The ConBlog: Anime Boston 2010

When I attended Anime Boston last year, I was very impressed with it. Naturally, I expected the same this year. I’m glad to say that those expectations have been far exceeded. Anime Boston 2010 was an all-around near-perfect convention. Despite some occasional hiccups here and there, things were very well run and organized. This, in addition to the amazing guests, panels, and events they had going on, made for quite an experience.

During Anime Boston, I was tweeting away on Twitter. Check out my tweets from the con!

• Panels & Events
  • Video Game Orchestra Concert - VGO played a bunch of video game favorites, including pieces from Super Mario Bros., Chrono Trigger, Castlevania, and Metal Gear Solid. Near the end of the concert, the man himself, NOBUO UEMATSU got on stage to perform “One Winged Angel” with the rest of the band.
  • Nobuo Uematsu Autographs – The highlight of the con was when I got to meet Nobuo and have him sign my Final Fantasy VI soundtrack. My life is now complete.
  • Who Wants to be a Millionaire? Anime Style – The guys who ran this panel did a great job. They even had a computer screen set up to give the panel the look and feel of the actual TV show.

    

  • The Vile Spectre of Moe – Judging from the title of this panel, it was almost guaranteed to piss me off. However, it turned out to actually be an informative panel about the history of moe in Japan (with a mild anti-moe bias). I kept my cool and didn’t make a scene. =)
  • Anime Apocalypse – So many people are talking about the zombie apocalypse and how we need to prepare for it. Daryl Surat created this panel to basically say “Fuck that!” and talk about what we really need to worry about: the anime apocalypse! Daryl showed clips from various anime that depict the world being blown up in some way or another, including Akira, Gatchaman, and Dirty Pair.
  • Anime Hell – A random and hilarious mess of video clips, many of which had nothing to do with anime. This particular video was indeed the highlight of the panel (NSFW language).
  • Adventure in Marketing Anime – Adam Sheehan and Charlene Ingram of FUNimation ran this panel to create a scenario in which you’re in charge of marketing a new anime that your company has acquired. You must face challenges in dealing with your co-workers, the Japanese producers, and with the fans– all while trying to make a product that will sell. This is a great panel for anyone who’s wondered things like “Why did this use THIS box art?” or “Why did they market the show THIS way?”
  • FUNimation Industry Panel – FUNimation announced three new licenses! Spice & Wolf season 2, the Eden of the East movies, and Chobits (a rescue license).
  • Cosplay Masquerade – Surprisingly, this was really good! I usually hate cosplay masquerades, but the one at Anime Boston this year was very well done. Many good skits from a wide variety of shows, with some great choreography. The full masquerade will be posted on Out Of Time Productions in the near future.
• Dealers Room
  • Anime Boston had a big dealers room this year, loaded with tons of great stuff. FUNimation of course had their usual store set up near the entrance. There were many, many stores selling figures, which is usually what eats all the money in my wallet. Luckily, I was able to resist spending an exorbitant amount of money on stuff. I did, however, pick up these:

    

• Venue & Surroundings
  • Free Wi-Fi – The Hynes Convention Center is known for providing free Wi-Fi to its guests. You don’t need a password or anything, just hop on! This is a great thing for iPhone users like myself, and also great for those who wished to cover the convention using their laptop/notebook.
  • Food Court - Another great thing about the Hynes Convention Center is that it’s part of a mall, and there is a food court nearby with a wide variety of affordable eats.
  • Cheers Bar – Some friends and I went to the famous Cheers bar and had a few drinks. It was a good time.
• People I met at the con
  • Alex Leavitt from Department of Alchemy
  • Daryl Surat from Anime World Order
  • Charlene Ingram and Adam Sheehan from FUNimation Entertainment
  • Lauren Orsini from Con Chowdah – The Official Blog of Anime Boston
  • Scott Spaziani from Otaku in Review (the guy I do all those podcasts with!)
  • Scott Green from AintItCool.com
• Con Management & Press Relations
  • Anime Boston is one of the most well-managed cons I have been to. Almost all of the panels I went to started on time, the con floor was very well-organized, and very few technical problems.
  • There were many schedule changes, but they kept an updated schedule on the website. However, it would have been nice if they utilized their Twitter account to notify con-goers of such things.
  • All the staff were friendly. Con Ops were very understanding and accommodating to the press members and did the best they could to make sure we got what we wanted.

OVERALL RATING FOR ANIME BOSTON 2010
5 out of 5