Cosplay question:

If a male dresses as a female character for cosplay, does that make them a cross-dresser?

Inquiring minds want to know.

It is my understanding that they refer to that as a "gender-bend".

You often see characters who are "gender swapped" or just "swapped".

Or you could add a prefix or change the first syllable of  the character name to indicate a gender, especially for popular characters that many people do versions of. E.g. Deadpool -> Fempool.

But I think that's something different from what you're describing.

DD#1 used to do a gender-bend Speed Racer.

[edit] I guess the real answer to the original question is:  does it matter?

No, it's just the Netflix version

Don't get hung up on labels. Just remember its not ok to touch.

In reply to Duke :

No, not really.

But this is more than just a rhetorical question for giggles.  I have been to several anime conventions and after the first one I have dressed up as various characters.  In the past I have been No Face, Desert Punk, Reaper of the Cards and a quasi Iron Man (I dressed all in black and carried an iron painted to look like Iron Man's face.)  Just before covid I joked with my daughter that I should dress as Llenn from Gun Gale Online.  And she still thinks I should do it.  Reference picture here:

It still doesn't matter if some folks consider it crossdressing, gender bending, or for our homegrown religious terrorists: drag 

It sounds fun (I enjoyed binging GGO). You want to try it, and your daughter is in on the fun. What else matters? Don't let fear of something that doesn't matter keep you from enjoying life with your fam. 

In reply to ralleah :

Thank you for the encouragement!  Now to work on everything for the costume. 

In reply to Noddaz :

Awesome!  Please keep us posted on progress.

Noddaz said:

In reply to ralleah :

Thank you for the encouragement!  Now to work on everything for the costume. 

Nice!! and you;re welcome. come back and tell us how it went 

In reply to Noddaz :

You should definitely do it. I want to see a pink FN P90 (the type of gun she's holding).

Own it. 

I don't cosplay, but have some friends that do. As I understand it, there is gender bending and crossplay. Gender bending is when you change the gender of the character, generally to match your own gender. Crossplay is when you dress as a gender other than your own to match the original gender of the character. I think gender bending would be a lot easier and more (physically and emotionally) comfortable for most dads I know to pull off with better results than crossplay.

Not that it should stop you either way if it's going to be something fun for you and your daughter. I always liked the phrase: Are you dad enough? 

It'll be cool to see whatever you come up with, so looking forward to pics.

Noddaz said:

Just before covid I joked with my daughter that I should dress as Llenn from Gun Gale Online.  And she still thinks I should do it. 

That's a cool costume. Sounds like you'd have fun putting that costume together to cosplay, and your daughter wants you to do it.

I think you should do what is going to make you and your daughter happy without worrying about slapping a title on it.

In case you haven't found them (you probably have) follow Kamui Cosplay on YouTube. She and her husband have done a few videos on replicating guns out of PVC and foam. I'd imagine a P90 wouldn't be too hard to make - especially since the actual gun is fairly expensive and the short barrel version has to be registered, which is a PITA. The magazines are available so you could just buy a few of those.

I thought someone out there makes a dummy P90 for training purposes, but it's not popping up.

However, this guy showed up in the first results showing how to DIY your own out of foam.

Infinitely less work, but IDK if this is cheating or otherwise culturally unacceptable: airsoft P90, as cheap as $50 on amazon or ebay, or common enough one might show up on local CL or whatever.

In reply to Oapfu :

Oh wow... yeah, that does look like a way easier option. 

Oapfu said:

Infinitely less work, but IDK if this is cheating or otherwise culturally unacceptable: airsoft P90, as cheap as $50 on amazon or ebay, or common enough one might show up on local CL or whatever.

To me, this is ok.   I have been hoping to find something cheaper because I am cheap.  But I just may break down and buy a fake P90.  And then paint it pink.

Noddaz said:

Oapfu said:

Infinitely less work, but IDK if this is cheating or otherwise culturally unacceptable: airsoft P90, as cheap as $50 on amazon or ebay, or common enough one might show up on local CL or whatever.

To me, this is ok.   I have been hoping to find something cheaper because I am cheap.  But I just may break down and buy a fake P90.  And then paint it pink.

At $40, this gel ball shooting version looks promising.. and fun!

A lot of conventions will not allow airsoft guns because they can fire projectiles. Be sure to check your convention's rules before commiting to something.