"Halloween is a time to be sexy. But more importantly, it's a time to show everyone how online you are with your extremely niche costume based on a meme. It's a different level of intelligence: Oh, you don't know about Jeremiah from The Summer I Turned Pretty and his obsession with a raspberry chocolate cake - actually, it's a two-tier mirror-glazed dark-chocolate raspberry cake. Even Kim Kardashian is leaning into the niche Halloween costume this year. Below, our favorite costumes that will have your friends going, "Wait, what's that referencing?""
"Trench coat buttoned to the TOP! We approach this with nothing but respect."
"Big brain puppy You need the internet injected into you to understand this meme."
Halloween emphasizes sexy presentation while rewarding internet-savvy, extremely niche costumes that reference memes or specific pop-culture details. Costumes function as signals of deep online knowledge through precise references like Jeremiah's two-tier mirror-glazed dark-chocolate raspberry cake or a trench coat buttoned to the top. Celebrities and fan communities amplify the trend, turning obscure moments into recognizable costume templates. Group and couple looks reinterpret fandoms with humor and specificity, producing archetypes such as Diet Coke girlies, sneaker-night crews, and Labubirkin variations. Some references require strong internet fluency, making recognition an in-joke among connected audiences.
Read at Vulture
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