(Note: In lew of the lack of a brand new review or any review of any kind over the next couple of days…plus Otakon is only a few hours away, please enjoy this little special segment as I look back on one of the biggest and best things to happen to my enjoyment of Anime. Take care and see you guys next week.)
Otakon-a Anime convention that has been held annually in
Baltimore, Maryland for the better part of 20 years. It is a celebration of both Anime and
Japanese culture as a whole. Held over a
3-4 day period (if you count pre registration pick up day as I do), Otakon
sports a wide variety of activities and events ranging from premiere screenings
to industry panels to workshops and fan driven educational panels. There are also dozens of cosplay opportunities,
with photoshoots being held not just within the Baltimore Convention Center but
also in the area of Baltimore’s Inner Harbor.
I’ve been attending this convention since 2010 and have seen it grow to
the point where after next year, 2016, the convention will be moving to a
larger space in Washington DC as it has finally outgrown the internal capacity
of the BCC at over 35,000 attendees.
So with another Otakon just around the corner figured it
would be a good opportunity to go back and review the cons before it and give
you my thoughts and feelings on each.
Plus ive been to enough that I can rank them from least favorite to most
favorite (though I have enjoyed them all).
So here you go, the countdown to Otakon 2015 begins here with a look
back at The Road So Far (you may play Carry On My Wayward Son as you read if
you get the reference).
5. Otakon 2012
This year was a little rough to be honest. I mean sure there were plenty of great
moments but 2012 had to follow an absolutely amazing 2011 (which ill get to
later)…and that just didn’t happen. One
part of this year being a bit of a letdown was that it was my first year going
to a con alone. I’d had asked around but
everyone was either busy or just not willing to give Otakon a chance and that
hurt a little bit. For me part of the
overall experience is sharing it with others, especially friends and when they
cant come with, it’s a huge letdown.
Well there was that and the feeling that it just wasn’t as fun as 2011,
not as great a selections of guests and what not. However, 2012 did have some great moments as
aforementioned. This was my first year
staying at a hotel and DAMN WAS IT AMAZING!!!!
There was also my first Otaku Idol experience and a couple of fun fan
parody and even…after hours late night panels, that were quite fun. But the best moment was at the end, when I
got a shot with guys dressed as Kenshin Himura and Spike Spiegel, two of my
biggest Anime heroes. And as I offered
to shake their hands, Spike shook his head, “This is Otakon dude, we hug
here…” I wanted to cry…even if it wasn’t
as good as previous years, there no other place I’d rather be.
4. Otakon 2014
If I were to think about it, im kind of surprised I didn’t
rank this Otakon at the bottom of the list.
This con was plagued by technical glitches that made the picking up of
Pre Reg materials on Thursday almost impossible, leaving more than the usual
thousands to stand in line in the summer heat on Friday to get inside. Spirits were down and anger was like a dark
cloud over this convention. Even I felt
the weight of a weekend in desperate need of saving. So why isn’t this at the bottom of my
list? It sounds pretty negative compared
to 2012. Well, many of the people I met
the previous year in 2013 returned and when I was around them, I didn’t feel
the loneliness I felt in 2012 not even a little bit. The guest list was also stronger as I got to
hear Dante Basco speak and got to meet Katie Griffith, the voice actress of one
of my favorite Anime Heroines, Sailor Mars.
Plus I got to see the Abridged Panel Hosts stand up for the fans when
they were given a smaller room than expected.
There was a cloud over Otakon in 2014, but there was still enough
peeking through to make me smile.
3. Otakon 2010
My first con was one of the most memorable experiences of
my entire life. Stepping into the
Baltimore Convention Center and seeing an ocean of fans, cosplayers, anime
enthusiasts and did I mention cosplay?
And just when I thought moving through the halls was challenge enough, I
had to sit down for a little bit after being so overwhelmed by the Dealer’s
Room, filled with all the Anime swag I could ever wish for. Plus the screenings, the Hilton hotel,
Evangelion ReDeath the Abridged Anime Panel and meeting LittleKuriboh (Yu Gi Oh
The Abridged Series) and meeting a voice
actress (who I had no idea who she even was at the time) Cristina Vee…this
event changed my life forever. So why is
it not number one on the list? Well
there are a couple of personal reasons but one I don’t mind revealing…better
cons were just over the horizon.
2. Otakon 2013
This was a huge rebound from 2012. Taking an extra day off to enjoy Pre Reg Day
(albeit getting soaked in the rain) was also worth it. This was the convention where I met more
people than ever before and learned to enjoy the company of strangers with whom
I would form life long bonds with over the course of four days. But everything else was bigger than the
previous year: the Voice Actors (Crispin MotherF***ING Freeman and Vic
Minogna), the screenings (Evangelion 3.0: You Can (Not) Redo and Rurouni
Kenshin), the photoshoots (I broke 2012’s photo record by well over 400 pics
taken for myself…holy shit) and I even got to stay at the Hilton and literally
ride the elevator down to the con floor and step right into the action. But the biggest plus this year was the
friendships I formed and I still keep in touch with several people from this
year today. Their love of Anime and
acceptance of my personal quirks made me feel so happy. This was one con I didn’t want to end and it
was a nigh unbearable wait for 2014 so I could see all of those people again.
1. Otakon 2011
The Godfather has The Godfather Part II, Terminator has
Terminator 2, Star Wars has The Empire Strikes Back, Otakon 2010…has Otakon
2011: the sequel that surpassed the original in every way, shape and form. This was due in no small part to the superstar
guests they rolled out this year: Lisa Ortiz (Lina from Slayers), the cast of
the huge hit K ON (Cristina Vee, Stephanie Shae, Shelby Lindley and Cassandrea
Lee) and probably most importantly…JOHNNY YONG BOSCH!!!!...and HIS BAND!!!!. That’s right, the former Power Ranger turned
A List Anime voice actor turned musician arrived with his band, Eyeshine, a
proceeded to kick all kinds of ass. The
couple of concerts I went to featuring them were incredible and even tear
worthy at one particular moment. But
that wasn’t all. Meeting JYB and his
Band was an amazing moment in time. But
also meeting Lisa Ortiz, Cristina Vee and the KON cast, the charming Tom
Wayland, these guys are super stars in my circles and their friendly and
inviting personalities are evidence of that.
I also got to meet some people I still keep in touch with today who
introduced me to KON and the KON Concert.
By all rights, this is a show I should not have liked. It’s four high school girls in a music club
getting into schenanigans. No giant
robots and nothing blows up. But guess
what? Those two new friends and that concert made me a believer, so much I got
the cast to sign a poster and a Vol.1 DVD I purchased at the Dealer’s
Room. You could almost say with this
much joy, this was the peak of Otakon for me (2012 definitley couldn’t live up
to it) but 2013’s success shows me otherwise as it came close to matching the
fun of this year. 2011 solidified that
this was the place for me to be every late summer of the year.
Will 2015 be able to topple 2011? Otakon 2015 starts in TODAY. If you’re going I hope you can enjoy it as
much as I do.
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