I’ve been going to Anime Expo for a long time now and there are certain things I’ve come to expect from the show. First is the negative attitude that seems to premiate the whole weekend, second is long lines, and the third is the heat. However, this year did have some surprises for me, but that doesn’t necessarily mean this is an event for everyone. Considering the fact that my attendance was a last minute choice I can’t comment on the whole of the show, but what I experienced should give a clear view of what to expect at Anime Expo.
The LA convention center hasn’t changed much since Anime Expo first started. Traffic getting there is horrible, parking is expensive (when you can find it), and the food options are limited with the execption off the food trucks. I don’t really like the area, but with the over 100,000 attendees it is difficult to think of a better location in Southern California outside of the San Diego Convention Center. The food trucks are one of the few saving graces for the area as they gather in a lot across from the convention center and offer decently priced food to help you get through the day.
Programming is a joke. The industry and guest panels are fine and are one of the better parts of general programming. However, events like cosplay chess and cosplay wrestling get the shorter end of the stick. Boost up the workshops and the event type panels and give more room for the academic track and the industry related panels. In addition, larger rooms are necessary for some of the events panels like cosplay wrestling. A complete overhaul of programming needs to be done and until Anime Expo gets a competent programming director that will never happen.
On the other hand, the guest line up was great this year and featured some huge names from music, video games, and anime. There was something for everyone including those who just want to meet the English dub actors. The only guest I felt were unnecessary was the ‘cosplay senpai’ guests as they add nothing to the show. Those booths should have charitable organizations or groups that try to make a difference. Thankfully there was one or two groups like that, but they were not advertised like that. More over the guests page also features ‘personalities’ which is made up of people that less than one percent of convention goers have probably ever heard of. These are people who don’t even need to be on that page and bring down the other guests just by being there. It’s about time the guest line up was taken seriously, separate the wheat from the chaff before the whole line up becomes a joke just like programming.
The secondary halls were still the biggest draw at Anime Expo. The dealer hall was set up much better than previous years due to cutting the artist alley from it as I had suggested in the past. This made the hall easier to navigate as booths had more space. The hall is lively and it’s great to see all the major companies bring out elabriate booths once more. Hopefully this trend will continue as the bombastic dealer hall is missed by many. The entertainment hall was on par with previous years. The cosplay section was well handled, but the gaming area seemed a little weaker. It was cool to see the little museum and the Bang Zoom booth in there as well. I was not lucky enough to visit the artist alley, but the stories I have heard aren’t really positive. Despite minor hiccups, these three zones are still the best part of the convention and do make it worth the trip.
One of the biggest surprises this year was the vibe of the event. Usually Anime Expo has one of the worst convention vibes with people generally being rude and a sense of misery seems to premiate every part of the event. However, this year things felt a bit more positive. There were still rude people and the audience for most panels wasn’t very energetic. Yet, ther was a far less depressing atmosphere this year, which made the experience much more enjoyable. It would be nice to see this trend continue, but the track record of Anime Expo does not make me optimistic.
While I did enjoy myself at Anime Expo this year it is still frustrating to see some of the same problems pop up once again. I’m sick of the poor programming choices, I’m sick of the stupid non-guest guests bringing down the line up and I really don’t like the LACC. It is obvious that Anime Expo can’t return to what it once was (for better and worse), but it would be nice to see the event try to rebuild the damaged reputation and become the crown jewel of anime conventions that it once was. There is no excuse for an event that has been running as long as AX to have this many flaws when much younger conventions seem to get so much right. No matter how much good happened this year, part of me still laments chosing to go at the last minute.
Normally, I would state my hopes for next year and my thanks to those who made this year better. However, I have thought better of that. I’m tired of having my advice go on deaf ears and I’m sick of thanking people who don’t even follow up with me after an event. I would like to say this will be my last year, but I know that will not be the case. All I’ve ever wanted was for Anime Expo to be the example of how to do things right and I know that will never happen. I am not putting my contact info here because no one will attempt to contact me and I will not ask you to give my love to anyone because you aren’t even reading my side of the report. (It's jared @ scarlet-rhapsody.com)
THE LIST:
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Worry
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Wait
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Who cares?
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Oh, Canada
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Stupid, stupid people
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Jojo!
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Go, Dodgers!
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Next cosplay: The Invisible Man
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RE: 8 – Wait, I do that one already
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Food trucks!
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Thank you NISA
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Thank you Aksys
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See, Dub, Eff
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Should have auditioned
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Never lost, not again
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Pain don’t hurt
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Bad line policies
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All I want to do is help
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No migraine at con
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Note to self: Always look at the bright side of life
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At least I got my Greek food
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No gatherings, no regrets
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More boats!
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Nobody’s listening
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I want to believe
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This too shall pass
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If you got any of my references we can be friends
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