Anime Expo 2010
O HAI I FINALLY FINISHED THAT AX RECAP. Warning: very long and very image-heavy:
Day 0
Greeted with anticipation, the day finally came. We had planned to leave by noon but that soon turned to three or four o’ clock due to unfinished cosplay. It didn’t take long to arrive, though, and we got to LA and the hotel some time around 7. The room was pretty sweet. A picture of Colby to watch over us, an HD TV, furniture that really appealed to my tastes, and a radio that could play an iPod. Not to mention the hotel was right across the street from the Convention Center. While mom and dad unpacked, brother and I went to get our badges. Standing in line and regretting not taking my camera, we waited before a group of people we had met the previous year (a Zetsu/Tsunade cosplayer being one of them). It took at least an hour before the line ended. And by ended I mean they closed registration. Though it was supposed to go until 8, at which time I thought they’d cap the line instead of close it right then and there. Oh, well. At least brother got to play 358/2 Days on multiplayer for once.
Went back to the hotel and began working on cosplay again, having brought the sewing machine and everything else along. Yeah. Fail.
Day 1
Woke up early. But got to registration some time around three, I think. It was certainly later than I wanted, and we missed the Kuroshitsuji gathering. Blerg. At least I finished those damn costumes! ‘Cept they still need some work. Like some fitting. OTL But at least we found these guys during our wanderings:
Sadly the only Agni and Soma I could find.
Wryyyyy couldn't I get a better picture?! D8
Ninja Cow. Words fail to describe the epicness.
Moving on! With all that taken care of, we dashed to registration in Code Geass attire, dropped off the extra goodie-bag-type-thing at the hotel, and dashed back for...nothing, really. There were still a couple hours left until the AMV contest. And without much knowledge of the schedule, we didn't have anything planned. So! Venturing into the exhibit hall we went! IT IS FAR EASIER TO BROWSE MERCHANDISE WHEN YOU AREN’T HALF BLIND AND LEADING A 75% BLIND TOBI ALONG! Plus my messenger bag made it a bit easier to find my shiz. But that’s just my opinion.
THE AMV CONTEST WAS AWESOME! Well, there were a few “meh” videos. But still! A computer screen and headphones are nothing compared to a theatre and seat-pounding speakers. Since the contest ended some time around midnight, the only choice we had was to go back to the hotel.
Here are a few more photos from Day 1:
Kept seeing these two in different costumes throughout the convention. And each one was epic.
I ship these two so hard now 8|
Epic America being Epic.
WHAT IS THIS SERIES I MUST KNOW! I-I forgot what they said...;_;
Day 2
Woke up early again, got into Milly and Lelouch cosplay, and arrived in time to catch some of Manga Inking and Papers. It had some descent advice, like using several papers to make inking a bit easier when using a light box. We left early to make it to the Bleach panel. If not for brother whining about spoilers, we would've watched the battle between Ichigo and Ulquiorra. Really wish I could've heard the crowds reaction to that UlquiHime moment. We arrived early and decided to roam about until it started:
What is this I don't even 8D
TF2 Fuck yeah!!
Only two Lady Gaga's but plenty oh music~
PIMP. JESUS. 'nough said 8|
I swear the triforce glowed on one of that Ganon's hands.
Hoho-papa~
All the while keeping an eye out for several people, two of whom, mikasaigo and Puck we found thus far. It really does surprise me how we kept running into the same people on more than one occasion. I mean, what are the chances with 100,000+ people roaming around? So off to the Bleach panel we went! It didn't go as I expected. I thought Johnny would come. He didn't. But RSP and Masakazu Morita (Ichigo) did! RSP performed three songs, and Morita answered some fan questions.
Off to the Gaia Variety Hour we went! With random awesomeness! Basically, the hour consisted of random contests, one of which brother won: doing the robot. Guess marching band is good for something, after all. Keeping one's head still whilst moving. Either that's the reason he won, or because he was Lulu. Whatever it was, he got a "Gogh Reed" and we both received "Glomp Me" signs (you got one for just participating).
Recalling the fiasco of last year and noticing the warmth of the room, we decided to forgo the Chibi Masquerade and opted for the Exhibit Hall.
I just about fangirl-squeed seeing these three *0*
Ffffff. The adorableness.
