Sakura-con 2008: Day 1 summary

So Batou and I didn’t get into Sakura-con until 2pm because our plane was delayed out of Denver for two hours, and then the shuttle driver skipped our stop. Idiot. Anyways, we got there in time to catch some of Penny Arcade’s panel. Then we spent some time getting a feel for the center and going through the Exhibition hall. There is a really good selection of stuff here, especially if you want swords or cat ears for some reason. Then we met up with Someguy, MissAnonymous and friends for a quick snack, as we hadn’t eaten since basically 8am Pacific time. We snapped some cosplay photos, took a quick video and then headed to the “State of the Industry” panel. Derek Stephen Prince (Voice Actor), Roland Kelts (Author of Japanamerica) and Lilian Diaz-Przbyl (Editor from Tokyopop).

So here we are, at a State of the Industry panel, and not a single person from management in the Anime industry. We have a VA, an author and an editor from a Manga label. It started off positively with Lilian telling the person who first brought up the fact that the Japanese can watch Anime for free on TV in Japan, that it was a “fatuous argument” (fatuous is a synonym for foolish). So she called him an idiot without anyone knowing. But I could rant about this woman for a long time. Then they trotted out the age-old argument that Geneon, CPM and ADV’s issues are all due to illegal downloading, and not, say, bad business practices and decisions.

Lilian basically monopolized the entire conversation with her whining about how these new kids these days with their lack of responsibility, etc, etc. Then when I asked about how they correlated their “OMGEZ downloading!! Industry Crisis!!” arguments with the fact that that morning at Funimation’s panel the Funimation rep said “There is no crisis, we’re doing just fine”, along with the fact that Gonzo just announced simultaneous subtitled releases along with Japanese TV releases online for free via BOST and Youtube. Of course, Lilian said that Funimation licensed DB and FMA and so they’re living the good life, and when I retorted that those are business decisions, not fansubbing issues, she hardly acknowledged it. Then she said that “Gonzo’s an innovator, I hope it works for them”. I then retorted that they’re doing the same thing as fansubbers (ie. giving it away free subtitled online) and she said “no, it’s not the same at all because it’s under the corporate umbrella”. Now that’s what I call a fatuous argument.

Anyways, while not really a “State of the Industry” panel, it was still an interesting conversation. I recorded it, so audio will be coming soon.

Then we went to the guest dinner. I was dressed to impress, so we got waved right in like VIPs, instead of waiting like everyone else, and had dinner and chatted for a couple hours with Jerry, Mike, Robert and Amber from Penny Arcade. Robert is their business manager and Amber runs PAX. They are great guys and that pretty much topped off the day. Then we hit a bar for a bit, caught the 2nd half of the AMV contest and looked in on the “Neko Dance”.

All in all, once we got there we had a great time, and so far are very happy we came. On today’s schedule is an individual interview with Izubuchi Yutaka (RahXephon, Lodoss, Gundam, Patlabor, Jin-Roh…..) and one with Roland Kelts, as well as theOtaku.com meetup and show recording. So if you’re in Seattle meet us at the lounge inside the main entrance at 1pm.

Thanks,

Ichigo

Episode 124: Anime Boston, the line con.

We’ve got a great show this week. Rangiku joins us to provide the lowdown on the fiasco that was the Anime Boston registration lines. We also do the news and review Heroic Age and Ashita no Kita Yoshio. It’s a great show so check it out. Note that at a certain point Rangi’s audio stream got a few seconds of lag, and since it was recording to the same stream I couldn’t separate it out. It’s new software and I’ll have that sorted out next time.

Ashita no Kita Yoshio – Wouldn’t kick it out of bed for crackers.
Heroic Age – Wouldn’t kick it out of bed for crackers.

Show Notes

Music

Intro – Gravitation by Angela from Heroic Age
Outro – Neko Mimi Mode by Dimitri From Paris from Tsukiyomi Moon Phase

Reviews

Ashita no Kita Yoshio
Wikipedia
Official Site

Heroic Age
Wikipedia
Anime News Network
Official Site

Manga Pulse 19: Dramacon… Blood + Profit?

This week Tim and Weltall have a great show, they review Dramacon and Blood+, as well as their trademark discussions. Check it out.

Dramacon – Wouldn’t kick it out of bed for crackers.
Blood+ – Wouldn’t kick it out of bed for crackers.

