Last week I was lucky enough to have been invited to attend the Otakon Anime Convention in Baltimore, Maryland. Now having gone to Otakon as my first convention back in 1997, before I seriously began to delve in the bowels of fandom; it was interesting returning to the scene of the crime over 10 years later to see how the con and fandom had changed over the last decade.

For an industry in the death throes thanks to illegal downloading and file sharing, the convention circuit associated with anime and manga keeps  turning in record numbers year after year. This is probably due to the camaraderie the attendees gain from being in such a niche group of fandom.

This con continues to grow year after year, and for good reason too. Otakon is a well-oiled machine of a convention. Even before I stepped into the convention hall, their press department was already making sure I would have all the resources available to me as I saw fit to cover the con for Geekadelphia.

More after the Jump!

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William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy might be two of the most recognizable people from all of Star Trek, but Jeri Ryan isn’t too far behind them. Okay, you may not know her name right off the bat, but I’m sure you recognize the blonde bombshell Borg pictured above. Yeah, that’s her. Eyes back on the article now please. Thank you.

Anyway, Jeri Ryan, who played 7 of 9 on Star Trek: Voyager, is making a rather rare appearance at this year’s Official East Coast Star Trek Convention. It is being held at the Hilton Parsippany, in Parsippany, New Jersey on August 13 – 15. I know it is a bit of a hike from Philly, but totally worth it if you consider yourself a Trekkie, and it is a “must attend” event if you consider yourself a Voyager fan.

More after the jump!

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Johnny Zito and Tony Trov

We had the chance briefly catch up with our friends Tony Trov and Johnny Zito, two Philadelphia comic book writers and indie film makers. You might recall their awesome work on Fiesta Day, the short film for our Fiesta Movement that we premiered with a free Prince of Persia screening.

They’ve just returned from SDCC 2010 and we had a chance to talk to them about their experience.

So, what are you guys currently working on in the wide-world of comic book writing?
JZ: Moon Girl Fights Crime is kicking ass and we just released Carnival De Robotique during Comic Con. Download the (FREE) Comixology app [iTunes store link] and Check them out!
TT: DC Comics is releasing LaMorte Sisters and Black Cherry Bombshells on their App later in the month. We also have another title in the works called D.O.G.S. of Mars. Stay tuned for more about that.

Every summer it seems like you guys have gone on yet another SoCal, SDCC adventure. How many times have you guys gone out at this point?
TT: This is the third year in a row we’ve taken the pilgrimage.
JZ: We’re always in a Comic Con state of mind.

How do you think 2010 compared to the first time you guys went?
TT: Every year is more ridiculous than the last. Anything can happen; don’t turn your back on Comic Con for a minute!
JZ: The geek community is emensely diverse and every year you can see a new niche being welcomed with open arms.

What was the newest/most exciting thing about SDCC this year?
TT: Scott Pilgrim was everywhere. It by far dominated the convention. Everyone was really hyped for the new film and the latest graphic novel.
JZ: The beautiful, young ladies dressed as Jackie O.

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Otakon, one of the biggest and longest running anime conventions on the East Coast, descends upon our neighbors in Baltimore this weekend, visiting the Baltimore Convention Center Friday through Sunday, July 30th through August 1st.

Otakon was my first convention back in 1997 and I’ve attended it semi-regularly ever since! If you have never been Otakon, it’s comparable to the DragonCon of anime, convention-size wise. The convention is very well attended, to the point they often cap attendees during the con at some point during the weekend; so I would show up early Friday or Saturday morning if you haven’t pre-reg’ed. Registration for the con is about $75 for a weekend pass per person, which isn’t cheap… but I think with this con, you definitely get your money’s worth.

Otakon is also well know for being one of the few cons in America to regularly get Japanese anime industry guests and musical acts, which is no small feat. This year’s guest roster includes Masashi Ishihama (Animation Director The Girl Who Lept Through Time), Hiroshi Koujina (Director of Rainbow), Koji Masunari (Director of Read or Die), Masao Maruyama (founder of Studio Madhouse) and English voice acting favorite Vic Minogna (Eric in Fullmetal Alchemist and many, many others). I think though I am probably most excited to see Amy Howard Wilson, whom you old-timers out there might recognize from her voice acting role as Nova in Star Blazers.

