Like any Anime Expo, the convention is going to have its share of critics and naysayers. People are entitled to their opinion and it's their choice if they want to attend Anime Expo or not. Certainly, not everyone had a pleasant experience in previous years. Anime Expo 2011 promised to be the year of the fan. I was not quite sure what this entailed, but I really did think that Anime Expo 2011 is one of the better Anime Expo's to come out in a while. People were concerned about the simillarly themed convention in Orange County, AM Squared, taking up competition. Anime Expo had a reported 46,000 unique attendees. The numbers show that people are still going and the AX is not going away anytime soon.

First and foremost, I must thank the Anime Expo staff for taking into consideration our feedback from last year. It is very nice to see a convention make improvements based on audience feedback and stay humble about the changes. I liked the giant schedule grid in the West and South Hall. I hope these are brought back. I liked the friendly convention staff and Anime Expo staff. I also enjoying watching and listening to AX Live. The hosts have fun personalities. Check them out sometime!

The only departments where I could see some improvement are setting the logistics for the Artist Alley and ticketing policy and procedure. As mentioned in Sunday's rundown, Artist Alley needs to be in a more visible area of the South Hall. People will miss it if it is too far back. It would be also nice if the aisles are wider in the artist alley. The foot traffic was insane! I would also like to see a better ticketing procedure. While I do love the Nokia Theatre and Club Nokia, I think charging for concerts should be at an affordable price or included in the badge. It was nice that masquerade, AX Idol, and the AMV contest were free events, but Vic Mignogna complained that he did not want to charge people for his concert.

The guests of honor line up was pretty massive. There a little bit of something for everyone. Unfortunately, I missed out on the Miku Hatsune concert. It would have been a delight to see the virtual idol, but hopefully, this will be the first of many Vocaloid concerts in the United States. For 2012, I would like to see top of the line, A-list guests at Anime Expo. Bring in Akira Toriyama, Naoko Takeuchi, Yoko Kanno, and other guests that played an important part in our otaku lives.

The overall vibe of Anime Expo felt very mature compared to previous years. There were hardly any annoying memes being shouted out until the last day. I do not mind any nyan cats running around or a throw back to Rick Astley, but it was nice for a change, that I could go three days straight at a California con without any Internet memes haunting the hallways. People were generally friendly and much like Anime Expo's time in the early 2000's, you could easily engage in friendly conversation with others.

The programming this year was pretty good. It was too hot to check out the cosplay gatherings, so most of my Anime Expo activities were indoors. I enjoyed AX Idol. Though I did not make the final five, I look forward returning with triumph for 2012. I am very happy to see that AX Idol has improved through the years. Hopefully, people will see this as a great experience, rather than just "weaboos in front of a mic."

Masquerade was better than most masquerades I have sat through. The $10,000 cash prize allowed contestants to bring their A-game. As far as craftsmanship goes, many of the entries were very amazing. The sketches were hit or miss. I had a few favorites that did not place, but overall, it was a well done show. Kyle and Darryl as hosts delivered a humorous halftime show. I would like to see these two gents host masquerade again.

I enjoyed the panels I attended. I felt there were some great panels at Anime Expo. I always enjoy going to the Inside the Voice Actors Studio. I really liked how it's different every time and how they change up the spotlight guests every year. I was very happy to have staff members help set up my laptop for Moon Prism Poptarts. People on forums complained about the lack of panels at Anime Expo. I felt that there was a better selection of panels compared to previous years. Next year, we intend to bring back Moon Prism Poptarts and figure collecting panel.

People have warmed up to the Los Angeles Convention Center through the years. LA Live is up and running. I am very glad there is a huge restaurant selection across the street. I was also happy that we had food trucks at the convention center. Hopefully, next year the food truck area will have canopies to keep people in the shade. I was about to buy some boba from the Boba Truck, but the heat prevented me from picking up my usual rose tea.

I really hope that Anime Expo keeps delivering quality programming and that next year will only get better. I hope to see the return of the ballroom dance, or something close to it. I hope Anime Expo keeps bringing guests that will attract anime fans world wide. This has been a fun Anime Expo. Despite any downtime, I can look back at Anime Expo 2011 with nothing but good thoughts.

Many thanks to my press team - Jared, Emil, Deb, and Stan. Also thanks to Jeff for the extra hands when we needed someone to video tape interviews. Thanks to Anime Expo press staff for your quality customer service. Thanks to everyone who contributed to making this year one of the best and memorable Anime Expo.

Until then, feel free to friend Scarlet Rhapsody on Facebook to find out which convention we'll cover next. No matter where I am next year, I will make it a point to return to Anime Expo and get a room at the swanky JW Marriott again.

Pictures are copyright by Scarlet Rhapsody . Feel free to use any photos of you, just link us back. If you want us to remove something, kindly email us. While you're here, do sign the guestbook. This site was brought to you by the font Still Time.