This was our first time attending Anime California. This is a con that I have heard mixed things about. It had some growing pains during their first and second year in Anaheim. Anime California also hails itself as an e-gaming con in addition to anime programming. I do think that Anime California has promise, but because of the oversaturation of conventions along the west coast, only time can tell if this will survive. Anime California 2016 was a cute, starter con with the charms of a first year convention.

I liked the location. I think the Long Beach Convention Center works for small to medium sized events of this size. While it did not work for Anime Expo, it certainly does work for Anime California. There's enough space to walk and navigate without feeling claustrophobic. I liked that there were places to get some nice photos. I was able to work with Nick Nacks Photography and Kris Zoleta to get some nice shots of my weekend cosplays. The bridge that overlooks the harbor is one of my favorite spots for photoshoots. This is a very slow con, but that leaves enough time to do photos in between without feeling rushed.

Programming was mixed. Maybe it's my age, but I felt that at Saturday at 6PM, I was already done for the day. There were panels that were very interesting and informative such as the tea party hosting, Disneybounding, cosplay repair on the spot, etc. This was also a nice con to relax and keep up with friends. The Long Beach Convention Center is really built and set up to have chill out space; there's a lot of lounge chairs and spaces to sit down and take a breather.

The overall vibe of this con was very friendly. I tend to be apprehensive about Southern California conventions, considering the recent thirst in popularity in the cosplay community, but I liked that everyone was there to have fun or create their own fun. The highlight of Anime California was when a few kids decided to plop their boombox in the middle of the lobby and started playing some dance tunes. Seeing otaku and cosplayers do the Cupid Shuffle and Cha Cha Slide was a special experience. This wasn't an official sanctioned event, but it was something that kept the kids entertained. It just shows that the people who come here are there to have fun.

Other than having mixed feelings on programming, the only other issue I had about Anime California is the barcode system to check people in. I'm not a huge fan of the QR codes. As I've learned at cons, signal can be very tricky if you're trying to access your tickets on your smart phone. While printing out tickets might be a no brainer solution to this, printers are slowly becoming obsolete. I still prefer, as far as press registration goes, to state your outlet and show your business card and identification. It's worked at larger conventions like Otakon, Anime Boston, etc that did not need any QR codes to scan people in. This is a new technology that might need some time to perfect, but don't underestimate the old ways.

Overall, this was a very relaxing con. Summer cons like Otakon, San Diego Comic Con, and Anime Expo can take a toll. I liked that most programming was indoors, nothing was too far of a walk, but at the same time, I felt that I was already done with the con by the early evening hours. Maybe it's my age, but I did find things to do and try out. I liked that I was able to try some table top gaming; I usually never have time to test out new card games at conventions and I'm slowly getting into them. I also liked the fact that random sailors came by the convention; it was Fleet Week and sailors who were on shore leave decided to hit up Anime California. This was nice because I was able to pose with them as Kongou and Deb as USS Iowa.

If you are local to Anime California, I would reccomend checking it out for a day or two. I'm hoping they return to the Long Beach Convention Center next year. 2017 is going to be a tricky year for the convention scene in Southern California. Not only you have Anime Expo and Comic Con, but you also have D23 and Comic Con on consecutive weekends. Additionally, sources have confirmed that there was an attendence drop from 2015 to 2016. Labor Day is cursed weekend in Southern California. We'll see how next year goes. I'm happy to be supporting this con and I wish Anime California the best of luck in the coming years.

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