End of year approaching way too fast edition
Here's some of the cosplays from Anime Houston: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1Y17TWFX-TA0SqVudBxmHAWGoVpPkiOw4The photographer gave me the drive link
Anyone going to Anime Frontier?
Anything to report from Anime North Texas? Interested in hearing how it's been going, especially when it seems like the con was put together in a rush. Just about all of their guests were announced in the month leading up to the con.
>>10883635This has been common with anything associated with Ikkicon.
Are there any decent smaller, more regular events in Austin? The other cities have the Yumicon people doing events, Club Kaiju, Anime Village Festival, and other one off events.
Anybody doing big TexasComicon this coming week?
>>10883764Anime Alliance of Austin on Facebook runs small meetups and events regularly. They have six upcoming events on the calendar for October.If you’re into J-Fashion, Okashicon runs a few events per year, though you’re better off just joining the ATX comm.
>>10883602I am, but I live in FW so there's no real drive distance and also want to buy stuff at the vendors. They usually have good stuff. It's corpo though. Don't know if I'm doing the cosplay contest this year, though, I got nothing new.
>Nine posts>Seven events mentionedSeems to further confirm what I've already felt, that the Texas "scene" is pretty fragmented. And with that, I'm throwing another one into the mix: Waifufest. The owner's a pretty cool guy, but apparently he hasn't even announced a date yet? If I catch him at any cons in the near future, I'll ask about it.
>>10884063They did. Renamed to KimochiiCon, May 17th to 19th at Embassy Suits by Hilton Dallas Frisco Hotel + Con center.
>>10884069Wait that's WaifuEXPO that renamed, I might be retarded, you decide.
>>10884069>>10884072Yeah, Waifufest is in Houston. If you even occasionally go to cons, you've probably seen this guy before. He runs the "Where Da Waifu" clothing stand
kek, it looks like Ecchi Expo has closed their Austin branch and is now opening a new one in Dallas. As an Austinite, I hate to say it (due to how few anime cons are happening in Austin nowadays), but GOOD RIDDANCE!! The two shows they had in Austin were mired in controversy/drama and had some glaring issues (mostly tied to the first-year one). On the contrary tho, their San Marcos and Denver shows seem to not have any major problems, so I guess those will keep happening.I'd much prefer Ushicon to be Austin's own "18+ anime con". Now if only they could come back home instead of hanging around in San Marcos...
>>10883602>>10884058Is Anime Frontier good? Thought about going
>>10882693Did anyone here end up going to Y2Kon, and if so how was it? I was busy that weekend and couldn't go, but also it's mainly a western cartoons con so I wasn't really interested all that much even though I wanted to go.
>>10884162If you like spending money on merch you can buy cheaper online then it's worth it. Vendors hall and artist alley are always pretty stacked. Not a lot of programming/panels besides a handful of industry and guest stuff though. I like it for the location and the cosplay scene is pretty good.
>>10883602Finally participating in the cosplay contest wish me luck gulls
>>10884369Best of luck! Having done it last year at AF, it was pretty stacked, but you got this.
>>10884396Thanks gull.I was backstage anon from last year. It was really inspiring to see you guys up there. If you see someone inordinately into Gengar, say hi!
>>10884683Oh! I think I remember you posting before. Sure will, gull. Last year a Deku won, think it'll be a JJK or something else that'll be big this year?
>>10884710Me ofc :^)I don't think the judges are biased towards a series but I'd be willing to bet that someone could pull out something from CSM (full chainsaw devil for example) and sweep it.
>>10884194I guess that's a no from /cgl/ lol
>>10883602Yep, now that Afest is functionally dead it's the only good con left in DFW so I might as well go (I did have fun the last 2 years)
>>10884063It's really weird to me that we have megathreads when 3 of the cons in our state are larger than most cons on this board that get their own dedicated threads
Anyone going to Dallas Fan Festival here in a week? I've never been able to have the full con experience so I'll be there the full three days. Definitely going to the karaoke afterparty on Friday.
>>10886457And yet despite that we have basically no posts
>>10886566Yeah I'll be there in the afternoon on Saturday and I'm going to attend the karaoke as well with some friends. I was waiting to decide on if I'd go or not based on the panels they'd have but at this point I have enough friends going that it'll be worth it either way.If you see someone in Gengar attire say yo. I'd be cosplaying but I have too much other shit going on that weekend to worry about it.
>>10886606Most of the cgl trash talkers aged out in attending cons.
>>10886699Which is funny because I am by all accounts 'too old to go to cons' from their trash talking nature. It was probably just insecure projection.Not sure if I'm going to keep my hotel room for Frontier but I'll go to the con regardless.
>>10886566Dunno if you are here anon but I'm >>10886631This con kind of sucks. I'm glad I'm here because I have friends exhibiting and it's nice to support them, but the con hours feel pretty off (they close REALLY early) and the whole thing is basically the vendor hall. I want to withhold full judgement but right now I'm thoroughly unimpressed.The con karaoke was nice though. Bit of a small venue and a little hard to find, but at the very least we didn't need to drive across town or get shuttled like other cons I've been to.I don't think I saw you there but if I did let me know what to look for on Saturday.
>>10887484I was in the Gengar Hawaiian in case you happened to see me.
>>10887484I'm in the same boat as you since this is my friend's first convention and his first time cosplaying. The rave on Thursday night was pretty decent though not at the size of Akon/San Japan.>>10887485I was at the bar when you came over during Karaoke to grab drinks. That girl who song the MGS3 Theme was really good among a few others.
>>10887485>>10887512My eyes did not functiom because I did not see the Gengar print. I was John Constantine at karaoke. I had a blast last night. I will be back at the con in a couple of hours. Woke up in someone else's place and had to get some water, coffee and hooch in me to recover. I'll be dressed as a shitty Ken (Barbie) today.Yo, Snake Eater gal kiiiiilled it. My homie in my hometown is a huuuge MGS fan so I had to send him a vid.
>>10887512>>10887559I know we basically didn't talk but everyone at that Karaoke was pretty great so if you guys happen to be at Anime Dallas or Anime Frontier it would be cool to hang out again.Overall the con was very boring and even the cosplay "exhibition" itself was hardly a highlight. I felt pretty bad for Charlotte (but her panel and running the events wasn't bad at all).They desperately need better panels at this. The Irving convention center is nice and the upper floors seem to have plenty of space for more activities to run simultaneously. It's hard to tell exactly what the organizers are trying to achieve with this con given it's in the same area as FanExpo (and is run by the same people).Also parking was hell. I'm taking DART next time.Overall 5/10 I'll probably go again next year if it shows signs of improvement and make sure to take DART. Hopefully they'll expand the panels and perhaps have a game room.
>>10887843NTAYRT but its fucking hilarious you mention the convention center is nice and has space but from A-kon being there this year, last, and NEXT YEAR, I can tell you there are limits to that space pretty quickly. Maybe not for Fan Festival but still!
>>10887512>>10887559hey gulls, what's your opinion on people who can't sing doing con karaoke? i sound like a dying banshee and feel like i'm hurting people's ears, but i still like karaoke, kek. is it frowned upon to karaoke if you have a high, shrill, grating voice?
>>10887484>the whole thing is basically the vendor hallI feel like that's where conventions are headed, unfortunately. I've been seeing more and more conventions pop up where the schedule will maybe have two panels going on at the same time if you're lucky, and most of said panels are industry/guest panels, not community panels. I get that community panels are somewhat obsolete with the modern internet being a better way to discuss anime with other weebs, but it's still sad to see them go since without them cons tend to devolve into anime-themed flea markets where there's also a rave. A lot of the people that go to conventions these days will often show up with their only concrete plan being to dick around in the vendor halls looking at things they could have bought from Amazon, and then once they've done that they just wander around, very few people look at panel lists ahead of the convention and make plans surrounding them before showing up.>>10887845ICC is a very nice venue if the event you're doing fits inside it. A-Kon is getting too big for venues twice the size of ICC, but they decided to cram it into the ICC anyway since A-Kon didn't have too many options, resulting in the current fire hazard con it's been for the past few years.
