<![CDATA[A-to-J Connections - Event Reports]]>

<![CDATA[A-to-J Connections - Event Reports]]>Tue, 24 Jun 2025 15:24:19 -0700Weebly<![CDATA[TOKYOPOP Announces Naruro The Gallery Berlin Exhibit]]>Thu, 05 Jun 2025 07:00:00 GMThttp://a-to-jconnections.com/event-reports/tokyopop-announces-naruro-the-gallery-berlin-exhibit

TOKYOPOP is thrilled to announce it will be hosting the first European destination for the world tour of Naruto The Gallery. The blockbuster exhibition, which features seven meticulously curated galleries that trace the epic journey of Naruto and Sasuke, will open in Berlin, Germany, on August 27, 2025, and run until November 24, 2025. Details on the exhibition, as well as links to tickets, can be found below.

For more than 20 years since the anime first aired in Japan, audiences around the world have followed the adventures of Naruto and his comrades in the iconic world of shinobi. Naruto transcends being just an anime character; his ability to evoke change in people stems from compelling narratives that have captured the emotions of millions of fans worldwide.

Designed and produced by the Naruto The Gallery Executive Committee, this exhibition revisits unforgettable and nostalgic moments from the beloved anime series, highlighting the growth of the characters, their bonds with friends, and their thrilling battles. Featuring a wealth of animated films, iconic scenes, and specially curated narratives, Naruto The Gallery offers a comprehensive retrospective of the Naruto anime series.

“At TOKYOPOP, we couldn’t be more excited to launch our new Live Events business segment with such an iconic character and world as Naruto,” said Stu Levy, TOKYOPOP Group Founder and Chairman. “Naruto The Gallery is a visually stunning exhibition, and Berlin – home to so many groundbreaking artists over its history – is the perfect place for it in Europe.”

“Naruto The Gallery brings one of the world’s most successful anime series to life in a unique exhibition – and finally to Germany. We’re excited to be the exclusive ticketing partner for Naruto The Gallery and to help make this special experience accessible to all European fans. A big thank-you to TOKYOPOP for placing their trust in myticket.de,” added Lucas Goy, myticket.de Chief Operating Officer.

At the exhibition, Naruto fans will journey through over 20 years of anime and shinobi history, experiencing powerful imagery and reliving the epic saga of Naruto and his comrades. Each gallery is rich with curated artwork and anime scenes that tell a powerful story. Visitors will walk through a space filled with emotionally resonant quotes and scenes from their favorite characters, culminating in an immersive theater where they will witness the Final Battle.

Artist Collaboration
This exhibition presents a special collaboration with five of Japan’s most prominent emerging animation artists — Nina Ai, Kohei Kadowaki, Kosuke Sugimoto, Kohta Morie, and que. Iconic scenes from the anime Naruto, which has captivated fans for over 20 years, have been reimagined through each artist’s unique vision and expression. These special animated works are one of the key highlights of the exhibition.

Powerful Key Visuals and Exclusive Merchandise
Striking brand imagery and original character artwork, drawn especially for Naruto The Gallery, depict the exhibition's theme, "Battles," featuring Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura, and popular antagonists like Itachi, Deidara, and Pain. Visitors can also purchase bespoke merchandise inspired by these visuals, enhancing their unique and memorable experience.

The Global Success of Naruto
Naruto, a manga series serialized in Japan’s Weekly Shonen Jump, depicts the journey of a young ninja Naruto Uzumaki, who faces fierce battles with rivals and confronts his past in pursuit of his dream to become the Hokage of the Hidden Leaf Village. The story of the characters’ growth, carefully portrayed human relationships, and a richly constructed world have resonated with people of all generations across borders, earning passionate support from fans around the world. The manga series spans 72 volumes, with a total global circulation exceeding 250 million copies. It has been published in over 60 countries and regions.

The anime adaptation began airing in 2002, followed by Naruto Shippuden in 2007, which continued until March 2017. In October 2022, the franchise celebrated the 20th anniversary of its TV broadcast. Additionally, eleven animated feature films have been released. The anime has been distributed worldwide shortly after its Japanese broadcast and is beloved by fans globally

Information and Ticket Sales
Naruto The Gallery will be hosted at Radsetzerei, located on the world-renowned cultural hub R.A.W. area in Berlin from 27.08.2025 through 24.11.2025, organized by TOKYOPOP in partnership with MyTicket.de, PLAION PICTURES, Carlsen, Figuya, and Manga Mafia.

Information & Ticketing: http://www.narutothegallery.de/

About TOKYOPOP
Founded in 1997, TOKYOPOP brings Asian pop culture to Hollywood and beyond. TOKYOPOP established the market for manga in North America, introducing the term to the English language in the process, and expanding the market in Germany, publishing thousands of books in both languages, distributing anime and Asian films on home video and television, licensing merchandise to consumer goods and companies, and creating graphic novels of both original content and major IP adaptations. With Naruto The Gallery, the company is launching its live events and location-based entertainment division. TOKYOPOP’s core values focus on multiculturalism and diversity; aestheticism and artistic integrity; and passionate and positive storytelling.

]]><![CDATA[HIDIVE Set to Showcase Upcoming "The Dangers In My Heart" Movie at Anime Expo 2025]]>Tue, 03 Jun 2025 07:00:00 GMThttp://a-to-jconnections.com/event-reports/hidive-set-to-showcase-upcoming-the-dangers-in-my-heart-movie-at-anime-expo-2025

The Dangers in My Heart is an anime series that is currently available for streaming on HIDIVE. It's proved popular during its two-season run, and The Dangers in My Heart The Movie is set to debut at this year's Anime Expo.

