Overly Positive

For those of you among my humble little readership who don’t know, I used to work in the anime convention circuit. For nearly a decade I worked various events, mostly around my native Chicago and surrounding environs. What did I do? Well, you name it, I probably did it,whether it was fetching donuts and coffee or being crazy enough to chair the whole damn show. Of the many things I learned, I do have to say that the most significant was that a diet consisting of Mountain Dew, Krispy Kremes, and half-eaten chocolate bars isn’t quite good for you.

After putting in my time and doing everything I thought I could do, I exited the anime con scene. At the time of my retirement, the realization that anime was a generational medium and not a short term fad was just starting to take hold. TV channels were showing snippets of anime, the awareness of the culture and the nuances associated with it were just coming round the corner, and older fans mingled with a new generation of younger, excitable teens raised on mainstream anime exposure.

Next week I come back to what I consider my “home” convention, Anime Central, for a favor and a chance to check out what’s changed in almost 5 years. While I have yet to see what the fandom has come up with to express their love of anime, I am convinced of one thing – that in the intervening years, anime itself as cemented its place as a significant sub-culture of geek fandom. Anime news, information, media, and other resources have ballooned in the past few years, and finding a way to view the latest and greatest is extremely easy. The number of anime and manga related events has gotten huge, and long time events now hold court with smaller, determined ones that expand the anime exposure. The industry itself may have seen better times, but the fans are still around and holding things up.

More than that, though, I’m convinced the fandom is as generationally sound as ever. The younger fans that I know of that were around when I left are now college aged or emerging into jobs and roles as adults – and some of them might have even ended up on staff. Newer, younger fans (and in some cases, their parents) attend and are as excited about expressing themselves and socializing with those who share their interests. Programming that spans all ages and not just one or two age groups is the norm, and from a costuming standpoint, oldie but goodie classics like Sailor Moon clash with the latest and greatest in series like Clannad.

It’s a good time to be a geek and into anime, and next week, I’ll be heading right back into it just to see how good it really is. Exciting times, indeed.