>>10887895>very few people look at panel lists ahead of the convention and make plans surrounding themthis may be true for small corporate sellout cons like fan festival or frontier, but it's definitely untrue for larger, longer-running cons with devoted yearly attendees. san japan and a-kon both had people lining up well in advance for fan panels to ensure themselves a spot, and many panels filled to capacity. even smaller cons like ikki and colossal had sizable fan panel presence. >community panels are somewhat obsoleteyou feel this way because you're in dfw. dfw probably has the highest concentration of shitty, soulless vendor-hall based cons in the country. just curate your con experience, and skip out on the normie-targeted corporate circlejerks.
>>10887900>ProbablyNo, it *definitely* does. Considering DFW had AT LEAST 15 cons last year, that might make it the most anime convention-dense area on Earth
>>10887895It was understandable for 1, maybe 2 year for contractual reasons and after 30 I wouldn't have booked it in any place larger than ICC, but holy fuck having it next year there is just negligence going forwards.>>10887902hell does it. I only go to Frontier bc they have the best of the trash around, and A-Kon at least still has panels
>>10887913Akon is cockblocked from moving to the KBH due to Fan Expo. Akon had a chance to share the space with Dreamhack in 2020, but then the pandemic ruined all those plans. Fan Expo is actively trying to destroy Akon by all means possible. This has been confirmed. It's a bloody mess.
>>10887937funny then, bc i doubt A-kon will be bothered just sitting in ICC until end of time. Yeah it won't grow but unless there's an actual fire, which also causes ICC to be a casualty as well, A-kon will survive. If anything would have killed it, A-Kon 30 was it. They're still alive tho so.
>>10883635ant was ass, nearly nobody there
>>10887937>Fan Expo is actively trying to destroy Akon by all means possible. This has been confirmed. It's a bloody mess.Fucking why?? What do they want, more attendees??? They don't rent enough space at the KBH for the ones they already get. I went on Friday this year and don't plan on going back. Packed to the gills and HOT.
I guess there won't be any conventions till next year, huh?
>>10888309The company that owns Fan Expo actively attempts to crush any direct competition in all markets they're in. They want to be one of the goliaths of shitty massive cons. They view Akon as one of those threats.
>>10888310There are tiny shitty ones around the state, but TX con season doesn't generally start until around ikki.
>>10884369same imma make obanai if i dont procrastinate, seeu thereGRJ8K
>>10883602I might, depends on what the weather looks like. It's about a two hour drive and I have no patience to make it in rain or worse.
Anyone been to Anime Dallas? Not expecting much but thinking about going this year because of Billy West.
>>10888956Yup, I'm staff againSee ya there anon
Happy November, Texas Thread!
>>10890105shut up
>No one mentioned Oni-Con yetIt's fucking dead isn't it ;_;
>>10890867People still show but no one talks about them.
>>10890126No, (YOU) shut up!
>>10890867Oni-Con hasnt been popular for five years
>>10891248Same shit every year. The beach smells like trash. Not even the locals care for it.
>>10882693Anime Frontier Schedule is already up. It seems? they have more panels than last year, a start.https://animefrontier.com/programming/#/programming/byVenueApparently there are two after parties but I cannot figure out where.
>>10886457I tried to get a San Japan thing going the past few years but nobody seems interested on this board anymore.The entire board is just pretty much dead at this point. It's not like the other threads fare much better, that cosplay isn't consent thread has been up for how many months now?
>>10891282Seriously?
>>10891473i mean i guess people like to dance, I don't know what the fuck that is even, or what 12th street stage means.
>>10891473A lot of cons have that one room dedicated to dance panels. They're fairly popular.
>>10891549>>10891560It seems like they currently don't have a rave any of the nights but have a bunch of dance "panels" during the day. It's weird for a 8-10pm cosplay contest that they are calling a masquerade. Usually masquerade means rave but the description says cosplay contest.
>>10891561Frontier never has any night stuff. It's an expo more than a convention.
>>10891562Ambersand on 7th Street had a Kpop rave on Haloween so hopefully they have something similar the same weekend like Dallas Fan Expo and have an external rave.
>>10891561They do have raves but you have pay to attend. People can't seem to find that info.
>>10891561Masquerade has never meant rave? If anything it's meant "formal ball" at past conventions.Pretty glad I'm not going anymore honestly. The schedule is nothing but Kpop panels and licking cosplayer asses, nothing substantial at all. They have zero events besides the cosplay contest and idol fest, no concert, and the raves/"after parties" are an extra cost on top of an $80 badge. Not worth the ANYC copy-pasta.
>>10891561>>10891567>>10891582>>10891587Found the info by digging their IG and cross referencing the dates. It's worse than A-kon 30 in planning holy shit. Club Kaiju is for Dec 8th at the Ridglea room, which is 10 minutes by car on the I-30. The other one is ALSO at the same place next night. Found the link on their site too.https://animefrontier.com/after-parties/
>>10891560dance panels are one thing, but it's literally all kpop.
Are there going to be any room parties or meet ups at Frontier?
>>10890867The dealer room was kind of dead this year, but other than that, it's good as a more chill, laid-back con. After years of going to AM at its peak popularity and A-Kon at the horribly undersized ICC, it's a lot more relaxed, which is both an advantage and a detriment.
y'all think it'll be cold at AF? having been in Texas my whole life I'm fully expecting the classic swing of 70+ with some humidity or 50's all day unexpectedly. Trying to plan my outfits around the weather but too soon to tell, especially with beginning of December
>>10884158What went wrong with Ecchi Expo in Austin? I just learned about the Expo and I am sad that it is no longer in Austin.
>>10892161nota but ecchi expo seems like a good idea on paper but so far Im hearing nothing but hangups about its running. It seems like they need to take a page from porn conventions in figuring out how youre suppose to run those things. And you do need to increase security.
>>10892161The first-year con had the issue of being at a poor venue. Basically, the venue (a hotel) was in pretty rough shape after the pandemic (proper maintenance hadn't been done probably due to them hemorrhaging money during the pandemic), and with the contract having already been signed (right about when the pandemic started), the con owner's hands were tied on that one and had to somehow deal with the issues that arose from that. Other issues I saw were stolen art being sold and there being very few doujinshis there, but I regard those as minor in comparison to the venue issue. Overall, I give the con owner a pass on this one since it was a first-year con coming out of the pandemic and the issues were mainly out of his control, HOWEVER, it's the second-year con that's making me not want to support Ecchi Expo anymore.Full Disclosure: I did not actually attend Ecchi Expo Austin (actually in Pflugerville) Year 2, but from what I've heard, a lot of bad things happened. Things like sexual harassment/assaults happening (one instance of it even happening near the con owner), guests being treated poorly/not being paid, and I think the cops was called at some point to deal with some drunk people. AND WHAT DID THE CON OWNER DO ABOUT IT? He doubled down on not being accountable for the stuff the con should be accountable for! By blocking and censoring voices of criticism and dissent on social media. Least of all, releasing a retaliatory statement on the con's Discord server denying the allegations and ultimately pinning the blame on the other "Ecchi/Waifu" 18+ cons in Texas. Granted, this isn't as bad as the issues with Anime Matsuri, but it was enough for me to withdraw support for Year 3 if it even happens. Anywho, I see Ecchi Expo leaving Austin as them running away tail between their legs from dealing with the controversy that may linger into their third year, and I'm kinda glad that they did.
>>10892284Anyone who knows anything about Josh, the company owner, knows this GIF is true.
>>10884329the programming this year is trying to be a little less corpo & more fan-oriented it seems. i got accepted for two music related fan panels this year but i haven’t received any info on getting my panel badge lol
Could I get some opinions on places to eat in the vicinity of the Fort Worth convention center?
>>10892728Sundance Square (Convention Center):Little Red WaspGraceBranch & BirdHoyaWicked ButcherInstanbul GrillToro ToroFlying Saucer Draught EmporiumWaters RestaurantCamp Bowie Blvd (Friday Rave):Lucile's7th Street:Hatsuyuki HandrollsMagnolia Street:Wabi HouseSouth Main Street:Nickle CityPanther City BBQBrix BBQCoco Shrimp
>AF is in 2 weeks >no one has gotten their badge mailed in >no response from customer service >the site says the badges were going to be mailed the first week of November Is it over? I think I’m gonna call my bank to cancel because I don’t really want to wait in line
>>10892778I got mine the week before the con last year and people have been getting them in the mail today, it's not the end of the world. If for some reason you don't get it before the con there's an exceptions desk you can get it from.>>10892598You pick up panelist badges from that exceptions desk, too.