Rom-com fans will be clamoring for seats when The Dangers in My Heart takes center stage at Anime Expo 2025. AMC Networks’ HIDIVE revealed today plans for a special preview panel for the eagerly anticipated The Dangers in My Heart Movie at this year’s annual anime convention during July 4th weekend in Los Angeles, California. The panel is presented in partnership with TV Asahi and will spotlight the first-ever The Dangers in My Heart franchise film, which was announced last September during the Fan Appreciation Project!! event in Tokyo. Combining a compilation of Seasons 1 & 2 of the series together with brand new animation sequences, The Dangers in My Heart Movie provides a continuation of series characters Kyotaro and Anna’s love story. Panel attendees will be treated to an exciting Q&A discussion with a trio of special Japanese guests from The Dangers in My Heart production staff, Director Hiroaki Akagi and Producers Yosuke Sakurai and Kazuki Endo. The Dangers in My Heart Movie panel will be held on Friday, July 4 at the JW Marriott Los Angeles L.A. LIVE.

“We’re thrilled to partner with TV Asahi on this very special The Dangers in My Heart Movie panel at Anime Expo 2025 in July,” said John Ledford, President of HIDIVE. “The Dangers in My Heart with its endearing love story became a beloved and fan-favorite series soon after its debut in Spring 2023 and went on to garner numerous awards and accolades for both its first season and sequel season in Winter 2024. We expect a capacity audience at the movie panel and rom-com fans will definitely not want to miss it!”

Fascinated by murder and all things macabre, Kyotaro daydreams of acting out his twisted fantasies on his unsuspecting classmates — but an encounter with Anna Yamada, the gorgeous class idol, lights a spark in the darkness of his heart. It’s a classic tale of an antisocial boy falling for a popular girl, but neither are who they appear to be at first glance. Will Kyotaro and Anna defy their expectations of each other — and of themselves?

ANIME EXPO 2025 |The Dangers in My Heart Movie Panel
Date: Friday, July 4, 2025
Time: 8:00 – 8:50 pm Pacific
Location: Diamond Ballroom - JW Marriott Los Angeles L.A. LIVE

Seasons 1 & 2 of The Dangers in My Heart On HIDIVE:
https://www.hidive.com/season/19920

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/hidiveofficial
X: https://x.com/HIDIVEofficial
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hidiveofficial/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/HIDIVE

]]><![CDATA[The Anime Boston 2025 Experience]]>Mon, 02 Jun 2025 14:49:15 GMThttp://a-to-jconnections.com/event-reports/the-anime-boston-2025-experienceBy J.D. Kelly

Thursday - May 22, 2025

It’s 6 AM in Boston and my plane out of California has just touched down. I text my family to let them know I’ve made it safely and then, text the friend with whom I’ll be staying for this trip so he can come and pick me up. Generally, I have trouble sleeping on planes but my seat is the window one so I could kind of rest my head for a bit of the six-hour flight. I’m still really tired but I’ll at least be able to stay awake until my friend arrives.

I make my way off the plane and out of the airport towards the parking garage and it’s then that I realize I’ve made a big mistake. My friend had told me that it was going to be “warm” (or at least what passes for warm in Boston) this weekend so I decided to leave my jacket at home. Turns out, the weather suddenly took a turn for the colder so I’m waiting in this parking doing my best not to shiver for about 30 minutes. I get into his car as quickly as possible and we set off back to his apartment.

A few missed exits and turns mean that this trip takes longer than expected but my friend and I take our time chatting about life, anime and the convention. When we finally make it to his place, I eat a quick bowl of cereal and lie down in the guest room for what I think will be a quick nap.

Five hours later, roughly 1 PM, I wake up from that quick nap. I take a quick shower before heading to the convention center to pick up my badge. Apparently, the sudden cold weather means the heating is still off in his building and that means it takes forever for the water in the shower to heat up. I do my best to use the cold water but I breathe a sigh of relief as it finally gets hot. I wash up quickly and change into a fresh set of clothes. I wait around a bit just to make sure I don’t get to the con center too early and finally, I walk to the train station. I pick up my pass I’ll be using for my time in Boston and after encountering a few issues trying to use it to get on the train, I finally make my way to the convention center.

About 30 minutes later, I arrive at the Hynes Convention Center, home of Anime Boston and head to badge pickup in the connected hotel. It’s early enough that lines are short, but I’m a bit unclear on what I need to do to pick up my press badge and check in for my panel as well. My panel isn’t until Saturday so I’m only worried about the press badge right now. I ask some staff members at the front and it takes them a few minutes to confirm that I just need to go to the Customer Service section to get my badge printed. I get that done and head back to the train station. On my way, I think I spot another friend of mine waiting for a table at The Cheesecake Factory, but I decide not to check. I don’t want to bother her if it is her and I’ve got plans to eat with my friend anyway.

I take the train back to my friend’s place. We grab some food from a joint near his place and after eating it, I convince him to help me run a test round of my panel. If you’ve seen any of our Anime Connect streams, you have an idea of how stumped he is. Luckily, he helps me catch some of my mistakes and misspellings so I’m able to correct those right away.

Later, I head off to bed early. I’m still kind of tired from my flight and I want to get up early to be at the con just as its starting. Getting to sleep the first night is hard. The thin blanket isn’t enough for the cold so I have to grab some from the closet and the pillows are uncomfortably soft for me. But, it’s a friend’s place I’m staying at for free so I’m not going to complain.

Friday – May 23, 2025

I wake up around 6:30 AM. I shower and change before heading out. My friend has work today so he won’t be joining me at Anime Boston. He’s not even awake by the time I leave.

I arrive at the con center around 8 AM and pick up what I am led to believe is the traditional Bostonian breakfast: Dunkin. I get one Bacon, Egg and Cheese on a croissant and then, start asking around about where I have to go to check in for my panel. It’s not until the next day, but I like to be prepared.

I ask at the information desk near registration and they tell me to go to another info desk on the second floor of the Sheraton. As I’m heading up the stairs, I pass my friend Ian, and another one who just got married, heading down the stairs. I say a quick hi and congratulations respectively, but going in different directions leaves little time for talk.

I find the info desk at the top of the stairs but no one is there. After standing around for a bit, another member of staff tells me it won’t be open for a bit so I just wait around until two staff members finally show up. Luckily, they are able to get me the info I need quickly and now I can finally head into the con.

