Otakon 2011 Review

(reposted from my Tumblr account)

The last weekend of July 2011 was spent by me at the whatever-teenth annual Otakon. Otakon weekend is perhaps the only weekend on the calendar during which thousands of people actually travel TOWARD Baltimore, Maryland, as opposed to running away from it at full speed, blood gushing from their bullet wounds.

Otakon is synonymous with the first time I ever heard the words “anime” and “convention” used together. Credit for this goes to my friends Bill & Brian who, several years ago, traveled to Baltimore specifically for the convention. Complaints about Baltimore’s lack of parking, restaurants, and navigational ease (all of which I confirmed while there) were interspersed with vivid descriptions of anime infiltration stretching on into infinity. At the time in Philadelphia, at least as far as my experience was concerned, anime was limited to a pathetic shelf or two at the movie/music stores and imported VHS tapes at a novelty shop downtown. Thus, digesting the fact that there was a gathering around the genre, enough to brave the six-hour round trip separating the two cities was difficult.

Then, Brian told me the following story:

“The convention center was also holding some religious conference that weekend. So we’re waiting by the elevator with a bunch of nuns. The elevator doors open and there’s a guy inside cosplaying a demon. He looks right at the nuns and says in a really deep voice ‘going down?’”

I had to go to this event.

It wasn’t until years later that I would begin frequenting anime conventions on an annual basis, despite still classifying myself as “anime lite.” The overall geek culture and sub-emphasis on video games prevalent at many conventions is what attracted me. Ultimately, I even began blogging for the conventions, something that earned me many new friends, friends with whom I felt truly comfortable, close friends. My travels took me to conventions not only in and around Philadelphia, but also to Washington, DC (where I learned that Brian’s above story is an anime con urban legend) and Boston.

So, what did I think of Otakon, the second biggest anime convention in the COUNTRY, a convention to which, as anime anthropologist and good friend Charles Dunbar puts it, “all roads lead?”

Impressive.

But not memorable.

I suppose that size is to blame. In terms of anime convention, Otakon has become a corporation of sorts, with policies and personal politics steering a convention that bills itself “for otaku.” The panel offerings struck me as the least diverse; I am still spoiled by Anime USA 2010, whose panel offerings were not only plentiful but also varied. The fans seemed to be there for no other reason other than to be there, because, dude, this is OTAKON! The sense of community wasn’t wholly lost, but it wasn’t abundant, either; this is in stark contrast to those conventions that draw fewer attendees than Otakon’s final total of 35,000+. It didn’t seem personal.

Maybe it’s just me.

What did impress me was how welcome Baltimore was to the convention. Signs at our hotel and nearby eateries welcomed Otakon. Street vendors were just as plentiful as they are at sporting events, hocking food, drinks and even caps outside of the convention center. I half expected to see Otakon badge scalpers! Certain units in a nearby food court overlooking the city’s famed Inner Harbor offered specials to those in costume and/or possessing Otakon badges. Local TV news crews were on scene and one free weekly newspaper I saw—a publication describing itself as a source for all things “hip”—featured Otakon on the front page.

Perhaps Otakon 2012 will be more “Otakon” and less “OTAKON!!!”

This all being said, I am in no way any sort of expert. I open the comments floor to any and all debate/discussion about your OWN thoughts on a convention whose most popular aspect was a guy selling ice cold water.

For only one dollar.

Water + Otakon = Meme?

“I got your ice cold water! And it’s only one dollar!”

If you were at Otakon 2011 for any length of time, you are not only familiar with the above words, but they are tattooed onto your brain.

From Thursday through early Sunday afternoon, one of the numerous beverage vendors lined up along Pratt Street outside of the Baltimore Convention Center is standing out from the rest. More ripped than Major Armstrong, clad in sunglasses, shorts, and (why not?) a weight belt, the vendor enthusiastically sings over and over into a bullhorn the following chant:

“I got your ice cold water!
And it’s only one dollar!
I got your ice cold water!
And it’s only one dollar!
I got your ice, ice,
Cold, cold
Ice, ice
Cold, cold
I got your ice cold water…”

The chant appeared to be set to the theme from “Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers.” Peddling nothing more than half-liter bottles of Nirvana brand water, his simple yet unique approach to advertising drew crowds and their cameras. At one point, even Otakon staff members were seen filming his pitch for inclusion on the website.

