D: My First Convention Experience

My first convention experience was in Baltimore, Maryland at the Otakon 2016 convention. I’ve been a fan of anime since I was a toddler but making it out to an actual celebration...that was something that I never even thought about because of life’s daily tasks. After all, I didn’t really find people that liked the medium like me, outside of some family, until I was at the tail-end of high school, and even then I couldn’t imagine that we would form the friendship that birthed Backlog Bebop.

In the summer of 2016, it all started with a groupchat - talking about anime and videogame news when conventions were brought up. We all played with the idea. “Wouldn’t it be crazy if we went to a convention?” and “Man, there’s no way we’re going all the way to California for Anime Expo or Comic-Con.” Somehow we stumbled onto Otakon in Maryland through Google and it was 2 months away, so we basically jumped at it. We booked a hotel and split it 5 ways after paying for registration. It all was a blur but it was exciting at the same time. After all the Youtube videos and coverage in different places about a con, it was finally our time to see it. Leaving work way earlier than I should have and meeting up, we all went to Maryland.

It was beautiful. No, the city wasn’t transformed and we didn’t see a giant Umaru or Titan in the background, but the atmosphere of a completely new city never felt so welcoming by seeing so many people on the street in cosplay and holding bags filled with merchandise. It was a fun divide to see on a Friday afternoon; business people just getting off of work with confused faces and the con-goers, people dressed up casually or for cosplay, walking on the same street outside the Baltimore convention center. The smiling faces of strangers and friends alike lit up the sky. The amount of people and the diversity is so refreshing. The people that are there, just having fun doing something that you also enjoy makes me smile just thinking about it. The cosplays - from homemade to professional - are enough to make you gasp, whisper, or compliment them and the craftsmanship that went into it. The energy is so positive that it almost feels like a utopia of sorts. It made being in a new city that much more inviting and ready to play Pokémon Go in. All jokes aside - even though we were pretty far away from our hotel and had a 16-hour (or more) day from carrying our newly purchased items, resting in a manga library, getting kicked out of an overcrowded anime stand-up act, quickly leaving an AMV contest, trying to find each other after being in the dealer’s room or going to the bathroom and to a rave with no air-conditioning and someone in a gorilla costume, the experience and friends that had and made make it one of my most treasured memories.

It’s true that an anime convention really opens your eyes to the world around you because there’s so much to see and do. The list of what you can do in just one day is filled with limitless possibilities. I’m slowly coming along and appreciating the guests, bands, celebrities, or small-time panels that take their time to make an appearance in a place that is truly unforgettable. In fact, Otakon had such an impact on me that I’m going back with those same friends in 2018 for my 3rd official convention. Honestly, I’ve been looking forward to it since the one from last year and I can’t wait to see all of everything that’s cooking up in D.C. this weekend. If you haven’t had the chance to visit a con of any kind, I cordially invite you to try it from my experiences! Fun fact: In the year of 2016, in that very manga library, I started to read Berserk and I knew that there was still so much out there to see.

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