So was AX 2008 a disaster?
Farix
unmitigated disaster waiting to happen, the whole thing appears to have
gone off very well without any serious hitches.
Farix
Ru Igarashi
> Despite our Chicken Little?'s? predictions that AX 2008 was an
> gone off very well without any serious hitches.
Definitely without significant hitches from my experience.
As for my answer to your question: not a disaster by
any stretch of the imagination, for me. I think LACC
is a very good venue for AX, I liked it, was actually
impressed by it, mostly. If I had to choose between
Anaheim CC and LACC, I'd be hard-pressed to make a
choice.
The pre-registration the night BEFORE the con was fairly
painless. I got there about a half hour after the reg
opened, and they didn't have all stations (8 lines, 4
station per line) operating. As a consequence, I waited
an hour. BUT, 40 minutes into the line and only 2/3
of the way in, all stations were started up and the line
rolled quite quickly. When I check the lines the next day,
the FIRST day of the con, at noon, there were ZERO lines
for pre-reg. It took longer to get an industry badge than
standard attendee badges. They streamlined the process
by putting 4 stations per line, using barcode scanners,
and making that scan self-serve. The only bottleneck was
the ID verification, but even that wasn't too bad because,
unlike last year, they printed the badges quicker than you
could line up for and it was just a matter of pointing to
you badge and giving the checker your ID. If they had
all stations running right from the start, I would have
been done in half an hour.
As for the venue, I rate LACC "very good for AX". Some
folks wondered if it was too large. Nope. We used a very
large part of it (if not all, I didn't attend all aspects
of the con, and I know there were some sections that were
used on the "main floor" for some activities but not how
much of the sections). We used the huge South Hall for the
vendors and artist alley, to good use. We used the West
Hall for registration and special events. I'm wondering
if we didn't need the West Hall for registration. Those of
you who registered on the Con days should comment on that.
LACC was large enough that most social activites (impromptu
cosplay, games, chatting) could be contained indoors
and were well lit, a lot by natural lighting. It shares
those characteristics with the Anaheim convention
center. Even so, the location of all activities were
somehow still CLOSE enough to each other that you didn't
have to rush to get to the next thing, at least not as
murderously bad as at the Long Beach CC. Actually, I
put LACC above Anahiem in that respect. Crowd control
was a non-issue, too. The Con layout was good.
Food was a bit of a problem. I wasn't familiar enough
with the area to know where to go for food outside LACC.
Besides, I tended to be in a rush, so I ate the rather
expensive LACC food (the burgers were surprisingly good,
though). I did venture outside once, though, and found
a Denny's and a Famima (convenience store) about 2 or 3
blocks away, down Figeroa St (ave?). Good to know for
the next time. Long Beach might have had an advantage
that way, even over Anaheim, though.
Regarding outside, some folks expressed concerns for their
safety. I know some locals scoffed at those concerns, and
for good reason. That part of downtown has undergone a lot
of gentrification. There are a lot of new developments.
The area around the con is open, clean, and looks safe.
During the weekday, you see people going about their
normal business, during the weekends it's just us. In the
evenings, I don't know cuz I was either at an event or
unconcious :). But there was no one around that might
have even looked likely to hassle us.
OK, a big question mark, mostly against the Con was the
hotel locations. Anaheim has the advantage in that 3 or
4 major con hotels are either attached or within SHORT
walking distance of the CC. LACC only has one hotel at the
limit of acceptable walking distance. BUT the con arranged
for shuttle service. I only stayed at the Westin (about
10 blocks away) for one night, and stayed at my brother's
place for the rest. My one-day's experience with the
shuttle was VERY good. I caught it on time at the hotel
in the middle of the day. They used coaches, not city
transit buses or airport style vans, so lots of capacity.
It dropped me off as close to the West Hall (registration)
as it possibly could (the LACC's own bus depot). I went
back right after the AMV contest, which let out a couple of
attendees, and after a bit of loitering, I found myself in
a lineup for the bus. There were more people than a coach
could carry. No problem, they actually rolled out two
buses IMMEDIATELY when the scheduled time came. And even
then they rolled out another one after I got onto my bus.
And after a long day at the con, a coach ride to the
hotel is REALLY REALLY NICE. If I had to stay at a
hotel for an LACC-based AX, would I mind? I would not
mind at all, based on those two experiences.
I do have to say that the NOKIA Center for the events,
was a bit uncomforrtable: the rows are a bit close
together, and the damned cup holders are annoying.
On the other hand, it was large enough for its purpose.
The two events I attended, AMV and Masquerade, went
without a hitch, both indoors and out.
