Katsucon 2019 Convention Report

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Katsucon 2019 Convention Report

The 25th Katsucon anime convention took place last weekend from February 15-17, 2019 in National Harbor, MD. This marks the first year that Katsucon has implemented a “Closed Profile” policy which restricts access to the Gaylord National Hotel and Convention Center only to paid hotel guests and con goers with a membership badge. This new policy was definitely a hot topic of debate in the months leading up to Katsucon and surely will still be subjected to heated discussions in the following weeks.

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Katsucon 2018 Convention Report

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Katsucon 2018 Convention Report

The 24th annual Katsucon anime convention was held last weekend from February 16-18, 2018 in National Harbor, MD.  Unofficially they may have surpassed the 20,000+ attendee mark for the first time, but of course we won't know until the official numbers are released.  Even if they didn't reach that milestone, the halls were definitely more crowded this year compared to last year, and that's certainly a healthy sign for what has become the premiere anime con in the DMV region.

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AnimeNEXT 2017 Convention Report

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AnimeNEXT 2017 Convention Report

The 2017 edition of the AnimeNEXT anime convention was held this past weekend from June 9-11, 2017.  This is the second year that AnimeNEXT has been held at the Atlantic City, NJ location (and my second AnimeNEXT as well).  It was certainly a beautiful weekend for the convention, and I certainly look forward to coming back again in the future.

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Philadelphia Sakura Sunday Festival 2016

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Philadelphia Sakura Sunday Festival 2016

On Sunday, April 17, 2016 I went up to Philly to attend the annual Sakura Sunday event which is a Japanese culture festival at the Fairmount Park Horticulture Center.  This is basically a smaller version of the National Cherry Blossom Festival Sakura Matsuri from the previous day in Washington, DC.  Despite the weather being fairly warmer this year compared to last year the trees were only starting to green and there weren't any cherry blossoms in bloom, maybe next year the surrounding vegetation will be livelier!

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Zenkaikon 2016 Convention Report

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Zenkaikon 2016 Convention Report

The Zenkaikon 2016 anime convention that took place from April 1-3, 2016 in Lancaster, PA went by so quickly this weekend and yet there was a lot of awesome fun that still needs to be digested.  The 10th annual Zenkaikon (aka Zenkaikon X) was just as big and wonderful as previous years.  So big that we broke the escalators several times throughout the weekend.  I spent the majority of my time going from various voice actor panels and main events so I didn't actually get to take very many cosplay photos. I'll just have to rely on the collective Internet to relive some of the awesome cosplay that I saw throughout the weekend.

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MAGFest 2016 Convention Report

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MAGFest 2016 Convention Report

The MAGFest 2016 Gaming and Music Festival took place from Thursday, February 18 through Sunday, February 21, 2016 at the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center at National Harbor, MD.  There's not a whole lot to talk about here since in general it was just awesome.  A place for video game and video game music nerds to hang out, play games, attend concerts, and meet industry guests.  This year was bigger than ever.

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Katsucon 2016 Convention Report

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Katsucon 2016 Convention Report

Another year, another Katsucon anime convention.  It's back and it's bigger and better than ever.  Except, this year will forever be remembered for the Fire Alarm Evacuation that upended the festivities and leaving people stranded in sub-freezing and windy weather.  It wasn't all bad though and many positive things happened to make this a memorable experience.  If Otakon was able to survive the Fire of 2010, then I'm sure that Katsucon will survive the Freezing Fire of 2016.

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Anime USA 2015 Convention Report

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Anime USA 2015 Convention Report

This past Halloween weekend I attended the Anime USA 2015 anime convention held in Washington, DC from October 30 through November 1, 2015.  The long-running convention continues to straddle between small and midsize con status and yet somehow they always seem to manage to invite a stellar roster of English Voice Actors from the industry.  This year was no different as they somehow managed to invite the entire English cast from the show Cowboy Bebop.  This included Steve Blum (Spike Spiegel), Beau Billingslea (Jet Black), Wendee Lee (Faye Valentine), Melissa Fahn (Edward), and Mary Elizabeth McGlynn (Julia and ADR Director for the show).  In fact, they might as well just call this convention "Bebop Con 2015" instead of AUSA.  Other guests at the con included Colleen Clinkenbeard and Brandon Potter.

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Otakon 2015 Convention Report

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Otakon 2015 Convention Report

So another Otakon has come and gone.  The annual blockbuster anime convention to grace the shores of Baltimore, MD was held during July 24-26, 2015.  To start off, unofficial numbers report that attendance this year saw a drop to 28,000 attendees which is about 4-5K less than the previous year.  A drop in attendance is really no surprise, however.  Increasing frustration with the crowded convention center, last year's pre-reg line fiasco, a hike in membership fees, and the city-wide unrest that occurred in the spring probably helped to scare some people away.  Despite the setbacks, this year's Otakon was still a fun experience even if it wasn't Otakon's best showing.

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Zenkaikon 2015 Convention Report

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Zenkaikon 2015 Convention Report

I attended my second Zenkaikon anime convention which was held on March 27-29, 2015 at the Lancaster County Convention Center in downtown Lancaster, PA.  Zenkaikon is a small but growing con and certainly had a lot of things to do over the weekend.  There were also a number of great cosplay to be seen as well.  The con was run very well as most panels and events that I went to started and ended on time.  Overall they had a solid lineup of industry guests and panels and I certainly look forward to returning there next year.

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