Tomorrow, the next pilgrimage to National Harbor
begins. This is a pretty big year for me
and Katsucon as it marks the 10th Anniversary of my first one in
2015. Like Otakon, this Convention has
come to mean a lot to me, giving me a whole new area to explore when it comes
to Anime fandom, cosplay, Dealers Room finds, etc. To commemorate such an occasion, I’m digging
back through 9 years and 8 conventions (we all missed out on 2021 cause of the
Pandemic and I skipped 2022) to pick my special, double sized Top 10 Katsucon
Highlights (2015-2024). Will any from
2025 make it onto a future redux of this list?
Only time will tell. Til then,
let’s get to reflecting on some of the greatest hits and adventures at the
Gaylord Hotel and Convention Center.
#10-Golden Boy (Katsucon 2016) Golden Boy was one of the earliest non Dragon Ball
Z/Pokemon titles I’d ever heard of but knew little about save for it being more
for adults than kids.
I got to attend a
late night screening of the series in 2016, albeit it was partly falsely
advertised since they only did the first half and not the entire OVA.
Still, the episode and a half I did check out
was freaking hilarious.
The legends
about its naughtier side were not exaggerated and the MST3K commentary coming
from the small crowd in the viewing room only made the experience even
better.
It was so good I was sure to buy
a copy of the complete series the next day before I left Katsu that year.
#9-Mobile Suit Gundam Photoshoot (Katsucon 2024)
When I go to conventions, there’s always gonna be a huge
cosplay draw for the big titles of the season like Jujustu Kaisen, Frieren,
Demon Slayer, My Hero Academia etc.
Sailor Moon still gets a big turnout too but really it’s the more in the
now titles that get a lot of cosplay attention.
So color me super surprised when I saw there was a Mobile Suit Gundam
photoshoot on the Cosplay Photoshoot schedule.
Not only was the turnout pretty substantial, you had reps from most
corners of the Gundam Multiverse.
Naturally this meant a lot of the then current
Witch from Mercury but you also had Zeta Gundam, 08
th MS Team,
Gundam Wing, Gundam 00.
It brings a tear
to my eye to see my favorite fandom get so much love.
#8-First Arrival (Katsucon 2015)
Katsucon was the first big convention I’d been to outside
of Otakon.
Being so used to the interior
of the Baltimore Convention Center, I had no idea what to expect when I first
stepped into the Gaylord Hotel and Convention Center and holy heck, my mind was
blown.
Beautiful doesn’t even begin to
scratch the surface of how good the Gaylord looks at nighttime.
It was a whole new kind of energy, a breath
of fresh air.
I had a whole new
convention world to explore and I could not wait to be released into the wild
to explore it all.
#7-Naginata (Katsucon 2018)
During Pre Reg Night of Katsu 2018, I saw a few Kendo
outfitted attendees practicing with Bamboo Staff style weapons down by the
fountains and was immediately interested.
This was my first introduction to the combat art known as Naginata, a
style of combat developed for female warriors of Japanese nobility (if you’ve
seen Shogun there’s a bit of that with Anna Sawai’s Mariko and she makes it
look so good and bad ass).
Intrigued I
attended a live demonstration event and was instantly hooked.
I don’t get to see a lot of Japanese style
combat showcased like this in person.
As
a longtime fan of Japanese Cinema and Anime, there was no way I was gonna pass
up seeing this.
#6-Meeting Steve Blum (Katsucon 2018)
Like so many Anime fans, Steve Blum is the voice of much
of my early Anime fandom.
From Toonami’s
Tom to Spike Spiegel in Cowboy Bebop, he’s one of the coolest VAs in the
business and it’s always a big deal when he stops by at a convention.
I got to sit in on his big panel alongside
Mary Elizabeth McGlynn and worked up the courage to get into a Q&A
line.
I made it to the “down to the wire”
point but I managed to ask Steve about his first finale speech as Tom when
Toonami was originally cancelled, especially when he coined Spike’s famous
final line, “Bang.”
It was pretty
insightful and just mind blowing to hear him answer one lowly Anime fans random
question…suffice to say I had to call my sister right away to brag.
#5-The Sailor Moon Photoshoots (Katsucon 2015-2024)
Sailor Moon photoshoots are one of the best places to be
on a Friday night after the sun goes down.
Usually they’re held at the Gazebo which is a perfect setting, that
little icon looks like it belongs on the Moon Kingdom (not to mention the large
doors leading to one of the main ballroom could do the same).
Since 2018 in particular, the meetups have
been run by regular hosts Reilalakedaemon and Rizuki and they are some of the
best hosts ever.
They invite everyone to
join in on the Sailor Moon fun no matter your level of cosplay or interest in
the series.
If you wanna dress up, show
off, meet new friends or just hang out, all are welcome.
It really is the living embodiment of the one
named Sailor Moon.
#4-Just Dance the Night Away (Katsucon 2015)
While I think the allure of the Video Game Room has gone
downhill in recent years, back when I first started going to Katsu, it was
maybe the second best spot to be after dark next to the Gazebo.
Most of this was due to the fact that they
had Just Dance on a huge projector in the back and everyone was invited to join
in.
The first year I was there in 2015,
I spent a huge chunk of Saturday night there with random strangers just jamming
and dancing to all manner of music from across the ages.
Heck I think we hung out there til just
around the time the room was officially shut down for the night (like 4am? Idk
it was pretty late).
No wonder I still
keep hoping they’ll give it its proper home again instead of…idk Smash Bros
tournament or something?
#3-Basically like 90% of the 18+ Panels (Katsucon
2015-2024)
At my very first Katsu, I wandered into a random
auditorium kind of in a downer mood and said mood was instantly lifted when I
saw something on screen that I couldn’t comprehend.
Ever since then, I’ve made it a point to
attend at least one 18+ Panel during the evening hours of a convention.
Katsu in particular is home to the regular
feature, “That Shouldn’t Fit.”
Not only
have I gotten a hilarious hentai education from these guys but they also
include live readings, allowing audience members to come on stage and narrarate
Hentai Manga in any voice or way they see fit.
You think watching Hentai with a group of strangers looking to see some
strange s*** together is something, the laughter is even better cheering on these
brave souls reading what they read.
Man
I wanna join the ranks of these legends.
#2-Year of the Dance (Katsucon 2020)
Granted we didn’t know the worldwide chaos that was
waiting for us in 2020.
Regardless, we
danced our asses off big time at this particular Katsucon.
This was the last year the Gazebo level was
open all night long instead of being shutdown around Midnight due to Post
Pandemic Safety Guidelines (I think). Still, Thursday, Friday and Saturday were
all where the party was happening after dark and you couldn’t go anywhere
without some kind of group dance or individual dance off going down.
It got your blood pumping and ready to have a
good time until you somehow dragged yourself back to your hotel room at 3 in
the morning.
I miss those nights.
#1-Meeting Dejavudea and MangoSiriene (Katsucon 2015)
Katsucon has always been one of the biggest cosplay
hotspots on the East Coast.
As such,
Cosplay Idols and Superstars have come from across the US and beyond to
attend.
I sort of knew this going into
my first one but I was totally unprepared for my first meeting with a pair of
Cosplayers who work I’d admired for a while.
Somehow I had worked up the courage to say “hi” to MangoSirene but then
Dejavudea suddenly swooped in and I swear I was speechless and barely was able
ask for a photo op with both of them.
The look of shock on my face was legit and that memory still lives rent
free in my head and set a pretty freaking high bar for not just my first
Katsucon experience but each one going forward.
No comments:
Post a Comment