Masquerade was run by Amy and Katie, two cosplay veterans who have had experience running Anime Expo's highly competitive masquerade. Checking in and taking care of the usual logistics - turning in music, signing waivers, etc - went pretty smooth. Judging was done on a first come first serve basis. Right after my visit to Baby the Stars Shine Bright, I allowed them to judge my costume. I only entered masquerade for the fun of it, not for competition's sake. As Bart (Team Misaki) said, "It's all for fun, nothing more or less."

While waiting for masquerade to start, I just wandered around the Kabuki hotel. It is a very small hotel, but there were a ton of people there for Artist Alley. I think my favorite booths had to be 1) the booth that had some art of Kurt x Blaine from Glee, 2) the Lolita booth that sold sweets themed jewelry, and 3) the fuzzy anime hats booth that sold Bidoof hats. There was much to look at and explore around the hotel confines of the Kabuki despite the downpour. 

Masquerade seating begun at 6:30PM. To our surprise, the show started right on the dot at 7PM. This is a surprise for most people who attend anime conventions because typically, main events do not start on time. The best part about masquerade was the host, Dom. Dom had a very dry sense of humor. He bantered act after act, making sure that everyone was equally teased. Audience favorites included the schizophrenic "Lucky Star" cosplayer switching different wigs to portray a different character, Winry and Edward Elric singing a duet to the tune of "Don't Go Breaking My Heart," and Edward Elric performing a live soliloquy wallowing why he is vertically challenged. Halftime included Who's Line Is It Anyway games for audience members.

However, the biggest surprise for anime convention veterans was the return of the chair chant. For people unaware of the chair chant, this was the "you lost the game" of it's time in the late 90s and early 2000s. A single chair is placed on the stage and people cheer the word "chair." While most veterans mouths ran agape when they hear the chair chant, one convention veteran felt nostalgic hearing that the chair chant made a cameo at masquerade. 

The awards were given after half an hour of deciding who should take home the two grand prizes of $500 and $250. Top honors went to the two aforementioned "Full Metal Alchemist Group." However, it was friendly competition.

After the show, a few friends and I decided to check out our favorite Japanese and Italian fusion place, On the Bridge. While I do not care for their slow service, Los Angeles' Little Tokyo hardly has a menu like On the Bridge. I have written about On the Bridge a few times for Traveling, yet the food is just as I remember it and the service is just as slow as molasses. 

AOD has a pretty happening nightlife. Attendees can check out the Comedy Club, Anime Celebrity Jeopardy (inspired by Saturday Night Live) starring the convention's guests of honor, and an Anime Burlesque Show. However, since my Sunday panel was in the morning, the group and I decided it would be best to call it a night.

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