One Outfit Closet Syndrome
- Ash McKay
- Dec 14, 2022
- 8 min read
Updated: Feb 13, 2023
Are you a 90s kid that grew up with after-school cartoons or an adult that loves the Simpsons? What if I told you many cartoons have one thing in common? The characters almost always wear the same outfit. That wouldn't be much of a surprise, would it? This has become a common trope and several cartoons even poke fun at it.
Nickelodeon’s Doug
Fox’s The Simpsons
Why do characters wear the same outfits?
How TV shows are made is a major factor. Character design goes to great lengths to simplify facial features for ease of animation. If you removed the hair and clothing of all the characters of one show, you’d have a heck of a time figuring out who was who. Each character having their own outfit makes them recognizable among a cast of cookie-cutter faces.
Comedy Central’s South Park
Continuity is another factor when it comes to animation logistics. Scenes are not animated in order; to create continuity between scenes requires planning.
I’m a big fan of Japanese Anime. Eastern animation also tends to suffer from One Outfit Closet Syndrome. It’s never quite to the extent of western animation. Many anime series takes place in school, so it’s easy to dismiss the school uniforms as part of the setting. Characters in anime often change into casual clothing after school. Or if they were of the crime-fight-monster-hunting type, they would change into their battle outfits. For the most part, this leaves anime characters with 2 or 3 outfits during a season.
VIZ’s Sailor Moon
Eastern animation also did something that’s almost never seen in western animation. You could almost always count on Sailor Moon’s battle outfit changing every season or story arc. There’s a feeling of progression and growth with the character when they get a new outfit. It marks a new chapter in the story of their lives. And let’s also not forget the opportunity for making a major mullah from new merchandise.
So you’d think with North America’s propensity to merchandise the crap out of cash cow franchises that characters in western animation would have more costume changes…
Source [Marvel.com]
Source [http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/marvel-75th-anniversary-true-tales-743567]
To take advantage of a clothing change to sell new merch would be a no-brainer. Considering how expensive producing cartoons is, wouldn’t you?
But that’s where our answer lies. Animations are expensive to produce. We have seen companies that used to be animation powerhouses, like Disney Channel and Nickelodeon, push animation to the back burner. They prefer producing live-action series over animation.
Outfit changes for characters are drawn, cleaned up, approved and coloured. In traditional animation, the animators have to learn to draw a new set of clothing. In digital animation, outfits have a rig, meaning each outfit is animated to interact with the movement of the character. Fold crease when they bend their elbows, and skirts flutter when a breeze passes through.
Digital Character Rig
Shows that Break the Mould
There are a few shows that defy this tradition, and they are the most unlikely of candidates:
Nickelodeon’s As Told by Ginger
FX’s Archer
Cartoon Network’s Steven Universe
Disney's Gravity Falls
I’m sure there are tonnes of other animated series out there that use outfit changes. Each of these shows uses outfit changes for different reasons. They all have something in common: show continuity.
As Told by Ginger
As Told by Ginger (ATbG) was notable in cartoon history for a couple of reasons. It had continuity through the seasons, its changing outfits and it was targeted at pre-teens. This was unusual for 2000s western cartoons. The main cast had a rotating wardrobe, with new outfits added every few episodes. ATbG only ran for 3 seasons, but we see the friends grow up, from middle school to high school students.
Nickelodeon’s As Told by Ginger
Archer
Archer is one of the few adult shows with a changing wardrobe, but it’s still quite limited. Most of the male characters wear the same outfit day in and out (a pallet swapped tie or sweater-vest or the one season Kriger wears a bow tie instead of a necktie - more on that later.) The female characters change their main outfits, but usually only once per season. That might be accompanied by several variations of the same outfit with a pallet swap.
FX’s Archer
Outside of the main outfit, there are a variety of other costumes worn by all the characters, and they're for the plot. Space suits, desert camo and formal wear while undercover at swanky parties are often all used many times with pallet swaps. It creates a lot of interest and depth while saving money and time. When the characters wear the appropriate attire for their situation, it immediately makes it much more believable. Being international secret agents (and later P.I.s), the characters encounter all climates and situations and if they were wearing one outfit, it would pull the viewer out of the willing suspension of disbelief.
Tactical Clothing (other than the tactileneck - the tactical turtleneck)
One of my favourite jokes is the fact that Cyril Figgis is inappropriately dressed for missions. This is sooo appropriate for his character.
Cyril Figgis in Safety Orange and “Jungle Explorer”
There are only a few cases of character outfit changes that relate to the character arc in the show. Some are logical like Lana’s switch to maternity wear during her third trimester of pregnancy. But some of the outfit changes have left viewers scratching their heads.
Cheryl/Carol Tunt adopts a new persona called Cherlene during the 5th season (Archer Vice). Cherlene is a country singer aiming for the top of the chart. She wears jean shorts, a tied-up plaid shirt and cowboy boots. Cherlene acts differently from Cheryl in some ways, but the strangest is that she seems to believe that she’s a different person. At the end of the season, it’s discovered that the microchip implanted in her brain to make her a better country singer was actually fake (it's a long story - watch the season). She returns to her old persona. The following season she’s seen back in her office outfit, having completely forgotten about her year as a country singer when asked about it.
