Spring 2014 – Week 3 Anime Review

This week: how altering one aspect of Captain Earth will greatly improve the anime, thoughts on why the setting is the best aspect of No Game No Life and how it makes it one of the best anime this season, rationalizing Chaika’s speech pattern in Hitsugi no Chaika and why it isn’t moe marketing and an example of visual details and symbolism in Ping Pong the Animation.

12 Days of Anime (2013) – Day 11 – Connections with Bloggers

To reiterate just how influential and significant the social aspects of Sakura-Con 2013 were on me this year, Day 11 of my 12 Days of Anime is reserved for a continuation on this theme but on a much broader and open scale.  Following the massive social event that was Sakura-Con, several local bloggers and internet personalities decided to form a cohort, of sorts, and meet at various times in Seattle as a means of maintaining our camaraderie.  What resulted was more than simple get-togethers with food and friends but a new medium of exchanging ideas on anime and getting to know people and their opinions that would otherwise be impossible on the internet alone.  What resulted were not only numerous enjoyable experiences but some of the best memories of 2013 in regards to anime.

12 Days of Anime (2013) – Day 12 – Sakura-Con 2013

Sakura-Con, being one of my most cherished and treasured memories of 2012, earns a spot again as the first day of my 12 Days of Anime, the annual tradition among anime bloggers recounting their 12 fondest memories of the calendar year.  Although I attended Sakura-Con in the previous year, the first time I have ever been to an anime convention, my trip this past March proved to be an even greater experience than my first visit.  While I attended fewer panels, spent less money and even spent less time at the convention hall altogether, I certainly earned more from my trip this year, largely in part due to all the people in the anime community I meet.  Thanks to them and thanks to the wonderful anime convention that was Sakura-Con 2013, this special three-day weekend in Seattle earns the opening spot in my 12 Days of Anime.

12 Days of Anime (2012) – Day 10 – Sakura-Con, My First Anime Convention

In April of 2012, I attended my first anime convention, Sakura-Con, the premier anime convention in the Pacific Northwest.  Although I’ve had numerous opportunities to attend the convention since its inception in 1998 and even made legitimate plans to go while in high school, this year was the first that I actually went to.  For three days, I witnessed and participated in a paradise created by and intended for anime fans such as myself and my experience has provided a permanent impression on how I watch, understand and appreciate anime.

12 Days of Anime (2012) – Day 11 – Joining the Anime Community on Twitter

Although I officially joined Twitter on Christmas Day last year, it was 2012 when I discovered the bustling, chatty and sociable anime community there and began to frequent the service on a regular basis.  In my entire first year of blogging, I failed to capitalize on the dynamic resource that was Twitter which supports a lively community of numerous anime- and manga-fans.  Most other anime bloggers have accounts and use the media platform as a means to communicate with each other.  So throughout 2012, I began to use the service to connect with other anime- and manga-fans which had an unfathomable affect and influence on how I watch and appreciate anime.