That has been my experience as well. It was that attitude expressed by cosplayers I thought were really great, that got me to adjust my spectator attitude.
That is too bad but not surprising. Contest bring the drama out.
Sorry, I did misread that.
I think both of those statements are on the same spectrum. With “this cosplay sucks” being on the worse end of the scale obviously. But once the question was raised, what is so impressive about this cosplay. Other people started to say the wig or hair was wrong/bad. The dress didn’t fit right. Each person adds a little pearl of wisdom and collectively it can be a bit much.
Full disclosure 1: I had the same question as you at first glance. I would have featured something different but not my blog. If Xeni took the time to make this post I trust she was impressed and that is all that matters in this post. And then as I stated previously, with cosplay I try to compliment the positive and leave the nitpicks to people/mentors of the cosplayer to make in a more constructive manner than I, Joe internet can make.
Full disclosure 2: I am overly protective of cosplayer’s, burlesque performers and new comedians, due to knowing quite a few online and in meat space. Even a mediocre performance takes more work, money and guts than most people realize. And then it costs absolutely nothing to cut a person down. So I get a bit mother bird sometimes.
Agreed on all counts save one…criticism and critique are not inherently negative. Tone, delivery, and topic are what make them negative.
So in this case pointing out “Hey the dress doesn’t quite fit right” can be taken as “Oh so I’m too fat/skinny for this?!” Uh…no…the dress is not properly sized for you and should be tailored. This is not negative, its observational. And if corrected will make the cosplay “better”.
By definition, putting on a costume and stepping out into public with it whether at a contest or on social media) means you are opening yourself to said criticism. It should be delivered with care and support, yes. But not silenced entirely. If no one tells them what was less than ideal, how will they ever improve?
Every single performer I know, no matter how good they are. After the performance, back stage or out for drinks later, they mostly focus on what they could have done better. Everyone around them is nothing but supportive. They kind of glaze out. When people stop talking they go back to, the EL wire frizzed out because I rushed the last minute soldering fix back stage, and then at the big music crescendo my jump didn’t land on the beat.
On Monday they will review the video with their peers or mentors. They will look into why some part of their costume failed. They will ask, how can I improve this cosplay or performance in two weeks for the next performance.
Not saying, criticism from the internet has zero utility, but I think it is way down the spectrum of usefulness.
