I wrote this on the train home from San Diego, at the conclusion of Comic-Con 2009. For me, this is the end of the con season; I don’t anticipate going to New York Anime Festival this year and it’s up in the air if I will return to Pacific Media Expo. Before I flood y’all with videos, I’d like to take stock of what the last month or so has been like for me as editor of Anime Diet, and as an avid con-going fan of anime.

To put it briefly: Anime Expo 2009 was more about work, and Comic Con was more about fun.

Note: this is not really a review of the conventions as conventions, of which there is plenty to talk about out separately. You can find out more about that in the forthcoming videos. This is more about what the cons felt like subjectively.

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Sign of the times.

I remember after last year’s Anime Expo hearing that, by comparison, the well-run Comic Con was a paradise compared to AX: the lines weren’t nearly as long, there were far more people but it didn’t descend into chaos, and they had professional staff running the whole show. I asked myself, wouldn’t it be nice if one day we could go and cover it, too? Finally, this year, Anime Diet had the chance to do just that.

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For me, this was the last day–I left early on Sunday. We couldn’t get any footage of Tite Kubo, either, so the vast majority of the content is from J Michael Straczynski’s panel, the Futurama panel, and other places.

In this, day 2, I spend lots of time in line–sometimes for nothing, get a signing from Edgar Wright, Simon Pegg, and Jessica Hynes, and interview a lot more people than usual lately. Enjoy!

Well, tiredness, bad Internet connections in San Diego, and life got a little in the way–but here’s the Day 1 video diary for this year’s Comic Con! Days 2 and 3 should be ready tomorrow. This episode is notable for having some big names in the video, namely Stan Lee and Samuel L. Jackson for Afro Samurai! (Which IS a real anime–it was conceived and written by a Japanese person, Takashi Okazaki, and animated by Gonzo. Plus, I reviewed the first episode long ago.) Comic Con, in general, has much more liberal film and photography rules–this sort of thing would not be possible for equivalent Japanese guests at AX or at Comic Con either (witness our lack of footage for Tite Kubo).

Incidentally–Paul screened this before I published this so hopefully, no hard feelings. :) He was a really cool guy to hang out with.

Days 2 and 3 will feature a lot more of the usual fan interviews. But this is the celebrity footage edition. Only from Anime Diet. :)

No video or photos were allowed. I guess this is the way Japanese guests are usually handled–it’s like AX. Starting in about 5 minutes.

1:15 PM – Kubo has entered the stage in sunglasses. Looks like a pop star or something.

1:16 PM – Kubo presented with an award from Comic Con Int’l. From the cheers I can tell the audience just got much younger than from the preceding Transformers panel.

1:19 PM – 10 kids from Japan are here, Shounen Jump essay winners. Also, we will be getting limited edition posters as we leave.

1:20 PM – “I am very glad to see you all, thank you very much” –Kubo

1:22 PM – Kubo thinks this is “immensely huge” compared to Japanese events. First impressions of being in America: he had to get his passport for this. Strong sunlight makes everything colorful here.

1:25 PM – Has Kubo done any drawing in his time here? (He has to produce 19 pages a week, after all.) He actually worked ahead of time so he could home here. Not a procrastinator (unlike me).

1:26 PM – Footage of his workspace. World exclusive. There are desks for his assistants as well, a big screen TV. Pictures of his chairs and metal suitcase he bought to come ovr here. A miniature TV just as decoration. A rare Bleach watch. Oddly enough, Bobobobo in some background art; he had asked a sketch/autograph exchange. The man has a vast CD collection, too (1200-1300 on a shelf; others stacked up). Picture of a kitchen, which is clean because they never cook!

1:32 PM – Upstairs: Kubo’s actual work area. Footage of him working with a ton of markers next to him. He’s coloring. HIs work chair was chosen based on design and he drew Aizen’s chair like it. Handing manuscripts and fan letters to his editor.

1:35 PM – Video portion over. Now questions from audience.

1:35 PM – What inspired him to become a manga artist? Decided when he was in elementary school. He became interested in architecture and design after he had already become a manga artist.

1:37 PM - Inspriation for Bleach: inspired by the image of Soul Reapers in kimonos. Wanted to draw something no one had seen before.

1:38 PM – Kubo puts character, not plot, first.

1:39 PM – What inspired him to put Spanish/Mexican culture in Bleach? Nothing intentional with the character Chad. However, he just sensed he had a Mexican heritage. Someone in audience shouts “Viva La Raza!”