My main beef with this year's con was the apparent
lack of new shows in the video theatres. Video 1
had a few, but even the other theatres didn't seem
to have much from the past year. Even so, I wouldn't
deem this a disaster, since I got a look at "Strike
Witches" (OMG! WTH!) and "Emma" (so charming).
Anyway, for thos of you who didn't attend because
of the location, I can heartily recommend going to
it next year (it will be at the LACC again). the
shuttle service may be a bit of a downer, but the
con center itself should please you. Really, after
seeing how we used LACC, I think AX has grown right
into it (I certainly hope we never go back to
Long Beach).
As for the con, a generally excellent experience
for me.
ru
--
Maintainer of the Anime Music FAQ for REC.ARTS.ANIME.*
http://members.shaw.ca/ru.igarashi/FAQS/raa_music/
and Ru's Annual Anime Fan Survey
http://members.shaw.ca/ru.igarashi/Surveys/fans/
Derek Janssen
> Farix <dhstr...@hotmail.com> wrote:
>
>>Despite our Chicken Little?'s? predictions that AX 2008 was an
>>unmitigated disaster waiting to happen, the whole thing appears to have
>>gone off very well without any serious hitches.
>
>
> Definitely without significant hitches from my experience.
> As for my answer to your question: not a disaster by
> any stretch of the imagination, for me.
Over on AoD Forums, one fan grumbled about the lack of new title
announcements and asked whether AX'08 was "too tame" and "quiet" this year.
The responses were generally along the line of "'Quiet'?...In what
alternate universe?? 0_0 "
Derek Janssen (think we learned a lot about ourselves, and not in a bad
way for once)
eja...@verizon.net
Chika
Surely the hint from Uncle Mikey that all would be a disaster was a
guarantee that all would be well!
--
//\ // Chika <miyuki><at><crashnet><org><uk>
// \// Mitsuo... Menda... naha naha...
... Used Iraqi rifles for sale: Dropped once, never fired...
darkst...@gmail.com
No, seriously... Of course, the near-full-scale housecleaning the
organizers did ater last year's debacle helped...
Too bad the anime economy and the economy at large are about to
obsolete this convention.
Mike
Derek Janssen
> And color me the most shocked person on the Internet today.
Okay: <dumps bucket of green paint over Mike>
(What, you would've preferred teal?)
> No, seriously... Of course, the near-full-scale housecleaning the
> organizers did ater last year's debacle helped...
>
> Too bad the anime economy and the economy at large are about to
> obsolete this convention.
Hey, there's nothing wrong with saying "There's always NEXT year..."
Baseball teams say it all the time. ^_^
Derek Janssen (raised in Boston)
eja...@verizon.net
Farix
> darkst...@gmail.com wrote:
>
>> And color me the most shocked person on the Internet today.
>
> Okay: <dumps bucket of green paint over Mike>
>
> (What, you would've preferred teal?)
I think a nice shade of red would have been better. ;)
>> No, seriously... Of course, the near-full-scale housecleaning the
>> organizers did ater last year's debacle helped...
>>
>> Too bad the anime economy and the economy at large are about to
>> obsolete this convention.
>
> Hey, there's nothing wrong with saying "There's always NEXT year..."
> Baseball teams say it all the time. ^_^
So what does that make of his other predictions? He acts as if there
will be no economy by the end of the year. If he truly believes in this
prediction, why is Mikey not saving every penny he has by cut off his
internet bill instead of spouting off nonsense?
Farix
Rob Kelk
wrote:
>Despite our Chicken Little 's™ predictions that AX 2008 was an
>unmitigated disaster waiting to happen, the whole thing appears to have
>gone off very well without any serious hitches.
And, apparently, I was proven wrong (not that I mind) - there were
plenty of licence announcements at AX this year.
--
Rob Kelk <http://robkelk.ottawa-anime.org/> e-mail: s/deadspam/gmail/
"I'm *not* a kid! Nyyyeaaah!" - Skuld (in "Oh My Goddess!" OAV #3)
"When I became a man, I put away childish things, including the fear
of childishness and the desire to be very grown-up." - C.S. Lewis
Rob Kelk
<eja...@nospam.verizon.net> wrote:
>darkst...@gmail.com wrote:
>
>> And color me the most shocked person on the Internet today.
>
>Okay: <dumps bucket of green paint over Mike>
>
>(What, you would've preferred teal?)
No teal - that's Paradox's colour. (I do hope someone gets the
reference.) But if he really wants a color shock:
http://www.clairol.com/products/color-shock.jsp (Hmmmmm... "Green
Weed"... that does seems appropriate.)
<snip>
--
Rob Kelk Personal address (ROT-13): eboxryx -ng- tznvy -qbg- pbz
"When a person can no longer laugh at himself, it is time for others
to laugh at him."
