Amacfa 0 Posted August 10, 2008 Report Share Posted August 10, 2008 I was a very light Anime watcher. I used to watch watch some Dragon Ball Z, Utena, Evangelion, and Cowboy Bepop in the past, but not so much currently. I was actually visiting Baltimore for the summer to visit some relatives, relatives who had told me a while back that 'Otakon', an anime convention would be taken place in Baltimore, at the time (yes, I'm sorry) I really didn't think much of it since I was not into anime as I once was. But that was going to change... I had been really bored lately, and my in-laws had headed out of town for a reunion so I was all alone in my house. I eventually decided to attend Otakon and got their at around 11pm thursday, and waited in line for about nine hours until the doors opened at 8:15. Just the fact that I had waited overnight in a line was a first for me. The aura of being around other geeks was just so cool, and I ended up meeting new people and talking about a wide variety of things. There were a lot of different funny things that had happened while we waited, for example, some guy had brought a torch and began spitting fire out of his mouth, which was amusing. Another thing was at 4am when we raided the poor empty 7-11 for energy drinks and food. Lastly, just hearing the general stories people told was very fun too. As you can see I had a lot of fun in line, and I was not even in Otakon yet! To be brief, I'm just going to list the awesome stuff I experienced at Otakon. -Panels (Q&A with dubbers, hilarious comedy show, learning to be a ninja) -Video rooms (Got addicted to two shows I've never seen) -Costumes (These people who dressed up are what make Otakon so great) -Gaming room (The first large scale LAN I've ever been to) -Otakurave (The first larges scale dance and rave I've been to) -Badges ( Kick ass badges ) All the above combined contributed to become one of the best experiences I've ever had. Otakon was the first convention I've ever been to, and you guys did an amazing job. Now, I want to attend more! It does not need to be specific to Anime, but what conventions are coming up this fall? Link to post Share on other sites
dhampir-chan 0 Posted August 10, 2008 Report Share Posted August 10, 2008 There is a much smaller convention in Norfolk, VA called Nekocon. It has about 2,500 people, which is about one tenth of the size of Otakon, but it is just as great for different reasons. Everything is much smaller, but not too small. The lines are very bearable, and what I love most about it is the "small town" feel of it. It's really a great place to make friends. I recommend Nekocon to everyone who enjoyed Otakon~! November 7-9 Hampton Rhodes Convention Center www.Nekocon.com Link to post Share on other sites
SoraVII 0 Posted August 10, 2008 Report Share Posted August 10, 2008 I'm glad you enjoyed yourself and had an awesome time, I remember my first year, it was unlike anything I had ever experienced. Ha so that of course means you will be there next year, riiiiiight? ;D Link to post Share on other sites
eepberries 0 Posted August 10, 2008 Report Share Posted August 10, 2008 (edited) It usually alot better if you either have friends to go with or are very good at making friends with random people. There were ALOT of good shows playing this year which really helped as well, even if they weren't that new. Edited August 10, 2008 by eepberries Link to post Share on other sites
Champagon 0 Posted August 10, 2008 Report Share Posted August 10, 2008 Otakon was pretty good! one bad experience but other than that it was awesome Link to post Share on other sites
CocoFaerie 53 Posted August 10, 2008 Report Share Posted August 10, 2008 Oy, I'm sorry I wasn't able to stay for the Feedback session, but here's my thoughts of the 15th Otakon. I must commend you Otakorp for once again putting on another great show and it seemed a lot better for me this year than last maybe because there weren't any rowdy hoohahs (refer to the 4chan controversy). Anyway, this Otakon I thought was the best ever in terms of the offerings and how most of the events and activities were handled. I keep telling people that they should have been to the Saturday bellydance show because it was packed, and the dancers were really good. The Opening animation was great, I hope you get to expand on it, and the AMV OP was really cool, almost like a 90's 8 o'clock movie intro, lol! Yeah, I of course would recommend the 16th Otakon to anyone interested, but the return of the Artscape/Otakon weekend next year will make it even more better for Baltimore. Link to post Share on other sites
jkid 0 Posted August 10, 2008 Report Share Posted August 10, 2008 There are other conventions in the DC Metropolitan area, one of them is Anime USA. Link to post Share on other sites
Aresef 113 Posted August 10, 2008 Report Share Posted August 10, 2008 Anime USA, Katsucon, Anime Mid-Atlantic, T-Mode, Tigercon (hehehe)...yeah, this part of the US is a real breeding ground for cons. Link to post Share on other sites
HightopNinja 0 Posted August 10, 2008 Report Share Posted August 10, 2008 Glad you enjoyed your time at the convention! I had a blast this year as well. Great times all around. I'm rabidly looking forward to next year, I've already booked our room for next year through the otakon website. Also, I tend to enjoy the lines as much as you seemed to. I had three constant companions, but still, we struck up random conversations with a lot of people and had great times. As for more conventions? Everything has already been listed for the surrounding areas, but if you're up near the Philadelphia area, there's a few small ones here and there. Zenkaikon in King of Prussia is coming up, Setsucon up in State College, etc. If you're hard up for them..there's a great website to look up conventions, unfortunately, I don't know the link posting rules, so I'll just say go to Google and type in "Anime Conventions", you should be able to find a great number of resources! See ya next year! Link to post Share on other sites
tstidm1 0 Posted August 11, 2008 Report Share Posted August 11, 2008 I don't know where you are, but a great website that lists all conventions in this country and some in others countries is http://www.animecons.com. Link to post Share on other sites
Samiki 0 Posted August 11, 2008 Report Share Posted August 11, 2008 Just gotta put in a little word about Tekkoshocon, since it's my hometown con in Pittsburgh, PA! April 3-5 2009 in the David L. Lawrence Convention Center & attached Westin Hotel! ^^ Link to post Share on other sites
cereal_killerxx 0 Posted August 11, 2008 Report Share Posted August 11, 2008 Youmacon in Detroit, Michigan! XD www.youmacon.com Link to post Share on other sites
Shineigami02 0 Posted August 11, 2008 Report Share Posted August 11, 2008 For the NYC area, there's New York Anime Festival Sept 26-28 & MangaNext in Somerset, NJ Oct 31- Nov 2 coming up this fall. I plan on attending both cons myself, might Gofer for NYAF, not sure yet. Link to post Share on other sites
Adv1sor 0 Posted August 11, 2008 Report Share Posted August 11, 2008 check out atthecon.com for a list of anime conventions, reviews, info, and pics, in the Vriginia, DC, MD area. Link to post Share on other sites
lambogirl 0 Posted August 12, 2008 Report Share Posted August 12, 2008 There is a much smaller convention in Norfolk, VA called Nekocon. It has about 2,500 people, which is about one tenth of the size of Otakon, but it is just as great for different reasons. Everything is much smaller, but not too small. The lines are very bearable, and what I love most about it is the "small town" feel of it. It's really a great place to make friends. I recommend Nekocon to everyone who enjoyed Otakon~! November 7-9 Hampton Rhodes Convention Center www.Nekocon.com Link to post Share on other sites
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