Anime Expo 2013

After a month of putting off writing some big essay about my experiences at Anime Expo 2013, I realized that I've already written a lot about it, with every little social media post.  So, I might as well gather those all up and mix in my photos. 

Kikyo & Kagome; Aqua, Ven, Terra; Hiiragi; Natsume Takashi; Flying Mint Bunnies

My AX2013 cosplay plan come to fruition. ^-^
Accomplishing some new cosplay in time for Anime Expo is great, but cosplaying with my siblings is the best!  ^_^

The official AX cosplay photographers grabbed my sister and I for their backdrop on day1. ^_^



Lugging around all those props and my bag(s), in footwear that my feet dislike, was exhausting!  My apologies to the girls who asked for our photo after we had finally found a place on the floor to sit.  But my sister and I have done seated poses in these cosplays before.  We could have totally done a nice seated photo for you!  ;0;  Please don't give up on seated poses of cosplayers!  ;~;

Did anyone else check out the "photo location" sets from the AX cosplay dept.?  That sakura/shrine set was so popular, that photographers were waiting in lines for each specific portion of that set!  O.o  And you'd think that only the miko or sengoku era cosplayers would want this setting, but EVERYONE did.  I even saw comic book superhero cosplayers posing there.   I guess flora is just too nice of a backdrop. ^.^ 

Sci-fi set is lonely and sad.  ;_;  Please come visit me!

I hope the other sets got more use on other days, because when I took these photos on Saturday/day3, those other sets seemed empty and lonely (by comparison).  ;.; 

Anyway, do you think the sakura/shrine set should be expanded, even if other sets have to be dropped to do it?  Or do you think that waiting in line for 10+ minutes per section of a set is negligible?

My first time watching The Funimation Show.  Nice to see the stuff I missed while I was running around doing other con stuff.  ^_^

This was the first AX in a long time, where I didn't meticulously plan out every half hour of my con days.  And it was really nice!  0.o!!!  Just walking around, cosplaying, hanging out with my sister, not trying to attend every single panel and cosplay gathering I could possibly run to...  I had finally figured it out:  An enjoyable time at con is more about attending whatever catches your interest, whenever you happen to be free; not about jam-packing every waking moment with everything going on at con.  That's impossible.  No one person can attend everything.  It's no wonder so many of my past AXs have been disappointing.  If you try to do everything, and not being able to, disqualifies you from a successful time, then of course, you come out of con all disappointed.  I don't know why I didn't figure that out before. 

And after all the websites and YouTube channels giving such nice quality videos of so many events, I don't stress about being at everything or missing much of anything anymore.  ^_^  Ah~ It's nice to have a relaxing con.  ^__^

Even though I said I would never host another cosplay gathering again, when it came to Natsume Yuujinchou, I just had to make sure that cosplay gathering happened. 
It was awesome!  Thanks, everybody!  ^U^

Nyanko-sensei:  "Where's the sake?!"

 I even bought sake sets and cookies for a nice "Dog Party" picnic setting.  If AX allowed signs, I would have made a nice nobori that said "Dog Party" too. 

  

So, funny story:

Walking down the con halls in my Hiiragi cosplay, 2 guys passed by me, chatting about a "Bleach version of Mike Wazowski".  Suddenly, I realized they were talking about me! O.o  Apparently, they had no clue what my cosplay was.  Surprising, since there were so many Natsume's Book of Friends fans who came to AX to see Kazuhiko Inoue, and NIS America was promoting the heck out of that series at the con.

 The Figure Photography community at Google+ (https://plus.google.com/u/0/communities/102424536798369424860) did an interesting "gathering/meet-up" for AX.  Since we couldn't all agree on a feasible time and place to meet, Jon Larsen came up with the brilliant idea of each of us taking figure photos at specific landmarks around the con, instead. 

checkpoint 1:  "Welcome to Anime Expo" in front of Dealer's Hall in South Hall.

checkpoint 2:  The top of the escalators on the 2nd floor of West Hall.

checkpoint 3:  Good Smile Co. booth

 It's not in front of a Good Smile Co. sign or poster, but what better way to show off their booth, than with the new maiko Madoka and yukata Miku Nendoroids they had exclusively brought to AX?

