubt. The red viper definitely goes down the best. It’s comfortable to wear, it’s recognisable, it’s great fun to be him. It just looks fantastic.
Quite a number of cosplayers have chosen to do cosplays from Pokemon but you’ve gone in a slightly different direction with your latest project which originates from Digimon. What made you go in that direction?
It’s not really down to a preference on the shows. I watched both shows as a kid and loved them both equally but Black Wargreymon (Digimon) stood out to me as being particularly bad arse and it came into mind after seeing large eva foam costumes of armour to try something like that for myself. I thought “What’s simple?” and “What do I really like?” Don’t get me wrong: it’s been a difficult, difficult cosplay but relatively compared to a lot of other costumes out there it’s pretty simple. I just wanted to launch myself into the cosplay scene as it were with just a big and ambitious cosplay.
What was the most difficult costume to put together?
Definitely Black Wargreymon. It’s the only one I’ve completely made myself. I completely bought my first cosplay but then that was my first ever cosplay. I made bits for Prince Oberyn like the belt and a few other items but not in its entirety. Black Wargreymon is definitely the most difficult and will probably remain the most difficult for some time.
Who/What inspires you to cosplay?
In all honesty it’s a give and take thing as it were. What I get out of it personally is the enjoyment I get out of people complimenting my costume. It is definitely a bit of an ego boost but it feels fantastic. There’s also the give part of it. It makes happy to see other people happy to see their favourite characters cosplayed and how ridiculously excited they get when they approach. That is the real reward of cosplay - just seeing how happy it makes everyone else.
Have you ever recognised by someone who recognised you as a cosplayer?
On a couple of occasions, yes. There’s been a couple of people that have come up to me and have gone “Oh I saw you at another con.” I haven’t had anyone come up to me because of my cosplay page yet but that only started later on so I suspect once I do London MCM this weekend, I’ll be able to say quite a few people have because my Black Wargreymon project has gotten quite a lot of attention in Facebook Digimon cosplay groups and the Facebook MCM group. A lot of people have said they’ll want to see it and get photos with it.
You mentioned your Prince Oberyn cosplay earlier and this Saturday at London MCM you’ll be roaming around with a rather large Game of Thrones cosplay group. How did that come about?
It came about at Cardiff Film & Comic Con with a couple of my friends Georgia of Riddikulus Cosplay and Kristian of Deathwish Cosplay. We bumped into another cosplayer called Dominic of A Wing and aPrayer Cosplay who was talking about how he wanted to cosplay as Jamie Lannister. That’s where the ball started rolling and we started getting a Game of Thrones cosplay group together. Since then Georgia and Dominic have organised it and now we’ve got about 40 cosplayers involved and just about every main character except for Ned Stark for some reason. This is the second con we’re doing the group for and it’s going to be the main one where we have the most people. It was born out of a few people who loved the show and loved cosplaying the characters. We may well be the largest Game of Thrones cosplay group and as a result we’re going to be filmed for ThroneCast.
Is there something within cosplay that you are particularly passionate about?
It really is literally just the atmosphere. Being a part of it and doing cosplay has made me a hell of a lot more comfortable with my geeky side for sure and a lot more comfortable in expressing it. What I’m really passionate about is the atmosphere and the sheer energy, the feeling of pure happiness that people have there… when they’re not being douchey or bitchy.
The name of your cosplay page is Punx Dead Cosplay, punk being very much about rebellion. Do you think your punk nature has some influence over your cosplay choices?
Yeah. Punk just like cosplay is about individuality and doing your own thing so I feel that translates well. It’s that individuality and the Do-It-Yourself nature of cosplay that draws me in.
What cosplays would you like to do in the future?
I do have quite a long list to get through! The next one on my list that I want to do is Floki from Vikings. Looking at my list, there seems to be a definite theme of insane characters running through! I want to cosplay as Floki because I love the man and I think I can replicate the madness quite well. I love Vikings and I reckon I can do it. Another cosplay on my list is Giant Robot Nixon from Futurama.
On a couple of occasions, yes. There’s been a couple of people that have come up to me and have gone “Oh I saw you at another con.” I haven’t had anyone come up to me because of my cosplay page yet but that only started later on so I suspect once I do London MCM this weekend, I’ll be able to say quite a few people have because my Black Wargreymon project has gotten quite a lot of attention in Facebook Digimon cosplay groups and the Facebook MCM group. A lot of people have said they’ll want to see it and get photos with it.
You mentioned your Prince Oberyn cosplay earlier and this Saturday at London MCM you’ll be roaming around with a rather large Game of Thrones cosplay group. How did that come about?
It came about at Cardiff Film & Comic Con with a couple of my friends Georgia of Riddikulus Cosplay and Kristian of Deathwish Cosplay. We bumped into another cosplayer called Dominic of A Wing and aPrayer Cosplay who was talking about how he wanted to cosplay as Jamie Lannister. That’s where the ball started rolling and we started getting a Game of Thrones cosplay group together. Since then Georgia and Dominic have organised it and now we’ve got about 40 cosplayers involved and just about every main character except for Ned Stark for some reason. This is the second con we’re doing the group for and it’s going to be the main one where we have the most people. It was born out of a few people who loved the show and loved cosplaying the characters. We may well be the largest Game of Thrones cosplay group and as a result we’re going to be filmed for ThroneCast.
Is there something within cosplay that you are particularly passionate about?
It really is literally just the atmosphere. Being a part of it and doing cosplay has made me a hell of a lot more comfortable with my geeky side for sure and a lot more comfortable in expressing it. What I’m really passionate about is the atmosphere and the sheer energy, the feeling of pure happiness that people have there… when they’re not being douchey or bitchy.
The name of your cosplay page is Punx Dead Cosplay, punk being very much about rebellion. Do you think your punk nature has some influence over your cosplay choices?
Yeah. Punk just like cosplay is about individuality and doing your own thing so I feel that translates well. It’s that individuality and the Do-It-Yourself nature of cosplay that draws me in.
What cosplays would you like to do in the future?
I do have quite a long list to get through! The next one on my list that I want to do is Floki from Vikings. Looking at my list, there seems to be a definite theme of insane characters running through! I want to cosplay as Floki because I love the man and I think I can replicate the madness quite well. I love Vikings and I reckon I can do it. Another cosplay on my list is Giant Robot Nixon from Futurama.
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