Cheryl and her country star counterpart Cherlene
This show continues to confuse us with the mystery of the real Kriger. That bow tie I mentioned earlier was from Archer Vice as well. Kriger always wore a necktie in previous seasons, but this season was different. We also discover he has clones or that he himself may be a clone. In a fight with the clones (who are all wearing neckties), his bow tie comes off. The 4 of them fall off a building, and 3 of them die. The one that gets up ties on a necktie and leaves the scene. The next season it’s joked that he might not be the “original”. He can’t remember the names of his co-workers or things from before season 5.
Kriger and his clones
Steven Universe
I love the details put in these shows, not only for the depth and believability it brings to the world but for the clues into the character's mind, they can reveal. That’s why the next show on my list is Steven Universe. This show does not always have costumes changing on rotation or by the situation, but by character arc. At least this is true for the Crystal Gems. Most humans in the show have clothing appropriate for their situation. Connie has school clothing and a training outfit. They wear coats and scarves when it’s cold and snowy.
Connie in school clothing & her training outfit
The Crystal Gems are a unique case, though. They're aliens that don’t get cold or sweat, so no need for jackets or workout clothing. One of the major points in the show is that gems have a much harder time dealing with change than humans do. This is the reason Rose Quartz’s embrace of humans and change was considered so eccentric by the Gems.
Rose in Greg’s shirt
One thing I couldn’t help but notice was the strategic use of the Gem’s outfit changes as part of telling the story. When a Gem is damaged, they retreat into its Gem to recover and recoup. When they re-emerge, they can choose how to present themselves. Being damaged to the point of retreating back into the gem doesn't happen often and is usually accompanied by the personal growth of the character. The re-emerging in a different outfit signifies a new stage in their character development. How is this related? They are resistant to change, so when it comes time to change, everything changes. Think of it like a person who gets a drastic new haircut or a whole new wardrobe when they want to turn over a new leaf. They fully commit to a change from the inside out.
Amethyst's outfits
Pearl’s outfits
One of the most notable outfit changes is the difference between Garnet’s current appearance and the first time Ruby and Sapphire fuse to become Garnet.
[Pictures of Garnet from current and first]
The first time Ruby and Sapphire fused, they didn’t do it on purpose. This is shown by the haphazard mixed colours splotches and the asymmetrical design. (It reminds me of Aurora's dress from Sleeping Beauty - when the fairies couldn’t agree on a colour.)
Garnet’s Outfits
The current incarnation of Garnet shows a more purposeful design representing the 2 halves that make up Garnet. One pant leg is dark red for Ruby, and the other pant leg is navy blue for Sapphire. They still have an asymmetrical pattern involved in the design, which is the stars on their top.
Honourable Mention - Gravity Falls - Mabel and her Sweaters
It’s no secret that I adore Gravity Falls. It’s been one of the few shows Disney’s TV division has put out that’s actually worth watching. It’s only an honourable mention though because only one character has a changing outfit. But I love it and I love the show.
Mable’s famous sweaters
Over the course of 2 seasons, Mabel wears over 50 different sweaters. It’s all pallet swaps with very simple graphics or text, but what they accomplished with the simple sweaters is amazing. Sometimes there are clues about what the episode is about right on her sweater. In an episode where a big plot point was revealed, Mabel is wearing a sweater that has a picture of a key, like saying “this is a key episode.” Sometimes her sweaters have practical elements to them. One of her sweaters had a light on it, which she used as a flashlight when she and Soos were trapped in a cave. Sometimes the sweater reveals a hidden motive. She promises “Scout's Honour” to her Uncle she wouldn't do something while pulling on a sweater that has a picture of a scout’s salute. We are then shown the back of her sweater, which has a picture of the crossed fingers, a symbol associated with white lies and breaking promises. I love this one because at first, it seems like a silly sight gag. A pause to make us stop and ask with a laugh, “does she really have a Sweater for every occasion?” And the answer is yes. This includes a sweater for letting the audience in on what she’s planning.
Mabel in her Key Sweater, Light bulb sweater, and “Scout’s Honour” sweater
Her sweaters do end up acting as a small plot point in the finale, involving a sweater she gives to Pacifica Northwest. I won’t get into it here because Gravity Falls and its clues are a whole beast unto themselves. I’m less of a fan of this specific instance because it feels like the writers were forcing the imagery they had established into place so it would work. Watch the finale of Gravity Falls and you’ll know what I mean about the association of Pacifica and the Llama sweater. I’m sure there are tonnes of fan theories trying to explain it, and I’m open to ideas, but I can’t shake the feeling that it was shoved in there at the last minute to fix another problem.
Conclusion
The more I dug into this topic, the more cartoons I found that use a changing wardrobe. I could go on and on about every show that does this. In the end, it keeps coming back to the same thing: continuity. When there is a story that takes place over a time frame, it adds a believable element when we see the characters' clothing change. Because that’s what we do as real people. We are not static archetypes, playing out the same stories every week. As we grow and change, so does our sense of style. Reflecting our inside self outward. There’s a story told in our closets as much as there is a story told in the closets of some of our favourite characters.
Endnotes:
Source of info about animation:
On a side note, while researching for this post I came across an amusing fan theory on r/FanTheories. For fun, the users created an idea where all cartoon characters are unable to recognize faces. That's why they need to wear the same outfit all the time. That’s why ridiculous disguises seem to work. Slap on a fake moustache and a trench coat, and you’re a whole new person. The thread can be read here. [https://www.reddit.com/r/FanTheories/comments/2frtzh/any_theories_on_why_cartoon_characters_always/]
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