Can we talk about how anime conventions have changed since the 90s

I was at Anime Expo last weekend and it hit me how different things are now. Back in the late 90s we had maybe 30 dealers selling bootleg VHS tapes and fansubs on folded tables. Now you walk in and it's all official merch booths, giant LED screens, and lines for autographs that wrap around the building. I spent $45 on a gashapon machine just for nostalgia and got a keychain that reminded me of the old days. Anyone else miss when the whole con fit in one hotel ballroom?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_emma17d ago

Wait, you mean to tell me $45 for a gashapon keychain wasn't a good deal? Next you'll tell me my stack of bootleg VHS tapes from 1999 isn't actually worth retirement money. Sure, I miss the days when you could accidentally elbow a cosplayer and it was just a dude in a cardboard Gundam suit, but now you can't even trip over a LED light without someone filming it for their vlog.

chen.adam17d ago

Just pay the entry fee and skip the main hall. Hit up artist alley instead, that's where you'll find people selling zines and prints that remind you of the old fan culture. The big conventions are basically shopping malls now with cosplay tax. Find the smaller regional cons if you want that cramped hotel ballroom vibe. I went to a one day con last month in a Ramada conference room, 200 people tops, and the energy was way better than AX. Those tiny cons still have people trading bootleg dvds and photocopied manga under the table if you ask around.