Sunday, September 12, 2010

Dragon*Con 2010 Martian Manhunter Cosplayer



Dragon*Con is probably the largest geek culture convention in the American South, and a damned sight more impressive than anything I've ever seen here in Texas. It seems like a veritable army of costume play enthusiasts descended on Atlanta, Georgia this year, and The Irredeemable Shag was there to greet them. Shag joined the Girls Gone Geek in touring the joint, and he snapped plentiful pictures as evidence. The guy even offered them up to bloggers like myself, and I've spent most off my hardcore hooky day sorting out the ones I want to use on my blogs. While you should look up Mr. Matthews' 600+ DragonCon 2010 Photos, I've got a few right here featuring everyone's favorite Martian... the one... the only... J'Onn J'Onzz!



Well, okay, maybe this guy wasn't even the only Martian Manhunter cosplayer in attendance, and I don't recall our hero being a member of the Justice League of Mall of America, but he's one of the best I've seen. No saggy green cloth leggings or rubber mask for this guy. From the Outer Limits prosthetic brow to the Orion Slave Girl body paint, this is the finest live action Manhunter from Mars that '60s sci-fi television could produce! However, the high folded collar, cape clasps, and toned body could only have come from the '80s. The red "pie" belt buckle with translucent elements are of a more recent vintage, recalling Alex Ross' take. All told, this is about as close the perfection as is probable without a pricey effects budget.



This Martian Manhunter turned up for many of Shag's group shots, but I'm really pleased these big solo pictures got snapped (just for me? You're too kind, Shag!) However, it's pretty neat seeing him interact with other heroes, especially the dude dressed as the Atom, who seemed to actively avoid being anywhere near a camera. You'd think he was hiding a pregnancy, or Blue Beetle Belly, or something. It's awesome that two of the more respected also-rans of the JLA, and obviously a pair of my favorites, stood side by side in a pic where J'Onn is so totally in character. These guys are all the way in the back of a shot involving a whole hell of a lot of people and stairs, but Martian Manhunter's presence still shine through... as do the Atom's ears. I'm also a fan of Steel, so I'm glad that fellow looks less like a dinner theater Tin Man in other pictures.



Here's another great aside-- the Bronze Age Manhunter from Mars and the One Year Later Martian Manhunter totally hitting on Ame-Comi Wonder Girl (is that legal?) and an amused but unreceptive Wonder Woman. We'll look at Coneheadhunter later in the week, unless you go ahead and scope out Shag's picture galley. Note that the Olive OYL is just shy of groping little Cassie, while big pimp Bronzey has got a smile on the Amazing Amazon's face. Is it the body paint or the telepathy? You decide!



Oodles more pictures available, with blogs like mine providing a filter for character specific surfing...

7 comments:

The Irredeemable Shag said...

Frank - Glad I could help out! I definitely had you in mind when I took those solo snapshots! And I love that you've been playing "Where's Waldo" with the group shots!

As always, keep up all the amazing work you do here. Your efforts here never cease to amaze me. I'm not sure if you recall, but your work here, Rob's Aquaman blog, and Kelson's Flash blog were what inspired me to start my Firestorm blog. I'll forever be in your debt for that encouragement and the support you've given me over the years. Thank you!

The Irredeemable Shag
http://onceuponageek.com
http://firestormfan.com

LissBirds said...

Wow....I'm not usually impressed by cosplay, but this is pretty darn good. Even the red pie symbol looks well-made. And is he wearing red contacts or is that just from the camera flash?

Love the shot where he's "in character." That is quite amusing. Now if only he had a bag of Oreos with him...

And Coneheader? Awww, c'mon, Bronzey, kick him in the shins!! :)

Which is legal, hitting on Anime Wonder Woman, or just dressing like her? Because, hey, did you see the Star Sapphire pics? Whoa.

It's too bad one of the J'onn's didn't pose with Miss Martian, though. That would've been cute.

Diabolu Frank said...

Shag, the pictures were awesome! There were so many people doing so many things in a given shot, it's just like pulling single panels out of a page. Thank you for the material and support!

mathematicscore said...

This guy is awesome! I'm with Liss. I think the last picture is less team up and more "Who's this fool?"

Anonymous said...

Actually we did have Oreos later in the shoot and took a few pics with Miss Martian. You can see some of those pics here. http://s232.photobucket.com/albums/ee70/kalelnc/Dragon%20Con%202010/

Diabolu Frank said...

Oh wow! Shag Matthews sent me the Oreo picture and the one with the three Martians (OYL, Mr & Miss,) but the rest are new to me. Those were so great, I was planning to do an additional post, and these would only make it better!

LissBirds said...

Awesome, album, Anonymous!

Can I just say that the pic of J'onn chasing Blue and Gold just. made. my. day.