Heroes Halloween Costume Guide: Hiro Nakamura

The hit NBC sci-fi drama series "Heroes" features an ensemble cast of ordinary people with not so ordinary talents. As these people cope with their newly found supernatural powers, some become heroes and some become villains. With characters easy to identify with; a story that interfaces the characters and their conflicts together well; and enough drama, science fiction, and humor to satisfy a variety of entertainment tastes, "Heroes" makes for some wonderful television. And with virtually none of the super-powered characters deciding to dress like costumed superheroes, dressing up as a "Heroes" character for Halloween is suddenly a lot easier with the right directions.

My first choice for a "Heroes" character to do a costume for was Kaito Nakamura (played by George Takei) because of the joke among my friends claiming that he looked like my father. But with limited screen time and development of his character, that idea became less practical for a Halloween costume. But Keito's son Hiro Nakamura would make for a fun Halloween costume for a "Heroes" fan.

Hiro Nakamura is the Japanese salary man who gains the superpower of time manipulation. He's one of the few "Heroes" characters who immediately embraces his powers and actively embarks on a hero's journey to prove his heroism just like his favorite comic book superheroes. Seen as both the comic relief and the moral compass of the series, Hiro is an easy character for audiences to relate to.

Creating a Hiro costume is challenging because Hiro has no consistent outfit. Out of the many pictures of Hiro, I chose the reference picture on the link provided because it seems to be the most popular official promotional images. Breaking down the costume, I notice Hiro wears glasses, a white dress shirt, and skinny black tie, black trousers, and interestingly colored sneakers. Every man should have at least one white dress shirt and one pair of black trousers. Those style of glasses are pretty common at optometrists. The skinny black tie is difficult to find, but vintage stores and online. Provided is a link to a site devoted to narrow ties.

The jacket will be the most vexing. If you happen to find a jacket with that exact pattern, you are a lucky shopper. For those less fortunate but open to improvising, here's an idea. First, get a plain zippered jacket. Target usually sells them. Then get a knitted vest from a thrift store that matches the reference image as well as possible. Trim the vest so that when worn, it just reaches your ribs. Wear the jacket with the shortened vest over it. Pin it secure and remove it. Now sew the vest onto the jacket with a needle and thread. For the white trim on the bottom of the coat and the sleeves, sew some white fabric around those areas.

Hiro's accessories include a messenger bag and his katana. Adding two green strips of fabric will make it resemble Hiro's bag. As for the katana, I'd advise against carrying one in public due to the increasing number of people and police who get alarmed at the sight of people carrying swords in public. But Hiro swords are available online if the temptation to buy one is too high. At the very least, that sword is a nice collector's item.

I hope this helps lead you in creating a "Heroes" costume. Just remember to have fun with it and be creative.