So after the crowds at Katsucon I’d call Anime Banzai a smaller con, of about 2-3000 people. The content is pretty solid though to be honest I did leave a few talks due to poor quality of the presenter. Solid content, bad presentation. I know that sounds rude, but I speak publicly fairly often, and have been a technical trainer for years so it is almost physically painful for me to watch someone who is clearly uncomfortable, unprepared, or lacks the basic social abilities to speak to a crowd.

The photo above is of the registration area on Friday morning. Registration wasn’t horrible but could definitely be sped up by not printing names of con attendees on badges. Since you could just have them print a nickname on your badge this isn’t much of a theft deterrent. A line for cash and a line for credit, hand over the cash, get a badge. It’s a much easier way to get registration done and doesn’t leave attendees in line for over an hour wishing they were watching content instead of just hearing it from the room next door.

It probably sounds like I’m picking on the con, but I don’t mean to. It was fun and I’ll be back next year, just a few tweaks would make it stellar.

This is the merchant room. A great place to stop and grab Hi-chew, Pocky, Ramune and other assorted Japanese snacks and drinks, and at a good price too. There were also plenty of vendors selling figures, cosplay supplies, bags, t-shirts, DVD’s, and stuffed animals. Prices were a little higher than online but pretty standard for con vendors. I tried to talk a guy down for a figure he wanted $50 for, but he wouldn’t have it, so I kept my money in my pocket and ordered it online later. :)

This is my only shot of the video game room and it makes it look pretty lame although it wasn’t bad. The room was well used and had quite a few games in it. My bad for not getting better shots.

And onto the cosplayers!!

One of the guests this year was Chuck Huber who has voiced Shou Tucker from Fullmetal Alchemist, Hiro Nohara from Crayon Shin-chan, and Kululu from Sgt Frog, as well as many others. I really enjoyed his panels. This guy was likeable from the start and had a great sense of humor. He’s definitely one of my favorite guests I’ve had the opportunity to see, of any con.

Chuck Huber also used part of his panel to teach attendees about voice acting and gave some of them a chance to try it out. Epic lulz.

What’s up C.C.?

Great Ryuk and Rem costumes. I like the attention to detail on the Rem costume, right down to the feet.

These girls were throwing down the Hare Hare Yukai outside in the hotel courtyard. It drew a crowd.

Probably because of this girl, who in my opinion was the cutest girl walking around the con. I photoshopped the name off her badge to keep her from being Facebook stalked. :D

A huge stack of Ramune and Pocky. This was back in the staff room and I noticed it while getting ready to do my panel and I had to get a shot.

I’m sure this photo will pop up somewhere else on this site in the future.

No Face seems like an easy character to pull off as far as cosplay goes, I’m just sayin’.

Random shot of the hotel lobby with some people hanging out. Nothing to see here, move along.

This is a better shot because you can see the shenanigans in the courtyard out the window. There was always something going on out there.

This Ryuk costume is the best I’ve ever seen. The guy was on stilts and when he talked a hinge in the jaw allowed the mouth to move. It was epic.

Chuck Huber and Michelle Ruff signing autographs.

I saw quite a few Alice in Wonderland themed costumes this year. Classic, and awesome.

And some Vampire Knight cosplay to wrap things up. This girl is pretty cute too and her costume is nice. The dude cosplaying as Zero put his tattoo on the wrong side of his neck. Attention to detail brother! Attention to detail!

I did an individual badge scan for the Katsucon post, but the artwork didn’t change for Anime Banzai, just the color of the badge so I scanned a few of them as one large image. If that sounds lazy I’m sorry, I just didn’t want to clutter the page.

So all in all I had a good time at Anime Banzai. Like I mentioned earlier, I did a panel. It was called The Tokyo Otaku, and I just spent an hour talking about Tokyo, fun otaku like things to see and do there, and dispelled some myths about visiting Japan. It was fun and the room was full despite being scheduled opposite the Cosplay Contest. The staff that were in there told me they really enjoyed it so maybe I’ll update it and do it again next year. Hopefully in a bigger room with a better time slot. :D

If you happen to be reading this and attended Anime Banzai, tell us what you thought in the comments, I’d like to hear about other experiences. The more the better.

I made it back this year for another conference that again was timed perfectly to allow me to make it to Katsucon, and this year not only was it in the same city, at the same time, but it was in the same hotel. The gods, they smile upon me. So I flew in to D.C. a few days early and grabbed a badge, here’s my Katsucon experience.

Registration was insane, the line snaked through the hotel, out into the street and down the block. Thankfully my buddy came into town a few hours early and picked my badge up for me. Thanks Louis!

