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Zenkaikon is a small anime convention located in King of Prussia, PA (what kind of town name is that??). This was my first year at the convention, and unfortunately, the experience was not pleasant. This ConBlog post isn’t going to follow the same format as my previous ones, simply because I don’t have much to talk about.

I took the two-and-a-half hour trip to Zenkaikon with my friends Ernie and Krissy from Out-Of-Time Productions. Getting into the con went pretty smoothly. The staff were very helpful in getting us our press passes with virtually no wait.

However, it went downhill from there. The first thing I noticed upon entering the con was the severe lack of space. All the rooms were very small and the hallways were cramped. There were no wide open areas at all. The Dealers Room was about as big as a classroom, as was the Main Events room. Needless to say, the con got very crowded very quickly.

Clearly, Zenkaikon staff did not expect a large turnout. How they failed to see this is beyond me, since they did get Johnny Yong Bosch, and he’s kind of a big deal. They should have known that many people would be coming just to see him, and plan accordingly. Instead, the con reached its attendance cap very quickly, and guests who had not pre-registered were told to come back the next day. People who had taken off from work, booked hotel rooms, and traveled to the con in hopes of meeting the star of Bleach and many other noteworthy titles, were simply told they couldn’t get in. In addition to this, there were weddings going on in the very same building. According to Zenkaikon staff, the weddings were booked after Zenkaikon had reserved their space, and there was nothing they could do about it. So, while it’s not Zenkaikon’s fault, it was still an annoyance.

Almost every panel or event I wanted to go into was virtually inaccessible because of the massive overcrowding. The Dealers Room was barely navigable, and contained very few items of interest.

Overall, Zenkaikon was plagued with poor planning and uninteresting events. The staff messaged me on Twitter and stated that “more space is definitely in the plans.” Let’s hope so, because if there’s no bigger venue next year, I see little chance of this con surviving for long.

Update 11/16: From looking through forums and reading comments posted by Zenkaikon staff members, it’s come to my realization that much of the con’s problems were caused by the hotel staff being inhospitable to the convention staff. In addition to the wedding issue, there were several other issues as well. The hotel set up the registration booths in the wrong area, which caused the con staff to change their plans at the last minute. There were also many issues with the hotel staff blocking off parts of the con, not fulfilling their promises, and various technical issues.