Shopping Guide
1. Could you introduce yourself and tell us a little bit about what TASCA is and how it started?
Hi, my name is Beni from Benihannah Cosplay. I founded The Allied Shinobi Cosplayer Army (TASCA) in 2013 with help from my friend Patrycja. That was actually the first year I attended NYCC, and one of the things that stood out to me the most as a Kakashi cosplayer was that there were plenty of Naruto cosplayers around but no real sense of community between them. Thus, TASCA originally began as simply an event page on Facebook with the goal of getting Naruto cosplayers together at next year’s NYCC. It soon became apparent, however, that there was a real need for our members to have a place where they could post pictures, opinions, updates, etc., and an event page was no longer sufficient for us. Our group page started in late 2013 and we had our first official meetup at Christmas time that same year. Two years later and we have had multiple meetups at different cons across the country, even joining up with Naruto cosplayers in other countries.
TASCA is a Naruto Cosplay group based in New York City that conquers nearby conventions with our overflowing awesomeness and Naruto love. Our home con is New York Comic Con, but we also invade and occupy Anime Boston, AnimeNEXT, and other smaller cons in northeastern USA. Plus, we like to plan meetups outside of cons to do fun stuff in cosplay in random places. We have lots of sister cosplay groups across the US and in other English-speaking countries such as Canada, UK, and Australia.
2. Why do you think the Naruto series is so beloved by people from all over the world?
I think Naruto is exemplary when it comes to creating a huge variety of characters that not only have their own backstories and goals but also individually develop and change throughout the story arch. This means that any person will be able to find someone they relate to, and when that character confronts hardship and overcomes it, that then gives hope to those who relate with them. Something that I regularly hear from Naruto fans (especially when the manga ended) is that we feel like we’ve really grown up with these characters and become friends with them. We genuinely miss the characters that aren’t around anymore and feel real pride when other characters achieve their goals. Naruto’s dreams of peace and family have become our dreams, and as such it’s hard to find any other anime fanbase that is as rigorously dedicated to the story while still remaining open to newcomers.
3. What kind of topics do group members enjoy talking about? How often do you get together?
When the manga was still going strong we often talked about our opinions on the new chapters. But now that the main story has ended there have been many more discussions about Boruto and the implications of the new cast of characters. Lots of our members like to discuss cosplay tips/updates and will even trade/sell Naruto cosplay pieces on the group page. Everything from handmade art to memes to official Naruto news have frequented our page. Of course right now all anyone is talking about is how much fun we had at this year’s NYCC haha. It’s our biggest meetup every year, and it’s always great to be able to see people in person that you’ve been talking to online. We usually only get together as a large group a few times a year, but it’s not uncommon for smaller pockets of us to go to the zoo or other public place in cosplay and have fun together. We’ve even worked with our sister groups to make Christmas themed music videos and member videographers to create cool fighting scenes with special effects. Most recently, we all supported each other’s attempts to become Viz Media’s Hokage for a Day, and, as a result, one of our members actually won the award. We were so excited!
4. NYCC is easily one of the most popular and influential conventions that happens on the east coast of the US. How do you feel about this year's convention? Any thoughts or comparisons to previous years?
Well I think everyone would agree with me that NYCC’s biggest growing pain right now is their ticket buying process. It’s become a bit of a running gag in the group that NYCC ticket buying is where our “army” name kicks in and there’s a real battle where we all do our best to help each other get tickets, but at the end of the day when the smoke clears there are always casualties. At the same time, however, I think the convention itself has always been fantastic overall. I’m really glad to see that the NYCC staff is diversifying their content more and more every year, and of course the whole group was ecstatic that Naruto was receiving so much attention this year. We have regularly swarmed the Viz Media booth with dozens of Naruto cosplayers and I have talked with the Viz Media staff directly on multiple occasions, so we like to think that we had some influence on their decision to bring Kishimoto to NYCC specifically ;).
5. We were surprised to learn that you and members of TASCA had started working on the official NYCC 2015's official Naruto cosplay meet-up several months before NYCC 2015 began. Is this the usual way that TASCA organizes events, or was this event treated as extra special because of Kishimoto-san's (the creator of Naruto) visit to NYCC?