- Thomas Szasz, "The Second Sin", 1973
Galen
wrote:
>
>So what does that make of his other predictions? He acts as if there
>will be no economy by the end of the year. If he truly believes in this
>prediction, why is Mikey not saving every penny he has by cut off his
>internet bill instead of spouting off nonsense?
If the economy collapses, money becomes worthless;
therefore, there is no point in saving it.
-Galen
Antonio E. Gonzalez
<ru.ig...@usask.ca> wrote:
>Farix <dhstr...@hotmail.com> wrote:
>> Despite our Chicken Little?'s? predictions that AX 2008 was an
>> unmitigated disaster waiting to happen, the whole thing appears to have
>> gone off very well without any serious hitches.
>
>Definitely without significant hitches from my experience.
>As for my answer to your question: not a disaster by
>any stretch of the imagination, for me. I think LACC
>is a very good venue for AX, I liked it, was actually
>impressed by it, mostly. If I had to choose between
>Anaheim CC and LACC, I'd be hard-pressed to make a
>choice.
>
My only problem was the LACC's labyrinth layout, making getting
from place to place a bit of an adventure . . . hmmm, maybe that
wasn't a bad thing . . .
>The pre-registration the night BEFORE the con was fairly
>painless. I got there about a half hour after the reg
>opened, and they didn't have all stations (8 lines, 4
>station per line) operating. As a consequence, I waited
>an hour. BUT, 40 minutes into the line and only 2/3
>of the way in, all stations were started up and the line
>rolled quite quickly. When I check the lines the next day,
>the FIRST day of the con, at noon, there were ZERO lines
>for pre-reg. It took longer to get an industry badge than
>standard attendee badges. They streamlined the process
>by putting 4 stations per line, using barcode scanners,
>and making that scan self-serve. The only bottleneck was
>the ID verification, but even that wasn't too bad because,
>unlike last year, they printed the badges quicker than you
>could line up for and it was just a matter of pointing to
>you badge and giving the checker your ID. If they had
>all stations running right from the start, I would have
>been done in half an hour.
>
I got there late, so my lines was less than five minutes; wow,
just wow (especially with past experiences in mind) . . .
This is one advantage of walking from-to the hotel; you get to
know the street (and yes, it's Figueroa *Street*), and the many
restaurants and shops along the way. Besides the Denny's and Famima,
there was the Fox Sports Grill on Staples Center (which is right next
to LACC), an earthy (I forgot its name) diner another block up, and a
series of fine resturants futher up (if you can afford 'em); add to
that Flower Street one block east, and up that road you have an IHOP,
a Ralphs (West coast version of Krogers), a Subway, and a Cold Stone
Creamery among others. All if you're ready and willing to walk just
that much more . . .
>Regarding outside, some folks expressed concerns for their
>safety. I know some locals scoffed at those concerns, and
>for good reason. That part of downtown has undergone a lot
>of gentrification. There are a lot of new developments.
>The area around the con is open, clean, and looks safe.
>During the weekday, you see people going about their
>normal business, during the weekends it's just us. In the
>evenings, I don't know cuz I was either at an event or
>unconcious :). But there was no one around that might
>have even looked likely to hassle us.
>
*ahem* Told ya! : )
Only a couple of homeless people once in a while, and they could
hardly be called a problem. Heck, as somone who likes to spread the
wealth, I don't mind giving a little here and there to help . . .
On another front, I actually remember a couple of LAPD officers
looking on, and a couple of cruisiers occassionally driving by (for
those who might think LAPD is one step from the KKK, one of the
officers was black, the other probably Latino). Anyway, if there's
one thing people on the other side of the law know in SoCal, it's Do
Not Fuck with the LAPD! For all their corruption problems, they get
the job done, at least when they're around, the ultimate example being
the North Hollywood Shootout; I'll just say it's been recreated
countless times for the History and Discovery Channels, and it's still
an awesome story!
>OK, a big question mark, mostly against the Con was the
>hotel locations. Anaheim has the advantage in that 3 or
>4 major con hotels are either attached or within SHORT
>walking distance of the CC. LACC only has one hotel at the
>limit of acceptable walking distance. BUT the con arranged
>for shuttle service. I only stayed at the Westin (about
>10 blocks away) for one night, and stayed at my brother's
>place for the rest. My one-day's experience with the
>shuttle was VERY good. I caught it on time at the hotel
>in the middle of the day. They used coaches, not city
>transit buses or airport style vans, so lots of capacity.
>It dropped me off as close to the West Hall (registration)
>as it possibly could (the LACC's own bus depot). I went
>back right after the AMV contest, which let out a couple of
>attendees, and after a bit of loitering, I found myself in
>a lineup for the bus. There were more people than a coach
>could carry. No problem, they actually rolled out two
>buses IMMEDIATELY when the scheduled time came. And even
>then they rolled out another one after I got onto my bus.