Opening Ceremonies

After getting through security, I finally make it into the con and head to Opening Ceremonies. As always, it’s a fun little introduction to the guests and some of the events that are going on this weekend. The guest I’m most excited for is Yuriko Yamaguchi, the voice of Nico Robin in One Piece. Like the other guests, she has a little reel of clips of her work from her different roles. The clip for One Piece is Robin’s iconic “I want to live!” scene from the Enies Lobby arc. It’s been years since I saw it but that scene still nearly brough me to tears. I had hoped to get her autograph this weekend but I guess I wasn’t lucky enough to win the drawing for the opportunity. Next time.

At some point during the ceremonies, I get a text from my friends Nick and Ben that they’re at Cosplay Bingo so I head over there to meet them. The panel doesn’t look too eventful and wraps up not long after I arrive.

It's now roughly 11:30 and my schedule is looking kind of full for the rest of the day so I decide now is probably the only time I’m going to have to get lunch. I say bye to my friends promising to meet them at the next panel and exit the con center. I head to the nearby food court to old reliable Anna’s Taqueria. With a burrito and a Coke, I’m good for the rest con that day. Somewhere in all of this, I also check in for my panel. I’m a day early but the staff there say it’s okay.

Um, Actually

I’m so used to running that at other conventions (and occasionally on stream) that actually getting the opportunity to play it is a rare treat for me. I arrived early enough that I’m there for when the host goes out to pick out the first group of contestants. I volunteer and get chosen. I head inside early and let the friends I’m supposed to meet up with that I’m already inside the room.

As we wait for the game to begin, all the contestants talk to each other about our experience with the game. It seems most of us have seen some form of the game online. I chat with the host about how I run this at other cons and had submitted it for Anime Boston as well.

After about 15 minutes, the game starts. I get the first point and am mostly able to keep up even as question about shows I don’t really know pop up. I’m able to steal the Dragon Ball Z question when I realize the first time we see Trunks go Super Saiyan, it’s not the young version but his older self from the alternate future. One of the Shiny Rounds is identifying whether a show was a manga or an anime first and I manage to tie for first with three other contestants.

It’s a pretty close game as we go into the final Shiny Question. It asks us to order a set of characters from Sailor Moon based on how far the celestial body they represent is from the Sun. I’m apparently the only one who has seen enough to be able to recognize all the Sailor Guardians so that’s a big help as now, I only need to put them in planetary order plus Moon between Venus and Mars and Pluto at the end. With that, I win the game and get $60 in gift cards and a figure of Itsuki Nakano from The Quintessential Quintuplets.

I head back into the audience where my friends Nick and Ben are waiting. They congratulate me on my performance and we stick around to watch the second round. Honestly, I think I could have done better in that round. It feels like there are more shows I know in that one. This was a great time overall. I hope I can see more of it in the future.

Beyond Gundam: The Amazing Yoshiyuki Tomino

This started almost immediately after Um, Actually so I missed the first few minutes of this one. I only know of Tomino from Gundam and the occasional joking reference to Ideon so getting to see his work on other series like The Wings of Rean and Brain Powered was very interesting. I think the panelists had some interesting insights into how he tends to follow up his much darker works with lighter, comedic works similarly to how Zeta Gundam was followed up by ZZ (Double Zeta). We also got to see how he his work can get pretty bonkers when he doesn’t seem to have anyone reining him in. Great panel. Sadly, I couldn’t get a photo from the start of the power so instead, here’s a picture of some cosplayers I thought looked cool.

2.5-Dimensional Seduction Dub Special Screening

DISCLAIMER: After this event, I was interviewed by a team from HiDive about my thoughts on the dub. I don’t know if they have used or will use any of it but those were my honest thoughts. I received no compensation from them and they have not seen this article before posting.

If you read my coverage of Anime Expo last year, you’ll know that I was excited for 2.5-Dimensional Seduction after seeing the premiere. I kept watching the show through the end of last year and really enjoyed it. It was a serious contender for Anime of the Year so I was really excited to see the dub. I thought this was a premiere but it turns out that the first episodes of the dub are already available online.

After watching the first two episodes at Anime Boston, I can say that I think it’s a solid dub. I think the actors and the scripts are able to capture the kind of madcap energy of the series which is one of the things that endeared me to the series in the first place. I think the pronunciation of Ririsa’s name feels a bit too unnatural and stiff but it doesn’t really detract from anything. If you’re a fan of cosplay and/or the sort of lewd, kind of romantic comedy of fools, I think you’ll like this in English or Japanese.

Anime Squares

Based on the Hollywood Squares, this game was a chaotic time. My friends Nick and Ben both got called up to be on the board. There were lots of interesting questions and there were also a lot of questions about the currencies from anime series like Fairy Tail, Spy x Family, Hunter x Hunter and Fullmetal Alchemist. Those are just the ones I can remember off the top of my head. The board members were a mixed bag. The Cruella de Vil who got called up at the end was the best. She did her best to answer in character and was super entertaining when giving answers. Others were serviceable but it was generally easy to tell when they had no idea what they were talking about. The panel needs some work but if the host is running it again next year, I’ll definitely check it out.

Anime Jeopardy!

Did I mention I like game shows? This one was chaotic.

There were a lot of technical difficulties. Piece of advice to potential panelists: Always make sure that your panel can work offline and as many aspects as possible are stored locally.

The questions were interesting and even audience members who got questions correct got prizes. I was able to recognize Soichiro Yagami from Death Note and won a One Piece TCG card. It was still a kind of fun panel but not one I think I’d attend again unless than panelists greatly improved their processes.

Who Wants to Be an Animillionaire?

Behind maybe Um, Actually, this is probably the best run game show I attended at Anime Boston. It follows the classic format of Millionaire with a few of the extra flourishes including Jump the Question and an additional Wild Card lifeline if contestants make it past the $32,000 mark.

Sadly, not many of the contestants make it that far. One of the last contestants make it to the half-million mark but miss it. I don’t think the questions were that difficult but I’ve been doing stuff like this for the better part of a decade so I have a large collection of random trivia and an above average guessing ability. I think of all the questions asked, I only wouldn’t have been able to answer or at least correctly guess one or two. I don’t get called up so I recognize that’s the comments of an observer with no stakes in it. Maybe next time I can become an animillionaire.