Show Notes

Music

Intro – Kasanaru Kage by Hearts Grow from Gintama
Outro – Neko Mimi Mode by Dimitri From Paris from Tsukiyomi Moon Phase

Reviews

Dramacon
Wikipedia
Author’s Official Site

Blood+
Wikipedia
Anime News Network
Official Site

Episode 123: Sketch the Mnemosyne

We’ve got a good show this week. We talk about the news and Bleach. We also review Sketchbook ~full color’S~ and Mnemosyne no Musumetachi. Check it out.

Mnemosyne no Musumetachi – Wouldn’t kick it out of bed for crackers.
Sketchbook ~full color’S~ – Wait until it hits the US and NetFlix it.

Show Notes

Music

Intro – Alsatia by Galneryus from Mnemosyne
Outro – Neko Mimi Mode by Dimitri From Paris from Tsukiyomi Moon Phase

Reviews

Mnemosyne no Musumetachi
Wikipedia
Anime News Network
Official Site

Sketchbook ~full color’S~
Wikipedia
Anime News Network
Official Site

Manga Pulse 18: Magical Negi Genshiken… or something

This week Tim and Weltall have a great show. They never fail to insult my Alaskan heritage, but then they do a trivia contest for the listeners, so I guess I’ll forgive them… this time. They review Genshiken and Negima!: Magister Negi Magi. Check it out!

Negima!: Magister Negi Magi – Read it now
Genshiken – Wouldn’t kick it out of bed for crackers.

Show Notes

Music

Intro – Shichitenhakki Shijou Shugi by Kotoko from Hayate no Gotoku!
Outro – Neko Mimi Mode by Dimitri From Paris from Tsukiyomi Moon Phase

Reviews

Negima!: Magister Negi Magi
Wikipedia
Anime News Network
Official Site

Genshiken
Wikipedia
Anime News Network
Official Site

Anime Wasabi 2008: Recap

Well, Anime Wasabi 2008 has come and gone. I had a good time, and here is the run down.

Friday afternoon/evening was pretty quiet. It started off a bit disorganized, with some of the early panels not happening, no schedules, etc. But people were showing up, the artists were there, and the mood was friendly and mellow. Later in the evening the panels got better, Jan Scott-Frazier’s panel was a lot of fun, check out the audio in the previous post.

Saturday was a lot busier. Many more people showed up, I estimate between 750-1000. There were some good panels, including Kyle Hebert’s Dubbing 101 panel, the artist’s alley was hopping, and people were having lots of fun. Later in the evening it was time for the musical acts. There were a number of them, the biggest being the Royal Dead, a group from Japan consisting of a female vocalists and a male electric violinist. Their music was quite good, and the turnout was good. Their opening act, JFF, was a bit… less. The group of women sang but didn’t actually play their instruments, it was like guitar syncing? Anyways, Royal Dead was where it was at. Afterwards Kyle did his Hentai MST3K.

Sunday was quiet, Some how-to panels, Q&A panels and Jason Martin’s Breaking into Art (audio to follow) panel.

Some personal notes. I got a chance to spend some time with Jason and Heather of ArtPlayMix.com. They are a husband-wife team that do independent character design and illustrations. Their artwork is amazing, and they do shows where you can buy their art. You can also buy art direct from their site, so I highly recommend that you check it out. You might also be seeing some of their artwork decorating a new Anime-Pulse.com website in the months to come. They’re great people to spend time with, and they’re also local which is a big plus.

Overall impressions of the con were good. It was a first-year con, which comes with it’s own problems. Attendance was good considering that aspect. Hightower, the director, kept things running smoothly and was a real pleasure to work with. I didn’t see any unhappy guests or attendees at this con, which was nice to see. I hope that Anime Wasabi will return next year as well.

Photo Album below

Episode 122: Majokko Deer Man

We’ve got a great show this week, on shiny new laptops. We review Majokko Tsukune-chan and the JDrama Shikaotoko Aoniyoshi. We also talk about the news and Bleach. Check it out.

Majokko Tsukune-chan – Download Now!
Shikaotoko Aoniyoshi – Download Now!

Show Notes

Music

Intro – Blaze by Kotoko from Shakugan no Shana II
Outro – Neko Mimi Mode by Dimitri From Paris from Tsukiyomi Moon Phase

Reviews

Majokko Tsukune-chan
Wikipedia
Anime News Network
Official Site

Shikaotoko Aoniyoshi
Wikipedia
Official Site