1:40 PM – Where does he come up with the opening drawings? He puts characters in clothes he can’t get.

1:40 PM – Advice for aspiring manga artists: Seems stumped…”believe in your talent.” Do something you yourself must enjoy; otherwise it’s dishonest to charge someone for your story.

1:42 PM – How did Quincy and its name come about (JEREMY’S QUESTION!): “I created Uryu to be Ichigo’s rival character, so, for that, I put him in white clothing.” He uses arrows because it’s long range, and it will be difficult for Ichigo to fight him. The Quincys’ name is from his five point star; in Japan this is a symbol. If you call every archer a “Quincy Archer” it sounds like a person’s name, so he liked it.

1:45 PM – How do you draw action scenes? Plays rock music in his head as he draws it. He pauses the action and try to swing around in 3D mentally to find the best angle.

1:46 PM – When did he realize he had such a big fanbase in the US? Yesterday!

1:47 PM – Pancha Diaz, Viz editor asks: What part of the process does he enjoy the most? When thinking of the story, if it’s something he’s been waiting to do for a while, he enjoys it very much. Usually has a scene rundown of things to draw in his head. Connecting scenes are a bit harder. Inking is also enjoyable for him.

1:49 PM – Pancha Diaz again: How long between drawing and publication? Between 2-3 weeks. Diaz, by contrast notes, has to do 6 months in advance.

1:50 PM – Will there be an Isshin backstory? Yes! He knew from the start he was a Soul Reaper.

1:51 PM – Three minutes left. Is the Kon doll inspired by something from his childhood? Wanted to create something fake looking, where you put random things together–like a sewing line in the middle of the face. Backstory: a father bought a cheap stuffed animal for his child, and the child threw it away because it was ugly–that’s why he is on the street.

1:54 PM – Idea for Hell Butterflies: Looked up in a dictionary for word that goes well with “Soul Reaper.” It is a kind of butterfly that is another name for a real butterfly species. Prefers to fly in the dark, and it fits well with the Soul Reapers. End of panel.

Here are some pics from the Matt Groening panels. I only had my iPhone camera, as Matt the cameraman is with Jeremy waiting for the Kubo panel early. I left the Simpsons panel, which had no voice actors, early to join Matt and Jeremy who are already inside.

3:06 PM – Introduction, sweepstakes introduction

3:08 PM – Information about Bleach Day and the screening of Bleach movie, Kubo appearances. I will be going to the afternoon signing at 3:30-4:30 PM.

3:10 PM – Slam Dunk related events. Apparently Greg Oden, NBA star, will be helping promote it.

3:12 PM – Info about the Portfolio Review; Viz is making a venture into original comics publications. All kinds welcome, not necessarily manga-style. First to appear in their magazine Shojo Beat.

3:15 PM – Anime news: Blue Dragon, Vol 1 release (Sept. 16, 2008). Followed by a technical glitch. (Nothing new here for industry panels I’ve seen….)

3:18 PM - Naruto Movie 2, released July 29, 2008. To include the Japanese movie program booklet. (They should do that for all movies.)

3:19 PM – Naruto Movie 3, November 11th.

3:20 PM – Bleach Movie, Oct 14th.

3:20 PM - Buso Renkin Box Set, Vol. 2

3:21 PM - InuYasha Season 6 Box Set

3:21 PM - Hunter x Hunter, Vol. 1 (Dec 2008)

3:22 PM - Death Note Box Set Vol. 1 (episodes 1-20; Nov 18). Will include fancy box.

3:23 PM – Moving on to manga news. Shounen Jump 5th anniversary collector’s edition of Issue 1 (American).

3:24 PM – Shounen Jump Box Sets. We covered much of this info in the Viz Panel at AX 2008. New Info: Kubo brought some exclusive HD footage of his office and his home. :)

3:25 PM – Pokemon kids’ releases.

3:27 PM – Naruto “chapter books” (ie prose for children). This is a format created for the American audience.

3:27 PM – Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time manga. To be released in October.

3:28 PM – Spring 09 releases: BakeGyamon, Happy Happy Clover, Dinosaur Hour!, Leave it to PET! (a recycling adventure)

3:30 PM – Shojo Beat announcements: Fushigi Yugi 3-in-1 volume, Hot Gimmick 3-in-1, Heaven’s Will (Jan 2009), Magic Touch–a manga about massage (Jan 12 09), Otomen (notice the pun?, Jan 12 09–the guy IS straight though), Honey Hunt (Mar 16, 2009)

3:33 PM – Viz has permission to show Vampire Knight clips–but they have NOT licensed it.

