Well Convention Season is well under way. As the summer has just about kicked off, some
of the bigger cons in the US (Momocon and Collosalcon) have already come and
gone. I personally am working on getting
everything set for August when the last Otakon held in Baltimore happens (more
on that at the end of this list). I
always get asked, “What do you do at these things? If I went what would there be for me to do?” The answer to both is, “A LOT”. There are a lot of things to do at a
convention but, more importantly, there a lot of things you SHOULD do, especially
if it’s your first con. Here are my five
biggest “Must Do” activities any first time con attendee should get under their
belts.
#5-Get to know the area
Even though ive lived in Baltimore my whole life, I never
really got down to the Inner Harbor as much.
That all changed following my first Otakon. As tempting as it is to stay within the
confines of the convention center (definitely so at Katsucon cause of the
cold), you’re missing out if you don’t take an hour to get some fresh air and
wander around a little bit. Restaurants,
coffee shops, even city gift shops can catch your eye and give you incentive to
visit the city again for more than just the Con. Me personally, there are one or two big
places I’ve always wanted to eat at here and still haven’t been able to. So I intended to check them out this
year. Plus, the more you know an area,
the faster it will be to show newbies around.
#4-Dealer’s Room
Make a list, check your budget, try not to bankrupt
yourself. If there’s that one item you’ve
always wanted to find but has always eluded you, the Dealer’s Room will (more
than likely) have it. Naturally, these
places vary in size due to the location of the convention. It could be the size of a city or the size of
a small strip mall. Peruse, get to know
the lay of the land and keep an eye on deals, most con based stores are
offering them. And focus on more than
just the DVD’s. Keep an eye out for
costume materials, action figures, art works, plushies…everything really…and
like I said, just try not to come home bankrupt.
#3-Photos
Never go to a Con without a camera. Even if you don’t take thousands of photos
like I have (and yes I have), you still want to snap a shot or hundred of all
the cosplay, the convention building, the sights, the smiles, the
memories. These will stay with you
forever but with a camera they are immortalized. And who knows. Maybe you’ll snap a shot of a cosplayer with
a cool costume it might inspire you to take up the craft. There’s another reason to take so many photos
but I’ll get to that one in a couple of entries.
#2-Attend Screenings/Panels
Now between these two, screenings id place second. It’s definitely a sight to see Anime on a
ginormous screen (believe me, seeing Gundam 0083 my first year was mind
blowing). But that’s still something you
can easily do from the comfort of your own couch. So go see what the industry has to say about
things, or how a voice actor prepares for his or her upcoming role…or go to the
late night panels where they get raunchy and the 18+ panels come out to
play. Not that im discounting screenings
either. Sitting in a room jam packed
with fans for any kind of special viewing of an Anime or feature film is such a
great feeling and one well worth being crammed a bit.
#1-Make some friends
I cannot stress this enough. You may not believe this right now but you
are not the only Anime fan in the world.
There are literally thousands of fans walking alongside you at this
convention. And chances are by the end
of the weekend, you will have made a life long friend out of one of them. Having friends at a con gives you added
incentive to come back year after year.
And even if they cant make it, you go FOR them still and you come across
new friends that you’re sure would gel well with the others. So when that grand reunion comes in a couple
of years, the bonds of friendship are as strong as ever. You don’t make friends at a convention so
much as you create a family. That kind
of thing means a lot to me and I know there are others who feel the same. That’s why you take all the photos…to know
theyre out there and you’ll always have that convention with them.
So with all this being said, in a few weeks, the Top 5
Wednesdays will be strictly Otakon based as I begin the Countdown to Otakon
2016. As you could guess, I’ll be doing
Top 5 lists for my memories of all my Otakon experiences from 2010-2015. This is going to be a big Otakon, the last
one held in Baltimore possibly ever…which means it’s time for one last party to
remember the good times. Keep an eye out
and see you guys soon.
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