-insert cliche Gurren Lagaan quote here-
HANNAH IS NOT A BOY'S NAME HELLZ FUCK YEAH!!!
Four o' clock rolled around. Meaning time for the Organization XIII Gathering! Unfortunately the lighting was horrible for pictures. This is all that's pretty descent: Riku, Riku...self-cest?, and some Axel and Roxas. We missed Right Stuf and various other panels to make this gathering. Ah, well. Tiiiiime foooooor:
Durarara!!
The gathering was a hella lot of fun! Only...my camera ran out of power and memory before it ended /sob But other than that it was wonderful 8D! Vending machine liftage, cell phone stompage, and shippage! There were even two Simons (one Mafia, one regular) and a Tom! Dude! Mafia!Simon was EPIC!! He recited lines on the fly, passed out flyers for Russian Sushi, and was the funniest mofo there. And how could this get any more wonderful? The hottest Celty there was a guy! The boobs may have been fake, but his ass was his ass. This was one of the funnest gatherings I've ever been to. I had to video most of it since so much was going on. Then, right at 5:05pm, dozens of cell phones went off. The Dollars gathering was a success! Now please enjoy these other photos: Mikado~, Kidaaaaaa ;_;, Kazuka + Milk = HOT, the most canon pairing next to Shizaya, imagining dad in the shower.
Raced back to the hotel, emptied the camera, charged the battery, vegged, and changed into Deidara and Tobi for the dance, the theme being Heroes & Villians. We didn't stay long, though. The music hurt my ears and it just didn't feel right. Plus neither of us could see very well. But at least it gave me the idea to make rave versions of Dei and Tobi 8D! We ventured back to the convention center and hung out for a while. At Exhibit Hall Lobby this really cute Naruto came up and asked for a picture. She really liked our costumes, and fangirled so much when she saw us. Thus Day 2 ended. Various other photos: more Kuro, Queen and Rabbit, Professor Layton!, beautiful dresses, Domo...baby 8D?, GL meets Drrr!!, Celty, more Zelda, storm trooper, more shippage, Princess and the Frog, Jedi Dino, Hidan, and Joker.
Day 3
Saturday was jam-packed with shiz. Gatherings, panels, exhibit hall. We were busy until midnight. In the morning we dressed up as Deidara and Tobi for the Naruto gathering following the Pandora Hearts gathering. Which went off wonderfully~ Ah~ So many PH people. I almost filled up my 2GB chip with photos and vids from this gathering alone.
Terrorizing Gilbert yay
Little Gilbert o3o
Very pretty little Echo
And a bunch of other pictures. Like more group shots, costumes from the artbook, some Lotti, Echo and Vincent, Vincent et Vincent, Sharons, Gil being kinda badass, Alice and Oz, a pinch of cute GilOz, the brothers, Oz bugging Oz, Break and Sharon, and finally some Will of the Abyss and Cheshire.
Time to rush for the Naruto gathering, which we ended up having to leave early. Too bad. This was probably a one-time chance with the weather as great as it was: cloudy and cool. But Akatsuki always go last, and we had to change for the Code Geass gathering. By then my camera was almost full. So not many pictures. Akatsuki chicken, SasuHina, the sign battle, and Killer Bee were the few highlights I captured. Like with every Naruto gathering we've gone to, there were good and bad cosplays. After attending about six gatherings, though, I have to say Naruto still has some of the more lower quality cosplays out there. The best was either Pandora Hearts or Hetalia. Meh. Moving on! Off to the Code Geass gathering.
All hail Britannia!
Turns out the one organizing the gathering was a member of my anime club. He's the Emperor Lelouch kneeling on the far right. I noticed during the gathering that Code Geass has a lot of gold trim. The creators must hate cosplayers. Cuz that gold trim was a bitch to work with. There were...more than a fair amount of Lelouch's, and I'm surprised to say three Milly's, including myself. The Milly triplets, we called ourselves. My hair turned out a bit too poofy for my liking, but ah well.
C.C. Lemon Zero
The battle of the ages
Is it just me or does the Suzaku look like Shia Lebouf?
