Fanime!
So I went to fanime con, my first anime convention, yesterday and it was pretty neat. Before I liked anime, I heard about anime conventions from some classmates and so I had some idea about what to expect. I remember hearing about lots of costumes, zealous fans, and large swords. Because I knew about these things, it wasn't as shocking to see as it might have been ... but people did have awfully big swords that they were walking around with ... I had to watch where I was walking to avoid running into them.
It's funny, I didn't even get to go to any workshops or programs and I ran out of time. Before the main dealers hall opened, I visited the artist's alley (very cool), where artists had tables displaying their art or handmade goods. I ended up getting a neat hat for my Pullips.
Next, I checked out the arcade/game room. They were still setting up some of the games, but there were a few DDR games going. There were a couple of people that were amazing. It was actually neat to see people who could not only hit all of the steps, but actually dance while doing it. They danced pretty well and one guy even danced with his back to the screen and still got all the steps!!! This is how DDR was meant to be played ... and viewed! lol. :) Of course, I'm saying all of this from a spectator's point of view ... I've tried DDR before, and I struggle just to get the steps on the easier levels. But I think I lost interest when I saw how people who got really good at the complicated steps didn't really look like they were dancing. So I didn't really aspire to keep at it. But these guys made me rethink ... at least for a moment. :D
Next was the dealer's hall. Wow ... what an awesome place. There were so many cool figures and toys that I've never seen before. I saw so many toy capsules and blind boxed toys that were just so fun. I discovered a couple that I really liked ... one is called Strawberry Marshmallow and the other is Prince of Tennis. I really like the Strawberry Marshmallow figures ... they look a little like Pinky St., but they have bigger heads and look younger. These are apparently part of an anime series and manga series ... I'm in the process of looking into these more. Prince of Tennis looked interesting to me because they look a little like mini Pinky St. boys.
I stopped by the Junky Spot booth, but didn't find anything that really excited me. :(
I was also hoping to find Nana and Rozen Maiden merchandise, and did find some keychains and capsule type toys, but nothing too big. I was excited though because I haven't seen much from these series at local shops.
I was pretty exhausted by the end of looking through the dealer's hall. My eyes were bugging out from looking at all of the tiny toys and tiny pictures on their boxes. It would be neat to have more time there, but I could only go on Friday. Anyways, I figured that Saturday and Sunday would be a madhouse, and I'm not too crazy about crowds.
Anyways, as if that wasn't enough tiny toys, I discovered a new one today. It's called Lala Outfit. These are blind-boxed toys, and I saw one in the window of the local hobby store. They seemed pretty cute.
Well, that's enough toys for now. I just finished watching Rozen Maiden, and found the ending episodes a little too stressful. lol. I think I like it more when they're just being goofy instead of going to combat. Maybe at some point I'll watch at least some of the episodes again. I kept finding myself saying "stupid Alice game!" since I didn't want them to fight anymore. I thought Hina's part was sad ... but I won't say any more to spoil the ending.
Enough for now ... maybe I'll have more to say after I get some rest.
It's funny, I didn't even get to go to any workshops or programs and I ran out of time. Before the main dealers hall opened, I visited the artist's alley (very cool), where artists had tables displaying their art or handmade goods. I ended up getting a neat hat for my Pullips.
Next, I checked out the arcade/game room. They were still setting up some of the games, but there were a few DDR games going. There were a couple of people that were amazing. It was actually neat to see people who could not only hit all of the steps, but actually dance while doing it. They danced pretty well and one guy even danced with his back to the screen and still got all the steps!!! This is how DDR was meant to be played ... and viewed! lol. :) Of course, I'm saying all of this from a spectator's point of view ... I've tried DDR before, and I struggle just to get the steps on the easier levels. But I think I lost interest when I saw how people who got really good at the complicated steps didn't really look like they were dancing. So I didn't really aspire to keep at it. But these guys made me rethink ... at least for a moment. :D
Next was the dealer's hall. Wow ... what an awesome place. There were so many cool figures and toys that I've never seen before. I saw so many toy capsules and blind boxed toys that were just so fun. I discovered a couple that I really liked ... one is called Strawberry Marshmallow and the other is Prince of Tennis. I really like the Strawberry Marshmallow figures ... they look a little like Pinky St., but they have bigger heads and look younger. These are apparently part of an anime series and manga series ... I'm in the process of looking into these more. Prince of Tennis looked interesting to me because they look a little like mini Pinky St. boys.
I stopped by the Junky Spot booth, but didn't find anything that really excited me. :(
I was also hoping to find Nana and Rozen Maiden merchandise, and did find some keychains and capsule type toys, but nothing too big. I was excited though because I haven't seen much from these series at local shops.
I was pretty exhausted by the end of looking through the dealer's hall. My eyes were bugging out from looking at all of the tiny toys and tiny pictures on their boxes. It would be neat to have more time there, but I could only go on Friday. Anyways, I figured that Saturday and Sunday would be a madhouse, and I'm not too crazy about crowds.
Anyways, as if that wasn't enough tiny toys, I discovered a new one today. It's called Lala Outfit. These are blind-boxed toys, and I saw one in the window of the local hobby store. They seemed pretty cute.
Well, that's enough toys for now. I just finished watching Rozen Maiden, and found the ending episodes a little too stressful. lol. I think I like it more when they're just being goofy instead of going to combat. Maybe at some point I'll watch at least some of the episodes again. I kept finding myself saying "stupid Alice game!" since I didn't want them to fight anymore. I thought Hina's part was sad ... but I won't say any more to spoil the ending.
Enough for now ... maybe I'll have more to say after I get some rest.