>And after a long day at the con, a coach ride to the
>hotel is REALLY REALLY NICE. If I had to stay at a
>hotel for an LACC-based AX, would I mind? I would not
>mind at all, based on those two experiences.
>
One thing people forget about LA is that it's build around and on
hills, and downtown is no exception. It's harder to tell because of
the streets and high-rises, but they are there.
I mention this because of the murderous walk up Figueroa Street.
There are plenty of rewards in the shops and restaurants, but you
shoes soon feel like cinder blocks. Going *from* a hotel to LACC
isn't so bad, as it's literally all downhill, actually making it
easier; but walk back is surprisingly steep. One way or the other,
the shuttles can be lifesavers here . . .
The Westin itself is an excellent hotel to stay in, distance be
damned. Sure the rooms are small, the TV a bit outdated (though they
get CN/AS), and the room service slow, but the beds . . . oh, they
mean it when the say Heavenly Sleep! Westin hotels have some of the
most ridiculously comfortable beds imaginable, and they guarantee a
solid night's rest! Heck the only "problem" might be how hard it is
to get *out* of the bed once you're in; but good early programming
might be enough motivation . . .
Once out of the rooms, the hotel itself is a freakin' experience!
The lobby is six floors of shops and restaruants, from a Subway, to a
Gourmet Vietnamese place, to an Italian place, to a gym, to a spa, to
a couple of gift shop/convenience stores, this thing could compete
with many malls. There are also at least two walking bridges
connected to this; I used the Union Plaza bridge on the 4th floor to
reach . . . Union Plaza (across the street), and its Johnny Rocket,
Starbucks, and Quiznos among others. This not mentioning all the
decorations and fountains on the first floor; and whatever my problems
with room service, the staff was incredibly helpful . . .
>I do have to say that the NOKIA Center for the events,
>was a bit uncomforrtable: the rows are a bit close
>together, and the damned cup holders are annoying.
>On the other hand, it was large enough for its purpose.
>The two events I attended, AMV and Masquerade, went
>without a hitch, both indoors and out.
>
Sure, the AMV's started about five minutes late, but then came the
shocker . . . without hurrying anything up, it finished ahead of
schedule! This might be unheard of in AX AMV Contest history, but
quite welcome; oh, and the AMV's were pretty damn good too . . .
>My main beef with this year's con was the apparent
>lack of new shows in the video theatres. Video 1
>had a few, but even the other theatres didn't seem
>to have much from the past year. Even so, I wouldn't
>deem this a disaster, since I got a look at "Strike
>Witches" (OMG! WTH!) and "Emma" (so charming).
>
I presonally liked seeing Evangelion 1.0 (Rebuild) in a
theater-full of people; seeing *any* show in a room full of fellow
makes it that much better, but this one was just that much above . . .
The big premiere event turned out to be Batman: Gotham Knight (i.e.
"The Batmatrix"); the cue line alone filled up hours in advance . . .
>Anyway, for thos of you who didn't attend because
>of the location, I can heartily recommend going to
>it next year (it will be at the LACC again). the
>shuttle service may be a bit of a downer, but the
>con center itself should please you. Really, after
>seeing how we used LACC, I think AX has grown right
>into it (I certainly hope we never go back to
>Long Beach).
>
I had good memories of Long Beach . . . from 2002 . . .; shows how
growth can be a bad thing when not handled properly . . .
>As for the con, a generally excellent experience
>for me.
>
I enjoyed it as much as I could in my condition. As I've mentioned
before, I had (and still have) some kind of bug in my intestinal tract
causing all kindsa havoc for me. The inability to hold in solid foods
meant I was seriously drained on energy, was sore all over,
dehydrated, and with a slight fever (I repeat, unless you were
cleaning my toilet, I was *not* contagious!). My time was limited at
LACC, but I loved what there was of it; the shuttles were true
lifesavers; I had a genuine fear I would pass out somewhere in the
LACC itself, or even fail to make it to the toilet in time, but made
it on both counts. Those Heavenly Sleep beds also proved as helpful
for healing as any medicine; anyway, if this persists I'll see about a
doctor's appoitnment later this week, but at least I'm safe at home
now . . .
I have little doubt I would have made early panels/showings, and
enjoyed the full dining/shopping experience along Figueroa and Flower
Streets had I been in optimum health. Knowing it's back in LACC next
year, I'm looking forward! What I saw and did, I enjoyed greatly!
--
- ReFlex 76
- "Let's beat the terrorists with our most powerful weapon . . . hot
girl-on-girl action!"
- "The difference between young and old is the difference between
looking forward to your next birthday, and dreading it!"
