Editorial: Otakon 2007 Journal
The following editorial details my personal experiences at Otakon
2007 and was originally written on August 11th, 2007. All of the
stuff you're about to read is based off of my personal memories and
the notes I took while enjoying the sights and sounds of Baltimore,
Maryland.
Just to note... anything in here that sounds like it doesn't belong
to me, well, they just don't. All of the properties in this editorial
belong to the respective companies and the like. And if you're a true
anime fan, you'll plunk money down and buy them Region 1 releases!
Plus, my endorsements are free, so you don't have to worry about some
corporate monkey that might've gotten me. You're free to express the
same love and hate for certain things as I do... but I don't mind if
somebody ends up having similar tastes.
As like in last year's report, I apologize in advance if I ramble
about something unimportant. I got a lot to say, you know? As for
pictures... um... ehh... uh...
Finally, for convenience, all times are local to Baltimore and rounded
to the closest 15-minute interval.
Jump to: Saturday
OR Sunday
Another summer, another Otakon. For the third time in four years, I
was making the trek to Baltimore for the largest anime convention on
the East Coast. Not unexpectedly, I almost ended up not going this
year for several reasons. One, of course, was related to finances...
though that was easily solved when I realized I had enough money to
set aside to go to and enjoy the convention. Two, and probably the
biggest hurdle, was the fact that I had no vacation time to use and
thus had to work my normal overnight shift the night before Otakon
(Thursday) and the night immediately afterwards (Sunday). Regardless,
I gritted my teeth and bore it, though it severely impacted my Friday
schedule (see below). Third and finally, the week of the con, there
were some serious family issues that had to be taken care of.
Thankfully, it was resolved before the weekend came, and I could go
up to Baltimore with a good deal of peace of mind.
There were plenty of people to see, a bunch of new anime I'd hope to
sample, a gaggle of great cosplayers to admire, and a whole lot of
fun to be had.
Well, so I thought...
Day 1: Friday, July 20th
11:30 am - Colleen, See You at Two in Baltimore!
Coming off a little over three hours of sleep and a refreshing and
awakening shower, I get to work to finish packing. The plan was to
sleep immediately after getting home from work, then drive up to
Baltimore and, allowing some leeway for traffic and for the
inevitable pre-registration badge pick-up line, hopefully be inside
the Baltimore Convention Center by 2 pm. Just in time to attend a
Q & A panel with my most adored anime VA, Colleen Clinkenbeard.
After all, I have to make up for my unimpressive stuttering when I
met her for the first time last year.
On a side note, thank goodness for having the Otakon schedule before
actually arriving in Baltimore! Otherwise, concocting this plan
would've been nearly impossible, which would've left me in a position
to blindly guess the best time to go up there in hopes of not missing
something good.
But, as they say, the best laid plans often go to waste.
I was going to bring a backpack this year, which would be easier for
me in terms of carrying things around the Convention Center and the
city. But I couldn't find it! Desperation setting in, and time
already being a factor, I decide I'm going to have to allot some time
and money to go buy one real quick.
And get some lunch.
And drop by the bank to get some spending money.
Oh yeah... I'm definitely making it there by two.
12:00 pm - Already an Unexpected Otakon Expense...
So, after plopping $15 for a backpack (a good quality one, though,
with plenty of pockets) and potentially robbing myself of a little
bit of money I might need for parking or buying something in the
Dealer's Room, next comes my first 'budgeted' meal of Otakon! And
as like last year, that means... a trip to McDonald's!
Okay... you want the good news first or the bad news first?
How about we start with the good? The fact that I'm leaving at
midday means one less meal (Friday Breakfast) to budget for. The
bad? I've got another reason to rip McDonald's. Last year, if you
remember, it was their 'Premium Roast' coffee. This year... the
Chicken McNuggets are to blame! Now, wait a minute, you're probably
saying... aren't McNuggets the most reliable food item on their menu?
