Space Dandy
Space Dandy
A Dandy Guy In The Space
Worn at
Project timeline
- January 4, 2014: Space Dandy starts airing (simulcast on Adult Swim). I'm still a relatively new anime fan, but recognize Shinichiro Watanabe's name from Bebop and Champloo (and The Animatrix) so I check it out. It doesn't end up completely clicking until the fourth episode, at which point I'm hooked.
- October 31: I dress up as Space Dandy for Halloween, knowing full well that my roommate is the only one who will have any idea what on earth I'm supposed to be. This rough version includes a Super Mario belt buckle and a faux omamori made from office supplies at my job.
- c. 2016: I obtain the limited edition of Space Dandy's first season, which includes a replica necklace and belt buckle.
- October 2017: Frustrated by some of the innacuracies of my jacket, I buy another one (having bought and returned a satin souvenir jacket earlier that year). This baseball-style jacket has the raglan shoulders and sleeve stripes (though the star behind the chest "D" is lacking the signature tail), and is undoubtedly a step up.
- March 31, 2018: At Sakura-Con, I meet & greet Dandy voice actor Ian Sinclair and Meow voice actor Joel McDonald. I run into a few other Dandy cosplayers at the show.
- October 20: I cosplay zombified Dandy at KawaiiWeen, a little pop-up anime/Halloween event in the Seattle International District. I go to a friend's Halloween party that evening, too, but wear something different there.
- By this point, I have made a translator bracelet out of clay (I have yet to learn about craft foam) and have boots that I have painted the soles silver (no toe caps yet).
- June 16, 2019: I attend Summer Con and break my self-imposed "don't buy anime merch at comic cons" rule to nab a Meow plushie. Going forward I frequently dangle this plushie off my belt when cosplaying Dandy.
- I gamely dodge the seller's pitch for Dandy and Honey plushies and Meow throw blanket, reckoning "I've got a budget, I'll get them next time" – a decision that, as Covid freezes anime cons and Dandy merch becomes vanishingly rare after this, I am still kicking myself over.
- November 5: I remake the translator bracelet out of craft foam. Not only is it lighter and more comfortable, its flexibility means it can have a smaller circumference but still fit around my wrist. By this point, I have also made foam covers for the toes of Dandy's boots.
- November 13: As a "last-minute upgrade", I use fabric paint to add the shoulder stripes to my original, lighter jacket.
- November 14: On the way to Kumoricon, I swing into a costume shop to see if I can find a better Elvis wig (having botched a tutorial to pomp-ify a cheap Spirit wig earlier in the month) – I don't, so I stick with the ol' Value Village "greaser" 'do. Upon arriving at the hotel, I discover that I have forgotten my newly-painted Dandy jacket at home!!
- November 17: I perform a lip sync to "Because, It's Midnite" by Limozeen. In a bit of serendipity, I had packed my "Dragon of Dojima" sukajan to wear casually, and it's much better than nothing. Since it's red instead of blue, I dub this palette-swap look "Player 2 Dandy".
- October 2020: I order a comically large Elvis wig online. Though Dandy's pompadour isn't that massive, all things considered (though as an illustrated character it does vary dramatically in size episode-to-episode) I feel like a giant pomp communicates his exaggerated look much better.
- Later that month, I find a copy of the Kickstarter edition of the Space Dandy deck-building card game (which I backed, but only for a couple bucks to get the wallpapers) on Ebay for dirt cheap and snatch it up. The BooBies point card replica becomes part of the cosplay's repertoire.
- January 2021: Having had enough of searching through online listings of not-quite-correct jackets, I finally bite the bullet and order a custom jacket from Clothoo that has all the correct elements I want: satin fabric, ranglan shoulders, sleeve stripes, snap closure, welt pockets, and embroidered details. I create custom vector graphics including the "bent-leg" star on the front.
- By this point, I have also cut up a long-sleeve shirt to match his weird low neckline and 3/4 sleeves, and modified some baggy slacks to evoke his bontan-style pants.
- With this, every element of the original 2014 cosplay has been replaced in a "Ship of Theseus" manner.
- November: Preparing for Covid-delayed conventions that require wearing masks, I scan the card game's replica sticker of the BooBies sticker (the "you ordered a Gilgamesh Tequila" freebie shown in episode 1) and use iron-on paper to transfer it to the cheek of a cloth mask for when I cosplay Dandy that winter (I also draw his trademark chin "x" onto it).
- November 2024: Dandy returns to Kumoricon, as I run a casual panel for the show's tenth anniversary.
- By this point, I have remade the toe caps (out of metallic foam, having long abandoned plans to adapt a Majima tutorial that used worbla) to more closely cover the boots' toes.
- October 31, 2025: As Kumoricon overlaps with Halloween, I bring back Zombie Dandy (as well as Alive Dandy later in the weekend).
Details and accessories
- Blaster
- BooBies points card