Gangsta Orange-boy~
Plus many other pictures: the Knights of Round, Lloyd!, Princess Euphemia and her trusted knight, a few royalty, Captain Zero, can't get enough of this Gino, CC, Black Knights, Xingke, well does bro make a good Lulu? Zero, Emperor Lulu and Knight of Zero Suzaku, and Villeta. This was all pretty fun. Although I thought there'd be a bit more Pizza Hut references. Meh. So after a while we headed for the Hetalia gathering across the street. Unfortunately my camera was near full and there wasn't enough time to go charge and empty it before the gathering started. At least I captured some images:
So many wonderful costumes to behold! *0* A lot of flags waving around, too. Hope they were treated properly. With the camera full, we returned to the hotel to charge, load the pictures and vids, eat, and cool down. A bit of time remained before the Gaia Panel, so we mozied on over to the Exhibit Hall for artist alley and merchandise. On the way there, several cosplays caught our notice: Sokka and Tsuki, these two BAMFs, R2D2 in a hat, these lovelies, and these two *0*. Each time we entered the Exhibit Hall, I noticed a manga stall with some BL images hanging around. So, curious as I was, I decided to take a look. Fangirl mode instantly activated *0* The poster must have been only to advertise the release of the manga, since I couldn't find it /sob. Not like I could have bought it anyway;;; With time running out, we headed for the Gaia Panel, where we saw some official artwork and heard about new features for the site, like more animated items. It took us a while to find the place, though, but at least we got to go there with a friend, someone we'd met last year, and found a certain blue cat alien standing around. With more random awesomeness at the panel, we decided to always go in Akatsuki attire. Since it's more noticeable and Tobi gets to have more fun. That done, we went off back to the Convention Center for the Hetalia History panel.
IT. WAS. EPIC. People filled the room, and the person running the panel was very entertaining. He started off detailing how he discovered Hetalia, and how surprised he was to learn American teenagers were becoming interested in history. During the panel, he showed some clips from the show and explained what a few of the jokes meant. Like what Japan meant by "impersonating William I's wail." He explained William I was a ruler of sorts of Prussia, and that he could be very emotional. So much so he was known for bursting into tears when things didn't go as he liked. So basically Japan was saying he'd give up, in a very roundabout way. It was all very interesting. And now I'm wondering what historical significance pretty much every action in Hetalia has. Heh.
Well, Hetalia History overlapped Analyzing the New Zelda, so we didn't make it to that. And after the panel we didn't do much. Probably went back to the Exhibit Hall. Then to this Lazer Light show near the Nokia Theatre. It wasn't anything that spectacular. I had wanted to see the Gurren Lagann movie, but brother wasn't too keen on the idea. So after the light show, off to the next event! Junjou Romantica! Since he isn't 17, brother couldn't stay with me. Luckily the two friends we managed to hook up with despite the thousands of other people in attendance were kind enough to stick around with him while I enjoyed my BL. Watching anything is much better with a crowd. It makes it so much more entertaining. Heh. I even met a nice female!America before it started. The schedule said they would show the first 5 episodes, but due to time we only saw 4. But, still, it was great! Not so much for poor brother, though. But at least he had his DS and 358/2 Days for when our two friends had to leave.
Day 4
HAPPY BIRTHDAY AMERICA!!
Last day. /sigh. But, hey, it was still awesome! Not much occurs on Day 4, and toward the evening, with the Exhibit Hall closed and not many interesting panels going on, we often end up lounging around somewhere with friends. As we did this year. But before I get to that and the ending ceremony, time for more details of the day!
With no Code Geass related events going on, we went as Tobi and Deidara. And in this day alone I think more people took our photos than all three days we spent as Milly and Lulu combined! The first thing we did was walk around the Exhibit Hall for anything we may have missed.
