Long before I saw Omar Sy’s Bishop in X-Men: DOFP, I happen to stumble upon Harry’s take on Bishop via social media online which I thought was awesome. Once I got to interview him I found him to be a humble guy who believes in giving back to his community and takes pride in being a cosplayer of color. BNP finally got the chance to interview him so here it is for you to enjoy!
Black Nerd Problems: First off, tell us a little about yourself.

Bishop Cosplay: My name is Harry. I am from Maryland. As far as what I do, I am a Research Program Analyst with the government. In my spare time, I enjoy comics and gaming. Gaming-wise right now, I am deep into The Witcher 3, still trying to get into Batman: Arkham Knight (I think it’s overrated) and running through my 4th season of FIFA 15. That reminds me, I am a big footy fan. My favorite teams are Manchester United and DC United.

BNP: What does cosplay mean to you?

Bishop Cosplay: Cosplay has become a thing of allowing people to really geek out and for a short time and embody characters that they love. Not only do we get to do that, it also allows us to do so much more. A few of my friends started a community service organization called CosLove and part of what we do, in and out of costume, is to help those who are looking for people to make their lives better. Within the past year, we have done Toys for Tots, took up donations for residents from Baltimore (where I am from originally) after the riot in May, and we have done several events with our nation’s vets as well. We have a few more events coming soon. 

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BNP: It seems that I constantly come across people who berate cosplayers, deeming it something “only for kids.” It completely bewilders me, but there are people who see folks in cosplay and immediately see them as immature or childish. You’re obviously not a child or adolescent cosplayer; what words would you impart to individuals with that type of mindset? Have you had any experiences with people with this type of mindset, online or in person?

Bishop Cosplay: Funny thing is, amongst all those I come in contact with, we have never experienced this. Cosplay has become a really big and accepted hobby now so that really isn’t an issue. The issues that are apparent, however, are still problems with body shaming (you are too fat to cosplay XYZ character), cosplay is not consent (people who can’t keep their hands to themselves, men and women), and worst of all in my eyes, being the “Black version” of a character because apparently some people think that many characters are exclusively White. Combine some of these issues together and what we get is that some people are self-conscious about what they want to cosplay because there are those out there who try to make people feel bad for what they do. Another initiative I was a part of earlier this year (and plan on doing next year) was the #28daysofBlackCosplay in February which showcased many Black cosplayers in many different costumes.

The idea was to let people know that 1) don’t be ashamed to cosplay a character simply because you aren’t that race and

2) There are many of us who can and will pull off some amazing cosplays but the problem is many photographers and videographers won’t show us

(and you would be surprised how many of them are Black BTW) because we don’t fit the norms.

We have to get those images out there because even the comic companies are moving glacially slow in showcasing Black characters and Black talent behind those characters.

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BNP: I’m curious: you’ve cosplayed out of both fandoms, Star Wars and Star Trek — which was more fun to cosplay?

Bishop Cosplay: I enjoy both equally. I  have gotten a lot of love for what we do and our Star Trek cosplay is new this year and my wife and I will be doing it again at Baltimore Comic Con and I think it will go over well.

BNP: Hold the phone, you cosplay with your wife too? (#FutureSpouseGoals) Please tell us a little about her and the adventures in cosplay that you’ve shared.

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Bishop Cosplay: Yes, and to be perfectly honest, she crafts most of our costumes. We are both the brains of the operations but she does most of the hands on. It’s partially her fault why I am doing this! Ha! It all started with one Matrix Halloween costume nearly 10 years ago. But she has done some great work. She has cosplayed Assassin Creed’s Aveline which she crafted everything herself, she is responsible for our Superman / Wonder Woman armor and many others. She has reached a point where people want to get commissions of her work. For myself, I am at a point where I am doing photoshoots for people and I enjoy it.

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BNP: We reposted from you on Instagram that really, really, really cool photo of you in the armored Superman costume posing with that little boy dressed as Iron man who sought you out personally to take a photo with you. At the end of the day, how do little encounters like that impact you?

 

Bishop Cosplay: It makes me feel really good that kids are able to get something that I wasn’t able to get when I was their age. We are at a point now where kids are able to access many forms of comic book media and it’s extra special when some of those kids look like me and want to relate. So, hearing this child’s mom tell me that he wanted THIS Superman over all of the other ones means, I am doing something right!

BNP: What can you tell us about Pop Culture Uncovered and your involvement in its creation?

Bishop Cosplay: Pop Culture Uncovered is my baby. It originally started off being called The Next Issue podcast and it was just a podcast. (Here’s our most recent batch of podcasts) But several of my friends who are involved said that we needed to change a few things to branch out. Within the past year, we changed the name, built a website and it’s been a great ride. The best part is that a lot of my friends are involved mostly because they have a place for where their voices can be heard when it comes to anything geek related. I am thankful and blessed for the amount of hard work we all have put into making this site what it is and I cannot do it by myself. We are also being sponsored VA Comic Con and also part of what we do is we go out to our local comic shops for live show tapings as well.

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BNP: Lastly, what are your goals (personal and/or cosplay) and at what conventions or events can people next find you next?

Bishop Cosplay: My goal is to simply make my corner of geekdom and more tolerable one person at a time.  I enjoy doing some of the community service events, going to cons and just talking to people. It’s always amazing the incredible talent that I run into and I try to do what I can to find out more about it.  The next cons I will be involved with will be SpartaCon which is next weekend in Waldorf MD where I will be doing some on site photography,  I will be at Baltimore Comic Con in September cosplaying of course as well as doing a cosplay panel.  October isn’t 100% concrete besides Halloween and in November I will be at Va ComicCon.

See more on his facebook page!

Photo Credits:

John Jiao Photography

Sci-Fi Photo Guy

Ken Rochon

All other photos courtesy of the cosplayer.

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  • Carrie McClain is writer, editor and media scholar. Other times she's known as a Starfleet Communications Officer, Comics Auntie, and Golden Saucer Frequenter. Nowadays you can usually find her avoiding Truck-kun and forgetting her magical girl transformation device. She/Her

  • Show Comments

  • Doug Toyryla

    Harry is a great cosplayer, and an even greater friend. Here’s to many more costumes & events!

  • Devin A Burgess

    How does one get started, in cosplay

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