Convention Reviews: Boston Comic Con

Boston Comic con what can i say about this event for Saturday & Sunday that it is a gathering of people who love comic's & sci-fi & this con has been going on since back in the 1970's thank's all to San Diego Comic Con , the fan's of Sci-fi has been growing bigger & bigger each year & has been going on for 43 year's. I have not heard of any issue's of the costume's from the staff yet , the staff was friendly & were helpful at time's , other time's they just stood around to make sure no people get hurt or no one was blacking the hall's , boston comic con is not only for fan's of comic's but for anime as well video game's , television series & movie fan's as well , there was no problem for photo shoot's for whovian's. (photo's later on that one) , & we did get to hear who the new doctor is during the gathering of the doctor who fanbase. the problem during the mid afternoon to evening was the air conditioning that when people gather up more in the building , the heat & body temperature rose up that people , stayed outside until some people left , there was a gaming room for people who like magic the gathering , (which was a major attention to everyone this year), there were a couple of panel's & one that Yaya Han was present to , the other panel's were fandom related & other's were on how & were it al started , the booth's & the walking area's had enough space for people to still walk around but other's time's people stood around just blocking the area , & no staffer to be found. Before Boston Comic Con can start the people who represent the con hosted a costume contest on Wednesday at 10 in the morning & did not end until 7:15pm. Well for the Boston Comic Con this is a good con for anyone who like's to get to know more of their personal fandom , or reconnect with anyone to see if they like similar character's or hate them , it's a great con , it does tend to get a bit tired some after walking around for some hour's if your looking for a item that you like , if you live around the Boston area I consider you to go , you will have fun just drink plenty of water , stay hydrated & don't forget to brink a snack with you so you can munch on something later on. The staffer's did a great job on the schedule everything followed into place & on perfect timing.

Time to rack up the point's on this Comic con con staff & security 9/10 Cosplay Variety 9/10 Convention Activity 7/10 Convention Panel's 10/10 Registration Line 8/10 Guest's 10/10 Convention uniqueness 7/10 Convention Layout 9/10 Convention friendly zone 9/10 Con Space Utilization 8/10

Total = 86 B+

also forgot to mention , Billy west was there (voice actor) of Doug Funnie , the red m&m , Heffer the cow from Rocko's modern life , doctor zoidberg , & Philip J. Fry - the movie star's who played kili & fili in the Hobbit movie were there as well , & so was HaruVamp.

Review By: Juan T.

Convention Reviews: Go! Daiko-Con 2013

This is a short review written by one of our Nation who attended a convention for only one day.

My Go! Daiko-Con Review

Go! Daiko-con is located in Pontiac, Michigan, it’s a small con and this was my first ever time going to Go! Daiko-con! Unfortunately, I could only attend one day; I will admit it was bumpy starting off, I tried to get a press badge but was asked about a resume and all sorts of things that was very odd for a convention setting. The con was small, very cozy and relaxing; it only had two hallways and two panels so it was easy to figure out what events were at what locations. The lines for registration weren’t long at all, the wait was about five minutes. As I kept going through the con I noticed the lines were still small and people had short waits.  This con was a very big change of pace from the big conventions, when con goers were in an event and the hallways were empty or barely any people walking around. The vendor room was also comfortable as well, it carried a lot of items and the artist alley had a lot of friendly faces that lots of unique, original work. The rave was nice too, the DJ did a wonderful job during it and lots of people were having a good time during it. The security of Go!Daieko was wonderful, they actually paid attention to people and communicated well and were very friendly.  I also got a chance to see the guest music performance of 2Do; very interesting pair, a lot of profanity in their lyrics, a lot of people were dancing in circles having a good time during their performances. I didn’t get to meet any of the voice actors but I did get to check out the maid café; very kawaii decorated scenery and the girls were very fast when serving meals. I definitely will come back to the maid café every year. Overall, if you are looking for a comfortable con in Pontiac, Michigan Go!Daieko should definitely be on your list.

Convention Staff and Security: 7/10

Cosplay Variety Range:  7/10

Convention Activity Level: 7/10

Convention Panels Level: 9/10

Registration Line: 10/10

Attendance Growth: 8/10

Convention Uniqueness: 7/10

Convention Layout: 8/10

Convention friendly level: 10/10

Convention Space Utilization: 8/10

Other Issues and problems worthy of point deduction:

Staff Issues-4

Total=77%

C+

Review submitted by Krissy Victory. 

