I woke up bright and early for Saturday. Saturday morning proved to be a very busy one. Masquerade tech and a few events were scattered through the morning. I ended up wearing Cure Marine from Heart Catch Pretty Cure to see who would recognize the magical girl of a thousand faces. Thankfully, a few from the tokusatsu community did. One of my favorite parts of the Gaylord was the build your own omelette bar at the downstairs restaurant. Though a bit on the pricier side, it was well worth it to stay full for the next several hours.

The Aging Otaku: Fandom and Getting Older

Alas, a panel for the 90s kids who got into anime via VHS trading and setting the VCR timer to record the next episode of Sailor Moon. The panel was hosted by one of the higher ups at Anime Boston. This panel brought in many of the late 20-somethings who were pushing 30. The panel covered on how not to stay bitter in fandom and ways to get involved. Discussion on how the younger generations have it better versus how our generation had to work harder to acquire anime. We also talked about going back to anime that you enjoyed when it was released, but could not understand everything right there and then. The panelist talked about revisiting Utena and "getting" all the symbolism now that they have grown and are much more educated. This was a very interesting and engaging discussion panel that needs to happen at every anime convention. Much of my generation has that "you're getting old" feeling. The panel also talked about how to get involved in your local anime convention scene whether it be running panels or staffing a convention.

Masquerade Tech Rehearsal and Judging

I did masquerade sign ups at con since I missed the deadline to signup. Thankfully, they allowed audio on a memory stick for my background audio at the very last minute. I signed up for an early morning timeselot to get everything out of the way. Basically, the masquerade crew wanted to preview and make sure they had the right script / tech cues for everyone's masquerade act. It was very simple and not so time consuming.

I did masquerade judging in the middle of the day. Because the BBYO blocked half of the cherry blossom foyer, I had to trudge through a gaggle of Homestuckers and Pegasisters. The challenge was to navigate the Katsucon half without interrupting a private photoshoot since the cherry blossom foyer is the most popular shoot venue. The BBYO side of the foyer was completely empty, but no one from Katsucon was allowed to cross it. Many people entering masqueade and doing craftsmanship judging felt the same way crossing over from one end of the hotel to the cosplay side.

Judging did not take too long. I was right after a very impressive Bayformers Bumblebee cosplayer. The judges asked the usual questions and inspected my masquerade entry. It took less than five minutes to do and I was able to return to the hotel and tuck away my masquerade cosplay before the big show.

Merchants Hall

The dealers hall was just impressive. Though it's smaller than Anime Expo and Fanime, there was a variety of things to look at. I was happy more official Sailor Moon merchindise was released; I was tempted to grab a Sailor Mars plush. There was even a figure booth that sold Persona 4 and iDolm@ster figures. Any dealers hall that sells iDolm@ster goodies is awesome in my book. I picked up two blind bag Shiny Festa figures - and got the secret figure (Haruka in her school uniform). I picked up the Luxury Diamond blind bag and got myself a Ritsuko. I also ended up maid figures of the Fate Stay Night crew - Sakura and Sabre.

Other than a dealers hall that appeals to most of my fandoms, it was really nice to look around. They had the usual cosplay wig dealers and the costume / Asian fashion / rave attire types selling. I really did feel this dealers hall had a little bit of everything. I wish I could have picked up some discounted manga and dvds, but my suitcase can only hold so much! Even if you intend to spend the con doing private photoshoots and cosplay meet ups, the price of the badge is worth it for the dealers hall and the artist alley - so many awesome things without worrying about paying for shipping!

No Means No: Defense Against Fanboys and Fangirls

One of my issues with "Cosplay Consent" is that oftentimes, it's presented onesided - awkward males that creep up on scantily clad lady cosplayers. As a con goer for the past 13 years, I have stories about creepy fangirls at anime clubs and conventions. Stella Chuu, a cosplay burlesque performer, hosted this panel. She had a lot of witty suggestions on how to handle creepers offline and online. The audience also shared stories on creepy situations at conventions. Because a majority of KatsuCon attendees were from the local area, many of them alluded to Otakon and Anime USA. It thought it was really interesting to share horror stories; it felt like a therapeutic experience because it does not matter if you're wearing something skimpy or if you're covered or if you pretain to any gender - everyone has a creeper story and everyone has different (and creative) ways of confronting it. This is another panel that I feel that should be addressed more often at anime / comic bok conventions.

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