“Can I autotune you?” an attendee in the crowd asks, his Droid already recording.

The man behind the bullhorn goes by the name of Josh. He and his wife Candice, who assists with sales, are Baltimore residents and were also present at Otakon 2010, sans musical chant. During their four sixteen-hour workdays outside the convention center, the couple estimates that over 100 cases of water were sold. “Honestly, I’ve lost count,” Candice says. At twenty-four bottles to a case, this translates to a gross profit of close to $2500, minus the Baltimore street vendor fees.

During Otakon’s hiatus, Josh’s day job is living proof as to why he is so overzealous about hydration.

“Personal trainer,” he says before turning away to complete another sale.

He may be a quiet man when it comes to conversation, but Josh was noticeably appreciative of his new fans. He posed for photographs, performed for rolling video cameras, and never forgot a “thank you.” Before long, otaku passing by were giving the pair loose singles simply because of his notoriety.

His chant was being repeated by attendees. Pro- and anti-“ice cold water guy” messages were filling up Twitter, Tumblr, and Facebook. Weight belts were flying off of local sporting goods store shelves, quickly becoming part of last-minute cosplay outfits.

OK, I made that last part up. Nevertheless, the fact that Josh and his catchy chant were circulating around the Internet like Google Plus invites could only mean one thing: he’s on his way to becoming the next meme. Cries of “ice cold water!” could very well replace “Marco!” or “Buttscratcha!” at future conventions. Heated, misspelled forum and Twitter debates will form over the exact words in the chant and to what melody it was set. And finally, Otakon enjoys a new stake of popularity that is NOT a fire alarm.

Meet Rachel, an attendee from Allentown, Pennsylvania. She has the distinction of purchasing the very last ice cold water from Josh and Candice. She laughed and admitted no real reaction when informed that she helped close the chapter of the net’s latest celebrity.

As for Josh and Candice? The batteries were removed from the bullhorn, the cooler’s lid was shut, and off they walked, presumably to watch “Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers.”

(Very special thanks to Lauren Orsini, who helped me out immensely with this post; do yourself a favor and check out her site, for her writing pwns all that is pwnable)

PinHat

Wizard World East 2011 may now be part of the past, but few people know that, out of it, something new was born.

Whenever I travel to conventions (or pretty much anywhere), I inevitably come across pins or buttons. Sometimes they’re free, a form of promotion. Other times, they cost a very low price (I’ve seen tables offering anywhere from one to ten pins/buttons for $1). As a result, I’ve managed to get my hands on a number of these things, all of which I swear I will add to my apartment’s Pee-Wee-Herman-meets-Ernest-P.-Worrell decor. Aside from a few comic book-related pins (proudly residing in my comic book-themed bathroom) and a set of buttons displaying Bowser and his seven offspring (who knew the “Super Mario Bros.” villain was one Koopaling away from being Mushroom World’s OctoKoop?), the majority of my pointy souvenirs have collected dust on various structures in my room.

Well, I’ve decided to change all of that.

I went into a thrift store close to Wizard World’s downtown Philadelphia location and bought the following hat for $3

A close-up of its price tag:

The apparent lack of a decimal point on the store’s pricing gun initially makes this felt accessory seem a hell of a lot more expensive than it actually is. I considered leaving it on there until I realized that ACTUAL $300 hats out there probably wouldn’t be marked so with such pricing stickers. Also, they wouldn’t have the scent of discontinued brand soap permanently engrained into their fibers, a dead giveaway that the item came from a store with the word “dollar” and/or “thrift” in its name.

I’m going to attach all of my pins to this hat. The same goes for any pins I may acquire at future conventions or elsewhere.

When the entire hat is covered in pins and buttons, I will retire the “Blinky” hat, which has been a staple of my Inochiblog wear up to this point, and don this ridiculous accessory at each and every convention I cover in the future.

