Cosplay: The Series (Episode 9 review)

Episode 9 marks the ending of season One and imho, one of the weirdest episode! In this episode, the headmistress Kartini is re-introduced as, you would never guess...a cosplayer!! Like whhhhhuuuttt?!

The story begins with a glimpse into the past of the club leader, Vincent and their arch nemesis, Sukma. Which then paths way for the appearance of Nina the mysterious girl. Nina is back in town to recruit her childhood friends and she  confronts Rain aka Q-Cosushinkai’s headmistress Kartini about the peril the Organisation is facing (told you it’s weird xD) !!

The story then pans over to an over-the-top original cosplay with explosive effects and the full KKK cult setting. Which begs the question, what exactly is this secret organisation and what is their motive?

Episode 9 ends the season on an extremely high note with a major cliff hanger that baits a more exciting Season 2! Tell me you're excited too xD

Being the season finale, I am pretty pleased with episode 9. I love the sudden introduction of suspense and would love to see how CTS rolls the story out! Nothing like a script that gets your heart racing! And guys I'm serious about getting feedbacks for season 2. I understand Season 2's production are still underway and you never know, your suggestions might just appear in the next season! So comment away!!

 

Remember to subscribe to Cosplay: The Series and let’s await the next season!

P/s: Cosplay: The series also has a Facebook page!

Cosplay: The Series (Ep 8 review)

If you're upset Episode 7 was a mere 2 minutes, Episode 8 is here to make up for it! Lasting a total of 6:16 minute, episode 8 is jam packed with Kpop dance cover and original cosplay skit performance.

Continuing the storyline from before, Q-Cosushinkai discovered the twins were actually sent by Sukma to reck havoc and decided to turn the table on Sukma by getting the twins on their boat.

To make up for their wrongdoings, the twins contacted Indonesian mangaka Is Yuniarto to help clear the bad name of the club.

Watch your favourite Durarara character dance to Super Junior's Sorry Sorry now xD My personal favourite would have to be the prelude to the dance cover and the flicking of the lights xD SATURDAY NIGHT FEVARRRRR!!!!

Cosplay: The Series is coming to the end of Season One soon (tomorrow will be Season 1's grand Finale), what do you guys think about this fan series? Any comments or ideas for season 2? Comment away and share with us!

Cosplay: The Series (Episode 6 & 7 review)

Hi peeps! Have you watched Episode 6 & 7 of the Indonesian Fan made Cosplay Live drama yet?

Episode 6 jumps back to the story with Headmistress Kartini, rewarding the club’s hard work with the return of their club room.

But not all is smooth for the club as their arch nemesis, Sukma delivers a wave of attack and threats. What can the club who has her tail caught do this time? This episode also sees the introduction of 2 new mysterious characters. Will they be friends or foe? Watch to find out!

 

Episode 7 is delivered short but succulently sweet. Watch this episode for the introduction of the devilish twins! Witness the destructive power of mock and pessimism! And you bet Sukma’s got a feet in this!

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And now on to my comments!.

Episode 6 is dished with mega Anime styled storyline which I found a little hard to swallow. Because let's face it; some things only work in Anime.

Of course I'm not disregarding the effort and directions. I really commend their effort to weave 'Copyright' & 'Fair Use' into the picture. It's not often you hear a cosplayer talk about cosplay being an infringement act. So it’s definitely a good chance for new cosplayers to understand their hobby better. But the Hentai HDD and hacking portion was just a leeeeetle too, unrealistic.

It would really help if the appearance of mysterious lady and dude was more ….well, mysterious. Maybe they can try smoke next time ??

Performance of the actors were good (single-continuous-take FTW!) but Sukma gets the cake with his villainous ways. Sadly the lack of varied camera angles kills a big part of the performance. I would love to have more close-up of their facial expression and watch the actors overreact “Nodame” style .

Episode 7 suffered a lot of Audio issues but that aside, I must say I really enjoyed Episode7 even though it was so short! I think it has something to do with the chop-chop editing and narrating. Surprisingly, this was 1 episode that I don’t feel will be better longer!

My point being, I’d rather have the story focus on the internal dispute than go in-depth about the twins and their misbehaviours! So plus points to Episode 7

I’ve come to the end of my review, comment and share your thoughts about the series with me! And tell me, do you agree that Sukma should wear Skinnys instead?

Remember to subscribe to Cosplay: The Series and let’s await the next episode!