At this point, it’s getting late. There are other things I want to go to. Nick and Ben tell me the Taskmaster panel is great but I have my panel and an interview panel the next day so I head back to my friend’s place and go to sleep.

Saturday – May 24, 2025

My friend joins me today. He has the day off from work so we head out at about the same and I grab breakfast at Dunkin while he grabs his badge. He and I have different things we want to do but after we get inside, we part ways with him saying he’ll be back to watch and possibly help out at my panel.

Mada Mada Dane! 70 Years of Sports Manga and Anime

I love sports anime so getting to see this look into the history of the genre. I run into my friend Andrew in line at the panel and we spend the time before we get into the room talking about the con, life and his recent appearance on UPZ.

I learn a lot at this panel. My actual experience with watching the genre only really goes back to watching The Prince of Tennis and Hikaru no Go when they were on Cartoon Network or at least its video website. I also appreciate that they include some nontraditional sports anime like Hikaru no Go and Chihayafuru along with Initial D. They also include my favorite sports anime: Big Windup! That alone makes this a nearly perfect panel.

The portion on Yowamushi Pedal also includes a hilarious clip from it that makes me want to watch it just to get the context behind why they were singing that song.

The Weakest Weeb (Weakest Link Parody Game)

That’s the full name of the panel. That’s not my attempt to explain what it was because barring the music and asking players questions with a time limit, this panel doesn’t really have all that much to do with The Weakest Link. Each player is called up individually and their score is determined by the number of questions they get right in the time limit. The top three which includes my friend Nick are then given a second round of questions and whoever gets the most comes first. Nick manages to get second.

Honestly, my two big complaints for this panel are that it has nothing really to do with The Weakest Link and that the cohost who was supposed to be keeping score had trouble doing so which makes figuring out players’ placements difficult.

This is the panel right before mine and in the same room so I talk to the host afterwards and he even gives me three Rice Krispie Treats I use as prizes for my panel.

Anime Connect (AKA My Panel)

It’s finally time for my panel. My friend reappears ready to help me run my panel and I thank them dearly for that.

If you’ve already seen one of the streams where I’ve run the game before or attended one of the other conventions where I’ve done this panel, you have a decent idea of how this went. For those that don’t know, the game is played across four rounds:

Connections – Find the connection between up to 4 mostly anime related clues. Includes a picture question and a music question.
Sequences – Find the fourth in a sequence of mostly anime related clues. Includes a picture question and sometimes a music sequence.
Connecting Wall – It’s like the NYT Connections. There are 16 clues that have to be sorted into 4 groups of 4. Teams get a point for each group the successfully find and another point for each connection they know even for groups they didn’t find. Get all 8 for 2 bonus points.
Missing Vowels – I give the teams the connection between clues like “Anime Films Not Directed by Hayao Miyazaki” and then, a clue with no vowels. For consistency, Y doesn’t count as a vowel. For example, “PRFCTBL” or “Perfect Blue” directed by Satoshi Kon.

At the start, there are enough people to fill the room. Last year, I ran this game for a room of maybe five people so having a room full of people at a large convention means a lot to me. The game goes about as well as I could have hoped. The teams get stumped a lot but there’s usually someone in the audience who gets it and even when no one knows it, they all have the sudden realization when I walk them through it and reveal the answer.

The worst part is the technical issues. My attempt to film the panel with my GoPro is cut short when it overheats with about 5 minutes left in the first game. I don’t even both to try recording the second. I think I’m just going to stick with using my iPhone to film panels now.

The only major issue is with the new iPad app I’ve been working on to handle the Connecting Wall. It allows me to just hand it off to the teams and I can still display it on the projector using OBS but somehow, one of the teams manages to open the dev menu. I’ve never even done that so I have no idea how to fix it. Luckily, they only had a few seconds left and didn’t seem to be too worried about any potential loss of points. Definitely room for improvement there.

I’m hoping to take the footage I have and upload it to my YouTube channel even if it doesn’t have an ending. I’ll just call it an homage to X.

The other big mistake is going 15 minutes over my time because of a discrepancy between the app and the website. My apologies to the panel after me for your shortened prep time.

Blue Encount Interview

After spending the last 4 or so hours glued to that one room, I go grab lunch. I want to try Wagamama but as soon as I see the line, I decide that Anna’s Taqueria doesn’t sound that bad. I grab another burrito and eat quickly before finding somewhere quit to sit and prep for the Blue Encount press panel.

I am always astonished by how few press outlets seem to be at Anime Boston. There’s only one other press member in the room with me: Seth from Anime Herald. We have totally different styles of questions. I’m asking some of the basics trying to help readers no more about their style of music, their taste in anime and whatnot. He seems very well versed in interviews the band members have done before and is probing them on that. We each take each other’s questions and occasionally build off them. I ask what their favorite anime are. He asks a question that deals with that to one member. I do the same with a different member and after he replies, I quote one of the inspirations he mentioned in a previous question to show I understand. We went for the whole time with just the two of us talking to the band. It was a great time.

I’ll have the transcription for that later which will hopefully make its way to the A-to-J website. Please look forward to it.

Masquerade

AKA the Cosplay Contest.

One of my favorite parts of the convention and because the interview was right up against this, I’m late. I miss all the craftsmanship presentations and I think a few of the first performances. I do however manage to get a decent seat on the balcony level and take some time to relax while watching the performances. There are a lot of good ones especially those in the Masters Division.

One called “Meistermaxxing, Brainrotting and Cringe! No Cap? What the sigma?” makes me feel like I’m too old to be here but it is a funny skit of the Soul Eater crew trying to beat up witches and wizards from other media.

Another Ranma ½ themed skit uses the vending “Transformation Tensions” machine scroll to make the change between Male Ranma and Female Ranma feel seamless. It’s also kind of meta in its humor and I appreciate that.

My personal favorite was one called “Little Kingdom of Horrors” which mashed up Little Shop of Horrors and Super Mario with Peach in the role of Seymour and a talking Piranha Plant as Audrey II. I thought the work to make the plant look like it was talking was really cool and it used the screen to display the little shop and Bowser who became the victim to the plant.

