Most years I dread going to Fanime as I tend to refer to Fanime as my "bad luck con". I usually only remember the bad things that happen to me: the drama, the physical pain, and the burden this convention puts on my wallet as a SoCal resident. This year does not feel as mired in bad luck as previous years. Yes, bad things happened, but they do not seem to be overtaking the good things. This is perhaps the best Fanime I have been to, but I am far from considering this one of my top cons.
This year has the same assortment of events as previous years of Fanime. The opening and closing ceremonies were fun and are some of the more enjoyable versions of these mandatory convention events because of the light hearted nature the staff gives to them. It also helps that they are run at stage zero allowing passers by to stop and give them a watch. I also liked how the stage zero staff had jerseys to tie into the sports theme. In addition the swap meet also made a comeback. Now set in the Fairmont Hotel we were given a much smaller location, but it was not as noisy as the old location in the gaming area and they let the swamp meet run longer than in previous years. I was lucky enough to find a few things and I feel like I should have picked up a few more.
Not everything was well handled this year including the traditional Fanime Black and White ball. Last year this was one of the biggest down points of the convention. This year it was in a new and larger venue, but the quality of the dance was still as bad as last year. This is due to three major reasons. The first reason is the music choices were terrible and not very fun for dancing. Secondly, the DJ never stopped talking and was a waste of space. Finally, the exhibitions took too long and it felt that the best music was saved for them while the attendees got the worthless leftovers. In addition, this dance had too many mixer moments. Most people who come to a ballroom dance come with a partner so what point does a mixer serve? If I wanted to dance with strangers I would go to the Fanime rave and party style dances where dancing with new people is part of the culture of those dances.
There was a pretty decent line up of panels this year. In addition stage zero was also buzzing giving plenty of entertainment throughout the convention. While several panels (including my own) had minor technical problems, it was usually handled pretty quick. However, sometimes it was an audience member that handled the issue before the technical person could arrive this was most notable at the Kia Asamiya panel. It really felt like some of the technical staff was being a bit lazy throughout the convention. In the end, all panels we watched went very smoothly and the timing worked great. The return of pocket guides was nice, but the schedule being posted on the week of was a pain for those attendees (like myself) who enjoy panel hopping. Considering how much there is to do at Fanime it would have been nice to have more than a couple days in order to plan what we intend to do at the convention. The panels that were run by Scarlet Rhapsody all went well and we had fun running them. There was a great audience response to all of our panels and we are looking forward to running our panels again next year.
I have always had mixed feeling about the Fanime atmosphere. While I do enjoy a con that has nice night life, I do tend to stumble across drunken cosplayers stumbling around the convention center late at night. This year, however, the vibe was very different at Fanime. While there did appear to be more crowded this year, it did not hurt the energy of the convention. Instead it added a new layer to the energy. There were few panels that were empty, the dances had high attendance, and it was a nice opportunity to meet new people at the convention. As an odd note, the nightlife did not seem as hopping as it has in the past. This is not a bad thing, it just means that people are growing up and not stumbling around drunk in the dark.
While I did have my personal share of bad luck at this convention it was balanced out by the new friends I made and how well my panels and the interview went. While there were disappointments this year with Kia Asamiya ditching his autograph line and the ballroom dance being as weak as ever, the amount of other things to do more than made up for the weak points. This may actually be the first year I have given an almost entirely positive review of Fanime. Perhaps the convention is growing on me, but more than likely the convention has just been improving. It was great to see a strong Japanese guest list, an abundance of new attendees, and a better location for the swap meet. Now if only the ballroom dance could be done right and the elevators worked at the hotels.
This year was very fun for the staff of Scarlet Rhapsody and for me especially. I would like to thank programming, the Scarlet Rhapsody staff, Justin, Mark, Sammy, Dan, Dave, the Fanimaids, Fiona, anyone who bought/got me food, Vincent, Claudine, all who attended my panels, that team of nice people who saved my life, and the crazy lady at Original Joe's. Before I go I give you my list and remind everyone that if you have questions or comments feel free not to e-mail me at Jared(at)scarlet-rhapsody.com. Until next time give my love to Captain Yurika.
The List
- Maids, Maids, Maids!
- Good food is good
- Panels, great success
- Do you like old anime?
- Super Robot Taisen!!
- So much work left to do…
- Donut Joe, minor failure
- No gatherings for me?
- Next Cosplay: Zenigata
- Hey new friends, don't be strangers!
- Love that Fairmont Hotel
- Stupid autograph line
- Saved some money this year.
- RE: 13 – In other words I found no figures to buy
- Yeah, I'm a Gundam fanboy what of it?
- I need to go to more NoCal events
- Remember to update the codec
- Sigh… bronies…
- The interview turned out great, watch it!
- I should have picked up more at the swap meet
- Nothing like a good drink with business contacts
- Note to self: (smirk)
- Real Note to Self: I should friend more people online
- Next time, I should pack less stuff
- I really need to get more anime music on my mp3 player
- Phase 2 begins
- Why are so many people hard to find?
- I want a Bow
- Bees!
- Nice uniform, Raye
- So… what's next?
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