I used to think so... until I realized about twenty minutes down the
road that they didn't give me any dipping sauce! I thought they'd at
least give you one automatically, but I guess not. But it's no big
deal, right? It's not the sauce that makes the McNuggets, right?
Apparently, yes, because I've never had such a sandpaper-y-like bunch
of Chicken McNuggets in my life. Blech...
At least I had the French fries. And the fact that was the worst
thing those McNuggets could do to me. No staining my shirt this
year at all.
12:30 pm - Time's Slipping Away.
Ten minutes after leaving the bank to withdraw my spending money for
Otakon, my crunch for time tightens even more when I run into... say
it with me... traffic! And I'm not even off of the Washington
Beltway yet! Yeesh...
Eventually, I manage to crawl my way onto the Baltimore-Washington
Parkway, but not after losing time in that jam - which I later
learned was due to a big traffic accident. Nevertheless, I had hope
that I could still get into the BCC in time for Colleen's panel if
the pre-registration line was pretty short.
1:30 pm - And Then Came the Storm...
Okay, I've made it to Baltimore, and with half an hour to go before
Colleen's panel. All things considered, I may have lucked out!
Naturally, I spoke WAY too soon.
The one thing I didn't account for was that every parking garage
within reasonable distance of the Convention Center would be filled
at this time of day! I should've figured. My search for a garage
that was open was hindered by the slow inner city moving traffic as
well - not to mention my unawareness of where exactly all of the
garages within two blocks west of the Convention Center were.
Eventually, I'm forced into driving into unfamiliar territory, going
further west and a good deals away from all the shops and businesses
and the like. At a certain point, I passed the conveniently named
Mercy Hospital and realize... there's no way any sane person would
park this far away.
So as I turn around and head back, thinking about maybe it's time to
travel north, along the Inner Harbor, two more gut-wrenching
realizations came to me.
It was a few minutes past two. Colleen's panel was starting, and I
was missing it.
Oh... and I'm almost out of gas...
2:15 pm - No Light at the End of the Tunnel?
As I drove back into the business district, now more concerned about
running out of fuel than anything else, I finally came across
a parking garage that wasn't full! I didn't care how far away I was
from the Convention Center - I was frustrated and my car was nearly
on empty...
But Colleen Clinkenbeard's Q & A panel awaited me! Maybe I wouldn't
get to ask her a question personally, but there was still a good
chance at getting another autograph and a photograph with her.
So, finally pulling into a space at St. Paul Place Parking Garage, I
grabbed my backpack, which was hastily packed, and bolted for the
Convention Center as fast as my legs could carry me.
2:30 pm - Renton and Eureka are Coming, Rachel!
Sweaty and a bit exhausted, I make it to the pre-registration line at
long last! Oh, wait... let me correct myself, as there was practically
no line at all!
This year's badge choice? Renton and Eureka of 'Eureka Seven.' You
know, it would help Otakon a lot if they had more mainstream shows to
pick from to adorn their badges with. I mean, you know something's
got to be up when pretty much every attendee whose badge I examined
had the same exact badge! A dozen choices, and a whole bunch of
'Eureka' adorning a large portion of the approximately 20,000
attendees!
Anyway, from the registration desk, it's a short hop, skip, and jump
to the room where Colleen Clinkenbeard is holding her Q & A. To my
surprise, the room is pretty much empty! There couldn't be more than
15 people there, tops! What's going on? I thought Colleen was a
talented enough voice actress to garner at least a small gathering.
As I sat down and caught my breath, Colleen decided to end the Q & A
prematurely since, apparently, everyone there had their questions
asked already. The good thing about that, though, was now there was
ample time for her to give out autographs and take photos with
whomever wanted them.
At this point, you're probably expecting me to pull out my camera and
get that long awaited photo with Colleen. I would have proof that I
actually met her, and all of you readers out there would finally get
to see what I actually look like. Of course, I had to go and ruin it
by forgetting my camera in the car!
Ehhh... it's alright. I respect Colleen, or, for that matter, anyone
in general, more than enough to not want to take a picture with her
while I'm still sweating bullets after having to run eight blocks
from the parking garage to get inside.