Another one I want to discuss is “Anime Food Network Presents Chopped!” It pitted Sanji from One Piece, Laios from Delicious in Dungeon and Link from The Legend of Zelda against each other in a monster cooking competition hosted by Senshi also from Delicious in Dungeon channeling the energy of Guy Fieri. My only big complain is that Guy Fireri doesn’t host Chopped but I guess as the most recognizable person on that Food Network, he’s an easy drop in for people to understand.

The last one I wanted to discuss is called “Pillow Talk” about a fangirl of Gojo from Jujutsu Kaisen somehow bring her body pillow of him to life to be her actual husbando. I thought it was funny especially because it felt like it was either written for or written by my friend Ghostie and I’m not sure which is funnier.

Overall, another great year. Just wish I hadn’t been late. With that out of the way, I don’t see much else that interests me in the late-night panels so my friend and I both head back to their place and get some sleep.

Sunday – May 25, 2025

My friend has other plans so I’m heading out solo again this morning. I once again grab breakfast at Dunkin but this time, I run into Andrew. I don’t know how but it always seems I run into someone at breakfast on Sunday. We discuss how our weekend’s been going and our plans for this last day before parting ways as he takes food back to his wife.

Charity Auction

This is in a different room than usual which throws me off but a very helpful staff member is able to point me in the right direction and I even run into my friend Ian in line. We chat for a bit about what we’re interested in getting for the auction and how our weekends have been.

Eventually, we are let in and we both take seats up near the front. The emcee gets us started as we figure out what exactly we’re yelling at each of the big increments. If you’ve been here before, you might remember me at the guy who yells quickly and loudly for all of them and to the emcee’s amazement, without caffeine in my system. I just use sugar instead. Thanks, Dunkin. #NotSponsored

There’s only one thing I really wanted in this auction and it’s a set of CLAMP merchandise from one of their Japanese exhibits that I was too late to see when I was In Japan. I don’t have much in the way of funds but I’m hoping I can make a decent showing with the $200 I’m willing to part with. The only bad problem is the one competition I know I have is my friend who got me into CLAMP. She’s not there but Ian is serving as her proxy and I know she’s willing to pay a lot for CLAMP goods.

As soon as the auction for the CLAMP goods starts, I jump to $200 just to make it easier on myself. Another person and Ian quickly outbid me and start going back and forth on it until it finally hits the $1050 mark which is sadly too much for my friend to beat. I guess there’s always next time.

Even if I don’t win anything, the charity auction is cool. I like to see all the merch that’s there and seeing people passionately bidding for items and raising money for charity is nice. Hopefully, next time I have a job and can afford to play more competitively.

Interlude: Vendors

After that, Ian and I walk around the convention center and head to the Dealer’s Room where we both pick up a few pieces of merch. I grab the enamel pins for 2025 and 2024. I blame Brandon Sanderson (and also Fangy) for this new addiction of mine.

Eventually, Ian finds another friend of his running a booth and they start talking. I walk around the area mostly in sight for a few minutes before realizing that the last panel I want to go to is starting soon. Without saying a word, I slip out of the Dealers Room. Make a quick trek through Artists Alley looking for an artist a streamer I follow mentioned and then, head to what will be my last panel of Anime Boston.

From Gum to Gundam: Anime Funding Through History

This was another cool history one looking at the different ways anime production has been funded through history from direct sponsorship and advertising to modern media mix integration and merchandising. I think it’s a little too dry to appeal to a super wide audience but I really like it. I’m just really sorry to leave when they start the Q&A because I need to meet Nick and Ben for the last, last thing of Anime Boston.

Closing Ceremonies

I want to see if they have balcony seating for this one but Nick and Ben already let me know that they’re on the ground floor so I go in the main entrance and ignore the person telling me where to go (Sorry.) when I spot Nick and Ben by the entrance. I grab the seat next to them and a few minutes later, we see another friend of ours and she ends up sitting down in the row behind us. We say hi to her but by that time, the ceremonies are about to begin and we don’t want to disturb the people near us.

Like Opening Ceremonies, Closing Ceremonies is a way for the guests who are still there to say goodbye. Before they start coming onto the stage, the karaoke contest winner comes out to perform a song and that makes Yuriko Yamaguchi want to start singing as well. She starts singing the first One Piece opening “We Are!” I start singing along and by the time she gets to the words “One Piece!”, a lot of the crowd is singing along with her. It’s a lot of fun.

The Anime Boston mascots also come up on stage to discuss the theme for this year and for next year along with showing the dates for Anime Boston 2026.

I don’t know if some things were moved around in the Closing Ceremonies schedule because they show a video that ends with credits and a lot of people get up and start walking out of the room. Generally, they would show the AMV Contest winners before the end of the convention and some other people around me are wondering where they are. It turns out, they’re after the credits. I’ve already seen them at the Masquerade but I stay to watch them with my friends. Plus, that corn one in hilarious. I wish I remembered the name to post it here. There’s also a Pokémon one that is really sentimental so as a kid who grew up playing the games on the Gameboy he got for Christmas at like 7 years old, it really moved me.

After all of that, Nick, Ben and I got out of the auditorium and started talking to the friend who was seated behind us. She introduces us to her new wife and one of her best friends since childhood. We hadn’t really talked in years so it was just nice to see her again but sadly, all of us have somewhere to go. Nick, Ben and I had back to Nick’s car and pick up his wife from his house to have a post-con dinner at a Chinese food place.

Afterwards, they drive me back to my friend’s place and that ends my Anime Boston 2025. I’m still out of work so this may be my last Anime Boston for a while. If for some reason, it was to be my last ever, I think I could be satisfied with that. See you next time, Anime Boston.

Aftermath

I stayed in Boston for a few more days and my friend and I checked out a taiyaki shop near Harvard. I got in all the “Hahvahd” jokes I could out in that time.

While we were in the area, I had to go onto the campus and find the statue of John Harvard because my sister loves The Social Network. It was apparently commencement day so there was a long line to see the statue.

