Every year at Denver’s annual Comic Con, there are a lot of caped crusaders and fantastical sci-fi characters running around the Colorado Convention Center. But what happens when Spider-Man’s tights get a rip in them? Or Harry Potter’s glasses break?
That’s where Alex Freese steps in.
Instead of dressing up as Wonder Woman or Harley Quinn, Freese dons a camouflage Army jacket with her title, “Cosplay Medic,” emblazoned on the sleeve.
“A cosplay medic is somebody who carries around kits that have some sewing stuff and some glue and quick repair stuff for the cosplayers at the event,” Freese, 28, said.
The week before Denver Comic Con, the dining room table in Freese’s Westminster home is completely engulfed in craft supplies. All the things she’ll need to carry for potential costume triage.
Sequins, Sharpies, Duct tape, clear nail polish, nail files, Q-tips, cotton balls, band aids, baby wipes, baby powder, Duct tape, wires, pliers, fishing line, safety pins, wig pins, bobby pins, Duct tape, Super Glue, Glue Dots, double-sided tape, gaffer tape, and still more Duct Tape.
“You can fix just about anything with Duct tape,” Freese laughed.
Her most iconic supply is the 34 -- yes, 34 -- spools of thread in every imaginable color, including metallic, forming a wall on front of the Army backpack she uses as a supply kit. That’s how a lot of people spotted Freese last year.
“A lot of people were asking -- because I have thread all down my backpack in different colors -- and they were asking if it was usable and I had tape and stuff hanging out and they asked if they could use it,” she said. “And I was like, ‘Yeah, that’s what it’s for.’”
The idea actually came to Freese -- who also does historical cosplay as a member of the Society for Creative Anachronism-- at the last minute. Her plan for an Anastasia costume fell through and she needed something else, quick.
“So I have lots of thread, lots of craft stuff,” she said. “I used to do costuming for theater, so it was really easy for me to put it together. And then it turned out to be a lot of fun and I got to talk to a lot of people because of it, so I decided to do it again this year.”
Last year, the sixth annual Denver Comic Con hosted almost 115,000 comic book and sci-fi fans -- many of whom come dressed to thrill.
But while cosplay is big, the idea of cosplay medics is just beginning to take root. Some of the larger cons, including San Diego Comic Con International and Florida’s Supercon have them. At Denver’s event though, most people last year didn’t quite know what to make of Freese but she's hoping the idea will catch on.
This year, Freese expects that much of her time will be spent stitching up tears and mending back together broken props. Her favorite fix from last year was helping out a character from the video game Fallout. He was late for the annual cosplay contest, but had broken his replica gun -- an essential element to his look.
“It didn’t take long,” Freese said. “It was just a little bit of Super Glue, but it was cool to be able to just help them and send them on their way.”
Like a superhero, she doesn’t accept money for her services.
“I just don’t ask for anything,” Freese said. “It’s my gift to the Con. I just like it. It’s fun.”
She also has some advice for her fellow cosplayers so they don’t have to seek out her services this weekend.
“Try not to leave it to the night before,” Freese said. “Because if you’re frustrated, it’s better to walk away for a day. And when you leave everything to the night before, you can’t walk away and you just get frustrated and stuff gets broken -- ruined -- and you won’t be as happy with your finished product.”
But if you do tear your cape or your wig gets tangled at Denver Comic Con, keep an eye out for Alex Freese. She may not be able to leap a tall building in a single bound, but she might just be able to save the day.
