A typical Anime convention includes many different events such as panels, workshops, contests, vendor rooms, art shows, and cosplay. Costumes are a major part at Anime Conventions. The bigger/more detailed the costume, the more pictures are going to get taken of you. I recently went to the Anime Kaiju Experience in Boston, and I had created my own costume (Nightcrawler from the X-Men) I was invited to participate in the Costume Contest by one of the Judges, and out of all of the other contestants there, I won the Best Novice Award, and had received the loudest applause. I was asked to pose for pictures by/with lots of people and was presented a certificate which was an awesome experience.
When I went to the Connecticon last year, I took my friend Anna, because it was her first time and because she is a really big fan of Anime. I had cosplayed as Hinata, from the Naruto series. My friend Megan dressed up as Chouji, and my other friend Amber cosplayed as Shikamaru, also from Naruto. Not wanting to leave Anna out, I let her borrow my “L” t-shirt, a character the Deathnote series.
We had so much fun that day. We wandered around the convention center, meeting people, taking pictures of people dressed as our favorite characters. I bought a few things from the Vendors, and we even got to go to a Naruto photoshoot, where all of the cosplayers dressed as Naruto characters posed for shots for fans and friends alike. I took pictures of people wearing unique costumes, and even glomped a few people. I can never stop grinning whenever I think about a convention.
When we would get tired, we would sit down and take breaks, just talking about our day, and even commenting on the people we’d met. Sometimes we’d just goof around, and start dancing to music in the background, or joke about some of the funny things people did, such as a man cosplaying as Jesus, or the guy wearing a cheap mudkip mask running around and randomly jumping into pictures. At Anime conventions people are very accepting, you can act as crazy as you want to – the crazier the better!
The thing I love most about Anime conventions is just how comfortable it feels. We could walk up to people who we might never see again in our entire lives, but for those brief minutes of conversation, it’s as if we had known each other for years. Anime acts as the common ground of conversation for Otaku’s and generally, if you hear a conversation between two fans, it’s very passionate, and excited.
The cons all over the USA grow by the thousands each year, and almost everyone there is there about one subject, Anime. The cons act as a gathering place for Otaku’s, and I see cons as my second home, being with people who think the same way I do about Anime. It can be a relief to know you’re not the only one who is a fan or Otaku of Anime, in a town of people who don’t even know what it is. Anime conventions affected my personal growth by giving me a special outlet for my interests, and has become part of my entire lifestyle, and allowing me to become part of a community that might even become my profession one day.
No comments:
Post a Comment