Some people waiting in line for the exclusives, liked my Nendoroid carrying case, so here's some info about it:

Tough Box from Tokyo Japanese Lifestyle store.  $3.49
Easily fits 3 Nendoroids & accessories. 
A snap-hook lets the box hang outside your bag. 
Added some adhesive Velcro to the latch, for extra security. 
Velcro is easy to open, yet ensures latch does not get bumped open in a crowd.
Some white felt added to the unnecessary sticky side of the fuzzy Velcro.  And another piece of felt covers the excess of sharp/hooked Velcro.
3 fully-assembled Nendoroids fit into the Tough box Oval.  There are also the rectangular Tough Mini (6.5"x4"x3" or 16.5cm x 10cm x 7.5cm) and Tough MD (11.5"x3.5"x3.5" or 29.5cm x 3cm x 8.5cm).  $2.99 and $2.29 at Tokyo Japanese Lifestyle stores.  There are other sizes too.  All much cheaper than at The Container Store. 
Smaller bags within bags, force you to account for each of your pieces, after each use.
Resealable mini bags from the craft store.


checkpoint 4: Cosplay Deviants booth.

Yes, C.C. is playing dress-up with Date Masamune's helmet at the Cosplay Deviants booth.  ^.^

I also did some extra landmarks: 

Can Yukimura handle leaving AX?
Hang in there, Yuki!  It's just 1 more year!

Date-sama is not pleased to leave AX.
Masamune:  "Waiting for a whole year?  Cht!"

C.C. has seen the AXs come and go.  She'll be waiting for the next one.

Unboxing figurines and figuring out display cases.  ^.^  Finally getting around to organizing the loot I bought from Anime Expo 2013.


I used to buy a LOT of manga at cons, but now I have a policy vs buying things at con that I can easily buy online.

Couldn't find the Revoltech Yukimura and Masamune, but found some really detailed static figures.  ^.^!  Also wasn't planning to buy this Natsume Takashi figurine, since it didn't look that nice on its box, but now that it's out, I think that box cover was just a bad photo, also washed-out by its background.  Ran across some other Natsume SD figurines too. And a white chibi Date.  I didn't even know they made those!  ^o^  I had always thought the white Revoltechs of Masamune and Yukimura looked interesting, but since I really want their original color schemes for figure photography, I thought I'd never get to buy the white versions.  Just like I thought I'd never need to buy another other SD Date or Yuki, after buying their Nendoroids.  But by pure luck, I ran across that chibi white version of Date.  ^u^  Really sad the store didn't have a white Yuki, but now I have a goal to hunt for.  ^o^  Also threw away $20 on another chibi C.C., even though I already have the Bandai Chibi-Arts C.C. figurine.  Truthfully, I didn't really like the proportions on this KyunKyara C.C., but it was interesting and another figurine I hadn't heard of.  Besides, since it was broken, I not only got a big discount, but I bet I could feel free to modify it without guilt.  Anyway, those expensive Sengoku Basara figurines are getting dust in their details, as we speak, so I better get to finding a big enough display case for them.

And now, to use that great loot I got at AX!  ^o^

For a larger version:  http://fav.me/d6ea3zg
As for how I got C.C.'s Chibi-Arts head onto Madoka's Nendoroid body, that's a post for another time.  ^_~

And thus ends my Anime Expo 2013 adventure.  ^_^  Can't wait for next year! 
In the meantime, here's my coverage of the Kingdom Hearts cosplay gathering:

Final Fantasy XV E3 2013 trailer analysis

http://youtu.be/Rbwm-mzm5QA

So I just watched one of those trailer analysis videos with commentary, because I wanted to hear some insights that I didn't catch.  But apparently, the commentators were low on sleep and just rambled about stuff without really analyzing anything.  So, there are some things I noticed about the Final Fantasy XV (formerly FFvs13) trailer, shown at Sony's E3 2013 press conference. 

 At the beginning of the trailer, we have 2 children holding hands and running through a grassy field.  Even though their faces are always out of frame, the voiceover is of a girl speaking to Noctis.  Since older trailers  for Final Fantasy Versus XIII often featured scenes with Stella and Noctis interacting, we can assume that the 2 children are young versions of Stella nad Noctis. 

her dress reminds me of Namine's white dress

 Stella's dialogue in this voiceover, though translated as "I can't stay any longer," can more literally be translated as, "I can't not go."  (At least, that's what it sounds like to me and my limited Japanese.)  Though this more literal translation seems like a less desirable translation, because of the confusing double negative, English speakers have used the term "I can't not do [something]" to express more of a undeniable, restlessness to no longer be passive or to no longer deny an instinctual urge.  Whereas "I can't stay any longer," suggests simply a need to run away from a situation.  But since the visuals show Stella indeed running, that could be the case.  Whether she is defined as a character who is restless to take action, or a character who wants to escape the world, is yet to be revealed.  It could still go either way, because even though she is running, she is _leading_ Noctis, and leading is a very proactive position. 

