The 4th of July is a tradition among all Americans, but for anime fans stuck at home like me, there’s another tradition for such.
It’s already a year since, and nothing has changed so far: I’m still watching online conventions, just like then. Well, there are things that have changed: For one, I don’t stay awake just because I want to see an anime con online. This time, I’m also doing it to sniff out what news is going to pop – or in my case, what feature story can my colleagues write about.
But since this is keepsakes., and this is where I share my thoughts on things on a personal level, I’m going to share more about my experiences with this year’s set of events.
Anime Expo Lite 2021
This year’s AX Lite is held inside Tixr, a new online event platform. The design is sleek, and I’m ok with it since I already signed up to see VODs from Anime Next, most of which I have yet to finish watching.
As with Anime Next, AX Lite is for charity. This time, proceeds go to the Hate is a Virus Campaign. Having been immersed into events which share part of its proceeds to charity, this is a good move, no-brainer. As I pay my ticket for the online event, I have good faith that it will reach out to anyone affected by the stigma that this pandemic has brought.
I will not elaborate about that further, because I will focus on sharing my two cents in the platform as well as the activities. I love that AX Live has chock-full of video-on-demand content, but getting to it on time got difficult. The good thing so far is that the videos on demand won’t expire fast – they’re there up to two weeks. If in case I need to get back on something, I can still get to it by that time. The delay still left a bitter aftertaste for me.
Backtracking from the actual live dates, I don’t know with Anime Expo, but why use Twitch chat in a custom platform that also uses a competing service. I just can’t figure that out. There’s also a report that one attendee got his access revoked, but that’s for another story.
Aniplex Online Fest 2021
Now this event favors our time, so just like AX Lite, they have the full event on demand for a limited time, let’s say, July 11 at 7:59 am PDT (11:59 pm JST). The program puts three major titles in a deeper perspective: Madoka Magica, Sword Art Online and Demon Slayer.
Having watched the SAO panel in part, and Madoka Magica panel in full, I am satisfied to know the series behind the scenes, as described by the people who have worked on it. Most especially, the voices behind the characters themselves.
I have yet to watch the SAO panel in full, but it’s already full of promise.
Kurocon 2021
Just like in the last two iterations, Kurocon volume 3 is held live on Twitch and Discord.
The reason for my attendance there is still the same: It’s relevant for me. Panels which talk about VTubers, panels which talk about alcoholic drinks, panels which talk about experiences in Japan, tips, et cetera. Not to mention, the DJs who play banger tracks one after another.
By the next volume, I expect to hold another panel again. Who knows, I may actually talk about VTubers there.
Conclusion
Monitoring three events over the weekend is no joke at all. In my timezone, I am monitoring these in such an ungodly time. Nevertheless, if they still provide videos on demand, there should be no problems.
…Wait, what do you mean there’s another online con happening next week? Ah, okay.