As I marvel to see a lot of Cosplayers here in Manila, I wonder how did this Cosplay phenomenon crossed it's way to Philippine Islands. Since Grade school (and maybe, up to now haha!) I'm a big fan of anime shows such as Lupin III, Gundam wing, Full metal alchemist, full metal panic & the legendary VoltesV and Dragon Ball Z. I remember when GMA7 (local tv network in the Philippines) bought some rights for some anime videos and started airing it. I still remember them naming those shows as "Anime Resurection". After several years, They lie-low showing anime shows. Good thing ABS-CBN (also a local tv network in Philippines) made a channel not just for kids but also for adults too.. They call it HEROzone who brought us the Naruto series. Thanks to the Brilliant minds of their staffs and the friendly Japanese people for giving us anime shows to watch.

I think, Those kids who watched Mobydick, mazinger Z, Daimos And VoltesV grew up already and maybe they have their own family too. But i think, there still part of their heart where childhood still exist. Seeing that there are more beautiful Anime shows today, They let their children watch some of it. It's fun to see the whole family bonding while watching some anime shows. Some of the Adults today who used to be kids before might have think that being a anime fan is not just for past time but as a business as well. That's why they made some graphic designs, made some online games, made some dioramas, made toys, and they started making costumes! that might be the reason of Cosplay phenomenon in the Philippines started!

As I research deeper about cosplaying, I learned that here in Asia, There are 3 beautiful, Lovely ladies who dominates the Cosplay scene. 1 from the Philippines and 2 from Japan. It's nice to know that even though anime originated from Japan, we, Filipinos are still in the top of the line of Cosplay world. Luckily, one of the greatest or should I say one of the GODDESS of cosplay is from here!

First is Alodia Gosiengfiao from Philippines

According to Alodia, Her appetite for cosplaying started around year 2003, where she joined a Forum for anime in the internet where she meet some friends who are into cosplaying too... They who asked Alodia to join a cosplaying competition. "Sila yung nag-guide sa'kin all through-out the cosplay, And After the first event, sobrang naka-hiligan ko na kasi masaya siya." Alodia said. After the straight wins in cosplay events she became papular. Now, she's being invited in cosplay events not being a cosplayer but a judge.

 Last March 4, She had a mini fans day sponsored by E-games in there recntly event called Domination III at SMX Mall of Asia. Alodia Gosiengfiao is now concedered as a celebrity here in the R.P. Aside from cosplaying, photoshoots... Alodia is currently making artworks and  she's trying to improve making dioramas for figurines and might be continuing that during her freetime, and maybe in the future.

Ms. Alodia Gosiengfiao has it's on site http://alodiagosiengfiao.com/  She's also active in some social network sites.

Second is Kipi from Japan

I know many of you already know who Kipi is but she recently uploaded a few new photos of her Evangelion Asuka gear today and I thought I would share.
There is a cosplayer community known as Cure and you can find a ton of Kipi's gorgeous pics ( including Haruhi, Chobits ) in her member profile (you need to register to see them though).

According to a Japanese Bloger, Kipi is one of the (if not the) most famous japanese cosplayer today. Kipi was the first pro cosplayer I saw on the Internet, and she made numerous characters so far. And she is still an active cosplayer, so expect more posts of her.

According to my (ehem...) reasearch, It seems that Kipi is more popular than I had imagined… She has a fan base that is probably one of the biggest I have ever seen! And she’s cosplayed (I estimate) about 20 or so characters already.

This is one of my personal favorites… Shakugan no Shana, a girl who kills by fire. This anime is pretty popular, and it’s already on its 2nd season.

Third is Arisa Mizuhara also from Japan

 She’s cosplaying the characters that a lot of people adore, how could we resist? Though one can argue that the expression in her photos remain the same, it’s not really a bad thing all together.

It really suits her to cosplay as a Rozen Maiden… She has the qualities of a real live doll. Though I think she could probably look a bit more snobbish, since Shinku is the doll who embodies the traditional Victorian aristocrat…

It’s quite difficult to look for a nice cosplay of this character (who is also my very favorite!). I’m not entirely sure why. It may be because of the costume or the hair, but whatever the reason… This cosplay is done very nicely.

Alright, so her eyes aren’t the same color as the original character’s. And the sword can use some work. But really… The cosplayer herself is breath-taking, don’t you think? A really nice camera angle too… No wonder Arisa is a professional cosplay idol.

Have you seen  Arisa's Haruhi picture? Another redundant title, same with my Inuyasha entry… I find it rather amusing that the titles of the anime are the same with the character’s… Makes me wonder if they had a hard time thinking about a proper title or something…

Not that I’m complaining of course..!

I suppose the only critique I can give about this photo is… her smile… It looks a bit forced, but I’m guessing it’s because of the unnatural pose/look..?
*look in the mirror trying to smile and wink at the same time without distorting any facial muscles*
Yeah, it’s possible alright, but extremely hard to look natural. But the risky pose is worth it; I think she really captured Haruhi’s feisty nature… She looks like she’s up to something again… I wonder it’s aliens? Hm…