Stay in the Dreams: Cosplayer’s Secret Obsession, A Post-Human Phenomenon in Jakarta

Mas Agung Wilis Yudha Baskoro (Jakarta Globe, Jakarta)

His face is beaming. The weariness in Yohanes’ body vanished when he enter his room from work. “Welcome to my world,” he said when opening the door. Dimly and messy room. There is a particular smell of room freshener coming from the plastic cabinet where rows of waifu displayed. They welcome their master with joyful smile. This fellow who born in 1989 fellow look at them for a while then falling into his bed hugging dakimakura.

“Since I was a kid weebo has appeared”. Yo, short for Yohanes, grew up in the nineties. He was familiar with Japanese anime that was broadcasted on Indonesian private television stations.Yo started out as an amateur coplayer in 2016. He used anime to fill the gap in his heart after his lover left him.

Yo has a waifu named Nico. He once took Nico on vacation to Japan and took a walk through the city of Jakarta on holidays. “Nico is great to be taken out because she’s fun and can be posed. More alive”.

Bearing status as a gutter kid did not make little Yo invulnerable of bully from his childhood friends. “I was bullied as fat kid”. The bullying is one of the reasons Yo turn to cosplay.

He then motivated himself to maintain his weight while also exploring values in the Allen Walker character from anime D.Gray-man. The sacrifice, relentless and withstand against seven deadliest sins formed in akuma (evil) is the trait of Allen Walker that inspired Yohanes as cosplayer, and as a catholic as well.

Millennial generation has been profiled as lonely and prone to depression generation. As part of millennial generation, Yo takes benefit from the imaginative tools to skip the loneliness and self-motivate in order to gain ideal body shape. Dr. Semiarto Aji Purwanto, and antropolog from University of Indonesia said that this is posthuman phenomenon; when human is captive with humanity, they started to build relationship with non-human actor. Yohanes consciously create bonding with the waifu and his cosplay character as avatar. Although coming from Japan, this is regarded more as phenomenon than culture.

Manga collection is a reflection of dissatisfaction of the Japanese toward his life. Their presence is the answer, a complement of life for Yohanes or somebody out there seeking for something they long to achieve.