#also when people change the skin tone but don't alter the clothes just sometimes looks bad

[ilseofskadi]

me: *sees a cool edit of character's official art* oh cool this looks different from the original in a creative way!

artist comment: i didn't like the original design of this character so i fixed--

me: nevermind

[mermaidsirennikita]

I've noticed the historical accuracy purists avoid talking about The Great, I suspect because the show is very anachronistic so it's silly to complain about the costumes not being accurate plus they're just fantastic costumes all around and are considered as such so complaining about them would not be popular. This isn't Little Women 2019 or Bridgerton.

Again, for me, I don't really care about historical accuracy in costumes at all. I've seen "accurate" costumes that look like dog shit because a) focus was put on accuracy, but care was not taken to ensure that the budget wasn't compromised by that pursuit b) they do not translate well onscreen c) honestly? Not all looks are good ones, and alterations are sometimes needed to make the transition from "thing people wore 700 years ago" to "thing this fictional character is wearing in a production".

Costumes are not meant to be functional pieces that people wear day to day as the characters in their story and setting would wear them. They are meant to communicate character always, and (sometimes) story. They should not distract from that story, either.

But yeah, I agree with you--the reason why The Great isn't complained about as much with costumes is because the show tells it like it is re: its intentions. And honestly, the costumes are great. People who talk about costumes and know shit about historical accuracy re: costumes? Often love The Great's costumes. Because it really is done with so much intentionality and thought, and they are truly so well-crafted. I think the decision to dress Nick Hoult the way they do was a huge part of grounding us in that character, and honestly, helped make people open their hearts to the character sooner. He looked HOT in those clothes, and while his acting and the writing did the heavy lifting for the redemption arc.... the pants helped.

I also think some of them learned from Reign that when a show is truly balls to the wall, nobody watching that show gives a fuck about whether or not the costumes are authentic. Like, I remember people screaming "WHAT ABOUT FRENCH HOODS" with that show and it's like, my guy, I just saw Francis talk to the ghost of his dead father while he possessed a busty governess, I think we're past that.

I think everyone should just give up the ghost and focus on what looks good and what fits the story. Personally, I think the costumes in Bton look kind of cheap and poorly fitted much of the time; they were marginally better in season 2, but honestly, not by a lot (and I think the men's costumes look *marginally* better than the women's on a consistency level, but they've never known how to dress Luke Newton in a way that flatters his skin tone or his body type--and that's not a dig, it's a comment on the costumes). I don't think they serve the idea of a lush historical romance, but then, Bton doesn't wanna be that. If you look at the styling of Roxanne in Cyrano, eras aside, that's what gives me historical romance heroine more than.... many things I've seen. Or, if you want to look at something a bit more buttoned up and accurate, the way they styled Dido in Belle.

And Little Women 2019 fit that aesthetic, too; and that movie wasn't even trying to be about history, lmao, so I never got why people were upset. It was about the sisterly bond. It was about the emotionality. Change a few details and you could have transported the core narrative Gerwig was concerned with into so many other eras. And you had so many characters, and more narrative focus on Meg and Amy than other adaptations have granted, and as such it was so important that the sisters have different stylistic vibes. Meg's fresh youthfulness contrasted to her weariness post-marriage; Amy going from girlish to elegantly dignified refinement; Jo always being *very purposefully not of her time*, lmao.

Idk, I just wish people would focus on story and quality with costumes, versus accuracy. Everyone is creaming themselves over Alicia Vikander having a chin strap with her French hood in Firebrand, and while those costumes (from what I've seen) definitely look cool and high quality, I guarantee that much of the general audience will either a) not notice or b) think it's weird. But that's not me saying it's a bad move--it's me saying that these small details mean a lot to those of us who know, but the entire picture is much more important to everyone else.