Duplicate Trope: Dress Up Episode

The descriptions for Dress-Up Episode and Costumer are awfully similar. Both describe an episode that is an "excuse to put the characters in period costume". The distinction is vague at best. Costumer refers to this type of plot as an "alternate reality episode", but in fact doesn't require it to be an actual Alternate Reality Episode. Dress-Up Episode mentions Time Travel as one of many possible reasons, yet many examples on Costumer do involve time travel. Both mention the Wild West, Victorian Times, and the Roaring Twenties as popular destinations.

Costumer looks like the older trope, predating YKTTW and having more than twice as many wicks (48 to 18). Neither trope references the other at any point, suggesting the creator of Dress-Up Episode wasn't aware of the pre-existing one—they also prematurely launched it with 0 hats, btw.

I'd say cut Dress-Up Episode and merge with Costumer, but I think the former may actually have the clearer title. Despite its shorter existence it has collected 31 inbound links compared to the latter's 43.

edited 19th Jul '16 8:57:49 AM by Morgenthaler

Opened. I agree that they're duplicates and that Dress-Up Episode has the clearer title. I don't think it needs to be confined to historical costumes though. I've seen futuristic cosplay stuff lately. I think making the combined definition a bit more general is probably good for the trope.

Agreeing with that. I don't see any notable difference that would change the meaning or purpose of the trope.

Agreed, fitting in while Time Traveling in any direction or Period Episode tend to be the biggest uses of this.

I would also call Instant Cosplay Surprise and the like a subtrope of this.

No, it's not any any kind of dressing up. Cosplay and dressing up in various outfits just for the sake of it are a bit different.

This is specifically about an episode (or equivalent) where the characters are placed in a different era for the purpose of having them in different outfits that would otherwise be out of place.

The cosplay example I was thinking of was a police procedural I saw where they were going undercover at a sci-fi con and they ended up cosplaying so that the person they were trying to catch wouldn't spot them. It's the same sort of dress up to blend in. Just cosplaying because isn't the same thing.

The gist I got out of it is basically an Out Of Uniform Episode more than anything. Am I wrong on that?

The show basically has a set dress code of School Uniforms like a High School Anime, Military Uniform like Star Trek and bam this scene or episode they need to actually call wardrobe for some one time only outfit fitting the situation.

Basically every Holodeck Episode or Holodeck Cold Open when it comes to Star Trek. And summer time episodes in high school anime, which can be surprisingly rare outside of stuff like Beach Episode, Pool Episode and Festival Episode, which would be partial subtropes and not dressing different tends to be mentioned or a plot point.

edited 21st Jul '16 8:13:00 AM by Memers

That would be entirely wrong on all points. There is no requirement at all for a uniform.

Bones which has no uniforms recently had an episode where they all dressed up as cowboys to track down murderers at a Wild West show.

When this pops up in Western works, and it pops up a lot. There are almost never uniforms to start with.

edited 22nd Jul '16 2:19:00 PM by shimaspawn

Its still leaving the comfort zone of the usual episode's costume design though right? Would the uniform thing be a subtrope?

Also Bones typically follows a basic dress code of suit and tie and such which is pretty much their uniform with minor variances.

edited 23rd Jul '16 1:12:02 AM by Memers

There seems to be a difference between the tropes. Costumer does require an alternative reality environment to be played out in (according to the description). Since there is no need to refer to the original reality, the costuming is not about deceit or blending in. Characters would wear their dresses naturally. Dress-Up Episode on the other hand is a real world episode and the costumes are worn for the purpose of deceit or blending in. Character may even return to their base environment at any time. Bottomline, character awareness of being "dressed up" would be the distinction.

Admittedly, alternative or dream episodes are rare and the example lists of both tropes lean towards what I defined as Dress-Up Episode. A merge is viable.

edited 23rd Jul '16 2:12:12 AM by eroock

Dress-Up Episode and Costumer both have flawed titles. Dress-Up Episode makes it sound like it's about dressing all fancy for a special occasion or something, while Customer... doesn't seem to specify anything at all.

How about Themed Costumes Episode?

Seconded.

I guess a subversion would be Back to the Future Part III and the Wild West episode of Supernatural, where they dress up for the time travel trip only to find out their costume is far from historically accurate when they get there.

edited 8th Aug '16 5:26:56 PM by StarSword

I still think that is far too restrictive. IMO it is an episode or segment which calls for a costume completely outside the normal thing for the show, egregious in shows that have a strict Limited Wardrobe or say in a sprite based game that made special sprites just for that occasion but it isn't completely limited to that.

edited 9th Aug '16 4:43:55 AM by Memers

There we go, Memers. That's the right definition at last.

I agree with merging. But I'm confused why either are tropes?

To me, it seems to be imposing an expectation on the show that isn't there. If characters time travel (or do whatever protagonists tend to do), of course they will wear appropriate attire. But the trope seems to go a step beyond that and say that the costume change is the reason for the episode itself. If there's Word of God, that's one thing. I know that's not the topic of the thread, I'm just wondering.

Meh, clock expired a while ago with minimal input. Closing.