Project Runway - Female Characters for Video Games

Video games are legendary for female characters that are underdressed and over-weaponed. Where guys are dressed in unitard suits with weapons blazing or edged blades, female characters are too often dressed in barely-there bras and bikini bottoms with knee-high boots and, of course, a big gun or a two-handed sword. Realistic? Hell no. 

Jamall Osterholm's character was entitled
"Femme Fatale". He envisioned it as a
female James Bond. In the original concept,
she should have had a rather beautiful black
mesh stretch turtleneck beneath the jacket. He
had problems with time management. 

This week's challenge gave the designers $300 and two days to come up with female video game characters. The judges weren't looking for super heroes, their goal was female characters that would fit into a video game setting for today - female characters who would be strong and competent, not cartoon caricatures of "heroes". At Mood, it seemed as if red was suddenly the color. It was like a firework went off and red became the new neutral. Minds were changed at the last minute, and new fabric choices were made - maybe not as good as the original. Several people ran over their $300 budget, so cuts needed to be made and fabrics had to be abandoned.  

Garo Sparo's conception of a "Fashion
Editrix", a fashion dominatrix, really
hit a lot of bells and whistles. He used his
usual corset, and it was beautifully made.
The whip was perfect, and the shoes and
eyeglasses made Mimi even more fierce.
Loved that X in the center of the bodice. 

Three different video game designers, all female and all totally fierce and educated, were introduced to the designers when the original concept was presented to them. Graphic design artists were put into the break room of the workroom and each designer explained their design concept to one of them. The artists would translate each concept into a graphic character that would also be presented on the Runway. At this point we have a female James Bond, a goddess come to earth, a character that pulls bad memories away from people, and a "Fashion Editrix", a fashion editor/dominatrix. I can totally see Nina Garcia in that role sometimes - LOL. 

Rakan Shams Aldeen chose all new types of fabric for
his gaming character - fabrics he had never used before.
That bit him. His "Syrian Queen" seemed all over
the place and just didn't work on so many levels. 

When the models came in for fitting, it was quite evident who had a firm vision and who was trying to paddle in the deep end. Several people only had muslins made while others were questioning their visions/designs after Christian's walk-through and input. As an example, Christian pointed out that Jamall's black suit jacket with a white collar idea could just as easily fit into the format of a waitress - not at all the vision he was trying to put forward in his female James Bond character. 

Hester Sunshine brought forth a really interesting
character with her "Star Rover 2000" concept. The
character's clothing was impeccable. What you can't
see in the photos are the transparent patches at
the hips and legs. There's a really cute little
jetpack behind, too. This is a feminine character 
that looks both powerful and competent. 

I was really looking forward to seeing the Runway show. The designers were all over the place with designs and concepts and I was totally mystified about which ones would be executed successfully and which would end up as puddles of fabric on the workshop floor. Late on Day 2, the gaming designers sent their artistic interpretations to each designer's phone. Some of the designers had changed their concepts or altered their designs, and they phoned their artists in a panic, trying to explain how things would differ, hoping for new art. I don't think they got new art. I think the concept art as originally described ended up on the Runway.  

Tessa Clark celebrated the strength of an
everyday warrior - the one who picks up the
load and does whatever's needed. Her "Miller's
Daughter" carries the flour, sells it, and runs
the mill, things that often a man would be in
charge of. Her overalls top flips down to become
an apron when she's selling her goods. It
was a great concept and an impeccable design. 

Midnight - Day 2 - the designers were almost literally pushing each other out of the workshop door. To defuse, they decided to take a ferry home - to "have a New York moment". They staged an impromptu runway walk on the deck of the ferry, zipped up and bundled into their winter wear while enjoying New York at night. What a great experience for everyone to remember. 

Venny Etienne wasn't happy with his final
design. He had ended up $100 over budget
and had to leave fabric behind. Maybe it
would have made a difference, but I really
don't think so. His "Savior of the World"
just didn't work, and I hated the feathers
at the sleeve cuffs. . 

Runway day was the usual hectic mess. Why people don't step on and tear the fabric of the model next to them is totally due to the skill of the individual models because backstage at a runway show is total chaos. With one hour before runway, almost every sewing machine still had a designer trying to finish their outfit. Rashan was actually trimming and recutting his outfit backstage before the runway with the help of Bishme. Christian could hardly believe it - once again Rashan wasn't ready for a runway. 

You saw the fashions above, three in the bottom, three in the top. Safe this week were Bishme Cromartie with his "Queen of Hearts", Lela Orr with her "Femininity and Power", Renee Hill's "Sensitive Warrior", Sebastian Grey's "Moon Goddess", and Sonia Kasparian's "Empath" That left six - three on the bottom and three on the top. You've seen the fashions in the photos above, so what do you think? Who made powerful images without going too much into costume? Who won and who went home? Eleven accepted the challenge, but only ten will move on. 



SPOILER BELOW 



Sure, I have the photos of the top and bottom three in the text, but I don't tell you winners or losers until here. (Want to see all of the fashion? Just follow the link here.) I had to laugh - everyone was pushing Nina to take up the whip, so she tried a single "crack", but it was fairly hopeless. She matched the model, though, with black pants and a red shirt. The winner came down to Tessa's "Miller's Daughter" and Hester's "Star Rover 2000". Although everyone loved the dominatrix, and it was a top fashion, it really came down to the two women. Winner, for a second time, Hester Sunshine. Although it bordered on costume, the judges could see where this character would go and how it could influence strong women through gaming. 

As for the loser? The three designers on the bottom all had problems. Jamall's "Femme Fatale" was supposed to have had a mesh stretch turtleneck under the jacket. It just didn't work without a shirt of some kind. Venny's "Savior of the World"'s cape was compared, unfavorably, to the shell of a Ninja Turtle, and his seams were poorly constructed. The whole outfit was a mess. Rashan made extremely poor fabric choices and made a completely unbalanced outfit, heavy on the top and minimal on the bottom. After deliberation, and with the certainty that any of the three could easily be sent home, the decision was made. Rakan Shams Aldeen was sent home and now ten remain. It's getting real, people! LOL 

Enjoy your Friday. I'll be back on Saturday with a much shorter post. Be good, be kind, and please choose reasonable fashion. BTW - I was watching 2019 fashion shows over my lunch yesterday and one of them was Christian Seriano's spring collection. I have to say, I was underwhelmed. So there we go! LOL.