TASCA has always been the first to plan a Naruto meetup for NYCC. We pretty much begin planning for next year as soon as the previous year is over. We are always guaranteed to have a large number of members at NYCC; in fact, annual attendance has tripled every year. However, at the same time, Kishimoto’s presence certainly made the hype for this year bigger than ever, and it convinced many members of our sister groups in other parts of the country to fly in and participate, even if they normally don’t. The response to our meetup this year has been overwhelmingly positive, so hopefully those people will continue to make the trip and new members from this year’s meetup will enjoy seeing members next year that they will have known for a whole year at that point.
6. Now that the event has passed, can you give us any feedback on how it went?
I personally was really pleased with the event. My past experiences hosting NYCC meetups have taught me which places are best for throwing large gatherings without getting kicked out or moved by NYCC staff, so we were never interrupted or disturbed. I also came more organized this year, which I think helped everyone who attended the event to feel confident about what was going on and what was expected of them. Honestly, all the attendees were so polite and fun, I was really impressed by them. We even got to play a game of team charades together, which is no easy task when you’ve got 100 people participating at once. Cosplay-wise there was so much variety and everyone was really excited to get photos with their favorite character groups. I definitely think it helps to have the opportunity for everyone to coordinate their cosplays ahead of time in the group page. Join the group to see photos of the event submitted by our members.
Here are some testimonials from our members:
Zaydell Yazmin Caceres: “Hey just wanted to say thanks for letting me join the group and for letting me join in the festivities at NYCC- I was Kurama (the one in a dress with mesh tails) on Saturday. This was my first time working with plastic (I made everything out of instamold which for the breast piece was a total mistake) if you have any pictures feel free to send them my way and again- thank you for a lovely time! Hope to see you all again soon! At the least next year. Thank you guys- confession- this is my second real cosplay (that I have made and not bought all the pieces for) and first time using plastic and was so nervous so I really appreciate it! . The group was really fun sorry if I didn't approach many of you but I'm rather shy! haha. Trista Mccoy your Kushina was awesome and Beni Hannah Evans I just loved your attitude and you were such an awesome Kakashi!”
A.J. Rush: “Hey guys, just wanted to say I had such an awesome time with all of you and look forward to seeing you all next year! I was the Kakashi with a not so great hair day lol if you have any pictures or selfies with me please tag me in them, and tag yourself in mine.
Much love from Texas”
Stacy Kang: “It's been 3 days since the Con, and I'm still sad and wishing I can go back.. :’( Please tag yourself if you see yourself! Had an amazing time at the Naruto gathering and I was blown away by all the Naruto fans! Can't wait for next year! Definitely will be going back”
7. Boruto: Naruto the Movie is finally out now in the US and Naruto Shippuden is on its final arc (I think?). Do you have any thoughts about this or any message you'd like to share with fellow Naruto fans around the world?
First of all, you should definitely go see the new Boruto movie. I watched it at the US premiere as part of NYCC, and the general consensus was that it is the best Naruto movie so far (I agree by the way). As far as Naruto ending...I can’t even really comprehend life without Naruto. The story and its characters have had such a huge influence on my life and the opportunities I’ve had, not to mention all the friends I’ve made, that even if it truly ends I’m not too worried about groups like TASCA living on and continuing to celebrate the story and characters that we grew up with. On the other hand, now that I’ve seen Boruto the movie and understand the new characters better I am really excited to follow this fresh storyline. Plus, who couldn’t love Mitsuki?? He’s like a little Kakashi/Sai mashup, and he’s absolutely precious! Finally, if you are a Naruto fan and you have been too nervous to check out local Naruto groups in your area (or even start your own) please don’t be. I have met so many amazing people through Naruto and I have seen firsthand how people who are normally shy and reserved have been able to bloom and come into their own through slipping on the skin of their favorite Naruto character. Even in regards to myself I know without a doubt that cosplaying Kakashi has helped me to be more confident in my leadership abilities and my own strength (having others call me sensei doesn’t hurt either ;P). Through TASCA we have been able to bring the dreams of Naruto to life, and it has been truly touching to have been at the helm throughout the whole process and into the future.
Special thanks to The Allied Shinobi Cosplayer Army (TASCA) for collaborating with TOM at NYCC 2015! To join in TASCA’s community on Facebook, go to https://www.facebook.com/groups/167790186763523/
Benihannah Cosplay
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/benihannahcosplay
Instagram: https://instagram.com/benihannahcosplay/
Tumblr: http://benihannahcosplay.tumblr.com/
