Oct 09 2009
Watchmen Costumes, as Predicted, are Crazy Popular in 2009
A few months ago, I wrote an article called “Watchmen Costumes Will Be Everywhere This Year” - and boy was I right! And the most popular costume from the movie is, unsurprisingly, Silk Spectre II. In fact, the Silk Spectre II movie costume and Halloween costume comparison I posted back then is the most popular image on all of Convention Fans at the moment.
Also not surprising is that the powers that be (those who control the merchandising rights that is) have expanded their line of officially licensed Watchmen movie costumes since I originally posted. Whereas before you could only find Silk Spectre II, Night Owl II, Rorschach, and some Dr. Manhattan “pieces,” now you can also find officially licensed costumes for Sally Jupiter, The Comedian, and Ozymandias.
I have to admit, I am a bit surprised at how popular the Sally Jupiter costumes have become. I expected Silk Spectre II to be popular, but considering how fleeting the appearance of Sally Jupiter’s costume was in the movie, I didn’t think it would be something we’d be seeing a lot of.
But sure enough, I saw almost half a dozen Sally Jupiter’s at Dragon*con last month. In fact, I think I saw more Sally’s than I saw Silk Spectres! I think part of the reason stems from the fact that Sally Jupiter’s costume is easily replicated by someone with half decent sewing skills. She also has the classic pinup girl look going for her, which seems to appeal to a lot of women at conventions, and during Halloween.
Considering the high popularity of Watchmen costumes at comic book and sci-fi/fantasy conventions, you can bet that there will also be a lot of them making appearances at Halloween parties in 2009. If you are looking to purchase a Watchmen Halloween costume, BuyCostumes.com is offering a sale on some of their Watchmen costume items, including 35% off the Deluxe Night Owl and Deluxe Rorschach masks, 25% off on gloves, 25% and some of the costumes themselves (including Miss Jupiter).
I must admit, however, that I am a bit surprised at the lack of Dr. Manhattan costumes at conventions. Seriously! I’ve seen plenty of grown men walk around in nothing but thongs at conventions before (just look at the guys from the 300 costume group at Dragon*con!), so why no love for the big blue guy? I guess the whole paint your whole body blue thing is a bigger deterrent than I thought it would be? Maybe we’ll see a few more at Halloween?
There’s no doubt about it, Watchmen might not have been as big of a smash at the theater as some might have predicted, but it is definitely a smash in the world of costumes for 2009.
Are you wearing a Watchmen costume for Halloween or a convention this year? Feel free to post pictures, especially if you made your costume and did not buy one from a Halloween store!