The next day, I flew home and now, I’m busy getting all of the writing and editing done just in time to do it again for Anime Expo in July!

-J.D.

]]><![CDATA[Anime Night Mart California 2025 Event & Cosplay Gallery]]>Mon, 17 Mar 2025 07:00:00 GMThttp://a-to-jconnections.com/event-reports/anime-night-mart-california-2025-event-cosplay-gallery

Anime Night Mart California recently returned to the Westminster Mall, and it was a fun and free event for anime fans of all ages! It was a very laid back event, and we decided to bring you all a small photo gallery from its first day, Saturday. Check out the photos, and keep an eye out for more events like this in the future!

All photos by Ivan Aburto

]]><![CDATA[Anime Impulse Los Angeles 2025 Event & Cosplay Gallery (Day Two)]]>Thu, 20 Feb 2025 23:30:36 GMThttp://a-to-jconnections.com/event-reports/anime-impulse-los-angeles-2025-event-cosplay-gallery-day-two

Anime Impulse Los Angeles returned to the Pomona Fairplex, and it was a weekend full of fun of all sorts. No matter where it's located, Anime Impulse is an event that never disappoints. Besides being one of the more popular conventions in the scene today, it also features several related events, and a guest list that rivals cons twice its size. Maid cafe, idol performances, and more were featured over the weekend, and we were there to capture it all! Below is a small gallery featuring pictures from Sunday, Day Two. We hope that these pictures will convince you to take the plunge and show up next year, or simply relive the fun if you were lucky enough to attend!

All photos by Ivan Aburto

]]><![CDATA[Anime Impulse Los Angeles 2025 Event & Cosplay Gallery (Day One)]]>Wed, 19 Feb 2025 08:00:00 GMThttp://a-to-jconnections.com/event-reports/anime-impulse-los-angeles-2025-event-cosplay-gallery-day-one

Anime Impulse Los Angeles returned to the Pomona Fairplex, and it was a weekend full of fun of all sorts. No matter where it's located, Anime Impulse is an event that never disappoints. Besides being one of the more popular conventions in the scene today, it also features several related events, and a guest list that rivals cons twice its size. Maid cafe, idol performances, and more were featured over the weekend, and we were there to capture it all! Below is a small gallery featuring pictures from Saturday, Day One. We hope that these pictures will convince you to take the plunge and show up next year, or simply relive the fun if you were lucky enough to attend!

All photos by Ivan Aburto

]]><![CDATA[OC Japan Fair 2024 Event Gallery]]>Tue, 22 Oct 2024 21:59:40 GMThttp://a-to-jconnections.com/event-reports/oc-japan-fair-2024-event-gallery

The OC Japan Fair is a long-running Japanese cultural festival that is held yearly at the OC Fair & Event Center. This year's event promised lots of fun activities, and A-to-J was there to capture it all! Below you'll find a gallery featuring some of the awesome cosplayers from the event, another featuring some of the looks from the Kimono Halloween Fashion Show, and more! We hope you enjoy these galleries, and we also hope to see you all at next year's event!

All photos by Ivan Aburto.

For More Information on The OC Japan Fair:
https://www.oc-japanfair.com/#info

Cosplay

Kimono Halloween Fashion Show

Yukata Dance

]]><![CDATA[5 Days In The Life of A-to-J: An Anime Expo 2024 Recap]]>Mon, 15 Jul 2024 02:23:28 GMThttp://a-to-jconnections.com/event-reports/5-days-in-the-life-of-a-to-j-an-anime-expo-2024-recapBy J.D.

Day 0 (7/3):

Also, my birthday and my cat’s.

I had a birthday breakfast with my family before catching the train to Los Angeles. It took about two hours to make it to Union Station and from there, I caught the Purple Line to 7th and Metro and walked another 15 minutes or so to the hotel where I met up with Manuel.

Over the next few hours, the rest of our roommates and friends came in and the party slowly started which was mostly drinking and singing along to whatever music was playing on the speaker at the time. We also tried to get a game of Jukebox, the karaoke musical that was recommended by Lemar the Con Guy during our interview with him at Anime Los Angeles earlier this year. We got through about four songs before it ended because our other players were too drunk to continue.

Day 1 (7/4):

I woke up early and headed out about 8:45. I arrived at the con center around 9:00 AM which I believe is the time the gates were supposed to open. Anime Expo is (in)famous for being a con that’s all lines. Last year, I waited more than an hour just to get in on day 1. This year, I was able to get in to the con in before 9:15. Is linecon dead? I guess it will take more time to see.

Blue Miburo Premiere

Based on the manga, Blue Wolves of Mibu by Tsuyoshi Yasuda, this was the anime I knew the least about before attending the AX premiere this year.

It tells the tale of a young boy named Nio. One day he meets Hijikata Toshizo and Okita Souji, two ronin from Mibu who would later become founding members of the Shinsengumi. What plays out in the first episode is a fairly standard “Two tough looking guys come into town. Mysterious events are happening and people suspect that they’re part of it” plot that serves more to set up the premise of Nio joining them in hopes of making the world safer for the most vulnerable including children like him.

If I had to pick one word to describe this premiere, it would be “Average”. I can’t think of much that makes it stand out from other historical fiction series but I also can’t think of anything that would turn most people off. At worst, it’s a little too on the nose when characters like Nio are speaking their mind about Japan towards the end of the Tokugawa Shogunate and the start of the Meiji restoration. I’ll probably watch it just because I think this period in Japanese history is pretty cool.

Conclusion: Give it three episodes

Spin the Wheel

This was a trivia game where two teams of three had to answer anime questions and if they got it correct, they spun the wheel to determine the number of points they got. If neither team got it, the audience got to answer it. I got to answer a question about Uma Musume: Pretty Derby. I’ve never seen the show. I just figured it was the answer to a question about characters named after racehorses. Overall, it was a fun panel but the variable nature of gaining points made for a very swingy game where one team basically had double the points of the other one. I also would have liked for more than two teams getting the chance to play on the stage.

