The AX Report 1999

by Xoth, Master of Black Magic

Part Three: What’s Left?

    Not a whole lot, but if you’ve made it this far, you might as well keep reading.  I can’t promise it’ll be compelling, but it’s not like my other material is worthy of a Pulitzer anyways.  I’ll try and make things as interesting as possible, but as usual, with the convention coming to a close there wasn’t much stuff for me to work with.

Day 3: Movin’ Right Along
    We really didn’t do anything on Sunday.  I honestly don’t even remember going to the dealers’ room.  I think we slept a bit late, then spent most of the day leading up to check-out time cleaning up the worst of the mess in our room.  Since we weren’t about to spend an expensive extra night at the Anaheim Hilton, those who weren’t heading home were packing up and moving to a Super 8 Motel somewhere nearby.  So anyways, we checked out on time, did a final group photo session in the lobby, then headed for our cars.  I believe it was Sky, Johnmog, Zack and Amber who were leaving, which left me, Jaana, Kat, Daran, Mabis, Faris, Arty, and Golbez.  Gee, that’s still quite a few.  Err, anyway, once we left for the motel, that was pretty much it as far as official AX stuff.

    But don’t think I’m done with the con just yet; I still have one item of reportage left over. I must mention my third and most treasured purchase from AX ’99, Viz Comics’ first volume of Hayao Miyazaki’s comic series Nausicaä of the Valley of Wind.  I have no idea what prompted me to pick it up and start reading, since I didn’t even know of Miyazaki at that time.  Its art style is clearly not in the same as most manga (I’ve read that it’s more along the lines of European comics), but it is still fantastic graphic storytelling.  The plot is also fascinating; I was compelled to buy it just on an initial reading, not to mention seek the three subsequent volumes.  The story is set in a post-apocalyptic future; what civilization one sees are throwbacks to medieval kingdoms and nomadic tribal peoples.  The technology also seems archaic.  The designs of the airships are idiosyncratic, to say the least, and weapons consist of low-tech firearms and swords.  Meanwhile, looming over the pockets of humanity is the Sea of Corruption, a forest of poisonous fungi, giant vegetation, and insects as large as buildings.  The story shifts between warfare and strife amongst human factions and the quest of a few brave individuals, including the title heroine Nausicaä, to understand the cause and the purpose of the warped ecology.  What follows is an intense, profound, and often disturbing look at human nature and the relationship between humanity and the ecosystem.  Many of its themes anticipate his dark 1997 epic Mononoke Hime; it is worth noting that due to hiatuses to work on his films, Miyazaki completed the series in 1994, twelve years after he began it.  If you were impressed by the depth and the scope of Mononoke, then I think the Nausicaä manga is right for you.  A tremendous work spanning a good portion of Miyazaki’s career, its wonderful artwork and compelling story make it a true graphic novel.

    Well, now that I’ve finished with con stuff, I can get on with the story.  As I said above, those of us who were left moved to the Super 8 for a cheaper Sunday night stay (funny then that the room seemed just about as big as the Hilton’s room had been).  As we drove there, Jaana regaled us with amusing anecdotes of how her dirty mind continually shocked and appalled everyone around her.  The most memorable story was the time she was watching subtitled Sailor Moon episodes featuring Sailors Uranus and Neptune (the series’ famous resu couple), which prompted her prudish roommate to utter the now-legendary cry, “Oh my heck, they’re LESBIANS!”  I could go into some even more outrageous stuff but unfortunately there wasn’t any, for we arrived at the motel and, after the customary bit of confusion over the reservation, got our room key and moved in.

    Once we had settled in, we immediately set up the VCR and Playstation for another pleasant evening of gaming and anime.  We also decided to order pizzas, as no one felt like going out again; as we debated pizza toppings, we also fooled around with the PSX.  I remember there was some Final Fantasy-related extras disc someone had that we were checking out, but I can’t recall whose it was or where they got it.  Among other things it had 3D models of various FF vehicles that you could rotate for different views.  At any rate after that we began watching anime.  First on the evening’s program was Ai no Kusabi, a yaoi anime that Jaana had acquired.  I wasn’t really following the plot (take that however you will XD), but from what I seem to recall it was set in a futuristic society with a strict class structure, where upper-class prettyboys amuse themselves by having affairs with lower-class males.  The story focuses on one particular lower-class guy who wants to get away from his obsessive lover.  This probably isn’t accurate, but heck if I’m going to research it online.  I get enough gay porn spam as it is. XD  Anyway, we also watched Kodomo no Omocha for the first time ever.  (If necessary, consult my terribly inadequate one-paragraph series summary in the AX ’00 report; then search for “kodocha” online when that doesn’t make any sense. ^_^)  This was particularly memorable not only because it was our introduction to this wacky anime series but also because the fansubs were particularly crazy.  Each episode was prefaced by a series of notes explaining the more obscure references to Japanese culture.  Also, a few eps actually had Japanese commercials, also subtitled, along with them; one for Cocoa Krispies was especially outrageous (to give you some idea of it: “Eww, that came from the monkey???”).  Anyway, we watched Kodocha well into the early morning hours, bringing our AX experience to the perfect conclusion.