This made me so happy like I don't even
Yeessssss
"Russians took my country" and "Happy 4th of July :I"
So while at the exhibit hall we ran into a friend again, who somehow managed to get in using a badge another friend had found. Heh. And she gave me this baby. 39"x27" I will love her for all eternity. She said she got it for free, but, still. To give something like that to someone you only know from a convention. That was so sweet of her. So we raced back to the hotel to drop that BAMF off. Then went back into the Exhibit Hall to meet up with her cousin. Spent some time just walking around. Left to get something to eat. And whilst walking down the hall, found some monks banging their heads with cardboard and chanting. We joined them until arriving at the arcade. There we chilled until I suddenly noticed my Izaya "I <3 Humanity" cell-phone strap had fallen off the strap! Raced back to artist alley before it closed or sold out. It sold out five minutes before we got there. But the girl was kind enough to give me two others. A Canada and Shizuo. ;3;
And soon after that, the Exhibit Hall closed. Off back to our resting place we went! And on the way met up with another friend. We hung out for a while, said goodbye to some people, then attended the closing ceremonies. They played the winners of the AMV Contest while we waited, and introduced the Guests of Honor once it started. CHOC showed a short video, the director gave his thanks, and the convention was officially over. We still hung out for a few hours even after it ended, and had plenty of fun. Then it started getting dark and we had to leave.
And so Anime Expo 2010 ended. Here are a few of the pictures I took that day: Kickass and Largebody aw, more flag waving, probably the best Germany there, plenty more Hetalia, I love these two, Bleach, Kid and Dad, Tobi and Obito hanging around, Steampunk, Lego Stormtrooper, Zoro, and Naruto.
The Outcome
All-in-all, Anime Expo 2010 was a BLAST! So many wonderful cosplayers! A lot of good panels! Plenty of fun! Tons of laughs! Great, great merchandise and artwork. Great location. I love the LA Convention Center. The air-conditioning made it perfect, even when walking around in cloaks. Every time we go, there's always this air of acceptance. That we're surrounding by like-minded people who know exactly what it's like being an anime fan. People who are here for similar reasons. Who are impressed enough by our cosplay to take photos, who work hard on finishing outfits they would normally never wear.
There's this wonderful aura surrounding Anime Expo each time we go. It's hard to explain. In short, we had plenty of fun and definitely hope to go again next year. I only have a few complaints about the whole thing: NOT. ONE. KAWORU! TTATT I couldn't find any Kaworu artwork in artist's alley, nor a single Kaworu cosplayer! This left me very disappoint. And, also, a severe lack of memes. Sure, there was the random "The Cake is a Lie" and "I lost the game." But I only saw two caramelldansens. But, ah, well. Times change.
And now for the goods:
Brother took the Shinji, I the Kaworu. And now I finally have a good keychain!
Plus this Russia shirt, this poster, and these lovelies.
Day 0
Greeted with anticipation, the day finally came. We had planned to leave by noon but that soon turned to three or four o’ clock due to unfinished cosplay. It didn’t take long to arrive, though, and we got to LA and the hotel some time around 7. The room was pretty sweet. A picture of Colby to watch over us, an HD TV, furniture that really appealed to my tastes, and a radio that could play an iPod. Not to mention the hotel was right across the street from the Convention Center. While mom and dad unpacked, brother and I went to get our badges. Standing in line and regretting not taking my camera, we waited before a group of people we had met the previous year (a Zetsu/Tsunade cosplayer being one of them). It took at least an hour before the line ended. And by ended I mean they closed registration. Though it was supposed to go until 8, at which time I thought they’d cap the line instead of close it right then and there. Oh, well. At least brother got to play 358/2 Days on multiplayer for once.
Went back to the hotel and began working on cosplay again, having brought the sewing machine and everything else along. Yeah. Fail.
Day 1
Woke up early. But got to registration some time around three, I think. It was certainly later than I wanted, and we missed the Kuroshitsuji gathering. Blerg. At least I finished those damn costumes! ‘Cept they still need some work. Like some fitting. OTL But at least we found these guys during our wanderings:
Sadly the only Agni and Soma I could find.
Wryyyyy couldn't I get a better picture?! D8
Ninja Cow. Words fail to describe the epicness.
Moving on! With all that taken care of, we dashed to registration in Code Geass attire, dropped off the extra goodie-bag-type-thing at the hotel, and dashed back for...nothing, really. There were still a couple hours left until the AMV contest. And without much knowledge of the schedule, we didn't have anything planned. So! Venturing into the exhibit hall we went! IT IS FAR EASIER TO BROWSE MERCHANDISE WHEN YOU AREN’T HALF BLIND AND LEADING A 75% BLIND TOBI ALONG! Plus my messenger bag made it a bit easier to find my shiz. But that’s just my opinion.
