30 Costume Details From Famous TV Shows That Give More Depth To Certain Scenes And Characters
There's truly a surprising amount of thought and consideration that goes into details like costumes.
Remember the red coats that the handmaids wore or the 80s-themed clothes the cast of Stranger Things wore? Yes, those costumes don't just make characters look appealing or help audiences identify who is who.
They actually play a significant role in setting the tone of the TV shows. More than that, though, costumes contribute immensely to the storytelling in these shows.
Sometimes, the details they contain reveal more about the story than any dialogue between the characters. That's why we often consider the costume department to be absolute geniuses.
They not only create amazing costumes that help bring these worlds to life on TV, but they also engage in their own remarkable storytelling. However, more often than not, audiences tend to focus more on the dialogues or the plot of the story, overlooking their efforts.
Fortunately, there are eagle-eyed viewers out there who won't let the details they've noticed go unnoticed, nor will they ignore the effort behind them. And we have to tell you, once you learn about these small details, you won't be able to forget them, nor will you ever be able to ignore them.
Here are 30 costume details that observant fans have spotted, along with the meanings behind them.
1. Janet's outfits on The Good Place were all actually inspired by 1970s flight attendant outfits.
NBC / Getty Images2. In Bridgerton, Eloise is often seen with the top of her dress resembling a man's suit, reflecting her desire and character arc to become as free as a man.
Netflix3. Also in Bridgerton, at the beginning of the first season, Daphne consistently wore blue while the Duke wore red. After they got engaged, however, the pair began wearing more purple tones, a combination of their two colors.
Netflix4. In The Good Place finale, Tahani finally becomes an architect, and Michael passes down to her the same bowtie he wore in the pilot.
NBC5. Penny from The Big Bang Theory isn't shy about repeating outfits. She actually wore the same shirt in the first episode, the 100th episode, and the series finale.
CBS6. In Season 6 of Desperate Housewives, where Susan and Mike get married, Katherine shows up wearing a tight red dress, intending to ruin the wedding. It's said that wearing red to a wedding is considered bad manners because it either implies you've slept with the groom or that you are his mistress.
ABC7. Unmatched socks may not feel good to most people, but Matthew Gray Gubler, who played Reid on Criminal Minds, believes that matching socks are actually bad luck, so his character never wears them throughout the show.
CBS8. In the "Goodbye Michael" episode of The Office, a red strand of yarn can be seen hanging from Michael's pocket while passing through airport security. It's actually from the unfinished mittens Phyllis was working on as his going-away present.
NBC9. For the flashback episode of Riverdale, Archie wore an outfit identical to the one Luke Perry wore on Beverly Hills, 90210.
The CW / Fox10. After Beth Harmon claims the world champion title in the final episode of The Queen's Gambit, she steps out in an all-white outfit that makes her look like a white queen chess piece, complete with a hat.
Netflix
11. In almost every episode of Riverdale, Cheryl has a splash of red on her outfit, given that it's her signature color. Whenever she wears an all-white dress, it signifies that something significant is about to happen to her.
The CW
12. In the show Shameless, Fiona wore the same shirt in the pilot and her last episode.
Showtime
13. In Season 3, Episode 8 of Stranger Things, Lucas and Max wore the same shirts as the characters Donna and Eric from That '70s Show.
Netflix / Fox
14. In Supernatural, Sam and Dean wore the same outfits for the pilot and series finale.
The WB / The CW
15. In the pilot episode of Glee, the New Directions all wore red t-shirts during their first group encore, and in the last episode of the show, everyone wore something red for the final performance of the series.
Fox
16. In the Chuck series finale, Sarah wore the same outfit she wore to the Buy More in the pilot when she returned.
NBC
17. On Breaking Bad, after the plane crash, ABQ residents briefly wore commemorative ribbons, but Saul wore his for longer, indicating that he was trying to convince victims to join a civil lawsuit.
AMC
18. In That '70s Show finale, Kitty wears the same outfit she wore at her party in the first episode and at her New Year's Eve party.
Fox
19. On The Queen's Gambit, Beth Harmon often wore plaid or checkered outfits, indicating that chess was always on her mind.
Netflix
20. On Jane the Virgin, audiences are clued in that Jane is going to be involved in a significant, life-changing romantic event whenever she wears a yellow dress.
The CW
21. On The Haunting of Hill House, Olivia's outfits change to reflect her growing madness. They also come from the wardrobe of Poppy Hill, the ghost that haunted her.
Netflx
22. The pink dress that Alexis almost gifts to Twyla in the penultimate episode of Schitt's Creek is the same dress Alexis wears the first time the audience sees her in the show.
Pop / CBC
23. In Episode 5 of The Wilds, the other girls on the island seem to be wearing the same clothes as Fatin in flashbacks because Fatin's suitcase was the only one that washed up on shore.
Amazon Prime
24. In an episode of Gravity Falls, there's a scene where Tyler can't decide which shirt to wear; later, he's seen wearing a version of the two shirts sewn together.
Cartoon Network
25. When Dwight becomes the temporary manager on The Office, Andy starts dressing like him in short-sleeved shirts, continuing his "personality mirroring" of his bosses.
NBC
26. In the first season of Euphoria, Jules' wardrobe transitions from bright and bubbly to dark, edgy, and less feminine clothing, reflecting her struggles and her choice to dress more for herself than for men.
HBO
27. The Riverdale flashback episode paid homage to The Breakfast Club, and teenage Alice can be seen wearing fingerless gloves like the ones Bender wore.
The CW
28. In the first episode of Season 2 of Broad City, there are two ladies on the subway dressed exactly like Abbi and Ilana were in Season 1, Episode 4.
Comedy Central
29. In the second season of Derry Girls, after Clare comes out, the Derry girls all wear rainbow pins on their outfits, but it's never acknowledged by the characters.
Netflix
30. On Breaking Bad, during the "I am the one who knocks" scene, Walter removes his shirt to reveal a darker red shirt underneath, reflecting the increase of darkness within him.
AMC
These details may have been subtle, but they're brilliant in helping the show build the storyline and continue the arcs of the characters. Honestly, if no one had pointed out some of them, we might not have noticed them at all.
However, now we can't really forget them. Additionally, we have our eyes peeled for other details we might have missed in our favorite shows.
Did you catch all those costume details?