Convention Reviews: Otakon 2013

Part of the registration line that wrapped around the convention.

Otakon is a large scale convention located in Baltimore, MD at the Convention Center in Baltimore, Maryland's Inner Harbor district. It is one of the most well-known and longest running Anime Conventions coming in at this being the 20th anniversary.

The staff of this con was one of the main highlights, professional, friendly, knowledgeable, and easy to find. The information walkers had huge banners sticking up to make it easy to find them. The venue was very secure with security at each exit and a volunteer in front of the doors that was closed off to keep non-badge holders from getting in. Security themselves where very prompt and kind all throughout the weekend. Anytime I needed to know information on where something was I was greeted with a smile and pointed on the map where I needed to go.

 The convention started a ticket system for autograph lines that seemed to change with everyone. First went as a normal line and then the ticket system came into play handing people tickets with times telling them to come back then and they would get in. Problem with that system was they did not keep the flow of the line moving, some people talked to the guest longer than needed, and a good number of the people who would have gotten the autograph if a normal line was held did not and was told to bring your ticket back tomorrow and they "might" honor it. This was one of the main negative feedbacks given over the weekend.

Artist Alley & The Dealers Room.......Each was the size of a Sams Club and in no way lacking in organization or room.  The floor was labeled with street names to make it easier to tell people where you found stuff, If you where looking for it chances are you found it, unless it was Attack on Titian related on  Sunday. In each of these the pathways was large enough to allow a clear flow of traffic and even room for "Quick can I have a picture?". The only thing lacking was a food vendor carring all those Japanese snacks that you love, but can't find here in the USA without a convention.

Friday night we had the first line up of 18+ panels and the requirement for the infamous "wristband". The convention only had three of the registration booths open for the line, which quickly outgrew the area leading to people being told to come back in 30 minutes and it would be shorter, only to come back and the line be tripled in size beginning to snake down the whole area and in between another line.  This could have been avoided if even two more of the empty registration booths was used to speed things up.

  The Gaming room was the size of the dealers room with just about every system, or game you could think of or wanted to play! The tournaments where held all over through the day and covered what you would expect CoD, Halo, SSBB, Mortal Combat, Ect... . Plenty of room was given for TCG players and extra room given to the dancing games set up like DDR or Dance Central 2.

 With the unofficial number looking to be close to 40,000 attendees it was without any surprise to see such a diverse variety of cosplay from all over the USA and even some of the people I talked to came from out of country just for this convention. The quality of cosplay was medium to about as high as you can get. The photo shoots where using the basic locations being the 3rd floor terrace, indoor fountains, and the outdoor fountains by the harbor. (Which became a large bubble bath Friday night and Saturday morning) The photo shoots ran where organized and handled very fast using the 5 second system.

Hungry? The convention was nothing short on food or drinks that was for sure, but at a higher price than you are used to. I do not take this into account during the rating, cause the convention can not help what the center  prices stuff at, but I feel it is worth mentioning for those of you who plan to go next year to prepare for. Thankfully the area had tons of places to eat at a good price for what you got. I know the 24hr Subway had supplies coming all day long and the line stayed out the door. The most busy was the mall two blocks down where the food court had everything you could want.

The convention was able to keep a unmobbed flow of traffic all weekend by marking the flow with tape on the floor keeping things in a good flow. The con goers raved on this improvement from the year before where the bridge was a constant block of traffic.

I don't even know what happened here, but it looks fun!

At this point I have ran out of Pros/Cons, so it is time to determine if this convention is one worth traveling to. I have been to many conventions, but Otakon has been the largest I have attended yet. (Dragoncon is next) This year guest wise there was Shingo Adachi, Peter S. Beagle, Maile Flanagan, Crispin Freeman, Tsukasa Fushimi, Todd Haberkorn, Kyle Hebert, Home Made Kazoku, Chiaki Ishikawa, Hiroyuki Kanbe, Yoko Kanno, Tetsuya Kawakami, Roland Kelts, Kaoru Kurosaki, Masao Maruyama, Mike McFarland, Vic Mignogna, Kazuma Miki, Masayuki Ozaki, Takamasa Sakurai, Jad B. Saxton, Tomokazu Seki, Micah Solusod, Michihiko Suwa, T.M.Revolution, Yuzuru Tachikawa, Cristina Vee and, and Shinichiro Watanabe! Just the sheer amount of major names they brought in had brought to the convention had made it worth the trip of 12 hours to start. Being one of the oldest and most well-known Anime conventions in the USA, it has held up to its name and fame. Any serious convention goer must go to Otakon once in their life. It is worth the drive or flight if you are over 4 hours aways.  So lets get to the points!