THE AMV CONTEST WAS AWESOME! Well, there were a few “meh” videos. But still! A computer screen and headphones are nothing compared to a theatre and seat-pounding speakers. Since the contest ended some time around midnight, the only choice we had was to go back to the hotel.
Here are a few more photos from Day 1:
Kept seeing these two in different costumes throughout the convention. And each one was epic.
I ship these two so hard now 8|
Epic America being Epic.
WHAT IS THIS SERIES I MUST KNOW! I-I forgot what they said...;_;
Day 2
Woke up early again, got into Milly and Lelouch cosplay, and arrived in time to catch some of Manga Inking and Papers. It had some descent advice, like using several papers to make inking a bit easier when using a light box. We left early to make it to the Bleach panel. If not for brother whining about spoilers, we would've watched the battle between Ichigo and Ulquiorra. Really wish I could've heard the crowds reaction to that UlquiHime moment. We arrived early and decided to roam about until it started:
What is this I don't even 8D
TF2 Fuck yeah!!
Only two Lady Gaga's but plenty oh music~
PIMP. JESUS. 'nough said 8|
I swear the triforce glowed on one of that Ganon's hands.
Hoho-papa~
All the while keeping an eye out for several people, two of whom, mikasaigo and Puck we found thus far. It really does surprise me how we kept running into the same people on more than one occasion. I mean, what are the chances with 100,000+ people roaming around? So off to the Bleach panel we went! It didn't go as I expected. I thought Johnny would come. He didn't. But RSP and Masakazu Morita (Ichigo) did! RSP performed three songs, and Morita answered some fan questions.
Off to the Gaia Variety Hour we went! With random awesomeness! Basically, the hour consisted of random contests, one of which brother won: doing the robot. Guess marching band is good for something, after all. Keeping one's head still whilst moving. Either that's the reason he won, or because he was Lulu. Whatever it was, he got a "Gogh Reed" and we both received "Glomp Me" signs (you got one for just participating).
Recalling the fiasco of last year and noticing the warmth of the room, we decided to forgo the Chibi Masquerade and opted for the Exhibit Hall.
I just about fangirl-squeed seeing these three *0*
Ffffff. The adorableness.
-insert cliche Gurren Lagaan quote here-
HANNAH IS NOT A BOY'S NAME HELLZ FUCK YEAH!!!
Four o' clock rolled around. Meaning time for the Organization XIII Gathering! Unfortunately the lighting was horrible for pictures. This is all that's pretty descent: Riku, Riku...self-cest?, and some Axel and Roxas. We missed Right Stuf and various other panels to make this gathering. Ah, well. Tiiiiime foooooor:
Durarara!!
The gathering was a hella lot of fun! Only...my camera ran out of power and memory before it ended /sob But other than that it was wonderful 8D! Vending machine liftage, cell phone stompage, and shippage! There were even two Simons (one Mafia, one regular) and a Tom! Dude! Mafia!Simon was EPIC!! He recited lines on the fly, passed out flyers for Russian Sushi, and was the funniest mofo there. And how could this get any more wonderful? The hottest Celty there was a guy! The boobs may have been fake, but his ass was his ass. This was one of the funnest gatherings I've ever been to. I had to video most of it since so much was going on. Then, right at 5:05pm, dozens of cell phones went off. The Dollars gathering was a success! Now please enjoy these other photos: Mikado~, Kidaaaaaa ;_;, Kazuka + Milk = HOT, the most canon pairing next to Shizaya, imagining dad in the shower.
Raced back to the hotel, emptied the camera, charged the battery, vegged, and changed into Deidara and Tobi for the dance, the theme being Heroes & Villians. We didn't stay long, though. The music hurt my ears and it just didn't feel right. Plus neither of us could see very well. But at least it gave me the idea to make rave versions of Dei and Tobi 8D! We ventured back to the convention center and hung out for a while. At Exhibit Hall Lobby this really cute Naruto came up and asked for a picture. She really liked our costumes, and fangirled so much when she saw us. Thus Day 2 ended. Various other photos: more Kuro, Queen and Rabbit, Professor Layton!, beautiful dresses, Domo...baby 8D?, GL meets Drrr!!, Celty, more Zelda, storm trooper, more shippage, Princess and the Frog, Jedi Dino, Hidan, and Joker.
