After Ambivalnce
Music: Outkas - The Whole World
Feel: Lost.. so lost.

Why is it that as soon as I get close to someone, they lose their mind?

Any ideas?




So ACen was.. interesting. As I posted to the ACen ML, I have never been so disgusted by anime fandom as I was this past weekend. The smells. The behavior. All of it came to a head. In the end I had a good time with friends and such - from the makeshift Loveline panel, to the Eva panel that went off well, to the random events of convention life, it was like any other con - except for the fans, who seem to have hit a new low. I spent a lot of the time re-evaluating my stance as an anime fan, and wondering if I'd really completely outgrown it.

No, I haven't outgrown my interest in anime. Rather, I've outgrown a lot of fandom to the point that I'm not sure I want to go to ACen 2005 or any other convention. The moment I was standing in a crowded elevator with over a dozen other anime fans, next to a girl in pink hair that smelled (I'm going to be bluntly honest here) like a dead, decaying, fish (I'm sure you know what I'm getting at), to the point that I was gagging, I decided it may not be worth it. On its own, that incident isn't persuasive, but having smelled stinky fans all weekend, that was the creme de la creme.

I also hear someone pissed in the stairwell. Nice.

And that some drunk fool tried to dive into a bath tub. Even better.

Anime Central had over 7 ambulances arrive over the course of 3 days, and each time they had to shut down the entire main lobby, and block off the escalators and elevators. I understand that. But the ironic part is that everytime con security yelled at me, David, Khem, Finiak and Lil Finiak there were dozens of people going down the escalator. We'd watch in awe as people filtered down the escalators, and as soon as we got within a foot someone came to yell...

And what I don't understand is why this was so necessary since the paramedics nonchalantly entered and exited the building, slowly wheeling away whatever case it was at the time (taking the elevator too - shutting down the escaltors was entirely moot). Then proceeded to sit in the parking lot for 20 minutes. If it was such a fucking medical emergency, why weren't they running around saving a life?

Perhaps it was because it was hardly emergency.

Moreso, I also liked being made to feel like an asshole by con security. With the elevators and escalators banned from our usage, we stood on the balcony and watched the entire event unfold. My camcorder was around my shoulder, dangling, with the lens cap on. But that didn't stop some bitch on a power trip from coming up to yell at us and tell us to show some decency for the person being wheeled out. Okay, whatever - MY CAMERA WAS OFF, CAPPED, AND HANGING FROM MY SHOULDER! What more do you want?

And regardless - if you're stupid and drunk enough to dive into a bathtub, you deserve someone to videotape your dumb ass being carried away. Maybe it'll be a reminder not to drink so much, huh?

Sorry, I know I sound really bitter, and overall it was a fine convention - but there was so much stupidity that it was all but ruined. I had a headache for 72hrs, and it wasn't from sleep depervation.

Oh well, doing the panel with Carl was cool, seeing Sam again was cool, talking to Isaiah and generally hanging out was all good... and I guess nothing can be perfect, huh?
- posted by Brendan @ 4:08 PM 0 comments