Batman Ninja vs Yakuza League / Suicide Squad Isekai Event

This was another interesting one. It was in the Nova theater in LA Live. There was a short trailer and interview with one of the directors, the character designer and the screenwriter for Batman Ninja vs Yakuza League. It looks like it’s going to be an interesting sequel to the original Batman Ninja that shows Batman and Robin against alternate versions of the Justice League known as the Yakuza League. The poster shows off a version of Green Lantern, Wonder Woman, Flash and Aquaman all with yakuza tattoos and Green Lantern using a Japanese chōchin instead of a more traditional lantern.

The main part of this event was dedicated to Suicide Squad Isekai. Episode 1 of the anime was shown dubbed. The first four episodes are currently available on Max and Hulu though at time of writing, only Hulu has the episodes dubbed. This isn’t a review or preview of the episode but I think it was a solid start. I think I’ll have to get used to the new voice of Harley Quinn but the action was good and I really liked this version of Clayface/Basil Karlo. The only thing I could do with less of what felt like obvious name dropping of other WB franchises. Harley mentions being woken up by Tweety Bird, watching every episode of Game of Thrones and thinks the world they’re in is a Lord of the Rings set. One on its own would have been okay but together felt a bit too much.

After the episode, there was talk with the director and producer about the show and the upcoming episodes. Now, I’m looking forward to seeing what is coming next.

Finally, there was a performance of the ending theme “Go-Getters” by the artist Calliope Mori. The song is catchy and getting to hear it live or at least as live as it can be for a VTuber was nice. I just wish the audio had been mixed better for a concert and showing. That was a running theme of the day.

J-Pop Y2K: A Guide to Japanese Pop in the 2000s

Manuel’s panel on the 2000s Japanese pop scene was interesting. He’ll have put the slides up on the site by now so check it out there. Sadly, the dominance of AKB48 and Arashi means we’ll never see a 2010s J-Pop Panel.

Momentary Lily Ep 1 World Premiere

If you thought this was going to change your opinion on studio GoHands, I am sad to report that it will more than likely not do that. I liked K and was willing to give their Tokyo Babylon adaptation a chance before it got canceled. Other than those two, I only really knew GoHands for their reputation as a studio that seems to over-animate and under-direct which leads to the hot mess that is this episode.

In the course of 24 minutes, we’re introduced to six girls each fitting into some broad (no pun intended) archetype like The Leader, the Gyaru, the Gamer, the Big Sister and the Amnesiac. They use cool weapons to fight monsters in the ruins of post-apocalyptic Japan. I’m not entirely sure if the monsters are supposed to be robots or aliens or maybe alien robots but that was lost in the frantic pace this episode moved it.

The main characters also have to scavenge for food in the ruins and have been surviving off the few freeze, dried or packaged foods that haven’t already gone bad. There’s a quick scene where the new girl teaches them to make the food taste better and be more nutritious but it’s over just as quickly as it began thanks to the pacing issues.

After the premiere, I got to talk with friend of the channel MrAJCosplay and we shared many of the same thoughts that you can find in their write up for ANN. The only thing I might add is that the big sister character Erika, due to the excessive amounts of animation, she breasts boobily in a way I don’t think I’ve seen since Highschool of the Dead.

There’s about six months between now and the actual premiere in January so maybe there’s time to turn this around or the later episodes will be a massive improvement over the first. At the moment, I can only suggest you stay away unless you’re the kind of person who likes watching a train wreck in real time.

Conclusion: Skip it.

2.5 Dimensional Seduction Premiere

The third and final premiere of Day 1 also brings the day to a close in the room where it began.

Based on the manga of the same name by Yu Hashimoto, 2.5 Dimensional Seduction is a romcom and a love letter to cosplay and fandom. Main character Masamune Okumura is the president and at the start of the series, only member of his school’s manga club. He is the kind of otaku who proudly and unironically says “2D > 3D.” He is dedicated to his waifu Lilliel and would never consider “cheating” on her.

All of that could change as soon as he meets Ririsa Amano, an aspiring cosplayer who is just as big a fan of Lilliel and asks him to help her with her cosplays and her dream of creating her own cosplay photo CD.

Will Ririsa’s cosplays and general nerdiness finally make Masamune see the appeal of real women? Probably. I don’t think this is going to go off in any unpredictable direction but after two episodes, it’s definitely shaping up to be a fun ride.

If you saw the episode of UPZ where Fangy and I talked about our anime 3x3s, you might remember that I put Girlfriend, Girlfriend on there because I love this kind of slightly ecchi absurd romcom. I was laughing so hard at some of the situations in these episodes and if you have any interest in the kind of series, I suggest you watch it too.

Conclusion: Watch it

Day 2 (7/5):

MangaGamer Q&A with Sayaka Ohara

Sayaka Ohara is one of my favorite Japanese voice actors. I love her performances as Erza in Fairy Tail, Titania in Ancient Magus’ Bride and Yuuko in Tsubasa Chronicles and xxxHolic. This panel focused entirely on Umineko When They Cry so I had very little idea what they were talking about but it was interesting to learn how she was picked for the role of Beatrice and her process of having to act out all the different sides to her personality. She was also joined by the visual novel’s scenario writer and illustrator Ryukishi07 which allowed for an additional prospective on Sayaka’s work in the series. Overall, it was a good panel that probably would have been a great panel if I had known anything about the Umineko. I’ll probably fix that in the near future.

Re:Zero Season 3 World Premiere

If you remember from our recent anime tier list episodes, I love Re:Zero so getting the chance to see the debut of season 3 before anyone else was a chance I leapt at. I had intended to guarantee my spot by going to the Honkai Star Rail panel in the same room beforehand but I underestimated the combined powers of Mihoyo and Trash Taste. That line was cut off probably a long time before I even got to it. I wandered around a bit to kill time until that panel started and immediately returned to the line where I waited for about 90 minutes watching Kiki’s Delivery Service on my iPad.

