Tokyo Fashion Week officially starts next week. Yueqi Qi’s show came early, and was held off-schedule night at the vast Yodobashi Church in a gritty area of Shinjuku. Inspired by cats, it provided a fun amuse bouche for the week ahead.

“This collection we tried to explore the idea of identity. Who we are, and who we want to be when nobody’s watching us,” she explained. The idea seemed to be emancipation through clothing, and the superpowers of confidence that the right outfit (or disguise) can bestow on the wearer. “It’s a little bit inspired by Cat Woman too,” said Qi. “I tried to show this really wild identity that’s chaotic, but then finesse everything.”

Qi is good at finessing chaos. Indeed, she has developed a distinctive design language around it; you know to expect the jellyfish reams of lace trims, otherworldly macramé and laser cut details when you come to a Yueqi Qi show, but everything is such a feast for the eyes that it never feels tired.

This time it included bouncy babydoll dresses, fur-cuffed coats, Victorian-style capelets and gothic crucifix necklaces, neon green lace bows and tendrils, plus a smorgasbord of skirts (bubble, pencil, ruched, maxi, and mini). Qi also employed Alcantara, a synthetic suede-like fabric typically used to furnish the interiors of Lamborghinis, to make a miniskirt and capelet set in grayish blue, which, though not exactly wearable, channeled the kind of weird alien cool she does so well.

Overall the collection gave the impression that Qi’s Y2K sea punks had transformed into space age sex kittens; they prowled the runway with characteristic attitude, swaying their hips and swinging their glittering handbags. The best look was saved for last; an endlessly tasseled black and brown macramé gown that was worthy of the red carpet, with a matching cat-eared hat.

Qi’s own cat, Babi, who could also lay claim to inspiring the season, was chilling at the designer’s home in Guangzhou. “He’s very chubby,” she said.