So far, the pins in my possession are the following:

Needless to say, they won’t do the job of completely covering the hat. With Otakon coming up in about a month and Intervention in September, my pin and button collection is certain to grow. My goal is to debut the hat at Anime USA 2011, assuming I have an appropriate (meaning embarrassing) amount of metal attached to it.

I’ve already started:

Pictured is a Link pin I acquired from Zenkaikon IV that originally joined the Blinky hat in my official Inochiblog costume. I figure it (and perhaps a soon-to-be-acquired Blinky pin) will be appropriate front-of-the-hat signage.

Wish me luck!

Zenkaikon V is Here!

In my hotel room five floors above the Valley Forge Convention Center in suburban Philadelphia, I just unpacked the old Blinky hat for Zenkaikon V.

Although this is Inochiblog’s first year at Zenkaikon, it is my third time attending the rather young, yet rapidly expanding, convention. Zenkaikon was the first convention I attended devoted exclusively to anime; prior to that, my convention outings were limited to those celebrating video games or comics/pop culture. Thanks to it, my eyes were opened wide to a genre that had, at best, a few tables scattered around the other conventions. What’s more, its fans tended to be the happiest and most devoted group of people I have ever seen at an event.

This year, I am elated to be on the official staff of Zenkaikon as a blogger. The folks who bring an overabundance of anime to my current home region of suburban Philadelphia each year are exceptionally hardworking and dedicated to the success of their event and to the assurance that it will be enjoyed by all of its attendees and guests. This year, their efforts have resulted in, for the first time in its history, a third day of activities.

If you are anywhere near the Philadelphia area, I highly suggest that you attend Zenkaikon as it celebrates its fifth year. There is plenty of parking to be had within the convention center’s massive lot, and two bus lines link riders to certain suburban destinations as well as downtown Philadelphia itself.

I will see you there!

Check out the convention’s official website at zenkaikon.com.

Kotoricon 2011: Wrap-Up

Two days. Three campus buildings. Guests, vendors, performers, volunteers, artists, and of course otaku galore. Things have certainly come quite a long way for Gloucester County College’s Kotoricon anime convention. It seems like it was in its infancy only last year.

Oh, wait. It WAS in its infancy last year.

In the year’s worth of time bridging Kotoricon 2010, the debut convention, and Kotoricon 2011, the event grew by leaps and bounds in all areas. This is rather impressive for many reasons, a key one being that its freshman year was pretty remarkable itself. I appeared at Kotoricon 2010 to help promote Inochicon 2010 and was impressed with not only its offerings, but also the turnout. Anime fans and curious parties alike were drawn to this small college in a quiet New Jersey suburb to quench their anime/video game/comic book thirst while waiting for larger area conventions like Zenkaikon, Otakon, and AnimeNEXT to come back around again. It’s a safe bet, especially given the success of Kotoricon 2011, that not a single person left Kotoricon 2010 unsatisfied.

Sadly, I was not able to make the convention’s gaming tournaments on its opening day, but I was thankful to spend all day Saturday within the halls of the College Center. My sole complaint is that the time flew by too fast; I’m not sure if I can really fault Kotoricon staff for that drawback. While each of its many volunteers wore many hats and performed many duties throughout the day, slowing or outright halting the Earth’s rotation most likely wasn’t in the job description.

I have been to numerous conventions throughout the past few years, conventions which crowded fans of all sorts of genres into spacious convention centers and hotel floors. While Kotoricon of course is not on that scale, it nevertheless successfully captured the same positive, fun atmosphere that draws this blogger to such events. Everyone I passed had a smile on his or her face. Friendliness abounded.

A hilarious panel and screening by the group Underbelly, two stand-up comedy performances (Uncle Yo and Cosplay Comedian Joe), one of many musical acts (Reni), and the masquerade contest were the offerings in which I found myself during Kotoricon 2011. Additionally, I wandered the dealers’ rooms and artists’ alley, treating my eyes to the numerous pieces of merchandise being offered.