- Jesus Christ - The original hippie!
<http://reflex76.blogspot.com/>
<http://www.blogger.com/profile/07245047157197572936>
Katana > Chain Saw > Baseball Bat > Hammer
Antonio E. Gonzalez
<eja...@nospam.verizon.net> wrote:
Seriously, they won two of the last four World Series, nobody feels
sorry for them anymore, they might as well be renamed The Yankees; now
the Cubs, on the other hand (sure they have a real chance this year .
. .like they did in 2003) . . .
Aje RavenStar
"Antonio E. Gonzalez" <AntE...@aol.com> wrote in message
news:p6m5741vi5g4j7ii4...@4ax.com...
> On Mon, 7 Jul 2008 19:50:37 +0000 (UTC), Ru Igarashi
> <ru.ig...@usask.ca> wrote:
>
> Sure, the AMV's started about five minutes late, but then came the
> shocker . . . without hurrying anything up, it finished ahead of
> schedule! This might be unheard of in AX AMV Contest history, but
> quite welcome; oh, and the AMV's were pretty damn good too . . .
>
Recall any of the names? Usually a search for '08 AX AMV can find some, but
sometimes descriptions don't mention if they were finalists, winners, or
just submitted.
darkst...@gmail.com
> Over on AoD Forums, one fan grumbled about the lack of new title
> announcements and asked whether AX'08 was "too tame" and "quiet" this year.
>
> The responses were generally along the line of "'Quiet'?...In what
> alternate universe?? 0_0 "
The fact that the end of the "big license" era is here was probably
what he was talking about.
With Funimation basically absorbing the (at the least, recent)
catalogs of (as of 2006) their two biggest competitors, the era of
waiting for that drop-dead license is over. CrunchyRoll will probably
be, at worst, the second or third biggest player in anime before too
far into 2009.
As for me, no regrets about not going - I'd have been in jail either
after the ADV Sneak Peek panel or the first time I laid my eyes on the
shithead running CrunchyRoll.
As for my opinion: Anyone who wants to see anime survive has to look
at this con as a disaster -- this con legitimizes CrunchyRoll and the
conduct of its users as major players in the anime industry, whether
we like it or not. That basically ends the DVD model once and for
all, taking with it the dub model and probably any hope of a sales-
based model (Travers has basically proposed an ad-based model -- to
which I've responded to him and hope that Google Groups can catch up
the last 10 hours so I can see if he responded back.)
Mike
S.t.A.n.L.e.E
>
> >My main beef with this year's con was the apparent
> >lack of new shows in the video theatres. Video 1
> >had a few, but even the other theatres didn't seem
> >to have much from the past year. Even so, I wouldn't
> >deem this a disaster, since I got a look at "Strike
> >Witches" (OMG! WTH!) and "Emma" (so charming).
> >
Emma sucks! LOL! ^_^
>
> I presonally liked seeing Evangelion 1.0 (Rebuild) in a
> theater-full of people; seeing *any* show in a room full of fellow
> makes it that much better, but this one was just that much above . . .
>
So, the franchise is still alive here.
>
> The big premiere event turned out to be Batman: Gotham Knight (i.e.
> "The Batmatrix"); the cue line alone filled up hours in advance . . .
>
Because that's the only way to see it - no fansubs, er, RAW! ^0^
Kidding. But before I buy it today, how was it?
Did they have production reps to introduce it?
If so, who bothered to come?
Laters. =)
Stan
--
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|__ | | | | _ | |\ | |___| ____|| ____|
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__| | ( )
/ _ | |/ LostRune+sig [at] UofR [dot] net
| ( _| | http://www.uofr.net/~lostrune/
\ ______| _______ ____ ___
/ \ / \ | _ | \ | |
/ \/ \| _ | |\ |
/___/\/\___|__| |__|___| \ ___|
Ru Igarashi
> On Mon, 7 Jul 2008 19:50:37 +0000 (UTC), Ru Igarashi
> <ru.ig...@usask.ca> wrote:
> >Farix <dhstr...@hotmail.com> wrote:
> >> Despite our Chicken Little?'s? predictions that AX 2008 was an
> >> unmitigated disaster waiting to happen, the whole thing appears to have
> >> gone off very well without any serious hitches.
> >
> >Definitely without significant hitches from my experience.
> >As for my answer to your question: not a disaster by
> >any stretch of the imagination, for me. I think LACC
> >is a very good venue for AX, I liked it, was actually
> >impressed by it, mostly. If I had to choose between
> >Anaheim CC and LACC, I'd be hard-pressed to make a
> >choice.
> My only problem was the LACC's labyrinth layout, making getting
> from place to place a bit of an adventure . . . hmmm, maybe that
> wasn't a bad thing . . .