>>10892778I was con staff last year and we pushed people through the lines pretty quickly, especially if you already had a badge or were will-call.
>>10883602I amalso my first time cosplaying
Anime Dallas was fun! Dunno if any of your gulls went to the MHA TTRPG room but that's where I ended up spending most of my time.I'm taking my cosplay to the Anime Frontier competition so wish me luck!
>>10893477What was it? Glad you enjoyed and see you there.
>>10893483I'll say after Anime Frontier because it's not done yet.It's from LoZ though.
>>10893477>>10893631i'll be cheering for you anon
>>10893477Nah it was shit the cosplay convention there is always shit the judges are retarded bitches and mean fuck them
>>10892161Fandom Events is always sex trafficking girls at every fucking con they do, it's annoying.
>>10893631i also will be cheering you on, if there is space in the contest roombtw if you didnt know the 'rest room' for contestants i think is second floor right of the main ballroom
>>10893635Woah anon, calm downDo you have a story you can share?
>>10893675I don't do cosplay contests. I just don't like the people who do the cosplay judging there. They're bitter and rude to anyone who tries to do the contest and is pretty.
>>10893733Well yeah they always have the same three costhots judging all their contests because the coordinator pulls in her friends to be guests and judges even though none of them actually make their shit. Pick better cons, anon.
>>10893764Meh I have been to most cons in Tejas and sadly they are mostly shit outside of the big onesAnime frontier was kind of okay last year so maybr I will enjoy that
>>10883602So I live in Austin and have been seeing this con everytime I buy Gunplay... Is it worth it? Not terribly expensive but I got no one to go with cause I'm still new to the area. Drive 2 hours just to stay in a hotel...? Someone throw me something to make con friends and learn to foamsmith my way to Gundam Cosplay...
Weather looking to be pretty mid 60's for the entire weekend, possibility of rain on Sunday, so should be comfy. Likely windy though.
Anything in south Texas soon?
>>10894006Seems a gaming con in January at Mcallen and a small one at Edinburg.
>>10884369Me too, it'll be my second cosplay contest and I'm looking forward to it, so I assume I'll see you in the beginner category as well.>>10893946I'll be stomping around there as an almost-Gundam on Saturday, and an actual Gundam cosplay is very high on my to-do list.
>>10894108I already leathersmith on top of random other shit why not add foamsmithing and be a fucking robot towering above ppl... Childhood goals accomplished.
>>10894108>>10894152Hit enter to soon... But wait what do you mean Gundam like?
>>10894153It's big, bulky power armor that has had people call me a Gundam a couple of times
>>10894243Seeve is that you
>>10894245:^)
>>10894251:^)
someone going to frontier please report on the omega nest
What time do things wind down in the convention center? If I go eat dinner is there time to do anything after?
>>10894993The convention closes essentially at 7pm but they have panels that can go until 10pm. There is a shuttle that will take you to the 9pm-2am rave on Friday/Saturday.
>>10894996Thanks, I reckon I'll squeeze in what I can and then eat.
>>10894998If you can make it to the Idol Festival that is the highlight for tonight besides the Fat Albert Meme panel and rave. If you see the red shirt guy with a ponytail, feel free to say hello.
For the anon who's competing in the cosplay contest, let me know which character you are so I can post edited images.
>>10895065I was the fencer stomping around
>>10895092I saw you! Also holy fucking shit dude 50 lbs of costume? I give you credit that's crazy. I didn't stay to see who won but I knew I was rooting for you. Went to go for the fucking shuttle but the shuttle was a meme, it went like 2-3 times and could hold only 11 people. I uber'd over.
>>10895122Thanks man, it was absolutely too much weight but the whole experience was greatI wanted to go to the Saturday after party, but I was a little tired for some reason, but the shuttle was just as much of a meme on Friday
>>10895092I appreciate you coming out and competing. There were a lot of people who thought your costume was the star of the show.
>>10895092>>10895141I apologize anon that these are the only two "decent" pictures I got of you. I hope to see what you do next con season here in Texas.
Never gone to Anime Frontier, never going I'm disappointed at how small it was, the dealers room was pretty barren, the artist alley was small, the game room was ghetto and there was barely any panels
>>10895124E D F!!!! E D F!!! E D F!!!It was a great Costume, also was that fucking Gundam walking around that was like 10 feet with Amuro and Char handlers, if that shit becomes the norm I'm not sure what the fuck is next.>>10895146Ok this is fucking gotta be a troll, here's my (You), the DEALERS room was barren? The Artist Alley with like 26 fucking alleys was small? A-kon, the 3rd/4th largest anime con in TX still had like 4 fucking alleys of artists and 6 of vendors. Panels you might be somewhat right about, but the corporation con that has fucking 2000 dollar gunplas is probably lacking in shit to buy.
>>10895149not lacking in shit to buy, rather, fuck
>>10895141>>10895145Oh man, those pictures look amazingI definitely look forward to what crazy shit I can come up with next, I’m eyeing a better weapon and maybe an Elias so I’ve got something a little less demanding>>10895149Gundam man is my hero, I’m a bit disappointed I wasn’t able to find him on my fully armored day, but I got a pic with him later in my drip-wear
>>10895153Also forgot to add, but he was out there all 3 days at some point or another, that was crazy dedication
>>10895149I wish I got a better picture but I didn't have my 17mm lens and main camera on me so I didn't bother trying.
>>10895149animefest has an entire floor dedicated for artist alley, several panel rooms and the dealers room has more booths AF's booths were so absurdly large and most of the floor was covered by advertisements or official companies booths
>>10895167AnimeFest. Really? I have been to AnimeFest, and unless it grew from the Plaza of the America's place, it was as you said an entire floor - which yes, is good for artist alley - bonus points, I agree, ESPECIALLY for ARTISTS, is that its free - or was last I went - to go to the artiest alley floor. However the vendor hall was small and only had like 4 alleys. The walls were usually just cons advertising themselves. I didn't go this year but I have went to Animefest before. Also yeah they had a lot of space and were funded by those booths, but they also sold official merch. Blue Lock, Gundam, Crunchy Roll, etc. Depends on what you wanted out of it. But I got what I wanted.
>>10895158
>>10895153I also was dressed up on the weekend, so I respect the hell out of you drilling yourself into your costume, also that someone else on CGL actually fucking cosplays. Did you win anything btw? I bailed at intermission because I was taken in by the promise of meme shuttle.
>>10895065I was Dark Link>>10895092This guy was really cool, was fun exchanging notes my man.I think EVA would treat you well my man, let me know if you're in or around Dallas and I'd love to show you a thing or two.
>>10895172Thanks, pretty funny to hear the meme shuttle claiming another victim. I didn’t win anything, the guys got first place beginner and I honestly don’t remember who got runner up (I still had my helmet on at the time)I’ve got a good idea of what I need to work on, hopefully I can make it competitive in beginner without doing rebuilds.>>10895181I’m heading back to Louisiana, but I’ll shoot you a message when I’m around again.Also forgot to tell you, but I was a little unsure of the makeup when I saw you in the green room, but that shit looked PERFECT onstage
I guess I'll pay a visit to next years Afront.
>>10895167AFest 2024 is moving to a new hotel. They may move all of that into room requiring a badge for access. The cheap fucks who only go to AFest AA and get cosplay photos will have to cry more if they end up doing that. Frontier has a much MUCH bigger dealer room than AFest with official merch imported in. No one of the 50 cons in DFW Texas can claim that.However, that's all that they have with a few official panels. I was done after a half day of shopping.
>>10895181This was the only picture I got that was salvageable unfortunately. I really enjoyed your stage presence.
>>10895181>>10895255This is the only other picture I got that wasn't completely terrible.
