Tekkoshocon was the first full scale anime convention I've ever attended
(Tekko � doesn't count).
While I was there, I learned
a lot about the culture of cosplay:
1. 80% of cosplayers represent less than 1% of all shows/video games
2. Tsunade is only cosplayed by fat white girls
Some anime characters transcend race and gender. I saw Bleach's Renji pulled off pretty well by both a white female and a black male with some badass dreadlocks. There were plenty of girls dressed up as male characters, and a disturbing number of men dressed up as girls. Tsunade, on the other hand, only got cosplayed by fat white chicks:
If you wanted an image of a Tsunade cosplayer, go find one, copy my html, and stick in the URL yourself. I refuse to post one.
The most satisfyingly uncorrupted character was Final Fantasy X's Lulu. Everyone who portrayed her
did a fantastic job. Can't say the same for Rikku.
3. Nobody knows Harima Kenji's name
You wouldn't believe how many times I was asked,
"Are you that guy from School Rumble?" (it was about 4 times).
It's not exactly a name that rolls off the tip of your tongue, but how
can you watch School Rumble without knowing the name
Harima Kenji, especially with the Harry McKenzie pun?
4. Want a good costume? Ask your mom to make it.
Perhaps the most outstanding costume of the day belonged to a little boy (approximately 6 years old) dressed
perfectly as Gaara.
There's no way in hell he made that costume and put on all that makeup on his own.
There were plenty of cool workshops and panels during the convention. The
most entertaining ones featured voice actors:
Greg Ayres: Grey Ayres is the Mamiko Noto of English-speaking adolescent males: he does the same voice for every role, and it never gets old. Although he's most famous for the line "OH SHIT!", you may also recognize him as the voice of Chrono from Chrono Crusade and Pope Alessandro XVIII from Trinity Blood. (Top Left)
Carrie Savage: I haven't heard her as the English Mokona, but she can't possibly be as annoying as her Japanese counterpart. You may also recognize her as Texhnolyze's Ran, a sweet little girl who never says anything and walks around town watching people die. (Top Middle)
Brett Weaver: I haven't seen any of this guy's roles, but apparently he's been around the industry for over 10 years. It's a shame that I missed him as Ryu in a Street Fight II dub. That must've been hilariously crappy. (Top Right)
Kyle Hebert: He's most famous for his role as teen Gohan from Dragonball Z. Now he's doing Aizen from Bleach. I can't be the only one who wishes I were him. (Bottom Left)
I don't remember: (Bottom Middle)
Vic Mignogna: This guy has a ton of fangirls. I don't blame them. He's done FMA's Edward Elric, Saiyuki's Kogaiji, and both Kurz Weber and the Pony Man from Full Metal Panic. Now he's working on Fay from Tsubasa Chronicle. (Bottom Left)
The musical guest was Mari Iijima. In addition to being a talented singer, she's one of the few voice actors who's voiced the same character, Macross' Lynn Minmay, in both Japanese and English. The craziest part is that the roles were done 20 years apart.
Speaking of talented singers, I didn't get to perform at the karaoke section because they didn't provide lyrics on the spot. You might think it's pretty sad that although my playlist is full of anime music, I haven't memorized a single song...
I don't remember what I was downloading, but it got some "radical good speed".
Isn't that catchy? Now check out the lyrics:
What is it you're looking for?
Are you still going to search for it?
Oo Oo Oo- Oo Oo Oo- Oo Oo Oo- saa...
Oo Oo Oo- Oo Oo Oo- Oo Oo Oo- saa, aa...
Is it hard to find?
Even though you search
in your bag and in your desk but can't find it...
Wouldn't you rather dance with me?
Don't you want to try
going into a dream, into a dream?
Oo Oo Oo- (Into a dream)
Oo Oo Oo- (Into a dream)
Oo Oo Oo- (saa...)
What a shitty song.
438 people thought that hitting their browser's Refresh button would load an image of Tsunade