The first episode of season three, set to premiere worldwide this Fall, is a 90-minute episode that occasionally feels like it might be better as four separate episodes. A while after the end of season 2, Subaru and Emilia are summoned the city of Priestella with the possibility of getting a crystal that can help Emilia achieve her goals. Over the course of the episode, more plotlines are woven in and different things start and stop which is why it might have been better as separate episodes. There’s not enough connecting all these things together but then, at the end of the episode, the stakes for this season are set. If I had been zoning out, the show had my full attention again. I can only hope that it keeps it up for the rest of the season.

Conclusion: Watch it.

This was followed by a Q&A with a few of the voice actors and production staff talking about their thoughts on the show and the upcoming season. It was a lot of fun.

WayForward Developer Panel

My final event of the day was the WayForward panel. I love the Shantae and River City Girls series so I’m always excited to see what they’re cooking up next. This panel went over their most recent games as well as some announcements about and first looks at parts of their upcoming titles and the Double Dragon DLC for River City Girls 2 that adds Billy and Jimmy Lee as playable characters. You can find my rough video recordings on our YouTube channel to see for yourself.

The panel also offered their advice and stories on getting into game devs and working on the projects as they showed them off. They also took time to answer as many fan questions as possible and had a small trivia contest. Sadly, I wasn’t picked for the RCG question I knew because they said I jumped the gun. I really wanted that Mighty Switch Force collection.

They closed off the panel with a special announcement that I won’t spoil here but you can check it out on our YouTube.

Day 3 (7/6):

Kayli Mills Autograph Session

My morning and early afternoon were all taken up by getting autographs from friend of the channel Kayli Mills. I woke up around 6 AM, showered and got to the con around 6:30. There was already a line a decent distance out from the Kisegi Gate. I sat there for a bit before the lines officially opened letting people inside to get into the line for autographs.

Yes, I was in line to get in line for a thing where I would have to wait in another line. I guess LineCon isn’t truly dead. I spent another hour and a half or so in line for the autograph ticket and got ticket #40 for Kayli’s signing. That was about 9:30 or so for a signing that started at 11:30. I decided to walk around a little bit before heading back to the hotel room for a short rest and to check in with my roommates most of whom hadn’t been awake when I left.

About 10:45, I left the hotel room for the JW Marriot where the signings were being held this year. Like I mentioned before, there was another line to get Kayli’s autograph but this was at least in an air-conditioned room that wasn’t packed with people so that hour or so was okay. I watched just watched so videos on my phone. When I finally made it to the front, I got my copy of River City Girls 2 signed along with my poster from the same game and my acrylic standee of Kayli’s character Misako.

Finally, I purchased a print of Kayli’s character Alice from Sword Art Online for Manuel because she’s his favorite SAO girl and he just “loves” having Kayli voice his favorite character as seen in our recent YouTube short. I immediately headed back to the hotel to give him his present and rest up before returning to the Marriot for the next event.

Oshi no Ko Season 2 Special Showing

This event was a presentation of episodes 1 and 2 of the second season of Oshi no Ko. I hadn’t watched the series until about a week before the convention and while I’m not the series biggest fan, I still wanted to see this.

We were let in really early and the place packed up almost immediately. It was so hot and I was so far back that I had trouble seeing the screen until some of the people in front of me either moved seats or left.

This season starts off right where season 1 left off with the beginning of rehearsals for the Tokyo Blade stage play that Aqua, Kana and Akane all have roles in. These first two episodes also dived into the logistics and behind the scenes happenings of the player which all came to a head when the original mangaka for Tokyo Blade showed up and got into disagreements with the production team.

It’s great drama and comedy but it occasionally feels a bit too heavy with exposition and like with season 1, it feels a bit too much when it’s Aqua being exposited at when another, less experienced character in the same scene would work better. I don’t think this ruins the episode but for me, it keeps it from reaching the same heights that it seems to hit for other people.

There was also a Q&A with the second season producer Shimpei Yamashita and the voice of Ruby, Yurie Igoma. I found it awkward that she was there promoting these episodes because Ruby only has a handful of lines in these two episodes but she was still oozing enthusiasm for the role and the upcoming episodes.

Finally, there was a giveaway based on the cards people were given when they came in the room. When it was announced, a decent chunk of the room, myself included, expressed confusion. I think in the process of letting us in early, they hadn’t had time to hand them out. It sucks for those who didn’t get the chance but I wasn’t terribly bothered. The prizes were a copy of season 1 on Blu-ray, the first volume of the manga and signed shikishi boards from just about every major Japanese cast member. In a happy coincidence, the winner was a cosplayer dressed as Ai so at least there’s a happy ending to this story.

Early Idols & City Pop: Music of the Showa Era

Despite the title sounding like it, this was not another of Manuel’s panels. It was another one that attempted to condense around 70 years of history into 80 minutes. Because of that, I think it was a bit too surface level look at the topic but as an introduction, it was pretty good even if I think Manuel would dispute some of the facts presented.

J-Pop Idols of the 1980s: The Golden Age of Show Era Pop

Manuel’s panel right after the previous one. Because it was restricted to one decade, it was able to focus more on some of the trends that popped up and some of the people involved. Manuel’s style is a bit more chaotic but still a bit easier to follow. He’s probably also posted the slides on our website so you can check that out now if you want to see the actual content.

After that, we all headed back to the hotel room and they partied while I was kinda just there. I don’t really drink or party and too many conversations going on at the same time wear me out pretty quickly so I just put my AirPods in and laid down.

Day 4 (7/7):

The next morning was mostly preparing for the trip back home. I packed up just about everything I could and cleaned up the room with the others.

Charity Auction

Just like with Anime Boston, this was my final event of Anime Expo. Sadly, there’s no audience participation catchphrase for me to yell here so nobody knows me. There were a lot of cool items like signed copies of games, game mat, skateboards and drawings by guest artists. There was even a signed shikishi that went for $4000. I was lucky to get four One Piece wanted posters for Robin, Chopper, Mihawk and Crocodile for $150. That was a steal in comparison.

And with that, my Anime Expo ended. I headed back to the hotel to pick up my luggage and headed for the train station to head home.

You can check out a different take of these events over on Ultra Podcast Z, linked below for your convenience.

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