>>10895214Yeah that's kind of my problem with Anime Frontier. It's a shopping con, and with how strong the dollar is compared to the yen, it wouldn't have been worth it for me at all if not for meeting up with friends. I think A-Kon's artist alley was significantly smaller but the quality was better, though. There was a lot of trash in Anime Frontier where I felt like I was constantly shopping in the Artist Alley at A-Kon.
>>10895255>>10895259Thanks a bunch!!!Yeah a lot of folks commented on stage presence and I was so glad I managed to capture it. I wanted to do it sincerely.Thanks for the pictures anon!>>10895280These are some pretty solid critiques of the con in general, but I noticed when volunteering last year that a lot of the people getting actively involved with the con had more to do and got more enjoyment out of it. Besides the other anon in the contest, one of my friends ran an AA booth, two were "cosplay ambassadors", another was in the idol performance, and yet another ran a panel, and all of us really enjoyed this con because of it (it could be very stressful of course).Forex bullshit adds another layer of complexity that I can't fault you for, and more active participation in con functions is a personal decision, but you may consider that and/or volunteering to get more out of it.I know that regardless of panel content, there were a LOT of people here, and I counted just getting accepted into the cosplay contest a small victory. I hope to see you around at other cons anon.
To bring life back into this thread, I got a few random questions for the CGLs here1. Think Ikkicon will be half as good now that it is in late Jan? It was a party con and late Jan feels like the time when things go back to normal.2. Do you think Animefest's location is better or worse? 3. Do you think A-kon will do anything about their size issue?4. What do you think the best con in Texas is now? Opinions only.
>>108956221. Great location. Not sure about anything else. They've been slow on releasing info.2. It's a good location, but people will find nothing surrounding it except costly restaurants. Parking is going to be pricey. A lot of things that people took for granted about AFest, like free AA, are probably going to disappear. The broke ass people are going to be pissed.3. They can't do anything. Fan Expo will make sure they stay in a perma fucked spot.4. AF and SJ have taken the crown for 2023 top TX cons.
>>10895625>4. AF and SJ have taken the crown for 2023 top TX cons.The hell they have.The top cons currently is Anime Matsuri, ColossalCon, and the recent new Weebcon. All three have great venues and great turnouts.
>>10895778>Anime Matsuri, ColossalCon>great turnoutsUh-huh
>>10895785Yes they do. I've went every year for the past five years and it keeps getting more people. Even during the covid years. If anything, it has grown since.
>>10895811Believe whatever you want about AM. However AM wouldn't want it shown to the public that they've dropped by nearly 10000 people since 2021. This is according to official city reports pulled by anons.
>>10895282The panels this year were weird. They turned down some of my friends fun gameshow and vocaloid panels but allowed me to broadcast guro on a big screen for a panel lmfao
>>10895778My guy, colossalcon is fun but their attendance is a couple thousand at best.
>>10895827Might have been more of a variety thing, since there were several gameshow panels and at least a few vocaloid things
>>10895778lol, lmao even>>10895785Heard Weebcon had a pretty packed afterparty - negatively, because you could barely move from what I heard.
>>10895847They had a vocaloid trivia on the music stage, but that’s it. I’m also biased as I myself do more informative/presentation panels and enjoy attending those as well.
Less than a month before Ikkicon. Anyone care?
>>10897084I'd care if they'd ever respond to their fucking emails. No word back on panel submissions, and no invoice emails sent to artists yet
>>10897108They claim it's new people due to no one responding. Are we sure it isn't no people?
>>10897325I know there's at least 3 people on staff but they need to get it together and start working. Ikkicon has been shit since 2020.
>>10897388Eh, I thought the last one was fine, it's the ones that were held downtown this decade that were its own special dumpster fires. Anyways, planning for this upcoming one reeks of mismanagement so far, but at least they're not at Ohayocon levels of it, YET!
anyone have anything about Kawacon or Ushicon? i've never heard of either of them, and Kawacon is only 2 days.
>>10897982kawacon was really fun last year. it was obviously a smaller con but had a surprisingly good turnout. since they rented out one of the halls in the back of the HBG center, they had a lot of space to work with for vendors and panels, and they made good use of it. i remember they had a weirdly stringent bag check though.
>>108956221. ikki is fucked. you can't run a con with staffers that can't bother to respond to a single email three weeks out. crazy how they've been running this shit for seventeen years and still can't get it together. 2. kind of fun that it's right next to six flags, but the new location makes everything considerably more expensive.3. lol no. honestly not sure if i want to go this year. panels are my main draw, and they just don't have the space to hold an interesting variety. that, and i'm still waiting for some final destination shit to happen on the escalators, and i don't want to be there when it does. 4. SJ by far, despite the management issues. CCTX is second, which shows how sad the texas con scene is currently. for the state with the most conventions in the US, why does not a single one compare to other big US cons like otakon, aboston, AWA, katsu?
>>10897982I went to Kawa for the first time last year and had a pretty good time! It really feels like a mini San Japan since it uses the old parts of that same convention center. I'm looking forward to attending again this year and competing in their cosplay contest.
Well I was certainly disappointed to look at the "official" pictures from Anime Frontier's cosplay contest while trying to send pictures via Instagram to the contestants. Though I was a month late so that's why the guy got paid and I'm just some anon with a camera. I'm looking forward to standing in the back of Ikkicon doing photography of that cosplay contest in the next few weeks. Hopefully I can build a good enough portfolio to get a staff badge so I don't have to use a 500mm lens to get pictures.
dfw cons gonna get bitch slapped for 2024
Excited to go to Ikkicon. I live right behind the Kalahari and haven't been to Ikkicon ever since they had it at the old location back in 2018-19 Hopefully it doesn't suck, has anyone here gone to the last ikkicon in round rock? if so how did yall like it
>>10898943Sorry anon, it's going to suck
>>10898943i went last year and it was fine? weirdly laid out and the panels were kind of boring but i had a good time. the kalahari is a good venue. i just wish ikki wasn't so chronically understaffed.here's last year's threadhttps://desuarchive.org/cgl/thread/10831028
>>108956221) Don't know, haven't been there, looks like I have about two weeks to make it happen if I'm intending to go but things in my life are a bit hectic right now so I'm probably not gonna do any more cons until next month.2) Is it even built yet? It might be better, but I never had a problem with the Sheraton it used to be in. Given their recent attendance records, it doesn't sound like they were having A-Kon's problems at the Sheraton either, I guess the move to this new venue is to downsize instead. I don't live too far away from Arlington so I guess I could go and check it out during the weekend before the con happens.3) They don't really have a choice right now, all they can do is continue to bribe the fire marshal. On the subject of A-Kon, things are starting to look a lot like the events running up to A-Kon 30. I checked their socials just now, and apart from an announcement on Facebook about some event Senpai Squad was doing (which got cancelled according to the comments) they haven't posted any info about anything since last June when they were peddling early bird specials. Typically you'd see at least some info six months before the con happens, and last time that radio silence like this happened was when Franku had to rescue the con.4) Out of the cons I've been to, San Japan, though Weebcon gets an honorable mention for having the only viewing room I've ran across post-covid as well as industry guests I actually care about.
>>10899125>last time that radio silence like this happened was when Franku had to rescue the con.You're close but it's worse. They haven't figured out how to break the news because it's going to cause massive chaos.
>>10899171Well they need to just rip the bandaid off because the longer they wait the worse the response is going to be.
>>10899191It's much bigger than a band-aid that's being ripped off.
>>10899216I mean if it dies, it's already dead to me so what does it matter. NTAYRT btw, just totally done with the terrible location after two years. Like I cannot find one redeeming thing about it
>>10899216Whatever it is that's being ripped off in your cryptic analogy then. My point is that they need to release what's going on and they need to do it now.
>>10899285Be like the many others going on the Discord asking them to post an update while staff shoves their heads in the sand.
Does anyone know who is doing the raves at Ikkicon this year? The guest list looks kinda weak and the panels aren't anything I haven't seen before, but I might still pull up for the rave if they're planning on playing anything interesting.
