Experiencing Anime Boston 2011

Through out the convention season, there were activity specific rooms and areas that were open everyday with a daily schedule: registration; karaoke; artist alley; information desk; manga library; art show; dealers room; video gaming, and live gaming. There were certain things that were generally the same: crowds; cosplayers; panels, for the general public, 18+ or 21+; concerts; video screening, and other random non-anime activities, such as the informal dance/rave. Even though the general type of activities were available, there was a variety of it. However, there were specific events that were unique in its nature that happened on certain days. So, let me tell you about my adventures and impressions of Anime Boston.

On Thursday people, who pre-registered for the convention and have their bar code confirmation printout, could come and pick up their badges. Since I registered early, I went to the Sheraton Hotel to pick it up. When I arrived, I could not believe the amount of people that I saw and some were already cosplaying. Because many came to pick up their badges, security, who wore orange Anime Boston shirts, was there for crowd control and held up signs for directions to the badge room. So, Thursday, was not so bad.

During the convention, everyday people could not get into the Hynes Convention Center without showing their badges. The Massachusetts Convention Center Authority, MCCA, security at the entrance in the Prudential Center literally checked people's badges. They were pretty thorough on who can and can not attend the convention. I remember one time one of the security guards had to ask for someone's badge, so he can see it up close. After he read the badge, he let the person in.

Once I passed through the threshold into the Plaza Level, I encountered the South Lobby rotunda and afterwards, the slope descending into the crowd of attendees in the Main Lobby. There were cosplayers walking about and some were posing for photos. The cafeteria of the center was open to con goers, and there was a small area with standing tables, no chairs. While going through the crowd, you will hear this: “Marco” pause “Polo!” Unfortunately, you heard it everyday throughout the convention. It was fine to hear it once, but after a while, it loses the humor and becomes pointless and annoying. Once I passed through the Marco Polo's, there was another rotunda with escalators.

This took you up to the second and third level of the convention center, which actually did not feel as crowded as I thought it would be. I was able to walk through the hallways, except for those who stood in the middle of it. This is where crowd control came in. For example, on Saturday, the MCCA security guards were walking down the hallway shouting out loud informing people to not stand in the middle of the hallway. Smart move, since it will get people's attention. When it came to lining up for panels and events, Anime Boston security had people lined up against the wall or window. This also made the area less congested.

So on these two floors, different activities are held. One type of activity are panels: some were run by fans and others by professionals. Some of the panels I attended were good, while others were not so great. There were informative and enjoyable ones, while others seemed surprisingly disorganized and had technical difficulties, which is “great” for the ear drum. It does not help that the panel schedule has a tendency to change the last minute, meaning the day of, and sometimes unannounced, which makes it annoying at times.

For example, one presenter decided to announce that it was his first time doing a panel. The problem about this was that the person announced it, while fixing the slip up in the power point. Not a good excuse to use. Another panel that I attended was showing clips, but it was not entertaining to me. So, I decided to leave. For situations like this, it helps to be near the back of the room. Another panel was stated online to start at 6pm. However, when I went there, the panel ended at 6:30pm, and people were still walking in. For some reason, the panel started half an hour earlier. Whoever started any of the panels earlier that day in that room, obviously created a domino effect on the panels following it. Without going any further about the panels, I will discuss certain ones individually in separate articles.

Other activities were workshops that I could participate in and events that had special admission requirements. For example, if one were to attend the Masquerade or Melody Ball, a separate ticket is needed. Also, the Melody Ball had a dress code that one had to follow. Since, I had to get a ticket and most likely had to wake up early to wait on long lines for the Masquerade ones, I decided to spend my time else where like the Dealers Room and Artist Alley!

Since the Dealers Room was on the Plaza Level, it had a much lower ceiling in comparison to the Jacob Javits Center Show Floor. The aisles were spacious, so I did not have an issue maneuvering around. However, the aisles along the wall that is in the direction of South Lobby and near the Dealers Room restrooms, were the least walkable. There is one thing that I did not like about the Dealers Room, though. The aisles were not labeled, meaning there were no signs identifying it, such as “Aisle #.” So, if you get lost or if someone is trying to find you, you better have a good meeting place or a description of your location.

In regards to the booths, if one were expecting to see fancy displays that hover above or as tall as the ceiling, there were barely any. One booth in particular, Best Anime Shop, had items reaching up to the ceiling, and the size of the booth made it feel like a store. One did not just go to the booth table and moved on, but had to maneuver within the space to find the goodies: 360 degrees, up and down, and all over. In regards to the merchandises in the room, it generally consisted of: figures; accessories, such as charms and pins; clothes; dvds; manga; posters; stuff toys, and many other common types of anime and manga products. However, there were some dealers that were more unique than others. Some sold steam punk or science fiction and fantasy themed items, while others sold vintage Sailor Moon products or the hard to find Tokyopop Clamp Chess pieces. Over all, I enjoyed the variety and exposure of the anime and manga in the Dealers Room.

For the Artist Alley, well, I did not like the space, because it was extremely tight! I think most of the aisles can only fit two rows of people. Think of the way we used to line up in elementary school, but instead of kids, picture adults. So, really not enough space. Only one of the aisles was slightly more spacious, which was the one that the Art Show was in. In regards to the artists, there were a variety. Some had fan art, while others display original creations and products, such as StuffedSushi and Grey Kitty . Some sold prints, while others worked on commissions, like Meomeo Lau The Artist Alley was nice and “cozy.”

The other rooms that I checked out were the Game Room, Karaoke Room, Live Gaming Room and Manga Library. The Game Room was very spacious, and the ceiling looked much higher than the Dealers Room. When I went there a few times, it was never that crowded. However, the area with the popular games had a crowd of on lookers, so you had to peek through heads to see the television screen. The Karaoke Room was in a small room next to Panel 309. Nothing fancy, just a simple auditorium type set up with tables in the back. By the way, you can hear the people sing, because the doors are open. (^_^) The Live Gaming Room (not pictured above) was in the Sheraton Hotel and the set up was pretty simple too: rows of tables and chairs with a dealer as the back center piece of the room. Lastly, the Manga Library was in a big room that had a horseshoe table for returning books to be re-shelves, tables and chairs for reading and against the right side wall were shelves of manga. It did have the library environment. Sssh! Quiet please!

I do not think I have anymore to say, except that I enjoyed my time at Anime Boston 2011. Having to wake up early; getting into cosplay and Qi Lolita; going back and forth from panel rooms; meeting other Wa Lolitas; eating in the Prudential Center Food Court and everything else was a great experience. Tiring and annoying at times, but I would do it again.
© 2011 Linda Thai

Photography by Linda Thai

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