P/s: Cosplay: The series also has a Facebook page!

Cosplay: The Series (Episode 5 review)

Episode 5 comes back with focus on every Yaoi fan girl's muse; Homosexuality. Better known as "Boy's Love".

The story begin with Vice Leader Ocha aka rabid yaoi fangirl chancing upon her brother's collection of Arya’s photograph kept in a folder affectionately named "My Lovely". What happened next was a dreadful misunderstanding between Ocha and Jafti that threatens to tear their relationship apart. What would happen to them?

The episode concludes abruptly with a Cosplay PV of Kagamine Rin & Len's original song 'Adolescent'. Definitely have to like how the song was chosen to reflect the feelings of the characters in this specific episode.

Coming to the 5th episode, the shortfall of having overly short stories are starting to stand out. Like what someone commented, having overly short episodes is starting to make the series appears truncated. I'm guessing the story is designed so as to have an even distribution of screen time and for it to stay general.

The usual issues of poor lighting persists in this episode with a big portion of the filming taken in places with poor nature lighting. I can't help feeling that the scene of Ocha with Annisa and Vincent would have been much more effective if it had better lighting and varied camera angles. I was also hoping the actors could give a more exaggerating performance but I guess I should lay down on that since nobody's a paid professional here.

Critics aside, what would you do if you found out your blood brother/sister is a gay/lesbian? Would you judge them or empathise with them?

Having been brought up in a fairly traditional family, I must admit I find it hard to attune to the idea of “Boys Love”. Even after nearly a decade into this community and having numerous Pro-Yaoi friends, I still find it hard to comprehend this interest.

Don't take me wrong, I'm not against them, I just can't find any reasons to support it on a personal basis. I still prefer my protagonist to get on with another protagonist of the opposite gender. Are you a Yaoi fan? What do you guys think about it? Comment and share with me!

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Remember to subscribe to Cosplay: The Series and let’s await the next episode!

P/s: Cosplay: The series also has a Facebook page!

Cosplay: The Series (Episode 4 review)

Apologies for the late review but yours truly was in the land of the rising sun the entire last week ^^; And so here comes the highly anticipated Episode 4 of Cosplay:The Series!

Let’s watch the short film before we proceed to my review.

I must say, this episode had me screaming out “ Too Short!!! ” much more than any other episodes. In this episode, the focus falls on the group’s most obviously awkward Otaku cum Armour Maker; Bagas. The story tells of Bagas’s beginning with armour making and is a tale of heart-warming encouragement.

As usual, CTS has delivered another touching insight into this seemingly childish hobby. The focus on acceptance and kindness and the reminder that everyone needs someone. Everyone needs to be encouraged and above all, everyone wants to be accepted.

Like the title implies, never underestimate the power of Kindness.

I really wished the episode could have been a little longer to allow for more awkward silent moments and maybe more in-depth explanation of Bagas’s story. But all in all, it is another wonderful episode by CTS.

I wonder if the ’candle light’ dinner like setting is paving way for further development xD Leave me a comment and share your thoughts on this episode with me! Bagas X Annisa yes? no?

 

Anyway, remember to subscribe to Cosplay: The Series and let’s await the next episode!

P/s: Cosplay: The series also has a Facebook page!

Cosplay: The Series (Episode 3 review)

After a week of anticipation, episode 3 of CTS is finally out!

If you still don’t know, Cosplay: The Series is a live action drama about a group of Cosplayers and their struggles in High School! Purely fan made and wholly produced in Indonesia by Bonni Rambatan.

I'm going to do things a little differently this time. Instead of reading my review, please watch the episode first then read my review and see if our sentiments are alike.

Done watching?

Years of Anime and TV watching has made me into some sort of a loser plot genius because with one look at the title, I could already sense the storyline. From the title, it seemed like the series is moving towards the private and emotional side of Cosplay.

And sure enough it did!  With the focus of this episode on the group's Lolita; Agnesya.

The story jumped straight to the past of Agnesya and how her Lolita life had a change. Through the short 5:43 minutes, the episode touched on the struggle she faced trying to be herself and her exasperation with the controlling habit of the society. The feelings of a caged bird that echoes so close to heart for many of our generation.

I might be a little of an emo kid but I can't help feeling that this episode will strike a chord with many Cosplayer. The feelings of awkwardness, confusion  and sometimes even shame, that seemed to shadow this fandom.

