If you haven't heard of Twitter, then you've probably just returned from a long journey into another dimension fighting an impossibly tough foe on behalf of a civilization that considers you their only hope for survival.  Or perhaps you were off frolicing with your mail order bride who turned out to be a powerful goddess who can grant your every wish (and get you into a ton of mischief while doing so).  Or [insert other random contrived anime plot here].

Anyway, Twitter is what some people call "microblogging," and what others call "lifecasting."  Basically it's a way that you can send quick (140-character) messages (called "tweets") to whoever wants to "follow" you.  Kind of a bizzrre alien hybrid of blogging and Instant Messaging.  And it's the latest craze that's taking the Internet by storm.

Oh heck, just watch this video.  It does a much better job of explaining Twitter than I could ever come up with.



Anyway, since we're always striving to be at the cutting edge, I have set up a Twitter account for the podcast.  Naturally, our Twitter username is "otakunopodcast" and our Twitter page can be found at http://twitter.com/otakunopodcast.  Setup a Twitter account for yourself (it's free) and add us as a follower to keep track of the latest anime news, podcast releases, and various other goings-on in the otakuverse.

In other news, Anime Expo, one of the largest anime conventions out there, is happening next weekend!!  July 3-6 (that's Thursday through Sunday), to be precise, at the Los Angeles Convention Center.  If you haven't been to Anime Expo, then you haven't lived life, my friend.  If you want to go, better hurry!  Online registration is still open, and there are still some hotel rooms available.  For more information, check out the AX website.

Yes, I know, I owe you guys an episode.  Turns out June is an incredibly busy month.  We've had 2 graduations and a wedding, most of which were on opposite ends of the state.  A LOT of driving and staying in strange and bizarre places.  And of course no time to put together a show.  However, I'll try to get something out this weekend.  The topic, of course, will be Anime Expo - what you should expect to see and do there, tips and tricks on how to survive a ginormous anime convention, and of course some anime news and maybe even some reviews, if I can get through them.  Stay tuned!

Sorry for the lack of updates, people.  It's been a rough year so far.  (for more details, please check out our website, otakunopodcast.com).  Anyway, I didn't have time to do a show this week, but I do finally have the Anime LA 2008 highlight video put together.  So here it is, for your enjoyment.  New show coming soon, hopefully by next week.  Yes, I'm working on it!  :)

EDIT: Yes, I know, the video claims that it was held at the AirTel.  The AirTel was, in fact, the location of all previous A-LA's.  I made a mistake, okay?  ;-)

Finally getting through some of the con video that's filling up my hard drive.  Here is the Anime Los Angeles 4 (2008) video I promised... uhh, a while ago.

EDIT: Yes, I know, the video claims that it was held at the AirTel.  The AirTel was, in fact, the location of all previous A-LA's.  I made a mistake, okay?  ;-)

2008 has been a very rough year for me.  Faithful listeners will know that my family and I have been going through a personal ordeal with my mother's sudden diagnosis of terminal liver cancer.  Her condition suddenly worsened early this year, and so all of us have had to start preparing for "the end" and have been spending as much time as possible with her.  Between that and the numerous hospitalizations (due to complications surrounding her rapidly degenerating condition), not to mention keeping up with both a full-time job as well as part-time school, I haven't had any free time at all.

Unfortunately, she passed away in mid-March.  The good news is that she passed away peacefully, surrounded by friends and family.

I would like to thank everyone who expressed their sympathy, through email, on my blog, and over Twitter, Jaiku, Pownce, and Facebook.  Your thoughts and prayers mean the world to me.  Thank you.

Anyway, it is now about 1-1/2 months since the funeral, and things are finally beginning to return to a less chaotic state in my life.  In particular, I am now able to dedicate some time to restarting some "non-essential" parts of my life back up, including this podcast.  Thank you all for bearing with me through this extended period of "radio silence."

Tonight I'll be posting a quick "news only" episode -- convention season is really starting to heat up, and I want to update you folks on all the conventions that are coming up in the next few months.  However, I will also be producing a more full-featured episode this weekend, which I hope to release in time for Memorial Day.

In fact, this weekend (starting today, actually), FanimeCon will be rocking the San Jose, CA area.  FanimeCon is a fan run by fans, for fans, and has been serving the needs of Northern California anime fans since 1994.  Last year's event accomodated over 12,000 attendees - true, not the awe-inspiring attendee counts of other conventions such as Anime Expo, but still pretty impressive nonetheless.  Events include Guest of Honor panels, video and film screenings, game rooms (both arcade and video), an AMV contest, cosplay masquerade, dealer's room, swap meet, karaoke, dances, and live music.

