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For years I wanted to go to any anime convention that I could but because of some combination of school sports, a lack of pocket change, and my weird early-teenage lack of interest in getting a driver’s license I didn’t pull the trigger until my first year in college. The convention was Anime Expo 2013 in LA, and it’s a convention that I’ll never forget.
Anime conventions are interesting beasts: There are always more people than you expect, there are always more things to do than you expect, and there are always more merchandise booths than you can imagine. At least, that’s how my first convention went. Going into it, I had a clear vision of what I wanted to buy, what I wanted to do, and how I wanted to spend my time. I went with my closest cousin and best friend as well as another really close friend of mine and, like me, it was their first time going to any sort of convention. The two-hour drive to LA was filled with anime music, reviews of which booths were where and which panels were when, and videos of prior expos to increase the hype, but nothing could prepare our group of greenhorns for the sights we would see. Arriving in LA was like arriving in a different world: people were dressed up as their favorite characters, displays and food trucks lined the streets, and musicians were scattered around playing popular anime theme songs and sound tracks. The convention center itself was even more intense, with the main lobby packed with people from all walks of life. What followed our arrival was a weekend of way too much money spent, weird ambushes from random cosplayers, unlimited Korean barbeque, and a sense of belonging. Sure, we were a group of three people that had never been to a convention before, but none of that mattered. From deck building with random strangers at Yugioh booths to haggling down prices at smaller stands and meeting famous cosplayers, the weekend just felt right, and that’s what these types of things are all about.
I’m not going to go into any crazy detail about what I bought, what I watched, and which celebrities I saw because, to me, that’s not what my first convention experience was about. More than anything, it was about forging new memories with some of the most important people in my life. Things like trying to find each other after getting separated and having low phone battery life, trying to find food, barely sleeping because we were too interested in some series a random passerby recommended to use, and just people watching are the memories that I treasure the most. The same rings true even today. Coming up is my fourth convention (I try to limit myself to one a year so that I can go all out) and third Otakon and every year has been better and better. I’ve gotten closer to people that I thought I was already close with, I’ve made memories that’ll last a lifetime, and I still discover things that I never thought were out there. Conventions are about community and bonding, be it with friends or strangers, and while that was what my first convention taught me that is what I still find to be true of every one after that. For those that haven’t experienced going to any convention, I highly recommend it. Let loose, make new friends, and explore with old ones. Anime conventions are places of freedom and understanding and everyone could use a little bit of that in their life.