 The other significance of the (possibly) more literal translation "I can't not go," is that it makes a more obvious parallel with Noctis's reply: "My heart won't let go", through the repetition of the same word "go".  Their different reactions to the same subject demonstrate an immediate clash between Noctis's and Stella's motivations.  This foreshadows older trailers' brief shots of Noctis and Stella seemingly preparing to duel each other.  According to past information, expanding beyond the Final Fantasy Versus XIII trailers, Stella comes from a country that is in need of the crystal and she is given the job of retrieving it, while Noctis is in the position to protect it from everyone. If past Tetsuya Nomura stories indicate any trend, he seems fond of having former friends clash.  Like Riku vs Sora, Zack vs Angeal, Axel vs Roxas, Aqua vs Ven, Squall vs Seifer, Tidus vs Jecht, Neku vs Joshua, and (if you count the admiration type relationships) Cloud vs Sephiroth.  Personally, I think it's a technique that tests, and thus, emphasizes Nomura's reoccurring theme of emotional bonds transcending barriers (such as geographical distance or separation by death).

 The contrast is clear between Noctis's hesitation and Stella's clear proactive character.  She is motivated to action, while he (according to his tone) regrets his own inertia.  Whether using the more literal translation of Noctis's line "My heart can't do it" or the official translation "My heart won't let go", the same implications are that Noctis's initial state at the beginning of his story include inability ("can't do it") and maybe a sense of helplessness.  But the sense of regret and sorrow in his tone of voice, suggest that he is unhappy and restless with forcibly accepting that from himself.  Perhaps this "forced acceptance" of unpalatable parts of the world, was the true meaning in the flashback, later in the trailer, when a young Noctis is told by his father to simply accept the unpalatable soup.  (Though that scene also served to very effectively establish empathy for Noctis's father Regis and their relationship.  Not only because Regis jokes with his son instead of reprimanding him, but because Regis demonstrates he us willing to put up with unpalatable things for other people's sake.  Unfortunately, in myths and fairytales, many kings who let stand the stagnating parts of the world, turn into tyrants.  It would not be surprising if eventually, Regis's sense of sacrificial acceptance, even for the sake of saving others, would lead to some conflict with the Hero, his son Noctis.)  Many mythological based stories follow this initial illusion of entrapment for the hero, living in a false sense of helplessness and ineffectualness, which causes their passivity, nihilism, or reluctant, jaded acceptance of a wrong world/state, until a catalyst event, such as a "Call to Adventure", initiates the Hero's Journey.

 And the trailer very quickly brings up this "catalyst event" / "Call to Adventure", when Noctis's home is attacked for the crystal and his father has fled, probably being hunted, as the voiceover of Noctis's friend suggests that they should find Regis before their attackers do.  

 That red-head in the hat...Doesn't he sound like Keiji Fujiwara?  Fujiwara is not only the voice actor for Reno and Axel (both of whom are also red-heads), but he also seems to be repeating the same catchphrase.  In Kingdom Hearts, Axel is known for saying "Got it memorized?"  But he is also known for complaining, "Why do I always get stuck with all the icky jobs?"  Whether Axel is referring to all the underhanded jobs he gets assigned in the Organization, to backstab fellow members, or whether Lea is referring to the more difficult tasks always falling on his shoulders, as in Dream Drop Distance, when he resolved to go search for their missing friends, it's just all too similar.  In the E3 2013 trailer for Final Fantasy XV, the hat-wearing red-head is translated as muttering, "This is turning into quite the ordeal."  But the Japansese line uses the word "mendousai", which is often translated as some annoying situation or task that just causes too much trouble.  This is exactly the same thing that Axel always complains about in his secondary catchphrase.  So don't be surprised if Quinton Flynn gets cast in the English dub of this red-headed hat-wearing character.  So the question is, will this character turn out to be another "Shapeshifter", as myth scholar Joseph Campbell described as a character archetype having questionable and fluxing allegiances---initially seeming like an enemy, but later revealed to be a friend---just like Axel? 