S'alright. Maybe we'll all get what we want next year.
I still got her to sign my copy of 'Case Closed the Movie: The
Time-Bombed Skyscraper' and to ask her in person about when we might
see more 'Case Closed' releases. Sadly, she said she doesn't know, as
she doesn't have any recording sessions planned for it anytime in the
near future.
That's another disappointment in itself.
3:15 pm - Pokémon's Alive and Well!
With nothing really important planned until FUNimation's Industry
Panel at five, I casually walked to my car and back to pick up my
camera, determined to not miss any photo opportunities.
One quickly came up in the famed Charles Street lobby, where there
was a gathering of 'Pokémon' cosplayers. And no, I'm not just
talking about a bunch of people wearing Pikachu caps... even though
there were plenty of those there. There was Ash, Misty, Brock, May,
Dawn, and even Team Rocket! Several of each in most cases. (Sadly,
no love for May's brother Max.) I didn't really get a chance to
talk to them or take any good pictures, oddly enough.
Still, it's great to visibly know there's an older fanbase who still
love the show. We should probably thank Pokémon USA and Cartoon
Network for that.
3:30 pm - Shuffle and Deal... A New Woman to Admire?
Next up was a trip to the Dealer's Room. That's right... I'm actually
going there on the first day, hoping to score a great deal. And I
did... a copy of the newest volume of 'Hikaru no Go,' for only $5!
And two weeks before its scheduled release! Now that's a score!
Though that would be the only purchase I'd make in the Dealer's Room
on this first day, that wasn't the only thing I got there.
As it was last year, FUNimation has the most fan-friendly booth among
the anime companies - if mainly because they have several of their
actors there as well to sign autographs and promote their newest
shows. As I wandered around the booth, I tried to see who was around.
First I see Caitlin Glass. Okay, she's nice, but I'm not really a fan
of her work. (And I say this even though I did get her autograph
during that hectic Sunday session last year.)
Then there's a guy in the middle... who... I... don't... know.
Last, but certainly not least, came a voice actress that's been making
her way through FUNimation's ranks over the past year. Most notably,
she voices Georgie from 'Shin-chan' and Yue from 'Negima,' and sings
the ending theme for 'Shin-chan' as well. She will also be the voice
of Tony Tony Chopper in FUNi's new dub of 'One Piece.' Yes, my friends,
I've found myself face-to-face with the talented Brina Palencia!
I hit it off immediately by presenting 'Negima' Volume 3 to her to
autograph for me, which she's very excited about since apparently no
one's brought her anything from that show today as of yet. We get to
chatting for a minute as we talk about Yue's actions in the anime, as
well as me wishing her luck with the 'One Piece' dub.
Shortly thereafter, we go our separate ways. Not for long, though,
as it wouldn't be long before I saw her agai...
I just missed another great photo opportunity, didn't I?
4:45 pm - The Fangirls have been Satisfied!
Leaving the Dealer's Room with one new manga volume and one lovely
autograph, I made my way to FUNimation's Industry Panel. Which was
right after ADV's. Coincidence that the two Texas heavyweights are
back-to-back again this year?
Anyway, some weird going-ons in the panel this year, with someone at
random intervals interfering with nonsensical comments. At first,
I thought maybe somehow a wire got crossed and we were getting a feed
from another panel room. But it eventually became apparent that it
was something else. What exactly... I'm not sure, but evidently it
came off as an attempt by someone to ruin the panel. Don't know if
that's true or not, or if anyone got busted for it.
It wouldn't matter, though, when FUNi finally announced that they had
'Ouran High School Host Club,' a very popular title among female anime
fans out there that many of them had been waiting for. Good for them.
They also announced 'Sasami,' the latest 'Tenchi Muyo' spin-off from
Japan... but I think I'm too tuckered out of 'Tenchi' to really be
interested anymore in that franchise.
At least I got the announcement that the second 'Case Closed' movie
would be out before year's end. Maybe the franchise isn't dead yet...
