Capes, Masks, and the Best Times to Wear Them

Don’t tell me you don’t have a cape or a mask. You’ve been a comic book, sci-fi/fantasy/futurist/utopian/dystopian fiction fan as long as you can remember. You watch Supergirl just because it’s on regardless of whether or not you think it’s good. You were a Trekker even before there were Trekkies. You still have your first light saber because you couldn’t bear to get rid of it.

So don’t bother telling me you don’t have a cape or a mask somewhere in the dungeon of your archives. If you don’t, by some anomaly in the space/time continuum, you know just how to produce one if called upon to do so. It’s not the costume you lack, or the creativity, or the passion. What you lack is the perfect occasion to wear it. Here are a handful you might try on for size:

Comic-Con

If you are ready to dawn your hooded cape in public, you want to be at the next Comic-Con. One of the best things about the original hoody is that it can be worn both as hero or villain. The hoodie works well in the shadows and is a staple of both villains and vigilantes.

A convention like Comic-Con allows you to go as either or both. Comic-Con San Diego will be from July 20-23, with a preview night on the 19th. Obtaining badges for entry will cost you $220 for all four days, about half that for kids 13-17. 12 and under enter free.

You are going to want to bring several changes of costume for this one. But one thing is certain: Even if you are not dressed up as anything in particular, a hooded cape will ensure that you fit in nicely regardless of the crowd.

Sci-fi Conventions You Never Heard of

There are more sci-fi conventions than you can waive a want at. And you have never heard of most of them. Moreover, some of them are likely in your neck of the haunted woods. Whether it is the Collective Con in Jacksonville, FL, or the Mad Monster Party in Charlotte, NC, there is an occasion for you to dress up in full regalia.

Perhaps you are more of the Universal Multicultural Film Festival type. Your lucky day comes at the end of March in the town of Rancho Palos Verdes, CA. We’ve got Wizard World Comic Con in St. Louis and Anime Matsuri in Huston. The UK, Iceland, and Australia are also on the list to help meet your cosplay needs around the world.

There are tons of small, random sci-fi conventions that would love to have you attend, they are inexpensive, low-pressure, and all kinds of fun. You just have to look a little closer and dig a little deeper to find them. You’re not the only one in your town who has a cape and is dying to put it on.

Movie Openings

A favorite thing is to go to a Star Trek movie opening and take a picture of someone decked out in full Klingon makeup. That’s how you go see a Star Trek movie. The news gets even better for Star Wars fans, as there will be a new movie out every year for the foreseeable future.

We haven’t even begun to tap into the wealth that is the Marvel and DC universe. The movie year is chockablock full of super heroes and villains of every stripe. Whether or not your wear a Spider-Man-style mask, race and gender is not an issue. Ladies can also be a spider person. Though men will have a harder time pulling off the Wonder Woman thing. Still, you can make up any backstory and head-canon you like. Be you to the fullest.

That’s the beauty of these occasions. You can set your personal predilections free. Your imagination can find full expression in the real world of Comic-Con, other random sci-fi conventions, and movie theaters near you. That face paint and body makeup isn’t just for football games anymore.

Engage!