I’d personally like to thank Dr. Susan Glenn and her entire staff for not only continued assistance throughout the day, but also for the opportunity to blog for Kotoricon 2011. I look forward to Kotoricon 2012, which could very well encompass each building on the Gloucester County College’s campus.

Kotoricon 2011: Cosplay Comedian Joe

Popular anime convention performer Cosplay Comedian Joe decided to make Kotoricon 2011 not only his first 2011 appearance, but also his first appearance ever at Kotoricon. This was not a task he took lightly. In addition to his popular stand-up, which Kotoricon staff scheduled just before the debut of the masquerade ceremonies (not exactly the worst time slot!), he hosted a number of panels earlier in the day, including a series of AMVs.

Donned in an Edward Elric outfit, Cosplay Comedian Joe entertained the crowd for over a half hour with his otaku-and-anime specific routines. These included a series of predictions for upcoming anime series (a new bit, he admitted), observations on strange combinations in anime, questions on the absurdity of anime titles (i.e. Bleach, One Piece, etc.), and voice actors having to explain to non-otaku their jobs. Joe closed the show with a musical parody of “The Twelves Days of Christmas” (dubbed “The Twelve Days of Anime Christmas”) and advice for graduating otaku when they attend future conventions. His claim that Edward does NOT like Roy was met with fierce but friendly opposition from the audience.

The multi-talented (and ever-working) Cosplay Comedian Joe can be found on Facebook at facebook.com/cosplaycomedianjoe and on Twitter at twitter.com/CosplayComedian.

Kotoricon 2011: Underbelly

Following their Saturday panel at Kotoricon 2011, I talked to a few members of the group “Underbelly.” I learned that the panel was not only their first at a convention, but in the words of one, “we were just kind of winging it.”

I and others who attended the panel would find this very hard to believe.

A steadily-growing crowd was treated to well over an hour of not only Underbelly’s trademark videos, but also a plethora of humor from the panelists/members that never missed a beat. Aimed at guests aged 17 and over, the members of Underbelly supplemented four of their videos (and one blooper reel) with trivia contests, Q&A, and general information about themselves and their work.

Underbelly is based largely out of Burlington and Gloucester Counties in New Jersey and is comprised of Justin Silverman, Newt Wallen, Kevin Bellardine, Frank Patterson, and Shawn Caple (as well as others from video to video, including panelist Katie Yetter). The members write, produce, direct, edit, and of course star in webisodes poking fun at anime (particularly Pokemon), video games, and comic books. You know, the usual stuff. Had they produced, for example, soap operas…well, I’d probably still watch their work, because whatever they would be capable of coming up with would be much better than anything Aaron Spelling could ever offer.

The panel kicked off with a trivia contest in which questions about anime/video game/comic book minutiae (such as: “What does the ‘donkey’ in ‘Donkey Kong’ mean?” (ANSWER: Nothing)) that were awarded with such prizes as:

–A “Mr. Slave” action figure from “South Park”;
–35MM trailers of such classic flicks as “Ernest Goes to Camp” and “National Treasure”;
–An oversized poster/banner of the George Clooney flick “Solaris” (a film which doesn’t make “Batman & Robin” seem like that much of a crime anymore)
–A “Star Wars” action figure…of Mace Windu
–The box that held the prizes (seriously)

The videos screened (and very warmly responded to) included “Friends to the End,” a recut episode of “Pokemon”; “4Kids is 4Idiots,” which details the numerous ways popular video distributor 4Kids ruined quality Japanese anime under the “for the children!” guise; “2 B.A. Master,” wherein a Pokemon fanatic is forced to attend “Pokeholics Anonymous”; and “Anime to Crapime,” detailing the evolution (should you wish to call it that) of Japanese animation from its early history to today. The final video shown was a blooper reel, featuring outtakes that happen to be just as hilarious as the content being produced. Needless to say, the DVD of the show was also given as a prize.

Informative and funny, the panel was a definite hit with its audience. Check out their Facebook page at facebook.com/underbellyshow as well as their Youtube channel at youtube.com/underbellyshow.