Day 3
Saturday was jam-packed with shiz. Gatherings, panels, exhibit hall. We were busy until midnight. In the morning we dressed up as Deidara and Tobi for the Naruto gathering following the Pandora Hearts gathering. Which went off wonderfully~ Ah~ So many PH people. I almost filled up my 2GB chip with photos and vids from this gathering alone.
Terrorizing Gilbert yay
Little Gilbert o3o
Very pretty little Echo
And a bunch of other pictures. Like more group shots, costumes from the artbook, some Lotti, Echo and Vincent, Vincent et Vincent, Sharons, Gil being kinda badass, Alice and Oz, a pinch of cute GilOz, the brothers, Oz bugging Oz, Break and Sharon, and finally some Will of the Abyss and Cheshire.
Time to rush for the Naruto gathering, which we ended up having to leave early. Too bad. This was probably a one-time chance with the weather as great as it was: cloudy and cool. But Akatsuki always go last, and we had to change for the Code Geass gathering. By then my camera was almost full. So not many pictures. Akatsuki chicken, SasuHina, the sign battle, and Killer Bee were the few highlights I captured. Like with every Naruto gathering we've gone to, there were good and bad cosplays. After attending about six gatherings, though, I have to say Naruto still has some of the more lower quality cosplays out there. The best was either Pandora Hearts or Hetalia. Meh. Moving on! Off to the Code Geass gathering.
All hail Britannia!
Turns out the one organizing the gathering was a member of my anime club. He's the Emperor Lelouch kneeling on the far right. I noticed during the gathering that Code Geass has a lot of gold trim. The creators must hate cosplayers. Cuz that gold trim was a bitch to work with. There were...more than a fair amount of Lelouch's, and I'm surprised to say three Milly's, including myself. The Milly triplets, we called ourselves. My hair turned out a bit too poofy for my liking, but ah well.
C.C. Lemon Zero
The battle of the ages
Is it just me or does the Suzaku look like Shia Lebouf?
Gangsta Orange-boy~
Plus many other pictures: the Knights of Round, Lloyd!, Princess Euphemia and her trusted knight, a few royalty, Captain Zero, can't get enough of this Gino, CC, Black Knights, Xingke, well does bro make a good Lulu? Zero, Emperor Lulu and Knight of Zero Suzaku, and Villeta. This was all pretty fun. Although I thought there'd be a bit more Pizza Hut references. Meh. So after a while we headed for the Hetalia gathering across the street. Unfortunately my camera was near full and there wasn't enough time to go charge and empty it before the gathering started. At least I captured some images:
So many wonderful costumes to behold! *0* A lot of flags waving around, too. Hope they were treated properly. With the camera full, we returned to the hotel to charge, load the pictures and vids, eat, and cool down. A bit of time remained before the Gaia Panel, so we mozied on over to the Exhibit Hall for artist alley and merchandise. On the way there, several cosplays caught our notice: Sokka and Tsuki, these two BAMFs, R2D2 in a hat, these lovelies, and these two *0*. Each time we entered the Exhibit Hall, I noticed a manga stall with some BL images hanging around. So, curious as I was, I decided to take a look. Fangirl mode instantly activated *0* The poster must have been only to advertise the release of the manga, since I couldn't find it /sob. Not like I could have bought it anyway;;; With time running out, we headed for the Gaia Panel, where we saw some official artwork and heard about new features for the site, like more animated items. It took us a while to find the place, though, but at least we got to go there with a friend, someone we'd met last year, and found a certain blue cat alien standing around. With more random awesomeness at the panel, we decided to always go in Akatsuki attire. Since it's more noticeable and Tobi gets to have more fun. That done, we went off back to the Convention Center for the Hetalia History panel.
IT. WAS. EPIC. People filled the room, and the person running the panel was very entertaining. He started off detailing how he discovered Hetalia, and how surprised he was to learn American teenagers were becoming interested in history. During the panel, he showed some clips from the show and explained what a few of the jokes meant. Like what Japan meant by "impersonating William I's wail." He explained William I was a ruler of sorts of Prussia, and that he could be very emotional. So much so he was known for bursting into tears when things didn't go as he liked. So basically Japan was saying he'd give up, in a very roundabout way. It was all very interesting. And now I'm wondering what historical significance pretty much every action in Hetalia has. Heh.
