Orlando Anime Day: The Loot

One of my favorite perks of being an anime reviewer for DVDTalk.com is that I have a good excuse to hit the anime conventions again. I used to go to these things all the time back in college. After I made my long awaited debut in the real world in 2004, I decided that I was a professional and stopped going. Actually, it just felt weird to go. When I first started hitting the cons, the panels and the dealer rooms were the main draw. Cosplayers made up a small, but noticeable, portion of the crowd. They were the freaks. The superfans. I always appreciated the effort that they put into their costumes and I loved that they usually roleplayed the part the entire day. They were fun, but I was never willing to take that step and join their ranks. Cosplayers now make up a majority of the crowd—sometimes like 80-90%. They proudly walk around with spiky hair, giant swords, ninja masks, magical fairy girl skirts, cat ears or some combination of all the above.

Now, it is my duty to attend anime conventions. Or so I tell myself. Truth is, I love this shit.