Kotoricon 2011: Uncle Yo

A friend (and possibly foe) to geeks and non-geeks alike, comedian Uncle Yo had a Saturday crowd full of otaku and casual fans laughing hysterically until the end of his performance at Kotoricon 2011.

Specializing in humor related to video games, anime, comic books, and the like, Uncle Yo has entertained crowds at conventions all across the country, from (as his biography suggests) Albuquerque to Albany. From stand-up performances to cosplay judging, he has done all there is to do for guests at the biggest and smallest of conventions. Kotoricon 2011 marked his first convention appearance of 2011.

His nearly-hour-long set included jokes related to Broadway’s “Spider-Man: The Musical,” roomba cleaning robots, the summer 2010 story about a bank robber dressed as Darth Vader, and, of course, instant messaging on airplanes. I won’t get into any specifics of his set, as he requested that audience members do not in any way record his performance (nor are they allowed to set him on fire). Besides, mere words cannot do his comedic stylings any justice whatsoever.

For more information on Uncle Yo, including where to buy DVDs and CDs of his unique brand of stand-up comedy, visit his website (which you are also not allowed to set on fire) at uncleyo.com.

Kotoricon 2011: Reni

The Gloucester County College cafeteria in its College Center building is often filled with sounds. Conversations, clinking utensils, and crunching the crispier parts of Chick-Fil-A chicken pieces normally bounce off its walls on any given day. In the early afternoon of Kotoricon 2011’s Saturday, however, this was not the case. Not entirely.

Popular anime convention staple Reni entertained an enthusiastic crowd with her unique vocal stylings. An acclaimed singer from New York City (by way of Japan), Reni’s performance was met with warm applause from her audience. “My Shy Master” and “Shining Star” made their way into her set, with the latter tune ending her performance.

In between songs, Reni interacted with the audience, even inviting a number of them up onstage to serve as backup dancers. A particularly memorable exchange involved her actually playing the game “Rock, Paper, Scissors” (sans Lizard and Spock; sorry, “BBT” enthusiasts) with the crowd. A lucky crowd member who won the game was actually serenaded onstage by Reni, much to his delight (and, at first, embarrassment).

Sadly, said crowd member was NOT yours truly, although I *did* join Reni and other audience participants onstage for her final song. Since I possess the rhythm of Bowser, I didn’t exactly add a whole lot to the performance.

If your convention attendance ever happens to coincide with that of Reni, I strongly suggest checking out one of her concerts. Her amazing vocal chords and downright adorable looks (that could have even the most jaded of men claiming responsibility for Virtual Boy) are sure to please fans and non-fans alike.

For more information, visit Reni’s personal website at Renireni.com; there, one may purchase music CDs, watch Youtube videos, and buy specialty merchandise.

Kotoricon Returns to Gloucester County College!

Kotoricon, a 2-day convention put on by the Gloucester County College’s anime club, is mere days away! The convention has the honor of being the first official event covered by Inochiblog.

On January 14-15, 2011, the convention will take over the College Center Building in the heart of the campus. Since the greater Philadelphia area is home to so few anime-only conventions, any and all anime fans in the region should do their best to check out the efforts of the Gloucester County College anime club’s staff. I personally attended the convention last year and was quite impressed with the offerings and crowd turnout.

Uncle Yo, Reni Mumura, Cosplay Comedian Joe, actor Robert Axelrod, and the L33tStr33t Boys are a mere sampling of the guests scheduled to appear and perform at Kotoricon. In addition to the guests, a schedule overflowing with panels, workshops, contests, and video screenings will keep attendees beyond satisfied throughout the event.

While a limited number of (cash only) tickets will be available at the door for $25, organizers urge you to pre-register online. Not only will you pay a mere $20 for admission, but you will also be guaranteeing an ample number of staff members to assist you during the event. The college’s Sewell, NJ location in suburban Philadelphia translates to easy access from not only the City of Brotherly Love, but also from Wilmington, Delaware; Trenton, New Jersey; Atlantic City, New Jersey; and all surrounding areas.

For more information, check out the convention’s website at http://anime.gccnj.edu.

See you there!