I attended the Gakumas 1st concerts this weekend. It’s called “1st Period” but it’s actually not the first concert for the media-mix mobile game franchise. It’s just the first show (or 4 shows, spanning 2 weekends) that features the full cast, after the roughly-dated anniversary of the game’s live service a year ago. Since the game (and really before the game was released, including all the lead-up marketing) became available it has done well in the rankings and players generally have good things to say about the latest entry in the IDOLM@STER series. A lot was on the shoulders of the staff and cast to make this hotly-anticipated show a success.
There was a set of tours where 3 cast members form a team and tour Japan’s 3 largest cities (Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya), each team doing 3 stops within a month, in almost back-to-back months. One of the stops was postponed by a typhoon, while the last set of 3 had a gap until February of this year. The appropriately called “Hajime” Tour needs to be mentioned because this is the cast’s actual first live stage experience, except one member. The tour definitely gave the stage experience to many of the newbies in the Gakumas cast, and more importantly it gave the fans a glimpse of what fresh grasshoppers were like close to a year ago.
The importance (or however little it is) put on seeing the growth of the idols is a core tenant in the design of the game, which various interviews have listed. This is just another aspect I suppose, but I appreciate how they made the live performance aspect parallel to its digital version. Or rather, I appreciate them knowing what it ought to be like on the receiving end.
As a Million P for many years, it feels tortured, it basically feels the opposite of it–things we would love and be hyped about often don’t happen when they ought to, or happens at all. Some things are delayed by over 10 years. Maybe delay is the wrong word, but at some point it just became sort of this deep barrel or well where we are glad to have anything being pulled out of, even though we know the contents can make for something much more.
Anyways, for a good example, when Our Chant dropped on Day Two of Harmony Star, we know (since the SSR) there would be a flag just like how Chiisana Yabou, Wonder Scale and Clumsy Trick all had their props. So Gakumas surprised and delighted us by adding Saki to the picture when she walks in with the flag. In fact, after seeing the Hajime Tour version of Wonder Scale and Chiisana Yabou we already think there would be props, just like how the game versions did. For even more foreshadowing, Harmony Star featured a duet (or trio in one case) of cast members joining in another idol’s solo song (and for this weekend it was limited to the B-side solos) so by the point on the second day when Our Chant happened, it felt like a perfect match when you stick the right jigsaw puzzle piece in the right slot.
For details, here are the links to the official site posts for the show, for posterity, and the usual imas-dblinks. Onward with the rest.
I’ll just say things off the hip for this topic, but in a nutshell I can’t stand the CR-administered Crunchyroll Awards. It’s a marketing exercise, but I don’t mind that. What goes in one of these annual bruhaha is basically like, if there’s enough engagement, whatever is fine. Team Miles says it’s a numbers game, but it would pull examples about “fan recognition” for top-of-class works like Frieren which basically undermines the article’s top line point. What is the premise of Team Miles re: the Anime Awards? It’s putting lipstick on pig. I am frustrated because this isn’t rocket science, and it’s not about getting the nerds to agree what the marketing exercise needs to be, it’s just to make the thing where you can actually stand on something that’s just slightly less clickbaity than Solo Leveling winning it. Making it too critical disengages fans, sure, but you don’t have to. It’s not hard; Mile has done it in his hypo, but whatever CR does, just own that this is a marketing exercise. In this 2025 rendition it is just trying to put into terms of the “fandom” (if we still need to use this term to talk about the people who watch 1-2 titles per year as “fans”) consensus. That’s probably fine, but to me that’s kind of just a huge waste of time. Why? Because if you are a fan, how do you not know what is the consensus?
Make no mistake however, I wish the Awards the best, this year and going forward. I would rather engage in the thing that consistently provides my idol-seiyuu internet little sister Sally Amaki a job, than to ignore it completely. It’s one thing when you swallow the bitter pill to watch a trash anime for the seiyuu you care about, it’s another when the twitter/x shitqueen retweets something in your muted/ignored keyword list. Well, my life is no worse off if I ignore it, but I wish my life to be better, which means unfortunately the Anime Awards needs to be better.
The other marketing exercise that is much more engaging (for better or for (mostly) worse), is Anime Expo. There is a lot of positives when Japan can focus its money laser on one US event to show that they care about anime’s largest oversea market. The perspective I have is that, while there is plenty of interest and even maybe money, there isn’t enough of it. As someone who pressed for nearly a decade I can tell you that is one sad game. How do fans get their news other than from PR machines like CR? Is there something not owned by Sony or Kadokawa that we read from? Not to say there is anything wrong with the way things are today(there is so much but that’s for a different post), but if we are to improve on the marketing/news/informational aspect of the fandom we need commercial entities to help.