>>10899742They phoned in everything this year, I can't imagine they got anyone good
Who here at ikki? It's slow as fuck (yes I know it's Thursday)
>>10899813I'll be there tomorrow. I imagine most people are checking in tomorrow afternoon since Friday night has a lot of 18+ panels and a rave. I'm looking forward to the Idol Show and Cosplay Contest so if you see me doing the unofficial photography for those events stop on by and say hello.
>>10899820Sounds good, I'll be around in the tall green baseball cap.
>>10899825Absolutely, I believe I saw you at the NYE rave assuming it was the fish meme hat
>>10899813I live right behind the Kalahari and it was my first time going to ikkicon there. Gotta say the venue is nice I'm mostly looking forward to the 18+ stuff. Just hoping it isn't too cold because swimming sounds like it would be nice too.
>>10899813I'll be there tomorrow, last year was funWill be bumming around in a hecatia shirt
>>10899838Look for a cirno got me a suit and tanned cirno is there a toehoe meet or nah?
>>10899813I'll be driving there tomorrow from SA to display my Itasha.
>>10899851Well, technically in 2 hours I'll start driving there. Didn't realized it's going to be 6:40am already
>>10899826Yup, that would be me. I think there is one other guy with the hat as well, though I haven't run into him
>>10899850I'll keep an eye out, but not a big 2hu place, it's usually just a couple anons that recognize the shirt or even have 2hu stuff around them.Makes it easy to buy CDs and naturally limited 2hu merch I come across at least.
>>10899838Also wearing a 2hu shirt! Look for "Gensokyo Radio" with a digital Miko on the front.
>>10899850Found a cirno, took picture
>>10899918Another cirno cosplayer. Neat
hey gulls, any ikki meetups this year? i won't be there today since i'm not a coomer, but i'm thinking of coming out sat sun
>>10899924Prolly going to do something at one of the bars since handegg is on and it was fucking impossible to watch in korea
>>10899924>>10899927I just there myself. I don't know if I'll be Atomic Samurai or Kenshin for tonight after I get my stuff to my hotel room. I'd be down to meet up and grab drinks before all the interesting panels start up.
>>10899907Yo miko think I saw you
>>10899928I'm at the bar bluxright now just look for cirno going to walk around. Doing maguka tomorrow
>>10899933Do you have a backpack on? I might have passed you
>>10899939Ye got a bunch of foreigners coins to share
Has the yokai night line cleared up? It's so packed I just went to the bar.
>>10899953The 7pm panels haven't started as of 7:20pm...
>>10899216Are we being sentenced to Fair Park again?
>>10899959Nope. Worse.
>>10899965A-Kon 2024 will be held on the site of the now demolished Valley View Mall. You heard it here first, folks. Bring your tents, snacks, and maybe a taser since the area isn't quite what it was back in 1996. Registration will take place where Sears once stood.
>>10899965I heard that A-kon's getting a fire sale of a deal at the Sandman Signature in Fort Worth. They're planning on lighting the place up like never before, and an insider was overheard stating that "a-kon 33's popularity at this venue is going to be explosive"
>>10899813>>10899820I'm >>10899742, how was the rave? I ended up missing the con to do other things, but am still curious.
did ikki suck balls this year? i ended up skipping since the panels were shit.
>>10900442Ikki was a huge bust IMO>some parts of the event hall closed or under constrcution>no rave by the waves(yes I know more a colossalcon thing)>panels were all told wrong times some were suppose to be an hour and nope 30 min only and vice versa>18+ panels were all too safe>mass confusion on where and when photoshoots were>there was a huge mix up on friday and no bars were available on the floor till late at night>DJ was HORRIBLEI feel bad because I don't think the music selection was bad but the sound mixing and balance of treble/bass was straight up fuckedThe vendor hall felt extremely expensive for what was there. I get prices go up, but this was like an extra 20%+tip situation on goods. I guess Kalahari is more expensive but it was a bit shocking even still
>>10900473Ikkicon has never had any programming in the Waterpark. If you wave that you have to go to colossal
Imagine how pissed I was when I saw 90% of the Yokai night vendors were people who already had booths in the artist alley only difference is you didn't have to ask to see their 18+ stuff in a little book. Panels were mid and when I found the otaku rap concert was the best panel I had gone to I just feel like I'm gonna get a 1 day pass next time honestly. Not even mentioning what >>10900473 is saying because they summed it up pretty well.
>>10899993I live right down the street so I see this as an absolute winAlso the neighborhood is fine as long as you don't wander 3 blocks towards 75.
Colossalcon Texas rooms are open.I’m probably hosting another cook out if I get a porch room this year. If you know you know.
>>10900795haha, get scammed loser chan!
>>10900798Woah anon that's very mean you shouldn't talk about another gull that way
>>10900807piss off fun police fuck you
The longer that you wait shows us that you're killing yourself.Get it over with already.
>>10901675This should be the last year of their contract with Irving, right? What's the possible hold up on getting news out? Staff in discord were whining about Fan Expo fucking up the booking of the TMF in the past but I doubt that's a legit issue they're currently having.
>>10901695I'm fairly certain it's not in Irving this year.
Kawacon or Weebcon. Who's going? Who's excited?
>>10901817Weebcon should be fun. Hopefully I can make it down to Kawacon this year. The Riverwalk is always fun to walk around.Also there are a few idol performances today at Asia Times Square in Grand Prarie.
>>10901695Discord people need to give up. Go to weebcon or afest or fan expo if you're not willing to travel.
>>10901817I'll be going to weebcon
>>10900286lmao>>10901695>What's the possible hold up on getting news out?They're probably scrambling to find new owners for the con, the last time that people had to wait this long for con news was during the run-up to the A-Kon at Fair Park. Except that time we ended up getting some news in December, I think this year they waited too long at this point and we might not get an A-Kon this year at all.>>10901817>>10901851I had a good time at Weebcon last year, but there were definitely periods when I ran out of stuff to do there. But I think that's because it's a new con, hopefully this year there will be more stuff to do there. The Gaylord is also a very nice venue to hang out at in general no matter the convention.
>>10901958>we might not get an A-Kon this year at all.
>>10901695>What's the possible hold up on getting news out?Reasons (not good ones) a con puts off announcing until REAAAALLY late in the season1) they still owe the venue from the previous year (and this year) money and they have to pay that back before the venue will let them ink the deal (even if they're holding dates). Remember, in hotel contracts, the hotel can back out for any reason without a fine, but the con can't.2) they don't want to announce that they don't know what they're gonna do, so they're waiting until a plan. If that plan is moving locations, or dates, or cancelling, or selling, it doesn't matter. They don't want to say something early and then ruin the deal or look EXTRA bad if it doesn't happen that way3) they're listening to idiots about how to break bad news to the public, and are obsessed with finding "the right time" Protip, it was 3 months ago.
Anyone going to Anime Sunika in a couple weeks weeks? Trying to decide if it's worth the 2hr drive from Dallas.
>>10902033Forgot image
>>10902033It's like an hour for me so I'm daytripping it Saturday. It's cheap enough to just check out, plus they're really selling the food festival for me.
>>10901675crazy disappointed in akon for fucking up. used to volunteer and have fun for years until it left the sheraton. did one time at the anatole and never again. fair park was so fucking stupid, i left and got my money back. cannot wait to to check out weebcon
>>10902107This is probably a bot post I'm replying to here, but it made me remember how the final A-Kon at the FWCC was (despite me endlessly shitting on A-Kon before and after it was hosted there) one of the best con experiences I've ever had. Back then I was a panelfag, and A-Kon 29's panel schedule was so strong that I was able to go to panels I was interested in back-to-back all of day 1 from the con opening until midnight to where I didn't even go into the dealer room until day 2. Then day 2 rolled around and I spent three to four hours straight just wandering around in the dealer room while listening to music, which I guess isn't that special but it was the first and last time I was able to have a comfy experience like that for that long (usually I run into people I know and get sidetracked, but here I just had an uninterrupted 3+ hours all to myself to chill).The FWCC was just the perfect venue for A-Kon, A-Kon's usual issues with rooms filling up too quickly didn't happen all that much there, at least with the panels I went to. It sucks that things changed so much after that convention to where such a comfy time can't be replicated again, especially with A-Kon in particular.