Otakon 20 Convention Rating Breakdown:

Convention Staff and Security: 9/10

Cosplay Variety Range:  10/10

Convention Activity Level: 9/10

Convention Panels Level: 10/10

Registration Line: 8/10

Attendance Growth: 8/10

Convention Uniqueness: 8/10

Convention Layout: 8/10

Convention friendly level: 10/10

Convention Space Utilization: 9/10

Other Issues and problems worthy of point deduction:

Random Changing Line Ticket System -4

18+ Band Registration -5

Total=80

Overall Grade: B

Review compiled by Jacob Stone. 

Convention Reviews: Connecticon 2013

A well sized photoshoot on the outside stairs

        Connecticon is Connecticut's largest nerd convention, and one of the largest in New England. Aparently it's also New England's largest Sci-fi/fantasy con. 2013 was it's 10th year, with attendance hovering around the 10,000 mark for the last few years. It's come a long way since it's humble beginings at the University of Hartford, but several problems still remain.

The staff of the con has never really been an issue, the sheer majority of the time, they are very professional and friendly. The only issue being the staff being a little overzealous about making sure cosplay is family friendly, although they seemed to have relaxed on that this year. The venue security, however, has been a serious problem for the past two years; with members of security being overly harsh, sometimes bordering on harrassment. This seems to have resolved itself this year; I haven't heard of any major incidents. 

The cosplay at connecticon is usually fairly diverse, with a decent number of relatively obscure characters mixed in with the usual popular fandoms from anime, videogames, comics, sci-fi, etc. The average quality was fairly high, although not quite the level of some of the larger conventions.

Teen Titans Go!

This, this is just perfect!

The photoshoots were somewhat lacking, pretty much just limited to the usual major fandoms- Hetalia, Marvel, DC, Resident Evil, and so on, with nothing really out of the ordinary. The heatwave putting the temperature in the upper nineties made many of the photoshoots less than enjoyable- made worse by the fact that many photoshoots were poorly organized. One particular issue I had was at the Resident Evil shoot on saturday, where the majority of the people who showed up were just wearing tactical gear with an Umbrella corp. patch, and it was clear they really didn't know much about the games, including the person leading the shoot, who kept calling only characters from Operation: Racoon City, excluding nearly all the characters from the real games. According to several friends who have attended many larger conventions in recent years, this is a problem pretty much exclusive to Connection.

Pony shoot...just look at that Pinky-Pool. 

The console gaming was surprisingly diverse, with the usual Rhythm game arcade machines and a decent variety of modern console game tournaments joined by a fair number of older consoles for open play.

The panel selection was somewhat...odd. There were certainly many things to do, with the usual selection of fandom-related panels, and panels on anime music, as well as tutorials on crafts and things like that, but the strange thing is the many panels that seemed completely unrelated to nerdom, such as panels on indoor kite flying, juggling, and a beginner's guide to the Vietnam war. And some others made me feel like I had accidentally gone to the summer session of a liberal arts college, such as the social politics of Cosplay, The female perspective in Joss Whedon's 'The Avengers', and a panel on the history of the Byzantine Empire.

One major problem with the con this year was the Artist Alley/Dealer's room. The layout this year was much more spread out this year, but as a result, the number of booths was somewhat limited. It felt much more sparse this year than in previous years, and the diversity of dealers seemed kinda lacking. One dealer in particular that I missed this year was the guy selling Hentai games; or as he called it, his 'Wall of Smut'. He was always entertaining with his sales pitches, a levity that was sorely missed this year.

The Cyanide and Happiness guys at their booth. 

