Comic-Con may be receding into the distance like a pleasant geek dream (or nightmare, if you're not the biggest fan of crowds). But there's one question left to ask: Who wore it best?
That's a question Instagram is attempting to answer. The Facebook-owned photo service crunched some numbers for Mashable, and came up with the 12 most popular Instagrams from the massive San Diego event that contained the #cosplay hashtag. (Instagram also removed the obviously branded and staged shots, to keep the focus on regular fans.)
Cosplay, a concept rapidly entering the mainstream, is no more or less than the art of dressing up as a straightforward or more comedic take on your favorite geek icons. What was once just the preserve of would-be superheroes, stormtroopers and furries has exploded into a wide and whimsical variety of gear designed to bring a smile. (It's not all uber-geeky stuff, either -- check out the Grey's Anatomy cosplay.)
What it means in practice at Comic-Con: Not being able to go 10 feet without hearing the magic words "hey, can I take your picture?"
Here, then, are the 20 players whose answer to that question garnered them the most likes -- and we've added a couple of our favorites at the end. Got any nominations of your own? Share them in the comments.
Slight change in schedule tomorrow. I'll be at the @suicidegirls booth (1730) dressed as Ripley from 2pm - 7pm instead. Come say hi to Jones and I! (Photo by @lucas_ambrosio_photo) #suicidegirls #sguk #uksuicidegirls @suicidegirls @sg_unitedkingdom #SDCC #SGSDCC #comiccon A photo posted by Charlotte / Chad Suicide (@charlotte_something) on Jul 10, 2015 at 11:43pm PDT
THIS MAN WON #SDCC!!!! COMIC CON OVER. DONE. #SDCC2015 #MadMax #cosplay A photo posted by Steve Zaragoza (@stevezaragoza) on Jul 10, 2015 at 11:35am PDT
The couple that cosplays together, stays together. #SDCC15 A photo posted by Seth Green (@sethgreen) on Jul 9, 2015 at 8:22am PDT
"Ugh, you gotta be kidding me." The #InsideOut fans are out in full force at #SanDiegoComicCon. #SDCC #Disgust #Cosplay A photo posted by Disney•Pixar's #InsideOut (@pixarinsideout) on Jul 9, 2015 at 5:28pm PDT
#greysanatomy #cosplay being represented at #SDCC !! A photo posted by Camilla Luddington (@officialcamillaluddington) on Jul 11, 2015 at 4:52pm PDT
One of the best cosplays we saw all day at Comic Con :) #bravelittletoaster #sdcc2015 #lootcrate A photo posted by Loot Crate (@lootcrate) on Jul 10, 2015 at 7:46pm PDT
And now a picture of me as #cloud stuffing my face hole with delicious soft serve :p #ax #ff7 #finalfantasy #cosplay I tried to find some at #comiccon #sdcc but I couldn't find any ;_; A photo posted by Wes (@westheeditor) on Jul 12, 2015 at 2:07pm PDT
Another shot of the brilliant scarecrow mask created by @ms675. -- #scarecrow #batman #arkhamknight #tdk #BatmanvSuperman #suicidesquad #dawnofjustice #mask #cosplay #comiccon #sdcc #spfx #sfx A photo posted by Everything SFX (@sfxatlas) on Jul 13, 2015 at 2:23am PDT
Sexiest #cosplay award goes to this girl Hahahah #breakingbad #sandiegocomiccon #sdcc2015 A photo posted by Erica (@ericabearrr) on Jul 10, 2015 at 11:59am PDT
Here's my #SDCC cosplay. I wore it for 2 hours then gave it away to a random person. #TARS A photo posted by Steve Zaragoza (@stevezaragoza) on Jul 9, 2015 at 5:31pm PDT
The cosplay at #SDCC rocks. #Razer A photo posted by Erica (@ericabearrr) on Jul 10, 2015 at 11:59am PDT
These Steven Universe and the Gems cosplayers are everything! #stevenuniverse #cosplay #costumes #cartoonnetwork #comiccon2015 #sdcomiccon2015 #sdcomiccon #comiccon #crystalgems #garnet #pearl #rose #amethyst A photo posted by Cartoon Network (@cartoonnetworkofficial) on Jul 11, 2015 at 8:12pm PDT
Were you at #SDCC? Tag us in your #DoctorWho #cosplay photos and we'll regram some of our faves! #DrWho #whovian #fandom A photo posted by Doctor Who Official (@bbcdoctorwho) on Jul 13, 2015 at 8:48am PDT
Met up with @leeannavamp at #sdcc! She's awesome and suuuuper nice so make sure to give her a follow! And if you're here make sure to find me and get a picture!!!! #cosplay #comiccon #starwars #wintersoldier #marvel #chrome #stormtrooper #sdcc2015 A photo posted by Wes (@westheeditor) on Jul 11, 2015 at 11:58am PDT
SHAME #SDCC #GameofThrones #cosplay A photo posted by Chris Taylor (@futurechris) on Jul 11, 2015 at 10:26am PDT
A photo posted by Michael Kriak (@mkriak) on Jul 11, 2015 at 9:22am PDT
How to walk the Comic Con floor in style #SDCC2015 A photo posted by Mark Hamill (@hamillhimself) on Jul 13, 2015 at 1:42pm PDT
@robertacer72 hands Jordan the prize backstage at the 2015 San Diego Comic Con Masquerade for their Big Hero 6 costumes. He is a very generous and inspirational man. His talk to Jordan about life and education will forever resonate. --- --- --- #sdcc #sdcc2015 #sandiego #sandiegocomiccon #comiccon #comiccon2015 #tobertacer #heroaward #hiro #hirohamada #bighero6 #bh6 #disney #marvel #cosplay #masquerade #costume A photo posted by Jordan Parker (@minibobafett) on Jul 14, 2015 at 5:44pm PDT