A Look Back at C2E2 2013
It's once again time to take a look back at Chicago's largest comic convention, C2E2! Spring is right around the corner, meaning convention season is upon us. Before we start up a new one here in Chicago, which for me mainly includes C2E2 & Anime Central, let us talk about the fun times found at C2E2 2013. Hit the jump for lots of pics & a few vids!
It's the Mach 5! Go, Speed Racer, go!
This year's chalk drawing was for the NBC series Revolution. Not really anime related, but displayed off to the side were the artist's past drawings, which of course include a lot of anime-themed ones:
FAKKU, probably the most famous & well known hentai site on the web, actually had their own booth at convention! The representative said they were using C2E2 as a test to see if a booth at Comic-Con would be a good idea. Here's some of their product:
Since there IS a Japanese dub of Friendship is Magic, & there is a large chunk of crossover fandom, we can argue that My Little Pony is anime related. Just take a look at these MLP nail-polish bottles. Proving that, surprisingly, the series is for girls too! But look, a BronyCon:
Onto panels, former Power Ranger Jason David Frank was a huge event. & the turnout was equally huge:
Among the things discussed were the 20th anniversary of Power Rangers, the original Green Ranger appearing in Mega Force, & how Frank is shooting a reality show called "My Morphin Life." You can see the panel in its entirety below:
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Viz Media had their first ever C2E2 industry panel. The representative were from the manga division of Viz, so that's what the primary focus was. Among the titles they announced were Sweet Rein, which they joked may be the only Christmas manga they'll ever do. Funny enough, when asked about Assassination Classroom, they said that's one title they'll probably never license due to the "sensative subject" of kids trying to kill their teacher. Of course, news just broke recently that Viz finally indeed did license the manga.
FUNimation Channel had an industry panel as well. There wasn't really any news to announce, just spreading the word & answering questions. Most people who were asking stuff didn't seem to understand that there is a difference between the Funimation Channel & their parent company. Lots of licensing questions, when they actually don't have anything to do with that. Silly fans....
One of the funner anime-related panels to attend was the Pokemon Podcast panel. Among the topics discussed were some of the weirder Pokedex entries in the games, including this rather disturbing one about Yamask. Memes were talked about as well, such as the infamous Youngster Joey & his Rattatta:
After all that it was time for a snack break. & what better place than this booth that offers a bunch of Japanese snack times.
Kotobukiya figurines- American franchises done by Japanese creators! Speaking of, here's a look at some of the anime merch available at the convention:
& finally, the Patton Oswalt panel wasn't really anime related either. But it was just so epic that it deserves to be shared. You can check the whole thing out in its entirety below:
