There is no rule banning women from dressing as men
Tokyo Comic-Con is prohibiting men from Cosplaying in women’s clothing.
The office site for Tokyo Comic Con, which kicks off in December, states under the “regarding cosplay outfits” section that men wearing female clothing is “prohibited”. The original text is in Japanese (男性による女装は禁止です) but translates to a ban on wearing female clothing by men.
However, the regulations state nothing about women wearing men’s clothing.
The new restriction sits amongst other restrictions including bans on real military costumes, excessive skin exposure, and transparent costumes.
San Diego’s International Comic-Con had no such ban, nor does the Comic-Con in London this weekend.
Cross dressing is quite common in Cosplay culture and even has its own term, ‘crossplay’. Furthermore, Japan has a history of accepting men dressing as women. Kabuki theater, a classical Japanese dance-drama, has an all-male cast, with women being portrayed by men wearing female clothing.
The Tokyo Comic-Con will feature appearances by Jeremy Renner, Matthew Lewis, and Stan Lee. The convention will take place from 2-3 December. This year’s event will be hosted by Chiba’s Makuhari Messe and will focus on American fantasy and sci-fi franchises.