It’s that time again — with COVID restrictions lifting, there’s a greater chance this year for people to indulge in trick-or-treating and Halloween parties. That means costumes are coming back in a big way, baby.

Here is my semi-exhaustive list of the best last-minute Halloween costume ideas for 2021:

(Note: You may see less relevant pictures used as examples, as I had made the mistake of using a licensed photo of Mike Pence in last year’s list. Never fear, I will provide a direct link to references for more accurate context).

The Obvious 2021 Halloween Costume Ideas:

Lady Dimitrescu (Resident Evil 8: The Village)

Alcina Dimitrescu, better known to her subordinates as Lady Dimitrescu, is the nine foot tall vampire lady villain of Resident Evil 8 and the subject of many an amourous gamer’s fantasies.

This is easier to pull off if you’re naturally tall and pale, but a black hat, black wig, white dress, and red lipstick complete this look relatively easily.

And now, kindly permit me to simp over, singlehandedly, the greatest interpretation of the character, by ceekayye of TikTok fame:

Squid Game

I mean, duh, right?

The South Korean Netflix hit is all anyone is talking about this October. Best thing is, the costume construction is ridiculously simple. All you need is a green track suit from the GAP or Adidas and you’re golden.

If you’re feeling particularly ambitious, you can try for the costume of the employees who work for the games; all is required is a pink hoodie and a black ski mask. You can also achieve the same look with a full-face LED mask from Lumen Couture.

Some Other 2021 Halloween Costume Considerations:

Viking Guy Who Stormed the U.S. Capitol

If you can brave the cooler temperatures, you may be able to pull off this look. Go shirtless, wear beige pants and viking hat, paint the American flag on your face as well as hold one in your hand. Tattoos will help to enhance the look.

Caveat: I should point out that while it may look cool, this is a very politically charged costume choice. Dressing as one of the people who threatened democracy in the United States January 6th is bound to start a heated conversation. Proceed with caution with this one.

Then again, you can always backpedal and say you’re dressed a one of the Capital One Vikings:

Elon Musk’s Tweets

One of the richest men in the world posted a lot of crazy tweets in 2021, many of them meme-able and easy to recreate without spending a lot of money. Here is an example:

Or you can just kill two birds with one stone and dress up as Wario.

The Weeknd at the 2021 Super Bowl LV Halftime Show

Brush off that red shiny blazer you didn’t get to wear last New Year’s Eve, pop on some black pants and a black shirt, grab a mic and don’t fix your bedhead hair.

Fairly low impact, but you may encounter clueless people who have forgotten football events were a thing that actually happened in the first half of 2021.

Cruella

Regardless of your thoughts on the movie, you have to admit the style direction in Disney’s Cruella was iconic.

The look can be pulled off with minimal effort in the hair and makeup department; just find a two-toned black-and-white wig, some red lipstick, and a tutorial on how to recreate The Future face. Then slap on your most fashion-forward outfit and you’re done like a dalmatian, dahling.

Spectator Who Caused the 2021 Tour de France Crash

All it takes is a green hat, blue jeans, a yellow jacket, some sunglasses, and a cardboard sign that says ALLEZ OPI-OMI! to dress as enemy number one of Europe’s signature sporting events.

The Delta Variant

Actually, scratch that — this unnamed person from DragonCon 2021 has already nailed the look and no one else can perfect it. (Photo courtesy of August Blake from Facebook):

And finally, one really clever costume idea that I wish I could take credit for, but would still love to see come into fruition. Get on it, folks! (Tweet courtesy of Mike Meehan of Twitter):

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