Labyrinth? I found it to be very straight forward,
and very short distance between most venues (excepting
Nokia Theatre). Better than the ACC+Marriot combo
of past AX's. The LACC layout was one of the things
that impressed me about this year's con. For example,
getting to and from the vendor hall from the video
rooms basically involved getting to and through the
food court around the corner from South Hall and up
the escalators.
> >Anyway, for thos of you who didn't attend because
> >of the location, I can heartily recommend going to
> >it next year (it will be at the LACC again). the
> >shuttle service may be a bit of a downer, but the
> >con center itself should please you. Really, after
> >seeing how we used LACC, I think AX has grown right
> >into it (I certainly hope we never go back to
> >Long Beach).
> I had good memories of Long Beach . . . from 2002 . . .; shows how
> growth can be a bad thing when not handled properly . . .
Yeah, Long Beach for AX 2002 was fine. But the last
time it was held at Long Beach (last year, year before
last?), the problem for me was not how it was handled
by the organizers but having to walk a couple of blocks
between buildings between the vendor hall and the
video halls. Long Beach simply isn't a good place
for AX (anymore).
Bobby Clark
"Antonio E. Gonzalez" <AntE...@aol.com> wrote in message
news:p6m5741vi5g4j7ii4...@4ax.com...
> On Mon, 7 Jul 2008 19:50:37 +0000 (UTC), Ru Igarashi
> <ru.ig...@usask.ca> wrote:
>
>>Farix <dhstr...@hotmail.com> wrote:
>>> Despite our Chicken Little?'s? predictions that AX 2008 was an
>>> unmitigated disaster waiting to happen, the whole thing appears to have
>>> gone off very well without any serious hitches.
>>
>>Definitely without significant hitches from my experience.
>>As for my answer to your question: not a disaster by
>>any stretch of the imagination, for me. I think LACC
>>is a very good venue for AX, I liked it, was actually
>>impressed by it, mostly. If I had to choose between
>>Anaheim CC and LACC, I'd be hard-pressed to make a
>>choice.
>>
>
> My only problem was the LACC's labyrinth layout, making getting
> from place to place a bit of an adventure . . . hmmm, maybe that
> wasn't a bad thing . . .
I did not mind that. We walked around the building on the outside several
times to bypass lines. I also did that to bypass the lines waiting to get
into the dealers room on day one.
>
>
>>The pre-registration the night BEFORE the con was fairly
>>painless. I got there about a half hour after the reg
>>opened, and they didn't have all stations (8 lines, 4
>>station per line) operating. As a consequence, I waited
>>an hour. BUT, 40 minutes into the line and only 2/3
>>of the way in, all stations were started up and the line
>>rolled quite quickly. When I check the lines the next day,
>>the FIRST day of the con, at noon, there were ZERO lines
>>for pre-reg. It took longer to get an industry badge than
>>standard attendee badges. They streamlined the process
>>by putting 4 stations per line, using barcode scanners,
>>and making that scan self-serve. The only bottleneck was
>>the ID verification, but even that wasn't too bad because,
>>unlike last year, they printed the badges quicker than you
>>could line up for and it was just a matter of pointing to
>>you badge and giving the checker your ID. If they had
>>all stations running right from the start, I would have
>>been done in half an hour.
>>
>
> I got there late, so my lines was less than five minutes; wow,
> just wow (especially with past experiences in mind) . . .
We regestered at 11:50 on day one. No lines at all. Took about 2 min scan
to badge and bag.
We drove in every day and partked at the LACC. Worked out very well.
>
>
>>Regarding outside, some folks expressed concerns for their
>>safety. I know some locals scoffed at those concerns, and
>>for good reason. That part of downtown has undergone a lot
>>of gentrification. There are a lot of new developments.
>>The area around the con is open, clean, and looks safe.
>>During the weekday, you see people going about their
>>normal business, during the weekends it's just us. In the
>>evenings, I don't know cuz I was either at an event or
>>unconcious :). But there was no one around that might
>>have even looked likely to hassle us.
>>
>
> *ahem* Told ya! : )
>
> Only a couple of homeless people once in a while, and they could
> hardly be called a problem. Heck, as somone who likes to spread the
> wealth, I don't mind giving a little here and there to help . . .
We only had one issue with a homeless person at the CFSS and tar pits.
Passed a few at the LACC with no issues.
Bobby
Travers Naran
> As for my opinion: Anyone who wants to see anime survive has to look
> at this con as a disaster -- this con legitimizes CrunchyRoll and the
> conduct of its users as major players in the anime industry, whether
> we like it or not. That basically ends the DVD model once and for
> all, taking with it the dub model and probably any hope of a sales-
> based model (Travers has basically proposed an ad-based model -- to
> which I've responded to him and hope that Google Groups can catch up
> the last 10 hours so I can see if he responded back.)