Day 4+: Comin’ Down
    ...But inevitably came the morning after.  Several people—Mabis, Daran, and I believe Faris—had to get to the airport, and I guess Arty volunteered to drive them there (he lives in southern CA, so he drives to AX).  That left me, Jaana, Kat, and Golbez; the four of us decided to have breakfast at Denny’s.  We did so, and then Golbez got a ride home.  So we began the long drive back to Utah.  This time, though, the eager anticipation was not there to sustain our high spirits, and we spent much of the ride in contemplative silence, the anime music blaring from the car speakers the only sounds accompanying the journey.  Of course, Kat lived outside Provo, so Jaana dropped her off first and then took me back to her apartment.  Since I didn’t have any hotel/motel reservations in Provo or anything.  Get your minds out of the gutter, people. :P  (Futile admonition, considering my audience, but I just want to establish innocence so as not to bring the wrath of Jaana down on my fragile head.)

    Jaana had work in the morning, and my flight was in the afternoon, so she was nice enough to leave me a note with instructions on how to arrange an airport shuttle pickup.  For that, and for her kind hospitality, I decided to draw up an impromptu thank-you note.  After breakfast and a quick shower, I called the shuttle service and then spent most of the rest of my time carefully writing the note and drawing a little sketch of my Xoth persona.  Soon I had finished, and minutes later the shuttle arrived.  After gathering my bags and taking one last nostalgic look at the tiny basement apartment, I shut the door and boarded the shuttle.  With that, I was off to the airport, and then home.

    Hmm, didn’t have much to say about those last couple days.  Well then, let me conclude by stepping out of narrative mode and evaluating the AX 1999 experience in relation to the subsequent AXes.  Looking back, it didn’t quite seem as fun as later cons.  Yet if nothing else, FFML/AX’99 has value as a beginning, an introduction.  It set most of the precedents and standards for this now-longstanding tradition, from dining at Japanese restaurants, to attending events together, to in-room anime and gaming marathons.  Also, for me it was an introduction to the wider world of anime fandom and conventions: cosplay, karaoke, exhibit halls, fan art, etc.  Additionally it exposed me to more anime and manga titles than I had known existed; I would even go so far as to say AX’99 marked my transformation into a full-blown anime fan.  I may not be as hardcore or as knowledgeable as some fans, but I haven’t gone a year since without visiting at least one anime convention; I think that says a lot.

     Last but not least, AX’99 established the tradition of FFMLers planning to meet IRL and share their interests with one another in person.  It hasn’t always guaranteed total harmony, but considering the flamewars that have erupted on the list it sometimes amazes me how well we manage to get along at these gatherings.  Granted, we haven’t yet managed to bring together mortal enemies, but with AX seeming to get bigger and bigger every year I’m sure (not to mention fearful) it’ll happen sooner or later. ;D  Anyways, to those who have been a part of the FFML/AX experience, Anime Expo is now more than a convention; it’s also a social event of sorts, a chance to meet and hang out with the actual people behind the online handles and personas.  AX’99 started it all, and, as my other reports can attest, it’s been going strong ever since.

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Disclaimer: This account contains a lot that could offend people.  Sexual content.  Drug use.  Profanity.  Violence.  Celebrations of Japanese culture.  Non-white people.  Crudely drawn pictures.  Sentence fragments.  If anything in this account offends you, find another web page. If your kid reads something that offends you, tell them to find another web page.  If you’re really ticked off by it, then e-mail “cosmic_chicken” at “excite” dot “com” so I can ignore you.  Certain characters, events, etc. referred to and depicted in this account come from Japanese animated films and television series and are copyrighted by their respective companies.

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