[Ellen Joe cosplay] Zenless Zone Zero Fes Site: Seriously, You Really Can't Just Touch the Shark Tail

Bringing this Mechanical maid outfit and massive weapon to stand for a full day at the Zenless Zone Zero Fes convention really tested my physical endurance limits.

Let's start with the most troublesome part: the shark tail prop. The warning in the post—“Don't casually touch the shark tail”—comes from very practical concerns. Because of its massive size, combined with the solid reinforcement materials needed inside to maintain a natural downward-drooping dynamic and structural rigidity when standing, it felt vulnerable in the crowded convention environment, where I worried constantly about it getting bumped or accidentally scratching others. Furthermore, the tail's center of gravity pulls backward, heavily testing core lower-back strength as I had to constantly maintain a secure balance point. Many fellow fans saw the tail at the venue and thought it looked super cool, wanting to test out its texture with their hands, but I could only gently remind everyone that admiring it from close range is already the greatest support possible—especially since reassembling and dismantling the whole rig takes a considerable amount of time.

The black-white-black color scheme of this maid outfit underwent numerous rounds of design refinement. The upper body retains classic maid ruffles and puff sleeves, but incorporates mecha-style paneling and strap designs across the shoulders and front chest, ensuring it never looks overly monotonous while perfectly aligning with the character's combat attributes. The waist section is exceptionally complex, featuring an interlocking arrangement of metal rings, belt buckles, rivets, and silver chains, accented with square red modular blocks for sharp color contrast. While maintaining a maid's youthful charm, the heavy-duty waist belt and arm guards add a cold, ruthless assassin vibe. To complete the look harmoniously, the lower body utilizes matte Black stockings cosplay, paired with asymmetrical black straps around the knees, stepping into black leather shoes equipped with slender red heels to give the entire styling rich convention photo layering. Walking around the exhibition hall in these shoes was admittedly quite exhausting for the feet, but for the sake of character accuracy, I simply had to push through.

The matching adaptation of the hair and makeup also played a vital role: the black short hair features red gradient highlights along the tips, paired with red contact lenses to appear sharper and more aligned with the character's persona. The hair strand flow was meticulously styled to complement the headpiece, complete with tiny metal clips along the edges for a highly recognizable silhouette.

The opening action pose chosen for the shoot was exceptionally challenging. With a low-prone posture paired with the broad-faced scythe blade, the camera pressed against the ground shooting upward with a wide-angle perspective, successfully capturing the weapon, body curves, Black stockings cosplay long legs, and the gigantic mechanical shark tail behind me all in a single frame, which dramatically elongated the overall visual proportions. Although holding this static lock caused muscular soreness, achieving the absolute best shooting output made coordinating weight shifts with the on-site photographer multiple times completely worth it. The subsequent standing poses and over-the-shoulder glances were comparatively much easier, focusing attention on the weapon strapped across the back and the side structure of the tail, giving viewers a comprehensive look at the overall costume styling. Another favorite is a blurred close-up utilizing the massive scythe as a foreground element, focusing sharp clarity entirely on facial and upper-body details to convey the character's cold yet edgy coolness.

The set design at the Zenless Zone Zero Fes venue also helped immensely; the giant rabbit-style installation in the background paired with the venue's soaring steel-frame vaulted ceiling infused the entire photo set with a strong sci-fi industrial aesthetic. The convention atmosphere was truly fantastic, and fellow fans and passersby inside were all incredibly warm. Although hauling gear across the entire venue left me feeling utterly drained and ready to collapse, meeting friends who share the exact same love for the source material made all the fatigue worthwhile.

Sharing this practical combat experience from the convention, I hope everyone enjoys the visual effects delivered by this gear setup. Capturing this photo series serves as a cherished memento celebrating the entire preparation journey behind this cosplay creation.