post-otakon post
Back from Otakon! It was the epic Year X, so good times were had by all. Kyle dressed up as Sailor Moon, we discovered the Pokerap in different languages, and I managed to spend less than $200 in the dealer's room. All in all a great time. However, there were some aspects of the con that disappointed me:
1) The selection of anime and live action films screened. Other than Ponyo (which I had failed to see beforehand), there was nothing in the scheduling that particularly stood out as something I wanted to see. Even the ridiculous Asian cinema live action films were not nearly as crazy as past years. Highlight: I finally saw the Cat Returns, and it is now one of my favorite animated films ever. Great dubbing, cute story (it's about cats, how can I NOT like it?) and beautiful animation - I expect nothing less from a Studio Ghibli film.
2) Cosplay. Over the past few years, I'm becoming more and more disappointed in the cosplay as well. I feel like the fandom is shifting more towards japanese fashion/ravers/lolita/etc. and less people are cosplaying as anime/game characters. Which is how things happen I suppose, but I'm not particularly happy with it. Likewise, I recognize less and less of the characters each year. That's mainly my fault, I don't watch nearly as much anime as I used to, but I'm seeing less people do characters from the "classics." I guess I just feel old, haha.
3) ENOUGH WITH SHOUTING INTERNET MEMES, YOU'RE NOT FUNNY.
Since I've been attending Otakon for 10 years, I was really reflecting on the overall shift in the fandom over the years. When I started going, I felt on the young side of attendees. Now I feel like everyone at the convention is 14 years old and obnoxious. When Erin and I first started watching anime, fansubs were rare, I still collected series as VHS, and Toonami was still on. Adult Swim was still in its infant stage. I'm not blaming advances in English accessibility to anime/manga, I just think it has changed the way people approach the fandom.
But enough about that. I still had an awesome time, and I'm looking forward to next year.
I saw Spoon and Arcade Fire on Monday and it was fan-fucking-tanstic. Hands down one of the best shows I've been to. The crowd was really great, it seemed like everyone was a big fan of the music being played so they were really excited to hear both old and new songs. Also, Neighborhood #3 (Power Out) live = best moment of my night. Also got to hear my favorite song (so far) off the new album - Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains).
I don't think I'll ever get over how amazing the music scene in Philly is - I have at least 10 shows lined up for the next few months. WOOT!
1) The selection of anime and live action films screened. Other than Ponyo (which I had failed to see beforehand), there was nothing in the scheduling that particularly stood out as something I wanted to see. Even the ridiculous Asian cinema live action films were not nearly as crazy as past years. Highlight: I finally saw the Cat Returns, and it is now one of my favorite animated films ever. Great dubbing, cute story (it's about cats, how can I NOT like it?) and beautiful animation - I expect nothing less from a Studio Ghibli film.
2) Cosplay. Over the past few years, I'm becoming more and more disappointed in the cosplay as well. I feel like the fandom is shifting more towards japanese fashion/ravers/lolita/etc. and less people are cosplaying as anime/game characters. Which is how things happen I suppose, but I'm not particularly happy with it. Likewise, I recognize less and less of the characters each year. That's mainly my fault, I don't watch nearly as much anime as I used to, but I'm seeing less people do characters from the "classics." I guess I just feel old, haha.
3) ENOUGH WITH SHOUTING INTERNET MEMES, YOU'RE NOT FUNNY.
Since I've been attending Otakon for 10 years, I was really reflecting on the overall shift in the fandom over the years. When I started going, I felt on the young side of attendees. Now I feel like everyone at the convention is 14 years old and obnoxious. When Erin and I first started watching anime, fansubs were rare, I still collected series as VHS, and Toonami was still on. Adult Swim was still in its infant stage. I'm not blaming advances in English accessibility to anime/manga, I just think it has changed the way people approach the fandom.
But enough about that. I still had an awesome time, and I'm looking forward to next year.
I saw Spoon and Arcade Fire on Monday and it was fan-fucking-tanstic. Hands down one of the best shows I've been to. The crowd was really great, it seemed like everyone was a big fan of the music being played so they were really excited to hear both old and new songs. Also, Neighborhood #3 (Power Out) live = best moment of my night. Also got to hear my favorite song (so far) off the new album - Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains).
I don't think I'll ever get over how amazing the music scene in Philly is - I have at least 10 shows lined up for the next few months. WOOT!