I remember the first time I discovered Google. I had never before used a web directory, and the search engine concept was just begining to become popular. I heard the name and thought it appropriate, given the number of pages on the web. (A “googol” is the number represented by a “1” followed by 100 zeroes behind it.)
Usually, I heard the name associated not with finding stuff on the Internet, but with something fun to see online. I heard people talking about going to Google and typing random words to see what they could find. I did this for a while and found it… pretty boring. Sure, it was fun at first, but after a while, it got boring, as all the “fun” words were usually attached to boring (but informative!) websites. (These random Google searches are also how I discovered Internet pr0n. But that’s beside the point. Really.)
Anyway, again, this wasn’t something I did for long before getting bored with it. That was until Google came out with its images search. (Google maps is also a fun one to play with, especially when you don’t have the money to travel.)
I don’t know, maybe I’m more of a “visual” person, but doing Google image searches — even on non-sensical words — is pretty fun. I mean, sure, it’s brainless and almost always totally pointless, but it’s better than watching TV, and the images search is still innocent enough to search engine optimizations that it’s still fun, since turns up some pretty cool stuff. (Please note: the “Moderate SafeSearch” feature is on by default. For the love of God, leave it that way!)
With that out of the way, I’d like to turn your attention to the following image, found when I did a search for “cosplay” on images.google.com:
You might recognize this as the cast from Final Fantasy 8. Sweet looking costumes.
Here’s another Final Fantasy favorite, Rikku from Final Fantasy X:
Again, sweet costume. Makes me wish fashion designers started taking tips from video game costume designers. (Not necessarily from Anime or Manga designers, though. Mayhaps they be a bit too steamy, if you know what I mean.)
But in all honesty, I was surprised at the number of Cammys from Street Fighter II. Yowzah!
Note: What the heck is “Cosplay”?
Here’s a good explanation from http://www.nyx.net/~wsantoso/cosptext.html:
Cosplay is a Japanese fan term for Costume Play; it’s equivalent to the Western fan term Masquerade. In Japan cosplay covers pretty much the spread that convention masquerades in the West cover, from SF to fantasy, from medieval to military uniforms. It’s basically a time for fans to dress up in their favourite garb or as their favourite character and have a bit of fun. There is a condition though; most fans insist that you not only play the character in dress, you also play the character’s nature. In other words, whilst you’re in costume, you must be the character, in thoughts, words and action.