A sign hanging in Shibuya. Photo by Brett Homenick.
Tonight, I spent a couple of hours in Shibuya to celebrate Halloween. This year, I decided to dust off the old President Ted Thomas costume from last year and wear it again, and I'm glad I did. The President (based on a character from some grade-Z independent film) was a lot of fun to play again this year.
Shibuya 109 surrounded by throngs of Halloween merrymakers. Photo by Brett Homenick.
The main roads around Shibuya Station were closed to traffic, allowing the costumers free rein to roam around. Even though there was plenty of people mingling about, it felt a lot less crowded than last year.
"Mah fellow Americans," sez Prez Ted Thomas.
So why did I drag out this obscure character to play again? The main reason is that a fellow Godzilla fan wrote to me earlier in the year (he's apparently a little slow on the uptake) and complimented me on my selection, saying, "Nice Halloween costume." After such a warm and sincere pat on the back, I felt obliged to give it another go!
There was a wide variety of costumes on display. Many were familiar characters like Heath Ledger's Joker, Spider-Man (seen above -- twice!), Dracula, Mario and Luigi, etc., and others were random zombies and assorted whatsits.
Even Godzilla was (sort of) there! Photo by Brett Homenick.
It was quite amusing to people-watch and just take everything in. But, as fun as it was, by the end I was totally beat. I was falling asleep on the train on the way home. I left all my energy in Shibuya. I'm surprised I'm able to write this blog post!
With one of the young ladies who stopped me for a photo.
Interestingly, I seemed to attract even more attention this year. A lot of people thought I was supposed to be Mr. Bean (just like last year), but of course, Mr. Bean's hair is nothing like my wig. Still, more people asked me for photo ops than last year. I even got a few "kawaiis" and a couple of "ikemens."
Who needs to go to an alien con when the real deal is right in front of you? Photo by Brett Homenick.
This year's Halloween was probably a bit more enjoyable than last year, if only for the increased amount of space in which we were allowed to move.
Still, by the end, I was completely spent. I'm sure not getting enough sleep the night before also played a role, but I was happy to go back home.
Thanks for the memories, Shibuya! Let's do it again next year!
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