One thing I did really like about Connecticon this year was their trying out new things. On thursday night, there was a formal dance they called their 'Nerd Prom' and on Saturday there was a pub crawl, called 'Connecticrawl'. I didn't attend either of these events, but from what I heard from those who did, both went over fairly well and it's nice to see the con moving out of their safezone.

All in all, Connecticon continues to be what it has been for the last several years: a good starter con, not quite as intimidating as the huge cons, but not as boring as most of the smaller cons. It's a mid-range convention in just about all areas, not terrible, but also not really excelling in any particular area. If you live near Connecticut, it's definitely a con you want to attend, but if you're more than a couple hours away and you only visit a few cons each year, there are definitely better choices.

My score is as follows:

Con Staff and Security: 8/10

Cosplay Variety 8/10

Convention Activity Level 6/10

Convention Panels Level: 7/10

Registration Line: 8/10

Guests: 7/10

Convention Uniqueness: 5/10

Convention Layout: 7/10

Convention Friendly Level: 8/10

Con Space Utilization: 6/10

total= 70 

Convention Overall Rating: C-

Review Written by John F. 

Photos by Jen M. 

Anime Convention Reviews: Colossalcon 2013

Colossalcon was a blast start to finish! This con is located in Sandusky, Ohio and it is huge! It has a variety of things to do since Colossalcon is held in the Kalahari Resort, which is a fantastic waterpark.  If you’re looking for a con  where theres always something going on and plenty of cosplayers to enjoy it with this is the place. I was Marceline Thursday, Saya/Miku Friday, swimsuit Miku and Martyoshka Miku Saturday, and Sunday I was Panty. This was my favorite Con hands down! It was so exciting! So many people it’s as big as Youmacon! And, best part, you can easily get in the waterpark, but don’t be surprised about the stares you get! Ahah! People really showcased some amazing talents of their cosplays and poses as well! Cosplayers on the bridges, and everywhere else.

​The rave was super exciting Thursday; I barely was there because I had a photoshoot but from the looks of it people were getting their groove on! Friday was so much fun for the raves! It was awesome and everyone dancing! So many people to the point where security let certain people on stage to dance with the DJ and I was one of them! DJ Shimamura was amazing, I loved his style of music and dancing and it was very nice meeting him as well! All the DJs had their own style and flair going on! So everyone had a variety of different music choices going on. Also, a volunteer butler providing everyone with water during the rave and the Steam Power Giraffe concert.

​ A big pro on a floating bounce house ship! Colossal was very unique and had its own flair as a con! Everywhere you go people were in action doing something! Cosplayers were having dance parties in hallways! The panels were organized as well, I happened to stop by the ask your favorite character panel and it was quite the experience joining everyone and squealing over Edward, or Tamaki.

​A con would be maybe more backup and aggression; the security was very strict on baggage check for raves, but lacked fast reaction to the invaders jumping on stage to sexually harass other dancers. A man clearly intoxicated grabbing me and later I being questioned if I asked him to be on stage regardless of audience members who clearly saw on the big television screens of me pushing him away from me. One of the guys got kicked out but the other one didn’t, another example is the security guy getting tazed by his own taser by a civilian who attacked him. I can’t really say too much on that because the guy who attacked the guard seemed to have skills in combat. This Con was strict on badge checking no matter how big of a group entered which I can give a plus for. This con is one out of two of the cons I encountered while attending Colossalcon.

​Another con would be disorganization of photoshoots. I went to two photoshoots this time around and everything was sort of everywhere with the Vocaloid shoots, no one knew who was taking pictures and cosplayers were scattered looking for others for the photoshoots. Next time I think it should be more planned out and organized so people won’t have a hard time in the future on what to do and where to go.

​The registration lines were quick and easy and organized for Friday. Saturday the lines seemed a little bit long but it continues to grow so it is not surprising. I had no issues with the registration line and didn’t hear others complaining so I give it a plus.

​No matter who you came with or why you were there, there was always a cosplayer to take you in! I got left twice by my group and random cosplayers would be friend me and have me join in on their activities. Sadly, I missed getting the autographs I wanted, but plenty of others did which is great! I love how big the dealer’s room was, it very spacious and full of options! The flea market was my personal favorite and I ended up coming home with too much anime in my possession and I am extremely happy to admit that! I hope they have that every year!  Even though I only touched the tip of the iceberg of my experience with Colossal, I got the majority of my point across. This was my favorite convention and I had a blast going, and hope that you enjoy yourself and have a blast at Colossalcon as well. So here’s to many, many more to come in the next coming years! Here is my rating..

