FanimeCon is a unique fan conventions in which the fun never stops. During the day, it’s all about the typical con stuff but everything changes when the sun goes down. That is when the creatures of the night come out and it becomes a more mature experience.
Random Encounters
Walking around the San Jose Convention Center, one would have the most random encounter. Outside there were a good number of large gatherings, most of them were unofficial cosplay meetup along with several impromptu dance-offs. Most of these gathering were mostly contracted in the front of the convention center with a few minor ones around the Hilton and Marriott. Inside; there also several unofficial cosplay gatherings while musicians would be performing at random in the halls. Then there were the gathering of guests who were just hanging out after a fun activity.
Mature Panels
During the day; the panels allowed guests to gain some insight into their favorite fandom community or industry. At night; the panels were allowed to offer a more mature look into a topic or allow the panelists to swear all they want. FanimeCon organized a series of mature panels that discussed a verity of topics from hentai and erotic fan fiction to the dark-side of an industry.
These are some of the mature panels I got to checkout during the weekend:
The Comedy Club at Fanime brought together some of the best nerd comics in the Bay Area. The topics discussed during the show were a combination of mocking ones fandom, life as a nerd and living in the Bay Area.
Bad Henati has been one of the most popular panels at FanimeCon and this year was no exception. The line for this years presentation was cut and seating began an hour before the show. During the wait, fans were treated to some Hentai memes along with some funny videos. The screening started with A Beautiful Greed followed by several much older (and more cheesy hentai with no real name).
The team from Komedio Comedy brought Nerd Rage: The Great Debates! podcast to FanimeCon for a special episode with an live audience. Audience members got to choose the topics as two teams debated the subject. Among the topics discussed during the night were “Should Yzma be Considered a Disney Princess“, “Would Thanos jerk-off with the Infinity Gauntlet” and “What Nicktoon Would Make a Good Magical Anime“.
The 20th Anniversary of Metal Gear Solid was a fan panel that looked into the career of one the gaming worlds biggest rock stars and the influence of the iconic game. The hosts examined his early works like Metal Gear and Snatchers along with the influence his work would have in regards to storytelling in gaming and how it shaped the development of of Metal Gear Solid.
Despite its title – Pokémon Film Review Hour was a two hour panel hosted by the Foundation for the Preservation of Gen 1 Pokèmon. The panel looked into all the Pokemon films and noted all the similar plot structures they shared. Half way in the panel they started talking about the Digimon movies and its “shared connection” to the Pokemon universe.
Hentai and Yaoi Room
When the clock hits midnight, the screening room starts showing some of the best works of Hentai and Yaoi. Due to its popularity, viewers had to pickup a ticket before entering or they would have to wait until 2am to enter.
Hentai Music Video Contest
This was an opportunity for fans to combine their love of music with hentai and to show their amazing video editing skills. Five participants entered their hentai music video for a chance to win a prize with the audiences determining the winner. After the contest, it was just became an excuse to watch more hentai music videos from previous years.
Late Night Gaming
For those who wanted to participate in a late night LAN party or play a match of old school Super Smash Bros, the Game Hall was the place to be. While all the major tournaments have ended for the day, there was still plenty to do and no sense of time if you got caught in the moment.
Did you get a chance to check out FanimeCon 2018? If so then share your story in the comment section below.
Disclaimer: FanimeCon provided me with a pass for the weekend.
If you like our work and want to support independent journalism then would you kindly donate to our Ko-Fi Page.
Stan Rezaee
Stan Rezaee is the founder and Editor of 8Bit/Digi. He is a journalist and gamer from the Bay Area who has been writing about the medium for over five years.
Long time since Ive been to Fanime glad they still have all that sweet sweet hentai