My Dress-Up Darling’s Marin Kitagawa has inspired yet another adorable cosplay.
Shinichi Fukuda’s manga delves into the creative world of fabricating and showcasing cosplay, and as such, it’s unsurprising that the story continually inspires costume makers. This latest cosplay, created by Redditor u/pearythecatapus_, features Kitagawa in her school uniform and captures the high schooler’s fun and energetic personality perfectly.
My Dress-Up Darling first appeared in Square Enix’s Young Gangan in January 2018 and so far, the series has produced 11 volumes; the anime adaptation by CloverWorks debuted in January 2022. The story sees Kitagawa, who has a deep passion for video games and anime, team up with her shy classmate, Wakana Gojo, who has a secret hobby of making Hina Dolls, to pursue her dream of becoming a popular cosplayer.
Fukuda’s series has sold over nine million copies globally, and CloverWork’s anime quickly became one of the breakout hits of last year. It received several nominations at the 2023 Crunchyroll ANime Awards, including Best New Series and Best Character Design. Although she ultimately lost to Attack on Titan’s Eren Yeager, Kitagawa was nominated in the Best Main Character category.
Why My Dress-Up Darling Is Such a Hit
Keisuke Shinohara, the show’s director, shared his thoughts on why the playful blonde has become a modern icon within the anime/manga landscape. “She has respect to herself, as well as to others, which makes her likable. Marin’s not afraid to speak her mind, yet when it comes to romance, she could be shy, and that’s relatable for anyone who’s been in love,” he explained. Kitagawa herself has inspired a wealth of cosplay since My Dress-Up Darling’s premiere; for example, costume-maker extraordinaire Nymphahri shared their take on the high schooler that recreates some of the character’s signature poses. Similarly, another Reddit user posted a photo of their sweet interpretation of Kitagawa.
Of course, the various cosplays that Kitagawa and Gojo make together also serve as popular influences for real-world cosplayers. Notably, Sakura Kitsune explained that “cosplaying a cosplayer’s cosplay is totally my thing,” when they uploaded a picture of their version of Shizuku-tan. Shizuku-tan is a character from a fictional video game in the world of My Dress-Up Darling and is the first cosplay the story’s main pair bring to life.
Square Enix distributes Fukuda’s manga in North America, and CloverWorks’ My Dress-Up Darling anime is available to stream on Crunchyroll. A second season of My Dress-Up Darling has been announced, but an official release date has not been confirmed at the time of writing.
Source: Reddit
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