I attended my first convention twelve years ago. I’ve been going to cons off and on ever since, but the reasons have changed almost every year.
Initially, cons were great opportunities to see screenings and merchandise I couldn’t find anywhere else. Back then, streaming video meant two frames per second in a window half an inch wide, online merchant sites were rare, and internet news sites posted sporadically.
As the internet evolved, my interest in conventions evolved into a panel-oriented experience. I’d got to a convention for the condensed explanations and advice available in the panels, often on topics that weren’t concisely explained in books or online. Plus, I could go up to the panelists afterwards and ask specific questions.
During this time, my connections into the community grew. I went to PAX East 2012 primarily because the Gamer Assembly would be there, running a panel. As it happened, I spent most of the weekend gaming with people I had chatted with for months online.
These are some of the reasons for the continuing success of physical conventions. Despite the benefits of email, Skype, Facebook, and Google+, there are myriad reasons to attend a physical con, and the cons themselves constantly evolve new benefits.
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This site is dedicated to intellectual reviews and analysis of anime, with detours into video games and tabletop RPGs. I also make things, from crafts to Gunpla to 3D printing.
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2020
- December 2020
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November 2020
- Digging Deeper into: Megazone 23
- Brent's Anime Rec: Moshidora
- Brent's Anime Rec: Princess Tutu
- Digging Deeper Into: Urusei Yatsura 2
- Is Mecha Dead?
- I Just Love: Interstella 5555: The 5tory of the 5ecret 5tar 5ystem
- Digging Deeper Into: Arcadia of my Youth
- 6 Influential But Forgotten Mecha Shows
- Brent's Anime Rec: The Cat Returns
- Digging Deeper Into: Vampire Hunter D
- 5 Classic Harem Anime That Are Actually Interesting
- Digging Deeper Into: Project A-Ko
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October 2020
- Digging Deeper Into: Castle of Cagliostro
- Digging Deeper Into: Blood The Last Vampire
- Fall Anime Preview 2020
- Brent’s Anime Rec: Grimgar of Fantasy and Ash
- Digging Deeper: Horus, Prince of the Sun (1968)
- A Brief History of Anime: The 2010s
- A Brief History of Anime: The 2000s
- Digging Deeper Into Akira
- Digging Deeper: Hakujaden
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September 2020
- Digging Deeper Into: Okko's Inn
- A Brief History of Anime: The 1990s
- Digging Deeper: Momotaro's Sacred Sailors
- Brent's Anime Rec: Kodocha
- A Brief History of Anime: The 1980s
- Digging Deeper into Angel's Egg
- A Brief History of Anime: The 1970s
- Digging Deeper into Metropolis
- A Brief History of Anime: The 1960s
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August 2020
- A Brief History of Anime: 1900-1959
- Digging Deeper into Pom Poko
- Brent's Anime Rec: K-ON!
- The heartwrenching contrasts of war in "In This Corner of the World"
- Digging Deeper into A Silent Voice - SPOILERS
- How Heavy Are Those Dumbbells You Lift?
- Brent's Anime Recs: Robot Carnival
- Abstract Realism in "Night is Short, Walk on Girl"
- The Anime Aesthetic in Land of Lustrous
- July 2020
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