(Post a new comment)

	shinigami_co 2004-05-01 01:39 am UTC (link)
	reads through the threads ...have these people ever been to a convention before? They complained about 1) lines, 2) overcrowding, 3) sometimes Nazi-ish con staff, and 4) con funk. That's been at every single con I've ever been to. Wait...does this mean there's a con WITHOUT con funk? Holy shit, sign me up! O_O (Reply to this)(Thread)

	smo 2004-05-01 02:15 am UTC (link)
	Oh my Lord, there was some BIONIC stank going on at Anime Boston last year. After sitting next to one guy, I swear, his funk got into my clothes. If I'd demanded my money back on the grounds of Unwashed Fanboy, I think the PTB would have laughed in my face. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	eiviiaru 2004-05-01 02:23 am UTC (link)
	Anime Boston has had some serious, serious overcrowding issues, hasn't it? Thank god for the venue change. Holy crap. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	smo 2004-05-01 11:13 pm UTC (link)
	Word. I think the first year AB happened, they got way more people than expected, but there was just no excuse for this past one. I volunteered for videography, and one of our cameras got stolen Saturday night. The Hynes Center has much better security than a hotel can offer, and, yeah - it's ginormous. (Reply to this)(Parent)

	dana 2004-05-01 02:27 am UTC (link)
	Oh word. Media fanboys are frightening, I was relatively protected from them, quite happy in the predominantly female slash fandom in my city, then I went to a convention and my hopes of ever meeting a nice, sane, clean fanboy went out the window. Although I heard tell the science-fiction literature fanboys are quite nice. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	meril 2004-05-01 02:32 am UTC (link)
	Although I heard tell the science-fiction literature fanboys are quite nice. Think again. In my (admittedly limited) experience, it's almost just like anime fandom, except most of the creepy yucky fanboys are over the age of 40. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	Re: dana 2004-05-01 02:47 am UTC (link)
	Dammitt. Somebody lied to me. Why aren't there nice fanboys. WHY, WHY! cries to the heavens (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	meril 2004-05-01 03:06 am UTC (link)
	Actually, there are some nice normal fanboys out there. They are usually accompanied by something known as "wives." Thus, interaction with them may be minimal. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	Re: dana 2004-05-01 03:20 am UTC (link)
	Yes, I've noticed that. sigh (Reply to this)(Parent)

	coyotegirl 2004-05-01 03:54 am UTC (link)
	I snagged one. Married him, too. They're available now and then, but you have to latch on fast. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	rowan 2004-05-01 04:17 am UTC (link)
	I'm looking for one as we speak... there must be an untaken one somewhere! Met one at Anime Expo last year. Pity he was only 16, he was a kickass cosplayer and a great guy. However, I met plenty of the other kind at Fanime last year. I am NEVER FREAKING EVER going into a panel room with a pack of Gainax fanboys EVER AGAIN IN MY LIFE. huddles in corner, scarred (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	dawnswalker 2004-05-01 04:44 am UTC (link)
	"Met one at Anime Expo last year. Pity he was only 16, he was a kickass cosplayer and a great guy." Nooo! You must get them while they are young! It's the only way they will imprint on you! (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	rowan 2004-05-01 04:47 am UTC (link)
	Oh, I still keep ~~him hooked~~ tabs on him. Just in case. (Reply to this)(Parent)

	Re: coyotegirl 2004-05-01 08:25 am UTC (link)
	The nice thing about being The Wife is that, while it may make other fangirls a little sulky, it is excellent protection against scary fanboys. Good luck finding one of your own! (Reply to this)(Parent)

	sewingmyfish 2004-05-01 05:53 am UTC (link)
	Same here. Though his friend is still single. (Reply to this)(Parent)

smo
2004-05-01 11:10 pm UTC (link)

Although I heard tell the science-fiction literature fanboys are quite nice.

That's because women have been around their fandom long enough that they've developed some social graces. Also, people don't generally get so wrapped up in a book they forget to bathe. :)

(For the record, I went to a women's college, and plenty of us went to class with greasy hair and unshorn pits. We still tried to avoid Teh Stank, though.)

(Reply to this)(Parent)

shinigami_co
2004-05-01 08:08 pm UTC (link)

Acting like con funk is some strange, new occurance is beyond me. Con Funk is epic in proportion, or else it would not have its own nickname.