Amazingly, because of other commitments, this would be the only
Industry Panel I'd go to for the entire convention. I missed out on
a few other good announcements... including one I'll get to later...
6:00 pm - 'School' is Hard!
Another room, another chance to praise FUNimation apparently. It's
time for the 'School Rumble' panel! Which has nothing to do with
rumbles... well, okay, there are a few, but that's not what the show's
about. It's about misunderstandings. Hence, FUNimation's catchy
advertising tagline for the show - "No! Wait! It's not what you
think!"
The three FUNi VAs from earlier, Brina, Caitlin, and that guy... who
introduced himself as Brandon Potter... were joined by the show's
brand manager as they were offering a small info session about the
show and premiering the first three episodes of the dub. For the
record, Brina is the ADR director and also voices Mikoto, Caitlin
voices Yakumo, and Brandon is the hilariously studly Harima.
The trio also threw in a little oddball fun when they were pitted
against each other in a competition to draw hand-picked members from
the audience. It's a tie-in with the company who's giving away the
grand prizes for the 'School Rumble' manga drawing contest. A fair
time-waster with some great moments... Brandon really won us over
with him choosing style over substance in his drawings.
We also got free copies of the first volume of the manga, being
released by Del Rey. Most of us also admitted to having already
bought the first one at some point. Too bad there was no time to
get it signed.
As for the first three episodes of 'School Rumble' itself... eh, well,
it was okay. A bit disappointing, in my opinion, as it seems to take
the same road that many of the other anime comedies I've seen recently
do. And that is the fact that most of the laughs come later on once
all the characters are established, leaving us viewers to labor
through the introductions and such.
Once that happens, as some of the later skits in the preview showed,
this show will be worth the price of purchasing it. Look for a review
of Volume One by yours truly soon after it hits shelves later this
month!
8:00 pm - It gets 'Darker than Black.'
There's been so much about FUNi for me on Day One alone, why not see
one of their just-licensed shows? In this case, it's 'Darker than
Black.' I had a hard time grasping what the show, done with fansubs,
was about. It seems like it centers around a paranormal agency, who's
searching out, or hunting, not particularly sure which, a bunch of
people who go by the name 'Contractors' and go around and murder
random men and women in cold blood. Normally, that might be enough
to get me excited, but for the life of me, I could not get into it.
Not that I was intending too, anyway. Being parked six blocks away,
I didn't want to risk trying to walk all the way out there alone at
night. So thus, my first day on the Convention Center grounds comes
to an end, and I drive to my hotel, the Sleep Inn & Suites, located
in what I think is part of the BWI Airport Business District off of
the Baltimore Beltway.
9:30 pm - Ready for a three-hour tour of my Hotel Room?
Okay, not literally, but after settling room, which thankfully I'm
glad is a lot closer to Baltimore than I was last year, I go about
figuring how to get dinner. I order delivery from a nearby pizza
place that just happens to serve more than pizza... like Philly
Cheesesteaks and Mozzarella Sticks. Yeah, I normally don't eat so
much, and that was a big sandwich, but you know, places like that
have a minimum dollar amount that has to be ordered before they
will deliver. I know I spent quite a deal of time going over the
menu to meet that requirement.
Anyway, after finally getting my fill of food, I check out my TV,
which has the usual animation outlets. Disney Channel, Toon
Disney, Cartoon Network, and, oddly enough, Nicktoons Network but no
Nickelodeon! Imagine that! Anyway, having Nicktoons Network allowed
me to see for the first time a certain show called 'Skyland.' Whose
character designs freak me out somewhat and whose story wasn't all
that interesting... for the one episode I got to see.
Not too long afterwards, just after 12:30 am, I finally decide to
turn in for the night. Day One may have shown my bias for FUNimation,
but Day Two promised to spread the wealth around more. Oh, and to be
my longest Saturday at Otakon ever! Better get a lot of sleep!
- Freedom Fighter
Jump to: Saturday
OR Sunday
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