Although pre-reg is closed, you can still buy tickets at the door.  Full-weekend memberships will run you $55, while one-day memberships cost $25, $30, $30, and $20 for Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and Monday, respectively.  Children 10 and under get in for free.

For more information on FanimeCon, check out their web site at http://fanime.com/

This was the Sailor Moon Henshin Ninjas skit mentioned by Danny Barer in the most recent podcast. Performed by the cosplay group "Underground Cosplay," this presentation won Best in Show Performance, and Excellence in Workmanship Open Division at the A-LA 2008 Masquerade.

I was able to make it to all 3 days of the Anime Los Angeles 4 convention. Once again, I have gathered together a panel of friends who were also able to make it to A-LA 4, and we give a summary of, and our review of, this convention. We also talk a bit about the upcoming Anime Expo convention, one of the largest anime conventions in the USA, which will be held from July 3-6 at the Los Angeles Convention Center. Finally, we talk about some of the anime that we've been watching recently, and give out some recommendations.

I didn't have time to go through any anime/manga news, new releases, or upcoming conventions; I'll put out a smaller "mini episode" with that information in it hopefully sometime later this week.

This week's panelists:

Myself, Donald Burr
Chad Page
Michelle Klein-Hass
Daniel Barer
Amy Bowen

Our anime recommendations:

Me - Kanon, Volume 1, sola.
Chad - Shana 1 - The Torch Bearer, Zettai Shonen, Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei, Gurren Lagann, Volume 1: Breakout!, Wings of Honneamise (Blu-ray/DVD).
Michelle - Persepolis
Danny - The Dagger of Kamui, Cat's Eye.
Amy - The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, Volume 1, The Travels of a T-Shirt in the Global Economy: An Economist Examines the Markets, Power, and Politics of World Trade.

Anime Los Angeles 4 will be held this weekend -- Friday, January 4 through Sunday, January 6 -- at the Burbank Airport Marriott, 2500 Hollywood Way, in Burbank, CA.

Guests of Honor include artist Bryan Wong, voice actor Vic Mignogna, and Mr. Tadao Tomomatsu, "Mr. Shake Hands Man," who will also serve as MC.  Many other guests from all parts of the industry will be in attendance and will also serve as panelists.

Musical guests include the bands/performers Lyv, Dig Jelly, Nick Smith, Lo:Lita, Pirates Charles, Jun Fan, Serafilia, Darkside Rising, Vaeidos, Black Crystals, Random, L2D, Ghost Town, Thee Out Mods, and Rusika.

Events include the AMV (anime music video) contest, Masquerade (cosplay competition), "Rum Party," dances, karaoke, and workshops and panels on many varied subjects.

A Con Suite is provided for quick snacks and refreshments between sessions; it will also play host to "The Blue Rose Maid Cafe."  Finally, there will also be console and tabletop gaming, video rooms (both anime and live action), a dealers' room, and an artist's alley.

Online registration is closed; however you can register at the door.  Full weekend or Fri+Sat or Sat+Sun is $50. Single-day memberships for Friday or Sunday are $20, for Saturday it's $30.  Cash or checks only please.

I will be there podcasting and shooting video from the convention floor, and will post periodic updates, availablity of bandwidth permitting.

For more information on Anime LA, check out their website at http://www.animelosangeles.org/.  Downloadable program guides are available at http://www.animelosangeles.org/anime-la/2008/pubs/.

Apparently my SkypeIn telephone number (401-6-ANIME-6) for the voice mail box expired late last month.  They usually send out e-mails about this sort of thing, before they expire; but for some reason I never got one for some reason (or perhaps it was eaten by a spam filter or some other internet anomaly).

I'll be restoring service to this line in a few days when my next paycheck comes in.  In the mean time, if you'd like to send in a comment, send it to us by email at otakunopodcast@gmail.com.

If you are a new listener, and heard about us through either the Feeble Force network of podcasts, or Allison Sheridan's excellent NosillaCast... welcome! Thank you for taking the time to download this episode, and we hope you stick around for many more to come!

In this episode, I discuss my review and impressions of the JTAF 5 (formerly JapanTown Anime Faire) anime convention, held November 10-11, 2007 at the Fort Mason center in San Francisco, CA. On the whole it was an enjoyable convention, but had some notable problems in terms of location and crowd control. Sadly, JTAF is going on hiatus, and have put all plans for next year's JTAF on hold until further notice. I certainly hope this does not spell the end of what I consider a very friendly and fun convention.

Pictures from the event can be found on my Flickr page, and a highlights video will be posted here soon.