I will be covering the con for Geekadelphia so expect a big Flickr pool, and possibly a few videos as well. If you plan on attending and want to meet up, feel free to drop me an @ on twitter to @danthefan I will be there Saturday and Sunday. See ya there!

Otakon
www.otakon.com

John de Lancie is a familiar face to most Star Trek fans, having played Q, one of the franchise’s most legendary guest characters across three different Star Trek series.

He recently made an appearance at Wizard World Philly 2010, along with several other Star Trek actors, one of which was his son, Keegan de Lancie. Keegan played the son of Q on Star Trek: Voyager, and took the stage with his father during a Q&A session on Saturday of the convention.

What many fans may not realize is that Keegan made a radical departure from his days of wearing a Starfleet uniform and pestering Voyager’s crew. After attending college at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, and going to Jordan on a Fulbright Scholarship to study Iraqi refugees, he ended up working for the International Organization for Migration (IOM), a United Nations agency.

Geekadelphia had a chance to talk with Keegan for a few minutes on Sunday of the convention. A transcript is below, after the jump!

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When I came to pick up my press pass at the Philadelphia Comic Con Friday before I headed over to The Troc, the con seemed a little slower than last year’s, which was to be expected with the current economic climate. But when I returned to the con Saturday it was a much different story altogether. Right from the start the con was bursting at the seams and teaming with cosplaying superheroes and villains alike, with the rumor of a 40% increase over last year’s attendance.

It was hard not to overhear various con goers comparing the lines to get inside and to get into panels to Dragoncon’s. There was a 2 block wait just to get in the door, and then you had to wait another hour or two if you simply didn’t pre-register. I got quite a few messages on Saturday during our TweetUp from people who couldn’t attend because they understandably had already invested 2 hours waiting in line and didn’t want to lose their spot.

Once inside the con, the Dealer’s room was the place to be for photo opts. There were some great costumes, and everyone was more than happy to get their hero-pose-on for a pic or two. While I have to admit the panel pickings, which mainly consisted of Q&A’s were slim; people didn’t seem to be there for panels. Judging by the schedule, the con almost seemed to have scaled back it’s programming this year, not expecting the crowds that arrived by the trainload Saturday for a day at the con.

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Last Saturday The Trocadero theater in center city hosted Kaiju Big Battel, which was an official after party event for the Wizard World Philly 2010 convention. Truthfully, the awesomeness of Kaiju Big Battel is a bit difficult to describe with mere words, but I’m going to give it a try.

Remember all those incredibly bad Japanese monster movies from eons ago? You know, the ones where it is clearly a guy in a rubber monster suit stepping on little cardboard miniature cities? Okay, so take that and make it a live event, add a wrestling cage, throw in some music and clever scripted dialogue, and you have an inkling as to what witnessing Kaiju Big Battel is like.

As one of my good friends put it: “It makes no sense. I love it.”

More after the jump!

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One of the biggest highlights of Philadelphia Comic Con is always the great afterparties; and Troc as usual was the place to be for both nights. Friday night was their annual Zombie Beach Party, sponsored by the great folks over at the Philadelphia Zombie Crawl whom you might remember from out Zombieland Screening; and let me tell you, those guys know how to throw a party.

The night started out with DJs spinning some great horror themed music while the ghouls got their game faces on. While some seemed to come direct from the scene of accident, some choose to patronize one of the great zombie makeup stations; that were turning out some exceptional gore for the low price of $10 per person. In honor of the event The Troc was of course serving drinks for the occasion; in the form of a potent Zombie Punch, which tasted like Hawaiian Punch with one hell of a kick.

More review and pics after the jump!

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Looking for lunch plans on Saturday between panels at Philadelphia Comic Con? Well, why not attend the first annual Geekadelphia Philadelphia Comic Con TweetUp at Chili’s (1239 Filbert Street) at 11:30am?

Take a break from the Con and spend some quality time with the Geekadelphia Crew comparing notes about the convention thus far. It’s a great chance to meet some of our newest writers, and to meet a few who just won’t go away.