Convention Staff and Security: 8/10

Cosplay Variety Range:  7/10

Convention Activity Level: 10/10

Convention Panels Level: 8/10

Registration Line: 8/10

Attendance Growth: 9/10

Convention Uniqueness: 8/10

Convention Layout: 9/10

Convention friendly level: 9/10

Convention Space Utilization: 10/10

Other Issues and problems worthy of point deduction: -2

Total Points: 84/100 Points

Overall Rating: 84%

Convention Grade: B

Review Written by: Krissy Victory

Youmacon 2012 Reveiw

       I don't know if any one agrees but I felt that this year was even more unorganized and unprepared than previous years. When arriving on Thursday around 4:30 or 5:00 pm I expected to see a long line, but what I witnessed wasn't even close to what I had ever imagined. It was a line of both those who paid in advance and those just arriving to get a badge. Some of the people in line commented that they had already been waiting for a few hours. Due to the massive amount of time spent waiting for one to claim their badge, I feel that the registration process deserves a rating of 2/10. However, during the excessive wait patrons were still permitted to visit the game room and to check out the projected floor plan. This added Free Play experience was a nice touch, and it was clear that everyone enjoyed it, 8/10. After waiting for a while, I gave up on getting a badge. I was told that a new line would start back up at 8 am, so I decided to wake up extra early the next day to explore what I could. That was the end my plans for Thursday, I spent the rest of the day playing games and meeting friends. 