Heh. I did catch it; I just haven't had time to formulate a response.
More accurately, I've been reading everyone else's reactions. It's
giving me some interesting things to think over.
--
-----
Travers Naran, tnaran at google's mail.com
"Welcome to RAAM. Hope you can take a beating..." -- E.L.L.
Farix
> darkst...@gmail.com wrote:
>> As for my opinion: Anyone who wants to see anime survive has to look
>> at this con as a disaster -- this con legitimizes CrunchyRoll and the
>> conduct of its users as major players in the anime industry, whether
>> we like it or not. That basically ends the DVD model once and for
>> all, taking with it the dub model and probably any hope of a sales-
>> based model (Travers has basically proposed an ad-based model -- to
>> which I've responded to him and hope that Google Groups can catch up
>> the last 10 hours so I can see if he responded back.)
>
> Heh. I did catch it; I just haven't had time to formulate a response.
> More accurately, I've been reading everyone else's reactions. It's
> giving me some interesting things to think over.
Mikey is still trying to declare AX2008 a disaster? ROFLMAO!
Farix
darkst...@gmail.com
> In article <g4tkrp$gk...@news.parasun.com>,
> Farix <dhstran...@hotmail.com> wrote:
>
> > Despite our Chicken Little 's™ predictions that AX 2008 was an
> > unmitigated disaster waiting to happen, the whole thing appears to have
> > gone off very well without any serious hitches.
>
> Surely the hint from Uncle Mikey that all would be a disaster was a
> guarantee that all would be well!
Bullshit.
If the people from last year ran this one, there'd have been major
incidents. Sounds to me like they did get the LAPD majorly involved
-- would not be surprised if there weren't some "sweeps" before the
con...
Mike
darkst...@gmail.com
> So what does that make of his other predictions? He acts as if there
> will be no economy by the end of the year. If he truly believes in this
> prediction, why is Mikey not saving every penny he has by cut off his
> internet bill instead of spouting off nonsense?
Because, when what goes down goes down, I'll be in jail.
Mike (Then, if not before...)
Antonio E. Gonzalez
Hmmm, let's see . . .:
"Be a Man" - Winner of Best Action, also a surprisingly funny video,
but just well-made above all. It's a Gurren Lagann video to Donny
Osmond's "I'll Make a Man Out of You" from Mulan. IMHO, shoulda won
Best in Show.
"The Harassment of Kyon" - Winner Best Comedy, Best in Show. Ever
notice the way Itsuki looks at Kyon throughout the Haruhi series?
Yeah, this video takes that, and blows it completely out of context,
in hilarious fashion to Avril Lavigne's "Girlfriend." Well, if one
had to win BiS, this one worked, down to the twist ending.
"Bustin'" - Another good comedy one, thojugh it might've worked better
in Action. The editing was perfect, but I coudn't get into it. Oh,
FF: Advent Children to Ray Parker Jr.'s "Ghostbusters."
"Farewell" - Winner of Best Drama, unfair usage of Saikano; hell, not
only Saikano, but James Blunt's "Goodbye My Lover." Anyway, those
wouldn't have mattered had the editing not worked, but it did, so this
one was a guaranteed victory; and guaranteed to leave about half the
audience in tears . . .
"Fat Friend" (?) - Gudam 0083 to Stephen Lynch's "Big Fat Friend." I
almost felt guilty about finding this one funny . . . almost. Still,
while the editing wasn't quite up to par, it was very funny . . . in a
horribly un-PC way . . .
"Anime Girls Need Mood Rings" - Quite a few to Relient K's "Mood
Rings."
"Sousuke's Changes" - FMP to Army of Me's "Going Through Changes."
"Ouran High School Never Ends" - Ouran High School Host Club to
Bowling for Soup's "High School Never Ends."
"Endless Frontier" - Outlaw Star to Star One's "Set Your Controls."
"Lovestruck Radiance" - AMG to Michael Mansion's "Let Me In (Darwin's
Hemstock Remix)."
"Condemned Memoir" - Elfen Lied to The Birthday Massacre's "Blue."
Bloody, seriously bloody.
"Falling Dreams" - Kingdom Hearts to Within Temptation's "See Who I
Am."
"FREEDOM" - KARAS to Blood Stain Child's "FREEDOM." Not quite as
bloody as the Elfen Lied one, but still . . .
"Catch Me If You Can Zenigata" - Lupin III to Brad Paisley's "Fifth
Gear."
"Redeem Us!" - S-Cry-ed to Within Temptation's "Our Solemn Hour."
Look hard enough, and you should find animemusicvideo.org links, or
YouTube, at least in due time . . .