 On screen, while Noctis hides behind a corner, his friends Gladioius(?) and Prompto are listed along with his HP, the the same way that Kingdom Hearts arranged its NPC battle partners' stats beside the playable characters'. In the same scene, both these characters, are also seen in the battle:  jumping to attack enemies with a sword, and hiding behind cover, occaisionally firing a gun.  It should be noted that, taking a cue from Noctis's name being Latin for "night", the names of his listed battle companions are also Latin.  (This seems very appropriate since the architecture of the city, with its numerous water canals, appearing to be a city built atop water, and ornate building sculptures, are reminsicent of Venice, Italy.)  Gladioius could be a misspelling with my bad eyes and lower resolution viewing, but "gladio" in Latin means "sword".  And one of Noctis's battle partners does carry a very large, distinctive sword.  The other friend of his, seen occaisionally as the blond boy assisting Noctis in battle with a gun, is presumedly the "Prompto" listed at the bottom-right menu.  And in listening to the spunky, childish, and cheerful voiceover, combined with the blond character's energetic, playful body language (headlocking Noctis in older trailers and jumping to glomp Gladioius in the E3 2013 booth/gameplay trailer), he must be "Prompto", which is Latin for "ready".  If "ready" in Latin can hold connotations of a spring ready to bounce all over the place at any and all times, then this character fits "Prompto".  And so, once again in a Nomura story, we have a trio of friends.

 I would also like to note that the left gameplay menu includes "LINK FORM", which sounds similar to Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep's "D-Link".  In KHBBS, "D-Link" replaced the previous Kingdom Hearts games' Summoning function, by giving playable characters special attacks inspired by Disney characters, who would have normally been Summoned in the home console games.  In FFXV, it looks as if this "Link Form" command may be the same as "D-Link".  During the trailer's gameplay when Prompto shot his gun to help Noctis, the top command disappeared, while "Link Form" seemed just as inactive as before, on the menu.  Therefore, a whole other character coming beside Noctis to fight for him, like a Summoning, did not activate "Link Form".  So it's probable that "Link Form" is something different than a Summon (just as D-Link was).  In previous clips, the top command on the menu was "Warp".  This sounds reminiscent of the "Reversal" Reaction Command, which appeared whenever Sora or Roxas came close beside Dusk enemies in Kingdom Hearts II.  So it's possible that the top action on the Commands menu could be for Reaction Commands.  Not just Reaction Commands activated by specific enemies, but also pre-chosen command lists (like KHBBS), to activate special team-up attacks, in reaction to party member allies.  Much like Kingdom Hearts II's "Session", in which Sora and Riku joined for a special attack.  In the FFXV trailer, "Warp" disappears from the top of the Commands menu, just as Prompto appears to back-up Noctis.  This has to be a Reaction Command. 

http://youtu.be/LBilT83Uq4A

 In the gameplay trailer at Square Enix's E3 2013 booth, both Gladioius and Prompto are shown, not only attacking for Noctis, like Summoned characters, but also cooperating with Noctis for special attacks, like the partner type of Reaction Commands, in additioin to acting as support party members, battling alongside him, simultaneously, like Donald and Goofy did for Sora. 

 Also, if you should see this 2013 gameplay trailer, a lot of the battles are against a large horned creature, which also closes the end of the trailer.  Is anyone else reminded of Kingdom Hearts's Behemoth? 

 But back to the trailer shown at the Sony press conference...