My friend told me about a post he read on the Akon boards about a guy suggesting in all seriousness that they put travel-sized toiletries in the gift bags. He even offered to pay for them himself.

I'm willing to donate to THAT fund.

(Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

smo
2004-05-01 11:00 pm UTC (link)

Heh. When I volunteered for Anime Boston this year, the con director encouraged us to follow the "5-2-1 Rule:" at least 5 hours' sleep per night, at least 2 meals per day... and at least 1 bath/shower/etc. per day as well.

My friend told me about a post he read on the Akon boards about a guy suggesting in all seriousness that they put travel-sized toiletries in the gift bags. He even offered to pay for them himself.

I'd donate to that fund, too. Maybe the con could even work out a deal with the local chain drugstore and get some of those mini travel-size toiletries at a discount.

(Reply to this)(Parent)

virago
2004-05-02 01:38 am UTC (link)

>>My friend told me about a post he read on the Akon boards about a guy suggesting in all seriousness that they put travel-sized toiletries in the gift bags. He even offered to pay for them himself.>>

Oh please, like those fuckwits would know what to do with them. Or care. My money's on not caring; when I started dating the guy thought it was perfectly okay to take three showers a week. It may have been for some people, but not for him. I had to pull the Evil Man-Changing Girlfriend act and get him to fucking bathe and shave on a regular basis. And he was a partially socialized idiot fanboy.

I'm thinking decontamination chambers, or dousing them with hoses a la ... what movie was that in, Shawshank? Yeah.

Bitter? Me? :P

but yes, assuming the fuckwits have senses of smell at all and know how to use them, that would be a delightfully vicious thing to do. XD

(Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	Re: shinigami_co 2004-05-02 01:49 am UTC (link)
	The same friend that told me about the thread said what he really wanted to do was stand at the elevators with a firehose, and at the first sign of con funk...well, you get the idea. I think that's a perfectly viable solution as well. XD (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	virago 2004-05-02 06:16 am UTC (link)
	Oh, I am so behind that plan. (Reply to this)(Parent)

	cairea 2004-05-01 02:41 am UTC (link)
	By 'previous years' they mean all, what, two? (Reply to this)(Thread)

	blackjackrocket 2004-05-01 02:48 am UTC (link)
	Well, like five, but yeah, still not all that much. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

cairea
2004-05-01 03:39 am UTC (link)

Yeah, that's my bad. I said it before checking the actual site, doh.

I've never actually been despite, ah, living in Seattle -- mostly because cons involve masses of people all in one place and crowds make me twitchy and snappy in ways best not inflicted on my fellow humans -- but from what I've heard from friends who do go, it's never been all that huge of a con until this year. So I can understand the surprise, somewhat, but that's just something you deal with in any sort of convention that gets a large number of people attending.

(Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	blackjackrocket 2004-05-01 03:40 am UTC (link)
	It's an interesting endeavor. And remember, it used to be called by another name--BakaCon, which was changed because Japanese guests refused to come to it. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	nekoneko 2004-05-01 06:33 am UTC (link)
	So that's what happened to BakaCon! I'd heard of it, but I live near Baltimore, so I'm all about the Otakon large dealer room lovin. (Reply to this)(Parent)

Who's Got the Funk?
(Anonymous)
2004-05-01 11:06 am UTC (link)

I went last year, and had friends that were volunteers, but didn't go this year for various reasons. One of the big things was the "Experience the Otaku Adventure" across the top of the flyers. I'd like to at least *pretend* that wasn't what was going on. Or at least, experience "The Funk". That is really what they should market it as.

(I have a LJ, but no jf account. I'm lazy :P If anyone needs 'creds' I can give my LJ name, but I doubt anyone cares.)

(Reply to this)(Parent)

	smo 2004-05-02 02:04 am UTC (link)
	BakaCon, which was changed because Japanese guests refused to come to it. Yet another reason why people should never use foreign slang words without understanding their implications. (Reply to this)(Parent)

	miome 2004-05-01 03:55 am UTC (link)
	Laws against showing fansubs at a con? WTF? Animazement been showing almost nothin' but every year! plug Come to Animazement! /plug (Reply to this)(Thread)

	rowan 2004-05-01 04:18 am UTC (link)
	Fanime shows fansubs too. I love them trulymadlydeeply for this. (Reply to this)(Parent)

