As Nina Niles and Billy Hanifin debated the minutiae of the Marvel universe, she asked if he wanted to see the superhero film “Shang-Chi.”
Nina Alexandra Niles reached out to John William Hanifin IV on Hinge in a burst of spirited camaraderie.
“Hell yeah I went to Comic-Con this year as Batgirl of Burnside,” she said, noticing the last of his profile photos in October 2021: He was wearing a sparkly gold Daft Punk robot costume.
Mr. Hanifin, 31, who goes by Billy, was then wowed by one of her photos in full Zombie makeup, and eager to see her Batgirl creation.
“Do you have pics?” asked Mr. Hanifin, who graduated with a bachelor’s degree in computer science and a master’s degree in cybersecurity from Fordham. He is a development operations security engineer at a ransomware remediation company.
He found the Batgirl photos through her Instagram link on Hinge, and was dazzled by eight other costumes, particularly a green Scottish Highlands-style gown she wore as Merida from Disney’s “Brave” to the Renaissance Faire in Tuxedo, N.Y., in September.
“I like making elaborate costumes,” said Ms. Niles, 35, who has been hand sewing since high school. She graduated with a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Northwestern, and is now a business control manager at JPMorgan Chase.
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