 One of the perplexing scenes in the trailer, in regard to story, is the stand-off between Noctis's father (who I assume is named "Regis") and the old man dressed like a priest.  The priests draw their weapons and the old man asks rhetorically, "So you've come for the crystal?"  Then his tone challenges to contradict Regis's action to come to the priests for the crystal:  "I needn't even tell you.  The final crystal left to this world..."  Then he trails off, smirking, while Regis's expression flinches.  It's like they both know something about the nature of the crystal that others in the room do not know.  Is the priest threatening to reveal that secret?  Why is that a threat?  Is Regis flinching at the prospect of that secret being revealed?  And why would that reveal be detremental to him?  I can only assume that Regis is not completely in control of this "mafia" that he has previously been described as the leader of.  Regis went through the charade of confronting the priests, in an "attempt" to retrieve the crystal.  He came to the priests for the crystal.  Assuming the priests are thought of in that world as protectors of the crystal, it would make sense that Regis go to them for the crystal.  But it also contradicts previous information that Noctis's family is a long line of crystal protectors.  So perhaps this secret that both the old priest and Regis know, that the rest of the population does not know, is that the crystal is not actually kept by the priests.  So where is it?  Or rather, what is it that it is not kept by priests?  What about its nature is so unfathomable, that their society needs to set up this facade priesthood, so that everyone can feel safe knowing that they are in charge of the crystal?   My first instinct is to theorize that the crystal is not a crystal in the normal sense, and its true nature may threaten what/whomever Regis cares about (which, according to the soup scene, are his subordinates and his son).  Combined with the fact that everyone seems to be waging wars for these crystals...Could the crystal actually be a person?  Their soul?  Noctis's soul?  But maybe that's too far-fetched.  Perhaps just use of the crystal threatens the whole world, even though people who fight to obtain it (like Stella and her country), probably think it will help them.  If Noctis's family, including his father, are in the roles of protectors of the crystal(s) (according to old FFvs13 info), then they serve as "preserver" archetypes, while the antagonists can be expected to serve as agents of change (accompanied by destruction of everything in the current state/life).  Afterall, the first obvious antagonist to appear in the trailer, starts with a voiceover about how the world is always changing.  Perhaps this theme will be repeated in allegorical debates through battle or rivalries between characters.  Noctis's father and the old priest could also be "2 sides of the same coin".  In mythological terms, the preservation of a world/state can be a positive protection of people's current lives, or it can be the tyrannical maintenance of stagnation.  Since Noctis's family and now these priests, both seem to be protectors of the crystal, then they both serve as "preservers".  Typcially, representations of 2 polar interpretations of the same idea(l) often become rivals.

 One of the last visuals of the trailer is a succession of close-ups of the main characters.  On either end, we have Noctis and Stella.  One stripe inward, we have Noctis's father and the old man who was threatening him over the crystals, during the stand-off in the trailer.  Noctis and Stella were shown in previous FFvs13 trailers to be reluctantly duelling each other.  The old priest and Noctis's father drew their weapons against each other.  The commonality in both of these pairs is that they ended up fighting in direct opposition of each other.  Therefore, this visual could be expected to be a portrait of the archrivals within FFXV.  Very appropriate, since this game was originally called "Versus XIII" and the end of the trailer says "A World of the VERSUS Epic". 

 ...Oh, man...Now I'm the one all sleep-deprived and rambling wierd things...  x_x;;; 

Lelouch has arrived!

S.H. Figuarts Lelouch as R2's Zero, arrived today!  ^U^  Naturally, I had to take photos.  So I had C.C. help me, to make the normal documentation into figurine photography.  ^___^

 

Figure Friday Challenge: tranquility

It's time for another Figure Friday photoshoot!  This week's theme is "tranquility".  If you're interested in the other entries, please visit the Figure Photography community at Google+:  https://plus.google.com/u/0/communities/102424536798369424860

 

It was so nice to take photos outside, in the midday sun.  *o*  It made every photo in my shoot usable.   ^-^

This is the one I chose for Deviant Art.  http://mysticdragon3.deviantart.com/art/tranquility-376589056

mystery prize

A mysterious package appeared on my doorstep, even before the usual mailman stopped by.  Turns out, I won a contest at Right Stuf!  Yay!  ^U^  I didn't even take the time to enter any contest!  They must have just randomly entered their regular/past clients.  So cool!  ^.^ 

I got a figurine of Sky High from Tiger and Bunny.  Luckily, I like Tiger and Bunny.  I would have preferred a Wild Tiger or Kotetsu figurine, but Sky High is pretty cool.  But I don't necessarily NEED Sky High.  Do I keep or sell?...Hm........  Either way, this is awesome.  Thanks, Right Stuf!  And thanks again!  ^.~

When the package appeared, I thought it might be my S.H.Figuarts Lelouch figurine, that I had ordered.  But that would have been strange, because I didn't get any message from Kirin Hobby, saying that Lelouch had arrived.  I was so excited, thinking that maybe Lelouch had arrived early!  It wasn't S.H.Figuarts Lelouch, but it was still a S.H. Figuarts.  ^^  I thought I'd check my email again, and guess what?  My S. H. Figuarts Lelouch is now on his way!  ^U^!!!!!!!!!!!!