For any questions feel free to either @danthefan or @geekadelphia on Twitter or send Dan an email (dan@geekadelphia.com). Hope to see you there!

Kaiju Big Battel is a very wondrous thing that definitely has to be seen to be believed. It’s described as “performance entertainment,” and basically entails people dressed up as really bad Godzilla or Kaiju style monsters beating the living crap out of each other. How can you possibly go wrong with that?

Meant to be a mixture of professional wrestling and the Tokusatsu Kaiju (special effect monster) movies, it began as a video project by students at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. While said video project was never realized, another student suggested that more characters be created to fight at live competitions or Big Battels. The first Battel occurred on Halloween night in 1996 and they have been battling ever since.

Kaiju will be batteling at the Troc this Saturday night at 8:00pm for the Philadelphia Comic Con after party in an all ages show that promises to be a Battel to end all Battels! Tickets are $18.50 for adults and $11 for children and can be purchased here. Still want to attend but afraid you will spend all your cash in the Dealer’s Room? Don’t worry we have you covered; we have 3 pairs of tickets to giveaway to our loyal Geekadelphia readers.

All you have to do is comment with; if you could be a giant monster which one would you be? Which city would you terrorize, and why? The best 3 will be picked Friday night notified and put on the guest list for Saturday.

Till then, check out a video of the greatness that is Kaiju!

It’s about that time again. Wizard World Philadelphia (or the Philadelphia Comic Con as they are now calling it) is set to descend upon our fair city. With 3 days of epic cosplay, parties and more special guests than you can shake a stick at, this looks like another weekend not to be missed. Tickets for this event are $25 a day and $45 for the weekend, which is fairly reasonable, and you can pre-register here.

The festivities start off this Friday at our very own Pennsylvania Convention Center and will continue through to Sunday night. This year’s the guest list seems very focused on Star Trek, with some other great guests thrown in as well; in case your fandom is of the Star Wars variety.

This was supposed to be the con of 2 captains originally but William Shatner could not attend at the last minute. However, Patrick Stewart (X-Men, Star Trek) is still scheduled to attend, and will be signing autographs and doing panels both Saturday and Sunday. Also on the guest list are such great guests as Linda Hamilton (Terminator), Adam West (Batman, Family Guy) James Marsters (Buffy The Vampire Slayer, Caprica), and Ernie Hudson (Ghostbusters). One guest in particular I have to say I huge fan of and am excited to see will be Bruce Campbell of Evil Dead and Army of Darkness Fame.

There are some great panels scheduled, and if the dealer’s room and artist alley is even half as epic as it was last year, I honestly can’t wait. After the con shuts its doors, if you’re still looking for something to do, both Friday and Saturday just head over to the Troc where they will be hosting some fantastic after parties. Friday you can join the Zombie Beach Party, and Saturday will be Kaju Big Battle. You can get tickets to both parties at the Troc’s website here.

Guest post by Walter Foley, Photos by Roy Burmeister & Doug Kavendek

Walking into a steampunk convention without understanding the culture is a lot like being in some bizarre foreign country, where everyone’s nice to you and you feel ashamed for having such tiny muttonchops. The Steampunk World’s Fair in Piscataway, NJ this month was a mecca for anyone interested in the lifestyle of retro-futurism: The sci-fi genre that takes you into the past, then asks you to imagine what the future will be like.

Sound absurd? It definitely is, especially when you’re walking to a debate on Tesla vs. Watt and you see someone in space gear strolling around a mustachioed baby as a theremin moans in the background.

But for as many non-sequiturs as you can spot among convention-goers (did Boba Fett just walk by? He must be lost), there could be an equal number of institutions. For example, goggles are extremely important. If you don’t have goggles, consider investing in an incredible hat.

“Steampunk today is what you make it,” said Hans Meier, who refers to the scene as the original sci-fi, rooted in the works of Jules Verne and H.G. Wells. “The time travel aspect of the culture allows for a wide range of costumes and accessories, which is why top hats and cufflinks are often seen on people carrying copper-plated ray guns.”

More after the jump!

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