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Picture-perfect, totally accidental anime cosplay gives Japanese otaku a new friend【Photos】

Casey Baseel Feb 21, 2018
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Anime TV series Kemono Friends was an unexpected hit, and now it’s even got unintentional cosplay.

Over the last decade, cosplay has become an increasingly sophisticated part of otaku culture. Anime conventions and fan events have grown in scale lockstep with the rise of social media, and with the cosplay stage now being so big, we’ve even seen the birth of the professional cosplay industry, where top stars can earn huge paychecks.

But ironically, the latest cosplay to charm the Japanese Internet isn’t the result of a lengthy design process, official support from the source material publisher, or even ample bustiness on the part of the model. As a mater of fact, there doesn’t even seem to have been any real effort put into it, since it’s entirely possible that the dead ringer for sleeper hit anime Kemono Friends character Kaban-chan has never seen a single episode of the series.

For reference, here’s Kaban-chan, pictured on the right…

https://twitter.com/kemono_english/status/964683671620890624

…and here’s the man who’s become known to Japanese Twitter users as “American Kaban-chan.”

友人がアメリカのカバンちゃんとか言って見せてきた画像で吹きそうになったwww pic.twitter.com/DJieXDMg7O

— フォースの英国面㌠ 🇬🇧@Taylor tech (@kurokishi1945) February 19, 2018

改めて写真見返してみたけど、やっぱりカバンちゃんだなこれ・・・笑 pic.twitter.com/O72qmBq6d6

— フォースの英国面㌠ 🇬🇧@Taylor tech (@kurokishi1945) February 19, 2018

Twitter user @kurokishi1945 says he was sent the photo by a friend, and so the identity of the accidental cosplayer remains unknown, as does whether or not he’s part of an actual military force or simply brandishing weaponry at a civilian firing range. Still, the wardrobe similarity to Kaban-chan’s outfit makes it hard to see his clothing as anything other than Kemono Friends cosplay if you’re a fan of the show, which quickly led to some high-quality American Kaban-chan fan art.

https://twitter.com/depressednanako/status/965431304232882177

So let this be a lesson: Don’t let the rapidly rising level of top-end cosplay at anime conventions intimidate you, because there are still simple, iconic outfits that can be put together quickly and cheaply by cosplay newbies. And besides, even if someone else is cosplaying as the same character with a higher-quality costume, even then you stand the chance of getting shown up by someone who just happens to look exactly like an anime character in real life.

Source: Twitter/@kurokishi1945 via Otakomu, Twitter/@kurokishi1945