One For The Bucket
While on my first trip to Japan (December 2019/January 2020), I searched to find the largest Pokémon Center and discovered Sunshine City Mall in Ikebukero. Now, I’m not a Pokémon fan. I’ve not played any of the video or card games. I may have caught one or two episodes of the animation series many many many years ago, but I do like the creatures. That’s the extent of my interaction and curiosity. But, for whatever reason, I had this idea to find the store and after three quick stops on the Yamanote Line from Shin-Okubo, I ended up in Ikebukero. From there it was a quick walk to the mall where it felt like a larger and easier to navigate version of Character Street inside Tokyo Station. There was a Jump Store, Disney Store, Sesame Street Store, Snoopy, Miffy, Marvel, Studio Ghibli, Mujiwara Store (One Piece) and of course, the Pokémon Center. It was Character Street, but in mall form. I ventured from place to place grabbing some souvenirs and then saw on Google Maps that there was a rooftop park. I decided to find the location despite it being winter. This is when I was about to find something to change my world. As I exited the stairs or escalator, I caught a glimpse of No Face from Spirited Away walking past me in real life. Then, I went outside and turned the corner to find about 15-20 people in various cosplays with all these professional photographers. It was like a photoshoot at an anime convention, but without the convention! All these people dressed up as characters having an awesome time getting pics of themselves in their costumes. Meanwhile, for years I’ve been at the mercy of trying to scour events for pictures of myself despite having hundreds of pictures taken. This was the spark that would ignite the desire to take my uniform abroad with me on my solo trip (May/June 2024).
And that’s exactly what happened.
Fast forward a little over four years and I’m in Osaka walking across the Ukiniwa Bridge which goes across the Dotonbori River. I’m making my way to meet Manu, a photographer, between the Apple and Puma stores. (Check out his photos!) We arranged to take photos around America-mura and Dotonbori. Then, a week later I’m on a train in Tokyo headed from Asakusa to Shibuya to meet Kenji, another photographer, for a shoot in Shibuya and Shinjuku. (Check out his photos!) These were two nights full of electricity capturing shots amongst the crowds, lights and city sounds while in uniform. Well, in Stormtrooper uniform.
I’ve said this multiple times. For so many of us novice, amateur or casual cosplayers we have all these great experiences. We make people smile. We celebrate special occasions. We promote area businesses. Through it all we get all these pictures taken of us and yet, we might see 1/1000 of what others get to keep as a tangible memory via a pic. Hiring a photographer while being in costume was something I didn’t know I was missing out until that first trip to Japan. Being in my favorite place away from home while doing something I love doing was a bucket list moment. Being able to capture it by having a photographer made it a once in a lifetime moment!
Or was it? Check out the next blog entry cause, oops, I did it again!