>>10902170A-Kon probably would've still been at the FWCC if upper management didn't royally fuck it up. After nearly 30 years, you'd think someone would know how to spot terribly written contracts.Anime Frontier didn't make those same mistakes.
>>10902178I am just happy one con is using FWCC, I just in general like the convention. Frontier actually fixed most of their problems from year 1/2 too, more panels and more events.Just didn't like the Jpop avenue right on top of the up escalator.
>>10902178I remember hearing something about that, but I forgot the details. They made them pay some ridiculous amount to host there or something, right?>>10902188Might check them out this year if they announce something that catches my eye. I've looked at their schedules over the past two years and didn't see anything interesting, but this year might be different.
>>10902200This is correct. They lost over a million dollars due to this. It's why they had to sell the con to new owners.
Anyone heard of this animeverse fest in houston this weekend?
>>10902211I'm local to Houston and heard about it. It just sounds like a glorified dealer's hall with some voice actors scattered around.
>>10902261That's exactly what it is.
>>10901675Looks like the most recent "update" was a few days before your post, so I guess there are at least signs of life
>>10902326They've been saying the same broken record on Discord for 3 weeks. They don't want to admit the truth.
I have a room with an extra ticket for Colossalcon Texas. I don't plan on going with anyone so I'm open to sharing the room.
How about tell us the fucking truth A-Kon. 4 weeks so far of stalling. Now you're saying give us a couple more days on discord.
>>10902616Anon, have you played silent hill 2? If so I think you know how this one ends.
>>10902626It's the god damn dog this whole time.
>>10902616It's dead.
>>10902978https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9cPxh2DikIA
>>10902978How did they not have enough funding anyway, they sold a shit ton of passes last year, plus I thought they had the ICC for another year?
A-Kon is... tumbling down, tumbling down, tumbling down...
>>10902982They can be voided.
>>10902992NTAYRT but seriously though how did Firehazard con, which overstuffed every single event and panel and understaffed the artist alley NOT have enough fucking funding?
>>10903000Uncle Frank probably got fed up that they weren't making him a million dollars in profit yearly.
>>10903004God I hope AFest isn't shit this year. At least Anime Frontier is if nothing else dependable. I'll take a convention that isn't consistently a trashfire over whatever the fuck Akon was for the last 5 years. I'm talking about in DFW.
>>10903004AFAIK, Frank hasn't been steering the ship for a while now. What I heard is that he sold A-Kon to someone else back when the A-Kon at the KBH center was cancelled due to covid, but that information might be wrong.>>10903048The new convention center they'll host AFest at looks nice from a distance, I haven't been inside it though.
>>10903004Try making any profit. A-kon can't budget worth shit and they've been terrible at it for a while. It's why Frank had to get involved in the first place.
How does San Japan usually do their hotels? I'm planning to get a hotel for San Japan this year (usually I have people to room with, but I'm doing things a bit differently this time), but I don't know if they do them on a lottery system like MAGFest or they just say when booking is available and it's on a first come first serve basis.
>>10903221First come first serve, but they have 2-3 hotels in the block normally. There are a ton there so it's not like you won't find one unless you wait until the last minute. Though if you do it won't be part of the hotel event block.
Are there any other Louisiana homies lurking around or is it just me?
>>10890867I haven't been to Oni-con since 2014 when I was still going to TAMUG. It was kinda nice though.
>>10884162It's got no soul. Corporate Sony / Crunchyroll decision making. You won't find very much that is actually popular...you'll only find whatever crunchy WANTS (needs) to MAKE popular. It's gonna be your "flavor of the month" anime slop because that's what is safe and profitable to promote. I'll always prefer cons like San Japan or Anime Matsuri because they are run by people and fans, not companies.
>>10886699That and online culture is shifting. More and more heinous shit is happening every day, and online shit talkers keep doubling, tripling, quadrupleing down and shoving their laughable "moral superiority" in everyone's faces so much that most normal folks just got tired of it and decided >Fuck it, I'll just enjoy what I want. To hell with the perpetually online morality police.Life really is too short to let screen names and anons control what you enjoy.
>>10902982Apparently a shit ton of passes does not an anime convention make. Personally, I believe where Akon messed up is not getting the city of Dallas involved. Plenty of other conventions get perks from their host citys (because of how much tax revenue they bring in)Like, Matsuri hasn't paid full rent for the GRB in ages because the city pretty much relies on the tax revenue they bring in every year. AM is basically unofficially earmarked in the city of Houston's budget at this point. Parking, hotels, restaurants... It's not just the passes. All of that is extremely valuable to the city, and I'm assuming AM did the math and showed the city just how much value they're bringing in. The mayor's office is never going to let that event die. The funny thing is, the city has its own event called "comicpalooza" and it's so poorly run it just cannot compete with AM. Comicpalooza is being run by a panel of boomers who have no idea what is actually popular. They will just throw hundreds of thousands of dollars at some marvel actor and call it a day. To them, it's just a job. The people running that Event are just cogs in the bureaucratic regime, so to speak. On top of that, being officially ran by the city means they have to stay squeaky clean (reputation wise) while AM does not.AM on the other hand is ran by a bunch of volunteers and weebs who actually care.. and it's run by management to does not have any moral qualms with taking advantage of that passion for free labor. On top of that, AMs management has absolutely no issues with using underhanded practices to stay profitable. It's no question why Akon failed and AM is thriving (it is, cope harder) one tried to do it all on their own and completely squeaky clean...and the other doesn't mind taking handouts and ghosting on bills if a contract isn't 100% rock solid...IE. one is ran like an actual American business, lol.
>>10904158So the HoustonFirst reports from 2021 to 2023 showing that AM has dropped in attendance by over 10,000 people are full of lies? It's good that AM doesn't pay their bills, as they'd be bankrupt too.I wonder what AM and the City of Houston will report in 2024 on social media because no one believes them anymore on their numbers. One look at actual cons with actually truthful numbers are night and day in comparison.
>>10904172Like Akon?Oh wait...
>>10904172AM staff sure are quiet on facts. We got the cry harder AM defender still shitting things up. They don't want to see their precious con die off.
>>10904215>AM is gonna die off...for realz this time!!Lol. Same ol same ol since like...2014? Keep saying it every single year, maybe you'll be right eventually. I'll keep going and having a good time with my friends at AM, you can go and enjoy your cons too! (when they aren't dying ACTUALLY dying off...like Akon Kek.)
>>10904052I haven't been to Anime Frontier yet, but I appreciate its existence because now cons like San Japan don't have "The Industry" clogging up the panel schedule or space in dealer halls. Sucks that most cons lost their viewing rooms as a result, a bunch of my con memories over the years have been with viewing room shenanigans.
>>10904219Like you have good tea that they're in good standing. The current tea leaves look quite wilted.
>>10904267They still exist...for starters
>>10904255Why don't cons do viewing rooms any more? I remember watching Shin vs Neo Getter at AWA with other /m/ dorks about a decade ago.
>>10904484Because no one shows up, or shitstains use it as a sleeping room because they spent all their money on big titty body pillows
>>10904489Is a sleeping room such an awful thing to have though? I'd rather relax in a nice calm screening room than in a random hallway of the venue. I'm sure most other congoers would agree too. Plus it helps with the clutter when you don't have random bodies strewn about the venue lol.
>>10904484>>10904489>>10904514*Cough*
>>10904484The way I understood it (and I might be wrong), cons within the past 10 years depend on licensing from CR/Funimation to do viewing rooms, and now that CR decided they're only officially supporting Anime Frontier (as far as Texas goes) everyone else's licensing got cut. The amount of anime being sold at cons has decreased a bunch too, post-covid I'd usually only see maybe two booths have anime, most of it backstock with ADV logos on it, whereas before there would be enough booths to where you could shop around for better deals for the discs you want.Having said all that, Weebcon still managed to have a viewing room post-covid, albeit it was not a proper one but just anime being played in the mess hall that overcharged for low quality pizza. I feel like theirs might have been unlicensed though, so I'm probably being a narc by posting this reply.