       I awoke the next morning excited and ready to explore the con. When I arrived at registration again, I was surprised to find that it was just as long as it had been yesterday! Not only was the line excessive, the staff changed the start time several times. The time went from 10 am to 11:30 then to noon. However, they passed out the forms for registration and were nice enough to hold places in line for patrons to get cash if needed. The staff did this to make all transactions faster which was to everyone's benefit. This courtesy on behalf of the staff up's the rating to 3.5/10. It remains low because I was still in line for 5 hours. After I finally received my badge I was told that programs still were not available. I felt that this was totally unacceptable, there was plenty of time to print them out at least two days before the actual convention; This would have cut down the chaos. 
       There was a new policy this year, patrons were being issued wrist bands that were needed to return to their room. This was done to promote safety and care for their guests and elevators. It quickly became a pain trying to get a wrist band, or at the very least, to get to my room. This rule change caused an uproar among the public causing the staff became annoyed and many of the them became a bit rude; there were even a few that didn't really want to help, they seemed to be doing it just to get a free ticket. Eventually I did find people to help me get around the building so it wasn't a big deal. While waiting for a wrist a band I attended opening ceremony. 
       Due to the massive line waiting the time was pushed back to 1:30, then delayed again to 2 pm. The MC for the opening ceremony was awesome and super funny. However, he was set-up for failure. He announced guest's names that had not arrived yet. Some guests were late and were skipped over then then as soon as they arrived he would back track to them so that we could hear their spiel and have an idea when and where their panels would be held. Due to the scheduling chaos, many of the guests had no idea when or where they were supposed to be. I feel that the opening ceremonies deserved a 7/10, because even though it was horribly unprepared and unorganized they still pulled out all the stops to keep everyone laughing and almost made you forget we were just in line for several hours. 
       On a better note my Friday evening photo shoot, The Avatar shoot, was well organized and exceptionally executed; It was great fun, it was quick, and managed almost like a professional shoot. The young lady running it would call out characters and people jumped and snapped into a pose. She would give a count down so the next group would be ready and cameras would have time to reset and be ready. Very well done 8/10.
       Friday night was the best night ever! I returned to my room, changed into some dancing clothes, and chased down some other friends so we could be ready for the rave. When I met up with them I was able to meet Jon St. John near my friend's room. He was very funny and was living like a king. We headed down and everything was in place; people were in line water jugs full and placed throughout both the hallways and near the dance floor. I can't remember the dj's name, but he was so amazing. The bass was perfect, the light show was phenomenal, and there was so much room to dance. I stayed until the rave ended with energy to spare. It was well done and everyone had a great time 8/10.
       Afterwards, I returned to the game room. The game room was amazing! There were a great variety of games which included table top, computer, console, and arcade games. I jumped on the DDR machine, then over to play some Halo; they were both great. There were even games there that I hadn't seen in years, such as: Street Fighter II, The original Dragonball Z game, The first Dead or Alive. I saw the tournament but did not feel that I was up to the challenge and didn't sign up for them. However, I did hear from a friend who did sign up that all the tournaments went well and were very organized. One thing you don't mess up is a gamer's tournament there would be blood on the walls. Overall the gaming area was top notch, chiefly due to the increased variety of games and increase of space provided to play them, 9/10.
    I started my Saturday off a little late but still before noon. Being up so late the day before prevented me from fully exploring the events. I quickly got dressed and headed to the dealers' room. I had already visited on Friday but I didn't buy anything at the time. The amount of space both provided and used was exceptional. There were so many vendors to choose from and it put your bartering skills to good use. 
       Mid afternoon I attended the Naruto shoot. It started off a bit shaky, but we got it together after some screaming and yelling. The shoot turned out just as well as the Avatar one, in fact it was a little better because there were some real comedians there. Afterwards, I went to see the Cosplay Nation's panel. I missed the beginning but from what i saw I really enjoyed learning about their projects and seeing the documentary getting put together. I loved it so much that I offered to help them whenever they're in town or if I see them at other cons. Another panel that I went to was hosted by Katelyn Kivel. She is a great speaker and I really liked her panel because it gave a interesting view on yuri hentai. I also went to the Sailor Moon panel, another  hentai panel, and to several rooms showing Anime related movies. Many of the panels that I wanted to see were held during my photo shoots and as such I missed them. I tried to at least see part of the ones that I could, this gave me a good idea of what to look out for next year. Overall the panels, at least those that I saw,  were all great and I feel they deserve a 9/10.
       Sadly, Saturday night's rave couldn't even hold a candle to Friday night's. I didn't stay for more than an hour. I did not like the dj's choice of beats or the clips were shown on the screen. Not very satisfying, 5/10. 
       Sunday was another chaotic day, because everyone was trying to leave at once. It became an ordeal to use the elevators with such heavy traffic so it was time to chat with last minute cosplayers, guests of the con, and nap by the elevators while waiting to exit the building.
       For the few things I saw and heard I rated them together because I didn't fully experience it but I did get a good general idea. The musical guests were pretty on point. It was a little different than what I usually listen to but its always good to try new things. I liked how the city opened up for the con goers. The people mover was always full and everyone seemed to enjoy their ride, including non-con goers. It was an interesting experience for Detroiters. I liked that Cobo Hall opened up to provide more room for panels. 
       On a final note, Youma is always a ton of fun. There is always great people to meet, new things to see and hear, and I'm always sad when it ends. I sit and wait for the following year to come. This year was great as usual and I feel it deserves an over-all rating of a 7 out of 10.
Thanks for reading my review and don't forget to check out Cosplay Nation I'm hoping they'll be a guest again next year. I'm Garra in one of their youtube videos!



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This Review was presented by Kris Penix. Follow her on tumblr or watch for her at the next convention.

Cosplayer Nation at KATSUCON 2013!!

COSPLAYER NATION is pleased to announce our scheduled events for KATSUCON 2013!
We hope to see you there!!

Friday, February 15 - 2:30pm - VIP Passholder/Guest Meet & Greet9:00pm - Cosplayer Nation Live Show-----------------Saturday, February 16 - 9:30pm - Cosplayer Nation After Dark (18+ so bring ID)Sunday, February 17 - 3:00pm - One on One with the Makers of Cosplayer Nation: The Documentary (Screening here)

Don't forget to find us on Facebook!  Click here for our facebook page

Highlights of MAGFEST XI - (2013)

MAGFest, annually held at the Gaylord Hotel in National Harbor (near Baltimore) MD, is a con we always look forward to, as it combines video games, music, and nerd culture all under one roof. MAGFEST XI boasted the largest attendance ever - here is a very quick recap of some of our favorite parts of 2013's event.

