Tampa Bay Comic-Con 2018: My Favorite Cosplay!

Tampa Bay Comic-Con is always a great con: excellent panels, cosplay, and big bustling crowds. One standout difference from other conventions: there were lots and LOTS of families this year, so tons of little kids, mostly in adorable costumes. (I heard that kids under 12 got in free, that must be why.) It was fun seeing so many families cosplaying together, and of course little ones dressed as superheroes always make my heart melt:

John and I even went to a couple of panels this time, since I'm trying to take more breaks and keep the anxiety monster at bay. David Harbour (Sheriff Hopper on Stranger Things and the new Hellboy) was everything I hoped and more: funny, clever, and the perfect big-hearted Gryffindor. (I shared that vid on my IG Story, sorry if you missed it. :p) And of course any time you get a chance to see Brent Spiner (Data from Star Trek) at a convention, GO. He's snarky, sarcastic, and utterly hilarious. My love for him is true - and not just because he once wore a Carrot Jockey necklace I made.

But enough talk, let's get to the rest of my favorite cosplay finds!

My very first photo of the con turned out to be one of the most colorful:

[Tatum Tot Cosplay]

Starfire! She practically glowed in real life; that fuschia wig & orange body paint are gorgeous together.

 A classic Penguin and Joker:

 Joker is my friend Dana (follow him on IG!), who was sweet enough to let me and John flash him many, many times over the weekend. [WINK]

Ok really we were just playing with our lighting set up, but still.

Princess Buttercup & Dread Pirate Roberts from Princess Bride:

 Usually I see Buttercup in her red dress, so it was lovely seeing her in blue!

Another difference at Tampa Comic-Con: so much steampunk!

 I haven't seen this many 'punks at a con in years, and there were some truly gorgeous contraptions:

 She's wearing the Da Vinci flying machine on her head!

The amazing Brenna Mazzoni as Hellgirl:

The last time I featured Brenna here (as a rockin' Hela) I found out she reads Epbot! And that I'd already been chatting with her on IG without realizing who she was! So to sum up: I'm an idiot, and you should follow Brenna on IG for the most incredible body art & cosplay. I mean, WOW.

Here's another gem you missed if you don't follow my Instagram Stories:

My inner poet really comes out on IG, guys. Just saying.

My photo doesn't quite do this justice, but here comes a stunning Fallout Assaultron:

[Aston Martini & Victor Voyeur Cosplay]

    

They even had a setting on the red eye light to compensate for our flash, which is clever. The blue claw lights don't show, though - so go check out their page to see video of it in action.

Tulio & Miguel from Road to El Dorado always get a big grin out of me:

[Little Boffin & Jazzy Bachelor]

I love seeing older, underrated films like this reppin' in cosplay. (I also see a lot of Anastasia and Treasure Planet.) Now I want to watch the movie again!

Oh! Here comes one of my top favorites from the whole weekend. I've NEVER seen this cosplayed before, gang:

If you're lost, it's only because you can't read their embroidered robes: these are physician witches from St. Mungo's Hospital For Magical Maladies And Injuries! The clipboard has a chart for none other than Gilderoy Lockhart, and I think there's even a moving picture of him on it - that's the black box on the paper, most likely a cut-out to a hidden phone screen. 

I'm assuming the patient is Neville's Mom, Alice, but I could be wrong on that. She didn't try to give me a gum wrapper, anyway - which is good, since it's hard to take photographs when you're a sobby mess over fictional characters come to life, am I right? ::lip tremble::

Moving on to Predator and Ant-Man and the Wasp:

Ant-Man's helmet was motorized, so the top half slid up!

 Huntress and a little Assassin's Creed:

A lovely Zelda:

Here's a fun mashup: Fallout Harley!

I just now noticed her ponytails are dip-dyed yellow & blue! Yes! Also love the Vault Tec bat, ha.

This John Wick made everyone do a double-take:

Appropriately enough, you can follow him at Faux Keanu Cosplay. :D

Here comes an obscure park reference for my fellow Dizgeeks:

Hatbox Ghost! Of course he'd look a hundred times better in low light with no flash, since he had dim LED trim and glow-in-the-dark paint on him - but hopefully you get the idea.

And finally (for this batch, at least) here comes the one John and I had THE most fun with, since we're both big BioShock fans:

Do me a favor and clickety-click it to full size, so you get the FULL EFFECT, k?

Now, once it's nice and big, take a look at that oh-so-creepy Little Sister by the stairs:

You guys.

I TOOK THAT PICTURE.

Look!

John took my finished edit and photoshopped it into a screencap from the game.

SO COOL, am I right?

This is the crazy talented Emma J.I.Q. Rubini, by the way, who's always been super sweet about letting us take multiple shots of her 'til I get it right. This close-up is actually my favorite:

Emma not only made every bit of her costume herself, she even knitted the Big Daddy doll! And the eyes aren't digital; they're her painted eyelids. (Though I confess I did boost them in post.)

Thanks again to all of you who've cheered me on through my photography doubts and woes; I still get intimidated and overwhelmed, but after the last two cons I feel a lot better, a lot more excited to keep learning.

This is not the end: I still have more great cosplays to show you from Tampa! I've just yammered on for too long already here, so stay tuned for part 2, coming soon.