>>10904667CR is brutal when it comes to sublicenses.... AM wanted a viewing room so bad they licenced their own anime straight from Japan....they even made the dubs themselves. Only a couple of their dubs got distributed but that was never the plan if I recall. It was just about having programming for the event....that being said, given their reputation I'm surprised they went through the effort. They strike me as the "Just get a projector and a Netflix account" kinda con. I doubt anyone would have noticed or cared about them not having the screening rights. They did something the legitimate way (for once)
It's a shame about the attendance this year at Kawacon. There really isn't anything too wrong with the con but the amount of people who showed up compared to San Japan at the same venue. Hopefully it gets more popular next year.Weebcon is looking to be a decent draw for off season.
>>10904667That mess hall was pretty nice
>>10904718You're comparing an 800lb gorilla with a new kid on the block. You can't expect a third-year show to be able to come close to matching San Japan.
>>10904667>The way I understood it (and I might be wrong), cons within the past 10 years depend on licensing from CR/Funimation to do viewing roomsThat's not it at all. Considering that Funimation is a sponsor of many Texas cons, licensing isn't the issue. And even if it was, viewings at a convention aren't considered public since you need a badge (membership) to enter. Anything you could legally watch at home can be shown at a convention. It's the same reason you can buy fanart in AA of unlicensed IPs but can't sell the same thing online.>>10904489>Because no one shows up, or shitstains use it as a sleeping room because they spent all their money on big titty body pillowsThis is the correct answer. The biggest cost for cons is the venue so venue space is at a premium. Plus you need staff to watch after the equipment, which is wasted manpower. If you could use the room for things people actually would attend then there's no reason to waste it on a video room no one is in.>>10904514>Is a sleeping room such an awful thing to have though?Yes. Not so much for the convention but for the venue. Convention centers have partnerships with surrounding hotels and in some cases the venue is a hotel. What do hotels sell? Rooms to sleep in.
>>10904751Are you insinuating that conventions don't have viewing rooms because the surrounding hotels are pressuring them not to so that people will be forced to spend hundreds of dollars for a place to rest their tired feet for a couple hours?I'm not buying it. It's more likely a licensing thing. These conventions don't want to risk getting in trouble with CR or these Japanese companies because that's their bread and butter.If anything, the convention wants people to have more money so they will spend it at the convention, not on some hotel room.
>>10904790>Are you insinuating that conventions don't have viewing rooms because the surrounding hotels are pressuring them not to so that people will be forced to spend hundreds of dollars for a place to rest their tired feet for a couple hours?Everything in America is run by corporate greed. Consider that most cons struggle to run in the black while relying on unpaid volunteers to make the thing go. The venues on the other hand are in the business of making money.>I'm not buying it. It's more likely a licensing thing. These conventions don't want to risk getting in trouble with CR or these Japanese companies because that's their bread and butter.If it was a licensing thing, Artist Alley wouldn't exist. Do you think that doesn't pull money away from the vendor hall who are selling officially licensed products? And why do you think AA vendors don't sell online?>If anything, the convention wants people to have more money so they will spend it at the convention, not on some hotel room.What at a convention do you spend money on that actually goes to the convention? Food vendors, Artist Alley and Vendor Halls all go to the providers, not the convention itself.Running a con is a tricky business that doesn't make money. You have to keep everyone involved happy and that includes the venue. Many venues don't like anime conventions because they view the attendees as troublemakers. They would rather host a corporate event of adult professionals. Some con runners view vendor halls and Artist Alley as a necessary evil of events because those people are there to make money at an event that struggles to stay in the black and requires a lot of resources to run.
>>10904823It's pointless to try to make sense. These are the fuckheads who think their badge purchase means they should have whatever the fuck they want.
>>10904790Cons don't do viewing rooms anymore because there's no need or demand. Viewing rooms were implemented back when the only way to watch anime was to trade bootleg fansub vhs through the mail. Everyone can watch just about anything on their own time now easily. Access isn't a hurdle so there's no demand.
>>10904489>>10904832Is there a reason for the irrelevant non sequiturs, or are you just a woman?
>>10904875>irrelevant non sequitursStay pissy. If you hate cons cutting it all then throw your own viewing room at a con. You can see how it feels when strangers shit your space instead of respecting it.
>>10904823You absolutely need a PPR (public performance rights ) licence to exhibit any copyrighted motion picture outside of the home. There are entire organizations that exist purely to facilitate such licencing. https://us.mplc.com/choose-country-region/https://www.criterionpicusa.com/Here's some more info: https://guides.lndlibrary.org/copyright/pprThere's some small exceptions (like for educational purposes in colleges etc.) but a private event like a convention would absolutely be subject to PPR licensing.Artist Alley shouldn't exist legally, and any of these companies can sue any of these artists at any point in time, there's just no point doing so because artists are poor and there's no money to extract from them.
>>10904871i could bring my old tapes if that would be more authentic
If you want a viewing room, bring your laptop and watch it in the room. You go to conventions to socialize, not to do what you can do at home you autistic retards.
>>10905626>You go to conventions to socializeThis confuses and enrages the zoomer>Look at footage of con "rave" that happened just last night>Everyone standing in place and also filmingYep.
>>10905627Tbf, with all the me too and "no consent" shit going on, I can understand why most boys and men don't want to talk to the opposite sex. Doubly so if the women are grouped together or have male protectors. At the same time, a lot of nerds have poor hygiene and cant hold a conversation to save their lives. A chicken and egg problem if I ever saw one.
>>10905627>Look at footage of con "rave" that happened just last night>Everyone standing in place and also filmingThat just means that no one wanted to dance because the DJ sucked
Whats the party hotel for San Japan?
>>10906227Riverwalk
>>10906238ok fair
Weebcon in a week.
>>10907091in 3 days
>>10907211In lurking on the Discord it sounds like it's going to be a disaster.
>>10907299why?
>>10907299Welp it's about to be my first con... it's over
>>10907313The app is broken AF. Nobody is getting information. There are 200 guests and nothing else to do except for the rave. Everything screams like it's a comic con with a shade of sort of being an animecon. I bet this is once again funkopopcon.
>>10907334Ive been a little worried about that, too. They're announcing all these guests but what events are actually happening.
>>10907334The app works for me I can see the schedule. I haven't seen anyone complaining about that.
>>10907391Are on iPhone or android? The vast complaints are coming through Android people.
>>10907478I'm on Android. The people complaining might be on older versions.
How do you guys feel about Animefest?
>>10907552cautiously excited? I went once 7 or 8 years ago and finally managed to convince friends to try it out. The new venue looks *nice*.I wish their website was more informative though. I'm interested in competing in their cosplay contest but there's no info about it at all on the site. The discord also doesn't seem very active.
>>10906238NTA but I'm looking at the hotels now, it says your Riverwalk reservation doesn't come with Wi-Fi included, so I guess everyone just gets bored there and starts leaving their rooms to party lol. It's been a while since I've reserved a hotel for a con, how do they make sure that you're attending the con when you make your reservation? Or is it on a "dude, trust me" basis? I see the link for it on San Japan's website, so I guess they just have to trust that anyone reserving from there is a con goer.>>10907334They're using Fan Guru, which is the garbage A-Kon was using during the first ICC con when everyone ended up passing around a PDF of the schedule to each other over Discord. I'm completely not surprised it's not working lmao, but at least the panel schedule is on the Weebcon website so they're already doing better than having to know a guy who knows a guy who has the PDF of the con schedule.>Everything screams like it's a comic con with a shade of sort of being an animeconThat's basically what it was last year. I kept making the joke that the only way A-Kon can get me to come back is if they get someone like Dan Green to do a panel there, but he ended up at Weebcon instead so that's where I saw him. It was the first convention I've been to where I mainly went to see western VA's, since they brought people I actually recognized. This year they will have the cast of RWBY, so it'll be funny to see what they'll have to say about their company disintegrating between the time when the panel was planned and when the panel actually happens.>>10907552They never recovered after FLOW, but I'm using going there as my excuse to check out Arlington's new convention center.
The Gaylord is already telling pro photogs to get fucked. Costhots are about to be really pissed off.
The parking is a disaster right now at Weebcon forcing everyone to park a mile away and walk or bus their way to the Gaylord. Even worse is the badge pickup line which is about a thousand person long.
