A costume party in one of Tokyo’s most fashionable neighborhoods brings some beauty to the scary celebration.

It might be hard to to imagine when you’re seeing packs of weirdos dressed up like demented Hello Kitties or horrific (Where’s) Waldos, but Shibuya, the part of Tokyo where the Japan’s biggest Halloween party takes place, is usually a neighborhood that attracts the city’s beautiful people. So on October 31, you’ll still find glamorous Tokyoites out and about in Shibuya, just dressed in Halloween costumes instead of the latest trendy fashions.

Granted, our own pack of surreal Hello Kitty-mimicking reporters got plenty of photo requests. But there’s also plenty of cosplay of the more orthodoxly photogenic variety, as these photos we snapped of other Halloween partiers prove.

Female costumers in Japan are especially concerned with coordination, as matching outfits are a great way to stand out from the crowd while also dividing up any lingering shy self-consciousness among your friends.

▼ Between the facial injuries and the broken-off steering wheel, these cabbies don’t seem like the best drivers, but they do at least offer service with a smile.

▼ A Dia de los Muertos-inspired quintet.

Following unruly behavior in Shibuya on the weekend before Halloween, the ward mayor promised a stronger police presence on the night of October 31. While we don’t have any official law enforcement dispatch statistics, we did notice plenty of patrolwoman costumes.

At least two escaped convicts managed to slip through their dragnet, however.

A common costume ploy for Halloween in Japan is to take an everyday cosplay outfit and add some ghastly visible injuries, like this pair of stitched up maids did.

▼ Our reporter Ahiru Neko photobombs a team of diner waitresses who apparently had a very rough shift.

▼ The theme for this group, meanwhile, seems to be “A day out shopping, circa 1990.”

While many of the outfits had a splash of cuteness or dash of sexiness, some were legitimately frightening, like those which featured copiously bleeding eyes.

Even the Minions couldn’t completely avoid carnage.

Thankfully, those feeling too frightened could take comfort in the serene presence of sisterly sisters…

…or scantily clad cat girls, who provide mental solace of a different sort.

▼ Or you could just keep your mind off of all the blood by wondering if Dr. Slump’s Arale is about to chow down on poo on a stick.

But while there were plenty of high-concept, thoroughly crafted costumes to be seen, this is, first and foremost, a party, and not a cosplay contest.

If you don’t have the time or the money to sort out a complex outfit, a few streaks of fake blood will do fine. Take a look at these friends, for example, who are pretty clearly just wearing their ordinary clothes with cat ears from the 100 yen store, plus a few lines of equally affordable face paint.

They were as welcome as anyone, because it’s not about how good your costume is, it’s about having fun together.

A big thanks to everyone who took the time to pose for us, and we hope to see you all again next year!

Photos ©SoraNews24
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