Which is to say, AX is actually one of those things that has been around forever. SPJA has its myriad of issues over the years, but it serves this function. If anything, that it and AX continue to exist is the proof that good things happen when you bring fans to the commercial side from across the pond. Or maybe I should say you bring Japanese execs and their big booths to Los Angeles and shower them with the many tens of thousands of people who swarm the DTLA summer beer garden that it’s becoming.
I mean there isn’t anything wrong (or is there) with $15 beers on the sidewalks of LA Live, but they keep on growing the footprint of the thing and they can do all this concession outside. Last year everyone was pretty nicely vibing with how AX felt, with slightly lower attendance. This year seems to be slightly bigger lift from the marketing side than last, so we’ll see how it turns out. Which is to say, AX has many problems, but at its core it’s about tapping into the commerical side to give something to the fans. Classic anime cons are fan cons that have to work to pull commercial entities to work with them. From my POV, Japanese companies need to engage all the other large North American cons, not just AX. It’s definitely an unmet need or a vacuum of sorts. AX can feel like a sausage factory with how much commercial content is being squeezed into 4ish days, it’s a feast for that stuff while other cons are in famine.
Which is also to say this fan vs corp thing is toxic, we can coexist as long as, IDK, if we actually have ethics in journalism instead of a dog whistle or something. The reality is both benefits. We are not going to (I am not going to) get IM@S in America without Bandai Namco thinking if they build it we will come. Fans needs to show and showcase their fandom in a more concrete way, and fan cons need to kind of see the forest for the trees and treat it as such and not just vibe until next year. Con runners are exactly the people in the positions to show the execs what the fans want. It really should be a huge part of their game, and for the most part, it is invisible.
Meanwhile AX needs to work on that “for worse” part above. It’s no harm no foul when the Anime Awards crowds some dumb webtoon thing I didn’t even watch as winning a bunch of its categories. It’s another when kids get heat stroke while in line to see some Web 3.0 influencer in the SoCal sun. That is way too close to our postmodern dystopia for me. It’s life and limb when fans trample each other to grab autograph tickets. Or one of the many ways Anime Expo can be UNSAFE. Nobody needs to get hurt or go to the hospital over the Anime Awards or Anime Expo, so let’s keep safety first.
Isn’t it wild that Masako Nozawa is appearing at a West Coast convention and you can join her meet and greet for $3500? Anyways, this is just one of the many recent developments I saw today.
Let me start with house keeping, it’s this kind of a post, sorry? First of all, the newsletter is pretty dead since over a year and half ago so that was that. I have links and pages dated 2023 that I have not linked anywhere. Slowly I’m trying to clean those up from my massive number of Chrome tabs. Only 3-400 more to go or something.
For anime, for what it is, the business that it is, you can check out a couplesubstacks. It’s nice that semi-pros are doing what I always envisioned to exist in the right way. That said I really should continue to write about my own niche–events, and seiyuu, around anime/game/manga etc.
I recently came back from a local convention (Kogaracon) and talking/overhearing some people who attend these events there are definitely a network of local school cons on top of the more profit-driven events. If you know one near you, it helps to support them by showing up. It’s also pretty relaxing to hit a con and be back home the same day, getting all the things you want.
I have a post written up for Kawaiikon and the fan event I helped run for Sally Amaki and Kana Ichinose. Hopefully that comes out before I start my next chain of events starting from Acen in a couple weeks. (This sentence weights on me more than you think.)
I should also put some thoughts down about the upcoming changing of guards with the josei seiyuu wave. I did have this few weeks of break so I can go back to recouping for things. Or rather, from Aceon onward I will be kinda busy for the rest of the summer–like after Labor Day basically.
This means I actually watched a lot of anime in March and April. I went back and basically finished Atri the anime. This season, I actually felt engaged with a number of the offerings. The last two seasons on the other hand was kind of a dull thing. Maybe it’s just I didn’t watch the shows I would enjoy. Or maybe I should watch more Netflix. Anyways, going to list some for this season that I am/will be/had been watching.
Lazarus – The show they finally end up making after like 30 years, IDK. A huge miss to be dub only in legit stream means in the US though.
Cinderella Grey – Other than Alexandros being there and breaking the combo of Umamusume signing the OP, it’s just as you’d expect. Which is great. Just like the EN game release date is now set.
