CosBlog #51: Skull Kid By Phasers

by Meagan Marie on Apr 06, 2011 at 07:00 AM

If you’re like many of the crew at Game Informer, The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask holds a soft spot in your heart. As one such individual, I maintain especially high standards for costumed tributes. Cosplayer Phasers does a phenomenal job of living up to Skull Kid’s character design in authenticity and craftsmanship. Check out the costume details and gallery below.

Who: The Character
Skull Kid from The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask

Why: The Decision
I've always been quite a big fan for the Zelda series. About a year ago, I was going through my box of Nintendo 64 games and ran across my copy of Majora’s Mask, which I thought I had lost forever. I remember replaying through the game and reliving my childhood. I was really drawn to the Skull Kid. His mannerism and overall odd demeanor was both fascinating and frightening. He was an oddball, cursed and manipulated by the mask's power. His story of feeling betrayed by the four giants is incredibly relatable to anyone who has ever had a falling out with a friend. I also could not help but want to create my own Majora’s Mask.

What: The Process
Oh my, where to start! Aside from a few select parts, this was a fairly simple costume. I based most of this costume off of the figurine to save me the headaches of deciphering blocky polygons and pixels. I spent hours patterning every piece to fit just right. The shirt was simple enough, as were the shorts and collar. Both the shorts and the collar were weathered by sanding around the seams. The Skull Kid lives in the forest, so his clothing would be tattered and worn as opposed to clean and crisp.

The bird's head gave me quite a bit of trouble. I ended up basing the skeleton off of mascot and furry heads. Materials included a welder’s mask skeleton for stability, a balaclava and plush foam. I built the upper and lower portions separately so the jaw would be movable when I spoke, which is awesome! The eyes are half of a plastic ornament painted on the inside. The beak is clay. The entire head is covered in fabric and given a cover of bark and moss to match the Skull Kids bark skin.

The hat was fairly simple, and is made of plush foam, wire, batting, and fabric. The weird hat-belt is made of paper clay, wire, and manila rope. I weathered the hat by sanding and painting it.

The mask is my masterpiece. It is my pride and joy. My baby. The base is newspaper and flour, which I carved and covered in paper clay, sealed it and painted it. On the inside of the mask are hinges, which attach to two beams on the head. This lets me lift up the mask like the Skull Kid does in the opening scene! As an added bonus, the mask is removable from the beams for display purposes.

The tree bark skin was so simple, it was crazy. I just took an old pair of tight, thermal pants and shoulder-length drama gloves and covered them in bark and moss. The gloves on the skin were also easy to do and have wire skeletons to keep their shape.

The shoes were made of plush foam and covered in fabric. The circles, as well as the belt, are made of clay and wire.

I can barely see out of the mouth of this costume, so it requires a friend to help me walk as well as put on and take off the head.

I have no idea what the total cost was for this entire costume. I bought materials over the course of a year and never kept track, but I assume its somewhere in the $250-$350 range.

Where and When: The Debut
I debuted this costume with my friend (who dressed as the Happy Mask Salesman) at Another Anime Convention's Matsuri in Manchester, New Hampshire in September of 2010. Thank god the convention was in the fall, because this costume can really make me overheat easily.

The photoshoot was a spur of the moment. A few kind photographers offered to take a couple of photos over in the wooded area near the building. Forests are easy to find, but they can make for great locations.

Photos are courtesy of Garrett Black, Ken Irons, and Nerd Calibur.

Links: The Cosplayer
You can find me on cosplay.com.