Interview Conducted by Aesthel

UNa Cosplayer spoke with us about her love for gaming, especially the Fire Emblem series. We spoke about what draws her to the Fire Emblem series and what it means to her and why we love it so much. We also chatted about her start in cosplay, cosplaying with friends, and some of her other favorite series!

CRM: Hello UNa! Could you please introduce yourself to the Cosplay Realm readers?

UNa: Hello! Thank you for taking the time to interview me. I go by UNa and am a Graphic Designer and Marketing Coordinator that has been doing cosplay since 2007 as a hobby in Minnesota.

CRM: We love your cosplay of Byleth from Fire Emblem: Three Houses so much! Can you tell us what drew you to wanting to cosplay this character?

UNa: Before Fire Emblem: Three Houses came out, I was actually very skeptical about the game. I remember talking to other people initially and wanted to keep an open mind about what to expect. However, upon playing the game, I came to fall in love with the universe and the characters that existed within it. While I do not think Byleth is a realistic character to the rest of the fanbase, I feel like I can relate to them having a difficult time expressing their emotions/feelings.

CRM: In fact you’ve done a few different versions of Byleth, including the Sothis Regalia version! Can you tell us a bit about the process of working on these cosplays?

UNa: The costume process was actually quite fast as I was quick to jump on the bandwagon shortly after Fire Emblem: Three Houses was released. I chose to buy the costume from a third party cosplay costume maker in China. While I sometimes choose to make my cosplays, this time I chose to buy and tailor the base to have a better fit on myself and added a bit of personal flair with details on trimming on certain parts.

The process that took the longest for me was actually wig shopping and styling for this particular character. I experimented with around 4 different wigs and had to weigh the pros and cons of what I liked about a particular wig vs the other. I also tried my hand at getting the right color down by using fabric dye and sharpie dye. 

The one that I have used for many of my cosplay shots (pre-time skip) is actually a wig I purchased from Amazon using a mermaid braid gradient wig as a base. Using a combination of my blunt and thinning shears, I tailored the wig to match the length and structure of my face to the way I liked it.

I find that my favorite part of a cosplay is that not always the costume, but the wig as it can really pull the look together if you take the time to work with it. Some people like focusing on the construction of the costume and sometimes others through makeup, or wig styling and that is totally fine too! For those that are looking into wig styling, I highly recommend getting a pair of thinning shears, as they save a lot of time and prevent you from blunt cutting edges of your wigs.

CRM: We love your Sword of the Creator prop! Did you make this sword yourself?

UNa: The Sword of the Creator was actually one that was sold on places like Taobao where you can find lots of props for any series! Having a full time job with freelance work oftentimes does not allow me to make as many costumes as I used to, but it gives me an opportunity to jump into a series and focus my energy into other projects such as the Academy uniform. I have an Academy jacket pattern from @notgojira on Twitter (https://www.notgodzilla.com/store) that I am currently working on for this particular project! I highly recommend her store for some Fire Emblem: Three Houses related patterns.

CRM: We see you’re a fan of the Blue Lions! What is it that you love about this house so much? Many people have an attachment to their first house, were they the first route you played in the game?

UNa: They were indeed the first house I played through in the game! I love all of the other routes of course and have played through them, but the blue lions route has a particularly special place in my heart. It was really difficult for me to go through and see the characters of the house’s struggles especially with the heavy topic of war. Playing through the game and seeing them heal, develop, and work through the trauma of the circumstances they were put in made me feel like an actual professor. It was a joy to see that even through all their struggles, they still worked to better themselves to the end and it felt like a victory. Although my favorite route is the Blue Lions I do feel as though that Golden Deer felt much more complete as a full route.

CRM: Fire Emblem: Three Houses is known for its many different ways to play through the story, with each perspective revealing something new about the world. What do you think it is about this game that has resonated with so many different people?

UNa: I think that what Fire Emblem: Three Houses did that was different than Fates was that there wasn’t a “true ending”. I really enjoyed that aspect because you really fill in the spaces for what you felt as though the ending should have been. 

While FE3H has a very large cast, it has extremely well written characters that come from a variety of backgrounds and settings. I think this is an added bonus to why fans resonate with so many of them and have favorites because they all feel unique. Having a world that feels well grounded to its setting in relationship to its characters helps the plot of the game out immensely, since video games in a way are in a way, interactive story-telling. Those elements specifically made the game extremely enjoyable for myself and many others.  

CRM: You mentioned that Fire Emblem is one of your favorite game series! What was your introduction to the series? What has this series meant to you as you have played the games from it?

UNa: I hijacked the Game Boy Advance copy of Fire Emblem (technically FE7) from my brother haha. Growing up, I was not particularly good at video games so having a game where I could take my time but each decision counts made it an easy gateway. 