My personal complain for this episode would be the horrendous lighting(or lack of) in certain scenes and slightly boring angles.

The scene of Agnesya packing up would have been much more emotionally impactful if more light could have been shed on her face to highlight the expression change.

And I wouldn't mind if there were some close ups of the girls when they were talking. It might bring a bit more impact to the otherwise very ‘internal’ emotion. But that's just me.

All in all, this episode is just how I imagined CTS to be. Though this episode seems to steer away slightly from the main plot but it is a welcomed filler as it brings realism to the hobby and gives the characters depth. Last thing I want, is to watch a Drama about “Cosplay” that’s all happy and gay. I'm glad the story is progressing and as usual, I'm looking forward to the next episode!

Did episode 3 echo close to your heart? Comment and let us know!

 

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As usual, remember to subscribe to Cosplay: The Series and let’s await the next episode!

P/s: Cosplay: The series also has a Facebook page!

Cosplay: The Series (Episode 1–2 review)

If you still don’t know, Cosplay: The Series is a live action drama about a group of Cosplayers and their struggles in High School! Purely fan made and wholly produced in Indonesia by Bonni Rambatan.

I must admit  I was a little nervous before watching. Because I had so much anticipation after watching the trailer , it would be such a downer if the series turned out to be a disappointment. And being a Vlogger with some filming background myself, I understand the pitfalls. Video production is essentially group work and if the crew and actors don’t pull together, only a lacklustre film will be produced.

And verdict?  I was pleasantly surprised with both episodes!

Firstly, offering high definition resolution is a definite winner (pun intended add). The style of the filming and post production is modern and helps bring the viewers into the world of the actors. There is nothing worse than boring camera angles and poor editing that detracts viewers from the storyline.

The story starts off pretty typically, with Annisa who appears to be the female lead , running to save their Cosplay Club which is about to be disbanded. Because, let’s face it, how many schools in their right mind would allow a Cosplay Club?! Being forced out of their Club Room and on the verge of being disbanded, Annisa the freshmen comes up with an ingenious idea to save the Club.

As it seems, the story appears to roll out pretty typically with it’s focus on adolescents and the journey of how a bunch of nerds/otakus/cosplayers/outcasts gathered together to fight against the expectations of the mainstream society. I don’t foresee the story in CTS to break any new grounds but I’m definitely not complaining.

As a fan of the hobby, what I look forward to is truthful representation of the hobby and the real struggles faced by cosplayers. Not forgetting , the weird, funny and sometimes lame things Cosplayers do that sets them apart.

Like little random snippet that only an Otaku would think of and appreciate XD

I enjoyed the first 2 episode of the series and would complain it is too short. Like how others have commented, I am eager for the story to roll out.

My only other complain would be the obvious lack of professional lighting and audio recording set up. Personally, I think one of the most important aspect in professional filming would be the lights that not only illuminates the scene but most importantly, draw attention to the facial expression of the actors.

There are some slight technical glitches like the obvious line of difference in the scene where the cosplayers took turns to walk down the stairs and some slight panning jerks. But none detracts viewers from the story and CTS is a series I highly recommend to any cosplayer or non cosplayers who would like to know more about this elusive hobby!

So remember to subscribe to Cosplay: The Series and let’s await the next episode!

P/s: Cosplay: The series also has a Facebook page!

Cosplay: The Series (Live Action Drama)

Website: http://www.cosplaytheseries.com

If you haven't heard, a group of talented Cosplayers and Film makers from Indonesia have come together to film a live action original story about, yes you guessed it; Cosplay! The story is set in a high school environment and the characters are all from the infamous Cosplay Club in school. Teen dramu loves :D?

Watch the trailer below!

Interview with the Director, Bonni Rambatan

I got pretty excited after watching the trailer because it clearly showed good directing and modern touch in the editing. And after nearly 10 years into the hobby, I must exclaim my personal excitement that our beloved hobby is finally getting more public recognition. The growing amount of talents that are churning out more and more artistic expressions of the hobby amazes me. And it is slowly growing into a commercial monster which I'm not complaining about because like I've discussed previously, commercialism has it’s benefit in the long run. But of course, that's just me.

The Cosplay Chronicles is officially affiliating with Cosplay: The Series and in line with the affiliation, I will be doing Episode Reviews =) Look forward to the 1st one coming up soon! In the mean time, pop over to their official website and watch the first 2 episode!