Gaming More Fun Than Ever

This year, MAGFest had total of FOUR separate areas.  One room for console games, one for tabletop, one for the dealer's room and LAN area, and of course, the massive Arcade.  Tabletop games were a big success this year, with a noteable difference in active players than in prior years.
This year's retro Arcade room was particularly impressive, featuring more dance games, racing games, and even a VR system, all of which had not been present in previous years.  The only downside was the number of broken machines - which seemed to be a little worse comparatively to years past. The pinball section was slightly bigger, but we'd love to see that expanded even further in future years!

Lilith Astaroth Too Sexy for MAGFest

This year included a bit of scandal....  Security at MAGFest was stricter this year, and they weren't too happy with model/singer Lilith Astaroth's costume - a custom-made homage to the classic NES system. On Saturday, she was approached by security and told that her unique costume was too risque' for the con and was asked to change out of it.  "I was kind of shocked when it happened... I wore it to last year's event and it was received positively," she said, adding that the costume, a bikini set imprinted with NES controller features on it, has not been a problem at other conventions.  "I just wanted to show my love for my favorite system of all time; the one I grew up with. I figured, what better event to share this costume at? I didn't think it would be offensive..!"

Apparently Ms. Astaroth, who sings for Boston metal band Sorrowseed and attends cons all around the US, was literally, "too sexy" for MAGFest.

The Protomen Win

Out of the 38 total concerts and visual performances at MAGFEST XI, (the most ever for this con), The Protomen were by far the biggest crowdpleaser.  During the course of the weekend, the performance room had anywhere from few to moderate numbers of people in the audience, but for The Protomen only, the room was filled to capacity and given the most enthusiastic response from fans.  At no point was the room anywhere close to being as packed as it was for The Protomen's set.  The crowd was hungry to see this inspiring band from Nashville, and it was easily the most captivating performance this year.  The Protomen rocked MAGFest hard - at several points a Colossus Roar from fans echoing through their performance in unison. This amazing group may very well be the most loved at MAGFest.

What will MAGFEST XII hold?  We can only anxiously await what the new year will bring.  Without a doubt, it will continue to be a magical place where nerds can run freely and find the total acceptance that the real world just doesn't offer.

We look forward to returning to MAGFest in 2014, and hope to see you there.

Rhode Island Comic Con



2012

Rhode Island Comic Con Report


what can I say about this convention that can't be said about any other convention I've been to; oh, I know, how I use what they say on the website for it. It's the biggest show in the smallest state. It most certainly lives up to that description. There were plenty of comic book characters being cosplayed at the event. I myself brought my Hulk outfit to the convention and wore it in all its glory. Huge assortment of popular guests like Reb Brown, John de Lancie, David Yost, Walter Emanuel Jones, and Jason David Frank, the last three being original characters in the hit show Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers. To local sensations Chuckles the clown and Uncle Fright. We arrived with no problem finding the place partially due to our GPS and the location of the convention center, it being right off the highway. The staff, highly respectful and easy to converse with. The turnout, more than anyone could even ask for. We found all sorts of characters that let us take their photographs and promoted the YouTube channel as much as we could, either by word of mouth or by business card. The attendees were all happy and really glad to have their picture taken; some have even heard of us before and never had the chance to appear before. Ran into little to no trouble acquiring interviews. Had a few problems walking around the first day due to only a few escalators being used that day, but they later corrected that mistake on the second. The video game room was pushed into a small room in the corner of the most populated area and the only real panel room location. Made it a bit hard for people to get in and out of the area. I hope they fix that for next year. The after parties were a fantastic idea. Quick easy access to both Dave and Busters, located in the mall, and to Saints and Sinners right around the corner from the convention center. The only real major problem, hosting other events at the same time. They had Beer fest and Book event planned while RICC was going on. Comic books and books mix well, but Beer fest might be pushing things. All in all, it was great time and a lot of great memories to be had. I will definitely love to go again next year.

The Report done by Ozzy Guy check us out on YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/user/CosplayerNationTv

Cosplayer Nation: The Documentary

Cosplayer Nation has some BIG news coming very soon.  We are hard at work in the final stages of editing the documentary - it will very soon be released into the world and we will provide you the details.  Those of you attending KATSUCON will have the chance to see the doc AND come to the Cosplayer Nation panel. We are very excited that soon everyone will be able to enjoy all of the hard work and dedication that has gone into traveling some of the best cons out there and speaking with some pretty amazing cosplayers!

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