Apparently this is some type of Pokemon costume according to bystanders. I wouldn’t know, I didn’t watch a lot of Pokemon, though I do respect the effort that not only wen into making this costume, but having to wear it as well. Gotta be hot in there.

I think this may be my favorite costume from Katsucon 15 mostly due to the fact that the guy looks so awesome as Afro Samurai. Best match of the con in my opinion.

This guy is a lot of the reason I was looking forward to going to Katsucon again. His name is Roland Kelts and he’s an author, that’s his book there on the table, “Japanamerica: How Japanese Pop Culture Has Invaded the U.S.” It’s a great book and I’ll do a proper review some time. I wanted to get my copy signed, which I did, and I wanted to hear some of his experiences. My only complaint is that his session was only an hour and could have easily been two with all the people and questions they had. Shame on you Katsucon, shame on you.

The hotel was packed with 6000 attendees, spanning 5 floors, many of them cosplaying.

I love this photo because you can see all the way to the “Artists Alley” below, the maid cafe sign, and a girl getting on the escalator carrying a couple of plush tentacles…W..T..F? I love it.

I liked to see that even the smaller Otaku areas had a presence at Katsucon, including Dollers. I could hear them swapping tips and even trading wigs and accessories. Some of these dolls were really well put together, but they were all creepy. : )

Great Steam Punk couple, though this photo doesn’t do them justice.

This was the start of “Iron Art” or “Super Art Fight”. Basically there were four teams of artists that drew on four separate canvases, rotating every 10 minutes, for one hour. They were given different themes and had to continue to draw around, and improve on, what the last team had created. I didn’t know what to expect when I walked in, but I didn’t expect to have such a good time.

Seriously, this is so funny. Another couple dressing up together and having a good time.

Villains of Gotham City, great costumes, and I’m pretty sure I’m in love with Catwoman.

This was the “An American in Tokyo” panel. It was supposed to be about what you can expect if you’re planning to, or thinking about, moving to Tokyo. I had hoped it would be as interesting as the Japanamerica talk, but the speakers didn’t seem to do a lot of preparation, and hadn’t actually lived in Tokyo since the early 90′s. This kept them from answering questions on current costs and living areas. A real disappointment when the room is so packed that staff had to turn people away.

A very pretty girl dressed up for the formal ball on Saturday night. Just classy.

And of course, the Merchant Room. You could get a bunch of Japanese snacks and drinks, Anime, Manga, Figures, and plenty of cosplay props and real world weapons. I didn’t buy much, though I did nab a Saki Kasukabe figure that I’d been wanting for awhile, so I walked away with a smile.

Here’s this years badges. I couldn’t get my hands on a Friday only badge because they were completely sold out of them. They force you to write your name on them so I made sure to get some scans of untarnished ones. Each badge also had some con rules/info and a number on the back that was tied to the holder. The photo below is of the back of my Media badge, though nothing differs between badges other than the number.

So there you have it a few words and a few pictures from Katsucon 15, it was a good con. Anime cons are always fun, the costumes, the panels, and the like-minded people. It’s great to be able to talk about a particular anime, manga, movie, or production house and have others know what you’re talking about. To talk about Japan till the wee hours of the morning and share your passion, or obsession, with others.

It doesn’t look like my schedule is going to mesh for me to make it to Katsucon 16 next year, sometimes even the gods have to stop smiling for a moment, but I’ll be there in spirit.

I was talking to some co-workers about how I was excited to go to the movie and they had no idea it was going on, which made me realize there were a lot of people out there that hadn’t heard about Fathom Events. So here’s the skinny…

Fathom Events is the entertainment branch of a large theater advertising company so they have access to thousands of theaters all over the country. They use this access to show events like live streaming video of the New York Metropolitan Opera, Concerts, Sporting events, and thankfully, Anime.

As far as the anime events go, they show what is normally a popular movie, or movie based on a well known series. I’ve seen the “Death Note” live action movies, “Bleach: Memories of Nobody, and now “Sword of the Stranger” at different events. The cost is usually between $10-$13, which seems like a lot, but I pay it gladly to catch a quality flick in a theater setting. Also, the films include an after the movie special feature with interviews with the cast or crew. Behind the scenes stuff generally.

Watching anime in a theater is awesome. The conversations you have before the movie with the people around you are great because everyone “gets” you, and they get the culture you’re interested in. They laugh at the obscure references and jokes that only otaku understand, and sometimes you get great info on places to check out for good Japanese food, or a new anime store.

Have you been to a Fathom event, what did you think? And if you haven’t, go check it out, even if you’ve already seen what they’re showing.

http://www.ncm.com/Fathom/

Image Credit: Fathom Events