Witch Watch – Possibly my fav this season. It’s a romcom with a pop culture edge and Narichan nailed her role.
Maebashi Witches – It’s a kids show that is dressed like a young adult, and it’s oddly amusing to me.
Aharen-san – Not sure if I’ll continue in S2, probably will drop if I don’t have the time, given it’s getting stale already.
Zatsutabi – It’s ok and one of the three chill anime girls-do-cute-things anime this season (Kadokawa).
Summer Pockets – I might save this for later but it’s ok?
Aru Majo ga Shinu Made/Once Upon a Witch’s Death – This production is too gucci to, uh, Drop(s).
Ballpark de Tsukamaete – Too many baseball seiyuu in this. Also the subject matter is one I like. Oddly enough the main character is the one thing that sticks out.
GQuuuuuuX – I enjoyed Beginnings enough, so it’s time to see what Tsurumaki has left for the rest of “us” who aren’t like myself. I mean it’s a gorgeous work already.
Apocalypse Hotel – Sold me after 2 eps, just a matter of finding time to keep up.
Takamine-san – Probably will still watch, if not to completion.
YOUR FORMA – I have a Samsung tablet so this is actually something I can easily pull up on my TV. That said this show feels like a 2010s anime.
Rock Lady – This is also an anime kinda made for me, so I feel obliged to continue.
Anne Sherley – Surprisingly great, thanks to Honoka’s spirited performance and dialing the grating aspect of this brat to the right level.
KOWLOON GENERIC ROMANCE – Also sold me from the start but I feel this is bait… I will wait for the season to end probably to finish.
Ossan Kensei/From Old Country Bumpkin to Master Swordsman – I don’t like the harem aspect so not sure how far I’ll get…
mono – the highest profile girls-do-cute-things anime this season (Aniplex). I probably will finish it but it’s like an inferior Yurucamp anime reminding you about Yurucamp.
Meshi Umashi/Food for the Soul – The third or my favorite cute-girls-do-cute-things this season (PA Works). It’s the reunion of the Non Non Biyori creatives? It is also an original media mix.
Yandere Elf – Takamiina in the lead role of this particular character niche that she seems to end up with every time? As an American I don’t even think it fits her that well, but maybe this is a cultural thing. It’s a trashy anime so I might not survive it, but it is short.
Speaking of shorts there is a Uma short and a Lycoris Recoil short, and others that don’t get wide distribution (Kaiju #8 and Frieren)? It’s been a while since I’ve followed so many in one season. Let’s see if I can keep this up.
If I don’t, it is because…Umamusume EN (Steam, and Android/iOS!), and for sure, Gakuen IDOLM@STER. I can’t play Sense for my life but I can play the other two just fine and it’s been a lot of fun. The game’s commu are super enjoyable and as someone who don’t bother most of the time it’s even gotten me to read (almost) all of it. The gameplay is a bit broken at time, and RNG at times, but it’s part of the game and they copied the right things from Slay the Spire, let’s just say.
With the first anniversary later this month I probably will be stuck in this gacha hell for some time. I hope I am not totally bankrupt lol. Uma EN will be right before AX, and AX as usual will conflict with the usual MLTD anniversary event. If Uma EN is going to be the first produce scenario from the JP game, it will be a huge time sink so I don’t know, it’ll suck for a while. At least I know early-game Uma is kind of skippable.
Anyways, feel free to say hi if I run into you at Acen, London, Berlin, Gakumas 1st HS, Dere Okinawa, LiSA NYC, AX, Ado NJ, 765AS, Animethon, Anime NYC, Anisama…and more…
With a new IDOLM@STER game grabbing my interest, it’s not too surprising the blog is in this hiatus-like state. Still I have ideas, and they must exit the system and go somewhere. Anyways, the holiday season is a good time to recap some stuff.
In 2023 I thought the cons in the USA would strike back from the COVID days in 2024. The State department has done a lot to shorten the visa times, but there are still some problems with that. With the political situation in the US being what it is, it’s probably more realistic to expect some hits in the next few years in terms of difficulties surrounding visa processing. But coming back to the last 12 months, some big cons did come through (AX, Animazement), but others didn’t (Anime NYC, and to an extent AWA). Some cons seemed more modest in terms of their steps forward (Acen, Sakuracon), while others were interesting to say the least (Kawaiikon, SoJ Miami, Holmats). Rather diving into each case, it’s just good to note many Japanese acts and events happened outside of the big cons also, like the One Piece concerts, or the Anime Orchestra thing (I didn’t end up going to). There were the Ado and Yoasobi tours, which to me were just as big of a deal. I didn’t get tickets to see Fujii Kaze, but that sounded great. There were also the Nier concerts, and Joe came back to MSG NYC. All of this is just some of the large number of anime-interested stuff building on top of what we already have.
