by Ben Halevy
photo credits to www.commons.wikimedia.org
“Let’s all wear a group costume!” they said. “We will be matching, it will be fun!” they said. But they were wrong. While everyone is wearing their flashy SpongeBob costumes, you are stuck being Gary the Snail. You are the mild sauce in a sea of hot sauces. You are Dopey while your friend prances around as Snow White.
Group costumes always seem like a way for groups to show off their sense of humor and their creativity. But wherever there are people dressed up as Batman, there must be someone else dressed as Robin. And let’s be real: Nobody wants to be Robin.
Although being the Robin to your friend’s Batman is demeaning, at least people can recognize what you are independently of the group. In some cases, if you are not standing next to your group, people will have no idea who you are supposed to be.
For example, if not accompanying Snow White, your dwarf costume could represent anything. You could be a dwarf from Lord of the Rings, for all they know. This can result in awkward conversations involving embarrassing guesses.
This effect can be worsened if you are forced into making a more difficult costume than your friends, only to be the sidekick, such as the Hulk from The Avengers or Darth Maul from Star Wars. While Luke Skywalker and Captain America strut around in their easy to make and wear costumes, you are stuck trudging around in a Jabba the Hut suit.
In most situations, you know if you are going to get the worst costume. Maybe you are just sitting in the background waiting for them decide. Or, more likely, you are absent during the deliberation and text them later to hear the tragic results.
This strategy might work if they decide to be M&Ms, but once they decide on the Justice League, you know who will end up being Martian Manhunter. Don’t know who that is? You will once your friends look it up and tell you that’s your costume. And if you don’t participate? Don’t consider them your friends until after Halloween.
So next time your friends tell you to dress as Hamm from Toy Story or the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man from Ghostbusters, stand your ground. Demand a different character. Then, after they get their way, dress up as the lowly secondary character anyway and endure another Halloween out of the spotlight.
Although being the Robin to your friend’s Batman is demeaning, at least people can recognize what you are independently of the group. In some cases, if you are not standing next to your group, people will have no idea who you are supposed to be.
For example, if not accompanying Snow White, your dwarf costume could represent anything. You could be a dwarf from Lord of the Rings, for all they know. This can result in awkward conversations involving embarrassing guesses.
This effect can be worsened if you are forced into making a more difficult costume than your friends, only to be the sidekick, such as the Hulk from The Avengers or Darth Maul from Star Wars. While Luke Skywalker and Captain America strut around in their easy to make and wear costumes, you are stuck trudging around in a Jabba the Hut suit.
In most situations, you know if you are going to get the worst costume. Maybe you are just sitting in the background waiting for them decide. Or, more likely, you are absent during the deliberation and text them later to hear the tragic results.
This strategy might work if they decide to be M&Ms, but once they decide on the Justice League, you know who will end up being Martian Manhunter. Don’t know who that is? You will once your friends look it up and tell you that’s your costume. And if you don’t participate? Don’t consider them your friends until after Halloween.
So next time your friends tell you to dress as Hamm from Toy Story or the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man from Ghostbusters, stand your ground. Demand a different character. Then, after they get their way, dress up as the lowly secondary character anyway and endure another Halloween out of the spotlight.