This resulted in me playing all the other Fire Emblem (main storyline) games that were released in America. There are many Fire Emblem characters so you grow attached to them and they become your favorites. To a lot of my friends, the number of characters has been pretty overwhelming to them but for me it was options to use in combat and get to know. 

The series has a lot of great morals to be learned that have helped shape things for me. Byleth has a great quote they say to Dimitri in the Blue Lions path when he asks about his purpose. They say “Live for what you believe in”. I think there is something about that line that is really powerful. 

Fire Emblem, has also tackled a lot about the idea of racism. Path of Radiance/Radiant Dawn and Three Houses especially used these as major plot points. It helped me be more comfortable in my own skin being an Asian-American growing up in a Caucasian household. So I am thankful for that. 

CRM: Outside of Fire Emblem, you also cosplay many characters from other video games too! Some of these include characters from League of Legends, Kingdom Hearts, Resident Evil, and the Fate series to name a few. What do you think it is that draws you to the medium of video games as opposed to other sources?

UNa: To be honest, I don’t have the greatest attention span. Games always keep me engaged with my full attention. They are also something I can enjoy with my friends. It can take me a bit to get into a new anime series sometimes. I grew up pretty old school with some of it such as waiting for DVD releases haha.

CRM: Can you tell us a bit about some of your favorite games or other fandoms? What is it that you love about those things?

UNa: The Fate series is so crazy with such colorful characters that even though they are loosely based on real people or mythological figures, they truly become their own unique character. The Master Servant relationship has a very Persona-esque feel (another series that I love) that makes things exciting. This was a series my friend @starphasers got me into. Not sure if I regret it haha. I mainly play the mobile game Fate Grand Order but I am looking forward to the movie based on the Knights of the Round Table.

The Persona games are another series that i have put a lot of time into. My roommate can attest to the amount of hours I have alone on Persona 5. I was introduced to the series pretty late but I started with Persona 4 on the PS2. I really enjoy RPG’s and it also has some complicated characters that you learn more about based on character interactions. The cast is always a wonderful group and it is hard not to love all of them. Plus the music is so snazzy. It is a wonderful fit. 

CRM: What are some of your favorite cosplay projects that you have worked on in the past?

UNa: I actually worked on some costumes with @pixelmagus and @valkyrieskye for Kingdom Hearts 3. We had a couple weekends where we would bring our sewing machines overs and just work on our costumes. @valkyrieskye and @pixelmagus are both better at sewing than I am so they were able to give lots of advice. There were late nights but it super fun. We all worked on our own costumes and had some amazing moments in cosplay both at cons and for private shoots. 

Kairi: Valkyrie Skye Creative (Instagram, Facebook)
Riku: Pixel Magus (Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, DeviantArt)
Photography: Nude Carbon Studios (Instagram, Facebook, Twitter)

CRM: How did you first get your start in the cosplay world? When it comes to creating cosplays are you completely self taught?

UNa: When I was around 12, I was already pretty big into anime. I wanted to dress up as an original character that I had in my mind but I had no clue how to go about things. I eventually heard about cosplaying through friends of mine at the time and heard of anime conventions. This sparked my interest in cosplaying. I eventually went to my first convention in 2007, Anime Detour (a local con in Minnesota). While I will not mention what my first costume was, since I want it to be buried into the depths of the internet, it was still enjoyable none the less.

At the time, I didn’t really know how to sew. My mother gave me her sewing machine and I had a couple small lessons from a local seamstress (mainly on just how to use a machine). I already knew how to hand sew from my grandmother. I am mainly self-taught but there are lots of helpful resources on the internet that were not there when I started cosplaying in the borderline dark ages. I remember you had had to either gamble on crappy ebay wigs or buy from suspicious websites where you may receive what you actually paid for. 

CRM: Can you tell us about any upcoming conventions, cosplay plans, or other projects that you have?

UNa: I am actually working on a Byleth-specific cosplay photobook. My design skills come in handy for layout. That is probably my biggest project at the moment but I am waiting to see when Arknights will suck me into the fandom since some of my close friends are super into it. 

My next big convention is Anime Central in Rosemont, IL! I plan on doing more Fire Emblem: Three Houses shenanigans there. I am also trying to plan a small group for a FE3H shoot. 

CRM: Thank you for taking the time to answer our questions! Is there anything else that you would like to add?

UNa: Thank you for interviewing me! I hope we all get to cosplay Fire Emblem together soon!

See more from UNa Cosplayer by following her social media!

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/unacosplayer/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/CosplayerUna

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/UNaCosplayer/

See more Fire Emblem content in the Fire Emblem issue of Cosplay Realm Magazine, available now!