Well, Hetalia History overlapped Analyzing the New Zelda, so we didn't make it to that. And after the panel we didn't do much. Probably went back to the Exhibit Hall. Then to this Lazer Light show near the Nokia Theatre. It wasn't anything that spectacular. I had wanted to see the Gurren Lagann movie, but brother wasn't too keen on the idea. So after the light show, off to the next event! Junjou Romantica! Since he isn't 17, brother couldn't stay with me. Luckily the two friends we managed to hook up with despite the thousands of other people in attendance were kind enough to stick around with him while I enjoyed my BL. Watching anything is much better with a crowd. It makes it so much more entertaining. Heh. I even met a nice female!America before it started. The schedule said they would show the first 5 episodes, but due to time we only saw 4. But, still, it was great! Not so much for poor brother, though. But at least he had his DS and 358/2 Days for when our two friends had to leave.
Day 4
HAPPY BIRTHDAY AMERICA!!
Last day. /sigh. But, hey, it was still awesome! Not much occurs on Day 4, and toward the evening, with the Exhibit Hall closed and not many interesting panels going on, we often end up lounging around somewhere with friends. As we did this year. But before I get to that and the ending ceremony, time for more details of the day!
With no Code Geass related events going on, we went as Tobi and Deidara. And in this day alone I think more people took our photos than all three days we spent as Milly and Lulu combined! The first thing we did was walk around the Exhibit Hall for anything we may have missed.
This made me so happy like I don't even
Yeessssss
"Russians took my country" and "Happy 4th of July :I"
So while at the exhibit hall we ran into a friend again, who somehow managed to get in using a badge another friend had found. Heh. And she gave me this baby. 39"x27" I will love her for all eternity. She said she got it for free, but, still. To give something like that to someone you only know from a convention. That was so sweet of her. So we raced back to the hotel to drop that BAMF off. Then went back into the Exhibit Hall to meet up with her cousin. Spent some time just walking around. Left to get something to eat. And whilst walking down the hall, found some monks banging their heads with cardboard and chanting. We joined them until arriving at the arcade. There we chilled until I suddenly noticed my Izaya "I <3 Humanity" cell-phone strap had fallen off the strap! Raced back to artist alley before it closed or sold out. It sold out five minutes before we got there. But the girl was kind enough to give me two others. A Canada and Shizuo. ;3;
And soon after that, the Exhibit Hall closed. Off back to our resting place we went! And on the way met up with another friend. We hung out for a while, said goodbye to some people, then attended the closing ceremonies. They played the winners of the AMV Contest while we waited, and introduced the Guests of Honor once it started. CHOC showed a short video, the director gave his thanks, and the convention was officially over. We still hung out for a few hours even after it ended, and had plenty of fun. Then it started getting dark and we had to leave.
And so Anime Expo 2010 ended. Here are a few of the pictures I took that day: Kickass and Largebody aw, more flag waving, probably the best Germany there, plenty more Hetalia, I love these two, Bleach, Kid and Dad, Tobi and Obito hanging around, Steampunk, Lego Stormtrooper, Zoro, and Naruto.
The Outcome
All-in-all, Anime Expo 2010 was a BLAST! So many wonderful cosplayers! A lot of good panels! Plenty of fun! Tons of laughs! Great, great merchandise and artwork. Great location. I love the LA Convention Center. The air-conditioning made it perfect, even when walking around in cloaks. Every time we go, there's always this air of acceptance. That we're surrounding by like-minded people who know exactly what it's like being an anime fan. People who are here for similar reasons. Who are impressed enough by our cosplay to take photos, who work hard on finishing outfits they would normally never wear.
There's this wonderful aura surrounding Anime Expo each time we go. It's hard to explain. In short, we had plenty of fun and definitely hope to go again next year. I only have a few complaints about the whole thing: NOT. ONE. KAWORU! TTATT I couldn't find any Kaworu artwork in artist's alley, nor a single Kaworu cosplayer! This left me very disappoint. And, also, a severe lack of memes. Sure, there was the random "The Cake is a Lie" and "I lost the game." But I only saw two caramelldansens. But, ah, well. Times change.
And now for the goods:
Brother took the Shinji, I the Kaworu. And now I finally have a good keychain!
Plus this Russia shirt, this poster, and these lovelies.