We also discuss some of the latest news in the anime and manga community, including the following stories:

• Yahoo! Japan, eBay to link their USA and Japanese online auction sites
• The Anime Network, Sci Fi Channel add new anime programming
• Anime once again shut out of Annie award nominations
• Media Blasters Confirms USA Release of 2nd Season of Genshiken
• Code Geass to air on American Adult Swim in Spring 2008
• Japanese Anime Studios Confirmed for Batman Animated Video
• Bookstore moves manga section after parent's complaint
• USA, Japan propose limits on explicit online material
• New Manga series adopts classic American movies
• Japanese spa Yunessun introduces a new twist to the traditional Japanese hot spring (onsen)

Unfortunately, with the recent Thanksgiving holiday (and the craziness leading up to it), plus the continuing family medical drama I mentioned in the last update, I haven't had a chance to get an episode recorded and pushed out.  I hope to have time to write up something this week and record it this weekend, but again, I can make no promises.

I did make it to JTAF 5; however I was only able to attend for one day, and also I was unable to stay for the post-con wrap-up/gripe session.  My opinion of the con is that it is struggling through some very tough times but is doing the best that they can given the circumstances.  It was still a very enjoyable event and one which I will be attending in the future.  A full review as well as video will be coming soon.  (again, no promises as to exactly *how* soon)

Unfortunately, JTAF's future is in question at this time.  In a press release posted to the JTAF mailing list, the staff announced that plans for next year's JTAF, JTAF 6, will be "postponed until further notice," although they will continue to plan other anime-related events (such as the Otaku Bowl (bowling night for anime fans), Sakura Screenings rooms (anime and movie screening rooms at the Cherry Blossom Festival), etc.).

“The decision to postpone JTAF 6 comes at a time when anime conventions around the country are re-inventing themselves in order to attract more visitors in an era of internet-downloadable videos and online shoppers, replacing anime video rooms and dealers halls,� says Ray Nagar, JTAF’s Chief Director. “During that downtime, we plan to take a long-overdue hiatus from JTAF and collaborate with local organizations to plan activities for anime, manga and cosplay fans in JTAF’s absence. We would like to thank all of the companies and organizations that have supported us over the past five years and look forward to working with all of them again in the future.�

In another bit of troubling news, JTAF is now referring to itself as "JTAF (formerly JapanTown Anime Faire)" (where previously they were known as "JapanTown Anime Faire"), which seems to indicate that their disagreements with the San Francisco Japantown area and its owners/merchants remains unresolved.  A very sad bit of news, indeed.

The good news is that a relatively new, but growing, anime convention is right on the horizon.  Anime Los Angeles 4 will be held on the weekend of Friday, January 4 through Sunday, January 6, at a brand new location: the Burbank Airport Marriott Hotel and Convention Center, in Burbank, CA.  This convention, now in its fourth year, has become very popular as of late.  I attended the 2nd and 3rd years, and in that span of time, have watched this convention spread its wings and fly.  A-LA 2 (early 2006) had a homely "small con" feel to it; however, at A-LA 3 (early this year, 2007), a maximum attendance cap of 1500 was set, and was very narrowly missed.  And you could tell!  The hotel was literally packed to the rafters... so much so that both A-LA and hotel staff had to play "traffic cop" and crack down hard on such things as loitering for photographs, running in the halls, etc.  For the first time, A-LA had a "big con" vibe to it.  You could feel the energy and buzz of a level usually associated with a bigger con, such as Anime Expo.  Heck, there was a line about one hour long to get into Masquerade!  Yet, paradoxically enough, at the same time, A-LA 3 still had its "small con" homely feel to it.  I throughly enjoyed this event and have been looking forward to A-LA 4 all year.  It looks like A-LA 4 won't be disappointing in the least.  In a note posted to the A-LA web site, staff recently reported that the hotel room reservations for A-LA 4 have "exceeded all reasonable expectations of growth," and in fact, all of the rooms in the A-LA hotel block were sold out.  Perhaps this can be seen as a harbinger of what to expect early next year.

Pre-registration for A-LA 4 is still available through Saturday, December 15, for $45 or $40 (if you're a student).  Pre-reg prices include all 3 days.  Providing that the con isn't sold out, memberships are also available at the door for $50 for all 3 days, or $20 for Friday or Sunday only, and $30 for Saturday only.  All minors under the age of 15 who purchase a membership are entitled to bring one adult for free; this person does not need to be a member of their family (i.e. it can be a neighbor, family friend, teacher, etc.).

For more info and to pre-register online, go to the Anime LA web site at http://animelosangeles.org/.