>>10907735I saw that earlier and just went back to my room to get a nap in lmao. Hopefully it gets better
>>10907735Wow, just like last year lol>>10907718Are they not letting people in with professional equipment or something? Kinda lame if true, not letting people do /cgl/ things at the /cgl/ event.
Badge pickup was ass. Met some cool people while waiting tho.It y'all see a chainsaw man that's me. Say hi
>>10907718>>10907756Essentially you have to pay $1,700 for a photo pass from Gaylord to bring in flashes or light strobes. You're fine with a "professional" camera so just don't shoot in the dark.
>>10907767That's understandable then. When I went last year, I remember there being a cosplay shoot containment zone near one of the auditoriums, so I guess people who want to be sweaty about their photos can go there (assuming there's one again this year, I'm planning to only attend tomorrow so I don't know what's at the con yet)
>>10907778After talking with some other photographers, apparently you can bring "professional" gear into the convention center but not the Gaylor Attrium. IE you can use the awesome sets with gear but not the beautiful landscape of the attrium.
>>10907735Great! Some of you fatties could use a walk
Is Weebcon selling passes at the door, or are pass purchases online-only? It says online that the Saturday passes are sold out, and I don't feel like messing around with their horrible parking only to find out that I can't buy a pass on-site
Stay home. Parking lots are closed. They aren't selling day passes onsite
Gaylord management hates weeaboos it sounds like.
>>10907823Hello, based department?!
I was really annoyed by how Weebcon didn't have any water at the venue this year. Last year they had water dispensers in a bunch of places, but this year they didn't have anything. Part of the reason why I went home early was because I didn't want to buy their overpriced water bottles>>10907839I took a Lyft to get there because I remembered how bad the parking situation was last year, I ended up getting out once we got to the gate before the bridge because it was faster to just walk from that point lol
>>10907896Saw this on insta earlier and was then told that apparently the lack of free water forced attendees into corralling around the gamersupps/drink mix booths for free samples. What the hell is going on at weebcon
Yeah, I think I might just stop going to cons
>>10907913People ruining it as normal. Oh also that same person on IG was trying to do a skit but the Weebcon staff apparently forgot to mention there was a step other than showing up so whoops!
>>10907913Gamersupps aren't even here. What a retard.
>>10907341The guests ARE the event.
Gaylord shut this shit down early.
>>10908003Was there just no one there today or something? I almost showed up again today (would have probably gone to the CSM and car meetups) but ended up doing other things
>>10908017There's still about a few thousand today but most people left at checkout. Yesterday we got booted from the attrium at 2am but we partied in the convention center and random bathroom until 4am. Overall I think the Gaylord were relatively patient with our tomfoolery.
>>10908018It was screaming people until 4 am on Friday in the atrium. That's when they finally realized that security can tell them to fucking quit it.
Man that was ass. Did some fun meet and greets for an hour or two Sat and everything else was lame. Also, why do furries and western cartoon people go to a con called "weebcon"
How many danganronpa cosplayers were there over the whole weekend that weren’t like, underage tiktokers. I want to cosplay some dangans but I’m not gonna do it if there’ll be no one to see it, you know?
im so glad i didn't waste the time or money to go to weebcon this year. last year was a fucking disaster and it seems like everyone was very quick to forget about that.i had some friends go and have been reading the discord and this con seems like a straight up dumpster fire.its very clear that they put all their budget and effort into having as many guests as possible and just ignore everything else.sorry to everyone who went, hope you guys learned your lesson and don't make the same mistake next year!
>>10908060I feel like there were only a few, but I've also never played Dangit Grandpa so I don't know what the characters look like beyond Junko since she was the one that was spammed everywhere the most back in the day. There was a fuckton of Chainsawman and what I think was Genshin Impact (haven't played that either).
>>10908066I didn't think it was a dumpster fire, but I did think it was mid. But my bar for being a dumpster fire is also A-Kon 2022, so just having a con where I'm able to breathe and move around freely without being trapped in a fire hazard already makes it an okay con to me.
>>10908067Thanks anon-Yeah there’s always a few Junkos. I’ve cosplayed some of the less popular danganronpa characters and had like, even other people in danganronpa cosplay take a second to realize that we’re cosplaying the same series, which is pretty disheartening.I didn’t get to go to any cons in 2023, but that sounds about right: in 2022 it was Bisque Doll, Genshin, and CSM. Basically just Power/Denji/Makima though.In 2019 when I went to CRX there was like, an entire meetup for danganronpa, same with the con I went to in early 2020, then post covid it’s like boom, nothing. Which sucks :/
>>10908068what was AKON 30 to you then at Fair Park?
>>10908087I didn't go to that one, based on what I've heard that one was also a dumpster fire
>>10908060I saw a couple Danganronpa characters. As to whether they were underage tiktokers, idk.
>>10908089Fair. I did, nothing will beat 9 panel rooms in a single building separated by curtains.
Weebcon has turned into A-Kon 2.0
>>10908223Someone needs to repost the photo of the melted Ritsuko that was in someone's locker lmao
What do you guys think about Kimochiicon/Waifu Expo?
Wow weebcon was a messHopefully Nishi is betterAnyone going to Dreamhack? I'm going to try and do the contest again
>>10909014Honestly no clue but I might be volunteering for it, depending.
Not exactly a con, but does anyone here have any experience with Club Kaiju events?
>>10909278Dallasfag here, I think they're alright. I had to miss Mogra's performance at San Japan last year because one of my buddies wasn't feeling good so we went back to his apartment the night of the rave, so it was a pleasant surprise when one of the Mogra DJ's from that rave I missed showed up at the Green Elephant because of Club Kaiju. They brought Teddyloid to the Green Elephant too several years ago, and because it's a dubstep-centric venue he was basically allowed to play whatever he wanted, which made for a good time. Club Kaiju is able to get really interesting guests to play at their raves, but their "in-house" talent is hit or miss. At their recent "Pokemon" rave at Spa Castle (the Pokemon theme was very loose) they had this one hardstyle DJ who was really good, but the rest of the crew that showed up were meh and you could tell the crowd wasn't feeling them at all.
>>10909278I've been to most of their events. DJs are either 10/10 or mid depending on who's playing. No matter what, there will still be at least 50% of guests in cosplay/costumes/ravewear. I usually listen and dance to the good DJs and go outside to the smoking area to chat up people when the dance floor vibes are boring. Like all nerd events, you get out what you put in. Showing up in streetwear and making solid eyecontact with the floor the whole time leads to a bad time. Showing up with friends and cosplaying while trying to make new friends leads you to having a good time.
>>10909067Not going to Dreamhack but have you been to Nishi before? What kind of vibe does it have?
>Non insane project moon fansI kneel Texas
>>10909802NAYRT but what I've seen about Nishi implies coomercon, with the majority of their guests being onlyfans thots, despite allegedly being a family-friendly convention.The bio for one of their guests mentions that she *just* started making her own cosplays this year after being into it for the past two years??? Girl chase that dollar, but goddamn nishicon have some standardsBut if it's what sells badges I guess ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
>>10909067>Anyone going to Dreamhack?I am, I don't have plans to cosplay though.
>>10910174i know the rabbit but what even is the guy on the left, just some random nugget?
After experiencing volunteering at the shitshow that was AX 2023 and returning to HTX I just wonder why the GRB couldn't be the new home to Anime Expo. The GRBCC is almost 2mil square feet while LACC has a wimpy 720,000 square footage. AM and Comicpalooza actually run a whole lot smoother despite people's personal opinions about the two. I have volunteered both of those conventions and I haven't experienced any horrors at those cons like I did at AX. Except for the select few creeps who were kicked out and I had an attendee who tried to kiss me when I was working the parking lot during AM.
>>10911077AM could have been AX Part Deux if it wasn't straight up due to the Leighs. They have the right venue, could support 100k people, with direct flights from Japan.John got caught being a creep. They were exposed to dodge bills unless they were sued. The guests were treated like garbage. Word for around to stay the hell away.If the Leighs were removed to have a professional team put in to run it like an expo then they could be viable place to replace AX.
