Another Anime Expo has come and gone. Over 100,000 unique attendees throughout the five day event now that day zero is hosting some prime time programming. Anime Expo keeps steadily growing every year with bigger and brighter guests. The moment when Aquors, Cinderella Girls, etc were announced, the idol community dropped everything and plotted for Anime Expo. It seems commonplace that anime cons are announcing things closer to the date than further out. This is something that I've been trying to get used to as a convention veteran, I still prefer announcements earlier on as I like to budget my time and money. Anime Expo had a lot of high points; when the good was good, it was great. Inversely, when the bad was bad, it was the worst.

First of all, I'm glad that Anime Expo will be mailing badges for the 2018 show. While this was attempted in 2007, major cons mailing out badges seems to be the standard. Otakon and D23 Expo have implemented this. Also, we had major problem with badge theft this year. With Anime Expo being the E-ticket event next to San Diego Comic Con, people are very thirsty for badges, or even a priority badge to skip the line. The lost and found department at Anime Expo have done a great job with what they have to return missing badges. However, with RFID chips in place, this can track if a badge was stolen once it has been reported.

I did appreciate Anime Expo requiring more badge check points throughout west hall. However, while security was tight during the daytime, it was not the case during the evening and on the last day. I did see a homeless man walk into West Hall making a ruckus. LACC event staff was nowhere to be found. The closest I found were off duty food court personnel who said they would bring it up to the higher ups. If there is going to be this much beefed up security and we let one or two slip in, it doesn't make for an effective check in / check out system.

People who know me know I have mixed feelings on the cosplay senpai showcase. I love people like Stef Von Schweetz, Amber Arden, and Kiba Cosplay stopping by to talk about their talent and sharing said talent. However, I oftentimes wonder what the criteria is for cosplay senpai. Just because one Disneybounds for three years does not make one a senpai. Just because someone is known for cosplaying sailor scouts while black, does not make one a senpai. I do prefer seeing cosplay panels that focus more on craft and art rather than a "ask me anything" Q&A. Panels on posing, styling, photoshop, etc are great resources to take home. However, when it comes to social justice and diversity themed panels, tread those with caution as not everyone is qualified to handle these sensitive topics.

Anime Expo is not the same beast as it was before the Los Angeles era. Anime Expo now takes up a day for badge pick up (plan accordingly), a day to see all of the exhibitor hall and artist alley, and another day to check out main events and / or panels. To get one's money's worth, plan for two panels / events per day and line up an hour before the start of it. Bring snackages, water, and sunscreen. The Los Angeles convention center has done away with water stations in the panel rooms. Entertainment Hall, Dealers Hall, and Artist Alley are great places to stop by in between time, but most of those can take up a day to get through all of. The JW has solid nighttime programming if you are staying in the area, but shuttles can have wait times from 20-40 minutes. Lyft can become your friend when traveling from hotel to convention center, especially when you're staying at the Sheraton or Westin.

Is Anime Expo worth it? If you are curious, I would recommend getting a day badge to see the basics. For four days, I would recommend the plan I had mentioned above and get them while they are under $100. Premiere pass might save you time in line and get you at the front of the line, but these are in limited quantities. The next batch of premiere passes are sold during Black Friday weekend. I usually tell out of state friends to do Anime Expo at least once to say you've done it once. Anime Expo is not for everyone, particularly if you're not a fan of crowds or waiting in line. However, Anime Expo does have amazing industry booths in the dealers hall that only come out to this show. While you could play the Sailor Moon scavenger hunt at Otakon, you wouldn't be able to sample the latest from Atlus, Aksys, and NIIS.

I had positive experiences with staff this year - press, con-ops, lost and found, info desk, etc. However, I did not have the best experience with Anime Expo access control. In one case, I ran into family members in line for the Entertainment Hall and they invited me to join them in the moving line. Access Control was very aggressive in telling me to go outside. I explained to them they were my family (I mean, Filipino's are known for having lots of cousins, right?) and he was still aggressive about it. I thought to myself, what if a family got separated, would they get the same kind of treatment from staff. In another instance, at Petree Hall, I had to take an alternate exit out because if I went through one aisle, I would have ran into a stalker. While I did think about taking another aisle out, I asked security if I can get out the back way. He refused. I understood he was getting the flow of traffic out and even if I did have an exit plan, I thought I'd asked. However, it did make me think about the safe spaces that Anime Expo has employed in the last year - if Anime Expo is going to preach about safe spaces, staff also has to listen and believe if someone is feeling unsafe, even if there's no physical safe space nearby.

Otherwise, Anime Expo had solid programming this year. I liked a lot of the panel offerings and the variety of guests from Japan and the United States. I was bummed to miss out on a few voice actor autographs, particularly the ones from Steven Universe. However, I enjoyed the concerts. I didn't mind paying extra to have a guaranteed good seat at Kawaii Live. I do regret not checking out the concert with angela. I got into Knights of the Sidionia after the con only to discover she had a concert. Definitely bring a lot of these guys back!

As a colleague of mine said, a measure of a good time at an anime con is what you got out of it. I learned a new card game where I can compete for maid's affections. (I am curious to check out the cutesy Germans vs. Russians one!) I did a few idol related photoshoots where I made new friends. I learned about some new anime titles to watch such as Knights of Sidonia and Miss Kobayashi's Maid Dragon. I get to see family that I don't get to see often; anime brings us together. I got to watch a concert wherein I thought I'd never see all four acts from four idol themed anime perform on stage. When the good was good, it was great!

I do look forward to new year's Anime Expo. I'm glad they are bringing up the mailing of the badges for 2018 now. I'm also glad they are considering the RFID chip to prevent theft and fraud. Anime Expo is not for everyone, but if you're the least bit curious, do try it out for a day. However, if you love anime and if you're local to Los Angeles, definately check it out for all four days, but plan accordingly and do plan to be in line. Until then, we will see you at the con.

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