3:34 PM – Rumiko Takahashi’s One Pound Gospel

3:34 PM – Black Lagoon manga (Aug 2008)

3:35 PM – Gestalt, Jun 2009. Sexy elves! Sexy, sexy elves

3:36 PM – Dogs, Volume 0. Dystopian. Apr 2009. Guns, swords, and action

3:36 PM – Ikigami (Death Paper): May 2009. Interesting premise.

3:37 PM - Viz Signature line: for more “sophisticated” type of stories. My guess is that this is aimed at adults and a bit more literary? Example: Real, by Takehiko Inoue (Slam Dunk). Also Vagabond by the same author.

3:40 PM – Inoue’s artbooks

3:41 PM – Solanin, by Asano Inio. Contemporary fiction. Oishinbo, the food manga that explains Japanese food.

3:44 PM – 20th Century Boys clip/preview. To be released in Feb 2009. “Rock and roll realism.”

3:48 PM – Another Naoki Urusawa project, Pluto, based on Tezuka’s Astro Boy. A reimagining of a story by Tezuka in Astro Boy.

3:51 PM – Only time for ONE question, from a manga newbie, about the lag time between publishing in Japan and publishing in the US. Usual answer: translation issues, distribution issues.

3:53 PM – End.

It’s the first day of Comic Con for press and 4-day-pass holders–not for anyone else! And really, the “Day 0″ moniker does not at all apply–you’ll see how crowded the Exhibit Hall is, and how long I had to wait in line just to get a press badge. This calvacade of a convention has already started, really…preview night was intended to give a few people a look at the hall before the crowds showed up. And all I have to say is: if this isn’t a crowd, what is??

Enjoy the video. I’m going to try to post one every night.

I've got my eye on you, Comic Con

This year, for the first time ever, Anime Diet is going to go to San Diego Comic Con–the biggest convention of any pop culture kind in America! From all the bombardments of email that I and the other press members of our humble site are receiving, it is definitely on a totally different scale than even Anime Expo. For one, the vast majority of the events going on don’t have much or anything to do with anime, and plus, there are many, many more tons of events than any one organization can cover. So we have to be selective about what we attend.

But with that in mind, here are the list of things that Anime Diet officially intends to cover. The three of us who are going (Jeremy, Matt, and myself) also plan to go to other events for various sci-fi things that we are interested in as individuals. But this is what the website will officially be doing and will appear as liveblogs, posts, and (of course) videos.

Thursday (July 24)

• Afro Samurai Resurrection Panel (Room 6B, 4:15PM-5:15PM): I’m not really a fan of Afro Samurai. I gave it a rather mediocre review, for one. The only reason I’m even considering coming to this one is because Samuel L. Muthaf%!#@$% Jackson is actually going to be present! I suspect, however, we may not be able to get in the door, and probably not going to be taking any video. Which, if that’s the case, I’ll just head on over to the
• Bandai Panel (Room 4, 5PM-6PM): this year’s AX Bandai Panel had only one licensing announcement for Hayate no Gotoku. Will they announce anything else this time? After all, Funimation isn’t here to spoil the party like at AX…

Friday (July 25)

• Viz Panel (Room 2, 3PM-4PM): this is the main Viz panel, where licensing announcements and such happen. This, of course, is going to be overshadowed by

Saturday (July 26)

• Tite Kubo Panel (Room 7AB, 1PM-2PM): We are at Comic Con mainly because of this man, the creator of Bleach. Unfortunately, we are not going to be able to get a private interview as the slots filled up extremely quickly. However, we can at least try to get a question and signing in sometime during the week of the con. But we will definitely be liveblogging this at least, if not posting videos and pictures (depends on policy).
• Masquerade (Ballroom 20, 8:30PM-11:30PM): Let’s see how this masquerade is run compared to anime cons. Especially since this year’s AX one was so short.

I will be trying to get signing tickets early for the Tite Kubo signings as well, which are taking place twice during the con, in which only 100 people get a signature. It will help make up for a lack of an interview.

I will also be trying my best to put out the video diaries on the same day, if at all possible. My extreme weariness prevented me from doing the same at AX, and it cost us a lot of viewers as a result. I’ll try not to make the same mistake again. I will also try not just to interview anime/manga cosplayers, but some of the other nerds dressed up in other franchises too. We are all united, in the end, by our geek culture!

Anyways, I will be heading to San Diego on Wednesday to pick up my press badge and get a nose in for Preview Night–and then the festivities begin on Thursday. Stay tuned!