Anime Onsen 2023

The first thing that stood out for me at Anime Onsen this year was that it was not has crowded this year. Last year most of the time you had to wait in line to get your passes whereas this year when I walked by the check-in table there were few people. I think one of the main reasons for this is the con was competing with the opening weekend of the Colorado Renaissance Festival that also had a cheaper price for attending. Tickets for CRF was only $28 a day whereas a day pass to Anime Onsen was $50 ($60 for the weekend pass). Anime Onsen is actually one of the most expensive anime cons in Colorado even though it isn't the biggest. Other anime cons in Colorado will run you $45 or less a day with Saturday being the most expensive and some of these cons are much more jam packed with activities (also at Colorado's largest anime con $45 will get you the full weekend if you buy your pass early). Price is one of the things I would love to see this con look into improving.

Dealer's Room and Artist Alley

The artist alley was in the hallway leading up to the dealer's room. One of my favorite items I saw this year in the artist alley was one person was selling bucket hats.

The dealer's room had good spacing between the tables and people with mobility issues could easily navigate. One vender actually still had facemasks for sale, but facemasks have a long history in Asian culture and they were at cons even before COVID. I also ran into a familiar dealer, Esvars, who was selling his ponchos (You can find more on his website: https://esvarsanimeandmanga.company.site/?fbclid=PAAaZ_o9qnVgS41SgIIsnVGdHPZ0H4i2LglLQCBliZ_vu6P-gDq7UtCYxVr7M). There was a good variety of products. 

Panels

On most days the panels didn't even start until 12pm. I'm used to panels at other cons starting as early as 8am so experienced con goers will notice the lack of programing which is about 4 hours less then at other anime cons. At least on Saturday there was some late night programing. Also they do not have as many panel rooms going as some other cons do so you have less options of what to see/do.

Skye Hoshi: Anime Girl Screening

Description: What would you do if an anime girl fell out of her poster and into your lap? Don't miss this full movie screening brought to you by Pure Magic Pictures.

Notes: So first off this film is a live action American production. I had decided to go to this panel not knowing anything about this movie, and was disappointed when I found out it was not only live action, but not even Japanese. You could have subbed any movie or TV character coming out of their poster and had the same movie. The plot of this movie is that a worker in a shop finds an unusual item at work and it causes the girl to come out of her poster and then all chaos happens including her stunning a customer. One of the things I noticed with the movie was sound issues. These issues weren't because it was coming through the speakers, but in how the sound track to the actual film had been created. It felt like a high school production. I left at the half hour mark when they started having tech issues with the movie.  

Learn About the JET Program

Description: Interested in living and working in Japan? Learn more about the JET Program and how the application process works so if you're interested you can prepare for it! JETAA Rocky Mountain alumni are presenting, so you'll be able to ask questions from those with firsthand knowledge. 

Notes: I cam in near the end of this panel since I actually wanted to see the panel after this one. One of the end focuses was on how once people got over there in the JET program many then transitioned to the tourist industry so that they could stay longer. After the panel a few people stuck around to ask the presenters some questions. One question they asked was that if someone was married if they would be able to take their spouse. The answer is yes. One of the guys actually talked about how both he and his wife had applied, she got in and he didn't. When they were getting ready to head over a new school opened and he was able to get in there last minute. Then there was the question of pay. They said that those in the JET program made around $30,000 per year which seems low for teacher pay even here in the US. I then asked if higher degrees could help you get a higher pay and they said no. It makes me wonder just how good the JET program is if it will not recognize the work that someone has put into themselves and what they bring to the table. 

Cosplay AMA

Description: Join cosplay guests Lady Kay, Peachy Sweet, Buggie, and Personify and ask everything you want to know about cosplay and the world of conventions. 

Notes: Some of the things they went over was how to find cosplay/anime groups in the outside world like at local libraries. They also talked about red flags in being a guest at cons like making sure to have a contract or doing communications by email so that you have proof of what you were promised and the expectations of both parties.

Food Wars Q&A

Descriptions: Don't miss this celebrity Q&A featuring Bryson Baugus, Christina Kelly, Leraldo Anzaldua, and Mark Laskowski talking all things Food Wars and so much more.

Notes: Christina Kelly was once a student of Leraldo Anzaldua and he is the one that helped her get into the industry. This is a note to all wanna be voice actors to be nice to your teachers. This was actually a funny panel and you got to hear some of the industry secrets. 

All panel descriptions came from: https://www.animeonsen.org/_files/ugd/8433c8_55208cb14e4d4212a8907360b4a0e53f.pdf

Other Groups

Colorado Anime Fest was there tabling and also Colorado Itasha Alliance had some of their vehicles there for people to look at.

This was actually the first con that I remember seeing a truck.

Cosplay

This was one of the more amusing cosplays that I saw.

The Con Overall

Over the con was ok. It's sized reminded me of early anime cons in Colorado. I think one of the things that could really help this con would be to change to a different hotel which could clear up many of its issues.

Anime Onsen Picture From: https://www.tixr.com/groups/fandomevents/events/anime-onsen-2023-artists-and-exhibitors-50967