I didn’t think anime cons in the US did all that much given the post-COVID bounce. I think part of this is fundamentally, anime events still haven’t recovered from COVID in a lot of ways. Texas cons suffered this year, with most notable AnimeFest and A-Kon shuttering. Canadian cons though, they cooked pretty hard. Edmonton and Vancouver especially was pretty great. Even Ottawa and Montreal did OK. Toronto was a weird vacuum, which is probably also due to the organization side not bouncing back.
Inflationary pressure and overall tourism bouncing back to pre-COVID numbers also did a lot to temper traveling in my experience. Japan experienced over-tourism at its key tourist traps out near Mt. Fuji and around Kyoto’s picturesque streets, and elsewhere. I don’t blame the locals trying to tamper it down using new laws and regulations, but everyone else, including the local hospitality industries, are still adjusting to the new normal. It’s hard to say 2025 will be any better–odds are it isn’t going to, especially with the continuing weakening of the Yen versus other currencies.
Yes, this makes me less wanting to go to Japan, but the people out at Bandai Namco has other ideas. I am not going to the Aqours final solo show in June, because I am already over-committed for the first half of 2025. I have already needing to sacrifice the Kanno NYC show at the end of March for Hotchpotch. There is already 2 weekends I wanted to go in the summer, not counting the annual Anisama festival.
Speaking of summer, the summer of 2024 was pretty brutal, and I expect the same for 2025 already. I logged like non-stop weekend travel for about 7 weeks this year, or 13 out of 15 if you include a 2-week gap I had, even if some were for family and vacation trips. For 2025, from Acen onward I probably will also have back-to-back weekends of traveling again, depending on if I go anywhere in June. July will have AX, which I probably should start booking now. July-August will have the usual gauntlet of summer cons, plus 2 weekends of IDOLM@STER events. I really should cut Anisama this year but that can wait until March…
Which is to say, like 2024, I welcome 2025 with worn vigor and tempered excitement. I think if Japan wanted to, they can do better than to bring Phantom Siita, and generate some real excitement. It’s the US-side of things that are the cold water pouring out to show the harsh reality of the domestic side. I’m glad people like Ado want to play along though. Someone has to stir the pot.
Happy holidays and hope to write more in 2025. Meanwhile I have a lot of anime to catch up.
Spirit of Japan Miami is a first-year convention at Miami Beach. Literally located in the big con center (that was renovated last decade) just to the side of South Beach, this new con brought big con guests which drew people like myself. It also is the Funko Pop Private Signing Wonderland that you might have heard about. Still I got to see Fruits Zipper and that made things all OK? Maybe.
The story really started at around AX time, because Sayaka Ohara went to AX and I want her to sign my Aria stuff, naturally. Of course, because MangaGamer, it couldn’t be done there, nor did I get a ticket anyway due to POS fail at MG booth first day of AX. I didn’t really get a chance to go back to do that either. So I said to my self, “Ohara is going to this first-year con in Miami, let’s just do that.” So I did.
I didn’t think much about Hiroaki Hirata much, or that Yuki Kaji will do a zoom panel there. Then the con added Ryo Horikawa, who is a staple of this kind of events nowadays. Oh, Burnout Syndrome? I guess Fake Star is involved. Then there was Satomi Akesaka??? Fruits Zipper???? Wow they called in that A-Kon rain check! Wow Diana Garnet (again)! The list is impressive say the least, not to mention for a first-year con.
Turns out, this con is largely run by One Guy who is a Japanese-American business man who really want to bring the stuff he loves together. The face he made when talking about Yui-chan on Sunday says it all. I was able to talk to him briefly and it was pretty fun to see this sort of thing being thrown down.
The event is a combination of a cultural festival and a pop cultural con. There was a “dealer room” setup with AA art walls and random lifestyle brands, mixed in there some vendors with merch. And by merch, I just mean walls of Funkos. There was a board game part with tournaments. There is a corner with actual arcade games and a few playstations set up. I give them props for that. There is also just a corner with all the autographs, across from the one and only stage. Lastly the entrance and exit is right by the cultural booths where you can learn tea ceremony (I wanted this but it didn’t pan out time-wise), wear a yukata, learn to draw manga, calligraphy, and what have you. There is also a sake tasting thing in a corner that is gated (of course).