Antonio E. Gonzalez
<LostRu...@UofR.SlamSpam.net> wrote:
>Mon, 7 Jul 2008 9:13pm-0700, Antonio E. Gonzalez <AntE...@aol.com>:
>
>>
>> >My main beef with this year's con was the apparent
>> >lack of new shows in the video theatres. Video 1
>> >had a few, but even the other theatres didn't seem
>> >to have much from the past year. Even so, I wouldn't
>> >deem this a disaster, since I got a look at "Strike
>> >Witches" (OMG! WTH!) and "Emma" (so charming).
>> >
>
>Emma sucks! LOL! ^_^
>
>>
>> I presonally liked seeing Evangelion 1.0 (Rebuild) in a
>> theater-full of people; seeing *any* show in a room full of fellow
>> makes it that much better, but this one was just that much above . . .
>>
>
>So, the franchise is still alive here.
>
>>
>> The big premiere event turned out to be Batman: Gotham Knight (i.e.
>> "The Batmatrix"); the cue line alone filled up hours in advance . . .
>>
>
>Because that's the only way to see it - no fansubs, er, RAW! ^0^
>
>Kidding. But before I buy it today, how was it?
>Did they have production reps to introduce it?
>If so, who bothered to come?
>
As I said, the only marr on this Expo for me was my physical
distress, and this was no exception. On the day it showed, I got
there around 3 PM, by which time any line space was long taken. Well,
at least I'll get the DVD, even without the "surrounded by Otaku in
the audience" experience . . .
darkst...@gmail.com
> Travers Naran wrote:
> > darkstar7...@gmail.com wrote:
> >> As for my opinion: Anyone who wants to see anime survive has to look
> >> at this con as a disaster -- this con legitimizes CrunchyRoll and the
> >> conduct of its users as major players in the anime industry, whether
> >> we like it or not. That basically ends the DVD model once and for
> >> all, taking with it the dub model and probably any hope of a sales-
> >> based model (Travers has basically proposed an ad-based model -- to
> >> which I've responded to him and hope that Google Groups can catch up
> >> the last 10 hours so I can see if he responded back.)
>
> > Heh. I did catch it; I just haven't had time to formulate a response.
> > More accurately, I've been reading everyone else's reactions. It's
> > giving me some interesting things to think over.
Don't worry about it -- I was just griping about the backlog -- which
is still about 11 hours as of the moment. Got up to almost 24
yesterday, and they've probably got tens of thousands of messages to
make up in all the newsgroups, so don't worry about it, Travers.
> Mikey is still trying to declare AX2008 a disaster? ROFLMAO!
Absolutely. Just not the bloodbath I feared it would be.
Yes, I legitimately believed someone would die at this year's AX due
to the "element" nearby. Sounds like the LAPD did it's job for once.
As for my statement, AX 2008 is an absolute disaster for those who
wish to believe the product is worth anything -- the legitimization of
CrunchyRoll almost ensures that they will be one of the few remaining
players in very very short order. This would all but confirm the
animation to be abjectly worthless, with the effective end of the
industry soon afterward.
Of course, la dee dah, you don't care.
Mike
Rob Kelk
Here's a start:
"Be A Man":
http://www.animemusicvideos.org/members/members_videoinfo.php?v=158077
"The Harassment of Kyon":
http://www.animemusicvideos.org/members/members_videoinfo.php?v=158967
"Bustin'":
http://www.animemusicvideos.org/members/members_videoinfo.php?v=156084
"Farewell":
http://www.animemusicvideos.org/members/members_videoinfo.php?v=148528
"Fat Friend" (?): can't find on animemusicvideos.org ... yet
"Anime Girls Need Mood Rings":
http://www.animemusicvideos.org/members/members_videoinfo.php?v=148600
"Sousuke's Changes":
http://www.animemusicvideos.org/members/members_videoinfo.php?v=152255
"Ouran High School Never Ends":
http://www.animemusicvideos.org/members/members_videoinfo.php?v=156916
"Endless Frontier":
http://www.animemusicvideos.org/members/members_videoinfo.php?v=157330
"Lovestruck Radiance":
http://www.animemusicvideos.org/members/members_videoinfo.php?v=158307
"Condemned Memoir":
http://www.animemusicvideos.org/members/members_videoinfo.php?v=151101
"Falling Dreams":
http://www.animemusicvideos.org/members/members_videoinfo.php?v=156961
"FREEDOM":
http://www.animemusicvideos.org/members/members_videoinfo.php?v=160413
"Catch Me If You Can Zenigata":
http://www.animemusicvideos.org/members/members_videoinfo.php?v=160458
"Redeem Us!":
http://www.animemusicvideos.org/members/members_videoinfo.php?v=156050