	dogatemysocks 2004-05-01 03:57 am UTC (link)
	A bunch of people in my Japanese class went to that... but they are so easily entertained that I doubt they had ANY complaints. I wanted to go but it was too expensive for my budget this year, and I'm kind of glad I didn't go because a lot of people are whiny bastards. I would love to tattoo on their asses, "If you want the con to change, change it yourself." -_-;; (Reply to this)(Thread)

	blackjackrocket 2004-05-01 09:56 am UTC (link)
	I would love to tattoo on their asses, "If you want the con to change, change it yourself." Which is what some of the posters are saying. HOWEVER, a lot of people who did work for the con are also complaining. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	Re: dogatemysocks 2004-05-01 10:19 am UTC (link)
	Oh no, I know. But as someone who's organized things before... twitch die... I know it's really irritating when people just whine. I did see some of the volunteers, etc, delivering concrit which is ALWAYS good for even planners. Meh, SK wank... funny but kind of annoying when I think of the table dwellers I have class with. O_o (Reply to this)(Parent)

ironymaiden
2004-05-01 06:22 am UTC (link)

Man, have they never been to a con? Anime Expo is a terrible con. Poorly run, poorly organized, lacking in events and stupidity abound. But their dealer's room is amazing (except, alas, when it is held in Anaheim instead of Long Beach, because Disney refuses to let the dealers sell shota manga and doujinshi. sob.), and it's the only available con. But I shell out loads of cash for a pass and hotel and food every year, because I'm smart enough to know that I should be grateful that I have a con to go to, and that it's big enough to flee from fanboys. Expect that one guy who smelled rank, and kept hitting on me while we waited for the voice actors panel, and he kept boasting about how he made his One Piece costume all by himself. I can never look at One Piece again.

When did this turn into an essay?

(Reply to this)(Thread)

	blackjackrocket 2004-05-01 06:23 am UTC (link)
	Disney can do that? I wasn't aware that they owned Anaheim, just worked in it. Do they own the hotel the con is held at? (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

sesana
2004-05-01 06:46 am UTC (link)

I think Disney owns a pretty huge ass chunk of Anaheim, yeah. They probably have the best hotel/convention center in the area.

But I sure as hell can't blame them for banning teh pr0n. The psycho huge media circus that would surely result from some idiot kid buying explicit yaoi from a convention in a Disney hotel because his parental unit assumed it would be safe (it's DISNEY!) would be massive. Same thing happened at any other con, it wouldn't be half as big of a deal, but it's Disney. They gotta cover their asses.

(Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	blackjackrocket 2004-05-01 06:57 am UTC (link)
	Are they allowed to show what would be shown at any other con? (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	Re: sesana 2004-05-01 07:15 am UTC (link)
	shrugs helplessly Somebody who's actually smart will reply with the answer for you. G (Reply to this)(Parent)

	kate74 2004-05-01 06:49 pm UTC (link)
	but it's Disney. They gotta cover their asses snort Or else have Tigger do it for them.... (Reply to this)(Parent)

rowan
2004-05-01 06:29 am UTC (link)

I had an utter blast at AX last year - it was my first time going to that con - and yes, it was huge and massive, but damned if I didn't get to meet and get an autograph from my favorite anime director EVER.

(Kazuhiro Furuhashi-san! Squee! And he took a picture fo me in my Hunter x Hunter cosplay! Squee! XD And he let the Hunter x Hunter cosplay gathering take a picture with him while Nakajima-san, the artist of the BEST DAMN SEXIEST GET BACKERS PICTURES EVERRRR watched! SQUEE!)

Then again, my fangirlism is such that they could have made me sleep on a bed of nails afterwards and I still would have loved it. Heh.

(Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

beccastareyes
2004-05-01 08:09 am UTC (link)

Beds of nails aren't so bad, and you probably could sleep on one if you wore a sweatsuit to bed, and could sleep on your back without rolling over -- or invested in a straightjacket and a pair of goggles.

What? I've used one as a demo for Public Outreach for the Physics Department. The only real tricks are to keep a large amoung of your body touching it -- it distributes the weight over the nails best -- and to be very mindful of one's hands when getting on and off it.

(Reply to this)(Parent)

	(Anonymous) 2004-05-04 09:09 am UTC (link)
	Although I didn't go this year, two of my friends Volunteered. They had almost NOTHING TO DO and were often sent off to do work that they already had five people for (which was of course just a two person job). Uh-huh, they were suuure hurtin for volunteers this year. (Reply to this)